July  3,  1902. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
9 
Apropos  of  the  blue  Rose  (a  correspondent  writes),  my  little 
gill,  to  whom  I  read  the  item,  proceeded  to  tell  me  the  following 
pretty  legend :  “  There  was  a  man  who  lived  in  Antwerp.  His 
name  was  Quintin,  and  he  was  very  poor,  but  he  was  very  Clevel¬ 
and  nice.  He  was  in  love  with  a  very  dear  girl  named  Elsa,  who 
was  the  daughter  of  a  very  rich  man  who  was  the  mayor  (only 
they  called  him  some  other  name).  The  mayor  was  very  angry 
with  them,  and  when  Quintin  went  to  see  him  and  said  he  was 
going  to  give  up  being  a  blacksmith,  and  become  a  great  painter 
and  be  very  rich,  the  mayor  only  laughed.  He  said,  ‘  When  you 
can  paint  blue  Roses  and  red  Lilies  from  life,  then  you  can  marry 
Elsa ;  but  not  till  then.’  So  poor  Quintin  went  away  very 
unhappy,  because  he  knew  there  were  no  blue  Roses  or  red 
Lilies.” 
Profitable  Apples  of  Upright  Growth. 
I  am  much  obliged  to  “  H.  D.”  for  his  answer  to  my  inquiry. 
It  is  highly  satisfactory  to  learn  that  Lord  Derby  is,  as  I  hoped 
from  the  appearance  of  my  young  bushes,  of  upright  habit  as  a 
standard,  because,  of  all  the  culinary  varieties  I  am  trying,  I 
place  it  first  for  my  land.  I  also  much  like  the  appearance  of 
Lord  Grosvenor,  and  should  be  glad  to  know  if  it  is  of  upright 
habit  as  a  standard ;  the  same  as  to  Bramley’s  Seedling. 
Warner’s  King  will  suit  me  well  for  one  variety.  I  am  sorry  to 
have  to  omit  Cox’s  Orange  among  dessert  varieties,  and  doubt 
whether  Allington  Pippin  will  be  in  demand  as  a  market 
variety.  Am  I  right  in  concluding  that  Duchess  of  Oldenburg 
and  Potts’s  Seedling  are  both  upright?  Is  Beauty  of  Bath?— 
Beginner. 
Grape  Gros  Maroc. 
Under  the  above  heading,  and  over  the  initials  “R.  M.,”  a 
question  appeared  in  your  pages  about  a  year  ago  as  to  whether 
this  variety  was  worth  growing,  as  it  had  failed  to  give  satis¬ 
factory  results  here,  Marlay,  Rathfarnham.  To  my  inquiry 
several  of  your  correspondents  very  kindly  replied  giving  advice 
as  to  the  proper  treatment  which  it.  should  receive,  and  having 
carried  out  their  advice,  it  is  with  much  pleasure  I  tell  it  that 
the  Vines  of  this  variety  in  most  cases  had  a  surplus  of  bunches 
this  season.  Some  of  them  are  carrying  a  heavy  crop. — R.  M. 
- «♦«*•> - 
The  Bothy. 
