28 
THE FLORIST. 
Rhododendron banks, we were told, if planted in one line, would reach 
between three and four miles. Besides these banks there are two large 
ovals of these plants, containing about half-an-acre each, and filled with 
noble specimens. The traveller over these walks, at almost every 
step, is delighted with some fresh object being brought suddenly into 
view—here, an old chapel; yonder, an obelisk towering in the distance ; 
there, a fine artificial piece of water; further on, a flowing cascade; 
now, again, a stone summer-house, surrounded by a rosery of about an 
acre in extent, and which contains all the best sorts of Roses planted in 
beds: each sort is allotted a bed to itself. Again, upon leaving this 
rosery, other changes present themselves; amongst the rest a fine 
old Gothic temple and bowling-green, in the “ olden style.” The water 
for forming these various ponds and cascades has all been artificially 
introduced from some distance, and must, at the time of construction, 
have cost an enormous outlay. These pieces of water are all highly 
decorated with vases, large imitation shells, and dolphin’s heads, cut 
out in stone; around these were also staged those noble scarlet Geraniums 
we before mentioned; about fifty of these, being judiciously placed, 
tended to lighten up and add lustre to the whole scene, in a peculiar 
and happy degree. At the distance of half a mile south of where we 
first entered the grounds, stands the obelisk, around which are many 
hundred acres of planting, called the “ black fen,” part of which was an 
old oak wood ; this was cleared away, some years since, and replanted 
with forest trees, which appear to be growing freely, and to have been 
judiciously thinned. What is worthy of notice in this part of the 
grounds, in the way of architecture, besides the obelisk, which is 
ninety feet high, is a well-proportioned circular temple, and a stone 
summer-house. The walks and rides here are chiefly Grass. There is 
a very broad gravel walk round both the obelisk and temple, and also 
between those two buildings, which are two hundred yards apart; these 
walks and rides are about twenty-five feet in width. On each side of 
most of these are borders ten feet wide, planted with Rhododendrons, 
Berberis Aquifolium, and double blossomed Furze; at the back of these 
borders are avenues of the following Coniferous and deciduous trees, 
planted alternately with each other, forty-five feet apart. Ten Araucaria 
imbricata are planted round the obelisk, at the divergence of the ten 
rides from the gravel walks. Many other rides diverge from the 
temple, and several others cross each other from other parts. The 
following is the number of avenues, and with what planted :— 
1, Himalaya Fir and Laburnum; 2, Black Spruce and Lime; 3, 
Pinaster and Horse-chesnut; 4, Weymouth Pine and Lombardy 
Poplar; 5, Spruce Fir and Hickory Tree; 6, Pinus Cembra, and 
Ulmus fastigiata; 7, Red Cedar and cut-leaved Maple; 8, Balm of 
Gilead and variegated Sycamore ; 9, Weymouth Pine and purple Beech ; 
10, Spruce Fir and Common Beech; 11, Silver Fir and scarlet Ches- 
nut; 12, Arbor-vitae and variegated Sycamore ; 13, evergreen Oak and 
yellow Chesnut; 14, Scotch Fir and Sugar Maple ; 15, Silver Fir and 
black Italian Poplar; 16, Quercus Cerris var. (The above have been 
planted about eighteen or twenty years, and are forming fine avenues.) 
The following are doing well, but have been planted only from eight to 
