58 
TfH E GARDENING WORLD. 
September 26, 1896. 
aloides with their fiery-red masses of bloom were 
very imposing during August. Another pretty 
arrangement was a bed of Lilium Harrisii on a 
groundwork of Verbena venosa. Mr. A. Methven, 
the gardener, has raised several new Lobelias of 
considerable merit, including that already mentioned. 
Very conspicuous is that named Miss Evelyn Green, 
with large flowers of a brilliant dark blue, and 
having a large white blotch in the centre. It is of 
dwarf, compact habit, very floriferous, and will make 
a handsome edging plant. 
To the north of the mansion is a rustic bed or 
rootwork in which the night-scented Tobacco has 
been a prominent object for many weeks past. Other 
subjects here are the green and variegated forms of 
the American Aloe, Verbena venosa, shrubby 
Veronicas, the Ice plant, etc. This bit of rustic 
work affords pleasing variety. A little farther on in 
the same direction, is the Rose garden, which Mr. 
Methven had trenched 2 ft. deep during the past 
winter. Several of the Roses have flowered well a 
second time, including Bouquet de Blanche and 
Baroness de Maynard. 
Southward from the mansion runs a broad grass 
walk, along one side of which is a wide border filled 
with a great variety of flowering plants, hardy and 
tender. Nany of them are tall and very conspicuous, 
including Hollyhocks, single and double Dahlias, 
and Sweet Peas, all of which have flowered profusely. 
Here may be seen masses of l?apaver somniferum in 
variety; and there Nicotiana affinis. African Mari¬ 
golds, the common Tobacco, Dianthus chinensis 
Heddewigii, Love-lies-bleeding, Eschscholtzias, 
Godetias, Gladioli, Chrysanthemums, Asters, etc., 
keep up an ever varying display all through the 
season. The walk and border were made by Mr. 
Methven, who is carrying out new improvements 
year by year. 
Kitchen Garden and Glasshouses. 
The kitchen garden lies away higher up on the slope 
amongst the trees, and hidden from the mansion. 
Within the walls it comprises two and a half acres, 
but altogether extends to four acres. The walls are 
12 ft. high, built of bricks, and give shelter and 
support to a varied assortment of Peach, Pear and 
Plum trees, bearing in some cases heavy crops of 
fruit. Tomatos trained along the low front walls of 
the glasshouses, and comprising Champion 
Challenger, Vick's Criterion and some others, have 
produced an enormous crop of fruit. The wide 
borders in front of the vineries and plant houses, are 
occupied with flowers. One portion is occupied with 
China Asters of various colours ; another is 
panelled with Pelargoniums, Lobelias, Perilla, 
Dactylis glomerata elegantissima, &c. The remainder 
of this long border is occupied with Phlox 
Drummondi, Intermediate Stocks, Ageratum, 
Zinnias, Larkspurs, and other showy subjects, 
which are planted in broad bands of three lines each. 
In the vegetable department a fine crop of large 
samples of Red Italian Tripoli and other Onions had 
been harvested in their season. Late sowings of 
Dwarf Beans and Peas indicated that late supplies 
were amply provided for. 
The early Peach house has long been cleared of its 
crop. One vinery is occupied with Muscat of 
Alexandria, large in bunch and berry ; and young 
vines of Mrs. Pince are being brought on. The back 
wall is covered with Smilax (Asparagus medeoloides) 
each stem twisted round a long string. Black 
Hamburgh and Foster's Seedling occupy another 
vinery ; while a third structure accommodates Gros 
Maroc, finely finished, Black Hamburgh and Gros 
Coleman. Figs and Peaches cover the back wall 
and afford heavy crops of fruit. Melons and 
Cucumbers are grown in pits. At the back of the 
hothouses is a useful Mushroom House heated with 
a flow and return pipe beneath the benches, and by 
two flow and two return pipes in the pathway. The 
benches are supported by brick arches. Beneath one 
of them, the space is enclosed and used for forcing 
Rhubarb, Seakale, Chicory, &c. 
The greenhouse a short time ago was brightened 
with Celosias, Lilium speciosum, having twelve to 
twenty-two flowers on a stem, and L. s. Melpomene, 
in some cases with two stems from a bulb, bearing 
in the aggregate thirty-six flowers. Crinum Moorei, 
and C. Powelli, with seven flowers in an umbel, and 
Bougainvillea sanderiana were also conspicuous 
features of this house. 
