238 



F I R S 7^ FRUITS. 



Robert Craig, 49th and Market streets, Philadelphia, 

 Chairman; I, Forsterman, Newtown, L. I.; Charles D. 

 Ball. 



Siib-Coimnittee on Bulbous Plants — Ernest Asmus, 

 West Hoboken N. J,, Chairman ; I. Forsterman, A. B. 

 Scott, loth and Catherine streets, Philadelphia. 



Siib-Comniitlee on Hardy Plants — William R. Smith, 

 U. S. Botanic Garden, Washington, D. C, Chairman ; 

 Robert George, A. B. Scott. 



The Nomenclature Committee will meet in session at 

 the Queens Hotel, Toronto, at 9 a. m., the day before 

 the Florists' Convention takes place in that city August 

 next. 



Chesapeake Horticulturists. — The Peninsular Hor- 

 ticultural Society of Delaware, Maryland, and the two 

 lower counties of Virginia, held its first annual meeting 

 at Easton, Md., January 20th to 23d. The meeting was, 

 without doubt, the largest and best attended one ever 

 held. The president's address reviewed the events of 

 the past year. It was largely devoted to packing fruit 

 and peach yellows. In regard to the former, he said 

 that the west, particularly the Pacific States, was teach- 

 ing us how to pack fruit. We should take pains with it, 

 especially the double extra and extra goods. Wrap in 

 paper and pack in small baskets, if possible. Thefruits 

 grown on the Peninsula are second to none ; California 

 grows large, handsome specimens, but often poor in 

 quality. In regard to yellows, he stated that he believed 

 it was largely due to using unhealthy stock to begin 

 with ; start with healthy seed and use buds from healthy 

 trees, and when you see a sick tree dig it up at once and 

 burn it. 



A. W. Slaymaker, of Camden, Del., spoke of small 

 fruits. Among other things he mentioned the Cuthbert 

 raspberry, which, he said, was brought to notice and 

 given its popularity by J G. Brown, of Wyoming, Del. 

 In speaking of strawberries, he said the past season had 

 been favorable to some and unfavorable to other varie- 

 ties. Among those that had done well he mentioned 

 Warfield and Bubach. From an acre of the latter a 

 man near him had cleared $500, while he only cleared 

 ^125 from an acre of Crescents. Warfield is a good 

 grower, a good bearer, early, and a good shipper ; had 

 brought 50 cents per quart the past season. Gipsy had 

 not done so well as in former seasons. Small fruits gen- 

 erally had been a short crop, but had paid well owing 

 to the high prices. 



Professor T. L. Brunk, of the Maryland station, spoke 

 of "Home Adornment," and showed by the blackboard 

 and stereopticon how such changes might be made, gentle 

 curves taking the place of stiff straight walks, and where 

 the different varieties of trees and shrubs should be 

 planted to the best advantage. 



Colonel E. L. Martin, of Seaford, Del., chairman of 

 the committee on transportation and marketing, advo- 

 cated the exchange system for handling fruit, and said 

 that the growers had never received better prices nor the 

 buyers better packed fruit than during the days of the 



Delaware Fruit Exchange. When asked what he 

 thought of the Fruit Exchange operated a few years ago 

 in Baltimore, the speaker said it might do, but he pre- 

 ferred to sell his own fruit at his own station. " It's a 

 mighty good feeling to get the money in your pocket as 

 soon as your fruit is sold at the station. I always like 

 to stop at the bank on my way home and leave my de- 

 posit. " 



Dr. A. F. Neale, Director of the New Jersey station, 

 read the report of the committee on "Registration of 

 Fruits." He advocated the plan of having the nameand 

 description of all fruits sold on the Peninsula regis- 

 tered with the Society, so that it should be a guide to 

 the planters. Any nurseryman, or dealer, who was not 

 willing to have his varieties so registered should not be 

 patronized by members of the Society. 



Dr. Erwin F. Smith, peach yellow specialist of the 

 United States Department of Agriculture, gave the 

 results of his experiments in the orchards of Delaware 

 and Maryland the past season. Upwards of forty acres 

 were under treatment in various sections, and all kinds 

 of fertilizers had been tried ; he had no faith in fertiliz- 

 ers either as a preventive or cure for yellows. Some of 

 them gave the tree a good growth, but had no effect as a 

 cure or preventive of the yellows. Nurserymen were 

 not to blame for the yellows. He had watched this and 

 had found that trees from one nursery took the disease 

 as badly as they did from another. The only remedy 

 he could suggest was to dig up and burn the tree as soon 

 as it was found to be affected, and this should be done 

 by all. The destruction must be complete. 



Experiments with grape rot, pear blight and potato 

 scab were illustrated by the stereopticon, by Professor 

 F. D. Chester, of the Delaware Experiment Station. 

 The experiments proved that these diseases may be kept 

 under control by the use of copper compounds. 



" Plum Culture " was a paper by J. W. Kerr, of Den- 

 ton, Maryland. Mr. Kerr has been very successful in 

 growing plums of the Chickasaw type. He says it is the 

 most profitable crop he can grow. He recommended 

 the following list for the Peninsula : Wild Goose, 

 Newman, Marianna, Purple Yosemite and Botan. He 

 said most of the Japan plums were doing well and 

 promised to become valuable acquisitions here. 



Professor Brunk thought the Japan pear seedlings 

 make decidedly the best stocks for the pear 



The Society will meet the third Tuesday in January, 

 1892, at Dover, Del. The following officers were 

 elected: Colonel E. L. Martin, of Seaford, Del., was 

 elected president ; J. S. Harris, of Still Pond, Md., first 

 vice-president ; Professor Wesley Webb, of Dover Del., 

 secretary, and A. L. Hudson, of Smyrna, Del., treas- 

 urer. Charles Wright. 



The Orchid Show. — The fifth annual orchid show, 

 under the auspices of Siebrecht & Wadley, was held at 

 the Madison Square Garden Amphitheatre, New York, 

 from March 4 to 12. Although the chief attraction 

 was the display of orchids, many other classes of plants 



