JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
May  14,  1800. 
if  438 
and  he  is  credited  with  the  introduction  of  edible  Rhubarb,  having 
obtained  plants  through  his  friend,  Matthew  Lister.  He  received 
many  “  fair  flowers  ”  from  two  London  merchants,  Lete  and 
Franqueville,  and  a  Mr.  Gwdyer  brought  him  many  British  flowers 
he  had  never  seen  wild.  We  observe,  in  reference  to  a  general 
belief  of  his  day  concerning  the  influence  of  the  moon  in 
horticulture,  Parkinson  declares  that,  after  many  experiments,  he 
could  not  find  evidence  that  our  satellite  had  either  a  good  or 
bad  effect  on  plants. 
Glancing  back  again  at  the  more  central  region  of  old  London, 
I  note,  that  to  some  extent  the  popular  idea  of  it  as  largely  made 
up  of  close  streets  and  alleys  is  a  mistaken  one.  Within  the 
City  walls,  even  down  to  the  time  of  the  Stuarts,  there  were  many 
large  open  spaces,  in  addition  to  the  numerous  burial  grounds  ;  for 
example,  the  halls  of  the  companies  had  mostly  their  gardens 
attached,  also  scattered  over  the  intervals  between  the  chief  streets 
were  bouses  of  citizens  and  nobles,  many  with  gardens  or  enclosed 
spaces,  then  there  were  others  belonging  to  the  monasteries, 
h  itzstephen,  of  the  twelfth  century,  says  the  citizens  had  some 
beautiful  gardens,  often  planted  with  trees,  and  in  the  reign  of 
Henry  III.  large  mansions  had  sometimes  an  orchard.  Evelyn 
mentions  in  his  day  the  orchards  about  Barbican  as  being 
advantaged  by  the  reduced  consumption  of  coal,  but  these,  possibly, 
lay  outside  the  walls  in  that  direction.  From  the  change  produced 
also  on  London  trees  and  plants  generally,  by  the  temporary 
stoppage  of  this  fuel  during  the  Civil  War,  he  argued  in  favour  of 
wood  fires  only,  as  being  best  for  horticulture,  about  this  he  wrote 
in  his  “Fumifugium.”  Owing  to  the  frequent  domestic  troubles, 
the  Londoners  were  chary  abmt  building  houses  for  themselves 
beyond  the  City  for  fear  of  pillage. 
Those,  however,  who  were  fond  of  gardening  saw  ho  objection 
to  securing  for  themselves  plots  in  the  suburbs  to  the  north,  where 
they  could  cultivate  plants  on  a  larger  scale  than  in  the  town,  and 
along  the  City  Road  during  the  Middle  Ages  manv  citizens  had 
ground  which  produced  herbs,  fruit,  and  vegetables.  A  list  is 
extant  of  some  holders,  and  it  is  curious  to  note  amongst  these 
citizens  are  numerous  mercers  and  tailors,  suggesting  that  in  the 
fraternity  there  may  probably  have  been  then  a  lawful  fondness 
for  Cabbage  !  In  fact,  their  suburban  gardens  were  so  profitable 
that  they  had  a  surplus  to  sell,  since  we  read,  in  an  old  petition 
dated  1345,  a  complaint  addressed  by  various  gardeners  of  nobles 
and  citizens  to  the  Mayor.  It  had  long  been  their  privilege  to 
stand  in  front  of  St.  Austin’s  Church,  Broad  Street,  selling  Cherries, 
Pulse,  and  other  articles  ;  but  they  had  been  ordered  off  as  a 
public  nuisance.  A  counter-petition  was  brought  up  by  the  clergy 
and  their  friends,  giving  proof  that  the  gardeners’  clamours  disturbed 
them  at  services,  and  they  had  another  place  assigned  them  at 
Blackfriars,  near  Baynard  Castle.  Rosemary  Lane,  by  the  way, 
which  degenerated  into  Rag  Fair,  was  apparently  named  because 
in  it  the  herb-women  offered  Rosemary,  with  other  “  sweets  and 
simples.’  But  old  Peascod  Street  was  not  an  emporium  for  Peas, 
though  it  is  supposed  they  were  once  grown  on  Goodman’s  Fields, 
close  by. 
Passages  from  Chaucer  and  other  early  poets  have  been  quoted 
to  show  that  in  their  day  people  had  some  liking  for  wild  and 
garden  flowers,  but  it  was  not  till  the  reign  of  Henry  VIII.  that  the 
cultivation  of  flowers  on  account  of  their  beauty  or  fragrance  was 
taken  up.  It  might  not  have  happened  even  then  had  not  the 
influence  of  the  Flemings  largely  affected  English  gardening.  The 
springs  and  slopes  of  Clerkenwell  or  Hoxton,  localities  now  offering 
little  that  is  attractive  to  the  eye,  drew  citizens  in  that  direction  as 
the  north  suburbs  became  safer,  and  houses  began  to  be  built  in  the 
sixteenth  century,  around  which  were  parterres,  also  frequently  a 
labyrinth  or  shrubbery  was  attached.  The  original  parterre  con¬ 
sisted  of  a  number  of  small  flower  beds,  usually  forming  a  kind  of 
pattern,  sometimes  laid  down  amidst  earth  of  various  colours,  or 
occasionally  in  a  grass  plot.  Thomas  Hill,  who  wrote  also  under 
the  soubriquet  of  “  Didymus  Mountain,”  was  our  earliest  author  on 
ornamental  gardening;  a  small  work  of  his  is  dated  1563.  He 
discoursed  much  on  flower-knots  and  labyrinths,  doubtless  experi¬ 
menting  himself  ;  but  where  his  garden  lay  we  do  not  know.  A 
physician  and  divine,  as  well  as  horticulturist, William  Bulleyn,  came 
to  London  about  the  middle  of  the  sixteenth  century,  and  formed 
a  garden  somewhere  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Finsbury.  One 
important  work  he  did  was  to  prove  that  a  prevalent  theory 
concerning  the  unsuitableness  of  England  for  many  plants  was 
without  any  foundation. 
