HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIII, Issue 327, 14 June 1911, Page 3

HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY.

ANNUAL MEETING. The annual meeting of the New Plymouth Horticultural Society was held in the Town Ilall last night, Mr. G. 11. McGahey, the president, occupying tliu chair. There was a good attendance ol members. The president's report was read, as already published. The balance-sheet showed general receipts for the year £54 Gs 7d, receipts from the rose show £ls os, spring show £43 4s 3d, making a total of £43 4s 3d, a total of £ll2 15s lOd. The general expenditure was £l7 14s, rose show £lO 18s (id, and spring show £7l 14s 3d, leaving a balance in the bank oE £l2 9s Id. The assets of the society were estimated to be worth £2O.

The president explained that two guineas shown in the general receipts really belonged to the rose show, which thus made a profit of about seven guineas. The election of officers resulted in the re-election of last year's, as follows: —President, Mr. G. H. McGahey; vice-presidents, Mrs. Dockrill, Col. Messenger, Messrs. S. Percy-Smith, W. W. Smith, J. Paton, N. K. MacDiarmid, 11. R. Cattley, G. Tisch, and F. W. Sand ford; secretary and treasurer, Mr. A. L. Humphries; auditor, Mr. W. C. Weston; committee, Mesdarnes Morrison, J. Paton, 11. F. Russell, Ellerm, C. A. Jones, Matthews, Misses Hempton, B. Smith, and Percy-Smith, Messrs. J. Gibson, A. Hooker, H. F. Russell, G. W, Browne, E. W. Griffiths, E. B. Kyngdon, W. P. Nicoll, N. Allen, E. Allen, E. Ellerm, jun., W. Bendall, and L. B. Webster.

Hearty votes of thanks were passed to all who had in any way assisted towards the success of last year's show.

The meeting discussed the question raised in the president's report with regard to the proposal to amalgamate the rose and the spring shows. The principal argument was that the nurserymen who exhibited at the rose show would not come to the spring show, and it was found that local growers making shows of flowers at the rose show were similarly affected. It was pointed out that the rose show, as run last year, paid well, but it was not wholly a rose show, for the displays for exhibition only and the tables were decorated with flowers other than roses. The suggestion was made that the flowers on these decorated tables at the rose show should be confined to roses. Eventually, Mr. Cattley moved that a rose showi be held on Thursday, oth November, and that roses be the only flowers allowed in the competitive classes, foliage being let at the discretion of the exhibitor in the decorative section.—Seconded by Mr. Paton, and carried.

On the motion of Messr?. McGahey and Shaw, it was decided that the spring

show should be held on the 7th December.

Mr. Cattley brought up the matter of adding to the schedule, and his suggestions were referred to the schedule committee.

Mr. Nicoll, for Mr. W. Rowe. offered £2 to be divided among five cash special prizes for new flowers not enumerated in the schedule, and a points prize for the exhibitor gaining most points in this section. This, lie explained, was for the purpose of encouraging the introduction of new (lowers.

Messrs. McGahey, Cattley, Hooker, Nicoll, and W. W. Smith were appointed a committee to revise the schedule and report, to a committee meeting.