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THE GARDENERS' MONTHLY 



1 March, 



Lucien churchyard. There we saw seven ash and 

 three sycamore trees growing through a tombstone 

 out of a grave. The stone was about twelve feet 

 long, six inches thick, and eight feet wide. The 

 growth of the trees had spHt the stone in all direc- 

 tions. Some of the trees at that time were seven 

 inches through, and about fifteen feet high. The 

 grave lot was enclosed with an iron fence twelve feet 

 high, and the branches of the trees and some parts ; 

 of the trunk had grown into the fence in all ima- 

 ginable shapes and forms. Of course, there is a 

 "true story" connected with the circumstance, as 

 the people of Hertfordshire will strongly affirm. 

 The person buried in this grave was a lady of title. 

 Lady Anne Grimstone, who was buried there some- 

 where about a hundred years ago. She was an 

 unbeliever in a Supreme Being — in fact, an infidel 

 ^and those who doubt it can buy a book, sold by 

 pedlars for six-pence, strongly confirming the 

 horrible story in detail. This lady asseverated 

 previous to her death that if there be a God or 

 devil, a heaven or hell, she hoped ash and syca- 

 more might grow through her body. No one 

 planted these trees there, and the people religiously 

 believe that to prove to the living the horrible 

 heresy of the dead, the trees came from her body, 

 and the more to attract attention, have grown up 

 through and broken the stone. 



Pencoyd, Montgomery Co., Pa. 



MY SECOND VISIT TO LORILLARD'S 

 GARDENS. 



BY WM. T. HARDING. 



In the year of our redemption '83, when flowers 

 which owe their birth to genial May were freely 

 blooming in their native habitats, I started from 

 Mount Holly, to see all I could of them, between 

 there and Jobstown. In her spring attire nature 

 se.emed gay and beautiful on every side, for look 

 where 1 would, while passing along through leafy 

 groves or open glades, her smiling vernal charms 

 graced the changing scene. Again, through other 

 approaches to that rural spot, in company with an 

 esteemed friend, I found myself in the middle of 

 cold January, in Mr. LoriUard's famous gardens. 

 But no sound of murmuring streams, rippling rill, 

 or the cheery voice of feathered songster salutes 

 the ear. No sight of living leaf or fragrant flower, 

 greets the eye, or olfactories, on this occasion. 

 Implacable, chilly old "winter in his roughest 

 mood," was blowing his icy breath in piercing 

 blast, to the great discomfort of man and beast 

 exposed to the frigid breeze that blew bitter and 



chill. While the blustering wind howled and 

 whistled among the bare limbs of the fruit trees 

 near by, we hurriedly crossed the frost line by 

 stepping over the threshold of one of the inviting 

 glass structures before us, and in a moment felt 

 the pleasant warmth of a sunnier chme. Marvel- 

 lous indeed, seemed the sudden change of tem- 

 perature, from one side of the door to the other, 

 where large handsome red-ripe tomatoes, hung in 

 heavy clusters overhead and on all sides of the 

 first house we entered. And as the assistant 

 gardeners were in the act of gathering them, I 

 could say with Milton, 



" I saw them under a green mantling vine, 

 Gathering ripe clusters from the tender shoots." 



From two similar sized houses, each of fifty 

 feet in length, two hundred and ten pounds of 

 perfectly formed, well ripened tomatoes had been 

 picked during the previous fifteen days. And 

 from the vigorous appearance of the plants, even 

 a larger quantity might apparently be had in the 

 next fifteen days. And thus in succession until 

 those out of doors, later on, come into bearing, an 

 abundance will be produced to amply supply the 

 daily demand. 



The next division door opens into a house of ripe 

 strawberries — the second crop of the season — from 

 which several hundred exhausted plantsofanearlier 

 forcing had been removed to admit an equal num- 

 ber of others to succeed them, and which bore evi- 

 dence of successful culture. A hive of busy bees 

 placed inside the hothouse to assist in the fecunda- 

 tion of the early blossoms, were enjoying a prema- 

 ture summer as they dihgently buzzed about from 

 flower to flower in search of nectar. A square of 

 glass had been removed from each partition to 

 allow the apiarian throng to pass in and out from 

 house to house in " the pursuit of life, health and 

 happiness." 



Simple as it may appear at first sight, the parti- 

 cular instance alluded to, as did many others, 

 showed the wisdom and practical professional 

 knowledge of the courteous and intelligent mana- 

 ger, Mr. John Gardener, who deserves great credit 

 for the satisfactory results so pleasing to behold. 

 Then there were other houses of them in various 

 stages of growth, from the first indication that 

 vegetable action had commenced, to the blossom- 

 ing and fruit-forming period. These would be 

 subject to the same course of treatment the others 

 had previously gone through. Seth Boyden Mr. 

 Gardener considers the best kind (or early forcing ; 

 the blossoms of which stand well up above the 

 leaves, which renders them the less liable to damp 



