15G 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
February  22,  1900, 
A  NATIONAL  FRUIT  SCHOOL. 
“A  Notts  Grower”  should  not  too  hastily  assume  that  the 
establishment  of  a  national  school  of  horticultural  practice,  such  as  I 
referred  to  recently,  is  so  much  of  a  chimera.  It  is  evident  that 
Sir  Trevor  Lawrence,  the  President  of  the  K.H.S.,  does  not  think  so 
either,  for  in  the  brief  reference  he  made  to  the  hoped  for  new  Chis¬ 
wick,  though  his  mouth  being  yet  closed  as  to  details  because  of 
negotiations  in  progress,  he  seemed  to  think  that  the  Society,  with 
the  aid  of  a  combination  of  numerous  County  Councils,  would  in 
time  create  this  desired  school. 
It  is  unfortunate  that  a  proposal  so  fraught  with  interest  to  horti¬ 
culture  should  be  put  forward  at  a  time  when  the  nation  at  large 
seems  to  be  most  concerned  with  watering  South  Africa  with  human 
blood  ;  but  there  are  some  persons  at  least  who  can  look  forward  with 
hopefulness  to  what  must  be  regarded  as  a  desirable  consummation. 
When  I  referred  to  the  need  of  a  school  for  practice  in  fruit  culture, 
of  some  200  acres  in  extent,  I  wished  it  to  be  understood  that  it  was 
desirable  to  train  students  practically,  under  such  conditions  as  they 
would  later  find  in  any  considerable  fruit  farm,  such  as  they  might  be 
called  upon  to  manage.  No  school  of  limited  area  could  furnish  the 
experience  that  a  large  area  could  provide,  because  in  the  latter  case 
there  would  be  ample  scope  for  general  culture  of  all  descriptions  of 
marketable  fruits,  as  also  for  such  experimental  work  as  it  may  be 
desirable  to  conduct.  A  national  school  of  horticulture,  to  have  any 
prominent  status,  should  have  100  pupils  at  least,  and  if  with  the  aid 
of  County  Councils  the  R.H.S.  can  eventually  supply  such  a  school, 
then  will  its  inauguration  be  a  red  letter  day  for  British  horti¬ 
culture. — A.  D, 
CRYRTOMERIA  JAPONICA. 
Eeferring  to  the  note  by  “  C.”  (page  88)  on  this  Conifer,  I  must 
say  that  I  have  been  much  disappointed  with  it  after  it  attains  a  height 
of  12  feet.  From  that  time  it  becomes  unsightly,  losing  its  feather,  as 
it  were,  on  the  inner  growths  to  such  an  extent  that  it  presents  a  mass 
of  dead  branches.  So  ragged  and  unsightly  have  scores  of  plants  of 
it  become,  that  they  have  all  to  be  cut  down  and  burnt  as  they 
approach  that  height.  Up  to  6  feet  high  it  is  excellent  for  the  garden 
in  winter,  when  its  bronzy  red  hue  is  so  pleasing. 
Plants  from  6  inches  to  4  feet  high  are  largely  employed  for  filling 
the  flower  beds  during  the  winter  months.  No  Conifer  that  I  know’ 
stands  the  twice  planting  that  stock  for  this  purpose  have  to  undergo 
during  the  months  of  May  and  October  so  well.  This  is  mainly  owing 
to  the  mass  of  fibrous  roots  annually  produced.  C.  japonica  is  easily 
propagated  by  half-ripened  shoots  of  the  current  season’s  growth  takeu 
off  about  6  inches  long  early  in  September  and  dibbled  firmly  in  a  sandy 
soil  in  a  cold  frame.  These  make  capital  plants  in  two  years’  time,  and 
are  well  suited  for  edgings  to  beds  of  other  shrubs  for  a  season  or  two. 
They  can  afterwards  be  employed  in  other  parts  of  the  beds  with 
advantage.  The  soil  here  varies  considerably.  Naturally  it  is  heavy 
and  retentive  of  moisture,  in  many  places  it  is  lighter,  so  much  of  an 
artificial  character  has  been  added  of  late  years ;  still  the  results  are  the 
same.-  E.  Molyneux. 
THE  ROYAL  HORTICULTURAL  SOCIETY’S 
ANNUAL  REPORT. 
