REPORT OF COMMITTEE ON PLANTS AND FLOWERS. 131 



The sweet pea has increased in popularity from year to year and 

 has now reached a point where a special exhibition is necessary to 

 do it justice. 



The peony and dahlia, both old-time favorites, but for many years 

 almost forgotten, have through their inherent beauty and worth 

 forced themselves to the front, until our peony shows have eclipsed 

 the rose shows and the dahlia has attained a new beauty which en- 

 titles it to the first place in our autumn exhibitions. 



A wise course to follow, it seem to us, would be to exploit these 

 flowers to their fullest extent. They are the flowers in which the gen- 

 eral public is most interested and which are attracting a corre- 

 sponding commercial interest. We would include the rose in this 

 category, for although the interest in it seems not to be as pronounced 

 as it was a few years ago, it is only dormant and needs but little to 

 arouse it to its old-time life and energy. 



The honorary or special awards for the year have been numer- 

 ous, but very few of them have been medals and of these none 

 were higher than a Silver Gilt. 



The first award of this nature was made on January 21 to W. 

 A. Manda for a natural hybrid Lycaste, apparently between L. 

 Skinneri and L. lasioglossa. It was interesting from the fact of 

 its natural origin and Honorable Mention was awarded it. He 

 was also awarded Honorable Mention for Dendrobium nohile alba. 

 The specimen was a collected plant and bore flowers of a creamy 

 white color with crimson throat. He also showed a fine Cym- 

 bidium, C. Tracyanum, for which he was awarded a First Class 

 Certificate of Merit. 



A new hybrid orchid, Cattleya X Susanje, shown by E. O. 

 Orpet, was thought worthy of Honorable Mention. It is a cross 

 between C. Skinneri and C. Warneri. 



February 4 Mrs. J. Montgomery Sears was awarded Honorable 

 Mention for a seedling Amaryllis, deep red in color, of fine form 

 and large size. 



On February 11 there were several interesting new seedling 

 carnations shown, awards being made them as follows: 



To S. J. Goddard a First Class Certificate of Merit for Helen 

 Goddard which had previously been awarded Honorable Mention. 

 This is a beautiful flower of a light cerise-pink color. 



