126 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
August  7,  1902. 
The  Judas  Tree. 
I  take  in  your  excellent.  Journal,  and  my  gardener,  whom  I 
give  it  to  to  bind  up  for  reference,  is  anxious  that  in  connection 
with  the  account  of  a  few  Judas  Trees  in  England  quoted,  it 
should  be  named  that  in  this  garden  (The  Knoll)  there  is  a  good 
sized  one,  planted,  I  suppose,  twelve  years,  which  bears  its  pink 
blossoms  pretty  in  spring,  and  also  seed  pods  later.  There  is 
also  still,  I  believe,  a  fine  old  Judas  Tree  in  a  garden  at  East 
Clevedcn. — J.  L.  Woodward,  Clevedon. 
Gardeners’  Education. 
The  subject  is  so  highly  interesting  that  it  is  no  surprise  to 
me  why  a  “champion  of  learning”  has  not  yet  arisen  to  refute 
the  arguments  put  forth.  The  champions,  like  “  Brer  Rabbit,” 
“  lay  low  and  say  nuffin,”  knowing  full  well  that  the  authors  of 
all  this  educational  philosophy  are — can  be  no  other — disappointed 
men;  have  lost  the  “grit”  they  perhaps  never  possessed,  and 
have  nothing  now  for  the  profession  but  sophistry.  Grit  makes 
the  good  gardener.  Influence  may  get  him  a  situation  of  high 
standing ;  but  influence  cannot  keep  it  for  him.  Better  the 
man,  better  the  profession. — R.  S. 
In  to-day’s  Journal  Mr.  G.  Ash  expresses  surprise  that  no 
“Saul  among  the  people”  has  arisen  to  demolish  the  meta¬ 
physical  philosophy  recently  advanced  by  his  confrere  “  D.  W.  G.” 
It  yet  remains  to  be  demonstrated  that  “  D.  W.  G.”  dealt  any 
formidable  blow  to  the  question  wherewith  he  headed  his  dis¬ 
sertation.  The  greater  number  of  gardeners  are  too  shrewd 
and  well  educated  to  give  more  than  mere  passing  notice  to  the 
smart  epistle  contributed  by  “  D.  W.  G.”  They  must  see  that 
his  premises  are  unsound,  and  laid  down  in  the  form  of  a  very 
bad  type  of  syllogistical  reasoning.  This,  therefore,  friend  Ash, 
is  doubtless  the  chief  reason  your  rather  caustic  tit-bit  did  not 
call  for  serious  refutation.  Another,  but  a  much  less  one,  is  the 
fact  that  “  D.  W.  G.’s  ”  contribution  was  in  reality  misnomened. 
It  ought  to  have  been  headed  either  “  Gardeners’  Failures  ”  or 
“  Gardeners’  Grievances.”  At  any  rate,  the  text  had  little  in 
common  with  the  content,  which,  by  the  way,  was  little  else  than 
a  tedious  contumely  on  the  craft  from  which  he  still,  it  appears, 
derives  his  living.  Solomon,  the  good  and  wise,  laid  down 
innumerable  maxims  applicable  to  every  little  crook  in  the  path 
of  youth;  but  youth  prefers  its  own  way.  The  strange  thing  Is 
that  most  people  wish  to  profit  by  their  own  experience,  and 
seldom  or  never  care  to  do  so  by  that  of  another.  “  D.  W.  G.” 
might  have  known  this  ere  he  sat  down  to  concoct  the  high 
coloured  draught  he  prepared,  doubtless  in  good  faith,  for  the 
guidance  of  youth  through  the  foaming  breakers  in  the  sea  of 
fortune.  Had  he  reflected  but  for  a  little  he  assuredly  would 
have  discovered  that  his  potential  advice  would  have  scarce  any 
influence  in  bending  the  current  of  the  stream.  The  age  is 
progressive  ;  everyone  feels  the  need  of  self-improvement,  perhaps 
few  more  than  the  young  diligent  gardener  and  student  of 
nature.  Not,  however,  let  it  be  kept  in  mind,  because  the 
exigencies  of  his  duties  call  for  it,  but  because  he  knows  that 
among  his  fellows  he  would  otherwise  become  a  nonentity,  and, 
besides  all  this,  it  makes  life  immeasurably  more  pleasant  and 
easier  to  live. 
