246 Notes and Recollections of a Tour. 



The nursery attached to the gardens is situated to the 

 right of the palace, beyond the plantations of wood, and is 

 six or eight acres in extent. It is laid out in four squares, 

 with a slip or border on the outside. One of these squares 

 was wholly devoted to fruit trees ; one of them to roses ; a 

 third to the Alpine strawberry and the Dahlia ; and the fourth 

 to miscellaneous objects. The collection of grapes is culti- 

 vated around the several squares on espalier rail or trellises 

 erected for that purpose. We called on M. Hardy, previous 

 to our visit to the garden, but he was absent, and we lost the 

 opportunity of a careful examination of the trees and plants. 



The fruit trees were not in so fine condition as those in the 

 Jardin des Plants ; the soil does not seem to be so well adapt- 

 ed to their growth ; some of them, however, were in full bear- 

 ing. They were set out in long rows, about ten feet apart, 

 and six or eight feet distant from each other in the rows. As 

 every tree was numbered, and the gardener who accompa- 

 nied us had no list of the names, we could only admire some 

 of the specimens, without, in many instances, being sure of 

 the name. 



'I he Alpine strawberry is cultivated very extensively for 

 the supply of the royal tables throughout the whole summer 

 and autumn, and one quarter was devoted to this fruit ; 

 the plants were set out in long rows, with alternate planta- 

 tions of Dahlias, which were now in most profuse bloom ; a 

 great many of them were the fancy sorts, which are greatly 

 admired and extensively cultivated in and around Paris. One 

 of the finest we saw was the Beauty of England, purple tip- 

 ped with white ; and every flower distinctly marked. The 

 strawberries are set out in August or September, and the fol- 

 lowing season produce abundantly ; or they may be raised from 

 seed in the spring, and planted out to bear a crop in the Au- 

 tumn. A moist soil and half shady aspect is most favorable, 

 and, in our climate, to expect success, such a locality should 

 be selected if possible ; an abundance of fruit may then be 

 expected. The best berries were as large as the finest Woods 

 we generally see in our market. We recommend all who 

 love this delicious fruit to try the experiment of their cultiva- 

 tion. Such profusion as we saw them exposed for sale in the 

 cafes of Paris, shows that there can be no great difficulty in 



