THE  WATSON 
Botanical  Exchange  Club. 
REPORT  FOR  1904-1905. 
The  number  of  specimens  contributed  this  year  (by  24 
members)  was  1,991,  more  than  300  in  excess  of  last  year, 
owing  mainly  to  the  very  large  contribution  from  Mr. 
Bickham,  whose  excellently  prepared  plants  proved  most 
acceptable.  It  is  a  pleasure  to  add  that  the  plants  sent  in 
were,  on  the  whole,  most  satisfactory,  although  in  several 
instances  an  improvement  might  have  been  possible. 
Unfortunately  many  of  the  critical  genera  have  been 
omitted  altogether  or  are  only  sparingly  represented,  and 
consequently  much  of  the  usefulness  of  the  Club  is  lost. 
The  Ranunculi  and  Rosoe  are  less  numerous  than  could 
be  wished,  whilst  the  Rubi,  Euphrasice  and  Fumarice  are 
quite  up  to  the  average  of  recent  years  :  of  the  latter  a 
good  supply  of  fine  specimens  of  F.  occidentalism  Pugsley,  and 
of  an  unnamed  form,  enabled  the  Distributor  to  provide 
most  .members  with  specimens. 
A  great  decrease  was  noticeable  in  the  number  of  aliens 
sent  in  as  compared  with  several  previous  years  ;  this  is 
much  to  the  benefit  of  the  Club,  as  most  members  prefer 
British  plants  only.  It  is,  however,  to  be  regretted  that  many 
members  contributed  plants  that  are  not  in  the  Desiderata 
List.  This  forgetfulness  of  the  rule  involves  additional  work 
for  the  Distributor,  who,  moreover,  usually  has  to  dispose  of 
such  plants  to  members  who  have  not  asked  for  them.  It 
is  desirable  that  those  who  wish  to  include  in  their  parcels 
good  specimens  of  any  rare  or  critical  species  and  varieties 
that  are  not  in  the  List  should  first  communicate  with  the 
Distributor. 
