EEPOETS OF nOETICULTURAL SOCIETIES. 23 



n. 



REPORTS OF 

 HORTICULTURAL SOCIETIES. 



There are many Horticultural Societies in the United 

 States that publish an annual report of their proceedings. 

 These volumes usually contain a large amount of valuable 

 matter, which would interest and instruct others besides 

 the members of the Society from which they emanate. 

 But under the present system of issuing only a sufficient 

 number of copies to supply members, the public at large 

 are debarred from any benefit therefrom. Now, as it is 

 chiefly from the local experience of individual horticultu- 

 rists in different sections of the country that we are to 

 determine the true value of any Horticultural product, 

 therefore by collecting the information desired from the 

 various reports, we can very readily ascertain whether 

 any variety of fruit, flower, or vegetable is adapted to 

 general cultivation, or merely to certain soils and circum- 

 scribed localities. It may be said that every one who de- 

 sires the reports of Societies should become members, and 

 thereby be entitled to them ; but this would not be exactly 

 fair, inasmuch as members who reside at a distance would 

 be debarred from attending meetings and exhibitions, 

 consequently receive no benefit, except that derived from 

 the published reports, which in many instances would not 

 be worth the cost of subscription. In these days of cheap 



