418 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  uOTTAGE  GARDENER. 
May  16,  1901. 
to  the  sun  to  ripen  the  wood,  and  at  pruning  time  not  to  prune  too 
hard.  If  unsuccessful  another  season  inaroh  it  with  any  of  the  varieties 
named. — Wm.  Taylor,  Tewkesbury  Lodge  Gardens. 
“  R.  M.”  page  395,  of  May  9tb,  asks,  “  Is  this  variety  worth 
growing  ?  ”  Now  that  depends  entirely  on  oircumstanoes.  If  “  R.  M.” 
wants  a  Grape  to  eat,  or  for  his  employer  to  eat  (who  may  be  fastidious 
as  to  flavour),  I  should  say  No,  it  is  not  ;  but  there  are  circumstances 
under  which  it  may  be  quite  worth  growing.  It  will  do  well  in  a 
Black  Hamburgh  house,  will  ripen  at  the  same  time,  and  is  a  fine, 
plumping,  handsome-looking  Grape  that  will  fetch  6d.  a  pound  more 
than  the  Black  Hamburghs.  It  is  not  a  keeper,  but  will  be  in  use 
before  Gros  Colman.  I  find  if  close  SDurred,  as  you  would  Black 
Hamburghs,  it  is  a  shy  fruiter ;  but  grown  long,  plenty  of  bunches 
will  be  the  result.  If  “  R.  N.”  is  particular  as  to  flavour,  he  should  not 
grow  it,  but  could  use  it  as  a  stock  on  which  to  inarch  its  neighbours. — 
John  Kitley. 
A  Schedule  Blander. 
Mr.  Iggulden,  page  366,  appears  to  have  awakened  from  his 
lethargic  sleep,  as  a  veritable  Rip  Van  Winkle,  otherwise  he  would  have 
discovered  his  “  mare’s  nest  ”  years  ago,  when  those  varieties  of  Grapes 
which  he  takes  objection  to  in  their  arrangement,  and  which  “  for 
this  competition  ”  fiist  appeared  in  the  Shrewsbury  schedule.  Although 
I  personally  was  not  the  instigator  of  thus  classifying  these  disputed 
varieties,  I  must  say  that  I  do  fully  concur  with  the  scheduled  arrange¬ 
ment,  for  doubtless  it  was  deliberately  and  accurately  considered  that  any 
one  of  the  Muscat  tribe  was  ample  or  sufficient  where  only,  or  not  less 
than,  four  varieties  were  asked  for  in  this  competition  (mark  this 
stipulation,  as  these  words  contain  the  grit  or  pith  of  my  contention)  ; 
therefore  no  injustice  is  done  to  any  exhibitor  in  this  interesting  and 
popular  Grape  class,  for  surely  there  is  plenty  of  other  varieties  to 
select  the  remaining  eight  bunches  from  after  confining  the  class  to 
any  one  of  the  white  Muscat  varieties.  The  sohedule  does  not  claim 
or  state  Bowood  Muscat,  Tyninghame  Muecat,  Charlesworth  Tokay,  and 
Canon  Hall  Muscat  to  be  synonymous;  simply  says  for  this  competition 
they  will  not  be  admitted  as  distinct  varieties,  which  is  a  distinction 
and  a  difference.  All  those  who  have  the  noble  Canon  Hall  in  good 
form  can  display  the  same  in  plenty  of  other  eligible  classes.  I, 
therefore,  deny  that  Mr.  Iggulden’s  dictum  is  any  blunder  in  the 
Shrewsbury  schedule. — W.  Crump,  Madresfield  Court. 
- <•#.> - 
Gadding  and  Gathering. 
“  Here  awa’,  There  awa’.” 
Swanley  Horticultural  College. 
During  its  few  years  of  existence  the  college  at  Swanley,  in  Kent, 
which  purports  to  train  middle-class  young  ladies  and  gentlemen  in  the 
art  of  gardening,  has  been  quite  as  successful  as  the  directors  could 
wish  or  expect.  At  present  there  are  ninety-one  students,  and  I  was 
told,  when  on  a  reoent  visit  to  this  establishment,  that  many  applicants 
had  to  be  refused.  Mr.  M.  Eason  WilkinsoD,  B.A.,  is  the  resident 
Principal, and  his  rule  is  not  to  accept  any  students  unless  they  render 
a  promise  to  be  willing  workers.  Furthermore,  he  does  not  wish  to 
have  more  students  than  he  can  find  constant  employment  for.  The 
present  range  of  plant  houses  for  the  most  part  contain  Tomatoes, 
Carnations,  Cucumbeis,  Melons,  Ferns  of  the  usual  marketable  sorts, 
and  include  peacheries  and  vineries.  Mr.  Wilkinson,  however,  has 
arranged  for  the  addition  of  a  large  central  conservatory,  a  span-roofed 
propagating  pit,  and  three  other  similar  houses,  30  feet  in  length,  for 
greenhouse  and  stove  plants.  The  total  cost  will  be  about  £1000,  and 
the  contract  is  being  enacted  by  Messrs.  Richardson  and  Co.,  of 
Darlington. 
