and of Cultivation generally^ in Belgitwi. 345 



renowned for its culture of the carnation, called, in the Bon 

 Jardinier, ceillet flamand. At Lille this plant is certainly culti- 

 vated in perfection ; and, whether it proceeds from the presence 

 of lime in the soil, or from some other cause, I know not ; but I 

 have observed that carnations there keep their colours better, 

 and are less liable to sport (as, I believe, amateurs call it), than 

 in any other place. Tulips, and other bulbous-rooted plants, 

 thrive better at Lille than in the neighbourhood of Ghent ; 

 though the inhabitants of the former are far inferior to those of 

 the latter city in all other respects, both as amateurs and as 

 professional gardeners. M. De Smet, however, is an amateur 

 whose garden, in the environs of Lille, is an exception to this 

 rule, and is well worth visiting. He is one of those practical 

 amateurs who are but seldom to be found in this country; as 

 his taste for gardening is such, that he looks after the culture of 

 his plants in a great measure himself. M. De Smet may be well 

 styled an amateur cultivator^ the greater part of our amateurs in 

 plants being amateurs by courtesy, or for the sake of fashion ; 

 but, in reality, knowing but little of the practical cultivation of 

 a plant. 



The neatness of this gentleman's garden, and the care with 

 which I have observed he cultivates his plants, are a proof of 

 this. His geraniums are grown in a superior style; which is 

 saying a great deal, because few gardeners here understand the 

 management of this tribe of plants. His walks are neatly 

 graveled, and the box edging well kept; and, certainly, the cul- 

 tivation in the open ground of his rare hardy plants would be 

 a credit to any English gardener. 



With the exception of the Dianthus tribe, bulbs, and roses, 

 the Lille gardeners do not shine in any other branch of cultiva- 

 tion ; and they are, for the most part, indebted to the English 

 and Ghent gardeners for the stocking of their houses. Meillez 

 was once renowned for his roses ; and, had he kept to that 

 culture alone, he would most probably have excelled all others, 

 for his soil is admirably adapted for that shrub ; but, since he 

 has paid more attention to other plants, and taken to travel 

 about, and to purchase plants from different gardeners, his roses 

 have been much neglected ; and, consequently, there are now 

 many gardeners in France much his superiors in the art of cul- 

 tivating them. This is the rock on which Flemish gardeners 

 generally split : they think, if they can cultivate one tribe of 

 plants well, they must necessarily be able to cultivate every 

 other kind of plant equally well that they may take a fancy to. 

 It is from this cause that the florist gardeners who cultivate but 

 one or two tribes of plants are so much superior in their cul- 

 tures to the commercial gardeners, who, perhaps, cultivate at 

 least twenty kinds. To return to M. Meillez: his garden is not 



