218 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
September  5, 1895, 
bunch.  When  the  ripening  stage  approaches  the  atmosphere 
should  be  kept  dry  and  moisture  withheld  from  the  roots,  as 
when  too  much  atmospheric  moisture  or  too  much  water  at  the 
roots  is  given  a  tendency  to  crack  is  developed. 
Under  proper  conditions  of  culture  we  have  had  this  Grape  in 
splendid  condition  till  December,  though  it  is  not  recommended  as  a 
keeper  but  is  essentially  an  early  Grape.  When  of  a  golden  colour 
the  flavour  is  most  rich  and  its  quality  in  every  way  splendid. 
After  the  Grapes  have  been  cut  every  attention  should  be  given  by 
judicious  airing,  and,  if  need  be,  firing,  to  secure  the  thorough 
ripening  of  the  wood.  In  pruning  leave  the  spurs  at  least  three 
or  four  eyes  long.  In  the  spring  the  best  shoot  can  be  selected  and 
the  other  eyes  rubbed  out.  Attend  to  the  maintenance  of  a  suc¬ 
cession  of  young  rods,  as  ‘‘  The  Duke  ”  fruits  much  the  more  freely 
on  young  wood.  Sometimes  in  a  wet  season  it  has  been  found 
necessary  to  cut  a  nick  or  bore  a  hole  in  the  laterals  to  prevent 
cracking.  When  the  bunch  is  more  than  three  or  four  eyes  from 
the  main  stem  this  can  be  done  ;  but  when  closer  it  is  not  con¬ 
venient,  as  it  injures  the  wood  that  should  be  left  for  another 
season.  Of  course,  when  the  borders  are  all  inside,  or  when  outside 
borders  can  be  protected  from  heavy  rains,  the  boring  of  the  laterals 
is  not  necessary. 
Though  requiring  special  attention  and  treatment,  the  good 
qualities  are  so  many  that  it  is  well  worth  all  the  extra  trouble 
connected  with  its  culture.  Its  qualities  constitute  it  essentially  a 
Grape  for  the  dessert  table  and  for  the  sick  room,  especially  so  when 
it  can  be  presented  without  being  subjected  to  the  trials  of  travel¬ 
ling  and  the  hardships  of  the  market.  Possessed  of  a  very  thin 
skin,  a  luscious  flavour,  au  once  both  rich  and  refreshing,  and  taken 
all  in  all,  “  The  Duse  ”  is  a  noble  Grape,  and  those  who  have  grown 
it  successfully  ever  since  it  was  raised  know  full  well  its  splendid 
qualities. 
I  have  been  induced  to  write  these  few  lines  by  the  numbers  of 
applications  I  have  had  lately  from  people  in  all  quarters  to  tell 
them  some  particulars  about  it,  and  I  trust  these  few  practical 
directions,  given  by  one  who  has  an  intimate  acquaintance  with) 
and  a  profound  admiration  for  “The  Duke” — in  spite  of  its  little 
special  weaknesses — may  prove  useful  to  some  of  your  numerous 
readers. — John  Thomson,  Clovenfords. 
P.S. — When  I  recommend  planting  in  April  or  May  I,  of  course, 
refer  to  young  growing  Vines  raised  from  eyes  in  February.  When 
ripened  canes  are  planted  they  should  be  put  into  their  quarters  by 
the  time  the  house  is  started.  I  need  not  here  enlarge  on  all  the 
details  of  planting,  as  the  ordinary  treatment  often  recommended 
in  the  Journal  suffices  to  secure  the  proper  settlement  of  “  The 
Duke  ”  in  its  permanent,  and,  in  all  cases  let  us  hope,  fruitful 
position.  The  latter  in  a  great  measure  depends  on  those  pecu¬ 
liarities  of  treatment  that  I  have  mentioned. — J.  T. 
