THE NATIONAL NURSERYMAN. 
157 
the Mississippi and Missouri rivers. All this accounts 
for the vigorous and healthful climate we enjoy. At the 
World’s Fair we examined the Jonathan from Maine to 
Oregon. In the East we found it small, but good in 
quality, but our Iowa Jonathans were the very best in 
quality and color. West of the mountains we found 
them some larger, but inferior in quality. This we found 
equally true of all other fruits, so we believe that there 
is a great future for Iowa as a fruit state.” 
The Iowa State Register says : “ The re-election of 
Prof. J. L. Budd to the secretaryship of the Iowa State 
Horticultural Society, while he was not a candidate for 
re-election, and was and is in the sunny South seeking 
restoration of general health by a winter’s residence in 
that milder climate, was a grand tribute to Prof. Budd’s 
great usefulness to that society and to all the people of 
Iowa. No other man has accomplished so much for the 
fruit growers of the state, and no person has been less 
modest as to his personal achievements.” 
OHIO HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 
President George W. Campbell presided at the twenty- 
eighth annual meeting of the Ohio Horticultural Society in 
Columbus, December 12-14. Probably the most interest¬ 
ing part of the proceedings to a nurseryman were the 
reports on the behavior of new fruits. The Eureka rasp¬ 
berry was considered the greatest acquisition in that line 
since the introduction of the Gregg. The Eldorado 
blackberry was reported upon favorably. Professor Green 
thought the value of Minnewaski was not fully appre¬ 
ciated. Several spoke very highly of the size, beauty 
quality and productiveness of the Ohmer blackberry, 
introduced by N. Ohmer, introducer of the Gregg. It 
has never yet been known to be injured by cold. Pro¬ 
fessor F. M. Webster stated that he did not think there 
were any San Jose scales in Ohio. It was not considered 
advisable to plant the pit or seed where the tree should 
stand in the orchard. 
MISSOURI HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 
The annual meeting of the Missouri State Horticultural 
Society at Trenton, Mo., was a very successful one. One 
hundred and twenty delegates were present from all parts 
of the state, and several other states, including the presi¬ 
dent of the Michigan society and the vice-president of the 
Illinois society. Nearly all matters pertaining to fruit¬ 
growing were discussed. The root rot of the apple and 
the spraying for insects and fungus were among the sub¬ 
jects. The idea of taking more care in the propagation 
of trees was emphasized, and it was agreed that planters 
should be willing to pay for them when thus grown. The 
consensus of opinion was that the apple orchard trees on 
their own roots were the best. Breeding a hardier race 
of trees was deemed all important to the success of 
orchards. 
CALIFORNIA POMOLOGISTS. 
At the recent meeting of the Southern California 
PomologYal Society at Pomona, Cal., the entomologist of 
the society, Professor A. J. Cook, in his report said ; “ The 
experiments of the season prove conclusively that the 
presence of the paper or cheese cloth covers of themselves 
are no bar to fruitage. In every case of covered twigs 
where the fruit was artificially or hand-pollinated, or 
where the sacks were removed for a short time to permit 
the visits of bees, or where bees were caught and put into 
the sacks, fruit was secured. I believe these experiments 
are conclusive and need no repetition. They show us 
that much of our fruit, especially plums, cherries and 
pears, are utterly dependent upon insects for pollination, 
and that while bees are not absolutely required, they 
alone can be depended upon to perform this important 
service. They also show that some of our fruit, notably 
olives, lemons, and some varieties of pears and oranges, 
while not wholly sterile to their own pollen are largely so, 
and will only bear full crops when cross-pollinated. 
They show just as conclusively that some fruits, like the 
Royal apricot and Naval orange, are entirely fertile with 
their own pollen. A person like Mr. Koebele should be 
kept constantly in search, in Australia, Europe, or the 
eastern states, for these beneficial insects. There are no 
doubt other Vedalias, and the salary and expense of the 
person in quest of them would be a mere bagatelle, com¬ 
pared with the possible, I may say probable, outcome. I 
make no apology in urging all fruit growers to unite in 
demanding that Mr. Koebele, or some other equally com¬ 
petent man, be kept for a period of years in search of 
other Vedalias or Rhizobii, that we may not only be rid of 
the cottony cushion and black scale, but of the red and 
yellow, the pernicious and purple, and all others, and 
shall not be forced to the expensive, unsatisfactory and 
unreliable methods of warfare heretofore thought valua¬ 
ble and necessary. Again, it goes without saying that 
immense good might come from a wise and timely distri¬ 
bution of even our native parasitic and predaceous 
species. Mr. Craw did admirable work collecting and 
distributing the Rhizobii, but it would be more than wise 
to keep close watch of our orchards that any valuable 
species might be distributed.” 
In an interesting report on scale insects. Miss Jean 
Loomis, of Pomona college, said : “ Five years ago Cali¬ 
fornia was exceedingly disturbed over the scale insect 
question, and she had good reason to be. A soft white 
scale, introduced into a few orchards on imported nursery 
stock, had attained such proportions that it seemed likely 
to destroy our whole fruit industry. The story of the 
rise and fall of the cottony cushion scale is still fresh in 
memory, and we love to recall it only in connection with 
the lessons it taught us. The ladybird, Vedalia cardinalis, 
has many cousins and allies as ready as she to befriend 
us, if only we seek them out, and Icerya purchasi has a 
legion of confederates as ugly as he ready to slip in upon 
