366 THE GARDENER. [Aug. 



all, were joined to the ground already under cultivation. Here there were planted 

 out in the open ground some 40,000 standard and dwarf Roses, besides seedlings ; 

 there were also a large number of pot-Roses, Conifera, Ornamental Trees, Ever- 

 greens, &c, in common with many other plants found in a nursery of such great 

 extent. In 1S60 was added what is known as the Roselands Nursery, a fine piece 

 of land about 24 acres in extent, having a fine fresh Rose soil; and here, in 

 addition to standard Roses almost without number, can also be seen a wonderful 

 collection of all kinds of pyramidal, standard, and dwarf trained fruit-trees in superb 

 condition, having all that fine and free development a deep, generous loamy 

 soil can impart to them. Mr George Paul informed us that the Roses here would 

 amount to something like 40,000 in number. Away at High Beech, a few miles 

 north-west of the home nursei'y, is a further nursery of 15 acres, devoted to the 

 culture of American plants, Hollies, &c, all in thriving condition, and doing as well 

 as could be wished. Such is a general sketch of the disposition of the several 

 pieces of land making up the Cheshunt Nurseries. 



No one can have walked through these nurseries— every part of them during 

 the present summer — without being struck with the order and cleanliness every- 

 where observed. Mr George Paul appears to regard his nurseries with the eye of 

 an artist ; a mass of weeds here, or an untidy spot there, would mar the effect of 

 the pleasant picture he has in his nurseries. Their condition reflects the highest 

 credit on his management : it is also seen in the quality of the stuff he grows. 

 Deep and constant hoeing is another characteristic of the order in which the 

 nurseries are kept. Never before, perhaps, has a dry summer better illustrated 

 the advantages of deep hoeing, and a constant stirring of the surface, than the 

 prevailing drought has at Cheshunt during the past few months. A man who not 

 only hoes deeply, but takes a pride in the quality of his work, is a man Mr Paul 

 rates at a high value, and he encourages him in a liberal manner. 



We have already alluded to the high-class character of the fruit-trees, and the 

 same praise is deserved in the condition of all kinds of nursery stock. The land 

 shows the prevalence of drought, but the stock scarcely ; all was healthy, 

 vigorous, and doing well. To particularise would be to go through all the vari- 

 ous items forming an extensive and varied stock ; but such things as a grand lot 

 of standard Limes, dwarf-trained Nectarines, Peaches, Plums, Cherries, and Apri- 

 cots, trees of many kinds, shrubs, &c, were all in prime condition. That more 

 useful class of trees and shrubs, those with variegated and ornamental foliage, 

 are largely looked after, and almost complete collections have been gathered to- 

 gether. Variegated Sycamores, Ash, Acers, and many other things can be seen'; 

 and in the spring time, when the young growth is fresh and at its best, the lover 

 of pictorial trees will find a great field for study opened up in these grounds. In 

 one part of the nursery grounds were to be seen collections of the several species 

 and varieties of Lilacs, Weigelias, Spireas, &c, as interesting to the botanist as 

 they are to the practical horticulturist. Immense quantities of Aucuba Japonica 

 were to be seen in one of the nurseries, grown mainly to supply the London cos- 

 termongers with plants, which they pot and sell as window plants during the 

 winter. As a general rule, a very large number of these get starved for want of 

 water — a failing common to window gardeners in large cities, and especially in 

 London, where such an extensive migratory population exists — but the demand 

 is always a large one, and the supply must keep pace with it. 



Remembering how much the cultivators of the Hollyhock owe to the Cheshunt 

 Nurseries, how much of its glorious past was fostered by the care bestowed on 

 its cultivation and intelligence brought to bear upon its improvement there, it 

 was pleasant to note that it is again being grown ; that a large piece of ground 



