476 
May  29,  1902. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER, 
-  -  - ■  ■  ■  -  i 
Society  was  actuated  by  a  desire  to  enrol  amongst  its  Fellows  as 
large  a  proportion  as  possible  of  the  vasd  number  of  tliear  fellow 
subjects  who  are  interested  in  gardens.  Tlie  result  of  this  and 
other  changes  has  been,  on  the  whole,  eminently  successful, -the 
average  annual  net  increase  in  the  number  of  Fellows  being  2^), 
the  total  number  4,750,  against  a  maximum  of,  so  far  as  can  be 
ascertained,  about  2,500  in  the  old  Chiswick  show  days. 
‘Journal’  is  now  published  quarterly.  The  Committees  of  the 
Society  include  in  their  several  departments  a  large  number  of 
the  principal  horticultural  experts  in  the  kingdom,  and  their  cer¬ 
tificates  and  awards  are  eagerly  sought  for,  and  practically  meet 
with  unanimous  acceptance.  The  great  shows  of  the  Society, 
held  now  for  several  years  in  the  gardens  of  the  Inner  Temple  by 
the  continued  kindness  of  the  Benchers,  have  been  in  many 
respects  the  finest  ever  seen  in  Great  Britain.  The  fortnightly 
shows  held  in  the  Brill  Hall,  Buckingham  Gate,  \ictoria  Street, 
Westminster,  are  now  largely  attended,  and  attract  such  a 
number  and  varietv  of  exhibits  as  to  malie  it  increasingly  difficult 
to  find  room  for  them.  They  are  rendered  additionally  interesting 
by  the  valuable  papers  read  before  them.  The  Society’s  Fruit 
Show  at  the  Crystal  Palace  has  already  become  an  important 
annual  event.  Tliese  fruit  shows,  with  the  papers  read  at  them, 
have  tau^it  valuable  practical  lessons  both  in  horticulture  and 
economics.  The  shows  are  visited  annually  by  an  average  of 
30,000  people.” — (From  Sir  Trevor  Lawrence’s  brochure.) 
The  Garden  at  Chiswick. 
The  Society’s  garden,  as  already  remarked,  was  established  at 
Chiswick  in  1822.  Formerly  the  garden  was  considerably  larger 
than  it  is  to-day  ;  but  it  is  a  very  “  cosy  ”  and  pretty  garden, 
and  of  certain  features  of  it  we  are  able  to  furnish  views  from 
photographs  taken  by  Mr.  Turner,  the  foreman  there.  The 
Council  Chamber,  illustrated  on  page  474,  is  where  the  office 
work  of  the  garden  is  performed,  and  where  also  the  committees 
meet  wdien  they  visit  Chisivick.  A  library  of  reference  books  is 
here  contained,  and  the  weekly  gardening  journals  are  always 
found  upon  •  the  table.  In  the  autumn,  winter,  and  spring 
months  the  meetings  of  the  Chiswick  Gardenens’  Mutual 
Improvement  Society  are  held  in  the  Council  Chamber,  and 
series  of  lectures  are  occasionally  delivered  to  the  students  by 
expert. s  comniis.sioned  by  the  Council.  The  little  building  is  half 
hid  under  a  burden  of  Ivy,  whose  green  and  golden  coloured 
leaves  are  acceptably  harmonious  with  the  beautiful  lawn  that 
merges  in  a  broad,  long  sweep  southward  to  the  rock  garden, 
close  to  wdiich  is  the  Great  Conseiwatory,  or  Great  yiner3^  as  t 
more  commonly  is  called,  and  the  Lily  pool,  of  which  a  view  is 
also  given.  The  rockery  is  not  extensive,  but  serves  to  support 
the  gardene.sque  character  of  the  view  from  the  Council  Chamber 
and  other  points  of  vantage. 
