378 Notes and Reflections during a Tour : — Rouen. 



These blossoms are sold for distilling orange water, an article 

 much used in French cookery and confectionary; and, in coffee- 

 houses, for that very generally used beverage eau sucre. This 

 part of the business is managed by Madame Vallet, who is 

 aufait at every thing connected with the nursery business. 



Savoureiix's Nursery and Flcwer-Garden. — Here are some 

 very good orange trees, and one was pointed out to us which 

 was produced from an old trunk nearly 6 in. in diameter, and 

 about 4 ft. long, with the collar, but no ramose part of the 

 root, which had lain three years in a cellar as a bearer to a 

 wine cask. The vital principle, it would appear, had retained 

 its force, notwithstanding the want of excitement by leaves 

 during that period. M. Savoureux was employed in writing, 

 but we were shown round the garden by Madame Savoureux, a 

 very handsome neatly dressed woman of twenty-five, perfectly 

 acquainted with the nursery business, and competent, as she 

 informed us, to tell the name and price of every plant, and 

 complete any transaction respecting them, without reference to 

 her husband. The greatest part of the garden is occupied by 

 standard roses, most of which she buds herself; and she ex- 

 plained the difference between budding a I'ceil poussmit, which 

 is budding in June and July, and three weeks afterwards 

 shortening the stock to within an inch or two of the bud, 

 which causes it to push; and budding a Vceil dormant, which 

 is done with roses in August and September, and with fruit 

 trees also at these seasons, and the stock not being shortened 

 till the following spring, the bud does not push till that sea- 

 son. This lady, having children, passes the greater part of 

 her time in the garden, and chiefly among the rose trees. She 

 told us that she was not fond of housework, that the baking 

 day and the cleaning day were not very agreeable to her, and 

 that when she sat down to sew she got tired of it, and fell 

 asleep. It would appear from this and similar cases that we 

 have met with in France, that the arts of domestic economy 

 and comfort are less cultivated and prized there than in Eng- 

 land ; because, otherwise, the wives of respectable nurserymen 

 (M. Savoureux we should consider about the rank of Mr. Allen 

 in the King's Road) would find it necessary to occupy them- 

 selves almost constantly in the house, as they do in the latter 

 country. 



Having now got through the commercial gardens of Rouen, 

 in our next we shall notice the public gardens, and such of 

 the private gardens and parks of the neighbourhood as we 

 visited. 



{To be continued.) 



