BOOK I. 



GARDENS OF MIDDLESEX. 



1063 



7515. The seed-market is held twice a-week, on Mondays and Fridays, in a large roofed space in 

 Mark-lane. Here the growers or holders of garden-seeds, and of such agricultural seeds, as are commonly 

 sold by nurserymen, as clover, rye-grass, &c. attend and transact business by sample. The purchasers 

 are the London retailers, or the wholesale dealers for their country customers ; nothing is there sold by 

 retail. 



7516. The produce of the nursery. gar dens is sold on the spot ; as is also that of the florists' gardens ; the 

 herb-growers sell their productions to the wholesale druggists and manufacturing chemists by sample. 



were not generally diffused. Lee was- patronised by a great 

 many of the nobility and gentry, for his general knowledge in 

 natural history, and for his sound sense and strong under- 



7517. The public gardens of Middlesex are as under : 



Public Promenades The principal public promenades of 



the metropolis are the verdant areas of the squares, especially 

 Finsbury, Russel, Grosvenor, and Berkeley Squares ; and the 

 public equestrian, and also walking promenades in this county, 

 are the parks of St. .Tames, the Hyde, and Mary-le-bonne. 



Botamc Gardens. The only public botanic garden is that 

 of Chelsea, containing between three and four acres. The 

 origin of the Chelsea garden is involved in obscurity; the 

 first notice of it in the books of the Apothecaries' Society is in 

 1674, when it was proposed to wall it round; and two years 

 afterwards, in 1676, they agreed to purchase the plants growing 

 in Mrs. Gape's garden at Westminster ; which garden, it is 

 thought, may have been the one mentioned in Evelyn's Diary 

 for 1658, as " the medical garden at Westminster, well stored 

 with plants, under Morgan, a skilful botanist." Piggott is the 

 name of the lirst curator, noticed in 1676. Watts, mentioned 

 both by Ray and Evelyn, was an apothecary by profession, but 

 undertook the care of the garden in 1680, at Ml. per annum. 

 Miller was appointed in 1722, at the time Sir Hans Sloane, 

 when applied to for a renewal of the lease of the garden, 

 granted it to the Society in perpetuity at a rental of 51. per 

 annum, and on condition that specimens of fifty new plants 

 should annually be furnished to the Royal Society till the 

 number amounted to two thousand. Miller resigned his 

 situation as curator two years before his death in 1770, and was 

 succeeded by Forsyth, who went to be royal gardener in Ken- 

 sington in 1784, and was succeeded by Fairbairn, who died in 

 the garden in 1814. His situation is now filled by Wm. 

 Anderson, who has greatly enriched the garden, and con- 

 tributed materially to restore its high character. It may be 

 noticed as a warning to gardeners, and indeed to all of us, that 

 the two first curators, Watts and Miller, are said to have 

 relaxed from their activity and got careless ; and that Fairbairn 

 neglected the garden for a number of years together. No 

 proper catalogue of this garden has ever teen published ; with 

 the exception of one, of the medical plants, by Miller and 

 Rand, in 1730, and another of the same kind in 1739. 



Farmers' Gardens. The principal of these are in the parishes 

 of Chelsea, Hammersmith, and Fulham, to the west ; and at 

 Hoxton, Kingsland, Hackney, &c. to the east of the Metropolis. 

 George Matyear of Fulham, Samuel Hutchins of Earl's Court, 

 Kensington, Cock and Dancer of Chiswick, and Brown and 

 Reid of Hoxton and Kingsland, have the most extensive 

 ploughed gardens ; the smallest exceeding a hundred acres. 

 Southfield Farm, near Parson's Green, in Fulham, has been 

 occupied jointly as a market-garden and a nursery for upwards 

 of two centuries, and the whole of that time till the beginning 

 of the present century, in the family of Rench. In this garden 

 were produced the first pine-strawberry, and the first auricula, 

 by the father of the late Mr. Rench, who also instituted the 

 first annual exhibition of flowers. He died at the age of ninety, 

 nine years, having had thirty-three children. The late Mr. 

 Rnch, mentioned by P. Collinson, as famous for forest trees, 

 introduced the moss-rose ; planted the elm-trees now growing 

 in the Bird-cage Walk, St. James's Park, from trees reared in 

 bis own nursery; married two wives, and had thirty-five 

 children, and died in 1783, in the same room in which he was 

 born, at the age of a hundred and one years. The grounds are 

 now occupied as a market-garden by Mr. Fitch, who married 

 one of the daughters. 



