274 



JOURNAL OF HOETICDLTUEE AND COTTAGE GABDENEE. 



[ September 24, 1874. 



beautifal fruit all throngh August ; Marguerite did not till the 

 present month. On the Itith I gathered some dozen or more 

 berries of first-rate flavour and good size. At this date the 

 plants are one mass of bloom and fruit in various stages. 



Fastolf Easpberry has given fruit on the young wood this 

 month of full size and excellent flavour. — W., Noricicli. 



BATTEESEA PARK.— No. 1. 



When the ornamental grounds at Battersea Park were first 

 laid out, and that masterly hand which now lies paralysed and 

 helpless gave an impress of such novel grace and beauty, and 

 of such great merit withal, that its method has since been 

 resolved into a distinct system, the fame and merit of the work 

 became so widespread that the name of Gibson was upon every 

 lip, and all were eager to see and learn something of that 

 which all so justly united to praise. This general and enthu- 

 siastic admiration was doubtless caused in the first instance 

 by the bold and novel character of the work. To convert a 

 low-lying, flat, unwholesome waste into an ornamental park 

 affording ample scope and liberty for the enjoyment of health- 

 ful recreation by all who chose to avail themselves of it, was 

 most praiseworthy, and of immense benefit to people residing 

 in the immediate neighbourhood ; but it was the garden, both 

 in its formation and after-management, which soon attracted 

 and fixed the attention of horticulturists. Bold mounds and 

 hillocks clothed with shrubs and trees, and grand masses of 

 rocks, dispersed at some parts and as skilfully connected at 

 others, formed sheltered sunny nooks, enclosing spaces of 

 considerable extent without the slightest formality of aspect, 

 but with graceful flowing lines and sweeping curves on all 

 sides, agreeably intersected by walks; and then when upon 

 these enclosures appeared numerous beds of simple form, in 

 which the denizens of our stoves were seen flourishing with a 

 vigour not often equalled in the stoves themselves, it became 

 evident that a master had arisen among us to whom we must 

 render the full meed of homage and admiration which his 

 works so richly deserved, and of whom we would willingly 

 learn the lessons which he so ably taught. 



After the lapse of a few years the question naturally arises, 

 How has the work stood the test of time ? The answer is, 

 Admirably. Battersea grows yearly in beauty ; and it is matter 

 for congratulation that the fine appearance of the whole of the 

 gardens and park this season affords ample evidence that Mr. 

 Soger is indeed an able successor to Mr. Gibson. Yes, the 

 subtropical garden at Battersea is in great beauty this season ; 

 the beds are well filled, the plants are in perfect health and in 

 full vigour ; but what to my mind is of even greater import- 

 ance is the exceedingly good taste in which they are arranged. 

 Now, it would serve no useful purpose to describe the arrange- 

 ment of every bed or group of beds, and I think I shall best 

 serve the interests of your readers by confining my report to 

 the most remarkable beds — to those arrangements which ama- 

 teurs, and therefore gardeners generally, may hope to imitate 

 successfully, and to a descriptive list of new or desirable bed- 

 ding plants. 



On each side of the central river entrance to the subtropical 

 garden there are two pretty arrangements in circular beds of 

 about G feet in diameter. The edges of these beds, in common 

 with all the others, have no abrupt ramps, but rise in a softer 

 rounded form to the higher surface of the bed. On these 

 sloping sides of the two beds to which I allude were two rows 

 of Sempervivum californicum, with a band of Golden Feather 

 Pyrethrum inside, enclosing a couple of Alternanthera ammna, 

 out of which springs a central plant of Yucca recurva, with five 

 of the quaint-looking Aloe mitra>formis in the form of a circle 

 equidistant from each other as well as from the Yucca and 

 Pyrethrum. In the garden, first comes a novel arrangement in 

 the form of a mass of silvery variegated Geranium, admirably 

 relieved by a judicious intermixture of small plants of tl e bright 

 green Japanese Thujopsis dolabrata. For edging, this bed 

 has a broad band of succulents, consisting of two outer rows 

 of the flat silvery rosettes of Eoheveria secunda glauoa, to 

 which the next row of Aloe cymbiformis, with its green, rigid, 

 erect, and pointed foliage, forms a capital contrast ; inside this 

 is a narrow belt of Golden Pyrethrum. This was strictly a 

 foliage bed, and as such was very good, or otherwise I would 

 have preferred a neat row of blue to the yellow of the Pyreth- 

 rum. Another novel bed, which had an exquisite effect, had 

 an edging of Mesembryanthemum deltoideum enclosing bands of 

 Alternanthera magnifica, liobelia speciosa, and white variegated 

 Geranium Sylph, with a mixed centre composed of groups of 



golden bronze Geranium and some of the bolder succulent 

 forms, charmingly interlaced with the familiar old Koniga 

 maritima, with plants of Acacia lophantha kept to single stems 

 and springing gracefully upwards some 2 or 3 feet at intervals 

 above the other plants. 



