CALIFORNIA AVOCADO ASSOCIATION 



39 



recitation of its various names. Not a word is said of its great food value. 

 We took the matter up with the American editor, offering to furnish the necessary 

 information and he replied that in the new volumes they would not attempt to re- 

 write the articles in the 1 1 th Edition but that when a new general issue of the 

 Brittanica is under preparation they will have an entirely new article on "Avo- 

 cado." Nothing daunted, Mr. Dutton proposed that, as the Brittanica is essen- 

 tially a British institution, we offer to furnish the information to the British editors. 

 By request of the president, he prepared the letter showing that the avocado is 

 being grown in some of the British Colonies, that its food value is fully recognized 

 and that the late war showed conclusively how necessary it is for England's 

 existence that every possible source of food supply be exploited to the limit. If 

 facts, figures, good English and close reasoning can avail, we should receive a 

 favorable reply. In any case we are indebted to Mr. Dutton for his interest, 

 showing the desirability of learning when new issues of dictionaries and reference 

 books are to appear and endeavoring to have adequate data on the avocado 

 included. 



When this Association reorganizes and becomes a co-operative marketing 

 agency it will become necessary to take up the questions of advertising and 

 publicity on a larger scale, and in this connection I wish to refer our growers to 

 a pamphlet on Co-operative Advertising which may be obtained from the Cali- 

 fornia Fruit Growers* Exchange, Los Angeles. The pamphlet, which would 

 repay our study at this time, contains a live address by Don Francisco, advertising 

 manager of the Exchange, in which he presents co-operative advertising as a 

 social service as well as a powerful sales force. 



State and Federal Co-operation. The revision of the Correspondence 

 Course on Avocado Culture offered by the University of California was 

 furthered by the appointment of a Committee consisting of Messrs. F. O. 

 Popenoe, Chairman, E. E. Knight, T. U. Barber, W. A. Spinks, Wm. Her- 

 trich and the president. Their report will be presented at this meeting. 



Prof. JafFa, in his researches at the University laboratory, on the food value 

 of the avocado, and Mr. E. M. Chace, in his work on maturity standards at; 

 the Citrus By-Products Laboratory, should have our earnest support. It would 

 require only a small part of our funds to supply these investigators with the fruits 

 they need for experimental purposes, and it would simply be a good business 

 investment. In addition to the problems upon which these men are now engaged, 

 there is much to learn about the cold storage of avocados and I have reason to 

 believe that the University would undertake some experiments if the fruits were 

 furnished. 



Our continued appreciation should be expressed to the Bureau of Plant 

 Industry of the U. S. Department of Agriculture for their aid to our industry in 

 the distribution of budwood and trees of new varieties. Some of the Guate- 

 malan varieties, introduced by Mr. Wilson Popenoe, have fruited in this 

 country and are very promising. It may be that among these varieties we shall 

 find some that are superior to any we have now. The introductions have been 

 handled fairly and impartially, only one complaint having been heard on this 

 score, and that an unjust one. 



Visits to Groves and Nurseries. It was the pleasure of your president 

 during the year to carry out a series of visits to avocado plantings 

 and nurseries. As far as possible it was planned to cover grounds not included 

 in the field days of directors and in previous visits and to give particular attention 



