.04 G 



LANDSCAPE GARDENING. 



History, been furni<hed by the celebrated Brown, from a descrip- 

 s ""\'~ < ' tioti sent him by Gould, and finished afterwards during 

 the reign of Paul. This place possesses considerable 

 variety of surface, and a varied clothing of wood, the 

 Scotch fir and a^pcn bring natural to these grounds, 

 as well as the birch. Near the house, there is a pro- 

 fusion of exotics of every description, including a nu- 

 merous collection of standard roses, which, with some 

 of the American shrubs, require to be protected with 

 straw and mats during winter. The Chevalier Storch 

 has given a very interesting description of these gar- 

 dens, in his Briefe fiber Paulorvsky, SfC. \ 802. We pass 

 over several imperial and private English gardens to 

 Gardens of notice those of Potemkin, one of the most extravagant 

 I'otemkin. encouragers of this art that modern times can boast. 

 The most extensive gardens of this prince are in the 

 Ukraine, but the most, celebrated were those be- 

 longing to the palace of Taurida, now an imperial resi- 

 dence in Petersburgh. The grsunds are level, with se- 

 veral winding and straight canals, and walks, adorned 

 with numerous buildings, a rich collection of exotics, 

 and most extensive hothouses of every description. 

 Their grand feature, in Potemkin's time, was the con- 

 servatory, or winter garden, attached to the palace. 

 The plan of this part of the building is that of a semi- 

 circle, embracing the end of a saloon, nearly 300 feet 

 long. They are lighted by immense windows, be- 

 tween columns, with an opaque ceiling, and heated by 

 common German stoves. They are too gloomy for the 

 growth of plants, but those grown in the glass sheds of 

 the kitchen garden, are carried there, sunk in the 

 ground, and gravel- walks, turf, and every article add- 

 ed to render an illusion to some fairy scene in the open 

 air as complete as possible. Their effect was after 

 all, it is said, never satisfactory, but when illuminated. 

 This palace, the original exterior of which was in a 

 very simple style, and the interior most magnificent, 

 is said to have been the entire design of Potemkin, but 

 it was entirely remodelled at his death by Catherine, 

 used as barracks by Paul, and is now very imper- 

 fectly restored. (See Storch's Description.) The 

 gardens at Potemkin's other residences, as well as 

 many imperial and private gardens in Russia, were laid 

 out by Mr. Gould, a pupil of Mr. Brown. Sir John 

 Carr relates an anecdote on Gould's authority, which 

 was confirmed to us, in 1813, by the present gardener, 

 Mr. Call, his successor, and deserves a place here. In 

 one of the prince's journies to the Ukraine, Mr. Gould 

 attended him with several hundred assistants, destined 

 to assist in laying out the grounds of Potemkin's resi- 

 dence in the Crimea. Wherever the prince halted, if 

 only for a day, his travelling pavilion -was erected, and 

 surrounded by a garden in the English taste, composed 

 of trees and shrubs, divided by gravel- walks, and orna- 

 mented with seats and statues, all carried forward with 

 the cavalcade. On another occasion, having acciden- 

 tally discovered the ruins of a castle of Charles XII. 

 of Sweden, he immediately not only caused it to be re- 

 paired, but surrounded by gardens, in the English taste. 

 The most extensive seats laid out in the modern 

 style, in the neighbourhood of Moscow, are those of 

 Gorinka. Gorinka, a seat of Count Alexy Razumowsky, and Pe- 

 trowky Razumowsky. The former is remarkable for 

 its botanical riches, and an immense extent of glass. 

 The grounds are of great extent, but the surface flat, 

 and the soil a dry sand. A natural forest of birch and 

 wild cherry clothes the park, and harmonizes the ar- 

 tificial scenes. The mansion, built by an Englishman, 



is highly elegant ; and the attached conservatories, HUiorv. 

 and stoves, and decorated lawn, form a ^splendid and ^"Y"'"'' 

 delightful scene, unequalled Ni Russia. 



Petrowsky Rnznmowsky contains both MI ancient Petrowskjr 

 garden, already referred to in our third section, and a Kazumow- 

 large extent of ground, laid out in the modern style, sk y- 

 nnd adorned with designs by Signior Camporezi. 

 There is some variety of surface, abundance of birch 

 and fir woods, with some oaks and aspens interspersed, 

 and a large piece of water. Among the ornamental 

 buildings is a cotton manufactory, in actual use as such. 

 The practice of introducing manufactories as garden 

 buildings, is very general in Russia, and almost pecu- 

 liar to that country. The palace and gardens of Count 

 Alexy Razumowsky, and of Paschow, in Moscow ; of 

 Zaritzina, a singular Turkish palace, built by Potem- 

 kin for Catherine ; of Astankina Count Cheremetow, 

 Peckra, Prince Galitzin, and various others, would 

 well bear description, but we are necessarily preclud- 

 ed from doing this by our limits, and conclude by ob- , 

 serving, that extent, exotics, and magnificent artificial 

 objects, is more the object of the modern style in Rus- 

 sia, than scenes merely of picturesque beauty. We 

 think this may be accounted for, partly from the gene- 

 ral want of refinement of taste in that country, and 

 partly for its inaptitude for that style. 



The nobles of Russia, suddenly rendered aware of 

 being distanced in point of civilization by those of most 

 other European countries, are resolved not merely to imi. 

 tate, but even to surpass them in the display of wealth. 

 The most obvious marks of these, in the most refined 

 countries, are necessarily first singled out by rude and 

 ambitious minds, and large magnificent houses and 

 gardens are desired, rather than comfortable and ele- 

 gant apartments, and beautiful or picturesque scenes ; 

 since, as every one knows, it is much more easy to dis- 

 play riches than to possess taste. 



English gardening was introduced into Poland by Modem . 

 the Princess Czartoryska, at Pulhawa. This lady, high- style in Po- 

 ly accomplished, of great taste, and much good sense, *" 

 had been a considerable time in England. She carried 

 to Poland Mr. Savage, a gardener, and with his as- 

 sistance, and that of Mr. Vogel, and Mr. Frey, artists 

 of Warsaw, she laid out Pulhawa between 1780 and 

 1781, and published in Polish, a folio work with plates, 

 on English gardening, in 1801. The situation, like 

 almost every other with which we are acquainted in 

 Poland or Russia, is flat and sandy ; but is somewhat 

 relieved by the Vistula. On the brink of this river, 

 on a wooded bank, stands the house, a plain Grecian 

 building, and with the grounds described by Burnet, 

 in his view of Poland, (Chap, xi.) Independent 

 clumps of shrubs are more frequent in these gardens 

 than would be admitted by a good taste in England ; 

 but all Poland is a natural forest ; and as the grand ob- 

 ject of improvement in every country, is to obtain ap- 

 plause by the employment of art and expence, artifi- 

 cial forms, from their rarity, are better calculated for 

 this purpose than such as are more universally beauti- 

 ful, but so common as to want the charm of novelty, 

 or whose beauties are too refined to be generally un- 

 derstood. Thus clumps in Poland, may be as much 

 esteemed, as groups are in England, on the same prin- 

 ciple, that, in a wild country, game is less esteemed 

 than butcher meat, because it is the common food. 



The other eminent examples of the modern style, 

 are those of Count Zamoski at Zamoyst, and Count 

 Potocki at Villaneuve, mentioned in our third section. 



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