JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
20G 
[ March 17, 1881. 
damp ventilate slightly constantly. When the fruit is separat¬ 
ing from the footstalk, as it will as soon as it ceases to derive 
support from the plant, cut it with a portion of stem, and 
place in a dry airy room for a few da} r s until it acquires an 
even ripeness, when it will he in suitable condition for table. 
Some experience is necessary to discern exactly when Melons 
are at their best. Over-ripe Melons as compared with those 
even under-ripe are very poor. A good Melon should hold its 
flesh well and yet he as melting as a Pear. 
Other matters of detail requiring attention are stopping the 
shoots one joint beyond the fruit at the time of impregnation, 
and to keep subsequent growths stopped to one joint. The 
plants should be examined at least once a week for this pur¬ 
pose, thinning the growth when it becomes so crowded as to 
interfere with the principal foliage, which should have full 
exposure to light and air, the laterals being cut back or removed 
altogether so as to admit light to the principal growths ; but 
do not make great reductions of foliage at a time, cutting 
back or removing a few laterals at a time and frequently, so as 
not to give the plant a check. The fruit must have a slate or 
piece of glass placed under it to keep it from the soil. 
A sowing may be made a fortnight later than the first, 
which will afford plants for putting out early in June, and will 
produce successional fruit to the first batch. —G. Abbey. 
TEA ROSES. 
I have received a letter from one of the Hon. Secretaries to 
the National Rose Society requesting me to correct a statement 
which I made in my last letter on Tea Roses. Mr. Mawley 
appears to think that I was referring to the number of Tea Roses 
required to be exhibited by amateurs. Although I was not doing 
so I cannot refuse his request, as many other readers of the 
Journal may have been also misled. I cannot do better than quote 
Mr. Mawley’s words. “ In your letter to the Journal of Horti¬ 
culture on Tea Roses you appear to be under the impression that 
Mr. Prince has offered in the amateurs’ classes prizes for twenty- 
four and eighteen Teas respectively. This, however, is not the 
case, as the enclosed schedule will make clear. It is true that it 
was at Mr. Prince’s suggestion that the number of Teas to be 
shown by nurserymen was decided upon for the present year to 
be twenty-four and eighteen. Hybrid Teas were excluded from 
all the Tea classes last year, and will be again excluded this year. 
The box of fine Teas was last year disqualified for having a bloom 
of Cheshunt Hybrid in it.” 
My remarks were directed to the large number of Teas and 
Noisettes required of both amateurs and nurserymen, but espe¬ 
cially with regard to the latter. Mr. Robert Baker also writes 
correcting a statement I made as to his not being upon the Sub¬ 
committee. I do not know how I can have been misled on this 
matter, as I was Chairman of the meeting at which the members 
of the Sub-committee were decided upon, and I distinctly re¬ 
member the discussion upon the uselessness of nominating men, 
however valuable, who lived at a great distance from London. 
However, I am delighted that Mr. Baker is on the Sub-committee, 
as no one is better qualified than himself.— Wyld Savage. 
“Wyld Savage” maybe right when, on page 187, he says 
that twelve should be the maximum number of distinct Teas or 
Noisettes for which prizes shoitld be given. This is a question 
upon which opinions differ ; but I feel sure that seven out of every 
ten growers of Rosa indica odorata would say with “ Wyld 
Savage ” that to get a perfect stand of these Roses, such as would 
be considered “ one of the most lovely sights of a Rose show,” 
twelve trusses must be the limit. But when “ Wyld Savage ” 
begins to enumerate the very few Teas and Noisettes which alone 
he considers fit for such a stand, he alarms me. He abstains 
from even mentioning names which must bring happy memories 
and pleasurable sensations. A Lenten penance it must be ; 
or where are Anna Olivier, Comtesse de Nadaillac, Innocente 
Pirola, Jean Ducher, Madame Willermoz, Perle des Jardins, 
Rubens, and Marie Van Houtte ? Yet all the above are grown 
for sale by Mr. B. R. Cant as fit for exhibition. And as for 
Noisettes, may I not add Caroline Kuster ? 
The last three cruel winters have done much to discourage 
growers of Tea Roses, and such communications to the Journal as 
thisonefrom “Wyld Savage ” will not improve matters. Ishould 
like to see a hundred Teas grown where one is now grown. I 
should like also to see these lovely Roses shown at the two 
National Shows in trebles and in masses. As “ Wyld Savage ” 
says, the blooms must be most perfect if your stand of twelve is 
to come up to a high level of excellence ; but in my humble opinion 
stands of these Roses, as I have seen them at some shows where 
prizes are offered for the best collection of Tea Roses, are infinitely 
more lovely than twelve distinct single trusses. Probably Mr. 
