76 



HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY OP TREES. PART I, 



Various other gardens might be mentioned as having contri- 

 buted to spread a taste for foreign trees and shrubs towards the 

 latter end of this century; and the names of a number of writers 

 on botan}^ and gardening would also deserve commemoration 

 here, were they not already recorded in the historical part of 

 our Encydojpcedia of Gardening. The reader who thinks we 

 might have extended this part of our work will bear this in 

 mind ; and also that it has been our object, throughout this 

 Introduction, to repeat nothing which we have already laid 

 before the public. 



The only extensive nursery at the beginning of this century 

 was, as we have before seen (p. 46.), that of Brompton Park, 

 occupied by London and Wise. Those of Gray of Fulham, of 

 Furber of Kensington, of Fairchild of Hoxton, Gordon of Mile 

 End, and Hunt of Putne}', became eminent before the middle 

 of the century ; and those of Lee and Kennedy, William Mal- 

 colm, Russell, Loddiges, and others, were large establishments 

 before the end of it. 



Gray commenced his nursery at Fulham early in the 18th 

 century. He received many American trees and shrubs from 

 collectors and resident amateurs in America, and enriched his 

 stock at the sale of Dr. Compton's trees. In 1740, he pub- 

 lished a catalogue of his plants, which is said to have been 

 written by Philip Miller. In the preface to Ca,tesby's Hortiis 

 Europmis AmericanuSi which is dated 1767, it is said, that 

 " Mr. Gray at Fulham has, for many years, made it his busi- 

 ness to raise and cultivate the plants of America, from whence 

 he has annually fresh supplies, in order to furnish the curious 

 with what they want;" and that, " through his industry and skill, 

 a greater variety of American forest trees and shrubs may 

 be seen in his gardens, than in any other place in England." 

 This nursery is now in the possession of Messrs. Whitley and 

 Osborne, and still retains its reputation for American trees and 

 shrubs. It also contains some fine old specimens of the trees 

 planted by Gray. Among these are Quercus *Sviber, Celtis oc- 

 cidentalis, Ailantus gland ulosa, iaurus Sassafras^ Koelreuter/a 

 paniculata, i)iospyros virginiana, and various others. The first 

 MagnohVf grandiflora which was brought to England (as ge- 

 nerally supposed) was planted in this nursery, and all the old 

 trees of the kind in the country are said to have been propa- 

 gated from it. The tree died about 1810; but its trunk, which 

 measures 4 ft. 10 in. in circumference, was, till very lately, pre- 

 served. The branches extended over a surface 20 ft. in diameter, 

 it was as many feet high, and in the blossoming season, which 

 lasted generally two or three months, it perfumed the whole 

 neighbourhood. It was surrounded by stages from the ground 

 to its summit, on which were placed pots containing layers for 



