102 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
August  11,  1898. 
CALLS  IN  THE  NORTH. 
In  these  days  of  quick  travelling  it  is  not  difficult  to  take  a  run 
of  say  150  miles,  detrain,  make  a  call,  see  a  gardener  and  a  friend  or 
two,  and  resume  the  journey  without  losing  any  great  amount  ol 
time.  Even  if  you  should  be  benighted  in  a  cemetery  or  otherwise, 
the  time  spent  may  not  be  “  lost.”  On  the  contrary,  the  rest,  the 
change,  the  pleasant  associations  enjoyed,  may  afford  abundant  com¬ 
pensation,  and  gain  instead  of  loss  be  the  eventual  result.  This  is 
where  the  advantage  of  a  short  holiday  comes  in  to  gardeners  as  well 
as  other  members  of  the  community ;  but  unfortunately  all  gardeners, 
through  some  cause  or  other,  are  not  privileged  to  benefit  by  the 
respite  from  the  yearly  round  of  toil. 
Rest  tor  Gardeners. 
Rest  has  come  to  be  regarded  as  a  necessity  to  persons  engaged  in 
various  pursuits — commercial,  professional,  educational,  clerical,  and 
mechanical ;  but  not  to  the  same  extent  to  the  busy  workers  who  are 
confined  from  one  year’s  end  to  another  within  the  confines  of  the 
garden,  yet  no  class  better  deserves  such  temporary  release,  or  would 
benefit  by  it  more,  than  earnest,  industrious,  zealous  gardeners.  True 
they  might  spend  the  greater  part  of  their  little  holiday  in  gardens, 
just  as  ’bus  drivers  are  said  to  spend  theirs  in  sitting  beside  a  brother 
jehu  “  on  duty.”  Whether  the  rester  in  this  case  gains  anything  or 
not  by  his  change  caunot  be  said,  but  no  gardener  who  is  observant 
can  inspect  the  work  of  his  able  brothers  in  the  craft  without  being 
the  wiser  for  the  experience.  After  this  little  plea  for  a  little  rest 
by  worthy  men,  where  it  can  be  granted,  let  us  travel  on  and  change 
at  one  or  two  junctions. 
The  Productive  North. 
No  southerner  who  is  interested  in  the  land  and  its  cultivation, 
could  fail  to  notice  and  admire  the  fulness  of  the  fields  as  he  passed 
through  the  north-eastern  counties  of  Durham,  Yorkshire,  Notts,  and 
Lincoln.  Where  the  land  is  good  in  staple  (for  there  are  weak  veins 
or  tracts)  the  various  crops  were  a  pleasant  sight.  The  hay  harvest 
in  progress  was  a  heavy  one,  and  the  produce  being  secured  in  the 
best  of  condition  at  comparatively  small  expense.  The  fields  of  corn 
resembled  rolling  waves  under  the  influence  of  the  more  than  gentle 
breeze.  Straw  at  least,  like  grass,  was  produced  in  abundance,  but 
whether  the  heads  or  ears  of  golden  grain,  if  golden  it  be,  will  he  in 
proportion,  grave  doubts  are  entertained,  because  of  a  cold  damp 
visitation  at  flowering  time — at  least,  so  say  some  farmers,  though  it 
must  be  conceded  that  the  majority  of  this  great  craft  have  acquired, 
or  inherited,  somewhat  pessimistic  characteristics.  Let  us  hope  that 
in  this  particular  case  of  assumed  light  heads  (of  grain)  they  will  be 
joyfully  deceived.  Turnips  and  Mangolds  were  covering  the  ground 
luxuriantly  over  many  a  field,  while  finer  growth  could  scarcely  be 
desired  in  Potatoes,  save  in  a  damp  hollow  here  and  there,  where  the 
tops  had  been  cut  by  a  July  frost.  We  arrive  at  Retford,  where 
Celery  is  planted  between  rows  of  Potatoes  3  feet,  or  perhaps  a  little 
more,  apart,  and  the  two  crops,  well  grown,  ought  to  be  fairly 
profitable.  A  change  is  made  for  a  run  eastwards,  for  a  call  on 
friends  and  cherished  gardens. 
A  Rose  Tree. 