The  glass  houses  are  not  in  one  compact  range,  but  are  much 
separated ;  here  a  range,  there  another,  with  an  odd  house  inter¬ 
vening.  The  Mu.scat  house.  Fig  house,  and  house  No.  5, 
containing  Peaches,  are  excellent  structures  affording  instruc¬ 
tion  to  Fellows  and  the  students.  The  Peach  and  Fig  hou.ses 
are  included  in  the  illustration  on  page  479,  with  a  large  trial 
brake  to  the  east  of  them.  The  Peach  trees  are  trained  on  the 
back  wall,  wdth  bush  ti*ees  in  front  of  them;  and  it  is  generally 
accepted  that  the  collection  of  Figs  at  Chiswick  is  as  varied 
as  the  most  extensive  in  the  country,  and  an  exceedingly  fine 
one.  The  Muscat  vinery  affords  a  splendid  object  lesson  in  an 
uncommon  method  of  training.  The  house  is  span  roofed,  but 
the  sides  are  high  and  the  roof  slopes  at  an  angle  of  about 
30deg.  Within  it,  the  rods  are  first  taken  up  vertically  and  then 
bent  straight  across  at  right  angles.  Being  a  comparatively 
wide  house,  the  length  of  extra  Vine  Avhich  is  thus  laid  down 
super, sedes  by  a  number  of  feet  the  possible  measurement  of  rods 
trained  obliquely,  and  good  residts  are  yearly  obtained. 
A  lengthened  hip-span  house  built  against  a  south  wall  on 
the  opposite  side  of  a  pathway  that  passes  the  gardeners’  bothy, 
is  mainly  devoted  to  Gros  Colman  Grape.  The  house  is  severely 
limited  in  the  matter  of  height,  and  Mr.  Wright  found  it  neces- 
.sary  to  repress  the  rods  by  hard  and  constant  pruning  of  the 
upper  and  better  parts,  which,  indeed,  was  compulsory  mutila¬ 
tion.  But  he  found  he  might  .shorten  the  rods,  so>  to  say,  in 
another  way,  namely,  by  drawing  them  down  and  affixing  theni 
firmly  into  excavations  in  the  border,  by  means  of  .stout  pegs. 
Thus  3ft  or  4ft  of  head  room  was  obtained  for  the  best,  portion 
of  the  Vines,  and  the  re.sults  have  justified  the  practice.  A 
figure  showing  part  of  a  rod  so  treated  was  given  in  this  Journal, 
on  July  22,  1897,  page  67. 
The  Great  Vinery  is  180ft  long,  by  30ft  broad,  and  26ft  high, 
forming  one  of  the  largest  houses  devoted  to  the  culture  of 
Grapes  in  this  country,  and  one  of  the  noble.st  historical  con¬ 
servatories  in  existence.  We  furnish  both  interior  and  exterior 
views,  showing  the  spacious  curvilinear  foi'in,  and  the  great  iron 
.steps  which  move  along  on  wheels  fitted  to  rails  at  the  sides. 
This  house  was  erected  by  a  firm  now  non-existent,  namely, 
Mes.srs.  D.  and  E.  Bailey,  272,  Holbom.  The  Vines  are  all 
planted  in  outside  borders  and  brought  through  the  low  walls 
into  the  house,  thence  are  trained  upward  at  a  gentle  bend.  A 
few  Palms  are  placed  on  the  open  central  floor  of  the  house,  and 
a  marble  statuette  of  two  beautiful  cherubs  lovingly  embraced 
(a  present  from  the  late  Queen  Victoria)  stands  on  a  side  stage. 
Frankenthal  Grape  outnumbers  all  the  other  varieties,  but  tjiis 
is  being  superseded  by  sorts  more  worthy  of  the  space.  It  may 
not  be  uninteresting  to  name  the  whole  of  the  collection  a-s 
grown  in  this  great  vinery,  and  these  include  the  following ; — 
BarVjarossa,  synonymous  with 
Gros  Guillaume 
Muscat  of  Alexandria 
Black  Monukka,  supposed  to 
be  an  Indian  Grape 
Gros  Colman 
Black  Hamburgh 
Black  Alicante 
Foster's  Seedling 
Black  Prince 
Koyal  Muscadine 
Chasselas  Napoleon 
Golden  Hamburgh 
Dutch  Hamburgh 
Raisin  de  Calabra 
.Syrian 
Black  Tokay 
Buckland  Sweetwater 
Gros  Maroc 
St.  Antoine 
Lady  Downe’s,  and 
Trebbiano 
The  object  of  the  garden  is  not  sufficiently  realised.  The 
Council  are  anxious  to  make  the  garden  (as  far  as  the  funds  at 
their  command  will  allow)  a,  School  of  Practical  and  Scientific 
Hortictiltitre,  and  of  increased  value  and  interest  to  the  Fellows, 
and  have  given  careful  attention  to  their  present  condition. 
