On Laying out and Planting the Flower-Garden. 547 



described by yourself last season (see our Vol. for 1842, p. 552.), 

 and by the original but straightforward letters of Mr. Barnes, 

 the gardener there. 



I must confess his description of the plants, and his mode of 

 treating them, seemed to some of us in the North not a little 

 marvellous ; or, at least, we put them down, as we do some of 

 the advertisements of dahlias, as not to be depended on : but, 

 having seen the gardens and plants at Bicton, I am bound to 

 state, in justice to Mr. Barnes, that I never was so surprised 

 and pleased in my life. There are not many j)laces that a gar- 

 dener can visit but what he may find fault with, or have reason 

 to do so on careful examination ; but I must say I carefully in- 

 spected the gardens at Bicton, and found every department in 

 the highest state of cultivation, both as regards the crops, and 

 the keeping and general management of the gardens and plants, 

 which are such, as, in my humble opinion, do Mr. Barnes great 

 credit. 



The plants have been so fully described by yourself, and Mr. 

 Barnes in his series of letters, that it would be useless for me 

 to attempt a description ; but I cannot avoid mentioning some 

 of the most extraordinary specimens that I have ever seen, viz. 

 Lechenaultm formosa and L. biloba, the ericas in general, and 

 ^rica Massone such a splendid specimen that I do not think 

 there is the like of it in England, or in the United Kingdom. 



If any gardener should have the least doubt of what I have 

 stated, I would advise him to visit Bicton and judge for himself. 

 I am sure Mr. Barnes will be very glad to show a brother gar- 

 dener any thing there is to be seen there. 



Lowther Castle Gardens, Aug. 19. 1843. 



Art. V. On Laying out and Planting the Lawn, Shrubbery, and 

 Floiver. Garden. By the Conductor. 



{^Continued from p. 499.) 



The designs^g5. 118. and 119. are flower-gardens characterised by curvilineal 

 walks ; and the reason of this is, that these designs are adapted for a surface 

 either raised in the middle and falling towards the sides, or raised at the sides 

 and falling to the centre. 



Hitherto the designs that we have given in this article have been for 

 surfaces comparatively flat and level ; but the two now before us are calculated 

 for hilly ground or hollows. The reason why curvilineal walks are adapted 

 for hilly ground is, that all sloping surfaces are most easily ascended or de- 

 scended in directions oblique to their line of slope. When a slope is perfectly 

 regular, like an inchned plane or the glacis of a fortification, the oblique walk 

 by which it is to be traversed may be a straight line, but in every other case 

 curviHneal lines will be found preferable, because less fatiguing, and conse- 

 quently more agreeable to walk on. 



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