JOUENAL OP HOETICXJLTtJEE AND COTTAGE GAEDENEE. 



[ Jannaiy 14, 1875. 



face of them that the comforts of the inmates are considered. 

 It is striking to a southener to find the old Fuchsia Eiocartonii 

 growing up to the eaves, pruned each winter like Vines, and 

 blooming each summer in elegant profusion. Yes, indeed, 

 this is a pleasant place, and salubrious, a covering of snow 

 being seldom seen, and 12° of frost not often exceeded. 



Bat it is time we look in the flower garden. It is bounded 

 by a massive wall, and entered by a door at, I think, the 

 north-west corner. On entering is a burst of beauty. Straight 

 ahead is an irregular strip — an outside slice, as it were, of 

 the grounds, laid out in beds on gravel. These beds are of 

 considerable size, varying from 30 to 00 feet over. They 

 were one grand dense mass of bloom; no "enamelling" or 

 anything of that kind, but light or glowing masses of colour. 

 The gravel paths, being 9 to 10 feet wide, permit of easy pro- 

 menade by the hundreds of visitors. In fact, there is room 

 to enjoy the feast in comfort. These broad paths and large 

 beds were an idea well carried out by Mr. D. Thomson, who 

 must have had no small difficulty in fitting a suitable plan to 

 a site so irregularly bounded. Its mere copying was a " take- 

 in," but it is given as nearly accurate as possible. Each bed 

 had a centre shrub of choice variety, or a pyramidal trellis of 

 Clematis, Nasturtium, &c., which are a pleasing relief to the 

 general flatness of the garden. This garden is about 360 feet 

 in length, and the view from the tower at one end, and the 

 abrupt rising ground, the castle mound, on the other, is a 

 sight worth seeing. It is bounded on the right by a Yew 

 hedge, and on the left by the boundary wall. By the tower is 

 planted a plant of Wistaria sinensis, covering a length of 

 wall of 220 feet, a noble plant, which blooms profusely. The 

 rest of the wall is covered with the best varieties of Clematis. 

 The long border is planted in squares, relieved by Irish Y'ews 

 and variegated Maples at intervals. It is not necessary to 

 dwell on the planting ; suffice it to say the high colours were 

 very telling, and the mixtures chastely effective, all being well 

 filled and finished. 



But there is another flower garden on grass in this en- 

 closure, at right angles with the one on gravel — that is, on 

 entering, the gravel garden is straight ahead, and the grass 

 garden stretching away to the right. This latter is about 

 170 feet long by 100 feet wide. It is not nearly so brilliant, 

 but is fully as interesting as the former garden. The one is 

 expressive of past active life, the other of cool, quiet repose. 

 The one intoxicates, the other soothes and sobers the mind. 

 The plan of this garden is exceedingly plain, and like most 

 plain designs is exceedingly efiective. Beautiful and healthy 

 specimens of Conifers are here introduced, and the beds are 

 mostly filled with succulent and fine-foliaged plants. There 

 are, however, some flowers, notably the centre bed, which for 

 richness without glare is not easy to surpass. It is a diamond- 

 shaped bed with circles at the four points. In the centre is a 

 tall shrub, and in the four circles lower ones. It is edged with 

 Euonymus radicans, and planted closely with Clematis Jack- 

 mannii in rich soil. The Clematis was permitted to climb ovi r 

 and cover the shrubs. It was a pyramid of impenetrable 

 bloom, some of the individual flowers being 5 inches in dia- 

 meter. This is a fine flower anywhere — on walls, trellis, or 

 roots ; but to see it in all its glory, treat it as treated here, and 

 rejoice. It put all the beds in the place into the shade. It 

 was the first in bloom and the last out. It was something to 

 be proud of, a credit to the man who grew it, and an honour 

 to him who raised the plant. The bed was 35 feet over, and 

 8 to 10 feet high at the centre point. This garden is adorned 

 by twelve vases. The beds need not be further described, a 

 plan being appended. It is easily adaptable to a place large 

 or small, and is a nice example of the systematic and har- 

 monious arrangement of shrubs, vases, and flowers. The old 

 castle is quite hid from these flower gardens by large trees. 

 In the centre of these is a sunken bowliig-green for the amuse- 

 ment of visitors. Altogether this enclosure is a charming 

 place, a retreat full of interest and beauty. On one day 

 a-week it is open to all who appreciate the privilege, by enjoying 

 without molesting. The place is in perfect order of cleanli- 

 ness and good keeping, every necessary being allowed by the 

 owner, and ably applied by the gardener. It lacks one thing. 