[Our  correspondent  has  sent  us  what  we  may  fairly  describe  as 
a  full  and  faultless  bunch  of  “  The  Duke.”  At  least  a  hundred  of 
the  clear  and  spotless  berries  exceeded  4  inches  in  circumference, 
some  4 1,  and  one  inches.  The  quality  w'as  most  luscious  and 
enjoyable.  “The  Duke”  is  grown  at  Frogmore  by  Mr.  Owen 
Thomas  in  a  manner  worthy  of  the  table  of  the  Queen,  and  more 
need  not  be  said  recommendatory  of  this  magnificent  Grape.] 
LESSONS  BY  THE  WAY. 
Dover. 
And  what  about  Dover  ?  Surely  there  are  no  lessons  on 
gardening  there  !  No  ;  not  many.  It  was  noticeable,  however, 
after  an  absence  of  a  few  years  how  great  is  the  change  in  the 
supply  of  garden  produce,  as  seen  in  the  shops,  and  this  at  any  rate 
has  something  to  do  with  land  cultivation.  There  is  a  marked 
advance  in  all  departments — fruit,  vegetables,  and  flowers — the 
improvement  being  apparent  both  in  cultivation,  selection,  and 
presentation.  It  is  satisfactory  to  see  this  combination,  and  it 
affords  a  lesson  of  no  small  importance  to  all  who  desire  to  succeed 
n  either  growing  or  disposing  of  such  produce  of  the  soil  in  the 
country  as  consumers  need  in  our  towns.  Not  one  of  the  con¬ 
ditions  alone  will  suffice.  A  man  may  waste  hia  strength  in  labour 
and  his  means  in  enriching  the  ground  if  the  crops  he  grow*  in  it, 
no  matter  how  luxuriant,  are  bundled  into  the  market  in  a  rough- 
and-tumble  sort  of  way — unsorted,  untrimmed,  and  consequently 
untempting.  There  has  been  too  much  of  this  in  the  past,  but 
growers  of  fruit,  vegetables,  and  flowers  for  sale  are  steadily  and 
surely  learning  the  better  way.  Nothing  is  so  effective  in  increasing 
the  demand  for  garden  produce  as  placing  it,  in  its  various  forms, 
in  the  most  attractive  manner  possible  before  the  public  as  trim, 
clean,  appetising,  and  alluring  as  if  staged  for  prices  at  an 
exhibition. 
Early  summer  Apples  are  in  great  demand  on  the  sea  coast. 
Early  Julyans,  also  red  and  white  Margarets,  were  plentiful  early 
in  August ;  but  far  more  attractive  were  the  larger  and  more 
brilliant  fruits  of  Mr.  Gladstone.  These  were  seen  on  the  barrows 
of  peripatetic  vendors  finer  than  they  have  ever  been  seen  at  the 
R.H.S.  meetings  at  Westminster,  and  growers  have  had  no  difficulty 
in  obtaining  15s.  a  bushel  for  selected  produce.  In  one  instance  a 
small  offer  of  Beauty  of  Bath  did  not  remain  long  unsold.  The 
almost  faultless  symmetry  and  distinct  mottlings  of  this  Apple 
arrested  attention,  but  the  fruits  were  not  so  large  nor  so  highly 
coloured— rich  bronzy  chestnut — as  those  of  Mr.  Gladstone,  nor, 
perhaps,  quite  so  juicy  when  this  is  “caught”  at  its  best,  though  it 
may  be  said  it  does  not  remain  in  its  highest  condition  for  many 
days.  It  soon  goes  “  sleepy,”  and  in  this  respect  is  not  like  the 
wideawake  and  world-renowned  octogenarian  whose  name  it  bears, 
and  who,  I  am  told,  finds  a  little  time  for  reading  his  Journal  of 
Horticulture.  Early  summer  Apples  are  like  some  of  our  best 
Pears,  in  being  when  ready  for  use  soon  over  ;  but  still  the  Pears 
are  grown,  and  so  must  be  the  Apples,  for  the  first  and  the  belt 
of  anything  that  is  good  invariably  sells  readily  when  prices  are 
not  prohibitive  to  the  million  of  consumers — townspeople  or 
seasiders. 
