Dkckmp.kr 2-'). 
COUNTRY GENTLPRMAN’S COMPANION. 
221 
tlian otlievs, and these, while treated somewhat differently, 
are .as well grown here as tliey are near lamdon. 
One of tin! foremost of the list in (jnestion (limited enough, 
eertainly) is the Ciaiicllid. Like the Roses, manj' choice 
varieties of Camellias are raised or cultivated round Paris. 
Already, a considerahle supply of tlowcrs and flowering 
])laiits are brought to market, and, of course, at this season 
they do not remain long in hand, for during a month or two 
more the Camellia wilt ho the leading llower, though Acacias 
and dwarf Orainfc-trccs in fruit will also be plentiful. 
All the nurserymen here, who keep uii a collection of 
CanicUias, have a certain number of large, shrubby plants 
for the supply of shoots and llowers for bouquets; but the 
I chief trade is in small flowering plants for windows and the 
genor.al decoration of saloons. These may be had at all 
ju'ices, according to the variety, the size of the plant, and 
the number of llowers or buds upon it. On ordinary days, 
well-grown plants sell at abont a franc a piece (lOd.); but 
if it is a /iih' day, then the same plants fetch ten or twelve 
sous more, or even double the usual price, 
j The pot-culture of Camellias begins here about the month 
' of April. The soil used is chiefly peat; stich as is well 
furnished with vegettible humus, to this is added a suitable 
I })ortion of light sand. The soil is kept as much as possible 
, in lumps, and the French growers always recommend the 
decayed roots of peat for placing at the bottom of the pot ; 
they seldom or never use crocks or broken bricks as 
, draimage for these plants. After repotting, the plants are 
kept well shaded and watered in a house of moderate tem- 
j perature. The Camellia houses, or rather pits here, at 
I least such as are used for young plants, are of the long 
span-i'oofed form, deeply sunk in the ground, or with the 
lights only raised about a foot from the general surface. 
Nothing can be more easily or more economic.ally con¬ 
structed, so to speak, for, with the exception of the lights, 
the materials need cost nothing. The frame-rvork of the 
lights is supported on turf slightly raised. Turf also forms 
the sides of the passage in the centre, which is seldom wider 
than a foot or fifteen inches. It is only in the leading esta¬ 
blishments that canvass blinds are used. The commoner 
w.ay of shading is to paint the glass thickly with Spanish 
white, mixed with size, in order to make it stick. No fire is 
used after February, but the pits are shut up early in the 
evening, a little air being given during the day. The plants .are 
gently syringed in the morning and after shutting up at 
night, the roots being duly supplied with water when re¬ 
quired. The growing season for Camellias here does not 
extend over July, and then the plants are placed on a border 
with a warm exposure, the pots being imbedded in the soil. 
It is considered a point of some importance to promote a 
humid atmosphere in the immediate vicinity of the plants, 
and this object is effected by frequently sprinkling the 
ground with water. The plants arc put into the pits again 
about the middle of September; and from this time they 
are but seldom watered or syringed. 
In December and January, watm-ing is nearly quite dis¬ 
continued, and the temperature of the house, or pit, is kep)t 
low. Syringing is now carefully avoided, for the plants are 
in jirocess of flowering. 
The larger plants in greenhouses are treated in nearly 
the same manner; but where the house is sufficiently large, 
the Camellias are planted out on carefully prepared borders. 
One of the chief summer ornaments of the pleasure- 
grounds in Kngland is Cratwijas; but it is not common in 
the gardens round Paris. The Lilac, so much grown here, 
is not to be compared with the Hawthorn, especially tlie ; 
double varieties. Not only is the Hawthorn graceful in out- ! 