Liliums were even more numerous in an inter¬ 
mediate house close by. One bulb of L. speciosum 
album had given rise to two branching stems, bearing 
twenty-two and twenty-five flowers respectively. L. 
auratum Wittei had white flowers with exception of 
a pale yellow midrib to the segments. Other bulbous 
plants were Pancratium fragrans and Amaryllis 
aulica. Asparagus deflexus was grown as a basket 
plant. Adiantum farleyense and A. gracillimum, as 
well as Davallia Gortoni, were in fine condition. 
The Marquis of Camden is getting together a 
collection of Orchids of a showy and useful character. 
Notwithstanding the fact that this class of plants was 
out of season, some interesting things were yet in 
flower, including Odontoglossums in variety, Laelia 
dayana grandiflora, and Cypripedium Lady 
Clementine Walsh. The dorsal sepal was rich 
apricot margined with white, and the lip was dark 
chocolate. The stove also contained a quantity of 
Orchids, including Cattleya Trianaei Popayan strain, 
C. labiata, and other species making good growth. 
The' bronzy-red and green, variegated Hibiscus 
Cooperi was in bright condition. Very fragrant 
were the leaves of Cinnamomum aromaticum. Den- 
drobiums in considerable variety are also well done 
here. 
Higher up the slope are some useful span-roofed 
plant houses containing a variety of plants. On 
the roof were well-flowered specimens of Stephanotis 
floribunda, falling the house with its sweet cdour ; 
and of Dippladenia brierleyana, whose flowers are 
pink when they expand, but soon develop to a beauti¬ 
ful rich rose-red. Large bushes of Gardenia were 
planted out jnd splendidly set with flower buds, 
which keep up a succession over a long period of the 
year. Licuala (Pritchardia) grandis is still a highly 
interesting Palm and useful for various purposes. 
Niphobolus argens has leathery fronds of a beautiful 
silvery hue beneath when young, ultimately changing 
to fawn. Particularly interesting and pretty was 
Livistona rotundifolia, which, though only 12 in. 
high, had a spread of 2 ft. 
Trees and Shrubs. 
The woods are undoubtedly the dominating feature 
of the estate, and the beauty of Bayham Abbey in 
particular. Timber trees of various kinds, hard 
wood and otherwise make up the woods ; but a 
wealth of ornamental trees and shrubs is planted 
around, and in the immediate vicinity of the mansion. 
Many tall and beautiiul Conifers line the approach, 
and the slopes lying behind the mansion. Worthy of 
mention are the specimens of Pseudotseuga Douglasii, 
Sequoia gigantea, Thuja gigantea, Cupressus 
nutkaensis, Cedrus atlantica, C. Deodora, and C. 
Libani. Here also are thriving samples of Arau¬ 
caria imbricata, Thujopsis dolobrata, T. d. variegata, 
and numerous forms of Cupressus lawsoniana, includ¬ 
ing the silver and golden variegated varieties, C. 1 . 
lutea, C. 1 . erecta viridis, C. 1 . gracilis, C. 1 . prostrata, 
and several others. Here too are silver and golden 
Junipers, green and golden Yews, Retinospora pisi- 
fera, R. p. aurea, R. plumosa, R. p. aurea, R. p 
variegata, and others of that class that give interest, 
beauty, and variety to a place. All the better known 
of the Thujas with their interesting garden forms 
are planted about including T. occidentalis, T. 
orientalis, T. vervaeneana, and others of the same 
class. 
The plumy forms of Cryptomeria japonica com- 
pacta, C. elegans ‘compacta may also be noted. 
Ornamental Pines include the Weymouth, the 
Austrian and the Swiss Stone Pine (Pmus Cembra). 
The spiry forms of Abies and Picea, with their var¬ 
ious tints of light and dark green, glaucous and blue 
lend a charm and wealth of greenery summer and 
winter, which the planter cannot well resist. The 
Silver Firs include Abies nobilis, A. concolor 
(lasiocarpa), A. nordmanniana, A. numidica, A 
Pinsapo, with its short peg-like leaves, and the noble 
A. grandis, which towers up to a great height in a 
few years. The Spruces are represented 
by Picea ajanensis, P. pungens glauca (the 
Blue Spruce), P. nigra, and P. orientalis. The two 
latter are notable for their narrowly pyramidal and 
spiry habit of growth, which gives them a singularly 
graceful appearance. There is yet one other distinct 
type of Conifer that must not be overlooked, namely 
Tsuga canadensis and T. hookeriana, which are 
classed with the Hemlock Spruces. Amongst this 
wealth of arboreal subjects with which the estate 
abounds, the less pretentious shrubs are not over¬ 
looked. Andromedas and their allies are grown in 
variety : and the same may be said of Azalea mollis, 
A. pontica, and Ghent Azaleas. The evergreen 
Aucuba, Berberis Aquifolium, B. japonica, B. 
