■ 



VOL. LV.— No. 3,065. 



SATURDAY, JULY 27, 1912. 



THE 



GARDENERS 



MAGAZINE 



NOTE OF THE WEEK. 



4- 



Horticultural Societies. 



In a earrful examinatiou of i the lengthy 

 list of horticultural societies which forms 



important a feature of the " G 

 ar Book,'' the mind hecomes 



so im- 



pressed Iby their numbers that the question 

 arises whether all or any considerable pro- 

 poi^tion of these organisations 

 are fulfillinig their mission 

 in such manner as to render 



substantial 



the 



service in 

 advancement of horticulture. 



of all 



The pri 

 societies 



objec! 

 hold 



one or 

 more exhibitions during the 

 year should be the encour- 

 agement of horticulture gene- 

 rally , or some br aneh of 

 the gardening art, and the 

 means Iby which this object 

 can be attained is the pre- 

 sentation to puJblic notice 

 of the plants, flowers, fruits, 

 and vegetables most worthy 

 of cultivation for various 

 purposes, and the demonstra- 

 tion of the highest example 

 of cultural skill. Soc*ie- 

 ties that have not such 



object 



have no 



m view 

 reason for their existence^ 

 and if they desire to have 



it as an psfif> n t i a 1 n a t of 



as an essential 

 their foundation, 

 either educate their mem- 



part 

 but fail to 



gene- 



bers and the visitors 

 rally in the art of selection 

 and cultivation, there is 

 full justification for enquiring 

 whether 



they are 

 useful 



really 



serving a usetui purpose 

 A satisfactory answer to such 

 an enquiry as this cannot be 

 obtained by staying at home. 

 The exhibitions of a con- 

 siderable number of societies 

 that may bo regarded as 

 fairly representing the whole 



ust be visited, and in an examination of 

 the products the powers of observation 

 should be exercised to the fullest extent. 

 Writing with a wide knowledge of what is 

 ^ing done by large numbers of societies in 

 various parts of the United Kingdom, we 

 are well assured that those who act upon 

 out suggestion and investigate the matter 

 for themselves with an open mind, will agree 

 with us that the present position of large 

 numbers of horticultural societies should 

 have the most careful consideration. We 

 have had the matter in mind for some time 

 past, and we have, as the result of obser- 

 vation over a wide area, irresistibly como 

 to the conclusion that the time has arrive<l 



when an endeavour should be made to so 

 reorganise horticultural societies as a whole 

 as to effect a great improvement in their 

 scheme of work. For a very long time 

 the number has been very large, and of this 

 number a considerable proportion have be- 

 come more or less moribund and incapable 

 of serving a really useful purpose. Some 

 began in a small way, and have so failed 

 to improve their position as to suggest 



the time and money devoted to them there 

 must he a considerable reduction in their 

 number. Leaving cottagers' societies out 

 of consideration, all the small bodies that 

 fail to fully justify their existence should 

 be aboIisluKl, for they represent a waste of 

 energy, time, and money, inasmuch as their 

 exihibitions do not properly represent the- 

 present position of horticulture, and they 

 have little educatipnal value. When 



these have been abolished 



horticultu 



lishing a series 



i upon estab- 

 of societies 



with 

 towns, 

 having 

 enable 



villages 

 but with 

 a sufficient 

 them 



associated, not 

 and small 



societies 



without any 



districts 



area to 



to give the 



sufficient support 



considerable 



sacrifice on the part of indi- 

 viduals, and to undertake 



of 



work 

 impor 



a higher degree of 

 :'e than is usually 

 attempted. vStrong district 

 societies distributed over the 

 whole of the country are the 

 great need of the present 

 day, and their foundation 

 may be readily accomplished 

 with the money that is now 

 being wasted on the small, 

 effete bodies that 



MR. E. HARRISS. 



are so 



numerous. The district socie- 

 ties should be managed by 

 committees whose members 

 are drawn from relatively 

 wide areas, and therefore 

 are representative in charac- 

 ter. To avoid the appear- 

 ance of being especially asso- 

 ciated with any particular 

 part of the districts, the ex- 

 hibitions should, as far as 

 practicable, be movable, and 

 be held in a different place 



the 



each 



that their foundation was due more to the hold the 



nually, as 



desire to provide offices for individuals 

 than to the hope that the organisations 

 would assist in the development of horti- 

 cultural enterprise in their respective dis- 

 tricts. It is a very laudahle desire to be- 

 come the chairman, vice-chairman, secro- 

 tary, and so forth of a soi'icty. providtxl 

 there is scope for good work, but when the 

 opportunities do not exist, and the ability 

 is not forthcoming to make them, the so- 

 ciety is unquestionably a iiindrance to 

 progress. At the present time, as for many 

 years tpast, there is a great redundancy of 

 societies associated with gardening, and 

 before thev can do work in prop^yrtion to 



year, until the really 

 suitable places have been ex- 

 hausted. In some cases- 

 it will be advisable to- 

 shows in the same place an- 

 , for example, where the chief 



central nosition. and 



town occupies a central position, 

 there are railway or other facilities for 

 reaching it readily from all parts. It will, 

 not be advisable to adopt a hard-and^ast. 

 1 ule with reference to the holding of the ex- 

 hibition, but strenuous endeavour should be 

 made to show in the clearest manner that 

 the societies are not specially associated 

 with particular towTis, but belong to the 

 several districts. Were this suggestion to 

 be acted upon we should once more see at 

 the majority of the exhibitions produce 

 of so high a quality as to properly repre- 

 sent present-day skill. Societies that are 



