THE 



GARDENER'S MAGAZINE, 



JULY, 1839. 



ORIGINAL COMMUNICATIONS. 



Art. 1. Descriptive Notices of select Suburban Residences, with 

 Remarks on each ; intended to illustrate the Principles and Practice 

 of Landscape-Gardening. By the Conductor. 



No. 12. Redleaf, the Seat of William Wells, Esq., F.H.S. 



The estate of Redleaf, near Penshurst, lies along the north side 

 and in the bottom of a valley distinguished by the boldness of 

 its undulations, the large proportion of the surface which is under 

 wood and in pasture, the fortunate existence of a fine river, and 

 the cropping out of some rocky strata. The whole surface of 

 this part of the country appears, at no distant period, to have been 

 native forest, or, at all events, under coppice-wood; and hence, 

 in many of the fields, and in all the hedgerows, there are groups 

 of oak trees, aged thorns, maples, and hollies, which give the 

 face of the country the wood}' appearance of a park. 



That portion of the estate which Mr. Wells has laid out as a 

 residence occupies a steep undulating bank, facing the south- 

 east, with a deep broad valley at one end, lying in the direction 

 of north and south, and joining the valley of the Eden, a river 

 which afterwards takes the name of the Medway, and joins the 

 Thames at Sheerness. The road from London to Redleaf is one 

 of great variety and beauty. Passing through Lewisham and 

 ascending Bromley Hill, we have a general view of Bromley 

 Hill Park; and, further on, we have a very striking descent, 

 through a beech wood, to the vale of Seven Oaks. Near this 

 town there are several seats, all more or less seen from the 

 road; such as Chipstead Place, Chevening, Montreal, and 

 Knowle ; the latter being one of the most ancient baronial resi- 

 dences in England. From Seven Oaks to Redleaf, the road 

 is comparatively private, passing through a wilder and more 

 densely wooded country ; the surface boldly undulated, and pre- 

 senting at every step a change of scene. 



The bold and varied undulations of the grounds at Redleaf, 

 the fortunate disposition of the wood, and especially of the 

 single trees and small groups, left very little for art to do upon 

 a large scale. In some places, a field or a part of a field might 



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