Once  these  houses  are  erected  and  put  in  order  Swanley  Horti¬ 
cultural  College  will  assume  an  air  of  some  importance.  At  the  time 
of  my  visit  (fully  three  weeks  ago)  active  preparation  was  being  made 
toward  having  Cucumbers,  Tomatoes,  with  Vegetable  Marrows  and 
other  early  vegetables,  ready  for  the  Temple  Show.  As  a  rule  the 
College  folks  do  themselves  credit  at  horticultural  exhibitions.  The 
bulk  of  the  students  are  gills  and  young  women.  Many  of  these  are 
undergoing  the  training  simply  that  they  may  be  enabled  to  garden 
well  when  they  go  to  their  own  homes  again  ;  others  accept  the  two 
years’  probationship  because  they  are,  in  the  first  instance,  in  delicate 
health,  and  thus  resort  to  outdoor  recreative  employment  to  gain 
strength  and  grace;  while  yet  others  are  in  hopes  of  making  a  living, 
either  in  market  establishments  of  their  own  or  other  people’s,  or  as 
professional  gardeners  in  private  places.  Each  student  has  a  plot  of 
ground — called,  out  of  respect,  a  garden — which  is  kept  in  order  and 
planted  according  to  the  individuality  of  the  owner.  I  believe  prizes 
are  offered  to  encourage  taste,  skill,  and  care.  The  grounds  are  very 
extensive,  and  varied  in  proportion.  Nut  bushes  are  largely  growD,  and 
bear  handsomely.  These  have  all  been  pruned  during  the  last  winter, 
the  centres  of  each  having  been  radically  thinned  out  and  opened  to 
the  light.  The  leading  shoots  have  also  been  pruned  back.  All  the 
standard  Apple  and  Damson  trees  in  the  large  upper  orchards  have  had 
their  trunks  coated  with  limewash  to  eradicate  and  prevent  Lichen. 
Bush  fruits  were  very  promising,  although  I  smiled  when  the  Principal 
naively  hinted  that  the  Black  Currant  bushes  had  extra  large  buds,  and 
were  promising  a  bumper  yield.  Yes,  there  is  a  certain  little  mite — 
too  well  known  to  fruit  growers — whose  presence  in  the  Black  Currant 
buds  is  only  too  easily  detectable  in  gardens  all  over  the  land.  Burning 
the  bushes,  rump  and  stock,  is  the  only  cure. 
Floral  Decorations. 
A  large  share  of  the  work  done  in  many  large  and  small  gardens  is 
spent  in  floral  decorations  and  designs.  As  an  instalment  to  the  few 
notes  written  under  this  head  by  me  a  few  weeks  ago,  the  following, 
whioh  describes  what  was  seen  in  the  Regent  Street  florists’  windows 
last  week,  may  be  of  interest.  Those  whose  business  it  is  to  day 
and  daily  study,  invent,  and  arrange  new  floral  contrasts  or  harmonies, 
must  certainly  be  superior  in  the  handling  of  their  articles,  and  in  the 
production  of  good  effects,  compared  with  the  person  whose  practice 
and  scope  is  much  more  limited.  At  the  present  time  scarlet,  blue,  and 
the  unchallengeable  white,  are  colours  most  in  evidence.  In  one  of  the 
shops  I  was  particularly  pleased  with  the  effect  of  an  upright  pillar, 
such  as  one  might  erect  or  find  in  drawing-rooms  or  reception  halls. 
This  was  completely  veiled  by  a  well  executed  arrangement  of  Anthu- 
rium  spathes,  different  varieties  being  used,  so  that  the  deep  crimson 
spathes  aided  the  effeot  of  the  lighter  coloured  ones.  Here  and  there 
adown  the  pillar  on  all  its  sides  were  the  rich  pendant  racemes  of 
Dendrobium  thyrsiflorum,  while  out-jutting  sprays  of  beautiful 
Odontoglossum  crispum,  and  a  continuous  winding  coil  of  Asparagus 
Sprengeri,  together  formed  an  admirable,  rich,  and  satisfying  floral 
feature.  To  emulate  such  arrangements  as  that  I  admit  is  beyond  the 
means  of  any  but  the  most  well  favoured  gardener. 
Here  is  another  design,  which,  however,  is  in  keeping  with  what  can 
be  afforded  by  the  less  affluent,  and  yet  would  grace  a  “  marble  hall." 
