May  9,  1901. 
395 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER 
Grape  Gros  IY[aroc. 
Is  this  variety  of  Grape  worth  growing  ?  I  am  compelled  to  ask 
the  question,  owing  to  it  proving  unsatisfactory.  We  have  three  Vines 
growing  in  a  midseason  house.  They  broke  into  growth  strongly,  but 
have  only  two,  three,  and  four  bunches  respectively  on  them.  The 
Vines  are  planted  indoors,  but  the  greater  part  of  the  roots  are 
ou' doors.  This  being  my  first  year  in  charge  of  these  Vines,  I  am 
anxious  to  know,  from  any  of  your  readers,  if  their  experience  is 
similar  to  mine  in  regard  to  this  variety. — R.  M. 
TI|e  John  Apple. 
I  was  much  interested  in  the  remarks  made  by  “  G.,”  page  265, 
respecting  the  above  Apple,  and  should  have  been  glad  if  he  had  told 
us  more  about  it.  Like  your  correspondent,  I  am  acquainted  with  the 
John  Apple,  though  perhaps  not  so  intimately,  and  I  also  made  its 
acquaintance  in  Warwickshire,  where  a  few  old  trees  were  highly 
prized  in  an  orchard  attached  to  an  old  homestead.  Although  I  have  made 
maty  inquiries,  I  have  never  met  with  the  Apple  in  any  county  other 
than  the  one  named,  and  should  like  to  know  whether  it  is  confined 
to  Warwickshire.  Your  correspondent  does  not  exaggerate  as  to  the 
good  opinion  held  for  it  in  the  above  county,  which  makes  the  fact 
more  singular  that  the  variety  is  not  more  generally  cultivated. — 
G.  H.  H. 
— - - - 
Pear  Bergamotte  Esperen. 
This  Pear  is  without  a  doubt  one  of  the  very  best  late  varieties  for 
the  midland  counties.  Not  only  is  its  flavour  excellent ;  it  has  the 
additional  merit  of  being  a  sure  cropper.  After  twenty-two  years’ 
experience  in  this  district — at  Burghley,  Ketton,  and  Belvoir — I  have 
never  known  it  to  fail  ;  and  if  I  were  restricted  to  one  late  variety, 
this  would  be  the  one  I  should  choose.  It  bears  well  on  pyramids  and 
bush  trees  here,  and  is  not  liable  to  grittiness,  like  Nec  Plus  Meuris  and 
Olivier  de  Serres,  both  of  which  are  excellent  late  Pears  in  some  years, 
and  not  so  good  in  others.  All  three  of  these  varieties  are  free  setters, 
and  must  be  thinned  severely  in  order  to  obtain  fair  sized  fruits  ;  and 
all  must  be  left  on  the  trees  until  the  leaves  are  falling,  and  there  is 
danger  from  severe  frost.  Another  point  worthy  of  close  attention  is  to 
supply  a  sufficiency  of  water  in  dry  seasons,  especially  during  August 
and  onward,  until  the  fruits  are  gathered ;  and  if  the  water  has  “  a  drop 
of  something  in  it,”  the  fruits  and  trees  will  benefit  proportionately. — 
W.  H.  Divers,  Belvoir  Castle  Gardens,  Grantham. 
1  do  not  think  there  need  be  any  doubt  as  to  the  bona  Jides  of  this 
very  excellent  late  Pear.  My  experience  of  it  ranges  over  a  period  of 
twenty-two  years  (how  time  flies  !)  the  commencement  being  at  Holme 
Lacy,  Hereford,  and  where  it  was  considered  as  one  of  the  very  best 
winter  Pears.  At  this  place  the  trees  were  grown  both  against  south 
and  west  walls,  and  which  I  oonsider  is  the  true  position  for  this  variety 
to  be  grown  to  its  fullest  perfection.  Grown  in  the  open,  either  as  a 
pyramid,  bush,  or  espalier,  its  ripening  is  doubtful,  being  very  irregular, 
and  this,  I  think,  is  what  has  caused  the  misapprehension  as  to  its 
regularity  in  this  respect.  My  experience  of  Bergamotte  Esperen  grown 
in  these  latter  forms  is  disappointing,  the  ripening  being  very  erratic.  In 
some  seasons  a  few  will  ripen  up,  whilst  the  remainder  will  not  pass 
beyond  the  “  leathery  ”  stage.  I  consider  that  it  is  a  mistake  to 
recommend  this  variety  to  be  grown  in  the  open,  a  south  or  west  wall 
being  its  true  position;  if  this  is  done,  then  the  ripening  will  be 
regular.  April  is  again  too  late  to  say  that  this  Pear  is  in  perfection ; 
from  early  in  the  New  Year  throughout  January  is  when  it  is  at  its  best. 
