THE GARDENING WORLD 
September 25, 1886. 
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Pruning should never be done at the time of planting. 
If the trees are planted in the autumn, March is a good 
time to prune, regard being had, of course, to the 
prevailing weather. If planting is done in early spring, 
April will he a good time to prune ; the latter month 
is always the best for pruning the Tea and Noisette 
varieties. The strength of the shoot must determine 
the extent of the shortening—if the growth has been 
vigorous, leave the shoot much longer than when it is 
weak ; as a rule the shoots of the stronger-growing 
kinds should be left from 12 ins. to 18 ins. long, with 
five or six eyes ; the weaker-growing shoots 6 ins. long 
with two to four eyes—these remarks apply mostly to 
hybrid perpetuals. Tea-scented and Noisette Eoses 
should only have the weak growths thinned out, and 
the strong shoots topped. Moss Eoses should be only 
sparingly pruned. 
Finally, do not allow established plants of any kind 
of Eoses to become crowded with branches, but carefully 
thin out all small and unripened wood; and in pruning, 
always endeavour to prune to a bud that points out¬ 
wards. 
-^* 6 .- 
Professor Dickson, of the Edinburgh University, 
has been elected a corresponding member of the 
German Botanical Society, Berlin. 
Mrs. Blair, relict of the late Mr. Blair, of Stamford 
Hill, who raised that lovely hybrid China Eose, Blairii 
No. 2, died a few days ago at Longton, aged 93 years. 
Mrs. Blair had been on the pension list of the Gar¬ 
deners’ Eoyal Benevolent Institution since 1864. 
The seventh annual Fruit and Chrysanthemum show, 
organised by the Liverpool Horticultural Associa¬ 
tion, will be held in the St. George’s Hall, on Novem¬ 
ber 23rd and 24th. 
Mr. A. Bishop, formerly gardener at Abbotsford 
Park, Burgess Hill, Sussex, has been engaged as gar¬ 
dener at Westley Hall, Bury St. Edmunds. 
At Frashurst, Dorking, the residence of W. E. 
Nix, Esq., a plant of Lapageria alba bears a spray 
6 ft. to 7 ft. long, with 111 flowers and buds on it. 
The next provincial show of the National Eose 
Society will be held in Edinburgh, on July 13th, 
1887, in connection with the Eoyal Caledonian Horti¬ 
cultural Society’s summer show. 
Spathoglottis Kimballiana, a novelty described 
as having flower-spikes 1$ ft. to 2 ft. in height, and 
flowers as large as a good Phaleenopsis, brilliant 
yellow, and the lip spotted with purple ; will be offered 
for sale at Stevens’ rooms next Thursday. 
The Eev. C. P. Peach, vicar of Appleton-le-Street, 
Yorkshire, died on the 17th inst., aged fifty-seven 
years. He was a pleasant and instructive writer on 
many horticultural subjects, and, like many another 
worthy country clergyman, had a strong partiality for 
the Eose. 
At a meeting of the Belgian Chamber of Horticul¬ 
turists held at Ghent on the 15tli inst., Certificates of 
Merit were awarded to Mr. James Bray for Yanda 
Sanderianum ; to Messrs. Jacob Mackoy & Co. for 
Curmeria Kegeljeanei and Davallia tenuifolia Yeitchii; 
and to Mr. Linden for Alocasia Lindeni, Cupania denti- 
culata and Aphelandra Macedoana. 
We are sorry to learn that the widow of Mr. John 
Cox, formerly of Eedleaf, is left in very straitened 
circumstances, and will be an applicant for the pension 
of the Gardeners’ Eoyal Benevolent Institution at the 
next election. Mr. Cox was a subscriber to the charity 
for thirty-three years, and was successful in inducing a 
good many other gardeners to subscribe. Making 
enquiries on the subject from Mr. Cutler a few days 
ago, we were surprised to hear of the very low rate of 
mortality among the pensioners; although at the 
commencement of the year there were 118 pensioners 
on the list, ranging in age from forty-nine to ninety- 
eight years, only six have died up to the present time, 
which is ten per cent, below the average. 
