174 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
August  23,  IOOq. 
Fruit  in  moninoutlisliire  and  Soutlt  Wales, 
South  Wales,  iccluding  Moumouthshire,  is  bound  on  tbe  north 
by  Montgomeryshire,  on  the  west  by  St.  George’s  Channel,  on  the 
.'iouth  by  the  Bristol  Channel,  whilst  its  eastern  boundary  follows  to  a 
large  extent  the  course  of  the  river  Wye,  the  adjacent  English 
counties  being  Gloucestershire  and  Herefordshire,  It  is  divided  into 
seven  counties,  with  a  total  acerage  of  3,058,632.  The  principal  sea- 
]X)rt  towns  are  Cardiff,  Newport,  and  Swansea,  from  which  a  very 
large  quantity  of  coal  and  iron  is  annually  exported.  In  the  counties 
of  Monmouthshire  and  Glamorganshire  we  have  what  is  known  as  the 
Great  South  Wales  Coalfield  :  this  is  fringed  by  a  belt  of  limestone 
rock,  and  much  of  the  land  occupied  by  this  formation  is  characterised 
by  bare  rocks  or  crags,  but  the  soil  that  is  formed  by  the  decompo¬ 
sition  of  the  rock  is  well  known  to  support  good  pasturaste  for  sheep. 
The  Coal  Measures,  which  occupy  so  large  an  area  in  South  Wales, 
form  an  eleva'ed  tract  intersected  by  deep  valleys,  and  from  an  agri¬ 
cultural  point  of  view^  the  soil  in  Hese  mountainous  districts  is  poor. 
Red  sandstone  and  mails  with  layers  of  magnesian  limestone  are  to  be 
found  to  a  very  large  extent  in  Monmouthshire  and  Glamorganshire, 
whilst  over  the  greater  part  of  the  Vale  of  Glamorgan  the  lias  lime¬ 
stone  extends,  as  it  does  a'so  on  the  banks  of  the  Ebbw  and  at 
Liswerry,  near  Newport.  Much  of  the  soil  in  these  districts  is  of  a 
strong  loam,  and  very  heavy  crops  of  corn  have  bem  grown  upon  it. 
Between  Cardiff  on  the  west  and  Chepstow  on  the  east,  bordering  on 
the  Bristol  Channel,  and  along  the  rivers  Uskand  Wye,  there  are 
very  extensive  alluvial  flats,  or  what  is  known  locally  as  the  Moors, 
which  furnish  very  rich  tracts  of  pasture  land. 
The  climate  of  South  Wales  differs  materially  from  that  of  many 
I  arts  of  England,  and  varies  in  itself  considerably.  In  the  moun¬ 
tainous  distnets  it  is  bleak  ;  modcjately  mild  in  the  vales  and  on  the 
southern  coast,  particularly  in  the  far-famed  Vale  of  Glamorgan.  The 
average  rainlall  is  considerably  higher  than  in  England,  the  wet 
season  not  being  confined  to  the  winter  months,  for  rains  are  frequent 
at  all  times  of  the  year. 
The  total  area  of  orchards  in  Great  Britain,  according  to  the 
leturns  issued  by  the  Board  of  Agriculture  for  the  p'esent  year,  is 
228,603  acres,  out  of  which  only  6515  are  situated  in  Monmouthshire 
ai.d  South  Wales,  but  this  does  not  include  “small  fruits.”  Of  this  acreage 
4035  are  to  be  found  in  the  county  of  Monmouth  ;  the  remaining  2480 
acres  are  distributed  as  follows: — Breconshire  1191,  Radnorshire  689, 
Glamorganshire  321,  Carmarthenshire  158,  Pembrtkeshire  78,  and 
Cardiganshire  43.  There  is  an  increase  on  the  year  of  29  acres,  26 
tf  which  are  put  to  the  credit  of  Monmou'hshire.  To  those  who  are 
more  intimately  acquainted  with  the  larger  fruit-growing  districts  of 
Great  Britain,  such  as  Kent,  Herefordshire,  Worcestershiie,  and  the 
western  counties  of  England,  it  may  appear  somewhat  j'resumptuous 
on  my  part  to  describe  fruit-growing  as  an  industry  in  South  Wales, 
especially  when  you  remember  that  until  very  recently  little  or 
nothing  has  been  heard  of  Iruit  from  this  (shall  I  say  remote?)  part 
of  Great  Biitain. 
