238 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER 
[ rare'. 21, 1369. 
- Pitmaston Orange NECTARINE.—This is, as almost all 
gardeners know, a large-flowered variety, but I think it is seldom seen 
with blossoms in quantity 2[ inches in diameter. There are two 
lean-to Peach houses at Berry Hall, near Solihull, the residence of 
Joseph Gillott, Esq., where a very fine tree of this Nectarine, 15 feet 
wide, is now in full beauty, a mass of very fine blossoms from bottom to 
top, and of a deep bright colour. Close by is a tree of the Pine Apple 
Nectarine, almost as large and as well flowered, with large blossoms 
which are not quite so bright in colour as the Pitmaston. There is 
abundant promise of a good set in this house, and in the earlier house 
there will be a heavy crop of fruit. Mr. Milton, the gardener at Berry 
Hall, attributes the fineness of the flowers and fruit, and the good wood, 
to a free use of Thomson's Vine manure, which he holds in high 
estimation as a feeding stimulant, giving a good dressing just before 
the trees start into flower, and another before stoning, with a good 
supply of water also. In the late house Chrysanthemums are grown 
against the back wall, as has been described in the Journal. In the 
earlier houses Boses are grown against the back wall and in pots, and 
these are characterised by robust healthy growth and fine buds. One 
specimen Niphetos in a pot, a large plant, has a quantity of large 
buds which promise to become first-class blooms.—D. S. 
- Forget-me-nots in Pots. —These charming flowers are general 
favourites as spring bedding plants, but there may be many readers of 
the Journal unacquainted with their value for pot purposes. A friend 
of mine, who has the supplying of a large establishment with quantities 
of plants and cut flowers for the house, finds the above are easily forced, 
and always give satisfaction as decorative plants, and annually grows 
them in quantity for the express purpose. By having them in sufficient 
numbers they can be had in bloom from January onwards till they 
flower under natural conditions. Those which bloom earliest are 
thrown away directly they have completed their course to give place to 
other successive batches. Those are preserved for stock purposes which 
are the latest to bloom, being hardened and planted out in a somewhat 
sheltered position after they are divided and old flower stems cleared 
away. They may also be raised from seel in the same manner 
adopted for ordinary bedding uses, sowing early so as to secure strong 
plants for potting in late autumn. Those of your readers who have 
never treated them for the purpose under notice may satisfy themselves 
in this matter by lifting some where thickly planted in beds, and give 
them a position in a warm part of the greenhouse, and supplying them 
well with water, when they will no doubt be rewarded with some of 
the prettiest of pot plants for house decoration that the spring months 
produce.—W. S. 
GARDENERS’ SOCIAL POSITION AND EDUCATION. 
That Mr. Bighter is correct in what he says regarding the legal 
status of gardeners I do not dispute, but when he speaks in such a 
deprecatory tone against young men being educated for gardeners, or 
striving to educate themselves after they are in gardening situations, I 
would ask him if education is of no use beyond representing so much 
value from an & s. d. point of view. Even if it were possible for a 
gardener (or indeed any other person) to gain too much knowledge of 
anything appertaining to his profession, does it necessarily follow that 
a young man derives no pleasure from study except when he realises 
that he can gain a shilling or two more per week by it than he does at 
present ? What about the social gathering or the country walk ? I 
know there are certain gentlemen who object to associate with gar¬ 
deners, but, as far as my experience goes, the gentlemen in question are 
those whom we see, not studying ribbon borders or the lacewing fly, but 
ribbons and laces. To all such, and gardeners in particular, who feel 
themselves degraded by Mr. Bighter’s remarks I commend the following 
extract from “The Pleasures of Life” by Sir John Lubbock, which 
appeared in “Great Thoughts” of March 2nd:—“Whether a life is 
noble or ignoble depends not on the calling which is adopted, but on the 
spirit in which it is followed. The humblest life may be noble, while 
that of the most powerful monarch or the greatest genius may be con¬ 
temptible.”—T. Pryer. _ 
“ N. H. P.” puts a clear, but I trust an exceptional case. So far as 
my experience of registration courts has gone I have found barristers 
and agents accepting the occupation list of the overseers almost, if not 
absolutely, without question, and whenever a name has been placed on 
the overseers’ list the vote has been practically safe. Now the question 
under discussion ought not to be complicated by the introduction of 
reference to the service vote. No such thing as a service franchise was 
known in law until 1885, and then only in its application to the par¬ 
liamentary vote. But the ratepayers’ franchise, which is chiefly based 
on the Assessment Amendment Act of 1869, laid down clearly that the 
occupier of every separate house or building, termed in the Act “rate- 
ableiheridPament or messuage,” was to have his or her name put on the 
rate book, and be fully entitled to the exercise of all local franchises. 