It  consisted  simply  of  a  tall  glass  vase,  having  a  slender  tube  and  wide 
open  mouth.  The  pure  white  flowers  of  Lilium  Harrisi  on  long  stalks  shot 
up  high  from  the  centre  ;  then  came  a  loose,  spreading  mass  of  purple 
and  of  white  Lilac,  while  tumbling  in  negligent  sprays  over  the  rim  of 
the  vase  was  Berberis  Darwiui.  It  might  be  thought  that  three  such 
subjects  used  together  would  appear  incongruous,  but  the  effect  was 
far  from  being  odd ;  it  was  charming.  It  may  be  timely  to  add 
here,  that  when  these  tall  glasses,  with  their  slender  bases,  are  used, 
the  utmost  care  and  consideration  must  govern  the  filling  and  the 
handling  of  them.  They  are  exceedingly  brittle,  and  break  with  the 
least  snap.  I  have  seen  one  of  the  vases,  costing  £2,  spoilt  by  rough 
handling ;  and  another  thing  to  mind  is,  that  you  do  not  attempt  to 
squeeze  too  many  stalks  into  the  mouth,  else  the  glass  will  burst.  A 
smaller  glass  vase  was  filled  with  deep  double  crimson  trusses  of  a  variety 
of  Zonal  Pelargonium,  Anthurium  spathes,  and  Asparagus  Sprengeri. 
In  the  way  of  circular  wreaths  there  was  one  very  pretty  design, 
composed  of  sweet  blue  Myosotis  (Forget-me-not).  The  latter  was  used 
evenly  all  round  the  frame  of  the  wreath,  without  any  relieving 
greenery,  but  a  bouquet  or  bunch  of  wired  Stephanotis  blooms  and 
Lilium  Harrisi  was  posed  at  one  part  of  the  circumference.  This,  I 
thought,  was  very  pretty.  TheD,  again,  on  a  cross,  having  a  grounding 
of  grey  Iceland  or  Siberian  Moss  (Lichen),  a  handsome  sprightly 
bunch  of  long-stalked  Violets,  Lily  of  the  Valley,  and  blue  Spanish 
Irises,  with  Adiantum  frondp,  was  pinioned  just  at  the  juncture  where 
the  cross  pieces  diverge  at  right  angles.  In  another  floral  cross,  blue 
Muscari  spikes  were  used,  along  with  Lily  of  the  Valley.  Fancy 
Pelargoniums  having  a  large  proportion  of  mauve-heliotrope  or  royal- 
purple  in  their  blooms  are  used  along  with  Cattleya  flowers  in  other 
wreaths.  These  coloured  wreaths  are  much  more  beautiful  and 
interesting  than  those  composed  of  purely  white  flowers. 
In  oblong  baskets,  draped  in  a  peculiar  green  bast  material,  were 
bold  showers  of  Cytisus  prsecox  and  golden  coloured  Spanish  Irises  ; 
looped  ribbon  to  harmonise  was  also  effectively  employed.  Rose  Mrs. 
J.  Laing,  Erica  hyemalis,  and  Ferns  were  placed  together  in  a  raised 
tray  box. 
Tulips. 
Probably  no  larger  or  finer  collection  of  Tulips  can  be  seen  any¬ 
where  in  the  neighbourhood  of  London  than  that  of  Messrs.  Barr  and 
Sons,  in  their  grounds  at  Long  Ditton,  Surbiton.  The  beautiful 
Narcissi  naturally  cover  a  f  ir  greater  amount  of  space  in  the  Long 
Ditton  grounds,  but  any  Tulip  fancier  at  the  present  time  would  find 
enough  to  satisfy  his  quest  for  at  least  the  period  of  one  afternoon. 
Those  who  cannot  visit  and  see  the  growing  plants  may  be  fortunate 
enough  to  view,  at  the  Temple  Show  next  week,  what  I  expect  will  be 
one  of  the  largest  collections  of  cut  Tulip  flowers  that  this  firm  has  ever 
staged.  The  Tulip  as  a  spring  flower  has  degenerated  from  the 
position  it  once  could  boast  of.  The  days  are  long  past  in  which  2000 
up  to  5000  florins  were  paid  for  a  single  bulb;  yet  everybody  admires 
these  stately  members  of  a  showy  genus.  Our  illustration  represents 
two  varieties  of  florists’,  or  English  Tulips,  the  well-known  and 
exquisitely  beautiful  Tulipa  elegans  alba  (syn.  Picotee),  having  a  neat, 
bright  rosy  edge  to  the  white  petals.  The  two  topmost  blooms  are 
those  of  the  variety  Czar  Nicholas,  which  is  perhaps  not  quite  so 
popular  as  the  other.  The  true  florists’  section  of  Tulips,  however, 
are  not  quite  so  extensively  cultivated  as  the  early  flowering  Dutch 
varieties,  and  recently  the  Darwin  Tulips  have  taken  a  prominent 