Nearly  the  whole  of  the  fruit  in  Monmouthshire  and  other  South 
Wales  counties  is  grown  in  what  are  commonly  known  as  grass 
orchards.  These  are  in  most  cases  situated  in  sheltered  spots  nep.r  to 
the  homestead  to  which  they  belong.  There  is  no  record  of  the  time 
when  fruit-growing  as  an  industry  commenced,  but  from  tbe  general 
appearance  of  many  of  the  orchards  it  certainly  dates  back  to  100 
years  ago,  and  in  some  cases  to  at  least  200  years.  This  refers  more 
«  specially  to  the  Monmouth,  Abergavenny,  Chepstow,  and  Usk  districts. 
On  the  moors  or  alluvial  flats  fruit  trees  are  much  shorter  lived,  and 
consequently  orchards  have  to  be  frequently  renovated.  This  is 
caused  by  the  damp  natute  of  the  soil ;  ditches,  or  what  are  more 
lommonly  known  as  “  reens,”  take  the  place  of  hedges.  During  the 
greater  part  of  the  year  these  reens  contain  water,  and  in  the  winter 
months  the  surface  of  the  ground  will  not  be  more  than  2  or  3  feet 
above  its  level ;  indeed,  it  frequently  happens  that  during  the  spring 
tides  many  hundreds  of  acres  are  under  water. 
A  gieat  number  of  the  farms  in  this  district  have  orchards 
attached,  and  in  many  cases  they  are  sev>ral  acres  in  extent.  In 
prepiaring  the  land  the  usual  custom  is  to  divide  the  gvound  intended 
10  be  planted  into  ridges  ;  this  is  done  by  cutting  a  giip  on  each  side 
oi  ihe  ridge,  throwing  the  soil  taken  out  of  the  grip  into  the  centre, 
and  raising  it  almost  into  the  form  of  a  miniature  arch  or  half- moon; 
the  trees  are  generally  planted  on  the  surface,  soil  being  carted  from 
banks  that  have  been  accumulating  for  many  years  by  the  sides  of 
public  roads,  cr  for  what  has  been  cast  out  of  the  reens  or  ditches,  to 
cover  the  roots.  After  j  roperly  staking,  a  good  dressing  of  stable  or 
COW'  manure  is  placed  on  the  surface  round  the  tree,  and  this  repeated 
the  following  year,  with  the  result  of  forcing  the  trees  into  vigorous 
grjwth  and  also  encouraging  the  fibrous  roots  to  come  to  the  surface. 
It  is  often  necessary  to  lay  drain  pipes  or  cut  cross-grips  to  more- 
efficiently  drain  the  land.  Shelter  has  to  be  provided,  and  this  is- 
done  by  planting  the  common  Willow,  and  in  some  cases  the  English 
Elm,  both  of  which  grow  very  fast  and  soon  form  a  belt  sufficient  to 
break  the  strong  westerly  gales,  which  in  certain  seasons  of  the  year 
are  very  prevalent. 
Some  people  will  probably  ask.  Is  it  possible  to  grow  Apples  under 
such  conditions  ?  ^jy  answer  is  that  frequently  very  heavy  crops- 
are  grown,  equal  in  quality  and  size  to  any  that  I  have  seen  in 
other  parts  of  Great  Britain.  One  of  the  varieties  that  are  grown  in 
quantity  in  most  of  the  orchards  in  the  district  between  Newport 
and  Chepstow  is  King  of  the  Pippins,  or  what  is  known  locally  as 
Shropshire  Pippin, 
It  is  well  known  from  history  that  some  2000  years  ago  tbn 
Romans  occupied  this  part  of  the  country,  one  of  their  chief  fortified 
cities  beiig  Caerwent,  situated  on  the  main  road  from  Newport  itv 
Chepstow,  and  about  twelve  miles  from  the  former  town  Now  wfthin 
the  walls  of  this  small  but  ancient  city  there  are  about  15  acres  of 
orchard  out  of  a  total  of  45  acres,  or  one-third  of  the  wnole  city. 
The  trees  are  perfectly  healthy,  and  although  many  of  them  are  of 
great  age  they  are  still  regularly  bearing  heavy  crops  of  fruit;  the 
reason  given  for  this  by  the  present  tenant  was  that  they  were 
feeding  upon  the  bones  of  the  Romans.  And  in  one  sense  this  ia- 
certainly  true.  For  in  many  places  amongst  the  fruit  trees  are  to  be 
seen  the  ruins  of  the  houses  in  which  the  Romans  lived.  Extensive 
excavations  have  lately  been  made  within  a  few  yards  of  the  orchards, 
and  almost  beneath  the  shadow  of  the  trees  the  foundations  of  two 
large  Roman  villas  have  been  unearthed.  Much  of  the  fruit  is 
used  for  making  cider,  but  a  large  quantity  is  sent  to  the  local 
markets,  the  better  varieties  including  Coxes,  Blenheims,  Kings,  and 
Ribstons. 
