COYS' GARDEN 17 



to Stubbers this spring, and there on the day of the edipse 

 of the sun to celebrate the tercentenary of Goodyer's visit. 

 The gardens were much altered by Repton at the end of 

 the eighteenth century, and the house has been practically 

 rebuilt, but sufficient remains to indicate the general arrange- 

 ment of the old sites. 



The flower garden of William Coys almost certainly 

 coincided with what is now known as the Mulberry garden 

 at the south-east corner of the house. The middle line 

 of an old enclosed garden is indicated by a fine avenue 

 of small but ancient limes, whose great age is hardly 

 apparent at first sight. The trees were pollarded early, 

 and their trunks being bark-bound have ceased to grow 

 for many years. A very old-fashioned pink rose, a plant 

 of which has been sent to Shakespeare's garden at 

 Stratford-on-Avon, may also date from Coys' time. And 

 to my great joy I found a more certain link with him in 

 the pretty little Ivy-leaved Toadflax that is still growing 

 on the older walls around this classic spot, where it was 

 first grown as a garden plant in England and before it 

 had become the common wall-weed that it now is. Another 

 plant that may be directly descended from Coys' garden 

 is the Yellow Fig-wort {Scrophidaria vernalis L.), which 

 comes up sporadically in the borders. 



But of even greater botanical interest are the elms on 

 the west side of the garden. At the time of my visit, 

 one differed in the most conspicuous manner from its 

 neighbours by being later and quite leafless while they 

 were almost in full leaf Had Goodyer seen the elms 

 between Romford and Stubbers under the same circum- 

 stances, he could hardly have failed to remark on the 

 matter to Coys, who would then have informed him of the 

 local name ' Witch Elm ', and would have expounded the 

 special qualities of its wood, which was more ' desired for 

 naves of carts ' than common elm. 



The garden of William Coys has always been famous 

 in the annals of horticulture because it was there in 1604 



c 



