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THE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE. 



[June 29, 1912. 



HOME CORRESPONDENCE. 



(The Editors do not hold themselves responsible for 

 the opinions expressed by correspondents.) 



A National Institute of Gardeners and 

 Horticultural Education. — Every gardener 

 interested in the advancement and welfare of his 

 profession must have read with satisfaction the 

 leading article on the subject of c< Horticultural 

 Education/' in your issue of June 8. It points 

 to what may be a great awakening on a subject 

 that has been all too long neglected by those 

 engaged in earning a livelihood by horticulture. 

 Unlike the members of other professions, gar- 

 deners have willingly placed their knowledge and 

 achievements at the disposal of all and sundry 

 with little thought of remuneration. The gar- 

 dener has, in fact, made himself so cheap in the 

 eyes of those who know but little of the life he 

 leads, that familiarity has bred a certain amount 

 of contempt for him and his calling. Being a 

 " gardener M is, in the eyes of a vast multitude, 

 equivalent to something lower than a road- 

 sweeper, and the wages he is usually offered 

 bear out this statement, as they are generally 

 much lower than any public authority would 



tions of soil and climate, and yet secure excellent 

 results. Perhaps one of the finest testimonials 

 to the skill of the gardener was the recent 

 International Horticultural Exhibition. In the 

 grounds of the Royal Hospital, Chelsea, were to 

 be seen magnificent examples of cultural skill in 

 almost every department of horticulture (except 

 that very important section, market gardening, 

 which was practically unrepresented). Who but 

 skilled gardeners could have produced such 

 Orchids, stove and greenhouse plants, Ferns, 

 Palms, hardy herbaceous perennials, fruit and 

 vegetables? And who but men with many years 

 experience and knowledge of Alpine and rock 

 plants could have created in a few days such rock 

 gardens in the very heart of London, rock gar- 

 dens that were the wonder and delight of all who 

 saw them? And yet these are the men whom 

 it is proposed to " educate in horticulture " ! It 

 would be interesting to see the members of the 

 "Horticultural Education Committee " trying to 

 teach Sir G. Holford's gardeners to grow better 

 Orchids and Hippeastrums than were shown. 

 And the same might be said in regard to the 

 growers of any other class of plants exhibited. 

 Even the Right Hon. A. H. Dyke Acland, who 

 presided at the Conference on Horticultural Edu- 



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^^^^n. 



I 



Fig. 2oi.— paulownia imperialis in Cambridge botanic gardens. 



offer to their scavengers. To secure any im- 

 provement on the present state of affairs, it is 

 obvious that all those engaged in horticulture 

 must, as the writer states, themselves play a 

 large part in the movement. Indeed, it is diffi- 

 cult to see how any forward steps for the benefit 

 of the gardening community can even be initiated 

 unless those immediately concerned enter into 

 the spirit of the movement, and show that they 

 are willing to do something more than merely 

 criticise the efforts of those who are willing to 

 devise some scheme by means of which the gar- 

 dener proper can be distinguished from the im- 

 Soster. At present anyone calling himself a gar- 

 . ener is taken at his own valuation by the 

 innocent employer, and the latter is often quite 

 willing to be deceived if the so-called gardener 

 is prepared to work for a wage that would not 

 suffice to keep the modern chauffeur in cigarettes. 

