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218 JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. [ March 15, 1883. 
after some introductory observations, said that all plants had 
their uses and their beauty. Of all decorative arts gardening 
was the most useful. Flowers were beautiful and interesting 
everywhere, but in towns their value and beauty were most to be 
appreciated. Nothing could be more delightful than the effects 
of window gardening properly carried out. Plants as a decora¬ 
tion were essentially true and real. In art the poor man had to 
be content with the cheap print or imitation painting—the proof 
before letters with the engraving were reserved for the rich ; but a 
Lily in the garden of the artisan was a true masterpiece, a sterling 
coin from the universal mint. The proposition so energetically 
made to plant with trees suitable districts was one that deserved 
to be supported. In the first place it would be the means of 
giving employment, and it would add wealth to such land as was 
at present practically worthless. Dr. Lyons’ scheme recommended 
itself on economic grounds, for whenever a tree was properly 
planted in suitable soil the machinery of Nature was set in motion 
on our behalf. The lecturer alluded to the advantages Dublin 
possessed for plant culture as compared with towns in England. 
Dublin had the advantage of a land breeze and of a sea breeze. 
He described a simple plan originated by Matthieu Williams, 
F.C.S., and described by him in a lecture before the Society of 
Arts, London, by which, with the aid of a kind of cheap rough 
canvas, a species of greenhouse could be at a trifling cost erected. 
He thought that the principles of elementary horticulture should 
form a subject of instruction in the public schools of countries 
that depended so much on the products of the land. The lecture 
was listened to with the greatest interest, and was loudly ap¬ 
plauded. 
•- Tiie Warnicit Advertiser of March 10th gave the follow¬ 
ing particulars of a presentation to Mr. W. Gardiner of 
Ettington Park Gardens. —“ On Tuesday last an illuminated 
address and a purse of sovereigns were presented to Mr. William 
Gardiner on giving up the charge of Ettington Park Gardens. 
The address was as follows—‘To Mr. William Gardiner. Dear 
Sir,—We, the undersigned friends and well-wishers, beg to pre¬ 
sent you with a purse of sovereigns as a slight token of our respect 
and esteem for you, on relinquishing the charge of Ettington 
Park Gardens, which you have held with so much credit for nearly 
twenty-five years. We venture to express a hope that you may 
long be spared to enjoy health and happiness, and we remain, 
Sir, yours faithfully.’ The address was beautifully illuminated. 
The presentation was made by Mr. Greenfield, the Hon. Secretary, 
and Mr. Evans, Treasurer of the fund, on behalf of the subscribers, 
and Mr. Gardiner acknowledged the receipt of the testimonial in 
suitable terms.” He has been succeeded by Mr. J. Haylock, late 
foreman at Apley Castle Gardens, Salop. 
SO-CALLED LAEGE BUNCHES OF GKAPES. 
The letter of “A Grower” in your last week’s issue on the 
above subject, in which he avers that I have failed to show how 
these bunches are produced, and in which he rather dogmatically 
asserts that the bunch figured by you was neither more or less 
than one bunch, proves the desirability of a little friendly dis¬ 
cussion on the subject, which I took the liberty of inviting in the 
notice taken exception to by “ A Grower,” and which I hope may 
result in clearing up the perplexity that “A Grower’’seems to 
have fallen into. 
My object was simply to state the fact that large bunches 
were easily produced in the manner there described, and not to 
discuss the question of whether bunches so produced were Iona fide 
or not. This would have been entering on debatable ground, 
which in that notice I bad no desire to do; but I sufficiently 
indicated my belief that bunches so produced were not, in my 
opinion, single bunches in the sense generally accepted among 
gardeners. I simply give this as an opinion, with no thought 
whatever, as your correspondent insinuates, of blaming past 
exhibitors in the matter. 
It is said that a grain of help is worth a bushel of sympathy. 
So with the hope and desire of enlightening “ A Grower,” you 
will perhaps kindly send the two Vine shoots to him which I 
herewith send you. On the most forward shoot, where the berries 
are set and thinned, you can see very plainly that two bunches 
have been converted into one cluster, which to the uninitiated 
would be difficult to distinguish from a single bunch. The second 
shoot is, as you see, showing two bunches ; and with the object of 
making the two bunches into one cluster I take off the point of 
the shoot, leaf and all, close to the second bunch, which at once 
accomplishes the object in view ; and I take it that “ A Grower,” 
as a candid and practical man, will at once admit, without too 
much “ reading or reasoning,” that this is an easy and expeditious 
way of converting two bunches into one, if I may use the term. 
As a matter of course, after the close stopping of the shoot it 
makes no further growth from the point, but generally a lateral 
starts from the axil of the leaf behind the first bunch, which is 
encouraged to grow and to become the leading shoot to the 
bunch, and the part of the original shoot between the two 
Fig. 58.—Phalrenopsis Etmeraldn. 
bunches becomes a stalk to the united bunches. It was so in 
the cluster figured by you. 
I claim no merit whatever in having discovered this way of 
making large clusters. It has been practised by some for many 
years ; but as one always willing to learn, and glad of information 
on any matter appertaining to gardening, I thought the matter 
might by chance interest some of your readers.— Druid. 
[We have forwarded the samples to our correspondent “A 
Grower.”] 
TWO PHALAENOPSIDS. 
The accompanying woodcuts represent the flowers of two com¬ 
paratively new Moth Orchids, and both are well worth the notice 
of Orchid growers. P. leucorrhoda is a native of the Philippine 
Islands, whence it was introduced in 1875, and it has been con¬ 
sidered by some to be a natural hybrid between P. Schilleriana, 
which it resembles in its leaves, and P. amabilis, to which it is 
related in its floral characters. The flowers are white slightly 
tinged with purple, the base of the lip being yellow with purple 
spots. The variety shown in fig. 59 is a remarkably handsome one 
from Mr. Brymer’s collection, Ilsington House, Dorchester, and is 
probably the finest in cultivation both in size and form. 
P. Esmeralda (fig. 58), is a native of Cochin China, and was 
introduced thence by Mr. Godcfroy Lebeuf in 1877. It is a small- 
