Jane  20,  1901. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER, 
525 
Should  Gardeners  Exhibit  and  Act  as  Committeemen  ? 
I  have  long  intended  to  write  the  Editor  a  few  lines  regarding 
(I  am  sorry  to  say)  first-class  gardeners  acting  both  as  committeemen 
and  as  exhibitors  at  the  same  show.  I  am  not  an  old  man,  but  in  my 
earlier  days  I  studied  fruit  culture  a  good  deal,  and  it  never  occurred  to 
me  that  I  should  ever  come  to  exhibit  in  first-class  company  and  find 
gardeners  as  committeemen,  exhibitors,  stewards  (and  even  judges,  in 
the  amateur  classes),  all  at  one  show.  I  have  read  with  much  interest 
Mr.  Brock  versus  the  R.H.S.  of  Ireland,  and  I  learn  he  was  a  councilman 
and  also  an  exhibitor.  I  should  be  pleased,  before  writing  more  on  the 
subject,  to  have  the  opinion  of  other  gardeners  whether  council  and 
committeemen  ought  to  be  allowed  as  exhibitors. — George  Wadeson, 
JDoveridge  Hall  Gardens. 
A  Schedule  Blunder. 
Mr.  Iggulden’s  plain  question  and  Mr.  Taylor’s  comparison  both 
seem  to  me  wide  of  the  mark,  aB  neither  Mr.  Crump  in  his  letters  or 
the  Shropshire  Society’s  schedule  assume  that  Canon  Hall  is  not 
distinct  from  Muscat  of  Alexandria.  After  reading  Mr.  Adnitt’s  letter, 
which  supports  all  that  Mr.  Crump  has  said,  it  seems  to  me  that 
instead  of  a  blunder,  a  very  reasonable  conclusion  was  arrived  at  after 
very  careful  consideration.  The  object  evidently  in  view  is  to  make  a 
class  that  comes  within  the  limits  of  the  majority  of  gardeners.  As 
Mr.  Crump  explains  on  page  482,  unless  the  “  blunder  ”  had  been  made 
it  would  have  been  possible  for  any  exhibitor  to  have  staged  eight 
bunches  of  white  Muscats,  and  thus  have  been  in  the  running  for  eighty 
points.  In  1899,  when  admiring  the  large  collections  of  Grapes  in 
oompany  with  a  very  successful  Grape  grower  whose  produce  has  been 
awarded  gold  and  silver  medals,  he  remarked  that  the  fact  of  six 
varieties  being  asked  for  had  made  the  class  prohibitive  to  the  great 
majority  of  Grape  growers,  citing  his  own  position  with  five  vineries. 
At  that  date  he  could  not  have  staged  six  perfectly  finished  varieties, 
and  I  venture  to  say  that  a  very  great  majority  of  exhibitors  are  in 
similar  circumstances  ;  and  surely,  in  a  class  where  only  four  varieties 
are  asked  for,  one-third  of  white  Muscats  is  a  very  fair  proportion. 
Yet  it  seems  hard  and  unfair  that  Mr.  Iggulden’s  two  Grape-growing 
friends  should  be  so  hard  hit  (page  366)  because  they  cannot  stage 
eight  bunches  of  white  Muscats  out  of  an  exhibit  of  twelve  bunches  of 
Grapes.  If  it  were  necessary,  abundant  evidence  would  be  forthcoming 
that  the  Shropshire  Society  has  always  regarded  Canon  Hall  as  a 
distinct  variety.  In  Mr.  Goodacre’s  large  collection  of  fruit  last  year 
Canon  Hall  was  shown  as  distinct  with  Muscat  of  Alexandria,  and  also 
in  the  previous  year  in  his  twelve  dishes  of  fruit.  The  winning  four  of 
two  varieties  of  white  Grapes  were  Canon  Hall  and  Muscat  of  Alexandria, 
so  that  I  contend  that  Mr.  Iggulden’s  plain  question  is  beside  the  mark 
altogether. — W.  H.  Wilson,  Moor  Hall  Gardens,  Stourport. 
Young  Gardeners’  Pay. 
