Jan. 10th, 1885. 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
291 
Gardening is the purest of human pleasures, and the greatest 
refreshment to the spirit of man.”—B acon. 
SATURDAY, JANUARY 1 Om, 1885. 
Gaeden Liteeatube. —There is probably no 
vocation or profession better served than is 
gardening with all kinds of literature, but 
specially in the department of weekly serials. 
The amount of matter thus served up for the 
interest and edification of gardening readers is 
truly remarkable, and though much of it may be 
more or less dry, or abstruse, or pedantic, or 
iterative, yet it is all eminently calculated to 
keep all who care to read it well posted up in 
that which relates to horticulture in all its various 
branches. But apart from this very important 
section of Garden Literature, there is not less 
valuable, if less widely read, a vast amount of 
professional teaching and knowledge stored up 
in books more or less good in themselves, and 
of various prices. These are to be obtained by 
all who can purchase them, and a library of all 
the best standard works on gardening, whilst a 
large and costly one, would be at least one 
replete with a vast store of practical informa¬ 
tion. 
But theoretical knowledge, even if advanced 
from the most practical standpoint, of necessity 
proves a stumbling-block to those whose daily 
lives, not being in any way devoted to the prac¬ 
tice of gardening, find themselves incapable of 
appreciating the stored information contained in 
standard works in the same way and extent that 
trained gardeners can. In good truth, too, many 
of our best books are written for the edification 
of those who already know, rather than for those 
who do not know, and the novice in gardening 
finds in those books but little help in his elemen¬ 
tary studies and labours. Few, indeed, are the 
authors or compilers of gardening books, and 
especially of those books written for standard 
uses, who can bring their teaching down to the 
level of the meanest. They start from an 
advanced standpoint themselves, and naturally 
fail to see that the readers who want to utilize 
their books are literally miles behind them— 
in fact, are but just standing upon the verge of 
the sea of knowledge which the experienced 
writers have nearly passed over. Thus it comes 
about that so many of our gardening books, good 
as they are and splendid epitomes as they may bo 
of garden experience and work, are yet left 
stranded upon the shelves of the library, massive 
rocks of knowledge and information lying high 
and dry in the world of ignorance around them. 
Perhaps there is further some reason for this 
general want of interest in standard gardening 
books in the prices charged for them, which it 
must - certainly have long since struck others 
besides us are greatly in excess of those charged 
for books generally; indeed, there are few sub¬ 
jects upon which practical information is furnished 
with respect to which we cannot obtain really 
good books far more cheaply than we can those 
relating to gardening. If books are written for a 
limited constituency and are charged for at high 
rates, they will never do much to promote know* 
ledge or render its diffusion wide and universal, 
Tbe want of the ago now is respect to Garden 
Literature is that its many and useful serial 
publications may be supplemented by a series of 
standard books upon these particular subjects 
with respect to which the unlearned public need 
information. 
Those who have been brought into close con¬ 
tact with the working-class amateur gardener, and 
indeed with all that class who constitute the 
strictly cottager and amateur garden element of 
the country, have been struck with the constant 
demand made for clear, simple, practical books 
upon certain common plants or subjects of 
ordinary culture, have felt how difficult it is to 
offer the needful material in book form at 
present. The best works on such topics at 
present are both too technical and too expensive, 
whilst most of the cheap books have little prac¬ 
tical value, because they have been written or 
compiled by those who themselves have little 
practical knowledge. A great boon would be 
found in a popidar issue of shilling books, each 
of which treated specially of some section of 
gardening, such as the Kitchen-Garden, the 
Flower-Garden, the Amateurs’ Greenhouse, and 
the Vine indoors and outdoors. Mushrooms, 
Melons, and Cucumbers might make the theme 
of another, because the whole practice of making 
up hot-beds is involved. 
Apples, Pears, Plums, and other hardy fruits, 
with general treatment; Wall Trees of kinds, 
with pruning and general treatment ; Straw¬ 
berries, Easpberries, and bush fruits; Potato 
and other root crops ; the Cabbage family ; 
Peas, Beans, and similar crops—all these might 
well make subjects for separate treatment, and 
if done in a very plain, simple way, so that the 
most elementary of learners could follow and work 
out, the result would be singularly satisfactory. 
We have often been asked for a cheap book 
on Eoses, Ferns, Pansies, and similar flowers. 
Queries of this kind show how great a field 
there is open • for an enterprise of this kind, 
but the thing to be successful must be done 
with system, and liberally. A popular library 
of garden books for the million is one of the 
needs of the age that enterprise should shortly 
satisfy. 