If  the  issue  of  the  report  to  the  Fellows  a  fortnight  before  the 
date  of  the  annual  meeting  necessarily  detracted  from  the  freshness  of 
the  document  when  the  meeting  took  place,  at  least  it  furnished  ample 
opportunity  for  perusal  and  comment,  matters  of  undoubted  advan¬ 
tage.  In  making  a  few  comments  on  the  report  I  would  first  correct 
what  seems,  as  I  have  been  informed,  a  printer’s  error  in  connection 
with  the  name  of  that  esteemed  young  gardener,  Mr.  W.  H.  Lees, 
which  has  been  inserted  in  the  Fruit  Committee  list,  but  should  be  in 
the  Floral  Committee  list. 
Then  I  observe  that  the  report  in  a  very  unobtrtisive  way  makes 
public  a  fact  of  some  interest  that  was  not  referred  to  when  the  list 
of  the  Council  was  published  in  the  ensuing  year’s  “  Arrangements,” 
issued  just  previously.  It  is  that  the  President,  Sir  Trevor  Lawrence, 
having  overcome  the  modesty  which  characterised  the  whole  of  the 
Council  in  1897,  has  accepted  the  V.M.H.  which  fell  in  as  vacant  by 
the  death  of  the  late  Mr.  T.  F.  Rivers.  This  matter  is  not  mentioned 
in  the  report,  but  is  found  only  in  the  blue  fly  leaf  issued  with  it  that 
refers  to  the  election  of  oflicers.  Naturally  the  original  objection 
on  the  part  of  members  of  the  Council  to  accepting  their  own  honour 
could  not  continue  to  exist  when  already  two  of  the  original  holders  of 
that  initial  affix  are  practically  members  of  the  Council. 
This  very  blue  fly  leaf  referred  to  made  the  welcome  announcement 
that  the  farce  of  issuing  balloting  papers  at  the  general  meeting, 
collecting  them,  and  appointing  scrutineers  to  count  and  report  on 
what  was  a  foregone  conclusion,  is  now  abolished.  Under  the  provision 
of  the  new  Charter  which  has  been  granted  there  are  common  sense 
rules,  and  where  there  is  no  contest  there  is  no  ballot.  We  see 
also  another  excellent  feature  in  the  new  Charter  is  that  members 
retiring  may  be  again  and  at  once  re-elected.  As  a  result  we  see  that 
that  most  estimable  and  kindly  amateur  gardener,  Sir  J.  T.  D, 
Llewelyn,  M.P.,  again  rejoins  the  Council,  and  he  will  be  supported  by 
Mr.  F.  Du  Cane  Godman.  whom  I  do  not  know,  and  by  Mr.  Arthur 
Sutton,  whom  everybody  knows,  and  who  should  be  able  to  bring  to  the 
Council  some  very  valuable  business  knowledge. 
I  looked  with  special  interest  for  that  paragragh  in  several 
previous  reports,  in  relation  to  the  Committee  awards  at  the  meetings 
and  shows,  that  had  become  apparently  stereotyped,  but  was  glad  to 
find  that  it  had  been  withdrawn.  Seeing  that  the  Council  had  so 
materially  increased  last  year  the  number  of  the  meetings,  a  certain 
increase  in  the  number  of  the  awards  during  the  year  became  inevitable. 
The  total  number  of  awards  for  1898  was  906,  and  for  1899  931.  In 
the  present  list  we  find  the  Temple  and  Crystal  Palace  Show  awards 
set  out  in  separate  columns,  as  are  the  awards  at  the  Hybrid  Con¬ 
ference,  and  probably  this  arrangement  accounts  to  some  extent  for 
the  apparent  reduction  of  the  Floral  Committee  awards  from  432  in 
1898  to  317  last  year.  The  Orchid  Committee,  however,  have  been 
rather  free  with  awards,  having  bestowed  no  less  than  216  last  year^ 
as  against  193  the  preceding  year,  and  of  this  216  no  less  than  84^ 
are  awards  of  merit,  as  against  124  from  the  Floral  Committee  for 
all  other  flowers,  and  only  47  from  the  Fruit  Committee  for  fruits 
and  vegetables.  Evidently  the  Orchid  gentlemen  are  veiy  free-handed, 
if  not  too  discriminating. 
The  Council  made  a  very  urgent  appeal  for  assistance  to  enable 
them  to  oontiuue  the  great  Fruit  Show  at  the  Crystal  Palace.  Why  the 
Palace  directors  should  reduce  their  usual  contribution  to  the  Show 
fund  by  £50  is  difficult  to  understand.  It  may  be  due  to  meanness,  or 
it  may  be  to  the  fact  that  the  Fruit  Show  does  not  pay  them.  If  the 
latter  be  so,  doubtless  the  small  attendance  on  the  part  of  the 
public  is  due  either  to  the  distance  the  Palace  is  from  London, 
or  to  indifference  to  the  fruit  as  exhibited  on  the  part  of  the 
public,  or  because  the  Show  falls  at  a  comparatively  dull  time 
of  the  year  when  ptiblic  interest  in  such  events  is  somewhat  ex¬ 
hausted.  Still  all  those  who  remember  the  marvellous  interest  shown 
in  the  great  Guildhall  exhibition,  which,  however,  was  free,  must  admit 
that  the  people  of  London  did  evince  some  interest  in  fruit  then. 
