June 20, 1891. 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
671 
pontica and Berberis Darwinii were nearly killed in 
some places, while in others they were only partly 
injured. Arbutus unedo, Cotoneaster microphylla, 
Portugal Laurels, and others have suffered considerably. 
The Bay Laurel (Laurus nobilis), even when covered 
with canvas, was partly injured, while it has been killed 
to the ground in many places where left unprotected. 
In the vicinity of the pond in the lower part of the 
grounds many fine old tussocks of Arundo conspicua 
and Gynerium argenteum have either been killed out¬ 
right, or so much crippled as to present a sorry 
appearance. The trees and shrubs in the same neigh¬ 
bourhood have also suffered more severely than those 
planted at the northern end of the ground, where the 
soil and atmosphere must have been in a relatively 
drier condition. 
Recapitulating the above statements, we find that 
frost has been the cause of much injury to trees and 
shrubs ; but this has been greatly augmented by the 
proximity of the same to water, in a low-lying locality 
by the influence of smoky fogs, and by the imperfect 
ripening of the wood and leaves of certain kinds when 
planted under the shade of deciduous trees, and which 
necessarily become bare in winter. The tenderness of 
certain subjects must be taken into account, but there 
is reason to fear that smoky fogs more than frost are 
the cause of so much mischief to Conifers. 
-- 
DROPMORE. 
"When I visited this beautiful place the other day— 
and which has long been famous in the annals of 
Horticulture—I learned from Mr. Herrin, who is now 
the courteous and capable gardener there, that he had 
been invited to read a paper on Dropmore Conifers at 
the coming Conifer Conference at Chiswick, and I was 
pleased to hear it, because Dropmore affords to the 
intelligent observer, such as Mr. Herrin is, a capital 
field for observation as to the characters and general 
features of Conifer® ; and I would urge that it would 
be a really admirable object did thg Conifer Conference 
bodily agree to adjourn from Chiswick at once to 
Dropmore, and there see some of the noblest tree' 
examples in the kingdom in their full beauty, and 
under the conduct of a capable expositor have the 
Conifer® of this fine place fully exhibited and described. 
I confess to feeling an admiration which is almost 
reverential when I see some of the noble examples to be 
found there—grand trees of such exceeding freshness 
and beauty as to command respect and appreciation. 
Of course, that the natural soil is suited to Conifers 
goes without saying ; but the charm which so largely 
attaches to the specimens is that they are found in 
unkept grounds, rather as though growing naturally in 
woods than on excessively neat, clean-shaven lawns, 
so that the surroundings seem to be more in accord 
than is so often the case. What some persons 
delight to term a “Conifery,” where numerous specimens 
have been planted on grass without any regard to 
character, growth, or surroundings, is to me an 
abomination. It is “ snob ” gardening of the most ob¬ 
jectionable kind — a congregation of huge vegetable 
extinguishers or pepper-boxes, and nothing more. 
Happily there is nothing of that kind at Dropmore, 
and in few places does the visitor see several Conifers in 
juxtaposition. 
The grand old Araucaria, some 60 ft. to 70 ft. in 
height, is still the king of the Conifer® here. It is 
indeed a noble tree, one of the most perfect in form, 
density, and beauty. I never tire of seeing and 
admiring this splendid example, or look upon it with¬ 
out thinking of old Frost, who, now silent for ever, 
must have talked about his grand tree enough to fill a 
myriad of volumes. However, if one misses at Drop¬ 
more old Frost’s loquacity, ample reparation is made in 
the less demonstrative, but more elevated conversation 
and kindly descriptions of the present gardener, who 
is Philip Frost’s immediate successor. 
At the time of my visit the vast number of huge 
Azalea bushes, found in all directions about the grounds, 
were in brilliant bloom. How wondrously beautiful 
they were, and how many of them ! The old Yellow 
especially filled the air with rich perfume. What 
apricots, peaches, reds, and other soft and lovely 
colours ! Even the brilliant Rhododendrons seemed to 
be in many cases beside the Azalea ; but still, all were 
beautiful. These flowering plants, again, derive very 
much of their charm from the fact that they are not 
seen so much in dressed ground as in the woods and 
shrubberies in wondrous profusion. There is not, as is 
seen in too many gardens, a vast burst of colours’ with 
nothing more. 