Vegetable Gardens and Garden Orchards abound in the same 

 parishes. The principal are those of Grange of Hoxton, and 

 Gunter of Earl's Court, each of which contains between sixty 

 and seventy acres, extensive forcing-houses and pineries, and 

 walls for fruit-trees. The open garden is regularly planted with 

 standard fruit-trees, and is more devoted to the production of 

 fruits than of culinary vegetables. The garden of Wilroot at 

 Isleworth is of the same character, and nearly equally extensive ; 

 and next is that of Michael Keens of the same place. The 

 gardens of Brentford and Twickenham are famous for straw- 

 berries ; in those of the last parish there are about four hundred 

 acres covered with this fruit. Almost the whole of the parish 

 of Fulham is occupied in fruit-trees and vegetables. The 

 gardens of the Neats' Houses in Chelsea have long been famous 

 for celery and cauliflower ; water cresses are grown in irrigated 

 trenches at Bayswater and in the parish of Isleworth. 



Market Flower-Gardens. For forced flowers and shrubs, the 

 principal garden is that of Smith of Dalston ; for geraniums 

 and green-house plants in general, Colville in the King's 

 Road ; and for hardy flowers, D. Carter's of Fulham. Some of 

 the nurserymen deal extensively in forced flowers, as Jenkins 

 of Marv-le-bonne, Henderson of the Edgeware Road,&c. 



Florists' Gardens. Of these the principal in Middlesex is 

 that of Davy in the King's Road ; then Bailey at Clapton, and 

 also of the King's Road; Moore in the King's Road, and 

 some at Brentford and Hounslow. 



7518. Nurseries. The principal British nurseries 

 are in this county ; and as almost all the country 

 nurseries are supplied with their more rare articles 

 from them, we shall particularise the names of a 

 lew : 



The Vineyard, at Hammersmith, is unquestionably the first 

 nursery in Britain, or rather in the world. At the beginning 

 of the last century it was a vineyard, and produced annually 

 a considerable quantity of Burgundy wine. A thatched house 

 was built in the grounds; the upper part occupied as a 

 dwelling house, and for selling the wine ; and underneath 

 were the wine-cellars. The ground was taken by Messrs. Lee 

 and Kennedy, the fathers of the present, or late occupiers of 

 that name, and continued by their sons, who dissolved partner- 

 ship in 1818, and the concern is now the sole property of Lee. 



This nursery owes its celebrity, in a great measure, to the 

 late James lice's knowledge in botany, and to his publishing 

 the Introduction to that science at a time when its principles 



Cape of Good Hope, in partnership with the Empress Josephir 

 collecting ericas, bulbs, and other plants ; and a 



standing. The nursery is now carried on by his son to greater 

 extent in every department than any other nursery in Europe. 

 J. Lee, iun. has four sons, whom he intends to bring up to the 

 business in four separate departments: the iced business, the 

 counting-house, exotics in houses and fruit-trees, forest trees and 

 hardy plants. 



Besides an extensive correspondence, and a vigilant attention 

 to procure every new plant as soon as introduced by others, a 

 great many plants have been introduced to the country directly 

 by this establishment. Among the collectors they sent out 

 for this purpose, may be mentioned a person collecting oaks 

 and other plants in America; another, for eight years, at the 

 ress Josephine, 

 man in South 

 America. 



The whole concern, from its first establishment to the 

 present moment, has been conducted with singular spirit and 

 skill ; no expense spared to procure new plants from abroad, 

 and preserve and propagate them when received. The green- 

 houses are extensive, and a house two hundred feet long has 

 lately been erected for fruiting the different sorts of grapes, 

 and another for figs. The proprietor has grounds for the com- 

 moner descriptions of stock in different parts of the country : 

 as at Bedfont for stocks for fruit-trees, and for cherries ; at 

 Hounslow and Bagshot for stocks, and also for seedling fruit- 

 trees and other commoner articles, &c. 