The  garden  is  devoted  (1)  to  the  cultivation  of  all  such  fruits, 
vegetables,  .stove,  greenhouse  and  hardy  plants  and  flowers  as 
are  found  to  be  most  generally  useful  or  ornamental ;  (2)  to  the 
trial  of  new  sorts  side  by  side  with  established  varieties ;  (3)  to 
the  hybridisation  of  plants  and  the  raising  of  new  varieties; 
(4)  to  experiments  in  the  culture  and  treatment  of  those  plants 
which  po.ssess  a  floral  or  decorative  as  distinguished  from  a 
merely  scientific  value  and  interest.  To  these  may  be  added 
(5)  the  tnal  of  such  horticultural  appliances  and  materials  as 
may  from  time  to  time  be  submitted. 
The  cultivation,  trial,  &c.,  of  fruits  have  always  been  con- 
.sidered  as  of  the  utmo,st  importance,  and  happily  forms  one  of 
the  most  valuable  features  of  the  garden.  There  is  an  almost 
unique  collection  of  the  best  varieties  of  fruits,  and  it  is  intended 
to  maintain  and  extend  it  by  the  trial  of  such  novelties  as  the 
raisers  may  be  good  enough  to  bestow  on  the  Society.  Each  year 
.sees  a  number  of  useful  trials  conducted  with  either  vegetables, 
Tomatoes,  or  flowering  plants,  and  collections  of  German  Irises, 
Pseonies,  and  other  plants  are  found  in  the  garden.  The 
large  divisions  devoted  to  Plums,  Pears,  Apples,  and  all  other 
fruits,  grown  in  every  form  and  style,  are  planted  in  alphabetical 
order  for  convenience  sake.  The  garden  is  worked  by  a  small 
staff  of  paid  journeymen  gardeners,  with  from  eight  to  twelve 
.students  who  have  adopted  gardening  as  their  avocation,  their 
ultimate  aims  being  as  diversified  as  the  young  gentlemen  them¬ 
selves.  A  large  number  of  plants  and  seeds  are  annually  dis¬ 
tributed  tO'  the  Fellows  of  the  Society,  and  the  growing  of  these 
is  certainly  not  an  insignificant  part  of  the  year’s  routine. 
Of  the  Society’s  hardworking  Secretary,  it  is  needless  to  write 
in  tenns  of  praise.  He  is  virtually  the  managing  director,  and 
.so  sucoes.sful  as  such  that  the  President,  the  Council,  the  Com¬ 
mittees,  and  the  Fellows  know  him  and  value  him  at  his  true 
worth.  The  Rev.  W.  Wilks,  M.A.,  is  an  unobtrusive,  thoughtful 
and  kind  hearted  gentleman,  and  appears  to  be  supplied  with 
humour  and  wit  for  every  occasion. 
Mr.  S.  T.  Wright  was  appointed  superintendent  in  1896,  and 
fits  the  position  perfectly.  He  is  always  courteous  and  kinaiy, 
and  ready  to  a.ssi.st,  so  far  as  the  many  calls  on  his  time  allow 
him.  With  the  .stinted  means  for  gardening  operations  at  his 
disposal,  he  manages  mo.st  admirably,  and  we  live  in  hopes  of 
•seeing  Mr.  Wright  at  the  head  of  a  brand  new  garden,  with 
improved  glass  structures  and  appliances,  and  otherwise 
furnished  with  all  that  is  necessary  for  the  practice  of  the  highe.st 
horticulture. 
Mr.  T.  Humphries  came  from  Kew  to  Chiswick  ten  years 
ago,  and  rivals  his  professional  superior  in  the  geniality  of  his 
disposition,  and  readiness  to  be  of  service  to  all  having  business 
with  the  Society,  or  who  have  a  love  for  flowers.  He  is  specially 
well  ver.sed  in  flowering  trees  and  shrubs  and  hardy  plants.  He 
and  Mr.  Wright  work  admirably  together,  to  the  credit  of 
Chiswick.  But  of  the  garden  we  cannot  say  more  at  this  time, 
though  we  would.  Sunny  and  beautiful  a.s  the  garden  is,  it 
oiK)e  was  lovelier,  and  certainly  much  more  important. 