The National Hobticultueal Society of 
Feance. —We have received the Schedule of 
Prizes offered by The So elite Nationale et 
Centrale d’ Horticulture de France for the Inter¬ 
national Exposition of Horticultural Products, 
which is proposed to be held from the 20th to the 
31st of May next, in and near the Pavillion de la 
Yille, Champs Elysees, Paris. The Schedule is 
divided into twelve sections—seven being for 
plants and cut flowers, and five for fruits, 
vegetables, and miscellaneous articles—forming 
in all 247 classes. Section A is devoted to new 
plants; B to those bemg well cultivated; C to 
those requiring special culture—market plants; 
D to plants grown under glass, including Orchids, 
for which eight separate classes are provided, 
Gloxinias, Ixoras, Bromeliads, four classes, 
Begonias, Caladiums, Crotons, Ferns, Palms, 
Cycads, Aloes, Pelargoniums, eleven classes, 
Heaths, Ehododendrons, Azaleas, &c., &c., in all 
110 classes. Section E comprises Hardy Plants— 
Ehododendrons, Azaleas, Eoses, eleven classes, 
Class 140 being for 200 Standard Eoses in flower, 
Conifers, Evergreens, and all kinds of hardy 
plants. Section F is for Cut Flowers ; and G 
for Bouquets and other arranged flowers. 
Twenty-four classes are arranged for La Culture 
Maraichere, seventeen being for vegetables and 
seven for fruits. Grapes are not invited. M. A. 
Bleu is the Secretary, and M. Leon Say, the 
President, to whom communications may be 
addressed. Applications to exhibit Ernst bg 
made before the 25th April nest, 
The Gaedenebs’ Eoval Benevolent Insti¬ 
tution. —The annual general meeting of the 
members of this Institution will be held on 
Wednesday next at 4 p.m., at the Bedford 
Hotel, Covent Garden, when a good attendance 
is anticipated through the interest which has 
been excited with reference to the Pension 
Augmentation Fund. As regards the election of 
Pensioners, which will take place after the 
adoption of the report and balance-sheet, and the 
election of officers (including the re-election of 
Mr. Cutler for the forty-fourth time), we under¬ 
stand that, in consequence of two of the 
Pensioners having died since the voting papers 
were sent out, the Committee will recommend 
the members to put on the list the two next 
highest candidates to the six for whom the 
election has been called. With reference to the 
augmentation of the Pensions, we hear that a 
sub-committee has been formed to consider any 
alterations in the rules which it may be desirable 
to make, and especially in rule 8, which governs 
the amount of the pensions which shall be paid; 
and it is hoped that such arrangements as it may 
be necessary to make, will be carried through in 
time to enable the increase to take place at the 
July payment, if it cannot possibly be managed 
by April. At 8 p.m. the annual supper will 
be held at Simpson’s ; Mr. Sherwood, of Messrs. 
Hurst & Son, will preside, and will be supported 
by the treasurer, Mr. Tidswell, Mr. John Lee, 
and other members of the committee and well- 
tried friends of the Institution. 
-- 
The Cateepillaes of “Wintee Moths.”— 
Miss Ormerod reports to the Eoyal Agricultural 
Society with regard to the Caterpillars of the 
“ Winter Moths,” which are exceedingly destruc¬ 
tive to leafage of fruit-trees—that the recom¬ 
mendation given to prevent egg laying by putting 
bands of sticky material round the trees has 
answered thoroughly. The infested trees were 
painted round the stem in December, with a band 
of Davidson’s Composition, laid on for about the 
width of a foot. The female Moths (which have 
only abortive wings) were thus caught by hun¬ 
dreds on their way up the trunks from the 
ground, and the trees which had been so infested 
for several years, that leafage and blossom was 
destroyed, were last season preserved from attack. 
This simple remedy, if applied early in winter, 
would save much loss in fruit-growing districts. 
Gaedening Amenities. — Having for some 
years had a very intimate association with 
gardeners all over the country, we can aver with 
the utmost truth, as far more able writers have 
done before us, that, as a body, they are eminently 
gentlemanly, sociable, and kind-hearted. That is 
the rule, and that such is the rule proves that 
there are exceptions to make it. Happily, these 
exceptions are few, infinitesimally so, just an 
ill-conditioned fellow here and there who degrade 
the noble profession of horticulture, and the 
estimable body to which they belong, by 
their fondness for displaying in public those 
various defects of character which makes us 
sometimes wonder whether the human form 
does not occasionally enshrine nature that is 
the reverse of Divine. But such few and 
insignificant beings as these might well be treated 
with the contempt they deserve, and such would 
have been our own method of dealing with them 
but for the deplorable fact that journals, which claim 
to be considered respectable and which would' be 
the first to resent any imputations to the contrary, 
can be found into the columns of which these blots 
on the fair garden earth are permitted to pour out 
their spleen. Small of mind and poor of practice 
they fail to find in the ethics and essentials of 
the vocation they injure, the element! of original 
