HORTICULTURE AND ITS INFLUENCE.

Otago Witness, Issue 2426, 12 September 1900, Page 8

HORTICULTURE AND ITS INFLUENCE.

[Paper read before the Dunedin Horticultural (Society.] From the time that the Divine Florist [planted the garden of Eden, and placed Adam in charge, thereby dignifying labour, • down through the long centuries to the present clay, the science of horticulture or the art of gardening, has engaged -the at■tentiou of man. .The. placing of Adam in /that garden to .dress and keep it is proof sufficient that gardening was the first ~art to engage man's attention — first of all as a means of furnishing important necessaries ■ of life, and afterwards as objects of luxury and ornament, and later on as pleasing objects of speculation. In sacred history we find Noah represented as a husbandman, planting the vine and manufacturing the juice, and on down through the centuries

a taste for the cultivation of plants and [ flowers was possessed by many of the | earliest civilised nations. The Greeks and Romans were enthusiastic cultivators both ( for beauty and utility, long before the ;' state ''jot Great Britain admitted of such refinement. They acted as pioneors in growi ing plants for their beauty and usefulness. Passing over the dark ages and coming . downj to the thirteenth century, we find the study of plants, which for a time had been Neglected, again revived, and that the beauties of the vegetable kingdom were apjDreciated more and more by men of Lhigh. and low degree. From that time the knowledge of plants has been extended by the diligent labours of men of great and active minds in various parts of the world, and not only may we gather delight from beholding the beautiful workings -of Nature in her vegetable garb, but we are also enabled to bring her boundless resources to bear practically upon our daily wants and luxuries. Horticulture is from a practical standpoint one of those things that commands the suffrages of a vast multitude. Every year a number of devotees are added to its ranks ; its dominion is so wide, and has such a diversity of subjects, that it induces a number of every grade, of every class, to take a greater or less interest, in a greater or less number of these subjects. In our ovrn land a love for the cultivation of plants and flowers is on the increase, and we hope that the interest awakened may continue to grow.

The Biglit Hon. Joseph Chamberlain has said: "We. may differ greatly on many questions, but we are all united in oiir interest in and our love of horticulture. Statesmen have found recreation in it, philosophers have commended ifc, doctors have prescribed it, and poets have sung its praises." . . Later on, he ' claims for all that concerns the cultivation of flowers that it satisfies that love of natural beauty which is inherent in the human breast; that it cultivates our intelligence and powers of observation, and, unlike some other amusements to which our race' is prone, it inspires no evil passions, inflicts no pain, and causes injury to no man, either -in his character, health, or estate. Especially should our young people be induced to take an interest in the cultivation of flowers, which has also an advantage over many other pursuits in the cheapness and facility with which it can be followed, as every plant may be regarded as an unfolded book, and every flower an attractive object-lesson, requiring no expensive working apparatus. If our youth were educated in this science, a higher moral standard would be attained when manhood was reached. It is well known that even the mechanical pursuit of the mere trade of gardener has been conducive to a relatively superior morality and freedom from crime, and it has been ascertained that there are fewer gardeners in proportion to their mimbers than of any other trade or calling in the 2>oovhouses or prisons of Great Britain. I see no reason why a course of training in gardening should not be given the pupils in our public schools, as is practised in the schools in Germany. There school gardens have long been cultivated by the pupils, two 'hours' work per week being compulsory. The result is that the community life is affected. The farms and gardens are cultivated with new knowledge, the boys and girls work in the home grounds with' greatly-increased interest, insects and disease are watched for, and the crops handled with the intelligent care that comes from knowledge. The lessons thus taught and the influence exercised upon the youthful mind will never be forgotten. As we look around, how many homes do we see without the slightest attempt at gardening being made 1 ' In most of these homes are children, and we know that the love of the beautiful exists in every child, no matter how poor, how lagged. No matter what the home surroundings may be, these little ones will peep into a neighbour's garden to feast their eyes on what might just as well be growing around their own door. This love which every child inherits should be cultivated, developed, and strengthened, and an hour spent among the flowers with! the children, giving them a lesson on the culture of a rose, aster, pansy, 01 some other flower, would have a beneficial effect on the after life of the man or woman who began the study of plant life at school. It is said that where flowers grow, refinement dwells. May the day not be far distant when there will be no such thing as a cottage without a garden, where the owner can spend his evenings with his children, influencing them in the right direction, and feeling that there is .something else worth living for than an idle evening after a day of toil.

Our horticultural societies have done and are doing, a deal towards encouraging a love of floriculture, almost every town in the colony has its horticultural society, and its institution a flower show. This is one of the means of furthering the science of 'horticulture, and to their influence and encouragement is due the introduction of many plants which now adorn our gardens and greenhouses. Such subjects, brought together at our exhibitions, impress the visitor with a love for plants, and are

often the means of first instigating them to ' become horticulturists. These shows also prompt boys and girls to come forwanrd to obtain marks of recognition, and it is pleasing to see that the societies are offer- j ing inducements for the young to com- i pete, the .Dunedin Horticultural being j liberal in this respect, and I hope thai many of our boys and 1 girls will take advantf.ge of these inducements. A volume might be' written without exhausting this subject of horticulture, and its influence, but perhaps this paper is sufficiently long for this -meeting, so I will close with the following lines on the use of flowers by M-ary Howitt : — God might have bade the earth bring forth Enough foi* great and small, The oak tree and the cedar tree Without a flower at all; We might have had enough, enough, For every want of ours ; For luxury, medicine, and toil, And yet have had no flowers. Then wherefore, wherefore were they made All dyed with rainbow light, All fashioned with supremest grace, Upspriiigmg day and night ; Springing in valleys green and low, And on the mountains high, And in the silent wilderness, , Where no man passes by? ' Our outward life requires them noi, Then wherefore had they birth? — To minister delight to man, i ,To beautify the earth : j To comfort man — to whisper life .' Whene'er his faith is dim, j For who so careth for tho flowers 1 Will care much more for Him. , • — J. GEBBIB. Public Gardens, Oamarti.