272 
JOUR>rAL OF THE EOYAL HORTICULTUEAL SOCIETY. 
Herefordshire, Worcestershire, and the western counties of England, 
it may appear somewhat presumptuous on my part to describe fruit- 
growing as an industry in South Wales, especially when you remember 
that until very recently little or nothing has been heard of fruit from 
this (shall I say remote ?) part of Great Britain. 
In September l'S94 a very interesting paper was read by Mr. Pettigrew 
on the Marquess of Bute's vineyards at Castle Coch, in South Wales, the 
only experiment of the kind which has been made in Great Britain 
during the present century. You will also remember that in the year 
1896 one of the finest collections of Fruit ever sent to a E.H.S. show at 
the Crystal Palace came fi*om Llanelly, Carmarthenshire, and was grown 
by Major Bythway, to which the Gold Medal of the Fruiterers' Company 
was awarded, and only very recently the Society has had a grand collec- 
tion of Apples and Pears, exhibited at the Drill Hall, from The Hendre, 
near Monmouth, the seat of the Right Hon. Lord Llangattock, to which the 
Society's Gold Medal was awarded. I shall not refer to the collections 
exhibited by myself on different occasions at the Society's shows at the 
Crystal Palace and at the Drill Hall, except that later on I may, if time 
permit, describe the conditions, soil, lVC. under which they were grown. 
Nearly the whole of the fruit in Monmouthshire and other South 
Wales counties is grown in what are commonly known as grass orchards. 
These are in most cases situated in sheltered spots near to the homestead 
to which they belong. There is no record of the time when fi*uit-growing 
as an industry commenced, hut from the general appearance of many of 
the orchards it certainly dates back to one hundred years ago, and in some 
cases to at least two himdred years. This refers more especially to the 
Monmouth, Abergavenny. Chepstow. andUsk districts. On the moors or 
alluvial flats fruit trees are much shorter lived, and consequently orchards 
have to be frequently renovated. This is caused by the damp nature of the 
soil : ditches, or what are more commonly known as " reens,*" take the place 
of hedges. During the greater part of the year these reens contain 
water, and in the winter months the surface of the ground will not be 
more than two or three feet above its level : indeed it frequently happens 
that during the spring tides many hundreds of acres are under water. 
A great number of the farms in this district have orchards attached, 
and in many cases they are several acres in extent. In preparing the 
land the usual custom is to divide the ground intended to be planted into 
ridges : this is done by cutting a grip on each side of the ridge, throwing 
the soil taken out of the grip into the centre, and raising it almost into the 
form of a miniature arch or half-moon; the trees are generally planted on 
the surface, soil being carted from banks that have been accumulating for 
many years by the sides of public roads, or from what has been cast out 
of the reens or ditches, to cover the roots. After properly staking, a good 
dressing of stable or cow manure is placed on the surface round the tree, 
and this repeated the following year, with the result of forcing the trees 
into ^"igorous growth and also encouraging the fibrous roots to come to 
the surface. It is often necessary to lay drain pipes or cut cross-grips to 
more eflSciently drain the land. Shelter has to be provided, and this is done 
by planting the Common Willow, and in some cases the English Elm, 
both of which grow very fast and soon form a belt sufficient to break the 
