520 THE GARDENER [Nov. 



" Describe in detail the treatment of Mignonette in pots for early 

 spring flowering." 



" Give some account of the theory of ventilating houses for stove 

 plants, and explain the best practical appliances for securing proper 

 ventilation." 



The preceding half-dozen questions will give intending candidates 

 some idea of what is required of them. Above all, let the candidate 

 acquire as much facility in writing and composition as possible. There 

 is not much time to think when you are at the examination-tables, 

 and this is where many candidates fail. They possess a good practi- 

 cal knowledge of horticulture, but lack the ability of lucid expression. 

 Candidates must remember that the examiner has nothing to guide 

 him in his awards but the answers, and the more clear and concise 

 these are written, the greater is the chance of success. Only two 

 things are requisite in order to pass the most severe examination — 

 viz., a thorough knowledge of the subject, and a clear style of expres- 

 sing your ideas. 



Examinations are good, inasmuch as they are emulating; but at 

 the same time it is impossible to prevent a large amount of " cram- 

 ming" or "grinding" being practised by the candidates. For ex- 

 ample, it is well known that the distinctive characters of fruits form 

 a leading feature in one paper. Let us take Peaches or Nectarines 

 by way of illustration. The old candidate knows very well that it is 

 sheer waste of time to learn their characters by actual observation 

 and careful comparison when he can take the ' Fruit Manual ' and 

 learn them off by heart, flowers and glands, clingstones and freestones, 

 in a few hours, so as to face the most severe examiner. The other 

 fruits are " worked up " on the same system. Many a really good 

 practical head-gardener would fail to obtain a first-class certificate at 

 these competitions, while his right-hand neighbour, perhaps a beard- 

 less boy, with any quantity of cut-and-dried information from books, 

 obtains a first-class certificate with ease. 



If a candidate gains a certificate of the highest class, it does not 

 follow as a rule that he is a first-class gardener ; this is a fact that one 

 cannot deny, for the simple reason that it is a fact. I look upon a 

 certificate as a bubble ; it looks well, but the moment you grasp it, you 

 find that after all it is useless. If you have added to your store of 

 knowledge by studying in order to obtain it, what you have learned 

 in that way is the true grain ; the rest is chaflf. 



By way of a check upon those who carry out the above-mentioned 

 system of grinding, could we not have " practical examinations " con- 

 ducted under the surveillance of a committee of " practical gardeners," 

 whose names should be appended to the candidate's certificate ? The 



