The Ashburton Guardian. Magna est Veritas et Prevalebit. THURSDAY, OCTOBER 21, 1886. A MISSING INSTITUTION.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume V, Issue 1376, 21 October 1886, Page 2

The Ashburton Guardian. Magna est Veritas et Prevalebit. THURSDAY, OCTOBER 21, 1886. A MISSING INSTITUTION.

Although Ashburton possesses almost every institution and organisation to be found in the sister towns of the colony, there is one very marked deficiency —we have no Horticultural Society, consequently no Fruit and Flower Shows. Years ago there was such a society, but for some reason or other it has ceased to be, and the Flower Show is a thing of the past. Surely this is a matter very greatly to be regretted, for we do not know of a pleasanter thing than to witness the bringing together from time to time of the choicest of the fruits and loveliest of the flowers which our orchards, our gardens, and our greenhouses produce in so rich abundance. Not only at Christchurch, at Dunedin, at Oamaru, and at Timaru, but in Rangiora, in Geraldine, in Waimate, and a host ol places which rank after Ashburton in size and population Shows are held every year—twice a year in some cases, i.e.y in spring and autumn—and very beautiful spectacles those Shows present, and it is a thousand pities, nay, it is a disgrace to our horticulturists, that we should not vie with our neighbours, in this matter. There are many wellkept gardens in and around the town—indeed Ashburton compares very favorably with most colonial towns in this respect —and our soil is so generous and our climate so genial, that we could easily hold our own in point of size, weight, and quality of fruit, and in perfectness and beauty of foliage and bloom with any other district in the Island. And independently of the pleasure afforded to the public by the opportunity of inspecting the choice products of the garden and greenhouse, many useful hints and much valuable information are to be gathered at such exhibitions by professional as well as amateur horticulturists, while the spirit of emulation which they produce has a widespread beneficial effect in awakening interest in the most natural, the most innocent, and one of the most useful of all pursuits, that of horticulture. That awakened interest has its effect in beautifying the surroundings of many a home, and so enhancing the attractiveness of the town, which is but an aggregate of homes, and thus has a distinct tendency to improve the value of property. Again the Flower Show brings the ladies together, and the draper loses nothing it is certain by the multiplication of opportunities for an innocent rivalry in the display of tasteful costume —and where is that rivalry more conspicuous than at the Flower Show ? It is not difficult, therefore, to make out a case for the revival of Flower Shows from’the most utilitarian and business point of view, so that independently of aesthetic considerations the sooner we make a move in that direction the better. But there can be no show without an organisation, and there can be no proper organisation until steps are taken to resuscitate the Horticultural Society. Who will set about this ? Surely among our gardeners, amateur and professional, there are some who wiil take the hint. There is plenty of lime to form a Society and to hold a Show this season, if only the matter be taken up promptly and carried out vigorously. We feel certain that there are numbers of people in Ashburton who would be glad to help forward such a movement, and we heartily hope that it will be initiated without delay.