August 8, 1878. ] 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
113 
excellently filled flower beds, produce a picture of art and nature 
balanced and blended in a manner that commands general 
admiration. The general view is admirable, and a closer 
inspection of the flower beds proves that they are admirable 
too. Flowers old and new are provided, and arrangements old 
and new are represented. It will be fashionable to look at 
the new flowers first, and these are 
Dr. DENNY’S GERANIUMS.—A considerable number of the 
new varieties of that celebrated raiser are bedded out, the 
plants having been supplied by Messrs. James Veitch & Sons. 
They are in round beds, but as the plants had been cut rather 
severely for cuttings they were not seen in their most favourable 
aspect. The following are the varieties represented :— 
Cleopatra.—A distinct and novel colour (carmine magenta), 
and a remarkably fine and well-formed flower: a tolerably 
free bloomer, but not particularly effective from a distance ; 
the habit of growth, too, is a little irregular. Better for pots 
than for beds. 
Amazon.—A grand rich scarlet suffused with crimson ; flowers 
large, of great smoothness and substance, and freely produced. 
A strong grower, and fine for large beds and for pots. 
Heather Bell.—A distinct and lovely colour, bluish pink ; 
flowers of the finest form and of great substance of petal. One 
of the best for pots, but not a good bedder. 
Nyanza.—Scarlet, a rich glowing mass. 
merit for pots, and promising as a bedder. 
Atlanta.—A distinct and novel colour, purplish crimson ; 
a finé flower, but the plant rather too strong in growth for 
ordinary bedding purposes. 
Globosa Major.—Semi-nosegay, crimson, fine bold trusses, 
but growth of plant rather unleyel. Requires a large bed to 
show it to advantage. 
The above have separate small beds, but the following are 
selected from several varieties planted in rows in a large bed’ :— 
Gnome, glowing scarlet, dwarf and free; one of the best of all 
for small beds. Isis, brilliant scarlet; a stronger grower, and 
would probably show to advantage in a large bed. Zuleika, a 
rich and distinct colour ; finer for pots than for beds. Irene, 
purplish crimson, with a rich orange-rayed blotch on upper 
petals ; it is dwarf and free, but forms seed pods too freely 
for a bedder ; fine for pots. As seen at Hampton Court under 
disadvantageous circumstances, and possibly grown from 
spring-struck cuttings, the varieties, with one or two exceptions, 
do not afford evidence of being superior bedders. As an on- 
looker remarked, ‘They are too good for beds and must be 
grown in pots.” They are generally too robust in habit, and 
do not possess sufficiently dark green foliage to render them 
effective for outdoor display. 
Some other beds—large oblongs alternating with the circles 
—are extremely fine. The most pleasing are perhaps those 
where the central mass consists of two distinct colours. For 
instance, Geranium Bijou carpeted with Viola Blue Perfection, 
broadly banded with Iresine Lindeni and edged with Golden 
Stellaria, is a charming combination and worthy of imitation. 
Viola The Tory intermixed with variegated Geraniums, and 
the same Viola with Centaurea candidissima, produce a pleasing 
effect. Particularly attractive are the Centaurea and Verbena 
venosa in mixture, and Abutilon Thompsoni variegatum car- 
peted with blue Violas. Pelargoniums Mrs. Pollock and Sophia 
Dumaresque carpeted with blue Lobelia produce a cheerful 
and lively effect, and so also do other combinations of the 
same nature. This mode of planting the beds is admirably 
adapted for producing fine floral masses in early summer. The 
beds probably show to advantage on account of their size, 
many of them being 40 feet long and 12 wide. Several beds 
about 12 feet square are simply but effectively filled, such as 
Geranium Amaranth, which is splendid, edged with Geranium 
Manglesii, and the same Geranium banded with Bijou and Blue 
Violas, and edged with Iresine Lindeni and Koniga variegata ; 
also Ageratum Imperial Dwarf broadly banded with Gera- 
nium Manglesii. A bed of Geranium Happy Thought, broadly 
banded with Geranium Golden Harry Hieoyer, is very novel 
and good. Many other beds are effective, but it is not neces- 
sary to particularise them. Calceolaria Prince of Orange is 
literally a “dead failure,’ for most of the plants are actually 
dead—the one failure in a fine flower garden. The best beds 
of scarlet Geraniums are those of Vesuvius, closely followed, 
however, by George Natchett. The best crimson is Waltham 
Seedling. By far the best pink is Amaranth, but a bed of 
Mrs. Haliburton is very promising. This yariety is deeper in 
colour than Christine which it resembles in habit of growth. 