At Dropmore one comes across these bushes indivi¬ 
dually or in groups, literally in all directions, and yet 
where least expected, giving a charm to gardening 
which landscape gardeners somehow fail to understand, 
as they too often crowd all their eggs into one basket. 
At Dropmore, too, one sees a really old-fashioned flower 
garden full of hardy plants of all sorts, and plenty of 
modern ones also. The combination of fine old beds 
and borders, with glasshouses, aviaries, noble trees, and 
shrubs, tends to make the visitor feel that there is a 
charm in these mixed elements which gardens of the 
stucco type altogether fail to offer. There are in the 
houses numerous plants of all kinds. In one the 
deliciously perfumed Stephanotis floribunda, growing 
in a 12-in. pot, and even along some eight wires the 
full length of the house, is blooming marvellously— 
a really wonderful production of flower, and such 
flower, too ! 
In a span-roofed house there is a very remarkable 
crop of Mr. Herrin’s Abundance Tomato, growing in 
double rows on either side, and carrying an enormous 
crop of rich-coloured fruits. This variety must rank 
amongst the most prolific. In another house there are 
quantities of Cucumbers and Melons ; in others heavy 
crops of Grapes and stone fruits, house decorative 
plants, zonal Pelargoniums for autumn blooming, 
Roses, and, indeed, something of all sorts. The kitchen 
gardens are fully cropped, and the produce is in capital 
form. Apart from excellence of cultivation generally, 
Dropmore has, under the present gardening rule, been 
greatly improved in method and tidiness, and there is 
now much more pleasure in seeing it than was formerly 
the case. 
Dropmore, is still a show place, and therefore 
practically open to the public. It lies wide, however, 
of railways, and is therefore none too accessible. Still, 
it always merits a visit, but perhaps never more so 
than early in the month of June.— A. D. 
-- 
HAM HOUSE. 
Hah House, one of the seats of Lord Dysart, 
is pleasantly situated amongst tall old trees on the 
banks of the Thames, Petersham, and close to Richmond. 
A large majority of the trees consist of the English 
Elm, of large size, and close to the mansion are some 
noble specimens of Scotch Firs, amongst which are 
pleasing glades or grass walks overhung with Box 
trees, Portugal Laurels, and others, while the ground 
amongst the trees is thickly planted with Daffodils 
and English Blue Bells, which respectively make a fine 
display in their season. In the old kitchen garden are 
sixteen of the largest specimens of the Holly Oak to be 
seen. Three large beds or masses of the finer hybrid 
Rhododendrons, intermixed with a few of the strongly 
fragrant Rhododendron flavum, were gay when we saw 
them on the 13th inst. White, rose, red and purple, 
often heavily blotched varieties, were very conspicuous. 
Lilium auratum and Gladioli planted amongst them 
will make a display later on. 
In the neighbourhood of the houses are some beds of 
herbaceous plants, and in other parts of the grounds 
and gardens others are grown for the sake of cut flowers, 
including some of the best Pyrethrums grown by 
market gardeners ; also Lupinus polyphyllus albus and 
Inula glandulosa. The old-fashioned Preonies are still 
good of their kind, and may be seen here and there in 
the older parts of the gardens. A strain of seedling 
Pyrethrums shows some very good kinds, including a 
large blush-coloured single variety with a golden 
yellow disc, the outer florets of which are elongated like 
those of a Chrysanthemum Anemone. 
The kitchen-garden crops are looking well, and 
promise a fine return generally. The Canadian Wonder 
Pea in front of a Peach house will soon be fit to gather, 
as the pods were swelling when we saw them. 
Cauliflowers that had been wintered in pots, and 
planted out on a sunny border, were almost fit to cut. 
Strawberries in various parts of the garden promised 
well. Noble, according to Mr. Sage’s finding, is best 
grown from runners planted the previous autumn. 
The fruits under those conditions are both earlier and 
larger. A greater number may be obtained from two- 
year-old plants, but the berries are smaller. In a 
plantation consisting of different kinds, such as Sir 
Joseph Paxton, President, Premier, Oxonian, Dr. Hogg, 
and Auguste Nicaise, the first named had all its earliest 
and finest flowers destroyed by frost, while those of 
President alongside of it, equally forward and equally 
exposed, escaped unhurt. There is evidently a con¬ 
siderable difference in the degree of hardiness of these 
two kinds. The plantation of Noble had to be specially 
protected, and now the fruits are of considerable size. 