Here is another bed, a circle, to which I would particularly 

 call the attention of amateurs. Its edging was also of succulents, 

 consisting of two rows of the pretty Echeveria pumila, then 

 one row of the very distinct and striking Aloe attenuata, with 

 thick, erect, sharp-pointed green leaves, thickly spotted with 

 small white protuberances ; then two rows of the indispensable 

 Golden Pyrethrum, two rows of the very fine grey-leaved Cine- 

 raria maritima compacta, with a grand central mass of the 

 bright crimson Coleus Verschatfelti Improved. This bed in 

 the exquisite neatness and evenness of its surface has been 

 brought to a pitch of perfection that is absolutely wonderful, 

 not a leaf appearing to be misplaced, nor was the slightest in- 

 dention or irregularity visible upon the surface. Here, again, 

 are a pair of circular beds with a precisely similar arrange- 

 ment in both, and placed as they are at the two extremities of 

 various beds of tall and stately plants, they have a charming 

 and striking effect that is admirably in keeping with the im- 

 portant position assigned to them. The edging of these beds 

 was composed of three rows of the alpine Sempervivum mon- 

 tanum, a hardy and very beautiful variety, having the foliage 

 disposed with such precision that each plant presents the 

 appearance of an exquisitely neat rosette. These three rows 

 formed a somewhat broad and conspicuous baud, which was 

 separated from a circle of Kleinia repens by another of the 

 very beautiful Hungarian Sedum glaucum ; inside the Kleinia 

 is a broad band of the beautiful golden-variegated Coprosma 

 Baueriana variegata, containing some narrow oval-shaped 

 patches of Alternanthera magnifica disposed all round at regular 

 intervals ; then comes a row of the grey-leaved Centaurea com- 

 pacta, enclosing a fine central mass of pink Geranium. These 

 two beds are in such excellent taste, that I heartily commend 

 them to the attention which they merit. I did not learn 

 the name of the Geranium, but would recommend Pearson's 

 Florence Durand as one of the best pinks I have seen this 

 season. 



In striking contrast to such beds I may take one of an oval 

 form containing a carpet of scarlet Geranium, out of which 

 spring four huge plants of Wigaudia caracasana. This central 

 mass was enclosed by a baud of Funkia subcordata and 

 ChamiEpeuce diacantha, with an edging of Sempervivum cali- 

 fornicum. Such combinations of a few simple plants are 

 within the reach of most persons wishing to form a con- 

 spicuous group in any quiet, sheltered, sunny nook. The 

 Wigaudia has a most stately appearance, and the contrast of 

 the spinous-leaved Thistle against the dark green foliage of 

 the Funkia is very effective. In another oval there was the 

 best example of a band of Echeveria secunda glauoa I have 

 ever met with ; it consisted of three rows of small even-sized 

 plants placed so closely together as to cause the leaves to turn 

 upwards with a pretty and striking uniformity. Inside it 

 was a band about 6 inches wide of the bright-coloured Alter- 

 nanthera magnifica, behind which came Lonicera aureo-reticn- 

 lata, rising abruptly about 9 inches in the form of a hedge, 

 enclosing a central mass kept to a uniform height with it 

 of the pretty Vitis heterophylla variegata, out of which at 

 intervals of 2 feet spring fine plants of Grevillea robusta 

 pyramidalis. By the use of plants of graceful habit as the 

 Grevillea, not only is all heaviness of appearance avoided, but 

 a high finish is imparted such as could be obtained in no 

 other way. Mixed beds are a severe test of skill and good 

 taste. Of many fine and very successful examples here I 

 may select a pair of ch-cular masses, containing a large central 

 group composed of Cannas, Variegated Maize, and Gladioli, 

 surrounded by bands of yellow Calceolaria, pink Geranium 

 Fairy, with an edging of the huge-leaved Sempervivum ciliare, 

 the plants of which were quite a foot apart, and yet the foliage 

 had met and intermingled. Cannas predominated in the 

 centre, with just enough Maize and Gladioli to light-up and 

 relieve it in the best way. There was very little bloom upon 

 the Geraniums and Calceolarias, and their growth had become 

 wild and mingled, but to my mind the effect in this particular 

 instance was much better than if they had been laden with the 

 brightest flowers or kept strictly to a formal outline. 



But my report grows beyond the bounds of a single paper ; 

 and as there remains much which cannot be passed over — 

 much that is alike instructive and interesting — more lovely 

 combinations which fully exempUfy the power, grace, and 



