Angnst 18, 1874. ] 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



137 



FAILURES. 



WAS muoli interested ami amused by tbo 

 letter of an old gardener in last week's 

 Journal, who complains that while there 

 are no end of men who write about their 

 successes, none write about their- failures. 

 AJlow me, then, to make a beginning, and 

 write about my failures. It is not, I am 

 sorry to say, a difficult subject ; it by no 

 means presents that bewildering maddening 

 doubt which week by week assails me — 

 " What am I to preach about this time ? " I have loads 

 and loads of failures to choose from, and not one of them 

 have I ever described. Let me begin with one which 

 your correspondent himself mentions — viz., fruit trees. 



Here, I believe, I am in much the .same position as 

 your correspondent. I have a light poor soil, a favoured 

 sheltered position, a lovely climate, plenty of walls, and 

 yet I cannot produce a Peach or an Apricot, a Plum or a 

 Cherry. I am the possessor of 1(10 yards of wall, and I 

 have never had above a dozen Peaches since I came here. 

 This year I have had exactly seven, three of which were 

 of the size of a Green Gage ; and yet it is not that I have 

 taken no pains, for I have done every mortal thing I 

 could think of to ensure a fruit crop. I have taken up 

 all the old worn-out trees, prepared the borders according 

 to the best rules, planted good sorts, and have watered, 

 and washed, and protected, and fussed and fumed, and 

 wept and howled, but all to no purpose. I never have 

 fruit, and I do not think I ever shall, unless some kind 

 friend will take pity on me, and tell me what is wrong. 

 When this place was built twenty-five years ago the crop 

 of Peaches used to be so gi-eat that the clerical society of 

 this neighbourhood always used to fix their meetings at 

 this house when the Peaches were ripe, and now they do 

 not come at all, and I do not blame them. In fact, 1 am 

 afraid my Peach failures had a great deal to do with 

 causing the death of that society, for it began to languish 

 • about the time the Peaches gave signs of faihng, and it 

 is now defunct ; and although a new one has since, phcenix 

 like, risen on its ashes, it knows not me, for my Peaches 

 " are not.' 



As to the cause of my failure, the only one I can think 

 of is the exceedingly late frosts, which not only destroy 

 the bloom, but also kill the young wood. Every succeed- 

 ing year here the frosts have been later and later, till this 

 year wc had a severe one on the 8th of June. How can 

 tender fruit trees like the Peach stand such changes of 

 temperature as our climate groans under 1 We cannot 

 expect them to do so, and the only cour.se that I can see 

 is that recommended by a neighbour of mine — " When- 

 ever a Peach tree becomes old I replace it with a Fear." 

 (Please spell the word right, for the neighbour in question 

 is such a tremendous punster that he would be too de- 

 lighted to see it misspelt.) These do well here in most 

 places, and it is best to cultivate fruit which, though in- 

 ferior in quality, — though, I believe, many would deny 

 this — is superior in every other way, but most of all in its 

 No. 6S8 -Vol. XXVn., New Sebizs. 



hardy nature. But yet it is very distressing to give up 

 the Peach and Nectarine, and 1 hope that some kind 

 friend will come to the rescue, and tell us how we 

 may grow the Peach in the open with a fair chance of 

 success. Any hints as to pruning, protecting, watering, 

 and washing will be esteemed as a great boon by, I 

 should think, many others betides— John B. M. Camm, 

 Monkton Wijld. 



I CANNOT say with Mr. Pewtress that I am a young 

 gardener, for my garden was planted in 1802, and I have 

 watched the coming seasons year after year with some- 

 thing of the feeUng of drawing a prize in a lottery — hope 

 and fear. My garden is situate on a northern slope, so 

 I cannot attribute the failure to too early blossoming ; 

 besides, this part of North Hants has the reputation of 

 being always backward. The protection aflbrded to the 

 grounds would appear perfect. On the north and east 

 are planted (now fine-grown trees) Pinus austriaca, tall 

 Filberts, and between them a thick Quickset hedge, and 

 on the south and west there is a good wall. The place 

 looks snug enough. The trees grown are pyramids and 

 bushes, and appear to be in perfect health. 



My man generally in May writes to me to come and 

 see the garden, which is then a perfect garland (to use his 

 own words) ; and I may say it is my chief gratification 

 once in the year to travel fifty-four miles if only to view 

 this lovely and beautiful picture, and our hopes then 

 begin to brighten up when the old man surveys the grand 

 eiiect, and exclauxis with pride, '• I think, sir, there is no 

 doubt about fruit this season." But alas ! how frequently 

 our hopes, hke trees, are blighted. Look at the garden 

 now (August), compare it with the month of May ; " look 

 on this picture and on that," not a fruit of any kind — 

 Pears, Apples, Plums, Cherries, all a failure. I prune 

 and pinch according to orders, still the trees grow and 

 bloom, and have done nothing more for the last three or 

 four years. Your correspondent Mr. Pewtress thinks if 

 he could retard the early blooming all would be well. 

 Perhaps so ; but here mine is a case of what you might 

 suppose to be proper backwardness, and the result the 

 same — no fruit. People say, " Have patience, when the 

 season is favourable there will be plenty of fruit," but I 

 am getting old; and when I first planted the garden 

 great pains were taken to buy of nurserymen of good 

 repute, whose catalogues I would peruse, reading the 

 descriptions of delicious fruit until my mouth watered. 

 Now, after twelve years' growth I walk despondingly 

 round the garden looking on nothing but green leaves 

 imtU my eyes water.— J. Lovell, Overton, Hants. 



PEESEKVING FRUITS. 



" Well, Mr. Green, if you don't know when Cherries 

 are dry enough to gather you had better ask someone 

 who does ; those you have sent in are as wet as possible." 



" I can assure you, Mrs. Bouncer, they were perfectly 

 dry when gathered half an hour ago." 



" No, you cannot assure me of anything of the kind ; 



No, 1350.— Toi,. LII., Ou> SisiZB 



