326 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



[ October 25, 1877. 



the usual bedding plants, although, like every other place that 

 I have Eeen this year, they were three weeks behindhand. 

 The houses are situated in the kitchen garden, which is walled 

 in ; and although small in extent, showed in all the depart- 

 ments the results of care and attention, which after all go a 

 longer way in the ordering of most things, gardens included, 

 than very great cleverness. Having with me two of our very 

 best rosarians — Mr. George Paul of Cheehunt and Mr. Cant of 

 Colchester — we had a talk over the curious way in which the 

 Roses are affected, and to which I made allusion last year, the 

 leaves all curling and blistering-up as if they would never do 

 any good, but getting the better of it as the season advanced. 

 We discussed the various causes that might effect it — the soil, 

 want of manure, so that the plants were probably deficient in 

 vigour, situation, &c. ; but I think we all came to the conclusion 

 that it was due to atmospheric changes. The cold north- 



i easterly winds, which, severe as they are everywhere, would 

 when they occur perhaps be more injurious in so generally 

 mild a climate ; and yet there must be something also in the 

 special situation, for I saw nothing of it among the other Rose- 

 growers in the neighbourhood. My two companions were as 

 much struck as I had been last year with the beautiful Tro- 

 paBolum speciosum, which was full of bloom, and would, we 

 were assured, so continue until cut down by frost. No matter 

 what was the situation or position it throve well : springing 

 out of a gravel walk, under Apple trees, or on a warm border, 

 it seemed alike to flourish, and displaying in all directions its 

 brilliantly coloured scarlet flowers; but I imagine in our more 

 southern climate that it will do best with a north aspect. 



The season has been here, as everywhere, against the pro- 

 duction of out-of-door fruits ; but the various small fruits were 

 abundant and all parts of the vegetable garden in good order 



and the cleanliness and order of everything reflected much 

 credit on the painstaking gardener Mr. Duthie. 



CATKNSMOBE, 

 The then residence of Mr. Stewart, whose death I saw an- 

 nounced the other day in the Times, is an old-fashioned place, 

 but its laird was an accomplished botanist, and in his garden 

 had managed to get together a fine collection of the old herb- 

 aceous plants that our fathers used to delight in. In an evil 

 hour he engaged a gardener who looked upon all these things 

 as weeds and nothing to be compared with the brilliant reds 

 and yellows of the modern style of bedding-out, and so, as the 

 old laird was not able to get about as he used to do, he had 

 it somewhat in his own way. However, there is a dawn of 

 better things, and the collection is gradually coming back to 

 its former condition. The garden is large, the soil good, and 

 both afford by their large wide borders great facilities for the 

 growth of herbaceous plants. Amongst other things there 

 was a bed of Primula japonica, which I was told when in bloom 

 was the most brilliant thing imaginable. Fine clumps of the 

 old Dictamnus Fraxinella were most beautiful. Lovely little 

 bushes of Menziesia and the white variety of it, grand pieces 

 of Spiraea, were here to be seen in full bloom ; then as we 

 walked round fine masses of Delphinium, Phloxes, and other 

 plants of a similar character everywhere met the eye. It may 

 be prejudice, but 1 cannot but think there is more pleasure 



in going round such an old-fashioned garden as this and 

 meeting everywhere some fresh beauty, than going to some 

 1 spick-and-span place where there are freBh masses of colour 

 | and trimly arranged beds over which the scissors has so 

 constantly to pass ; for while in a kept garden there must 

 of necessity be some violence done to natural growth, yet this 

 excessive trimness is a violation of all the canons of good 

 taste. Rhododendrons, of which there is an excellent col- 

 lection of fine named varieties, flourish here, as do all shrubs, 

 most vigorously. 



I wrote last year of the difficulties under which my friend 

 Mr. Mackenzie follows out his gardening tastes ; let me only 

 add this year that he is still manfully fighting against the rude 

 elements, and has by his example done much to encourage the 

 taste for horticulture in and around Newton Stewart. By-the- 

 by, last year I said the town seemed to have no higher industry 

 than sawing wood and curing bacon. Let me correct myself, 

 for I was this year shown some of the most artistic and novel 

 inventions in the way of toilet ware I have ever seen. The 

 inventor is Mr. Vernon, and the great novelty of it consists in 

 the letting-in of indiarubber to the bases of the jugs, basins, 

 &c.,used; so that they are perfectly noiseless, and the possi- 

 bility of breakage reduced to a minimum. They are most 

 artistic in design, and I have no doubt by-and-by when they 

 come to be more fully known will meet with general adoption, 

 and both Mr. Vernon and his fellow townsmen may be well 