This  past  season  it  was  fully  ripe  at  Christmas.  It  is  only  when  grown 
in  the  open  that  April  can  be  considered  to  have  any  claim,  then  the 
ripening  is  doubtful.  Because  a  Pear  will  bear  freely  in  the  open  (and 
Bergamotte  Esperen  is  one  of  the  most  prolific  in  this  respect)  it  is  no 
criterion  that  the  quality  will  be  good. 
Whilst  on  this  subject  I  will  name  a  very  excellent  late  or  April 
Pear,  and  this  Bergamotte  Hertrich,  but  it  must  be  grown  against 
a  south  or  west  wall.  The  following  is  the  description  as  given  in  the 
“  Fruit  Manual  ”  by  the  late  Dr.  Hogg,  and  as  I  had  the  selection  and 
sending  of  the  fruits  there  described,  I  can  vouoh  for  it.  “  Fruit, 
rather  hollow,  medium  size,  2  inches  high,  and  2£  inches  wide, 
Bergamotte-shaped,  inclining  to  roundish  turbinate,  even  in  its  outline, 
except  at  the  stalk,  where  it  is  furrowed.  Skin,  very  much  covered 
with  ashy  grey  russet,  through  which  the  grass*green  ground  is  visible ; 
on  the  side  next  the  sun  there  is  a  brownish  tinge,  and  there  is  a 
patch  of  pale  brown  russet  surrounding  the  stook  and  the  eye.  Eye, 
with  narrow  incurved  segments  set  in  a  shallow  and  furrowed  basm. 
Stalk,  three-quarters  of  an  inch  long,  inserted  in  a  narrow  cavity. 
Flesh,  yellowish,  with  a  greenish  tinge  under  the  skin,  melting  and 
juicy,  with  a  rich  flavour  and  fine  aroma,  somewhat  resembling  the 
Swan’s  Egg.” 
Another  good  late  Bergamotte-shaped  Pear  grown  in  Worcestershire 
is  Beurre  Peran.  This,  I  think,  received  an  award  of  merit  from  the 
R.H.  S.  a  few  years  back.  This  is  a  Pear  wh’ch  should  also  be  made 
a  note  of ;  as  it  is  in  commerce  there  should  not  be  any  difficulty  in 
securing  trees.  Like  the  preceding  named,  the  trees  should  be  grown 
against  south  or  west  walls. — A.  Young,  Witley  Court  Gardens, 
Stourport. 
Royal  Horticultural  Society  of  Ireland. 
It  may  interest  your  very  able  correspondent,  “W.  R.  Raillem,”  to 
know  that  the  Royal  Horticnltural  Society  of  Ireland  was  the  first 
horticultural  society  in  the  United  Kingdom  to  bear  the  prefix"  Royal.” 
Respecting  his  criticism  of  the  matter,  Brock  v.  the  R.H.S.I.,  he, 
“  W.  R.  Raillem,”  has,  I  believe,  endeavoured  to  analyse  it  as  fully  and 
fairly  as  one  afar  off  could  possibly  do,  but,  having  followed  him  to  a 
finish,  I  find  it  diffioult  to  draw  satisfactory  conclusions  from  his  logical 
dissertation.  That,  of  course,  is  probably  more  my  stupidity  than  his 
fault.  Still,  as  he  is  handicapped  in  having  only  a  bare  skeleton  of  facts 
to  deal  with,  it  would  probably  be  necessary  for  one  who  is  au  courant 
with  the  doings  of  the  Royal  Horticultural  Society  of  Ireland  and  its 
dealings  with  gardeners — one  who  is  able  to  grasp  the  spirit  as  well  as 
the  letter  of  its  laws— to  do  justice  to  all  concerned  ;  then,  I  think, 
Mr.  Brock’s  action  would  be  capable  of  a  different  construction  than  at 
present  obtains. — K.,  Dublin. 
■ . . <♦•«» - 
Young  Gardeners’  Pay. 
