The Georgia Horticultural Society, Inc. was organized in 1964 for "the advancement and promotion of Georgia horticulture through meetings, publications, lectures, dissemination of literature, and other suitable methods." The society was governed by elected officers such as president, vice president, and treasurer. The society was formed to fill a void left by the 1932 dissolution of the Georgia State Horticultural Society, which was created in 1876 by first president Prosper Jules 'P.J.' Berckmans of Fruitland Nurseries in Augusta, Georgia. In 1964 Dr. Francis E. Johnstone Jr., Professor of Horticulture at University of Georgia and first director of the State Botanical Garden in Athens, Georgia, called the first organizational meeting to form a new state horticultural society. The society provided support and funding to the State Botanical Garden, including the Turner Memorial Rose Garden. Biannual meetings offered members opportunities for educational lectures and garden tours. The society also published a quarterly newsletter. Due to declining membership the society disbanded in the 1990s. All remaining funds were dispersed to the State Botanical Garden and the Department of Horticulture at the University of Georgia in accordance with the society's by-laws.