50 



JOURNAIj of HOBTiODLTDKE AND COTTAGE GAUDENEE. 



[ JanQtU7 15, 1874, 



BlacI: Alicante. — This is an especial favourite with me. It 

 is a magnificent Grape. The bunches are large, mth wonder- 

 ful shoulders, and very large berries of a fine deep colour, and 

 splendid bloom. It produces fruit abundantly, and is decidedly 

 one of the best late Grapes. 



Ladi/ Downe's. — This useful Grape has been quite equal in 

 colour and size of berry to Ahcante, but its bunches were not 

 nearly so large. 



Madresfield Court Muscat had large, well-Bhonldered, taper- 

 ing bunches, with large, rich, and juicy berries of a most de- 

 licious flavour. It produced its fruit abundantly, and is alto- 

 gether a fine and most desirable variety ; but it did not keep 

 well ; there was an evident loss of flavour perceptible soon 

 ^fter it was fully ripe, and the berries soon began to shrivel. 

 From my present experience of it I should certainly in future 

 assign it a place in an intermediate house. 



Mrs. Pince's Black Muscat. — This has quite disappointed me. 

 It is very vigorous, very free-bearing, sets its fruit well ; the 

 bunches were large, well-shouldered, and symmetrical, and it 

 hangs well ; but the berries were small, deficient in flavour, and 

 very badly coloured. Yet I do not wish altogether to con- 

 demn it, for I have seen it in much better condition in other 

 hands, and am not without hope of future success. — Edwabd 

 LucKnuiiST. 



JUDGING EOSES. 



Mii. Cahm seeks to elicit the opinions of Rose-amateurs on 

 the subject of judging Eoses at shows; and if I interpret his 

 meaning rightly, he wishes not only the particular points he 

 has named to be fairly discussed, but also that the whole 

 question should be considered, with a view of laying down, if 

 possible, some general principles in accordance with which 

 the judging should be performed, so that a common under- 

 standing may be arrived at on the main points that determine 

 the award of prizes. 



The judging of Eoses, Like the judging of other subjects in 

 horticulture, has always been a vexed question — probably 

 always will be, not so much from the difficulty or impossi- 

 bility of pleasing everybody, which it is not worth while to 

 attempt, as from a cause which Mr. Camm has himself illus- 

 trated — namely, those, ordinarily regarded as authorities in the 

 matter hold opinions widely diverging from one another, and 

 from whom, therefore, uniformity of decision can scarcely be 

 expected at all times. 



But there are points on which judges of Eoses at shows can 

 agree, or rather on which they must agree if they perform 

 their duties conscientiously — a postulate not requisite to be 

 brought forward in this discussion ; and these points are so 

 obvious that it is quite sufficient if they are stated briefly 

 but clearly. This I will endeavour to do before taking up Mr. 

 Camm's two questions. At every show of any pretensions at 

 all, the judges are provided with a copy of the schedule of 

 prizes to be awarded to the several classes or groups, as the 

 case may be, and with such regulations as specially refer to 

 these classes, at least so far as their duties are concerned. In 

 all properly regulated shows the stands of the exhibitors are, 

 or should be, arranged in their various classes and groups in 

 good time, and in positions favourable for inspection both by 

 the judges and by the visitors admitted afterwards — matters 

 of paramount importance to aU concerned ; for if the flowers 

 are staged late the judges have either to hurry through their 

 duties in a manner anything but satisfactory to themselves, 

 in order to complete the awards before the admission of 

 visitors, or, if visitors are admitted before the judging is 

 finished, the inconvenience is sometimes so great as materially 

 to impede progress. The judges should always have time 

 allowed them, a little over rather than under the assigned 

 hours, for when the competition is keen and the number of 

 exhibitors great, their duties are not only onerous, but many 

 minor points have to be carefully considered and comparative 

 merits evenly weighed. I remember an occasion when acting 

 ae one of the censors, that owing to close competition among 

 a considerable number of exhibitors, the visitors were ad- 

 mitted before the judging was complete, and we received all 

 sorts of unsolicited suggestions upon the merits of the speci- 

 mens to be decided. Perhaps the hints came from the exhi- 

 bitors themselves ; we could not tell, only we were made 

 aware that our decisions did not all quite coincide with the 

 opinions of some of our self-constituted advisers. 



