January 15, 1885. ] 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER, 
51 
K'nnoull, which. rise3 high above the picturesque valley of the Earn. The 
most convenient station is Forteviot, bat from this the gardens and mansion 
are distant nearly three miles, the road for the greater portion of the way 
rising gradually from the Earn and giving pleasing views of the river 
through a long avenue of trees. Dapplin possesses much historical 
interest, extending back over 500 years, for on this fair estate, in the 
fourteenth century, a great battle was fought, in which nearly 40,000 men 
were engage!. The present proprietor is the eleventh E arl of Kinnoull, 
and is descended from a celebrated family, tracing their lineage to Sir 
John de Haya in the thirteenth century, since which time members of 
the family have been repeatedly honoured with various titles and dignities, 
ani it is now connected with many of the leading nobles in the north. 
flowering, as they do most profusely, must be magnificent; the Azaleas 
also contributing a wealth of colour early in the year. In few gardens 
can such eff -cts as these be produced, but wherever there is a natural 
depression of sufficient depth much can be done by a careful system of 
planting in this style. 
Several windows of the Castle command views of the dell just described, 
and one of these is termed the Prince of Wales’ Room, being that assigned 
to him when visiting Dupplin, as he has done frequently. The present 
Castle is a handsome structure in the Elizabethan style and cost £30,000. 
It is erected on the site of an earlier castle, which wa3 burnt in 1827, and 
occupying one of the highest parts of the estate some charming views can 
be obtained from it in a southerly d'rection. Immediately belo.v runs the 
Fig. 9 .—The Dell, Dupplist Castle. 
The site chosen for the mansion is an admirable one for such a princely 
residence, being about 200 feet above the Earn, from which it rises 
steeply. In several portions the surface of the hill is cut by most 
picturesque glens and ravine 3 , and which the art of the landscape 
gardener has assisted Nature in rendering extremely beautiful, for here, 
as in the other gardens already noted in this county, the vegetation is 
exceedingly luxuriant, trees and shrubs of all kinds growing with extra¬ 
ordinary vigour. These glens and their abundant graceful trees are 
indeed the chief features of the Dupplin Gardens, and on no other estate 
either in England or Scotland have 1 seen anything to equal them. That 
near the Castle, a portion of which is shown in the woodcut, fig. 9 (from 
a photograph), is one of the most exquisite dells imaginable. The 
sides are steep and are densely covered with Rhododendrons, Azaleas, 
Bays, Laurels, and similar shrubs with numerous well-developed specimen 
Conifers rising to considerable heights above them, and assisting to still 
farther increase the beauty and diversity of the scene. The Rhododendrons 
are planted in clumps of one colour each, and the effect when these are 
river Eare, while more distant glimpses of the Ochils and the hills of 
Perth impart much beauty to the scene. This, with the addition of the 
finely wooded home policies, renders the landscape one of the most pleasing 
of its kind. The interior of the mansion fittingly corresponds with the 
exterior attractions, the greatest taste and art being combined in its 
decoration, not the least interesting feature being some exceedingly fine 
wood carvings being especially notable in the chapel. The. abundant 
floral decorations are also carried out with great care, a surprising supply 
of flowers being constantly maintained. Near the Castle are numerous 
handsome specimen Conifers, but one of special merit is an Araucaria 
imbricata, about 50 feet bigh, in the best health and clothed with branches 
to the ground. This is shown in fig. 8 (from Mr. Hunter’s work on the 
“ Woods and Forests of Perthshire), and is remarkable for i f s symmetry 
and general beauty, in which respects it could not be surpassed. 
Another very striking feature at Dupplin is the handsome avenues 
which lead to the Castle from four directions. Perhaps the most beautiful 
of these is the West Avenue, which consists of some magnificent Beeches 