The historical estate of Pyrgo Park, near Havering- 
atte-Bower, Essex, has recently been sold by General 
Fytche. The property embraces not quite. 700 acres, 
but the principal feature of the estate is the magnificent 
mansion, built in 1852 by Cubitt from the designs of 
an eminent architect, and enlarged and beautified in 
1862. There are upon the property the ruins of an 
ancient palace existing in 1226, and at that time in the 
custody of Phillippe Forrester. It seems to have been 
onginally the house for the Queen Consort and her 
jointure. Eleanor, Queen of Edward I., and Ann, 
Queen of Eichard II., held it in dower. Joan, widow 
of Henry IV., died there in 1437, while in 1559 it 
passed to Sir John Grey, and afterwards to Sir John 
Cheke, in whose family it remained, until by marriage 
it became the property of Baron Archer of Umbersdale, 
whose lady also died there in 1774, since which time, 
through a series of changes of ownership, it passed into 
the hands of General Fytche. 
There was a good attendance of buyers at Protheroe 
& Morris’s rooms on Tuesday and Wednesday, when 
Dr. Paterson’s Collection of Orchids came under 
the hammer. As a rule, the plants were not in such 
good condition or such fine pieces as we had expected 
to see, and, consequently, pnces ruled low generally 
for all but the best things, which, as usual, realised 
their value. The best lots sold on Tuesday were Lielia 
superbiens, 9 guineas ; Coelogyne cristata, Chatsworth 
variety, 8 guineas; Cypripedium Yeitchianum, 15 
guineas ; Cattleya Trianse, extra fine variety, 45 guineas ; 
Cattleya labiata, autumn-flowering variety, 18 guineas; 
Lselia Perrinii alba, 20 guineas ; Laelia elegans Turneri, 
35 guineas ; and Ccelogyne Gardneriana, 154 guineas. 
On Wednesday, the highest priced lots were Odonto- 
glossum Klaboehorum, 10 guineas ; Yanda Cathcartii, 
15 guineas; Cymbidium giganteum, 12 guineas; C. 
Lowianum, 13 guineas; Yanda suavis, Wingate’s 
variety, 12 guineas ; Vanda tricolor Patersoni, with 
twenty pairs of leaves, 16 guineas; Vanda suavis, 
Paterson’s variety, £32 11s.; Odontoglossum Alexandra, 
£12 Is. 6 d.\ an extra fine variety, £33 12s.; and 
another large plant, £14 3s. 6 d. ; Dendrobium 
Ainswortliii, 13 guineas; Vanda suavis, 14 guineas; 
and Lselia anceps Dawsoni, £9 9s. 6d. 
-- 
MARKET GARDENERS’ 
GRIEVANCES. 
I shall be glad if you will allow me space to state 
some of the experiences which we, as a body of men, 
have to pass through ; also to state what I believe has 
led up to the present state of affairs, and to suggest a 
few possible remedies. For some years past prices ob¬ 
tained for garden produce have been by no means remu¬ 
nerative, but the present year, in that respect, has 
surpassed anything we have previously known. Every¬ 
one thought, after passing through such a severe winter 
and spring as 1885-6, that green stuff—cabbages for 
instance—would be very scarce, and that high prices 
would be the order of the day ; but I am sorry to say 
that was anything but the case. It seemed as though 
everyone set about to meet what they thought would 
be a pressing demand for that vegetable, and the con¬ 
sequence was a glut. I am quite aware that there 
were a few instances where fairly good prices were rea¬ 
lised, but the bulk of the crop did not pay. Then came 
Gooseberries, and everybody will remember what a glut 
there was, and the low prices they made. Market 
gardeners more especially remember this to their sor¬ 
row. Prices ranged from a farthing per stone and up¬ 
wards—not very far upwards either. I have a vivid 
recollection of sending eighty-two stones to one of our 
northern markets, and after paying expenses—carriage, 
commission, pulling, &e.— there was left for the grower 
the extraordinary sum of 8Taking them upon the 
whole, they did not more than pay for labour, and tons 
in this district were never gathered. 
Now we are in the midst of the Plum season, and 
these fetch such low prices that in some districts 
growers find that they do not pay for the trouble of 
pulling, and thus tons are rotting on the trees. Some 
wise people prophesied a little fortune for those who had 
anything like a crop of Apples, but here, again, they 
are disappointed. Prices rule very low, but that, of 
course, is to be expected while there is such a glut of 
Plums in the market. I have, however, very grave 
doubts as to whether they will improve in prices, as the 
reports which have lately come to hand prove the crop 
to be by no means so light as was at one time tlymght 
to be the case. French Beans, again, this year will not 
more than pay for seed and labour. I might go on 
multiplying, but “Sufficient for the day is the evil 
thereof.” I will now endeavour to show what, in my 
opinion, has led to present results. Foreign competi¬ 
tion, I admit, has a great deal to do with it ; but the 
chief cause, in my opinion, is over-production at home. 