Apropos  of  “  H.  G.  C.’s  ”  note  on  page  373,  has  he  not,  in  his  manner 
of  championing  the  wages  cause  of  young  gardeners,  placed  a  stumbling- 
block  that  may  possibly  trip  up  some  bright  young  journeyman  early 
on  the  path,  or  at  least  give  him  an  opportunity  for  having  a  grievance 
early  in  life?  "An  Old  Boy”  may  be  permitted  to  tell  his  young 
friends  of  bothydom,  although  it  is  Doped  to  be  unnecessary,  that  he  is, 
as  he  was  and  will  remain  to  the  end,  imbued  with  an  earnest  desire  to 
help  them,  otherwise  some  may  construe  these  opening  remarks  as 
antagonistic  to  their  welfare  in  general  and  their  pockets  in  particular. 
I  sincerely  hope  that  young  fellows  will  read  between  the  lines  of 
"  H.  G.  C.’s”  comment,  and  well  weigh  the  matter,  that  they  may  see 
things  as  they  are  and  not  as  they  seem.  In  the  first  place,  appren¬ 
ticeship  to  the  "profession”  is,  I  take  it,  rather  the  exception  than  the 
rule  by  which  gardeners  are  made,  but  in  any  case  this  need  not  detain. 
What  I  would  ask  our  boys  to  do  is  to  compare  their  position  with  that 
of  those  serving  their  probationary  term  to  a  trade  in  the  matter  of 
pay ;  and  if  they  do  this  impartially  the  comparison  will,  I  think,  be 
favourable  to  the  bothy — to  those  whose  pay,  whilst  receiving  a  prac- 
tioally  free  education,  is  self-supporting  from  the  start,  with  those  who 
have  to  be  dependent  on  their  friends  for  years.  This  should  strike  an 
initial  blow  at  any  real  or  imaginary  grievance  I  would  fain  keep  out  of 
the  bothy.  Real  or  imaginary  ?  Yes  ;  it  is  admitted  that  in  some 
cases,  probably  in  many,  possibly  in  all,  there  is  room  for  improvement 
in  the  matter  of  pay ;  but  I  regard  this  as  of  far  less  serious  moment  in 
bothydom  than  it  is  to  the  head  and  tail  of  a  garden  staff,  viz.,  the 
chief-in-charge  and  the  garden  labourers,  and  fail  to  see  how  the 
financial  status  of  a  gardener  is  to  be  raised  without  a  trinity  of  factors 
in  the  calculation.  As  a  master  of  young  men,  I  should  certainly 
derive  unqualified  pleasure  in  paying  them  higher  wages  than  at  present 
obtains,  but  cannot  leave  the  labourers  out  of  my  thoughts,  for  they, 
too,  are  worthy  of  their  hire,  and  must  also  cmfess  that  I  should  derive 
some  pleasure  from  more  pay  myself.  Nevertheless,  it  is  more  than 
doubtful  how  agitation  at  the  present  time  would  improve  matters, 
especially  in  those  cases — and  they  are  not  rare — where  garden 
expenses  are  cut  down  to  the  finest  point  consistent  with  their  up-keep, 
or  even  beyond  that.  The  whole  question,  however,  is  one  containing 
inherent  possibilities  of  righting  itself  without  external  interference, 
which  I  honestly  believe  would  do  more  harm  than  good.  There  are,  in 
fact,  signs  of  the  times  that  it  is  already  doing  so;  inasmaoh  a3 
“  H.  G.  C.”  says,  “Can  anyone  blame  an  active  and  smart  young  man 
for  taking  to  the  khaki  ?  ”  No,  certainly  not.  I  for  one  will  praise 
him  for  serving  his  king  and  country  in  khaki,  or  anything  elss  if  he  is 
thus  disposed ;  or  any  youth  whose  end  and  aim  is  money  would  be 
ill-advised  to  qualify  for  a  gentleman’s  gardener,  but  for  those  to 
whom  the  love  of  gardening  holds  the  first  and  foremost  place  in  their 
hearts,  there  is  no  need  to  tell  them  to  stick  to  the  blue  apron;  and  if 
they  cannot  get  more  than  14s.  per  week  and  the  bothy,  they  can  live 
very  comfortably  on  it  and  be  vary  happy  in  their  work.  Such,  at 
least,  was  the  experience  of — An  Old  Boy. 
