No. 4.] FRUIT GROWERS' ASSOCIATION. 329 



season except possibly with dried oi* canned goods, but there 

 is no section of the country that can produce better apples, 

 pears, plums, cherries, grapes, blackberries, raspberries, 

 currants and strawberries, and a large proportion of these 

 fruits consumed by our people should be produced by our 

 growers. Of course we cannot put the fruit into the markets 

 as early in the season as that shipped from the South, but 

 we can put it into the hands of the consumer in its season, 

 in a much better condition ; and if we can keep our markets 

 fully supplied with extra choice fruit, either fresh, evapo- 

 rated or canned, at reasonable prices, we shall cut off, in a 

 large degree, the demand for southern and western and 

 inferior fruit. 



It is this situation which led to the formation of the Massa- 

 chusetts Fruit Growers' Association. The first me-eting was 

 held at Worcester, March 20, 1895. At this meeting, a 

 two-days session, sixty-seven members were enrolled. 

 Papers were presented on "The care and cultivation of or- 

 chards," by Prof. J. W. Clark of North Hadley; "The 

 preparation and packing of fruits for foreign markets," by 

 Geo. A. Cochrane of Boston; "Grape growing in Massa- 

 chusetts," by H. A. Cook of Shrewsbury ; "Insects and 

 fungous pests and remedies," by Prof. S. T. Maynard of the 

 Massachusetts Agricultural College ; and " The preservation 

 of fruit by cold storage," by Dr. Jabez Fisher of Fitchburg. 

 Mr. Cochrane advocated in his lecture the packing of fruit 

 for foreign markets in half-barrel boxes, divided into two 

 compartments, and that the fruit should be graded and 

 w^rapped as oranges are. 



The Massachusetts Fruit Growers' Association was organ- 

 ized, a constitution adopted, and officers elected as follows : 

 president, James Draper of Worcester ; vice-president, 

 Samuel Hartwell of Lincoln; secretary, S. T. Maynard of 

 Amherst ; treasurer, E. W. Wood of West Newton ; auditor, 

 C. L. Hartshorn of Worcester ; w^ith a board of twelve 

 directors. 



The second meeting was a field meeting, held on the 

 grounds of the Agricultural College at Amherst, on June 

 14, 1895, with about forty members present. Professor 

 Maynard explained the location of the many points of in- 