A  good  deal  has  of  late  appeared  regarding  the  above. subject 
in  your  pages,  one  writer  being  in  favour  of  doing  away  with 
it.  I  think  if  a  poll  were  taken  as  regards  the  wishes  of  young 
gardeners  of  to-day  that  a  great  majority  would  be  in  favour 
of  the  bothy.  One  question  which  has  a  great  deal  to  do  with 
this  subject  is  the  position  which  those  of  us  who  are  head 
gardeners  take  in  reference  to  it.  Are  we  doing  our  duty  ?  Do 
we  know  that  the  bothy  isi  not  as  it  should  be,  and  are  we 
taking  no  steps  to  remedy  it?  We  are,  as  a  rule,  most  anxious 
as  to  the  characters  of  the  young  men  whom  we  engage  to  live 
in  such  places,  and  if  they  be  unfit  for  habitation,  and  if  wo 
have  made  no  efforts  to  get  them  put  right,  surely  the  blame 
rests  upon  us.  It  may  be  that  some  employers  may  object  to 
incurring  any  expense,  yet  if  ive  have  right  on  our  side,  let  us 
take  courage  and  go'  forward  again — in  the  end  right  will 
prevail.  One  failing,  which  I  trust  is  not  a  general  one,  is  that 
many  of  our  young  men  do  not  apply  themselves  to  reading  as 
they  should.  This  is  one  of  the  many  ways  in  which  a  good 
example  is  likely  to  bear  fruit  in  time.  If  the  books  be  few  let 
them  be  good.  It  is  with  feelings  of  deep  gratitude  to  my 
present  employers  that  I  have  been  enabled  to  do  a  little  to 
brighten  the  lot  of  the  young  men  here.  It  would  answer  no 
good  purpose  to  recall  the  state  of  things  as  they  appeared  to 
me  when  taking  over  charge  of  these  gardens. — Rorert  Russell, 
Co.  Dublin. 
The  Crooked  Spade. 
Apropos  of  Mr.  W.  R.  Rai Hem’s  notes  on  “The  Cornish 
Spade  ”  (page  533,  last  volume),  the  following  from  an  old  descrip¬ 
tive  book  relating  to  Scotland,  mention  a  crooked  spade  as  being 
used  in  Skye.  “  Two  miles  further  on,”  says  the  itinerary,  “  is 
Monkstadt  House,  the  residence  of  Hugh  MacDonald,  Esq.,  one 
of  the  most  extensive  farmers  in  Skye.  The  fertile  valley 
extending  to  the  north  of  the  house  is  the  bed  of  a  lake  which  has 
recently  been  drained,  the  ground  thus  acquired  being  cultivated 
with  the  crooked  spade  peculiar  to  the  agriculture  of  Skye.”  The 
reasons  given  for  the  employment  of  these  long-handled  and 
peculiarly  shaped  spades  are  that  both  the  Cornishmen  and  the 
Scottish  Highlanders  at  a  recent  period  used  to  work  barefooted 
and  could  not  tread  the  spade  in  the’  usual  manner. — J.  H.  D. 
Standard  Outdoor  Peaches  and  Nectarines. 
On  the  inspection  of  an  article  that  appeared  in  your 
columns  some  time  ago,  describing  the  success  of  Mr.  Turner,  of 
Slough,  and,  I  think,  Messrs.  Veitch,  in  growing  Peaches  and 
Nectarines  as  standards  out  of  doors,  I  planted  six  Peaches  and 
five  Nectarines  in  the  autumn  of  1900.  They  grew  well,  and, 
last  summer,  ripened  a  good  lot  of  young  wood.  This  year  they 
were  covered  wTith  very  fine  and  fully  expanded  blossom,  which 
stayed  on  the  trees  a  long  time.  In  this  southern  district  we 
had  no  more  than  3deg  of  frost  (3ft  from  the  ground)  on  any 
night  after  the  blossom  was  out,  and  then  the  trees  were  well 
covered  with  tiffany.  Yet  not  a  single  fruit  has  set.  What  can 
be  the  reason?  Could  it  be  the  high  and  cold  winds?  I  am 
on  a  hill,  and  get  a  great  deal  of  wind  from  the  softth-west.  A 
bank  protects  the  trees  from  the  north-east,  but  not  from  the 
east.  We  have  hives  of  bees  in  the  garden  ;  but  the  bees  were 
busy  on  the  few  sunny  days  on  Gooseberries,  Currants,  Wall¬ 
flowers — anything  but  the  Peaches  and  Nectarines.  Therefore 
I  tried  inoculation  with  a,  camel-hair  brush,  when  the  sun 
shone ;  but  hardly  any  pollen  showed  on  the  brush  at  any  time, 
and  often  I  could  not  see  any  at  all.  The  trees  suffered  very 
badly  from  leaf  blister;  but  this,  I  imagine,  did  not  prevent 
the  fruit  from  setting.  They  are  six  to  eight  feet  high,  and 
well  furnished  with  branches.  The  soil  is  somewhat  heavy, 
but  not  wet,  as  it  is  on  a  steep  slope,  and  a  drain  runs  nearly 
parallel  to  the  row  of  trees,  and  only  a  rod  from  them.  The 
result  is  most  disappointing.  Can  I  do  anything  to  insure 
success  with  the  trees? — South  Sussex, 
The  Wages  of  Gardeners. 
