CORRESPONDENCE.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume IX, Issue 2559, 28 March 1887, Page 2

CORRESPONDENCE.

HOBTIOULTUBAL

(Tdt'flsEMiOß,)'' ■ Si«,~l observe from a leader in your columns that the; present- : positipn'of our Horticultural Society is ; far from: satisfactory.. ■ Perhaps the 1 history, of a'similar Society"&';«,; village,, wruoh, for the .'purpose of identification,'".l.Ml. call S&veton," would be instruotiyeY Our S'ooiety.iit Slayeton was 'inaugurated : by a; great display of energy, aad everyone vied with each other- to make it a success. Good substantial prizes were "given, and as ''iiveiryotid , ' i fl^ii^\eTß|L/;no knowing ajiythingjahout' floiiisiilte,' 'the prizes were ftbouMquaUy divided, but in a short time/one' of two enthusiasts,, by close attention, and .the expenditure of a little, pocket money* outpaced the others; and' when; a fuchsia with a straight-stem and one .or two .brandies at the top no longer took prizes, the number of exhibitors sensibly diminished, when one or two of them were, called across'the ".bourne'' there only remained' the doctor and the professional gardener to support the institution. It was at thi3 period of the Society's - existence that I arrived ia Slavetqn, and bavins

■•: ■' I attended all. sales, and kept a 1 sharp eye.Wany:how plants ifitroducfcd ; by : '. the, gardener.. ,Pati surprised ?-. me most ;when I ;: made a start,wa4 the tremer dous demand for plants or rather cuttings': which 'existed in Slayetoh, T soon fourid-?pufc that : iho mine, who hailed, from: the ilslo .of ■•Wight,-'■ - pret£y/%#;¥uppH% ; flowefc plants.'in :the The. good people of-Slavetoh we .so' .;i!3asideral6l tha"t the plants at auctions, but'ai9wedth6> Doctor and my' young frientl'fo buf"' :• and then- they flockedgentlemen for cuttings, "andil'hlfe' ; ;V:' known some of our florists wait their.. \ r ', tarn for a cutting/.for. two or thrW v ; years rather than be guilty of spending''. a shilling; : They. atom' to' suppose that if they: jiurohaßS - l one or-two plants -.from ■'•the gardenw ' the doctor and myjoung friend would be. annoyed bo they 'wisely ahstsiined from such a rash proeeMagi. Th* doctor, however, Masai to exhibit and it wis then that I, toi certain extent, tolied'his place. •I:-, Bpentacrasiderttblesumbfrnttioy in the puwhass of new■' ray ..SfitodS:honoredmeby I should have stated-that when the.exhibitors' were naiWweoV down ict the doctor and toy.yoting friend, the flnancialaffairsof the Society a balance on the wrong side, fortunately , for" .us a gentleman 'naiuei Nevfflit,waß.'indiise'dto taMthepresi- ■. tie'was* esteemed by the of us worked hard in order that we -might practically show him- ( that we ;ftppreciated the. f numerous personal sacrifices which 'he made to further tlio success of the Society. Under his popular rule matters flourished, but still'-the basis upon which the Sooiety depended for Hi successful 'existence was more artificial than real; 'No encouragement was offered to children to acquire a;taste The Society deperided'upon a fewoldfogiss who gladly emptied their greenhouses to "fill up/' Several of them have gone/across the I'bourne, I !'others' ; have moved from Slavetbn,: abd theit;, places-have not been filled by younger members of the community, and th» number ,of exhibits, have gradually,dwindled until I see by the SlavetoW ,papers that only .three exhibitors ; showed pot plants- at the. last show, ' and in a.letter which I received a few;/ days ago from my young Isle of Wight' friend, be tells me that bo only put in his plants last show to fill up, and that he, too, will'not exhibit pot plants v.,.another year.. Healso tells me thai notwithstanding l , the' fact 1 -' -that ttyti; '. population has doubled since I,went', to Slaveton, yet the, gardener from whom. I used to buy my. plants war starved out some-years ago, that another gardener started business there,; and he, too, has beenstarved.but, .and!, at the present'time Slavetori; does' hot f boast of a flofioultural gardener : from ;> whom may' .be,bought, This... almost total c'oHapseof tbeßhow would,' I am satisfied, have., been averted if v «. children's! class.had'been includeijin,, the Society's catalogue* 'The Society should : .have' aimed :&t./;o"reatnig an interest in the 'show !by iuduoihg. - every'child inthfi'. JwbM tastes led hun in that way,-' to grow flowers and show them; v^ by .thl| : means a' number of young firsts would be coming on to fiU'cJir vaoan- , oies as they occurred, and thcfyouthfol '• competitor would riot'' oiily. t-ake' a' ] great interest in the • Booieiy, hut ta : would,, also .cause, his' relatives'ianS,.. friends to take 'i you, , will ".therefore '■'■ see, Sir;- : ; Intt our, ; Society grew from tbitop;-instead of ' from the roots,- and hence its present, unsatisfactory .''position/;''?; There was. • another thing that struct' rie in Slate-y ton, whenever a member o'f the committee, wjio also happened to.be a' large exhibitor, wishes to get class of plants put upon the catalogue, t .he was invariably opposed by.'the,-. ; -. , majority, who were' non-exhibitorsi,' , and the member making tlie,;proposi|? was led to understand that .-they.-, con-*''' | sidered he only wanted to get the new-- , olass of plants put in the catalog^: l »i,.; r ordtr to make in'OMi 'out '*t'"'tp w \ Society, and thus,.' through Ue" 1 ' stup ; dity of a few - short sighted'' individuals who were; totally : ignorant, £ of the subject which they actually-;;: controlled;'many good men exhibitor to have anything to. dVwitbV ; - the Society. In my next letter I will. ; ' givo some of my experiences as art! amateur florist, the mistakes which t - ■ made and how I remedied them, also, how my first plants exhibited at the ."• Slaveton Show did not' take: prizes;. >' and how •I. ultimately"beat 'the gardoner, '-.■"..," ' . ' lath, &0., .''' '' ;;-''- M v John MoWnraiEß.'