No  visitors  from  far  inland  districts  can  remain  many  minutes 
on  the  South  Coast  without  observing  the  remarkable  luxuriance 
and  glossy  leafage  of  the  evergreen  Euonymuses.  They  are  seen 
everywhere  and  in  all  aspects — on  window-sills  and  balconies,  as 
well  as  covering  walls  and  forming  hedges.  In  a  small  public 
garden  at  Dover  the  seats  are  ensconced  in  recesses  of  Euonymus 
hedges,  curving  round  the  band  stand,  as  well  as  in  short,  straight 
avenues  radiating  from  it.  The  idea  is  good  for  the  position  and 
purpose.  Grateful  shade  above  with  cool  and  refreshing  greenery 
all  round  are  what  the  people  long  for,  and  when  found  appreciate, 
in  parks  and  gardens  during  sultry  days.  These  conditions  are 
more  fully  recognised  and  generally  provided  on  the  Continent 
than  in  England,  and  in  too  many  of  our  parks  the  trees  are  in 
one  place,  walks  and  seats  in  another,  the  people  sweltering  in  the 
sun  when  shade  is  near  and  yet  denied  them.  This  question  of 
providing  cool  canopies  of  foliage,  so  grateful  in  summer,  has  been 
too  much  lost  sight  of  by  designers  of  many  public  parks  both  in 
London  and  the  provinces,  and  it  is  hoped  it  will  have  more 
attention  in  the  future.  There  are  signs  of  movement  in  the 
right  direction  by  the  metropolitan  authorities,  and  it  was 
gratifying  to  find  that  in  one  of  the  latest  formed  parks — 
Peckham — that  broad  walks  have  been  formed  under  the  shade  of 
trees  and  seats  provided  round  them.  The  more  that  is  done  in 
the  same  way  the  more  must  and  will  the  pleasant  places  of  public 
resort  be  appreciated  by  visitors.  There  are  lessons  to  be  learned 
everywhere  if  we  will  but  see  them. 
We  will  now  move  from  the  low  sea-front  and  its  too  small 
garden  at  Dover  and  ascend  the  rugged  heights  and  see  what  can 
be  learned  there.  The  white  cliffs  rise  in  places  to  a  stupendous 
height,  making  the  residences  at  the  foot  appear  like  toy  houses  in 
comparison  ;  and  overlooking  town  and  sea  the  grand  old  castle 
stands.  Ic  can  be  reached  wichout  difficulty,  as  steps  are  provided 
for  pedestrians,  and  sloping,  twisting  roads  for  vehicular  traffic. 
In  ascending,  or  without,  there  may  be  seen  in  the  crevice*  of  the 
rocks  one  of  the  ancient  homes  of  an  ancient  vegetable,  though 
thousands  of  persons  who  may  notice  its  flattish,  crimped,  sea-green 
leaves  and  yellow  flowers  know  not  what  it  is,  nor  the  important 
results  which  have  accrued  from  it  in  the  matter  of  wholesome, 
indeed  indispensable,  food.  It  is  Brassica  oleracea,  the  originator 
of  not  only  all  our  Cabbages  and  Kales,  but  all  our  Cauliflowers 
and  Broccolis.  In  these  we  have  a  wondrous  lesson  in  evolution, 
brought  about  by  the  sports  of  Nature,  but  more  particularly  by 
observation,  selection,  and  cultivation  of  men,  whose  names  are 
buried  with  the  centuries,  but  whose  work  in  improvement  is 
continued  till  the  present  hour,  and  will  not  cease.  “  Do  you  mean 
to  say,”  remarked  a  bystander,  pointing  to  one  of  the  yellow  flowered 
plants  growing  amongst  Seakale  between  the  rocks,  “  that  it  is 
the  oldest  of  our  Cabbages  ?  ”  “  Yes,”  was  the  reply,  “  certainly  ; 
it  is  the  old  original,  the  first  parent  of  them  all.”  “Very  well, 
then,”  was  the  response,  “I  shall  call  it  Adam,  and  I  think  Adam 
likes  salt.  Do  yon  think  I  had  better  give  some  to  my  Cabbage 
