Now in regard to the publicity. We have followed a plan for a number of years in the South of publishing frequently what we call Nut Notes. They were gathered together by the editor of the Nut Grower. Whenever an item of interest to the public came to him in his exchange and from any other source, he made a paragraph of it and then at the end of the month, or perhaps two months, he would publish a little circular "Nut Notes," and that would be run off in some large number, and distributed to the nurserymen, or other interested people, and they would simply enclose it in their correspondence. They would send them to the local papers all through the South so that the things that were found worthy of dissemination in the way of new records and new ideas were constantly being sent to the local papers and to the interested people in that way. I have a vast sympathy for Dr. Deming. He is not drawing a princely salary and he has a lot of things to do. I know his heart is in this work and he would be glad to do these things but he must have help. These two ways I suggest to you are ways we have found in the South to accomplish a considerable work. Make a demand upon your experiment stations that this work be taken up and get Mr. Olcott to print the slips and then get the nurserymen who are interested and the local newspaper people to publish the nut notes that become available from time to time.
Mr. Olcott: I have knowledge of these circulars of Nut Notes sent out by Dr. Wilson in the South and have thought of doing something like it but have not gotten at it yet. I have exchanges and notices coming in that could be summarized just that way and even more extensively but I haven't had time to do this work.
The Secretary: I think this proposal of Mr. Bartlett's is very important and I promise Mr. Bartlett and Mr. Barrows that all the members of this association will help. I am sure Dr. Morris will be glad to give advice about planting this orchard. I haven't the slightest doubt that Mr. Reed will go there in his position as Nut Culturist of the Department of Agriculture. I think we ought to go ahead and do that without waiting for the Connecticut authorities, but at the earliest opportunity begin to try to interest them. They are not interested enough to go into it now. Some of the members of this association have got to start this thing and then we have got to interest the men at the agricultural experiment station. Two of them were here yesterday and have expressed their interest in the subject. We hope eventually that they will take full charge of such work which really ought to be in the hands of self perpetuating institutions and not in the hands of individuals. I can assure Mr. Bartlett of the hearty co-operation of this association in any planting of that kind and I wish that the steps might be taken at once to begin such a planting.
Dr. Morris: I would be only too glad to give him some trees to start with.
Mr. Jones: The nurseries growing these trees would be glad to cooperate and supply these trees at reduced prices for this experimental orchard.
The Chairman: There seems to be lots of interest in this matter but it ought not to be on a voluntary basis. It might be interesting to you to have an idea of how we have done that further south. In North Carolina we have definite nut projects on our experiment station's list. The work is outlined and funds appropriated for carrying it out, and workers and funds are assigned to that particular project. They have a regular definite program and when a project is once begun that project has to be reported on. It cannot be discontinued. It has to be continued until it is worked out. In that way we are getting something definite and we have some machinery to work with. At first we had no commercial nut growing. We instituted a nut survey of the state. We issued instructions for our extension men to look out for nut trees on the farms. Then we made a list of the growers and orchards. There we made experimental planting and we made them in every section of the state so as to find out what varieties were best for the different sections. We had difficulty in finding varieties for all of our conditions. We had experiment orchards in all of the various sections of the State which have been conducted now for ten years and we have very definite data. The man who writes in to me for information can be answered shortly. Every year we are getting new data. I think every tree that we can get from any nursery catalogue that I can find is in those experimental orchards. Every year eliminates a few. If the stocks are good we work them over. There is no uncertainty about it. It is either a positive or a negative result. These results are published just as soon as they can be. It is part of our experiment work just as we experiment with cotton or apples or corn. I made a suggestion in my paper for work of this kind here and I thought it would be picked up by the Committee on Resolutions, but it was not acted on. To get this matter crystallized and get it to the attention of the experimental station I think that the secretary ought to be empowered to write officially to the directors of the experiment station in the various states asking that a nut survey be made of those states and that nut projects be entered upon and especially the testing of the varieties that have been found in the various states.
Dr. Britton: Representing the Connecticut station I can say that the men there will be glad to help you, but they are in the same position as Dr. Deming, doing all they can at present, more than they ought to do, and most of the funds for that reason are arranged for in definite projects. That being the case, it will be necessary to provide for a future appropriation. During his war we are all short handed. I have four young men working in my department who have not had a day's vacation this summer—more work than they can do. At present we have no one connected with the station who is a specialist on nuts, and it would mean getting in a man to work up this subject. But I think that can be brought about in time. Of course if the legislature is asked for any appropriation, this association or those interested in growing nuts would have to help get the appropriation for the state.
The Secretary: Prof. Hutt is State Horticulturist of his state and he is also a specialist on nuts. He lives in a state where nut culture is much further advanced than it is here, consequently it has been, it seems to me, a good deal simpler for him to accomplish results there than it is for us here. I approve of grasping this opportunity and going ahead with it and at the same time following up the suggestions of Dr. Britton of trying to get the appropriation in order to enable the agricultural experiment station to take action.
Mr. Olcott: I move that the secretary be asked to communicate with the experiment stations in the various states along just the lines you suggested for the purpose of getting started.
The motion, duly seconded, was passed.