Such  a  letter  as  that  of  “  An  Old  Boy,”  on  page  895,  is  of  real  value 
to  the  cause  for  which  it  was  written.  I  am  sure  that  all  thoughtful 
young  fellows  will  feel  that  “  An  Old  Boy  ”  stated  the  oaee  plainly 
and  well  for  the  “  other  side.”  That  there  are  two  sides  to  every 
question  is  surely  agreed  to  by  all,  and  it  is  well  to  have  the  matter 
looked  at  from  both  points  of  view.  Everyone  is  agreed  that  there  is 
room  for  improvement  in  the  matter  of  wages,  and  I  for  one  hope  that 
the  time  is  not  far  distant  when  gardeners  will  be  better  paid  than  they 
are  at  present.  But  meanwhile  there  are  many  things  to  be  considered 
besides  the  mere  money  before  we  decide  that  it  is  not  worth  while  to 
take  up  gardening  as  a  profession.  In  the  first  place  it  is  essentially  a 
healthy  life,  and  when  a  man  is  healthy  he  is  happy,  or  ought  to  be. 
Of  course  there  are  some  who  say  that  a  young  fellow  working  in  great 
heat  lays  up  a  store  of  rheumatism,  lumbago,  and  other  ailments,  whioh 
will  attack  him  in  his  old  age,  and  no  doubt  in  some  oases  this  is  true  ; 
but  taken  as  a  whole  I  think  gardeners  are  a  very  healthy  class  of  men, 
whether  in  youth,  middle  age,  or  in  advanced  years.  Then  there  is 
bothy  life.  Its  drawbacks  are  often  great,  comforts  are  few,  and  the 
life  is  often  rough.  But  it  has  many  advantages.  There  is  no  better 
training  for  a  young  fellow  than  that  which  bothy  life  affords.  Living 
with  fellows  of  his  own  age,  continually  subjected  to  good-humoured 
banter  and  ohaff,  the  priggishness  is  eliminated  from  him  if  he  be  a 
,prig,  and  he  learns  many  lessons  whioh  will  be  of  great  value  to  him  in 
after  life.  He  learns  how  to  ‘‘rough  it,”  and  to  give  and  take  a  Joke. 
He  forms  friendships  with  his  fellows  whioh  often  last  a  lifetime,  and 
few  are  the  gardeners  who  in  their  middle  age  do  not  look  baok  with 
pleasure  to  their  “  bothy  days.”  Then,  again,  the  young  man  who 
loves  the  work,  and  whose  heart  is  set  on  becoming  a  really  first-class 
gardener,  is  not  likely  to  be  deterred  by  the  consideration  that  wages 
are  low.  He  does  not  choose  gardening  because  wages  are  good,  or  he 
would  be  sadly  disappointed.  Rather  does  he  begin,  and  is  urged  on  by 
the  hope,  that  some  day  he  may  be  at  the  top  of  the  tree. — F.  8. 
Potato  Up-to-Date. 
Coincidently  with  Mr.  W.  Young’s  critique  anent  the  quality  of  this 
now  popularly  esteemed  variety,  and  his  encomiums  on  Syon  House  Prolific 
(see  page  481),  I  happened  subsequently  to  note  them  in  the  course 
of  conversation  with  Mr.  A.  Allison,  manager  of  Mr.  W.  Sydenham’s 
famous  Pansy  and  Viola  establishment  at  Tamworth,  regarding  the 
qualities  of  the  former  variety.  He  remarked  that  in  attempting  to 
cultivate  it  in  his  own  garden,  consisting  of  a  sandy  soil,  it  was  always 
attended  by  most  unsatisfactory  results,  both  in  regard  to  oropping  and 
quality,  whereas  Syon  House  Improved  succeeds  admirably,  and,  up 
to  the  present  time,  is  of  excellent  flavour,  moreover  superior  in  flavour 
to  Up-to-Date  procured  from  several  other  quarters.  As  a  market 
variety  Up-to-Date  continues  in  favour,  though  there  is  an  evident 
decline  in  favour  of  other  varieties.  In  my  opinion  the  nature  of  soils 
and  manures  are  responsible  for  the  vagaries  of  the  naturally  extremely 
sensitive  organisation  of  this  established  variety. — W.  G. 