'“And  what  about  that?”  may  be  asked,  “since  there  are 
thousands  of  them  in  every  county.”  No,  not  of  “  trees,”  but  only  of 
“plants,”  which  fill  beds  and  borders  and  nursery  squans.  These  plants 
may  yield  one  fine  bloom  from  a  •*  maiden  ”  to  some  half  dozen,  more 
or  less,  from  a  “cut-back,”  and  these  in  the  aggregate  furnish  our 
splendid  exhibitions — the  finest,  we  are  vain  enough  to  think,  in  the 
world,  as  showing  the  Rose  in  the  highest  phase  of  cultural  develop¬ 
ment.  The  object  of  our  quest  was  not  a  mere  border  plant,  affording 
one  to  six  glorious  blooms,  but  a  real  “  tree  ”  carrying  12,000  dainty 
flowers  and  buds,  and  might  have  carried  2000  more.  It  is  illustrated, 
and  the  dimensions  given  in  Mr.  Poster  Mel  liar’s  well  known  (or 
ought  to  be)  “  Book  of  the  Rose.”  The  mention  of  this  calls  to  mind 
a  circumstance  that  would  not  justify  anyone  granting  a  medal  to  the 
writer  for  prudence.  Admiring  the  book,  a  friend  asked  its  owner  il 
he  would  be  so  kind  as  to  allow  it  to  be  taken  home  and  read.  He 
was  in  a  yielding  mood  at  the  moment — a  weakness  that  is  not 
chronic — and  hence  said,  “  Yes,  you  can  take  it  and  keep  it  till  you 
have  read  it,  and  then  return  it.”  Though  about  two  years  have 
elapsed  since  then,  the  cherished  Rose  book  is  not  yet  read,  or  it  would, 
presumably,  have  found  its  way  back  to  its  home  again.  If  this 
meet  the  eye  of  the  deliberate  reader  he  may  perhaps  be  so  kind  as 
to  make  an  effort  to  get  to  the  end  of  the  last  page  some  time  during 
the  present  season.  In  its  absence  the  dimensions  of  the  tree  as  there 
embodied  cannot  be  given  here.  Suffice  it  to  say,  therefore,  that  Mr. 
Fisher’s  Weeping  Rose  far  excels  the  illustration,  which  lost  much  in 
effect  by  the  enormous  reduction.  It  is  the  Ayrshire  Rose  Ruga,  and 
the  result  of  the  owner  of  it  mounting  a  pair  of  steps,  some  years  ago, 
and  inserting  a  few  buds  at  the  top  of  an  abnormally  tall  Briar.  Its 
branches  arch  over  and  rest  on  the  ground,  and  half  a  dozen  persons 
might  shelter  beneath  itsfloriferous  tresses, around  the  substantial  central 
stem.  To  this  there  is  an  entrance  (at  the  sacrifice  of  2000  flowers) 
made  by  or  for  the  child  of  the  family — little  Miss  Daffodil  Fisher, 
and  surely  no  little  lady  fair  ever  had  a  fairer  Rose  bower  than  this. 
There  are  other  Roses  in  the  much-enjoyed  garden — robust  “  plants 
in  beds,  which  under  sound  culture  bear  splendid  blooms,  and  plenty 
of  them,  on  the  strong  summer  growths  of  last  year,  bent  down  and 
fixed  in  an  arched  position  ;  but  these  fine  H.P.’s,  though  individually 
beautiful,  lose  in  effect  by  comparison  with  the  grand  central  “  tree. 
A  Working  Man’s  Roses. 
Nothing  is  more  pleasant  to  see  than  the  great  and  growing 
interest  that  is  taken  in  flowers  by  the  industrial  classes  of  the  com¬ 
munity.  Their  lives  are  made  more  interesting  and  their  homes 
more  enjoyable  by  the  floral  surroundings.  One  person  will  devote 
his  attention  to  one  particular  flower,  another  to  another,  while  some 
do  not  appear  to  be  satisfied  without  having  all  that  can  be  induced  to 
grow  within  the  areas  at  disposal ;  but  if  you  want  to  see  any  special 
kind  represented  in  the  best  form  it  must  be  sought  in  the  garden  of 
a  specialist.  Mr.  Robert  Jackson,  woodman,  is  evidently  “  gone  ’  on 
Roses.  His  cottage  garden  is  perhaps  nearly  half  an  acre  in  extent, 
and  a  central  path  some  50  yards  long  leads  through  it  to  his  pleasant 
home.  On  each  side  are  narrow  borders  furnished  with  standard  Roses 
of  ancient  and  modern  varieties,  including  heads  ot  Eugene  Appert, 
dense  masses  of  fiery  beauty.  The  whole  extent  of  the  land  on  the  left  of 
the  path  is  occupied  with  the  best  varieties  of  Roses  obtainable  - 
grown  as  dwarfs  in  the  best  possible  manner,  dhe  preparation  oi 
the  ground  as  to  trenching,  enriching,  and  planting,  as  well  as 
pruning  and  other  items  in  routine,  are  all  conducted  as  if  by  an 
up-to-date  professional  ;  and  it  is  not  too  much  to  say  that  many 
an  exhibitor  whose  name  is  a  household  word  in  the  Rose  world 
would  have  rejoiced  in  the  opportunity  for  cutting  such  splendid 
blooms  of  the  Newtownards  and  other  leading  Roses  as  this  devoted 
grower  of  them  produces,  and  why  ? 