That  education  alone  is  sufficient  to  achieve  success,  not  only 
in  gardening,  but  any  other  trade  or  profession,  is  a  question  few 
men  of  intelligence  would  ever  imagine.  Does  a  medical  doctor, 
lawyer,  or  clergyman  require  for  his  profession  a  tenth  of  the 
matter  that  one  or  all  them  require  to  digest  ere  they  receive 
the  grand  prix  ?  It  is  a  well-known  fact  that  they  do  not;  but 
the  process  of  grinding  and  cultivating  the  limbs  of  the  mind, 
so  to  speak,  is  absolutely  necessary  to  form  the  perfect  and 
capable  man.  Even  these,  when  all  that  education  is  capable  of 
doing  for  them,  often  find,  like  “  D.  W.  G.,”  that  something  else 
is  needed.  Theymiay  then  require  practice,  and  this  cannot  be 
always  got  by  even  the  payment  of  money,  but  it  can  be  got 
in  a  far  simpler  way — we  say  simpler  with  reference  to  the 
amount  of  tact  and  shrewdness  one  can  bring  in  evidence — by 
soliciting  the  all-powerful  and  potent  services  of  the  goddess 
Influence.  She  must  be  negotiated  if  one  hopes  to  make  any 
progress  on  the  ladder  of  fortune.  This  is  a  fact  which  ought  to 
be  as  clearly  set  before  every  individual  in  life’s  journey  as  the 
journey  itself. 
Again,  we  apprehend  that  “  D.  W.  G.”  and  Co.  do  not  quite 
understand  what  constitutes  education  or  an  educated  man. 
Our  inference  is  entirely  founded  on  the  statements  he  has  made 
re  the  matter  with  respect  to  gardeners.  If  he  fancies  that  a 
course  of  college  education  is  requisite  for  the  purpose,  he  is 
labouring  under  a  delusion  of  the  grossest  nature.  The  great 
gospel  of  education,  in  principle,  is  a  means  to  reduce  the  Beast 
to  a  minimum,,  and  where  it  falls  short  in  partly  accomplishing 
this  function  it  is  more  a  curse  than  a  blessing  to  possess.  It 
raises  the  species  from  their  grovelling  posture  on  all  fours  to 
the  God-like  attitude  of  the  perfect  man.  In  fact,  it  makes  a 
gentleman  of  the  brute,  and  a  wise  man  of  the  fool.  There  have 
been  men  in  the  profession,  and  there  is  no  reason  to  think  there 
are  not  such  still,  who  could  teach  some  of  the  college  professors 
on  philosophy,  mathematics,  Greek,  Latin,  and  Hebrew,  and  as 
regarding  the  mysteries  of  physical  sciences  none  could  have 
better  opportunities  for  observation  than  students  whom  we 
may  designate  “  Nature’s  own  students.”  The  prospects  of  the 
educated  gardener  are  good.  We  know  some  who  have 
graduated  to  the  factor’s  desk,  and  several  who,  on  account  of 
their  general  knowledge  of  things,  were  entrusted  *with  the 
general  management  of  estates.  We  pray  that  all  who  are  blind 
shall  obtain  light,  and  those  who  are  ignorant  shall  understand — 
the  remedy  is  education. — C.  H.  S. 
Gardeners’  Bothies. 
