321 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER AND COUNTRY GENTLEMAN, February 21, 1860. 
The tops weye not pruned at the time, and but very moderately 
last March, the idea being entertained that the greater the 
number of buds the greater would be the stimulus to root action, 
and the result has proved the idea was a correct one ; for when I 
saw them they had quite recovered their vigour, and were bloom¬ 
ing very fairly. Next spring they will be pruned more severely. 
And now having given the reader, by the above brief description, 
a general idea of this beautiful place, I shall adopt my good 
friend Mr. Fish’s excellent method of giving sections of the 
ground—a better plan I do not know, for by that method the in¬ 
telligent reader will understand the salient points of any place at 
once. 
2 
j / 60 ft. 
130 ft. 
4 
60 ft, 
5 / 
,/ 
8 
30 ft. 
1. Kitchen garden. 2. Range of hothouses. 3. Grass slopo. 4. Sunk flower garden and terrace-walk. 5. Grass slope. 6. Bank of evergreens. 
7. Grass slope. 8. Carriage-drive hacked with evergreens. 9. Highway. 
_ The flower garden here is well sheltered, having on the north 
side the range of hothouses, on the west and south banks of 
evergreens, and on the east the conservatory and the mansion. 
It is 60 feet wide, and 144 feet long. At the end next the house 
there is a flight of stone steps, and at the far corner a beautiful 
alcove. Sitting in that and casting your eye across the beds of 
flowers, the long S-shaped beds filled with scarlet and variegated 
Geraniums had the finest effect; the yellow Calceolarias and 
white Verbenas formed a relieving shade'. There were four beds 
of Mrs, ILolf orcl Verbena, numbered on the plan respectively 1. 
No. 2. Tom Thumb Geranium, two beds. No. 3. 'Flower of 
the Fay Geranium, two beds. No. 4. Scarlet Verbena, two 
beds. No. 5. Calceolaria fioribunda, four beds. No. 6. Purple 
King Verbena, two beds. No. 7. Blue Bonnet Verbena, two beds. 
No. S. Andrea Verbena, two beds. No. 9. Perfume Madeleine 
Verbena, No. 10. Fountain, round which was planted Geant 
des Batailles Verbena, edged with variegated Alyssum. No. 11. 
Two vases; and at each corner there is an Irish Yew. The 
fountain, vases, and Yews admirably took off the flatness which 
would otherwise have been visible and objectionable. 
The beds are all edged with Box, and the walks between are 
gravel, and there is a broad margin of grass between the broad 
gravel-walk and the others. This margin of green adds greatly 
to the beauty of the picture when viewed from the elevated 
terrace-walks. The only fault in the plan is, I think, the walks 
amongst the beds being too narrow. I am certain crinoline has 
no business there. 
I was much pleased with the health of the flowers in the beds. 
Tlie Calceolarias were quite a hit. The way they were arranged 
is good. A stock of plants are kept in a reserve-bed in the kitchen 
garden; and when any plants in the beds showed sickness, they 
were removed immediately, and fresh soil and fresli healthy plants 
from the reserve-bed carefully lifted and put in their places. 
This is much better than planting them out of pots ; because, kept 
in pots so long, the roots are so matted that they do not succeed 
at all, or at least not so well. 
Celery .—I noted in the kitchen garden some rows of extremely 
fine Celery, with sticks as thick as a man’s leg across the calf. I 
inquired how they had been managed, and wa3 informed they had 
been irrigated once a-week, and every other watering with liquid 
manure much diluted. This abundant supply of moisture is the 
great means of keeping the Celery growing freely in the hottest, 
and driest weather such as we had last summer. The water was 
not merely poured out of a watering-pot, but the trenches were 
filled full of it, thus thoroughly soaking the ground ; a method 
necessary in such, ground—a dry, light soil as is here. 
Peas. —The last summer, Peas, in general, were a failing crop, 
much troubled with mildew. In order to prevent these two evils, 
Mr. Eastwood removed the soil (previously heaped up in earthing 
up the rows of Teas), so as to form a trench on each side of the 
rows. This trench he filled with water in the same way as the 
Celery-trenches. The effect was astonishing. I saw the Peas 
green, healthy, and bearing good crops in the hot dry months of 
July and August, and no mildew made its appearance through 
the season. Is not this proof sufficient that mildew is caused by 
a want of moisture ? This best of all green vegetables is worthy 
of all this care and trouble wherever the ground will allow its 
adoption. 
Pine Apple .—This fine fruit is grown here to great perfection. 
One house is planted out in the same way they are managed at 