About  two  miles  from  Caerwent  we  come  to  Portskewett,  near  to- 
which  is  another  ancient  encampment,  and  here  again  is  a  very  old 
orchard,  about  9  acres  in  extent,  which  is  partly  enclosed  by  a  high 
wall.  Many  of  the  trees  are  very  large,  and,  when  I  saw  them,  were- 
.almost  breaking  down  with  their  heavy  crop  of  well-coloured  fruit. 
The  soil  here  is  good,  although  not  of  great  depth,  the  limestone  in 
some  places  projecting  above  the  surface.  Near  by  is  to  be  seen 
one  of  tbe  relics  of  the  olden  times — a  pair  of  stocks  in  perfect 
condition  standing  on  the  roadside  close  to  che  entrance  to  the  parish 
church. 
Leaving  Portskewett  we  come  to  Caldicot,  and  here  I  found  a 
good  illustration  of  what  can  be  done  by  honest  indu-try.  .Some 
few  years  ago,  the  fruit  gardens  were  in  a  very  rough  condition,  and 
the  present  owner  who  had  never  had  any  special  training  for  fruit¬ 
growing,  purchased  a  quantity  of  Apple,  Pear,  and  Plum  trees,  which 
were  planted  at  sufficient  distances  apart  to  allow  the  ground  between  to 
be  filled  with  “  small  fruits;  ”  and  in  addition  a  plot  has  been  set  apart 
for  growing  Tomatoes  in  the  open  air,  and  last  season  the  results  were- 
so  satis^'actory  that  he  intends  to  extend  his  fruit  gardens. 
In  the  Raglan  and  Monmouth  district  I  spent  several  days  this- 
autumn,  travelling  over  100  miles  in  different  directions.  The  first 
place  I  visited  was  Cwmearvan  (the  meaning  of  the  word  cwm  is  a 
“dingle”);  the  whole  of  this  place  is  well  sheltered  fr.m  the 
easterly  and  westerly  winds,  the  soil  is  of  a  stiff  clay  on  the  red 
sandstone.  Many  years  ago  there  appear  to  have  been  ext  nsive 
orchards  in  this  place,  and  some  attempts  have  been  made  to  renovate 
them,  but  unfortunately  the  young  trees  that  have  been  planted  to  fill 
up  the  vacancies  have  not  had  sufficient  protection  to  prevent  the 
cattle  from  rubbing  against  them  and  in  many  cases  break-ng  them 
down  ;  yet,  notwithstanding  this  rough  treatment,  there  were  splendid 
crops  of  well  coloured  fruit,  fl'he  Blenheims  were  the  best  I  have  seen 
this  season,  whilst  on  the  old  Cissy  tree  the  fr.  it  (fig.  47)  was  perlectly 
crimson  in  colour.  I  saw  here  for  the  first  time  an  Apple  ca.led  The 
Ten  Commandments ;  there  were  several  trees  of  it.  Hitherto  I  had 
only  read  of  it  in  Dr.  Hogg’s  “Fruit  Manual.”  Large  quantities  of 
cyder  fruit  are  also  grown  here,  many  of  the  trees  breaking  d  iwn  with 
the  weight  of  fruit.  One  of  the  varieties  which  appeared  to  be  a 
great  lavourite  through  the  w’hole  of  the  M.mmouth  district  waa 
called  Potheer,  and  I  was  told  that  it  was  ra  sed  at  a  mill  ol  that  name 
some  short  distance  from  Monmouth.  It  is  considered  to  be  an 
improvement  on  what  is  known  there  as  the  Belle  Norman.  The  trees 
are  of  straggling  habit,  but  they  bear  enormous  crops  of  fruit  every 
year,  which  frequently  break  the  trees  to  pieces.  Pear  trees  appear  to 
do  well  here;  the  trunk  of  one  I  measured  was  6  feet  in  circumierence 
4  feet  from  the  ground,  and  of  Catillac  I  found  some  very  largo 
specimen  trees. 
I  have  already  referred  to  a  local  variety  of  Apple  known  as  the 
Cissy,  and  in  a  few  places  as  the  Tampling.  It  may  be  interesting 
to  record  that  it  was  raised  by  a  cottager  named  Tampling,  who  r  sided 
in  the  village  of  M-dpas,  near  Newport,  about  a  hundred  years  ago. 
During  his  lifetime  he  distributed  grafts  amongst  his  friends  in  different 
