PRESIDENT MacDANIELS: I think that is right, and I think the thing to do, Mr. Dowell, would be to be sure that the new president is apprized of the Michigan point of view in that regard. He will be the chairman of the new Board of Directors, and this is simply a motion to consider it. It doesn't go any further than that.
Is there any further business to come before this group at this time? If not, the other item on the agenda, as it is stated, I believe, is a presidential address.
The Forward Look
Presidential Address, by L. H. MacDaniels
As the retiring president of our Association, it is a time honored custom and a privilege to give what is often referred to as the presidential address. I do not have in mind giving an address but rather to consider with you informally the present situation of the Northern Nut Growers Association and to give my ideas as to what we might do to improve our position and forward the purposes for which the Association was organized in 1910.
Time does not permit recounting the history of the development of the Association. This has been done on several previous occasions. I will, however, go back to the 1945 report in which under the title "Where Do We Go from Here" I tried to pick up various aspects of the condition of the Association immediately following the war and point out areas to which special attention should be given at that time.
Considering our situation in 1952, it appears that many of our problems are about the same as they were in 1945 although in some areas definite progress has been made. A quick look at our problems then and now is perhaps pertinent to the present discussion. One of these is variety evaluation. This still remains one of the important areas where we need much more information particularly as to the success or failure of different named clones of nut trees in various regions. Perhaps it is time for us to carefully summarize whatever data we have accumulated as to the adaptation of varieties or at least make plans for extending a program of evaluation. Since 1945 our survey committees have been active and have secured information that will certainly be helpful.
The problem of judging standards has been clarified somewhat. It is my personal opinion that the judging schedule for varieties of black walnuts worked out with the assistance of Dr. S. S. Atwood is on a sound basis and might well receive much wider use. Following along somewhat the same pattern, suggested schedules have been proposed for the hickories and butternuts. These should receive further consideration and adoption, if approved at least on a tentative basis. A schedule for Persian walnuts is very much needed as indicated by the recent contest in which confusion occurred related to there being no recognized standards of evaluation. With the Persian walnut such matters as the method of cracking and the importance of such characters as sealing of nuts, recovery of whole halves and others should be agreed upon.
Our procedure in naming varieties is still somewhat chaotic. Possibly we should adopt the general pattern of the American Pomological Society. Their example of setting up an approved list of varieties for planting on a regional basis is worthy of consideration. Even though such a list were tentative and incomplete, a start which would embody the best information we have would be valuable.
Securing new varieties of, hardy nut trees through breeding has made some progress. Most encouraging is the work of the Federal Experiment Station at Beltsville where Doctor Crane and Doctor McKay and their associates are using modern techniques in securing new varieties of hardy nut trees. Some progress in hybridization, of course, has been made, particularly with the filberts, the hybrids developed by J. F. Jones, G. L. Slate, S. H. Graham, Heben Corsan and some others, showing great improvement over previous European varieties in their adaptability to the northern United States. At the present time there are filbert varieties of hybrid origin better than those in the nursery trade which should be propagated and made available. Work with the Chinese chestnuts has also been valuable.