That Act was passed by Mr. Goschen, and might well be termed the 
Magna Charta of the rights of the local ratepayer. Now the point to be 
fought out is with the overseers and the exercise of their discreton. I 
hold that the Act of 1869 admits of no doubt whatever as to the duty of 
the overseers in the matter in relation to rated property, as in every 
case in which any employ^ inhabited a house separate from, and being 
an independent habitation from that occupied by his employer, such 
employe should have his name placed on the rate-book as a ratepayer. 
It would be absurd to suppose that the Act quoted applied sflelyto 
occupiers of small tenements whose rates are compounded and paid by 
the landlord, and not to all occupiers of every description of house, 
however situate, if such house be in independent habitation and rated 
by the local authorities. Everyone must admit that our system of regis¬ 
tration, whether applied to imperial or local elections, is the perfection 
of absurdity. It is the product of cobbling, but always with the 
apparent desire to make it as unworkable as possible. Still farther, it 
is in the power of party political agents, by spreading objections broad¬ 
cast, to play havoc with electoral rights. Whenever further attempts 
are made with regard to registration, it is very obvious that there must 
be no distinction if the household franchise is to continue ; and so far 
as local franchises are concerned it is not easy to see how other than a 
rating basis can be adopted. Imperially it is different, as in some shape 
or other every person, and especially an adult person, is practically a 
tixpayer. I tike it for granted that this subject, which seems to be 
very appreciably outside the domain of horticulture, is thus being dis¬ 
cussed, not from any party motives, but simply because gardeners who 
are not admitted to the privileges of ratepayers, feel both aggrieved and 
humiliated. In that respect the discussion is right, and I have no doubt 
has elicited the respect of readers of every section. The gardener, who 
is ever an intelligent man, usually far more so than are his fellows of 
the same social status, of course desires to exercise the rights common 
to householders. To refuse him that right is to degrade him locally 
and also professionally, and he is amply justified both in protecting and, 
so far as he legally can, resisting. I still advise that gardeners who are 
left out in the cold should bring pressure upon their overseers. Get a 
copy of the Assessment Act of 1869, and demand that the full rights of 
ratepayers shall be granted to them.—A. I)., Felt-ham. 
CATTLEYA TRIABLE, CLARK’S VARIETY. 
Mr. G. Cummins sends us a flower of this variety, which he 
says has been in full beauty for six weeks. It is noteworthy for 
the substance of all its parts, and is at the same time of good size 
and the lip is richly coloured. It was grown by Stephenson Clark, 
Esq , Croydon Lodge. Mr. Cummins regards it as a very good 
form and an improvement on C. Dayanum. 
CORK FOR ORCHID3. 
I enclose two blooms of the lovely but easy grown Orchid 
Denbrobium nobile. I know two or three eminent Orchid growers 
who condemn cork to grow Orchids on. They say the plants will 
not thrive on this material, but as the plant from whence these 
blooms were picked is grown in a 7-inch pot filled with sphagnum 
moss and cork, and has now 103 fully expanded blooms, the same 
as the sample forwarded, I should like to know if the objection to 
cork is only a fancy, as I have a number of other Orchids I wish to 
try on cork. Please state your opinion on this, also on the bloom3. 
—Alfred Bishop. 
[The flowers are good, and could not have been produced by an 
ill-grown plant. We have seen Orchids both succeed and fail on 
cork, also on and in other materials ; but it is certain some of the 
finest examples of culture are not grown on cork. This is a ques¬ 
tion for individual cultivators to consider, and they are at liberty to 
express their views on the subject.] 
CYPRIPEDIG.Vt ROTH3CHILDIANUM. 
Though the name was familiar to many of the members of the 
Floral Committee present at the meeting of the Royal Horticul¬ 
tural Society last week, when this fine Orchid was exhibited, yet 
very few could have seen it in flower, and it therefore came as a 
great surprise, for much-praised plants too seldom equal their 
descriptions. However, the claims of this Cypripedium have by 
no means been exaggerated, and the Committee immediately 
signified their opinion by a unanimously voted first-class Certificate. 
The plant shown (fig. 36) was grown in the collection at Tring 
Park, the residence of Lord Rothschild (described in this Journal 
last autumn), and Mr. E. Hill, the gardener, had evidently given it 
