100 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER AND COUNTRY GENTLEMAN, Novembee 10, 1858. 
weather in winter, air should be given so as to change the atmos¬ 
phere of the house every day. Give it in the warmest part of the 
day, and so systematically, that no great draught of cool air will 
strike upon a tender, free-growing plant. A small opening at the 
highest point, and a good dash of sunshine, will soon make all 
right. In dull, gloomy weather, fresh air is most necessary to 
keep the plants from drawing. 
You have lately seen a great deal about Strawberries. Our 
practice leads us to the conclusion, that, to have them plentiful and 
early, the plants must be prepared early, and be brought on very 
gradually. A great authority showed how Strawberries could be 
gathered in June without all this bother, and that we do not con¬ 
trovert, only adding that March is not June. After the flower- 
buds of Strawberries are showing strong, they may be placed in a 
temperature of 60° at once, without injuring them, provided the 
plants have plenty of fresh air when in bloom. Were I to take 
up plants, or even place prepared plants at once into a temperature 
of from 60° to G5°, at Christmas, or earlier, I should expect to get 
comparatively little fruit. In your case, if you waited until about 
March, or April, when the flower-trusses begin to show naturally, 
you might place the plants on the back shelf of youi stove, and 
contrive to give more air there than usual. If you wished your 
fruit earlier, and in succession,—say, putting some in in the 
middle of December, January, and so on,—then I would advise 
placing them in the cold shut-off end, and not to give more heat 
than from 50° to 55° at night, until the flower-buds appeared, 
and were breaking into bloom; then you might increase the tem¬ 
perature there, or move them to a hotter place. They will stand 
a good heat when swelling. R. Fish. 
HEADINGTON HILL. 
The Seat of James Moebell, Esq. 
This fine, extensive, new residence is situated on a command¬ 
ing eminence, just one mile from the ancient city of Oxford. The 
mansion is a noble building, of the Italian Villa character, with a 
portico of exceedingly chaste beauty, and a colonnade, on the 
garden front, of considerable extent. I do not pretend to under¬ 
stand architecture, but I know this much, that. I can judge the 
effect that a handsome residence has on my eye. This new 
mansion pleased me very much, perhaps more than any one I 
have seen in my long travels. The only point I could find fault 
with, was the breadth of the terrace on the garden front. It should 
have been carried out at least twenty feet further. 
The grounds have been laid out by Mr. Baxter, of Oxford, and, 
in my opinion, do him great credit. The ground originally was 
a steejnsh slope; consequently, in order to get a platform for the 
house, it was necessary to excavate considerably into the side of 
the hill. This has been done, and a level flower garden, with a 
steep bank to the back, covered nicely with Laurels has been 
effected. There are two entrances, and two handsome convenient 
lodges. The carriage-drive next the city wends gradually up the 
hill, and is carried to the back of the mansion, where the principal 
entrance is situated. The carriage-drive from the upper lodge is 
carried down, and meets the lower drive very conveniently. 
On the top of the hill there is a very broad, gravelled terrace- 
walk, in which there are many groups of old trees, which the land¬ 
scape gardener happily spared, and gravelled around them ; for 
under such large trees neither turf nor shrubs grow well. In hot 
weather, this elevated and shaded walk must be very delightful. 
The views from the house, and from various parts of the grounds, 
especially from this high-terrace walk, are very extensive and 
beautiful. In front are seen many of the splendid colleges of this 
ancient seat of learning. The foreground is composed of old 
trees, which completely hide the inferior buildings. To the right, 
the fine woods of Nuneham form a pleasing object; and to the 
left, the Cumr.or Hills, near which is situated Cumnor Hall, 
where Sir Walter Scott laid the scene of the imprisonment of 
Amy Robsart, in his splendid fiction of “ Kenilworth.” Ividling- 
ton and Cassington church spires are seen also in the distance. 
Indeed, there are few places in the kingdom where more objects 
of interest are visible. 
The shrubberies are planted with large specimens, brought there 
at a great expense, and most of them appear to be growing and 
thriving well. There is a considerable space planted as a Pinetum. 
I not iced three or four large-sized specimens of Wellingtonia gigan- 
tea, which have stood the weather well. I can say, and truly, that 
this magnificent Californian Cedar is perfectly hardy. I have seen 
it in high, in low, in warm, and in cold situations, and in all it was 
in fine health. It is much hardier titan the Crgplomeria Japonica, 
or the Taxodium sen.pervirens , or even the Araucaria imbricata. 
