-AND OUE GARDEN. 707 



"EXHIBITION OF THE ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY 



OF LONDON. 



P 



"The Gardens at Kensington, belonging to the Royal Horti- 

 cultural Society, are scarcely finished. They consist of a vast 

 parallelogram, appearing to have a superficies of about five 

 hectares^, and surrounded on three sides by colonnades and 

 covered arcades, and on the fourth side by the palace of the 

 International Exhibition. Opposite to this palace^ in the centre 

 of the arcades, rises an immense conservatory, the usual place 

 where the floral meetings are held. These gardens are laid out 

 in the Italian style. They are traversed by broad straight walks. 

 Basins, jeux d'eaux^ monumental fountains, statues, groups in 

 marble and bronze, vases, <S:c., are scattered about everyvihere, 

 either as perrnai:ient or temporary decorations. The lawns are 

 mown regularly, and clothed with a short and thick turf -as 

 close as velvet. The flower-beds are cut out in the most regular 

 manner, and represent architectural or arabesque designs. These 

 patterns ^re so regular, and of such a delicate tracery, that we 

 doubt whether these realisations of flower-beds would be possible 

 with Its, These groups of beds seem to be embroidered upon the 

 lawns, of which the uniform green is enhanced by the brilliancy of 

 their lively colours. They are filled with low-growing, dwarf, and 

 very abundantly-flowering plants, such as the Tom Thumb Nastur- 

 tium, Verbenas, Calceolai'ias, Pelargoniums, &c. They are bordered 

 by a fine edging of box, and intermingled with narrow paths 

 covered with gravel of different colours — gray,blueish, red, and even 

 of broken shells brought from the beach of Osteud.f 



"A crowd of the most elegant and hest soci-ety of London 

 pressed on the ILth of June into these superb gardens, and under 

 the surrounding arcades where the Exhibition was displayed. Two 

 military bands of music plaj'ed alternately in two Kiosks built at 

 the two ends of the Gardens. We shall further notice this 

 Qirgumstauce, that whilst every part was crowded, nowhere were 

 any police to be seen, and the chairs and lawns were freely used. 

 Some notices only begged the public not to walk upon the lawns i 

 unnecessarily, 



"The Exhibition occupied a vast hemicycle of covered arcades, 



* Five hectares is equal to about 14 acres— the hectare being 2-75 acres 

 and 2 poles. The real extent of the gai-den is about 23 acres. 



t Error. Mr. Nesfield went far enough for some of his special gravels^ 

 but he did not ero out of Eualand. 



