JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



[ June 6, 1872. 



Inistioge is iu the barony of Gowrau, and near the river 

 Nore. An abbey is said to have been there as early as the 

 year 800, but it is certaui tliat one dedicated to the Virgin and 

 St. Colomb, the patrons of the town, was founded there for 

 Augustiuian canons iu the year 1210, and was surrendered to 

 Henry TIU. in the thii-ty-first year of bis reign. The estates 

 belongmg to the .ibbey were granted to Edmund Butler and 

 his heirs by Queen Ehzabeth. 



To a stranger this town of Liistioge is striking, and it takes 

 some time to master the scene. The entrance to the village is 

 screened by a mass of old Ivy-covered ruins. By the side of 

 these niins a modem church and a large chapel stand close 

 together. Looking from this standpoint the eye fixes on a 

 scene of great boldness and grandeur; the houses seem 

 perched on the top of each other up the steep hill. Nothuig 

 cordd be more picturesque than the way in wliieh the houses 

 stand; there has been no artificial levelling here, they are 

 placed at evciy imaginable angle and aspect. The whole village 



has a clean, orderly, and trim appearance ; the houses are 

 substantial, the shops good, with a thriving air, and there is 

 an hotel where a prince might comfortably lodge. ^Vhere 

 shall we again meet such hearty and polite attention as travel- 

 lers get from Mr. and Mrs. Butler? 



The pai-k comes close into the town on the lower side, but 

 the main entr.-ince is some distance above the town, up a very 

 steep road. 



As our time is limited we ai'e advised to go to the " Red House " 

 by the lower road if we wish to see the real beauty of Wood- 

 stock, and as we made a long journey to take note of its beau- 

 ties we start on the lower road. On starting we are again 

 close to the Nore, which comes boldly through a fine stone 

 bridge of ten arches, and this bridge is itself a sight. All the 

 wall between the cope and the arches, the whole length of the 

 bridge, is covered as thickly as can be with Ivy, mixed with the 

 red Valerian, now in bright bloom. It is a wreath worth going 

 to see. This road is on the right of the river ; on the left the 



ground expands into a fine sheep-walk well studded with trees. 

 Here ai'e the fom--year-old Southdown wethers that supply the 

 mutton so well known at hospitable Woodstock ; over us is a 

 bank of shelving rock some 300 feet liigh, on the upper edge 

 are tufts of the Silver Fir wliich have a fine effect. Some 

 ninety years ago Arthur Young spoke in raptures of this Mount 

 Sandford. This bank continues about half a mile with only 

 the road from the river to the rock. A gi'eat variety of nalur.al 

 wood covers every inch that is not sheer rock, and pendents of 

 Ivy are seen hanging 20 feet or more from the blanches of the 

 trees. This b.ank changes in a bold sweep from the right to 

 the left of the Nore, and has been beautifully planted by the 

 present owner. On the right, or Woodstock' side, the ground 

 rises on an easy .slope to the top of Mount Alto about 1000 feet 

 above the river ; this is about two miles distant, and finely 

 wooded to the top. 



The sweep of the river where the bank changes sides is 

 r,'rand, and on this point of land the old mansion stood for 

 centuries. It is a very solitary spot ; the rising gi-ound and 

 woods exclude the thickly-populated country on the north of 

 the river. A pretty cottage stands on the site of the old man- 

 sion ; a curious alcove terrace still remains to show that 

 artistic gardening had been liere effectively done ages ago. 

 Fine groups of trees are dotted over this lawn-looking pasture, 

 and right opposite is seen a charming waterfall, roaring and 

 leaping into a fine salmon pool. There are some old Yew trees 



at this spot, and we notice that the trees are browsed I>y the 

 cows grazing on the lawn. It is about 1.30 years since the 

 new mansion was built, and ever since that time cattle have 

 been grazing about these Yews — the stems of some of them 

 with twigs like an Irish Y'ew — and never has any ill effect been 

 known to come to the animals from eating the Yew. It is 

 clear from this that cattle are not injured by eating Yew in a 

 frrsh state from the tree. 



We are still a mile from the Red House, but we now enter a 

 forest scene, the hank again changing to the right side, the 

 rock disappearing, and the height insignificant. The Oak 

 trees in this wood are the best we have seen in Ireland. From 

 the road only glimpses ar'e now caught of the river. The 

 wonderful gi'owth of natural wood is here interesting. Hun- 

 dreds of acres of Holly may be seen m a stretch. It is most 

 interesting to observe in these woods how certain classes of 

 trees select ground. Over the whole extent of the woods the 

 HoUy seems to gr-ow freely in a natural state. The Silver Fir 

 springs up freely on certain places, where it may be seen fronr 

 100 feet high in all stages to this year's seedling. The Spr-uce 

 appears in a far less proportion than the Silver Fir. The common 

 Pine springs up freely, and there are many fine old specimens of 

 this noble tree. We could not discover one Larch from seed. 

 The Larch planted thrives well, and there ai-e some large old 

 trees ; it is noteworthy that the Larch does not take to the 

 soil here under such favourable cii'cumstances. 



