December £R, 18?9 J 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
545 
C ERTAIN seasons of the year are periods of special activity in 
Covent Garden Market, the great central depot of vegetable 
produce in the market, but at no time are the supplies so extensive 
rand the business so great as in the week? preceding Christmas. A 
market morning then presents an astounding spectacle, and familiar 
as the visitor may be with the enormous population of London, he 
might think they were preparing for a siege instead of a day’s 
consumption. Tet this is really only a portion of the supplies, for 
at several other large markets—notably the Borough, near London 
Bridge—a similar plethora prevails, the S.E., S., and S.W. districts 
depending to a considerable extent upon this depot. Covent 
■Garden is, however, thoroughly representative both in the variety 
of its supplies and in their quality. Its history is closely connected 
with the development of commercial horticulture, and its records 
would convey a better idea of the progress made within the present 
-century than those of any existing institution. Probably at no 
other market in the world can such a wonderful diversity of vege¬ 
table products be seen. It is a vast museum of special interest to 
horticulturists of all kinds, and scarcely less so to the general 
observer and student. With the growth of the population and the 
increased demand for fruit, flowers, and vegetables the market has 
extended its accommodation and resources—not perhaps always so 
-quickly as desirable, but the improvement has come at last if 
tardily, and it is now in a more efficient condition than at any past 
period. 
An indication is afforded of the change that has taken place in 
this market by a comparison of the two illustrations on pages 554 
and 555. One of these was prepared from a painting by Joseph 
Yanaken, in the possession of the Marquis of Bute, and depicts the 
■condition of the market in 1745, long before it was covered in, a 
-series of sheds and stalls such as are still seen in provincial towns 
occupying the space on market days. On other days it is said the 
market was the scene of many football contests and other sports. 
The second illustration (fig. 72) represents a portion of what our 
artist saw in the respective departments a few days before Christ¬ 
mas, 1889, and it is to this we wish now to direct more particular 
attention, giving a brief review of the leading features and the 
supplies. To deal with them exhaustively would far exceed our 
purpose and the space at command. 
Commencing with the flower market, which forms the central 
subject of the illustration, it must be premised that December is 
not the best month for seeing this department, as notwithstanding 
the demand it is impossible to secure the variety and abundance of 
floral attractions that are readily secured in the spring months ; 
still we find every one of the hundreds of stands filled with choice 
p oductions, either plants or cut flowers, that cannot fail to excite 
a feeling of surprise at this time of year. Around London many 
acres of glass houses are solely devoted to the culture of plants for 
; Lis market, and it may be easily imagined that special efforts are 
made to render the Christmas supplies as satisfactory as possible. 
The bare enumeration of the plants in pots would fill much space, 
but we can only note a few of the principal features, and amongst 
them Heaths will rank nearly foremost. Superbly vigorous little 
specimens, such apparently as only market growers know how to 
grow, are seen in thousands, Erica hyemalis and E. gracilis 
autumnalis almost exclusively, as even as if turned out of a mould, 
No. 490.— Yol. XIX., Third Series. 
and all in small pots. Groups, banks, and stages of these plants 
prove how popular they are, and what a demand exists for them. 
Fine bushy specimens of white Marguerites (Chrysanthemum 
frutescens) have been noticeable on several stands recently, in 
striking contrast to these being the brilliant heads of Poinsettias, 
furnishing the richest colour at the present season. Cartloads and 
vanloads of Chinese Primulas and Cyclamens have been brought 
into the market, and speedily transferred to the retailers or 
decorators who employ such plants in large numbers, and are com¬ 
pelled to resort frequently to Covent Garden to maintain their 
supply. A few Richardia plants are seen, but the spathes are 
mostly sold separately, and the same may be said of the Poinsettias, 
which therefore come more strictly under cut flowers. Bulbs and 
similar forced plants are contributed largely, Hyacinths being 
perhaps the least satisfactory at this early date, though they are 
appreciated by many for their fragrance. In effectiveness the early 
Tulips are far the best, and we have them in three colours—scarlet, 
yellow, and white, the two first being very popular and cheap. The 
majority of these are sent up in shallow boxes, in which the bulbs 
have been closely packed, so that from eighteen to twenty-four are 
contained in a small space. These are often transferred by the 
retail florists into pots with Ferns and Lilies of the Yalley, and 
very bright little specimens they make, half a dozen pr more in a 
pot, either of single colours or mixed. A few pots of Mignonette 
find a place iu the stalls, but the Christmas stock of this plant is 
restricted. The red-berried Solanum capsicastruin may perhaps be 
included here, as the brightly coloured fruits render it as attractive 
as many of the flowering plants. It is a great favourite, and in 
good demand now, when colour effects are so much needed. 
The great bulk of the plant • supplies for Christmas consists, 
however, of those grown mainly for their foliage, and of proved 
excellence for decorative purposes, both in regard to grace of habit 
or distinctness of leaf colouring, or for properties of endurance. 
Plants of this character are sent in by hundreds of thousands, 
Ferns, Palms, Draccenas, Aspidistras, Ficus, Cyperus, and small 
Thuias, with Laurels, Aucubas, and many other similar plants. 
In the left hand cornei of the illustration one of the special 
foliage plant stalls is depicted, which on the occasion of our visit 
was very notable for the effective display of Dracaenas. It is 
where a well-known horticulturist, Mr. Bause, now in the market 
trade, on his own account disposes of the plants he has done so 
much to improve and grows so well. Prominent amongst the 
varieties were Elizabethan, norwoodensis, pendula, terminalis, alba, 
ignea, and Lindeni. The upper part of the stall was occupied with 
Palms, Kentias, Latanias, and Cocos, while at the lower part were 
the much-enduring green and variegated Aspidistras. These are 
fairly representative of the general supplies of foliage plants, the 
Ferns already mentioned comprising Pterises in a large majority, 
with, however, a good number of the glaucous Polypodium 
aureum. The plant trade is an important one to home growers, 
as the foreign element does not interfere with it as it does with 
other departments. 
Highly important too is the cut flower department, and the enor¬ 
mous quantities brought in and disposed of during the past few 
days are astounding. Elaborate series of figures and statistics are 
often given with regard to market supplies, but they are frequently 
extremely misleading, founded on imperfect estimates, or simply 
guesses. An early morning visit to the market itself, attendance 
at a few of the auction sales of imported produce, or a journey to 
one of the large market establishments around London, would give 
a far more reliable idea upon the matter than all the statistics pub¬ 
lished. For the Christmas market the principal cut flowers are the 
following, and it may be remarked that a formidable competition is 
afforded 0 by the continental consignments which arrive in large 
numbers and are often preferred by purchasers. We recently saw 
an instance in the case of Safrano Rose, of which both foreign 
and home samples were submitted, but the former were prefened 
No. 2152.—VOL. LXXXI., Old Series. 