Darwini, and B. stenophylla are beautiful at all times, 
both in flower and fruit. Cotoneaster, Daphne, 
Erica, Cytisus, Laurels, Hollies, Rhododendrons, 
and evergreen Oaks are all planted in great variety. 
The single and double Furze are not to be despised 
with their forbidding spininess and wealth of golden 
blossom. 
Patriarchal Trees. 
On an extensive estate like Bayham Abbey, it is not 
surprising to find some patriarchal trees amongst the 
18,000 acres of wood. On the farm of Great Shoe- 
smith in the parish of Wadhurst is a gigantic Ash 
84 ft. high and containing 356 cubic feet of market¬ 
able timber. At a foot from the ground it is 15 ft. 
4 in. in circumference, and rises to a height of 38 ft. 
before branching. On the same farm is a Beech 
girthing 18 ft. at a foot from the ground. The trunk 
is clear of branches to a height of 48 ft. Not far 
from this tree is another Beech, 95 ft. high and 
girthing 18 ft. 6 in. at a foot from the ground. 
Measured at the same height a tree on the farm of 
Wickhurst girths 24 ft. 4 in. This is an Oak standing 
65 ft. high and containing 548 ft. of marketable 
timber. On the same farm is a Beech, girthing 15ft. 
10 in. at a foot from the ground, and 80 ft. high. 
On Little Shoesmith farm is an Oak girthing 22 ft. 
near the ground and standing 85 ft, high. On the 
Home Park near the Old Abbey are several large 
Oaks nearly of equal size, and one measures 18 ft. 
6 in. in circumference near the ground. A huge 
pollarded Ash is supposed to be 800 years old, but it 
is now a mere shell, girthing 38 ft. near the base. 
Another Oak in the Home Park girths 19 ft. 7 in. 
near the ground; it is 70 ft. high, with a spread of 
branches of 84 ft. In the Home Park also another 
Oak girths 22 ft. 4 in. near the ground; and at a 
height of 5 ft. it throws out immense limbs, some of 
them 7 ft. 8in. in girth. All of the above patriarchs 
are in the county of Sussex. 
On the Kent side of the tributary of the Medway 
are a few remarkable trees, including an Oak on the 
banks of the stream itself. This measures 16 ft. 7 in. 
in girth near the base, and stands 80 ft. high. The 
trunk is a perfect picture and the tree is still growing 
vigorously. In Rear Wood is an Oak 14 ft. 5 in. in 
circumference, near the ground, and standing 83 ft. 
high. It also is vigorous and healthy. The well 
known Pembury Beech grows in sandy soil near the 
village of Pembury. It girths 22 ft. 5 in. at a foot 
from the ground. The trunk at 36 ft. from the ground 
is 8 ft. 11 in. in circumference, where it sends out 
huge limbs girthing 7 ft. The branches are crooked, 
gnarled, and twisted in all directions and forms; 
and artists may frequently be seen sketching this 
venerable old Beech. 
-- 
HERBACEOUS FLOWERS FOR COM¬ 
PETITION. 
I quite admit what "Coila” says on p. 43 that 
there would be a danger of exhibitors staging flowers 
of Lilium auratum and L. speciosum, grown under 
glass, if Lilies were admitted in stands of hardy her¬ 
baceous plants. Deception, however, is possible in 
various other classes which are annually scheduled 
by horticultural societies throughout the country. 
The argument for the exclusion of Lilies from stands 
of hardy herbaceous flowers, therefore falls through, 
otherwise, numerous others, even of the leading 
classes would have to be excluded. The above two 
Lilies are, perhaps, more frequently grown under 
glasss than out of doors; and that is certainly the 
case with L. Harrisii. I cannot, however, quite re¬ 
concile the statements of “Coila'’ when he says, 
" who can tell whether they have been treated as pot 
plants or cut from the open border ?” A little further 
on he says it is annoying to find L. auratum, L.Harrisii, 
&c., in stands of hardy flowers, “ when it is perfectly 
well known they have been flowered under glass. 1 ’ 
If such was perfectly well known to be the case, 
then the prizes should be withheld and the exhibi¬ 
tors disqualified, to put it mildly. Possibly “ Coila " 
meant that other exhibitors strongly suspected that 
the flowers had been grown under glass, but could 
not prove it. The matter could be exposed and 
righted after the day of the show, if any dishonesty 
on the part of the exhibitor could be proved. A few 
exposures of this kind would put a check on the 
tendency to palm off plants from the glasshouses as 
border grown plants. The wording of the schedule 
should distinctly state that the plants must be grown 