 A mixed garden of old, hardy, herbaceous plants would be 

 singularly appropriate within its confines. But it must be 

 admitted that room for this is not easy to find, and to remove 

 a single feature from such a place is an idea not to be lightly 

 entertained. 



Without entering further into particularities, it may be said 

 gentrallv and without reserve, that Archerfield and Pirleton 



are good and well-managed gardens in the several depart- 

 ments. To Mr. Kettles I am indebted for much courtesy and 

 hospitality, and to him and his kind helpmate I owe thanks 

 for the first real rest (after a long, dark, tiresome journey), 

 " over the border." — J. Wbiohi. 



A GARDEN OF HERBS. 



By a. E. Baer. 

 The Greeks had a proverb, " Many worts and pot herbs in 

 Syria," though Syria was only the heir of Babylonia, whose 

 priests knew well the hidden virtues of herbs, and gathered 

 many of them with magical observations, the traces of which 

 remain in northern Europe imto this day. Certain it is that 

 on this subject we are not the people with whom wisdom was 

 born, and equally certain that much of the wisdom of the 

 ancients died with them, or has come to us only as the bare 

 tradition of a forgotten lore. I need but name 



" the sweet baleamic oil 

 AVMch wept from herbs in Juda's fertile soil; " 



the balm that Jacob thought a noble present for the royal 

 Pharaoh, the plants of which were so precious that Pompey, 

 Titus, and Vespasian all boasted of having brought one or 

 more to Eome. Josephus says that in his day Gilead had be- 

 come exhausted, and that the royal garden of Balm was near 

 Jericho. This garden, on their downfall, the Jews attempted 

 to destroy, but were prevented : and henceforward the precious 

 herbs shed their fragrant gum for heathen deities and the 

 odalisques of the Turkish seraglios. Now the very plant can- 

 not be certainly identified — it has become simply " a name to 

 conjure with" — a password for the nostrums of quack and 

 impostors. 



Of a very different spirit was the herb Basil. The Eomans 

 sowed it with maledictions, and while they trod it down with 

 their feet, forbade it to grow, averring that, so contradictious 

 was its temper, it always did best what it was forbidden to do. 

 In Mary's and Elizabeth's reign a pot of Basil was considered a 

 compliment to any lady, but remembering its peculiar habits, 

 it is just possible the compliment was a covert sarcasm. No 

 plant has had so bad and so good a name. Old Gerarde 

 greatly praises it, and says, " It is good for the heart and the 

 head, and taketh away sorrowfulness which cometh of melan- 

 cholie." Tusser has a little sneer for its dainty tastes ; and 

 again. Lord Bacon commendeth its " fat and succulent leaves," 

 which are yet such favourites with the French that none of 

 their soups or sauces want the aromatic fragrance of Sweet 

 Basil. 



" Why should a man die who nas Sage in his garden?" was 

 a popular saying of Campania : for greatly was this herb valued 

 for its healing qualities, and its power to strengthen the 

 memory and induce wise thoughts. It has stUl some reputa- 

 tion as an emollient, and I saw instances during the late war 

 when the leaves dried and smoked in a pipe greatly allayed 

 that irritability common to men deprived of their customary 

 tobacco. I would not speak positively as to the " wise 

 thou^'hts," but I know the words were more reasonable after it. 

 The Chinese are immoderately fond of Sage tea : and the early 

 Dutch traders there drove an excellent bargain on this basis : 

 i lbs. of best Y'oung Hyson for 1 lb. of dried Sage leaves. In 

 England, until within the last century, it was frequently 

 mixed with cheese. Thus Gay writes : 



" Marbled witli Sage the hard'ning cheese the pressed." 

 Within my own memory it was eaten with bread and butter 

 or chopped fine and baked between rich pastry. Toads have a 

 strong passion f'«r it, therefore it is customary to plant among 

 the Sage bushes a little Eue, a ierb specially distasteful to 

 them. 



" * Here's Rue for thee,' the poor Ophelia cried." 

 Eue, which Shakespeare calls, 



" sour herb of grace, 

 Kue, even for ruth ; " 



and makes it grow where a wronged queen has dropped a tear. 

 I think he is a little unjust. Eue has a record which deserves 

 more honourable mention. Every physician knows that it was 

 the chief ingredient of the famous antidote of Mithridates, the 

 true receipt for which was as follows: — "Two dry Walnut 

 kernels, two Figs, twenty leaves of Eue, one grain of salt, 

 pounded into mass. Whoever eats of this confection, fasting 

 in the morning, no power shall hurt him that day." All the 

 ancients, however, believed that for medical or magical pur- 

 poses Eue ought to be stolen from a neighbour's garden. 



