88 
THE NATIONAL NURSERYMAN. 
The National Nurseryman. 
C. L. YATES, Proprietor. RALPH T. OLCOTT, Editor. 
PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY 
The National Nurseryman Publishing Co., 
305 Cox Building, Rochester, N. Y. 
The only trade journal issued lor Growers and Dealers in Nursery Stock of 
all kinds. It circulates throughout the United States and Canada. 
OFFICIAL JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF NURSERYMEN. 
SUBSCRIPTION RATES. 
One year, in advance, - - - - - $1.00 
Six Months, ------ -75 
Foreign Subscriptions, in advance, - - - 1.50 
Six Months, “ “ 1.00 
Advertising rates will be sent upon application. Advertisements 
should reach this office by the 20th of the month previous to the date 
of issue. 
Payment in advance required for foreign advertisements. 
|pW°Drafts on New York or postal orders, instead of checks, are 
requested. 
Correspondence from all points and articles of interest to nursery¬ 
men and horticulturists are cordially solicited. 
Entered in the Post Office at Rochester , os second-class matter. 
Rochester, N. Y., August, 1896. 
TO IMPROVE CONVENTIONS. 
It was generally remarked at the Chicago convention 
that the address by Professor Bailey was one of the most 
valuable addresses to the nurserymen that have ever been 
given at the conventions. And here lies a suggestion 
that it seems to us should be studied. Why should not 
the American Association provide more addresses of such 
a nature for the annual meetings? 
There are available other distinguished authorities 
whose presence and advice could be obtained and in this 
way the members would feel that they had indeed been 
benefited by instruction not otherwise readily secured. 
Well-directed questions would bring out a discussion 
which would make the reports of the proceedings invalu¬ 
able, and the papers and addresses by these experts 
would in this way be doubled in detail and adaptability 
to all sections of the country. 
It is true, this plan would entail some expense ; but 
how could the funds of the association be put to better 
practical use. Certainly sucfi a plan would in the end 
prove more satisfactory than a sail on a lake, which by 
the way is all very well in lieu of anything better. 
At the recent mid-summer meeting of the Wisconsin 
State Horticultural Society, at Waupaca, Professor Goff, 
of the University of Wisconsin, delivered an address in 
which he touched upon this subject. He said : 
While, in this paper, I certainly do not desire to displease anyone, I 
incline to fear that some sensitive people may possibly feel a little 
hurt. If so, I ask your kind forbearance, and that you will at least be¬ 
lieve that these criticisms are offered because they are supposed to tend 
toward the greatest good for the greatest number. 
The title of this paper suggests that, at least in the opinion of the 
writer, our society is not in all respects what it might and should be. 
The question under consideration is, “How can we improve our 
society ? ” It should be our aim to make this society as interesting and 
profitable to its members as it is possible to make it, and we should be 
content with nothing else. 
I suggest first, as perhaps most important, we can improve our 
society by raising the standard of the papers presented at our meetings. 
The custom of inviting local societies to send a delegate requiring such 
delegate to present a paper, when we have no knowledge as to who 
the delegate is to be, and no assurance that the so-called paper is worth 
the time of your society, or the space required to print it in our transac¬ 
tions, is to be deprecated. Such papers are all right for local societies, 
but with rare exceptions, they are out of place in the meetings of a 
state society What inducement has one to travel fifty or a hundred 
miles to attend a state meeting, if the papers presented are not of a 
higher order than those of the averge local society ? But you will ask 
“ How can we do this ?” One way will be to use some of the money 
now paid for delegates’ expenses to procure papers from specialists 
from our own and other states, upon subjects in their chosen lines. A 
paper by Robert Douglas on evergreens, by Jackson Dawson on propa¬ 
gating trees and shrubs, by William Falconer on ornamental shrubs, 
by Professor Bailey on plant breeding, by Professor Van Deman on 
orchard fruits or by Mr. Galloway on fungous diseases, would do more 
to raise the standard of our transactions than many times the cost paid 
as expenses for delegates of local societies. It may be doubted by some 
if such men as these can be procured. If you look through the pub¬ 
lished transactions of the Western New York Horticultural Society, 
you will find that they abound in papers written by this class of men ; 
yet this society receives no state aid, but is entirely supported by the 
voluntary contributions of its members. Men of this class are not so 
difficult to secure, as is often supposed. I know the Department of 
Agriculture has sometimes paid the expenses of its workers to the meet 
ings of the Western New York Horticultural Society when requested 
to do so. 
In writing this I would by no means ignore the fact that we have 
specialists among our members, and that these have from time to time 
presented excellent papers at our meetings, but it is quite as true that 
we need to broaden the field from which we draw our supply of useful 
information that it is the chief office of this society to disseminate. We 
should hear more from the specialists of the other states. I do not 
mean that we should use no home talent that does not fall in the cate¬ 
gory of the specialist. A paper from an obscure cultivator may have 
more real practical value than one from a learned professor. We 
should insist however that every paper should contain some useful 
knowledge, and should be written by one who feels that he has some¬ 
thing to say on his subject, rather than by one who feels that he has 
to say something. With rare exceptions, a paper that has nothing to 
commend it except that it is entertaining is out of order on the pro¬ 
gramme of a state horticultural society. 
Every session should have at least one paper by a man of national 
reputation, whose testimony in his special field will be so valuable that 
our horticultural workers can not afford to lose it. When this good 
time comes, we shall not need to pay the expenses of our members to 
induce them to attend our meetings. 
NEW PRODUCTIONS OF MERIT. 
We call attention in this issue to several new produc¬ 
tions in fruits and flowers which have been endorsed by 
those whose opinions are entitled to much consideration. 
We shall be pleased to publish the results of observation 
on the merit of new varieties by our readers and cordially 
solicit reports. While there is a proper objection to the 
advocacy of novelties which have not been tested or 
which have been proved to be of doubtful value ; there is 
a demand for reliable information upon new varieties 
which have proved valuable. 
Space is given, also, to a defense of the Industry goose- 
