that, thousands of other letters were sent out to people who had responded to a story that appeared in Farm Journal wanting to know about the Association. I can't calculate how many went out, I have never been told, but I would guess about 5,000 of them. And those all went out from Mr. Best's office. In addition, our addressograph plate system was not in very good shape, due to the fact the organization was too poor to keep it up. Mr. Best supplied addressograph plates for the whole list.

I wrote to Mr. Best on April 27th, as I wanted all the bad news, and I wrote to some other people. I said, "You have not yet rendered a bill for postage on your mailing. Will you please make your request?" And he answered,

"I was surprised you asked about the postage charge from here. It has been my intent from the beginning of the campaign to carry the postage charge myself."

Thank you very much.

PRESIDENT BEST: Carl, I know you have done a lot of hard work, and I'd like to say for the organization that we do appreciate what you have done for us.

I see Mr. Slate has come in back here. Mr. Slate have you a word from the Publications Committee?

MR. SLATE: I have no formal report. The part of the Publications Committee with which I am concerned is the proceedings. The speed with which that job was done depends upon how fast the papers come in and the transcript of the proceedings finished. The transcript is rather complicated and a lot of things are said that shouldn't go into the report. It takes a lot of work with the blue pencil to boil the material down to something that's useful and worth paying a printing bill for.

One other thing that I should mention is the cost of mailing. I don't know whether that has been mentioned previously or not. We had a little difficulty with the Post Office Department. Carl Prell can tell you about that.

PRESIDENT BEST: Yes, he did. I have heard only good reports of your fine job. I think we all agree that it was a scholarly production.

Do we have anything from the Survey Committee?

Blossoming Habits of the Persian Walnut

H. F. STOKE, Roanoke, Va.

The Survey Committee, as its project for the current year, has undertaken a study of the blossoming habits of the Persian walnut. The prime object of this study is to solve the problem of pollination, so that the planter may be reasonably sure of a satisfactory crop, whether his planting be a single tree or an orchard.

While this study has dealt exclusively with the Persian species, Juglans regia, the habits and principles involved apply equally to all walnut species.

In most plants the reproductive function inheres in a single bisexual flower, consisting of both male and female elements. In walnuts, as well as most other nuts, the male and female functions are performed by unisexual flowers of very different type and appearance.

Both the male or staminate flower and the female or pistillate flower spring from buds that are formed in the axils at the base of leaves of the previous season's growth. In the Persian walnut they may be detected as early as July. The staminate bud that forms the pollen-producing catkin of the next season, can be distinguished by its checkered appearance, something like a tiny pine cone. They occur in the axils of the lower leaves of the shoot of the current season.

The pistillate bud, which produces the nut, occurs at or near the tip of the growth of the current season. It can usually be distinguished from leaf buds by its larger size and plumpness.

When these blossom buds develop the following season, the male or staminate blossom assumes the form of a catkin, which elongates rapidly a few days before maturity. As the pollen is shed, beginning at the stem end, the pale yellow-green of the bursted pollen capsule turns dark or black, proceeding to the tip of the catkin. This change readily shows that pollen is shedding, which may be confirmed by touching such a catkin with the tip of the finger, and noting the yellow pollen that adheres, or rises in a tiny cloud.

Making note of the date when a given variety begins shedding pollen, and the date when all catkins on the tree have opened, gives the period during which that variety is effective as a pollinizer.

The female, or pistillate flower, does not, like the catkin, spring directly from the wood of last season's growth, but occurs at the end of the new growth of the current year, being preceded by a number of leaves which nourish the young nut to maturity.

The pistillate blossom assumes the form of one or more tiny nutlets with little sharp-pointed tips. When the blossom has become receptive to pollen, each tip has separated into two separate pistils which spread apart and present fresh, slightly sticky surfaces, which are known as stigmas. This is the time that pollination can take place, which period continues until the stigmas have lost their freshness and stickiness. This period marks the time during which pollination can occur.

In many cases Persian walnut trees remain barren when planted alone, not because of incompatibility between the pollen and the pistillate flower, but because pollen shedding and receptivity do not occur at the same time. Sometimes pollen shedding is over before pistils are receptive. Such blooming is termed protandrous by botanists. In about an equal number of cases the pistils lose their receptivity before pollen is shed. Such blooming is termed protogynous. There are quite a number of varieties, however, that mature both types of blossoms simultaneously, in which the variety is self-fertile and will produce crops, even if isolated from other trees of the species. Of these Hanson and Bedford are representative. On some other trees there is some overlapping of the shedding and receptive periods, enough to produce partial, but not full crops.

Warm weather hastens blooming; cool cloudy weather retards it. A warm spell may start blossoming early, but if broken by a cool wave the period of bloom may be greatly extended.

A southern exposure with a light soil will cause a variety to blossom earlier by some days than in the same locality in heavy soil. The blossoming period is generally shorter in the North than in the South.

Climax, Michigan reports blooming beginning May 10 and ending May 31, a period of 21 days. Millerton, N. Y., and Massillon, Ohio, report the same.

Urbana, Ill., reports blooming beginning May 5 and ending June 1, a period of 27 days.

At Roanoke, Va., the period begins April 9 and ends May 10, running 31 days.

At Greensboro, North Carolina, the season began April 2 and ended May 5, a total of 33 days.

The report of Mr. Royal Oakes of Bluffs, Ill., is unique in the shortness of the blossoming period, both of individual varieties and as a whole. Blossoming began April 29 and ended (estimated) May 13, a period of only 14 days. The reason may partly lie in the weather and partly because the planting is on high bluffs overlooking the broad Illinois River valley, affording excellent air drainage.

One major difficulty the Committee encountered in tabulating the reports was the fact that so few of the same varieties were being grown by the various reporters, making it difficult and sometimes impossible to synchronize the blossoming period of the various varieties from different places with sufficient accuracy. Because of this, two tables have been prepared.

Table Number 1 shows named varieties, for the most part.

Table Number 2 shows varieties that are being