April 8, i899. 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
505 
lost in the spring of the year than at any other time. 
True, there ought to be plenty of food to gather now, 
but there isn't, and there is "an eDd on't." Bee 
hives should not face to the south or west, as during 
bright cold weather, as the sample we have on hand 
just now, induces the poor bees to come out when 
they might to be at home in the warm. They become 
numbed with the cold, are unable to reach home, 
and perish. 
- — a — 
ABBOTSBURY, NEWTON ABBOT. 
The Famous Rockery. 
To lovers of hardy alpine and rock plants there is a 
bit of very interesting work at Abbotsbury, on the 
steeply rising ground behind Newton Abbot. It was 
the property of the late Edward Fisher, Esq , but on 
the lamented death of that gentleman it was bought 
town of Newton Abbot, while a view of the rockery 
may be obtained from the far side of the town where 
the better class of houses is creeping up the hill side 
on the opposite side of the valley of the River Teign. 
Altogether the rockery well repays a visit of in¬ 
spection, for the spring flowers have been coming 
out one by one for some time past. About 2,000 
species of alpines were gathered together and 
planted on this rich piece of ground, and some of 
them are rare or uncommon plants, many of them 
being very choice. 
A pond or tarn occupies the bottom or lowest part 
of the hollow, while on the side of the steep slope on 
the right is a cave, with a huge boulder lying over 
the mouth. In front of the spectator the rocks are 
very steep, and over the brow of this part a silvery 
cascade comes rippling and tumbling over the rock 
wall and stones, the water coming to rest in the pond 
Osmanthus ilicifolius, and a collection of Magnolias, 
including such handsome species as M. conspicua 
(M. Yulan), M. Lenne (a splendid hybrid), M. acu¬ 
minata and the new M. parviflora. The ground 
beneath the Magnolias is carpeted with Gaultheria 
procumbens, Veronica pinquifolia, &c. Heaths are 
also grown, including St. Dabeoc's Heath (Daboecia 
polifolia, better known as Meziesia). A collection 
of thriving Bamboos not far from the pond is also a 
feature of the place, some of the best of them being 
Phyllostachys aurea, P. Simonii, Arundinaria nitida, 
and A. Hindsii. Great banks or bushes of Rock- 
roses (Cistus), and fine green bushes of Olearia stel- 
lulata, high up on the rocks and steep slopes to the 
right catch the eye of the visitor at once. 
Approaching closer the rocks in places are seen to 
be stratified in different ways so as to represent vol¬ 
canic upheaval. The plants likewise are arranged in 
View in the Rockery at Abbotsbury, Newton Abbot, 
by a syndicate in Newton Abbot, to prevent, if possi¬ 
ble, its falling into the hands of the builder, or the 
equally undesirable fate of being destroyed. It is the 
work of that skilled landscape gardener, Mr. F. W. 
Meyer, employed by Messrs. R. Veitch & Son, 
Exeter, who designed and carried out the work about 
five years ago for Mr Fisher. 
The rockery is entered from the drive by a narrow 
footpath, the visitor being suddenly introduced to a 
masterpiece of art which looks as natural as if it 
really were a piece of Nature's handiwork. The soil 
of the hillside was scooped out to a depth of 13 ft. 
and piled up on either hand with fine effect. On one 
side is a high bank covered with Cherry Laurels, Pop¬ 
lars, Cedars, Ligustrum latifolium, and other ever¬ 
green and deciduous subjects, which hide the town 
from the rockery and the latter from the town. On 
the high bank above the rockery, on the other hand, 
a splendid view is obtained of the old Devonshire 
after miking its way by a narrow channel amongst 
the flower planted banks and rocks. Only a portion 
of the various parts can be seen in one view, but the 
accompanying illustration prepared from a photo¬ 
graph, taken by Mr. F. W. Meyer, shows a bit of the 
bolder escarpment formed, presumably, by the 
action of falling water; also the cave. 
Immediately to the left on entering by the foot¬ 
path from the drive is a collection of Berberis, 
twenty species being planted on a piece of ground 
occupying an area of 300 sq. yards. Amongst them 
we noted Berberis Fortunei, B. japonica (B. Bealei), 
B. dulcis nana (only 18 in. high), B. aristata, B. Wal- 
lichi (B. Hookeri), B. ilicifolia, B. fascicularis, B. 
Aquifolium, B. Darwini, B. stenophylla, B. empetri- 
folia, and the rare B. Fremonti, with spiny, pinnate 
glaucous leaves like a miniature B. Aquifolium, but 
different in colour. « 
Elsewhere we came upon the Holly-like 
groups according to the stratification. Green sward 
occupies the space between isolated masses of rock. 
On one of these isolated masses Ramondia pyrenaica, 
R. p. alb3, Scolopendrium vulgare crispum, and 
Fuchsia procumbens, the latter being hardy here, 
and in berry during winter, are planted. 
Under the grotto of great boulders of rock, thriving 
specimens of Cyrtomium falcatum, Aspidium muni- 
tum, Scolopendrium vulgare fissum, Sellaginella hel- 
vetica, Adiantum Capillus-Veneris, the Killarney 
Fern (Trichomanes radicans), Aspidium angulare 
proliferum, and a form of Asplenium Trichomanes 
with cut pinnae may be noted. On the top of the 
rocks at this point are large plants of Smilax aspera, 
Mesembryanthemum uncinatum, Chamaercps For¬ 
tunei, and variegated New Zealand Flax occupying 
various appropriate and conspicuous coigns of 
vantage, and some of them may be seen in the 
accompanying illustration. The strata of the cave 