George Prince in choosing twenty-four and eighteen as the 
number of varieties to be shown has for his object the encourage¬ 
ment of this branch of Rose culture. All amateurs to show eigh¬ 
teen distinct must increase their stock, and some of them the 
number of their varieties. This will be a good result of Mr. 
Prince’s stipulation. However, I am not going to say that “ Wyld 
Savage ” has made a mistake in publicly doubting the expediency 
of giving prizes for twenty-four distinct Teas, for he is and has 
been for years a connoisseur in those Roses, and I am one of his 
young unknown pupils ; but I do think that his protest led him to 
forget the existence of six or eight of the most lovely of his 
favourite Rose family. 
Reverting once more to Tea Roses and exhibitions, how one 
longs to see stands of trebles, yes, and double trebles, which will 
include in the half open and bud state Safrano, Madame Falcot, 
HomMe, C61ine Forestier, David Pradel, &c.—varieties which the 
exhibitor proper either does not grow or reserves for his button¬ 
hole.—J. A. W. 
[Another interesting letter on this subject will appear next 
week.—E d.] 
THE VEGETABLE AND FRUIT QUESTION. 
A REPLY TO CRITICS. 
I AM truly glad that I happened to start a subject which evi¬ 
dently interests many, and which having led to, I hope, a useful 
discussion, will lead as a result to profitable action. There have 
been on the whole up to this time (March 4th) eight articles 
long and short written and printed since I last wrote, hence 
it seems now time for me to venture on a reply. I have joined 
fruit to vegetables in the heading of this paper, because they are 
combined in my thoughts, and one as much as the other wants 
investigating, and the supply of both I believe to be inadequate 
to the needs of the people. An increase of the supply would also, 
I believe, lead to much profit if the suppliers have energy and 
discretion. Also the Editor has done me the honour to transcribe 
to these pages a letter of mine in my county paper, entitled (and 
I chose, I hope, a catching title), “ Plant Apple Trees.” I beg to 
thank Dr. Hogg very much for thus giving a national circulation 
to what before had only a local one. I want to do good afar otf 
as well as near home. 
Now the letters that have appeared from other pens than my 
own have been naturally of two kinds—letters of approval and 
the opposite. One general remark : In this almost universal agri¬ 
cultural depression I find it so difficult to get men out of their 
life-long and set groove, and to get them to grasp a new and 
probably more profitable undertaking. I fear this sluggish 
nature which almost prefers quietly starving down to entering 
upon a new and fresh career is inherited by Englishmen from 
their Saxon ancestors, those “ heavy men in country bred,” who 
loved to eat and sleep, but lacked the adaptiveness of the Norman’s 
nature. 
My views have, as I said, been approved and disapproved, the 
former by the buyers, the latter pretty generally by the sellers. 
For the benefit of these latter I will tell the following tale : In 
a certain town the tradesmen in one special line of business, and 
that one embracing principally the necessities of life, were always 
complaining that there were too many of them ; that trade was 
slack, nay, insufficient for all to do even comfortably well. Many 
were worthy men ; most were a little bit drowsy, whistled often 
for want of thought, not seldom had their hands in their pockets— 
not, they would have said, to turn their money over, but to be 
easy and comfortable. They did not agree with each other very 
well, because each wished one or two others would be ofi some¬ 
where else. But if they disagreed in some points they all agreed 
in this—that there were too many of them. When lo 1 another 
of the same trade came into the town and opened a taking-looking 
well-stocked shop. “ Whew ! poor fellow, he will soon be bank¬ 
rupt, there’s no room for him ; why we can only just live.” This 
they all said, alone, and to each other. But the new comer did 
not intend to become bankrupt if energy and skill and civility 
and cheapness could keep him out of that very disagreeable Court. 
The old stagers were also roused, and they wished to avoid a 
smash. A new spirit was infused in all, notice was drawn to the 
town, and custom came in instead of flowing to the city some 
miles distant. The fresh man whom nothing could daunt made a 
fortune, and the others, save an unsteady one, did better than 
before. Not only do storms clear the air but energy begets energy, 
and the most energetic man will in trade do the beH. 
