PLUMS FOR A PRIVATE GARDEN 63 



wood and birds are numerous, you may be wise in not 

 growing greengages, yet otherwise they may be the 

 best sort for a large outlay as the demand for them 

 is universal. 



PLUMS FOR A PRIVATE GARDEN 



Let us suppose that the soil is fairly good ; the choice 

 of trees is not difficult. We have a selection made in 

 1892 by a committee of the R.H.S., consisting of forty 

 experts, and their choice has been confirmed in a remark- 

 able degree by a report of the trial of plums at the 

 Chiswick Garden of the R.H.S. in 1901. At this trial 

 on a soil that in a good year is said to suit them generally, 

 ninety-five varieties were tested, and a good account was 

 given of the following ten : 



Plums for Eating. 



Rivers' Early Transparent Gage. " Green or greenish 

 yellow, flushed with red, the finest early dessert plum, 

 a good cropper, habit bushy, compact, vigorous." R. 1 

 August 21. 



Denniston's Superb Gage. " Green and of greengage 

 flavour, a first-rate dessert variety, of exquisite flavour, 

 cropping well as a bush tree in the open air, habit erect, 

 compact, vigorous." R. August 26. 



Jefferson's. " Fruit larger than the two former, yellow, 

 covered with small red dots, habit erect, compact, very 

 vigorous, the best ' all round ' table kind, succeeds in 

 every form." R. September 6. 



In the list of 1892 Belgian Purple was named as a 

 plum for eating, but it is only fit for the table in warm 

 seasons, " dark purple, of medium size, bears well, habit 

 erect, compact, vigorous." R. August 19. 



1 The dates refer to the time when the fruits were '"'ready" (ripe, 

 fit for gathering) at the Chiswick Garden of the R.H.S. 