Carpet bedding is also excellently represented, the designs 
A variety of great 
being of a free pleasing character, and planted with much 
taste. Cheerful colours and neutral tints are well balanced 
and the beds are decidedly good; a few of them perhaps 
have seldom been surpassed in this particular style of garden 
decoration. 
Other features of Hampton Court merit attention: the old 
Dutch garden with its Yews and hardy flowers; the Agayves 
and Oranges on the terrace, probably centenarians (one of the 
Aloes will shortly be in flower), a wonderfully fine example of 
the Wistaria sinensis, and the grand old Vine, which is this year 
carrying 1200 bunches, small but very regular, the foliage being 
healthy and clean, All these are points worthy the inspection 
of the visitor, who when he has examinec them will say that 
the gardens at Hampton Court are highly deserving of patron- 
age, and that their condition reflects much credit on Mr. 
Graham, the Superintendent. 
THE OLD MARKET GARDENS AND NURSERIES 
OF LONDON.—No. 21. 
“BROMPTON,” observes Mr. Brewer, writing concerning the 
place fifty years ago, “‘has lately experienced a considerable 
increase of buildings, and is now nominally divided into two 
parts, termed Old and New Brompton. ‘The latter division 
of the hamlet chiefly consists of rows of houses, which are of a 
crowded but usually respectable character. Old Brompton 
still retains a similitude of rural aspect, and is yet celebrated. 
for well cultivated nursery and garden grounds.” Since the 
“Great Exhibition year* Brompton has undergone an ‘“in- 
crease of buildings” which throws the Georgian increase into 
the shade, and if it has a ‘“‘similitude of rural aspect,” this has 
now become yery shadowy indeed. The nurseries have under- 
gone rapid diminution. The market gardens probably do not 
cover more than a third of the space they occupied at the be- 
ginning of this century. The outlying districts belonging to 
Fulham and Hammersmith may, however, give us some imper- 
fect idea of what Brompton was in the olden time ; now a part 
of it is called South Kensington, not without a tinge of ab- 
surdity, the name pretty nearly representing New Brompton, 
but not quite with exactness. A portion of Old Brompton was 
known formerly by the rather absurd name of “ Little Chelsea,” 
so that the past generation can hardly afford to laugh at the 
present one; it was along the line of the Fulham Road, just 
beyond Brompton Heath and Chelsea Park, but formed no. 
part, as I understand, of Chelsea parish. The etymologists, it 
appears, have not exercised their ingenuity in discovering or 
inventing an explanation of the word “Brompton ;” of course 
the final “ton ’’ represents “ town,” as in many names of 
places. I would suggest it may have been designated from 
some owner of the land, or possibly it was originally “ Broom 
town,’ from the Broom which once flourished in the open 
ground, such as Brompton Heath. And the by-passer along 
the Fulham Road may survey with interest the condition of a. 
part of this heath (so-called) not yet built upon, but which 
was cleared for that purpose many years ago—it must be nearly 
twenty I think. Before that the land was in the hands of 
market gardeners. Though lines of road were traced out and 
cellars built matters went no farther from some cause, and 
now there grows a curious commingling of plants and shrubs 
on this neglected property, and amongst these may be noticed. 
specimens of the Broom, the seeds of which had probably laid 
dormant in the earth. 
An excuse for the application of the name “South Kensing- 
ton’’ to northern districts of Brompton lies in the fact that 
these belong to the parish of St. Mary Abbott, Kensington ; 
but though we commonly speak of the gardens of the Royal 
Horticultural Society as situate in Kensington, I fancy they 
micht have been claimed for Brompton, certainly they occupy 
some of the land that belonged to the renowned Brompton 
Park Nursery ; and, before speaking of that historic and ex- 
tensive establishment, it should be noted that the Society 
(destined, I trust, to retain its Kensington property for a lone 
time to come) before the Chiswick Gardens were planned had 
asmall space at Kensington, on which experimental culture 
was carried on, chiefly in the open air it seems. This was 
commenced early in 1818, but closed in a few years; it was 
situate to the west of Harl’s Court Road, not farfrom Edwardes 
Square. It was only open to visitors from two o'clock to six. 
‘A number of authors, in describing Brompton Park Nursery, 
have referred to this establishment as if it was solely entitled 
to the name of Brompton Park. Though the greater portion of 
the park was absorbed into the nursery at first (to undergo 