In some future generations, 1 have no doubt our descendants will 
see entire woods of it, and avenues planted to a great extent. 
The shrubberies, pleasure grounds, and flower gardens, cover 
an extent of twenty acres : and all this has been effected in little 
over three years, showing what wealth, skill, and labour can 
accomplish in so short a space of time. 
The kitchen gardens are situated beyond the high road, and are 
of considerable extent, covering, I was informed, nearly six acres. 
There are four vineries, a long peach-house, a camellia-house, a 
span-roofed plant-house, a geranium-house, a cucumber and melon- 
house, three ranges, each fifty feet long, devoted to the culture of 
the Pine Apple, and innumerable pits and frames for other 
useful purposes. Besides all these, I noticed a large mushroom- 
house, fruit-rooms, offices, potting sheds, &e. Mr. Ward, the in¬ 
telligent and clever gardener, pointed out to me his mode of giving 
air to his forcing-houses and pits, which, I think, is on a right 
principle: in summer, he can give ah plentifully, direct from the 
external atmosphere ; but, in cold, windy weather, he gives air by 
underground air-drains. To soften the air, the apertures in the 
walls are covered inside with finely-pierced zinc plates. In the 
cucumber-house, I was shown an excellent sort of Cucumber, 
called the Great Western, a good bearer, the fruit averaging twenty 
inches long. A plant was put in, in April, 1857, and continued 
bearing till July, 1858. For winter, Mr. Ward uses a seedling 
of his own, named Ward’s Improved Sion House. It seems to 
me to be a hybrid between Sion House and the Manchester Prize. 
Be that as it may, it is a most excellent variety. A young plan¬ 
tation of this sort was just coming into bearing. The Pine Apple 
plants were very healthy, and producing some good fruit. 
In the kitchen garden, the first thing I noticed, was the walks. 
These are made of such a width that the owner and his lady can 
drive round the garden if they choose, and see the fruits and 
vegetables with ease and comfort. The centre walk is eleven feet 
wide, and 450 feet long. There are side walks similar in width 
and length, besides cross walks, so that a drive of some consider¬ 
able length may be enjoyed. I fear many gardeners would be 
horrified at the idea of a carriage and pair driven round then' 
sanctum of a kitchen garden. 
In the matter of arrangement of crops, the garden is divided 
into four large compartments. In these the main heavy crops— 
such as Peas, early Potatoes, Onions, Celery, &c.—are grown. 
The rotation system is practised to a great extent. In the 
borders, I noticed long rows of salading,—such as Lettuce and 
Endive. These long rows were really very ornamental. I also 
noted what appeared to me a new kind of Cabbage, or Colewort. 
It is named the Rosette, and certainly a rosette Cabbage it is. 
Every garden ought to have this most excellent variety in it. It 
is, as its name imports, a close, compact variety. For market- 
gardeners, I think it will be found most valuable. 
Mr. Ward intends to have an immense quantity of Strawberries 
next year. I believe he has provided upwards of 1,400 pots, and 
nice stocky plants they are. One lot is of the Hautbois variety. 
This, he says, is good for forcing purposes. 
There is a long slip of ground outside the garden walls, devoted 
entirely to bush fruit,—such as Gooseberries, Currants, and 
Raspberries. This is better, I think, than having them in long 
rows by the sides of the walks in the main kitchen garden. 
After looking round these matters outside, we turned into the 
vineries. In three of the houses, the Vines have grown re¬ 
markably strong. One vinery was just finished, and the borders 
not yet made. I judge they are rather too deep ; but so much 
depends on the subsoil, drainage, and material of which the 
borders are made, that I may be mistaken. 
The peach-house is already well furnished with fruit-bearing 
trees. Mr. Ward showed me a fine tree of the famous Stanwiek 
Nectarine, which he assured me had borne three or four dozen of 
large, excellent fruit. I was glad to hear this, because the va¬ 
riety w r as given to that excellent institution the Gardeners’ Be¬ 
nevolent, and I trust every grower will so manage it as to have 
the same successful result. 
The last thing I have space to notice is Thomson’s boiler: 
there is one here, and it appears to answer admirably. It may 
be described as consisting of three strong pipes, placed trian¬ 
gularly, with the fire carried all round. Upon the whole, as far 
I could judge, it is a good one. 
In plants, this garden is as yet in its infancy; though I saw 
some good Heaths, Azaleas, Camellias, and New Holland plants. 
For stove plants, there is no proper house yet. 
