September 18, 1886. 
40 The gardening world. 
THE GRANGE, STRETFORD. 
Calling at The Grange, Derbyshire Lane, Stretford, 
the residence of John Hey wood, Esq., on the occasion 
of my visit to the exhibition of the National Carnation 
and Picotee Society (Northern Section) at the Botanical 
Gardens, Manchester, on August 14tli, I found an ad¬ 
mirably kept, pleasant place in one of the most popular 
suburbs of Manchester. The Grange is a semi-detached 
residence, standing in pleasant grounds of its own, 
which are of some extent and well laid out. On the 
Manchester side is the house, and the pleasure gardens 
lie on one side of it, with the houses forming the back¬ 
ground ; and behind these the kitchen garden. The 
carriage drive enters at one gate, and passes out of the 
other. There is a bold sweep from one entrance to the 
stables, and this encloses a fine piece of grass lawn, 
kept in excellent order. In the front, and at the side 
farthest from the mansion, are bold groups of shrub¬ 
bery, with a handsome range of plant houses com¬ 
pleting the line up to the stable-yard in the rear of the 
mansion. The gardener is Mr. Koderick Elpliinstone, 
who comes of a good gardening stock. He has been 
nine years in the service of Mr. Heywood, and having 
already made his mark locally as a cultivator of Orchids, 
will, I think, be heard of some day in a wider sphere 
of popularity. 
A span-roofed conservatory, nearly square, forms the 
centre of the front line of glass facing south at the side 
of the carriage drive ; it is 28 ft. long by 18 ft. in 
width, with a centre bed having Camellias planted out 
and other subjects, and there is a broad edging of 
Lycopodium. There is a plant stage 2 ft. in height 
running round the house, and on it were Camellias, 
Imantophyllum, fine flowering specimens of Schizan- 
thus and Campanula pyramidalis, Yucca aloifolia, 
Rhododendrons, Azaleas, Cordyline indivisa, and other 
subjects well looked after. At the east side is a warm 
Orchid-house, containing Vandas, Cattleyas, Aerides, 
&c., with Stephanotis overhead. Further on is a pleasant 
little Fernery formed of tufa, with a rustic bridge over 
water beneath, and here could be seen Ccelogynes 
planted in the tufa and doing well, also Platyeerium 
alcicorne. This excellent piece of work was designed 
and carried out by Clapham in his usual excellent style. 
This was constructed about two years ago, and is now 
becoming nicely furnished. Foliage Begonias also do 
well among the Ferns ; as a matter of course the 
Fernery is heated by means of hot water. 
Retracing our steps to the conservatory, we came to 
an Orchid-house, in which is a fine collection, to which 
Mr. Heywood is making additions. Of Dendrobiums 
we saw Falconeri, Devonianum, Wardianum, infundi¬ 
bulum, densiflorum, thyrsiHorum, chrysotoxum, &c. ; 
Calanthes, and Lielia anceps, of which there are some 
very fine well-done specimens, all the foregoing in 
excellent condition. Next came a division for cool 
Orchids—Odontoglots, Epidendrums, cool Oncidiums, 
Laelia albida and autumnalis, &c. Still farther west is 
a hardy Fernery, making a good finish at this point. 
Behind this range Mr. Heywood is building a range 
of three Orchid-houses, each 36 ft. in length, for exotic 
species and varieties mainly ; one division will be 
devoted to Cattleyas. Close by is an old house in two 
divisions, at present devoted to Orchids that will pre¬ 
sently go to the new houses. Here could be seen a 
capital lot of plants that will be certain to show them¬ 
selves to the best advantage in their new quarters. 
Next came a greenhouse in two divisions, containing 
Azaleas, Heaths, and a general stock of this kind of 
flowering plants. At the other end is a Melon-house. 
In the greenhouse, Marechal Niel Rose is planted out, 
also Lapagerias rosea and alba. Then came two low 
span-roofed houses, used for storing away bedding stuff 
during the winter ; one of them was then planted with 
Tomatos ; and close by were some useful pits. 
Then came into view a very fine collection of Chrysan¬ 
themums Mr. Elphinstone is growing; he has about 
500 plants in pots, about 150 of which are fine bushy 
specimens. Mr. Elphinstone cuts down his Chrysanthe¬ 
mums when they have done flowering, lets them rest 
for a time, and then when they have broken into 
growth, he shakes the soil from the roots, and repots 
as he does show Pelargoniums ; and he states that he 
gets well-formed plants carrying fine heads of bloom. 