“  C.  H.  S.”  has  got  ’em  again  ;  he  seems  to  suffer  greatly  froih 
the  “  bothy  complaint.”  As  the  malady  is  quite  fresh  to  me  I 
cannot  hope  to  advise  him  on  the  subject;  but  I  distinctly 
remember  him  mentioning  once  that  he  had  under  his  super¬ 
vision  an  upright  tubular  boiler.  Now,  if  he  will  only  possess 
himself  of  a  moderately  sized  garden,  with  the  usual  accessories, 
viz.,  range  of  glass  pits,  kitchen  and  flower  plots,  lawns  and  fruit 
plantation,  and  if  this  garden  can  be  had  about  a  mile  from  the 
nearest  dwelling  house  suitable  for  lodgers,  he  will,  I  fancy,  soon 
grow  strong  and  healthy  again.  Please  don’t  mention  pitch  and 
toss  to  “  fourteen-shilling-a-week  men,”  as  I  have  heard  journey¬ 
men  gardeners  termed,  for  it  is  wicked  to  gamble. — H.  R.,  Kent. 
Fruit  Supply. 
The  correspondence  regarding  the  important  question  of 
British  fruit  supply  cannot  fail  to  have  been  interesting  to  anyone 
who  has  this  matter  at  heart.  What  I  am  inclined  to  ask  is, 
Whether  the  correspondence  will  lead  to  anything  ?  The  whole 
matter  has  been  discussed  before,  and  while  here  and  there  one 
sees  men  who  are  on  the  right  track,  they  are  like  bright  stars 
in  a  dull  firmament,  and  improvements  generally  are  slow  in 
coming.  According  to  the  views  of  Mr.  Raschen  and  “  H.  D.,” 
capital  is  the  mighty  power  that  alone  can  bring  about  a  better 
state  of  affairs.  It  is  a  reasonable  idea,  and  but  for  the 
antiquated  British  principle  of  just  locking  up  the  land  by  primo- 
genitive  and  other  laws  there  might  be  a  chance  for  a  few 
millionaires  from  “  the  other,  side  ”  to  come  over  and  establish 
a  fruit  industry  on  much  the  same  lines  as  it  is  conducted  in 
America.  I  question  whether  British  capital  will  do  much,  and 
in  the  meantime  our  millions  are  being  calmly  placed  in  the 
pocket  of  the  gentlemen  over  the  water. — Will  S. 
Metallic  Pea  Trainers. 
The  scarcity  of  the  necessary  wood  Pea  stakes  has  for  a  season 
or  two  compelled  me  to  turn  my  attention  towards  the  metal 
supports.  I  was  taken  by  their  appearance  and  neatness,  and 
at  once  mentally  conferred  my  best  praises  upon  the  man  who 
invented  such  a  good  substitute  for  the  old  unsightly  and  some¬ 
times  incorrigible  thing.  A  little  experience  of  them,  however, 
made  me  modify  my  first  good  opinion,  and  I  am  now  wondering  if 
any  others  have  discovered  any  reason  to  utter  a  similar  grumble 
as  "is  my  fate  to  do  in  this  respect  .  My  chief  fault  is  the 
indifferent  way  in  which  the  Pea  and  the  wires  seem  to  embrace 
each  other.  They  appear  to  lack  the  needed  sympathy  which 
results  always  in  perfect  satisfaction.  The  tender  tendrils  of 
the  Pea  clutch  to  the  metal  very  much  after  the  fashion  that 
the  wealthy  man  grasps  the  hand  of  his  less  fortunate  poor 
relative.  The  consequence  is  that  many  of  the  shoots  fall  head 
foremost  to  the  ground.  I  have  been  asking  myself  why  this 
should  be  so,  and  the  only  feasible  explanation  forthcoming  up 
to  this  moment  is  the  action  of  the  atmosphere  upon  the  metal. 
Iron  being  a  great  absorber  of  heat  and  cold,  it  always  is 
sensibly  hotter  or  colder  than  the  surrounding  air.  In  very  hot 
weather  the  wires  get  too  hot  to  be  comfortable  for  the  succulent 
tendrils,  and  should  they  be  attached  the  heat  is  powerful  enough 
to  burn  them.  I  noticed  something  very  like  this  during  the 
great  protracted  heat  of  last  year.  The  cold  this  season  possibly 
acts  in  deterring  the  tendrils  to  catch  on  as  we  would  like  to  see 
them.  In  any  case,  I  should  like  to  hear  what  is  other  gardeners’ 
experience  in  this  matter. — D.  C. 