The  Secret  of  Success. 
He  grows  them  well  because  he  loves  them.  That  is  the  secret  of 
it  all,  for  love  begets  knowledge  and  makes  labour  a  delight.  If  it 
were  not  so  hundreds  of  gardeners,  amateur  and  professional,  would 
never  achieve  the  results  which  redound  so  much  to  their  credit  and 
minister  to  the  happiness  of  their  lives.  “  But  turely,”  some  severe 
utilitarian  may  say,  “the  man  might  do  much  better  for  himself 
by  growing  substantial  food  crops  instead  of  Roses.”  But  stay.  He 
does  grow  them — all  he  needs — on  the  “  other  side,”  and  has  happily 
learned  that  the  same  thorough  cultivation  which  enables  him  to 
grow  so  well  the  flower  he  loves  has  the  same  effect  on  his  Peas, 
Beans,  Potatoes,  Onions,  and  other  necessities  of  the  household,  and 
also  enables  him  to  produce  more  of  these  of  the  first  quality  on  half 
the  land  at  his  disposal  than  half  the  working  men  in  the  kingdom 
would  obtain  from  the  whole  of  it.  This  is  a  simple  sober  fact. 
Robert  Jackson  evidently  loves  his  mother  earth,  and  richly  she 
rewards  him  for  his  labour  and  zeal.  The  stimulus  is  the  Rose. 
Golden  Hamburgh  Grapes. 
Near  by  is  the  Hall — the  ancestral  home  of  a  long  line  of  baronets, 
and,  as  the  last  of  these  has  gone,  is  now  inhabited  by  a  gentleman 
whose  name  is  belter  known  in  the  agricultural  than  the  horticultural 
world  by  his  success  in  improving  shire  horses  for  the  benefit  of  the 
district,  though  it  has  extended,  and  will  extend,  far  beyond  the 
confines  of  his  estates.  Mr.  Sutton  Nelthorpe  is  a  good  and  geneious 
squire,  and  likes  to  see  all  happy  around  him:  and  without  any  doubt 
he  has  a  sound  and  industrious  gardener  in  Mr.  Edwaid  Semper.  As 
one  of  the  students  who  passed  with  credit  the  last  examination  of  the 
Royal  Horticultural  Society,  a  desire  was  felt  to  see  whethir  he  was  a 
dandy  or  a  worker.  A  grip  of  the  hand  satisfied  that  he  was  one  of 
those  worthy  men  who  do  not  flinch  from  honest  labour,  but  who 
would  rather  enjoy  it,  if  not  in  so  many  cases  simply  overwhelming; 
and  then,  though  a  greater  listener  than  a  talker,  it  was  not  difficult 
to  perceive  he  was  a  student,  possessing  a  good  grasp  of  the  scientific 
principles  which  underlie  successful  practice  in  horticulture.  In  some 
four  years  he  transformed  a  range  of  grapeless  vineries  into  the  most 
satisfactory  productiveness,  the  Vines  succeeding  infinitely  better  with 
their  roots  outside  than  their  predecessors  did  plauted  inside,  with  no 
chance  of  escape  for  the  roots  except  in  and  through  the  subsoil. 
Several  varieties  are  grown  well,  though  many  and  fine  bunches  of  a 
white  Grape  were,  as  Rev.  D.  W.  Williamson  would  say,  the  most 
“impressive.”  They  afforded,  perhaps,  the  bist  representation  of  the 
Golden  Hamburgh  to  be  seen  in  England  at  the  time — full  well¬ 
shouldered  bunches,  furnished  with  fine  uniform  benies,  free  from 
spot  or  blemish.  They  were  not  quite  ripe,  so  the  quality  could  not 
be  tested,  but  in  association  with  equally  good  Black  Hamburghs 
had  a  most  attractive  appearance.  “  A  round  white  Sweetwater 
Grape,  not  suitable  for  for  ing,  second-rate,  and  unworthy  of  cultiva- 
lion”  is  Mr.  Barron’s  verdict.  He  also  states  it  to  be  synonymous 
with  the  Italian  Grape  Lulienga  Bianca.  Dr.  Hogg  has  described  this 
Grape  as  follows : — “  Bunches  large,  loose  branching  and  shouldered  ; 