line, whatever its size may be, but its flowers, lasting nearly j 
a month, have the double charm of beauty and perfume. i 
I mentioned, in a former article, that there are not in | 
Paris those enclosed gardens which we call squares; hut | 
since th.at time my walks have been extended, and I find 
that there is at least one real square in Paris, such a square, 
too, as deserves to be noted; but, of course, it is called a 
place, and in this instance, it is “La Place Royale,” made all 
the more public since the extension ot the Rue Rivoli to 
the St. Antoine. Place Royale, which is about the size of 
Hanover Square, in London, would seem to have been built 
early in the seventeeth ccntuiy, either by Catherine de 
Medicis, or Louis XIII.; probably both had a share in its 
construction. The architecture is in keeping with a hye- 
gone age, and forcibly reminds one of Hampton Court. ; 
There arc long, open passages under the houses, which are | 
supported in front on heavy square columns. The facade 
is of red brick and stone cornices. Then the roof runs up I 
from the coping ne.arly thirty-five feet, aTid is freely studded 
with skylights to the very top. Under the arches are one or two 
small shops,occupicd by lithogr.aphers,milliners, and grocers; 
but as there is no general thoroughfare, except at one side, 
the square is but little frequented, and it has more the ap¬ 
pearance of a quiet home for retired tradesmen than 
. anything else. Formei'ly, however, it was the centre of 
! fashion and distinction ; but the wealthy and the great have 
' abandoned it for the Champs Elysees and the Qaarticr Ht. 
J Germain. The houses seem to have been built as if de- 
I stilled to last for a thousand years, or resist a siege; and 
' here and there sentries may be seen traraiiing up and down 
the silent corridors, as if indicating that the ancient home of 
royalty is still considered worthy of honour. But the square, 
that is to say, the garden, w.as my lu-incipal subject of obser¬ 
vation ; and, as you will see, somewhat different from our 
London S(piares. There is, tirst, immediately within the 
massive iron railings, a double row of old lime trees, about 
twelve feet apart, and these are, of course, always kept short j 
overhead. This avenue extends all round the garden, and j 
in summer form an agreeable sh.ade from the sun. In the ! 
centre of the whole is an equestrian statue of Louis XIII., | 
ill the middle of a group of old Maples, which, strange j 
enough, have been allowed to grow in a natural manner, j 
' There are plenty of benches, in wood and stone, for the use , 
of the iieople, for, as usual, the square is open to everybod,y. j 
. But the principal features of the place are the four small ( 
, circular plots of ground, which are neatly laid out and j 
planted with llowering shrubs and herbaceous plants. These 
I enclosed g.ardens contain, besides,basins and fountains; the 
, latter quite as large as the fountains in Trafalgar Square, 
and more elegant in design. The arrangement of these cir¬ 
cular g.ardens is simple and neat. From the side of the 
I basin, which is slightly raised, there is a sloping bank of 
grass, then a broad border of Ivy, trimmed so as to rise 
about eight or ten inches in the middle, and gradually fall 
to the margin. Then, the ground between the Ivy and the 
I low hand-railing is occupied with small shrubs and flowers, 
I the I.ilac, of course, taking the lead among the former. 
■ With the climate of Baris, and the fondness of the people 
^ for out-of-door amusements, it would lie too much to expect 
grass to any greater extent than what we tind under especial 
' protection ; but from March to November there is not a 
more agreeable promenade in Baris than this same solitary 
Blace Royale. It is, in fact, the resort and playground of 
all the children and nurses of the locality ; but nothing is [ 
allowed by the officers on duty which would be inconsistent 
with its ancient dignity. As a promenade it is much pre¬ 
ferable to La Place de la Concorde, which can only be looked 
at through a pair of green spectacles. 
In summer time the fountains play continually, and every 
day the ground is watered hy means of a long hose, which 
j is furnished with broad wooden rings about three feet apart. 
In this way the hose is kept off the gravel, and it is the 
1 more easily drawn in any particular direction. These rings, 
of course, are moveable, but they .are kept in their places 
by smaller rings of leather, which are not moveable. I do 
not recollect ever seeing such an expedient before, and,per¬ 
haps, it is only necessary where there is no grass. 
If this is not the only square in Baris, I should think it 
is the oldest; and nothing I have yet seen comes nearer 
the enclosed gardens which are so plentiful in every large 
town in Britain. 
We had a fall of snow, for the first time this season, on 
the 4th instant, and snow has fallen occasionally ever since, 
but, as yet, not to any great extent. As the wind is in the 
north, however, frost continues, and we are likely to have 
plenty of snow before long. 
Considerable supplies of fruit continue to anive from the 
provinces. No fewer than thirty-six large boats were lying 
at one place the other day, and all full. Large, good eating 
apples, in particular, may be had as low as a franc a dozen 
(lOd.); many of the sorts are first-rate. Of Bears, the ! 
Seckel, Marie Louise, Cure, and Duchesse d'Amjers are the i 
most common. ! 