Let us assume, however, that all arrangements are complete 

 by the appointed hour, and that ample time is allowed for the 



judges to perform their task, and the services of a competent 

 and sufficient staff secured ; there are, I repeat, certain points 

 on which they must agree, whatever may be then- individual 

 opinions on minor matters, whatever theories they may have 

 formed as to what ought to be, or whatever "penchant " they 

 may have for this or that variety or class of Eose. They 

 must first disquahfy any stand that does not fulfil the re- 

 quirements of the schedule and accompanying regulations. 

 For example, if twenty-four different kinds are required, they 

 must see that there are not two or more of one kind in the 

 same collection, or that two or more of one kind are hot 

 staged with different names, for these accidents have some- 

 times occurred from inadvertency. A most excellent stand was 

 once disqualified with much regret on the part of the judges 

 because it contained two blooms of one variety, but which was 

 known to be an oversight of the exhibitor. It is also the duty 

 of the judges to see that the specimens are correctly named — • 

 a requirement generally stated in the regulation, and almost 

 always assumed if not stated ; but it certainly is not the duty 

 of the judges to name the exhibitors' flowers for them. It is a 

 controverted point whether misnomers should disqualify ; the 

 question is not without difficulty, owing chiefly to the enormous 

 number of Eoses with dift'erent names that have been intro- 

 duced into cultivation, and which has, almost as a natural con- 

 sequence, led to occasional mistakes, and which are therefore 

 the more pardonable. If one or more, but not many, mis- 

 named specimens occur in a stand of good flowers of the 

 requisite number of kinds, it would evidently be an undue 

 exercise of severity or even harshness to disqualify on that one 

 account. Leniency in this respect ought to be, and I believe 

 is observed by the best judges ; at least no serious detriment to 

 the principles on which the show is estabUshed can arise from 

 a judicious exercise of it. 



As a matter of course the stand containing the greatest 

 number of perfect and best grown blooms must have the first 

 prize in its class, and the next in number and quality the 

 second, and so on if more are to be awarded. It is when the 

 competition is severe that such points as Mr. Camm has 

 mooted arise for consideration. Let us again assume as our 

 instance that the class to be judged is twenty-four blooms of 

 any kinds, distinct, one truss of each. It is quite clear that 

 if thus stated in the schedule, or to the same import, the 

 exhibitor may, if he chooses, select his flowers from any 

 famOy or class of Roses. Whatever varieties are shown, the 

 judges must decide according to the actual condition of the 

 flowers submitted to them ; however fine some of them may 

 be, if past their culmination (if I may use the term) they 

 cannot assign to such a consideration equal to what they 

 would do if these flowers were in their prime — in other words, 

 their exhibition value is deteriorated. Similarly of flowers 

 exhibited before they have attained their perfection ; judges 

 are not to suppose what they would be if left on the plant 

 they were cut from for another day or two. Nor can any 

 account be taken of very small blooms however perfect they 

 may be in form or colour ; these may be admirably suited for 

 a button-hole, and as such might form a class by themselves 

 for the gratification of those who delight in decorating them- 

 selves with floral ornament. Exhibitors frequently fall into 

 the mistake of cutting their flowers overblown, or too soon 

 before expansion, imder the impression that judges wOl give 

 them the same or nearly the same amount of credit as they 

 would do if they were at their best. 



If the competition, say, for tho first prize is so close as to 

 require a comparison of the merits of the individual flowers 

 in the competing stands, the judges ought in fau'ness to the 

 exhibitors to take into consideration every circumstance for 

 and against ; form, size, and colour predominating. But these 

 are not all : they must know that Tea-scented kinds engross a 

 much larger degree of attention on the iiart of the cultivator 

 than any other family of Eoses, and that among them are 

 found variety in form, colour, and beauty not yet attained in 

 other kinds ; so that to leave out the consideration of these 

 quahties would be to throw indirectly discouragement in the 

 way of their culture. I therefore agree with Mr. Camm very 

 decidedly that the insertion of two, three, or even four well- 

 grown trusses of Tea-scented kinds in a stand of twenty-four 

 does materially improve it. Where can we yet find a finer 

 yellow than in Marechal Niel; a more beautiful blush pink 

 than in Souvenir d'un Ami ; a more pure white, with delicate 

 centre, than in Devoniensis ? Nor must our old but somewhat 

 capricious favourite Gloire de Dijon be forgotten. Not only 

 these but others of the same race can be grown quite large 