That they were well grown could be plainly seen. 
Next came the Vineries, one in three divisions with 
the border inside. No. 1 was planted wholly with 
white Muscats, and they were carrying good bunches ; 
No. 2 had, in the east side, Barbarossa and Hamburghs; 
and on the west, Alicante—better Grapes of the latter 
came on the west aspect. No. 3 contained Alicante, 
Lady Downes, Madresfield Court, Buckland Sweetwater, 
and Mrs. Pince. That Mr. Elphinstone has had con¬ 
siderable difficulty in thoroughly finishing his Grapes 
there can be no doubt. The sloping roof starts almost 
close to the ground, and the lowermost bunches are 
verjr near the border in consequence. But pluck and 
persistence can triumph over many difficulties ; and by 
removing a portion of the surface soil, and top-dressing 
with care, a better finish is secured. As it is, Mr. 
Elphinstone is able to cut Grapes of excellent quality. 
The foregoing gives the result of a rapid glance at 
this pleasant place. The visitor interested in plants 
and flowers will find much to admire at all seasons of 
the year ; and the orderly condition in which the place 
is kept, reflects the greatest credit on Mr. Elphinstone, 
who has given not a few indications of what he can 
accomplish when he exhibits at the Manchester Shows. 
— 11. D. 
-- 
THE BLACK CHAMPION 
CURRANT. 
Five years ago, at one of the August meetings of the 
Fruit Committee, Messrs. James Carter & Co., of High 
Holborn, exhibited some fruit of a Black Currant, 
which for size, flavour, and productiveness, surpassed 
any other variety in cultivation. It was named 
Dunnett’s Black Champion, and duly honoured with a 
First Class Certificate. Of its origin we know nothing 
beyond the fact that it was brought into notice by Mr. 
Dunnett, a partner in the Holborn firm, in whose 
garden, in the centre of the famous seed farm at Dedham, 
in Essex, it is a subject of considerable interest to 
visitors in the months of August and September—aye, 
September, for among its other sterling qualities, is 
that of retaining its freshness until long after other 
sorts are shrivelled up. We have more than once seen 
the fine bushes in Mr. Dunnett’s garden, and have no 
hesitation in saying that it has no rival, and well 
deserves the most extensive cultivation. In habit it is 
a robust grower and a-most abundant bearer (as seen in 
the accompanying illustration, kindly lent us by 
Messrs. Carter), producing long bunches of jet black 
berries, measuring nearly three-quarters of an inch in 
diameter, and which are particularly delicate and 
pleasant in flavour. 
-—- 
MISTAKES IN GARDENING. 
At the Bath Floral Fete, September 1st, Mr. Shirley 
Ilibberd, at the request of the Managing Committee, 
gave a brief address on “ Mistakes in Gardening.” He 
said, in the few observations the title of his discourse 
suggested, he should not include a single word on any 
matter of taste. He would speak of what are commonly 
understood as practical matters, for, although on the 
subject of taste he might know where to begin, he felt 
fully satisfied he should never know where to leave off. 
So coming to practical matters, he would say that as in 
tailoring a man must cut his coat according to his cloth, 
so in gardening the best work was to be accomplished 
by making the best use of the materials at command. 
It was not to be questioned that the worst use was often 
made of the materials, and then gardening came to bo 
described as a tiresome and costly process of obtaining 
a disappointment. Between what one w r ould like and 
what is possible there was often a great gulf fixed, and 
one of the very first steps to success in gardening con¬ 
sisted in recognising the capabilities of a place, and 
taking the fullest advantage) of them. To enter into 
conflict with nature is a serious business, and, therefore, 
it is a folly to speculate largely in the cultivation of 
subjects that are not adapted to the conditions at our 
command. It should be understood that it is not 
possible to grow to perfection on the same soil a great 
number of diverse genera of plants ; a calcareous soil 
will not suit American plants ; a hot, sandy soil will 
not suit show Roses ; a heavy clay is a dreadful thing 
for Alpines, and to get Asparagus from it is not an easy 
matter. To a certain extent gardening is a conflict 
with nature from first to last, and the fact may be 
adduced as an argument in favour of softening the out¬ 
lines of the conflict by every possible opportunity. 