- - 
Systems  of  Growing  Scarlet  Runners. 
The  system  of  growing  Scarlet  Runners  without  stakes  is  not  very 
modern,  and  has  always  applied  to  the  market  grower  and  those  who 
grow  extensively.  The  stake  system  is,  I  admit,  costly  if  adopted  on  a 
large  scale  ;  but  it  is,  I  maintain,  the  best  for  ordinary  garden  purposes 
where  a  few  rows  are  sufficient  for  the  demands  of  a  family.  If  tall 
stakes  are  not  available,  or  are  objected  to,  shorter  stakes,  3  or  4  feet 
in  length,  may  be  employed,  topping  the  Beans  as  the  growths  advance 
above  them.  For  my  part,  however,  if  I  did  not  use  ordinary  tall 
stakes,  Mr.  Raillem’s  favourite  plan  of  growing  entirely  without  would 
probably  be  as  good.  Good  Beans  may  be  secured  on  all  the  systems, 
but  I  still  think  that  supporting  the  growths  by  stakes  is  the  most 
convenient  and  superior  method,  entailing  but  little  extra  trouble,  and 
is  not  so  very  expensive.  Should  the  latter  be  the  greatest  objection, 
then  make  a  compromise,  and  grow  Beans  on  each  system  named,  to 
practically  demonstrate  which  is  the  most  satisfactory. — Calendar 
Writer. 
Copings  for  Walls. 
In  reply  to  Mr.  Ellison’s  inquiry,  I  beg  to  state  that  all  the  glass 
copings  here  are  fixtures.  Some  of  them,  on  south  walls,  have  been 
erected  twenty-five  years,  and  the  results  have  been  sufficiently 
satisfactory  to  induce  my  noble  master  to  desire  me,  a  few  years  ago, 
to  extend  these  copings  annually.  The  walls  are  now  finished,  and  I 
have  no  reason  at  present  to  feel  disappointed  with  the  results.  Not 
only  have  the  trees  under  them  borne  heavier  crops  of  fruit  than 
formerly,  but  the  trees,  both  old  and  young,  are  more  vigorous  and 
healthy  than  they  were  previously.  Some  gardeners  may  have 
reasonable  objections  to  fixed  copings,  but  to  me  they  have  proved  to 
be  a  real  boon.  Fixed  copings  are  more  convenient,  less  expense,  and 
muoh  less  troublesome  than  movable  ones.  With  reference  to 
Mr.  Ellison’s  remark  that  “  he  never  saw  a  good  healthy  tree  under  a 
fixed  coping  near  London,”  I  would  ask,  why  should  not  a  tree  grown 
under  a  2  feet  wide  fixed  glass  coping  be  equally  as  healthy  as  one  grown 
in  a  cool  house  under  a  fixed  roof  five  or  six  times  as  wide  ?  Having 
ventured  to  make  what  some  gardeners  have  termed  a  novel  experiment 
in  utilising  the  framework  of  these  fixed  copings,  whioh  Mr.  Strugnell 
has  named  the  “  Ohallis  trellis,”  and  which  will  form  eventually,  when 
the  trellises  are  covered,  an  aroade  against  each  wall,  I  would  like  to 
state  that  they  are,  so  far,  simply  experimental ;  satisfactory  as  far  as 
proved,  but  I  cannot  yet  speak  with  certainty  as  to  the  future.  Some 
gardeners  who  have  seen  them  object  ohiefly  on  account  of  the  partial 
shade  they  give  on  the  wall  trees,  but  I  am  inclined  to  think  that  this 
will  prove  to  be  rather  an  advantage  than  otherwise.  These  front 
trellises  are  planted  with  Apricots,  Cherries,  Pears,  Plums,  and  Apples 
trained  as  cordons,  and  the  small  quantity  of  fruit  that  I  have  already 
gathered  from  them  makes  me  very  hopeful  that  they  will  eventually 
prove  as  valuable  as  the  trees  grown  against  the  walls.  I  am  also 
sanguine  that  the  latter  will  not  suffer  in  consequence. — T.  Challis, 
The  Gardens,  Wilton  House. 
