KITCHEN GARDENING UNDER JAMES I. 
117 
land in the time of the first Edward, and after his daies, but 
in process of time they grew also to be neglected, so that from 
Henry the Fourth till the latter end of Henry the Seventh 
and beginning of Henry the Eighth, there was little or no use 
of them in England, but they remained either unknown or 
supposed as food more meet for hogs and savage beasts to feed 
upon than mankind. Whereas in my time their use is not 
onelie resumed among the poore commons, I meane of melons, 
pompions, gourds, cucumbers, radishes, skirets, parsnips, 
carrets, cabbages, nauewes, turnips, and all kinds of salad 
herbes, but also feed upon as deintie dishes at the tables of 
delicate merchants, gentlemen and the nobilitie, who make 
their prouision yearelie for new seeds out of strange countries/’ 
Holinshed was writing to extol Elizabeth’s reign, and though 
a faithful chronicler of contemporary events, would be tempted 
to colour them in order to enhance the glory of the period he 
was describing. Although vegetables were now more fashion¬ 
able and more used, still, from what is known of the gardens 
of earlier times, it seems incredible that the neglect of them 
had been so entire as Holinshed would have us believe. 
Parkinson advises some vegetable seeds to be obtained from 
abroad, especially melons, but says of many of those on Holin- 
shed’s list of seeds to be obtained from “ strange countries, 
Redish, Lettice, Carrots, Parsneps, Turneps, Cabbages, and 
Leekes . . . our English seede ... is better than any that cometh 
from beyond the seas.” 
A striking proof of the progress gardening was making during 
this period was the growing importance of those practising the 
craft in and around London, until at length, in the third year 
of King James I., they attained the dignified position of a 
Company of the City of London, incorporated by Royal charter. 
In that year all those “ persons inhabiting within the Cittie 
of London and sixe miles compas therof doe take upon them 
to use and practice the trade, crafte, or misterie of gardening, 
planting, grafting, setting, sowing, cutting, arboring, kocking, 
mounting, covering, fencing and removing of plantes, herbes, 
seedes, fruit trees, stock sett, and of contryving the conveyances 
to the same belonging, were incorporated by the name of 
Master Wardens, Assistants and Cornynaltie of the Companie 