To alter the character of the staple soil was in many 
cases impossible ; in others it was a slow, laborious, 
and costly business ; therefore, it was always best to 
begin by humouring nature ; selecting for the garden 
plants likely to thrive without any special aids or con¬ 
trivances. A familiar example of the difficulty of 
modifying the original conditions was seen in plantations 
of Rhododendrons in places where soil and climate were 
alike unsuitable, the result being a rapid deterioration 
of the trees from the beauty they had when planted 
fresh from their beds of peat in a country nursery, to 
miserable scarecrows not good enough for the dressing 
of a Jack-in-the-Green on the 1st of May. If the making 
of a soil for a special purpose can ever be justified at 
all, the Rhododendrons can offer as good a justification 
as any ornamental plants known to our gardens. But 
in truth, many such justifications may be found, and 
the man who can afford to gratify his whims may 
accomplish wonderful things verging on the impossible. 
But we see people who cannot afford to engage in great 
conflicts, making grievous and costly mistakes in doing 
certain things badly, when other things quite as well 
worth doing are as clearly at command as the present 
moment and the ground we stand upon. Many amateurs 
who love gardening attempt too much, and spread their 
energies over too large a surface ; the result being im¬ 
perfect work and superficial enjoyment. Substantial 
enjoyment and perfect satisfaction can only be hoped 
for as the result of doing things well, and with a view 
always, to use Greely’s words, to “beat the best 
record.” It is a key to sure success to measure first 
the range of capabilities, and, this being accomplished, 
it will be more creditable, and, therefore, more enjoyable 
to make the best of these than to engage in conflicts 
and dally with difficulties. The resources of nature are 
so vast and various that wherever gardening is possible 
abundant entertainment and a reasonable range of profit 
may be secured by simply planting things that are the 
most likely to thrive, and leaving untouched, for a 
time at least, all doubtful subjects. There are sandy 
and loamy soils of such a kindly character that almost 
anything we plant will thrive upon them ; but, generally 
speaking, every place has some peculiarities, and if un¬ 
suited for some things we should like may be admirably 
suited for other things equally interesting and useful. 
A common source of mistakes in gardening is the 
failure to forecast results. It is in picturing clearly 
the far-off effect of present work that the genius of the 
true landscape gardener is made evident. He sees the 
sapling tree as it comes to his hand for planting, and 
he at the same time sees it as it will be in twenty, 
thirty or fifty years, and he sees his groups and com¬ 
binations fully developed, even at the moment of 
designing them, and thus it is that when he is dead 
and gone his work remains a living and a glorious 
monument. Now, many amateurs who love their 
gardens, and possess an immensity of knowledge of 
horticulture, fail in this n'ecessary forecasting, and the 
beautiful pictures they make by means of costly plant¬ 
ing, develope into incongruities and absurdities, and 
the mistakes are declared when it is too late to remedy 
them. I will take you to a garden here and a garden 
there—for there are thousands of such as I have now 
in my mind’s eye—and I will ask you if downright folly 
ever wore more beautiful features, or more plainly 
declared that the way the thing was done was the very 
way not to do it. Here we see Pines, Firs, Cedars, 
Spruces and deciduous trees of many kinds, that when 
originally jdanted presented a most delightful stippling 
of many colours and sweet combinations of form, now 
jumbled in a confusion that confounds the planter, and 
compels one to groan aloud in a spoiled paradise, where 
sounds of joy only should be heard. How painful it is 
to see a lofty Picea or Pinus that has grown with 
vigour, and would have been a marvel of beauty under 
better circumstances, now eaten into by a forward 
Spruce, or threatened with extinction by an overtopping 
Sequoia that is itself hemmed in by a suffocating sur¬ 
rounding of Deodars, Yews and Cypresses ! This sort 
of mistake is repeated in every variety of form through¬ 
out the country, and is attributable in the first instance 
to deficient judgment of future effect ; and in the next 
place, to lack of courage in sacrificing many trees of 
secondary value in order to save the noblest, the rarest 
and the most interesting. 
And the mention of coniferous trees reminds me of 
the frequency of mistakes in planting them where they 
are not only unlikely to thrive, but certain to perish. 
We may see spacious approaches, that might have been 
noble if planted with deciduous trees, made hideous 
with conifers, that in their dinginess and distress seem 
lost in the cold calculation of the length of years allotted 
them An impartial looker-on might unhesitatingly 