 What is wanted is a standard by means of which 

 tlu- gardener — that is the man who has been 

 trained to grow one or more especial classes of 

 plants (flowers, fruits or vegetables) in a healthy 

 and scientific manner, and who understands their 

 nature so well that he can modify his cultural 

 operations in accordance with the varying condi- 



cation, seemed to recognize the absurdity of 

 teaching *' Horticulture " to those who had pro- 

 duced such a "magnificent and wonderful ex- 

 hibition/' While it may be taken for granted 

 that the gardeners who can produce such marvels 

 of cultural skill require but little teaching from 

 the scientists, it is nevertheless true that they 

 require education in other directions. Any 

 scheme that would bring all the efficient gar- 

 deners in the Kingdom into one fold is to be 

 welcomed from whatever source. And the only 

 way apparently in which this is likely to be 

 accomplished is by the formation of a National 

 Institute of Gardeners. The only serious at- 

 tempt made in recent years to weld the gar- 

 deners of the Kingdom together is that of the 

 British Gardeners' Association. But for some 

 extraordinary reason or another, this does not 

 seem to have met with the approval of many 

 excellent gardeners, or with that of many 

 employers, whether private or professional. If a 

 National Institute of Gardeners can be founded 

 that will command the confidence of the gar- 

 deners and the esteem of employers, a step of the 

 utmost importance will have been made for the 

 general advancement of horticulture and those 



connected with it. To bring about this desirable 

 result, I would suggest that a meeting of gar- 

 deners be held at an early date in London 

 either at the Royal Horticultural Society's Hall 

 or some other convenient place, so that the ques- 

 tion could be discussed in all its bearings. At 

 such a meeting it would no doubt be an advan- 

 tage if private people and nurserymen who em- 

 ploy gardeners were also present, so that all 

 shades of opinion might have an opportunity of 

 being expressed. J. Weathers, Isleworth. 



Gardeners and the Insurance Act.— The 

 note by Legal Correspondent, p. 415, appears at 

 a most opportune time. Many young gardeners 

 will be joining benefit societies during the next 

 three months, and it is important that they 

 should join a society where none but gardeners 

 are eligible. A large number do not know that 

 we have a gardeners' society which fulfils the 

 conditions laid down by your correspondent. The 

 United Horticultural Benefit and Provident 

 Society has now taken the requisite steps in order 

 to become an " approved society " under the Act. 

 As the society is confined to gardeners, and will 

 remain so, it is by far the best that gardeners can 

 join. Having watched its manner of working very 

 closely for many years, I can testify to the excel- 

 lent way in which the business has been managed, 

 and strongly advise all gardeners to join it, as 

 they are now bound to join something of the 

 kind. Full particulars may be had from the 

 secretary, Mr. W. Collins, 9, Martindale Road, 

 Balham, London, and if I can give any gardener 

 further information I shall be very pleased to 

 do so. W. H. Divers, Belvoir Castle Gardens, 

 Grantham. 



Record Strawberries.— I am sending you 

 12 fruits of three varieties of Strawberries, of a 

 total weight of 24 ounces. The heaviest fruit 

 weighs 3 ounces, and is of the variety Mme. 

 Moulet, the others being The Bedford and Lax- 

 ton's Latest. Plants of all three varieties are 

 bearing very fine fruits, plenty of the berries 

 weighing as much as 2 ounces each. The plants 

 were layered in pots last July and planted out 

 toward the end of August. All are doing 

 well, and carrying heavy crops. Gilbert 

 Hatch, Cavenham Park Gardens, MildenhalL 



I was interested in the remarks on 



Strawberry Auguste Nicaise, and, for the bene- 

 fit of your readers, I would bring to their 

 notice Bedford Champion as a late pot variety. 

 I have only grown this sort for two seasons, but 

 the plants have done splendidly, the dark, 

 leathery foliage being almost proof against mil- 

 dew and red spider. I weighed about half-a- 

 dozen fruits of this variety on May 24; the 

 largest was slightly under 2£ ounces, two were 

 2^ ounces and two over 2 ounces in weight. The 

 flavour of berries grown from pot plants is very 

 good, and more refreshing than some varieties 

 with a greater degree of aroma. I do not, how- 

 ever, think the berries would travel well. John 

 Wilkes, The Gardens, Creswell Hall, Stafford. 



Birds in Fruit Nets.— Will you allow me to 

 suggest to the bird lovers among your readers 

 that, during the summer season, they should 

 make a point of periodically visiting their fruit 

 nets, and so prevent such of our little 

 songsters as may have been caught there dying 

 a slow death by hunger and thirst. It is quite 

 a common thing to find the dead body of a bird 

 entangled among the meshes of a Strawberry 

 net, and one does not like to think of the 

 lingering death by which the little thief has 

 atoned for his very natural greediness. Z. 



...arket Prices — I note in the markets report 

 of your estimable journal of June 15 that the 

 average prices for English Peaches are given aa 

 follows :— Selected, 12s. to 18s. ; best, 6s. to 

 10s. ; seconds, Is. 6d. to 10s. During the last 

 week I have sent several consignments of Peaches 

 to Covent Garden, representing all the three 

 qualities you mention, but chiefly of the selected 

 and best type. The average price obtained for 

 these has been almost 50 per cent, lower than 

 your estimates. I am fully aware and quite 

 appreciate the fact that you take no responsi- 

 bility whatever for these prices, but I consider 

 the actual difference between practice and theory, 

 as it were, in this case very remarkable. It has 

 been said that the unusually warm spring has 

 produced a glut of this fruit in the market, but, 