A frame has been placed over some of them in the open 
ground, with the view of hastening them. Several 
heated frames are also filled with James Veitch and 
Sir Charles Napier. The latter has not the largest 
fruits, but is by far the finer flavoured of the two, and 
is a great favourite at Ham House. 
The fruit trees, both on the walls and as bushes in 
the open ground, show an abundant crop. King of 
Pippins Apple, Louise Bonne of Jersey Pear, and 
King of the Damsons Plums, as bushes or small pyra¬ 
mids, showed an abundant crop. Greengage, Kirke’s 
and McLaughlin Plums on walls also bear well, the 
latter especially ; it is naturally an excellent bearer, 
was raised in America, and is of the Greengage type, 
with fruits of large size. 
Plums are also grown in pots plunged in the borders 
of one of the Peach houses, where the trees generally 
bear an excellent crop. Several varieties are grown, 
including Reine Claude de Bavaria, Denniston’s Superb, 
Transparent Gage, and McLaughlin. The latter does 
as well in pots as out of doors, and deserves to be more 
generally cultivated. Several varieties of Nectarines 
are also grown in pots, and bear a good crop. This is 
the case particularly with Lord Napier, Yiolette Hative, 
Elruge, and Large Elruge. A smaller but still fair 
crop is borne by Murrey, Downton, Humboldt, Spencer, 
and Pineapple. A fair crop is borne by Pineapple and 
Humboldt on the back wall, and a good crop by Pit- 
maston Orange. The earliest house was started on 
New Year’s Day, and the crop is now ripe, in fact the 
fruits of Lord Napier had all been gathered. Rivers’ 
Early Orange and Yiolette Hative bore fair crops of 
fruit of remarkably high colour. 
In one of the houses a quantity of Figs were grown 
in pots. The varieties favoured are Brown Turkey, St. 
John’s and Negro Largo, the fruits of which are being 
gathered. The first and last named are also grown as 
fan-shaped trees on the back wall of one of the houses. 
The last named is a strong and rampant grower, and not 
so suitable for a limited space as Brown Turkey. The 
first crop is now about the size of pigeon’s eggs, or half 
that size. Those of Brown Turkey are nearly full sized, 
but strange to say a larger number of fruits commenced 
to swell at the base of the shoots at a later period than 
those towards the apex of the shoots, and they are now 
about the size of marbles. The result will be that the 
younger fruits on the upper part of the shoots will 
ripen first. Some may even be noted lower down upon 
branches dating two or three seasons back. Taken 
altogether, then, the first crop will be a very heavy one. 
The second crop on the young wood has also commenced 
to swell up. The house was started in February, but 
has been brought on slowly. 
The Grapes in the earliest house are ripe and show 
bunches of fine size. Being the first season the Yines 
have been allowed to bear they are only carrying a few 
bunches on the lower portion. The length and stout¬ 
ness of the rods show that Mr. Sage is giving them the 
proper treatment. The ‘ varieties grown are Black 
Hamburgh, Muscat of Alexandria and Madresfield 
Court. The same kinds are grown in the succession 
house, where the berries are changing colour. A 
houseful of Pineapples will soon be a fine sight. The 
plants bloomed in February, and a very large percentage 
of them have fruits about half grown. Cucumbers are 
also in full bearing. 
--— 
GAME COVERTS : THEIR FOR¬ 
MATION AND MANAGEMENT. 
Game rearing is now commonly practised on almost 
every estate throughout the country, and as the 
value of the plantations as coverts is well-nigh 
of as much importance as that of the timber produced, 
it will be seen that the successful formation and 
management of these is a matter of great importance to 
the forester or other person entrusted with the work. 
My object in the present paper is, however, not so 
much to dwell on the planting and after management 
of woodlands for game preserves as to point out the 
best means of forming such shelter in woods, that 
either through neglect or by a peculiar course of 
treatment have become almost worthless for the object 
under consideration. 
To plant close and thin early, and at stated periods 
thereafter, is the course generally pursued where game 
is abundant ; but as such a method of treatment is not 
at all times compatible with the profitable management 
of plantations, assuming that trees—particularly of the 
Pine tribe—require to be grown close together for the 
production of clean and valuable timber, we will direct 
our attention to the artificial raising of game covert, and 
the after management of the same. 
Where the plantations are kept well and regularly 