Ever since cereals began to decline in prices, farmers 
have naturally turned their attention to something 
that would pay them better. The Press has largely 
aided them in this respect. They have been told that 
one way out of their difficulties was to devote part of 
their soil to the cultivation of fruits and vegetables for 
market. Consequently, large tracts of land in various 
parts of the country have been planted with all kinds 
of fruits, and I may safely say that, where one acre 
was devoted to growing vegetables twelve years ago, 
there are now twenty. The result is that farmers have 
defeated their own object. 
Nor is this all. Market gardening is incorporated with 
almost every known trade and profession. There are 
grocers, drapers, butchers, bakers, and even journalists 
who have “gone in for it,” and who grow and sell 
every kind of fruit, flower, and vegetable. Then, again, 
there is the parson, the squire, with even lords, dukes, 
and nobles of every rank and title, who, after supplying 
their own wants, send the surplus to be disposed of in 
the market. This latter class of market gardeners is 
largely on the increase. These, I think, sir, are some 
of the main causes of the present state of affairs. But 
now let me suggest a few possible remedies. It is no 
use, I know, quarrelling with the above class of men— 
they will do as they please. But for that, I should 
quietly suggest to them all that they leave market 
gardening alone, or, to use an old proverb, “ that every 
cobbler sticks to his last ” ; but then they wouldn’t, so 
it remains for us to make the best of a bad job. The 
first remedy lies between landlord and tenant. To 
speak plainly, there must be a wholesale reduction in 
the rents of market gardens. I say wholesale of ne¬ 
cessity, as nothing short of fifty, and in some cases 
sixty per cent, must come off if we are to live, for how 
is it possible for us to compete with, say, the farmer, 
who gets his land, in every respect as good as ours, five 
and six times cheaper ? 
It is no use beating about the bush on this question. 
Men cannot always afford to work for nothing, nor live 
by' their losses. Let market gardeners, then, of whom 
there is a large body in this district, bind themselves 
together on this question and demand a reduction. 
Another remedy is a considerable reduction in railway 
rates. Everyone knows that foreign produce is carried 
at a much cheaper rate than our own. This is 
decidedly unfair, and surely 7 our legislators should make 
haste to help us in this matter. Then, again, growers 
and consumers want to be brought more closely 
together; there are too many “mediums,” the “masses” 
are not reaping the benefit of the present low prices. 
There is a shameful difference between prices paid by 
consumers and those received by the poor grower. 
"What with railway 7 companies, salesmen, costers, &c., 
who all have to get a bite, how can it be otherwise ? 
Surely something might be done to help us in this 
respect. I think from the facts submitted, you will 
come to the conclusion thdt, if there is a body 7 of men 
deserving sympathy and help, it is the market garde¬ 
ners.— W. Harvey, Spalding, September 17 th. 
-->x<-- 
PEARS VERSUS PEACHES. 
Bearing in mind the hope expressed in No. 74, 
Yol. II., of your paper upon the above subject, I send 
you two fruits of Beurre de l’Assomption Pear gathered 
from the same aspect as Easter Beurre sent previously. 
Being, comparatively speaking, a new Pear, I am un¬ 
able to speak as to the specimen I send you ; but with 
the full resources at your command perhaps you will 
kindly give us your opinion. [Presently 7 .—Ed.] The 
trees have not received any special treatment, neither 
have they been mulched or watered, so that you may 
look upon the fruit as the result of ordinary culture. 
Easter Beurre is carrying a very heavy crop, which 
to all appearance will be much finer than those for¬ 
warded as stated above ; Doyenne du Cornice is not so 
heavily fruited, but is more highly coloured than I have 
ever seen ; Josephine de Malines is also heavily cropped, 
and with us always one of our best dessert Pears ; 
Madame Treyve has some splendid fruit weighing 
10 ozs. each ; while Pitmaston promises me some enor¬ 
mous fruits. I have placed the two fruits I send you 
of Beurre de l’Assomption in the scale, and find to¬ 
gether they weigh within a fraction of 2 lbs. ; and, in 
conclusion, without having the slightest desire to induce 
others to follow my plan, I will only add that I have 
carefully enquired and find that the Peaches from the 
outside sent up for dessert remain untouched so long as 
these Pears are on the table—a distinct proof I think 
of which is more appreciated. Where Peaches succeed 
out of doors, notes as above are pooh-poohed ; but the 
result I am obtaining makes me quite impervious to all 
such side thrusts.— IF. C., Croome. 
