1870.] GARDEN RECORDS. 469 



the leading features. It is in three or four divisions : one lies eastward of the 

 Chiswick Gardens, another southwards, and further plots westward ; and it is 

 on one of these that Mr Dancer resides. The soil is that rich black loam found 

 along the valley of the Thames, and which is so suitable for market-gardening 

 purposes. 



This paper is intended as a record of certain features presented in these 

 grounds as we walked through them. It was just in the midst of the Plum 

 season, and, allowance being made for the extraordinary fruitfulness of the Plum 

 this season, the crops were of a wonderful character. It was computed that the 

 yield of Plums for this season was four thousand bushels, and Mr Dancer stated 

 that the difficulty was to procure a sufficient number of hands to pick aud pack 

 them, and conveyances to take them to Covent Garden Market. 



We had an excellent guide and companion in Mr A. F. Barron, of the Royal 

 Horticultural Society's Gardens, and our explorations commenced at the eastern 

 portion of the grounds. Here we saw large plantations of the Victoria or 

 Alderlin Plum, a variety that is well known and extremely useful for culinary 

 purposes. The trees were both of bush shape and of the standard form also, 

 and all were bearing very heavy crops. This is a bad dry-season Plum, because, 

 being a great bearer and the crop very thick, the fruit does not swell out, and it 

 is therefore small in size. In a wet season it is much larger. This Plum finds a 

 ready sale in Covent Garden Market, and large quantities are sent on to Glasgow, 

 Manchester, and other places in the north. The Victoria Plum is a capital tree 

 with which to fill up blanks in orchards ; it does not mind a crowded position ; 

 and when a tree decays in one of his plantations, if the spot be at all confined, M r 

 Dancer plants a Victoria Plum. Another staple Plum was Gisborne's, a roundish 

 oval-shaped fruit of a yellowish-green colour, that is also a prolific bearer, and 

 comes in rather earlier than the Victoria ; it is of somewhat coarse quality, but 

 makes excellent preserves, &c. Underneath these Plum-trees, and near them, were 

 plantations of red and black Currants, which are grown to a very great extent. 

 Between the Currant-trees were rows of purple sprouting Broccoli, which grows 

 well on poor soil and in little room. This is a variety of Broccoli that gets 

 overlooked because of its coarse appearance, but when cooked it is a delicious 

 aud finely-flavoured vegetable, and one that is gradually finding its way into the 

 gardens of large establishments. 



A good quantity of that fine dessert Plum known as Jefferson's is also largely 

 grown, though not so extensively as the Victoria. Another was Richardson's, a 

 black Plum something after the Mussel character, and an enormous cropper. 

 Hundreds of bushels of it are grown, as it is a particular favourite of Mr Dancer's. 

 It bears a high character as a cooking Plum. 



There was also a very large number of Gooseberry bushes, among which had been 

 planted pyramid trees of Cox's Orange Pippin Apple. Mr Dancer grows a great 

 lot of this fine variety between the bushes, the trees being planted 1 2 feet apart 

 each way. This is a great improvement on the old plan of standard trees, under 

 which nothing would grow. These bush-trees bore heavy crops of fine fruit. 

 Instead of putting various kinds of Apples in a plantation, as of old, Mr Dancer 

 and others form a plantation of the same variety ; by this means a piece of 

 ground is cleared at the same time, and recropping is not retarded. Near these, 

 and skirting one side of a walk, was a line of fine young standard trees of the 

 Wellington Apple, heavily cropped — a sort that sells well, and brings a good 

 price. 



A plantation of Red Currants here shows considerable variation. It is seen in 

 the habit of growth, shape of berry, and fruitfulness. Mr Dancer grows very 