”  writes  :  — 
and  instructive 
A  correspondent  to  the  “  Florists’  Exchange 
“  Some  time  ago  in  reading  the  interesting 
articles  from  the  able  pen  of  Joseph  Meehan,  I  noticed  a  few 
words  in  regard  to  the  wages  of  gardeners  in  comparison  with 
those  paid  in  other  trades  and  professions.  I  was  pleased  to  see 
the  subject  taken  up  by  one  of  such  experience  and  reputation, 
and  have  been  expecting  someone  else  to  give  their  views  on  the 
matter.  .  . 
“  Does  the  profession  of  horticulture  require  less  brains, 
study,  and  hard  work  than  other  trades  and  professions?  One 
who  intends  to  become  a  successful  horticulturist  will  find  that 
it  takes  ceaseless  study,  a  close  and  strict  attention  to  business, 
plenty  of  hard  work,  combined  with  the  bump  of  patience 
well  developed.  We  have  longer  hours  requiring  more 
watchfulness  and  care  than  most  trades.  Why,  then, 
should  not  a  gardener  get  wages  that  would  compare 
with  the  wages  of  skilled  help  in  other  trades1?  How  often 
do  we  see  in  the  trade  papers  ads.  worded  thus:  ‘Wanted, 
young  man  with  experience  in  growing  Roses.  Carnations, 
Chrysanthemums,  Violets,  &c.,  sober  and  honest,  not  afraid  ot 
work;  wages  25  dots,  per  month  and  board,’  which  is  just  a 
little  more  than  some  men  pay  labourers  that  work  nine  and  ten 
hours  per  day;  and  the  gardener  will  be  working  as  long  as 
there  is  daylight  (if  lie  is  foolish  enough  to  do  so),  with  a  room 
in  the  potting  shed,  or  a  cot  minus  the  room. 
“  A  great  number  of  our  prominent  and  successful  growers 
pay  fair  wages,  and  one  can  soon  detect  the  difference  between 
their  establishments  and  the  place  that  has  insufficient  and 
poorly  paid  help.  One  is  all  bustle  and  everyone  doing  las  utmost 
to  raise  the  best  stock  possible;  everything  is  clean  and  neat. 
The  other  is  dirty  and  untidy,  stock  poor,  the  help  loafing  and 
more  interested  in  somebody’s  best  girl,  or  a  prize  fight,  or  some¬ 
thing  more  exciting  than  their  occupation. 
“  I  think  it  would  be  •  a  benefit,  both  to  employers  and 
employes,  who  have  the  best  interest  of  the  profession  at  heart, 
to  form  some  kind  of  protective  association,  and  only  admit  to  it 
applicants  having  good  references,  so  as  to  protect  both  loose 
looking  for  good  help  and  men  looking  for  good  situations,  mi 
looking  for  positions  have  to  furnish  good  references,  and  then 
often  find,  especially  if  seeking  a  position  at  a  distance,  that  the 
place  has  been  misrepresented,  the  employe  often  havin  a  liar 
time  to  get  his  wages  when  due.  Surely  some  way  should 
devised  to  guard  against  such  cases.  1  hope  to  hear  others  .  it « 
on  this  subject  :  and  that  someone  will  think  of  a  plan  to  wm 
all. — Arthur  Taylor.” 