Turning  to  the  Council’s  balance-sheet  for  the  past  year,  I  found  the 
Crystal  Palace  Fruit  Show  credited  with  a  cost  of  £302  Is.  5d. — the 
pence  show  the  Council’s  exactness — and  with  an  income  of  £325  18s. 
That  was  very  satisfactory,  but  of  course  includes  the  £100  raised  by 
subscription  to  the  Show  fund  and  the  £50  proposed  to  be  withdrawn 
from  the  Palace  contribution  ;  but  when  I  turn  to  the  Temple  Show 
account  I  find  that  whilst  the  cost  of  that  great  function  was 
£686  148.  lOd.,  the  income  reached  £1421  68.  6d.,  showing  a  profit 
of  considerably  over  £700.  No  doubt  the  Council  like  to  make  each 
show  pay  for  itself  ;  but  this  does  seem  to  be  u  case  in  which  what  is, 
after  all,  a  great  society  function  may  be  expected  to  help  pay  a  little 
towards  the  cost  of  such  an  eminently  practical  and  valuable  exhibition 
as  the  great  Crystal  Palace  Fruit  Show. 
This  fact  is  all  the  more  emphasised  when  we  found  that  the  Hybrid 
Conference  at  Chiswick  cost  £211  13s.  lid.,  although  that  sum  probably 
included  the  luncheon  to  the  members  of  the  Committees  and  visitors 
to  the  Conference ;  whilst  the  credit  side  showed  only  £56  14s. 
However,  so  far  as  the  general  financial  position  of  the  Society 
is  concerned  ;  and  apart  from  the  great  increase  in  the  number  of 
Fellows,  the  Council  have  been  able  to  carry  over  the  huge  sum  of 
£1751  8s.  9d.  as  a  balance  to  the  general  revenue  account. — Observer. 
THE  SEASON’S  BLOOM. 
I  AM  afraid  if  “  A.  D.”  had  looked  round  our  place  with  me  about 
the  time  he  was  penning  the  notes  on  page  135,  he  would  have  written 
them  rather  sadly,  provided  he  could  sympathise  with  those  who,  like- 
myself,  will  be  called  upon  to  supply  a  large  establishment  with  fruit 
in  a  few  months’  time.  I  have  never  seen  the  buds  so  destroyed  by 
birds  as  during  the  past  two  or  three  weeks.  On  all  stone  and  also  small 
fruits  there  is  scarcely  a  bud  left,  and  the  snow  was  quite  covered  with 
the  husk  or  shell  of  the  buds  cast  by  the  depredators — sparrows  and 
bullfinches.  Last  season,  owing  to  the  dry  weather,  the  birds  quickly  ate 
or  spoiled  all  fruits  that  were  not  netted.  Sacks  of  good  Apples  were 
spoiled  on  large  trees,  but  I  think  it  worse  to  destroy  the  buds  now 
and  almost  kill  the  trees. — N.  Kneller,  Malshanger. 
Epping  Forest. — The  Epping  Forest  Committee  of  the  Corpora¬ 
tion,  in  recommending  that  £4000  should  be  placed  to  the  credit  of  the 
fund  for  the  year  ensuing,  report  that  the  thinning  operations,  which 
have  been  continued  for  nearly  twenty  years,  have  resulted  in  a  marked 
improvement  to  the  timber  and  undergrowth,  while  the  natural  growth 
of  young  trees,  the  timber  of  the  future,  has  been  promoted.  The 
most  urgent  arrears  have  now  been  overtaken,  and  a  much  smaller 
annual  felling  has  been  necessary  during  the  last  and  present  seasons. 
Very  little  planting  has  been  needed  except  for  the  purpose  of  hiding 
fences  or  other  unsightly  enclosures  abutting  on  the  forest  and 
replacing  trees  destroyed  by  the  drought.  In  this  connection  the 
Committee  report  that  a  very  large  number  of  fires  occurred  last 
summer  in  various  parts  of  the  forest  owing  to  the  extraordinary  heat 
and  drought,  but  in  most  cases  the  outbreaks  were  speedily  extinguished, 
and,  with  one  exception,  no  serious  damage  was  done. 