The Fulham Nursery was established by Christopher Gray, 

 about the beginning of the last century. Catesby, Collinson, 

 Miller, Dr. Garden, and other eminent botanists, and travellers 

 contributed many rare plants, and great part of Bishop 

 Compton's collection was purchased by them from the bishop's 

 successor. Some fine old exotics are still existing in this nur- 

 sery, as the quercus suber, celtis occidentalis, ailan thus glan- 

 dulosa, diospyrus virginiana, &c. The first magnolia grandi- 

 flora was planted here ; the original tree, the parent of most of 

 the older trees of this kind in the country, died some years ago; 

 the dead trunk, which is still preserved, measured four feet ten 

 inches in circumference; its branches extended twenty feet; 

 it was as many feet high, and its fragrance perfumed the whole 

 neighborhood. This nursery passed successively from Gray to 

 Burchall, and from him to Messrs. Whitley, Brames, and 

 Milne, the present occupiers. 



The Brompton Park Nursery was founded by Messrs. Cooke, 

 Lucre, London, and Field, in 1681. In 1694, all the partners 

 having died or sold out but London, he took in Henry Wise, 

 who had been an apprentice to Rose, the royal gardener, as 

 London had also been. At that time the grounds exceeded 

 100 acres in extent. This nursery passed successively from 

 London and Wise to Swinhoe, Smith, and Co. in 1756 to 

 Jeffries and Co. in 1788 to Gray, Wear, and Co in 1810 to 

 Gray and Sons, in whose occupation it is at present. The 

 grounds are now reduced to thirty acres, and the establishment 

 has unavoidably fallen off in. reputation. In the time of 

 London and Wise it was spoken of in terms of the highest 

 approbation by Evelyn. In his preface to the translation of 

 Quintiney's Complete Gardener (published 1701) he says, "the 

 proprietors, Mr. George London, chief gardener to their 

 majesties, and his associate, Mr: Henry Wise, are recommended 

 for their assiduity and industry ; they have not made gain the 

 only mark of their pains, but with extraordinary and rare 

 industry, endeavored to improve themselves in the mysteries 

 of their profession ; from the great advantages and now long 

 experience they have had, in being employed in most of the 

 celebrated gardens and plantations which this nation abounds 

 in, besides what they have learned abroad, where horticulture 

 is in high reputation." He adds " the grounds and gardens of 



noblemen and persons of quality, which they have planted ab 

 and which are still under their care and attention, 

 " 



origi 



justify what I have said in their behalf." 



Bowack, who wrote an account of the parish of Kensington 

 in 1705, says, that some affirm that if the stock of these nur- 

 series were valued at one penny per plant the amount would 

 exceed 40,000/. 



The Kensington Nursery was established by Robert Furber, 

 in the beginning of the last century, and was of note for fruit- 

 trees in Miller's time ; it has passed successively from this 

 family to Grimwoods, and to Messrs. Malcolms, the present 

 spirited and judicious possessors. 



The Brentford Nursery, Messrs. Ronalds and Son, has been 

 established upwards of a century. It is chiefly devoted to the 

 culture of fruit-trees. 



The Brompton Agricultural Nursery, Messrs. Gibbs and Co., 

 was originally part of the Brompton Park nursery ; but was 

 established chiefly for a display of the grasses and plants used in 

 agriculture, during the present century. 



The Hackney Botanic Nursery - was established by Conrad 

 Loddiges, a German gardener, about the middle of the last cen- 

 tury. It is particularly devoted to the propagation of rare 

 plants, and contains the best general collection of green-house 

 and hot-house exotics of any commercial garden. In palms, 

 tree-ferns, and scitamineiE, it particularly excels, and of the first 

 tribe, possesses upwards of eighty species. For the better dis- 

 play of these plants, Messrs. Loddiges have lately erected the 

 largest hot-house in the world; it being SO feet long, 60 feet 

 wide, and 40 feet high. It is heated by steam, as are all the 

 others, extending to upwards of a thousand feet, forming three 

 uninterrupted sides of a parallelogram. In the area are the 

 pits and frames. Two houses are devoted to the camellia : one 

 is roofed with copper sashes, by Timmins of Birmingham ; 

 the other is a curvilinear-roofed house, formed of our bat 

 ( fa. 759 .), it is 120 feet long, 23 feet wide, and 18 feet high. 

 (For other details, see 7356. andjfc. 736.) 



The Kingsland Nursery -was in part in the occupation of 

 Fairchild, and also of Cowel, in the beginning of the last cen- 

 tury. The present possessors are Messrs. Bassingtons. 



3Y 4 