North  of  Clerkenwell  there  was  a  garden  belonging  to  the 
Crown,  which  was  sold  in  the  time  of  the  Commonwealth,  and 
which  might  possibly  have  been  the  l<  Rose  ground,”  mentioned  as 
held  by  the  poet  Daniel  during  the  reign  of  Elizabeth.  Old  Street, 
at  first  Eald  Street,  had  a  nursery  famous  in  that  reign,  and  which 
Oldys  said  yielded  the  choicest  fruit  of  any  part  of  Middlesex.  At 
Hoxton,  Guirle  produced  a  Nectarine  he  called  the  Elruge  in  the  reign 
of  Charles  II.,  and  Pearson,  about  the  same  time,  was  famous  for 
Anemones.  In  the  reign  of  William  III.  Ricketts  had  a  large 
collection  of  useful  and  ornamental  trees,  and  Darby  was  a  great 
grower  of  exotics  ;  crowds  visited  his  ground  in  June,  1729,  to  see 
an  American  Aloe,  which  was  full  of  magnificent  flowers.  Fairchild 
of  Hoxton  had  a  vineyard  and  extensive  gardens  ;  he  had  some 
knowledge  of  science,  and  wrote  a  paper  for  the  Royal  Society  on 
the  motion  of  sap  in  plants. — J.  R.  S.  C. 
The  Butterfly  Oncidiums. 
Judging  from  the  attractive  effects  produced  in  our  Orchid 
houses  at  home  by  the  tasteful  disposition  of  these  popular 
Orchids,  one  can  hardly  help  wondering  what  they  are  like  growing 
naturally  in  the  forests  of  Trinidad  and  other  parts  of  Central  and 
Southern  America.  The  long  wiry  peduncles,  hardly  visible  at  any 
distance,  pushing  the  flowers  in  all  directions  in  the  graceful  pose 
and  unfettered  beauty  seen  only  in  Nature  must  be  a  sight  worth 
going  a  long  way  to  see,  and  such  living  pictures  must  compensate 
to  a  certain  extent  the  intrepid  collectors  for  many  and  varied 
discomforts  incidental  to  their  roving  lives.  We  who  sit  at  home, 
if  not  at  ease  at  least  in  comparative  safety,  have  to  be  content  with 
the  imaginary  picture,  and  with  the  best  we  can  do  in  our  narrowed 
sphere  in  imitation  of  what  our  mind  conceives. 
These  Butterfly  Orchids  are  too  well  known  to  require  anything 
by  way  of  description,  so  a  few  hints  on  their  culture  is  all  that  is 
needed  here.  Some  authorities  give  O.  papilio  and  0.  Krameri- 
anum  specific  rank,  others  class  the  latter  as  a  variety  only  of  the 
former,  and  certainly  they  seem  too  nearly  related  for  further 
distinction.  The  question  of  what  constitutes  a  species  is,  how¬ 
ever,  one  that  has  never  been  fully  answered,  or  if  a  rule  has  been 
laid  down  it  is  not  observed,  so  that  when  treating  of  this  matter 
one  gets  on  rather  dangerous  ground.  The  same  mode  of  treat¬ 
ment  that  suits  one  does  for  the  other,  and  this  consists  of  giving 
the  plants  plenty  of  heat  and  moisture,  especially  while  growing 
freely,  a  light  sunny  position  and  a  root  run  substantial  enough  to 
sustain  their  growth  without  hampering  the  progress  of  the  roots 
by  closeness  of  material.  Blocks  are  used  by  some  growers  lightly 
dressed  with  sphagnum  moss,  and  excellent  they  are  if  the  plants 
are  well  attended  to  for  water. 
The  small  shallow  pans  so  frequently  recommended  in  these 
pages  are  very  suitable  for  the  plants,  containing  just  enough 
material  to  maintain  itself  in  a  moist  condition  without  very 
frequent  waterings.  Baskets  may  also  be  used  or  rafts,  according 
to  convenience  or  fancy.  In  any  of  these  receptacles  the  compost 
should  consist  of  two-thirds  of  sphagnum  to  one  of  peat,  and  the 
moss  may  be  encouraged  to  grow  freely  around  the  bases  of  the 
pseudo-bulb  in  the  summer,  removing  a  little  of  this  in  the  winter 
as  holding  too  much  moisture.  The  drainage  in  each  case  requires 
careful  attention,  as  on  this  depends  mainly  the  condition  of  the 
bulk  of  the  compost.  About  half  the  depth  of  the  pans  or  baskets 
should  be  filled  with  clean  crocks,  and  a  liberal  admixture  must 
also  be  allowed  in  the  compost.  The  leaves  are  apt  to  be  attacked 
by  brown  scale,  and  this  should  be  kept  under  by  frequent 
syringings,  or  healthy  growth  and  vigorous  flower  spikes  are  out 
of  the  question. — H.  R.  R. 
Cambridge  Lodge. 
Orchid  growers  from  all  quarters  know,  only  by  repute,  the 
collection  that  is  cultivated  at  this  London  home  by  Mr.  H.  J. 
Chapman  for  R.  I.  Measures,  Esq.,  and  the  plants  have  only  to 
be  seen  to  be  appreciated.  Situated  in  the  heart  of  densely 
populated  Camberwell,  a  call  is  a  great  relief,  as  it  carries 
one  away,  so  to  speak,  from  the  bustle  of  City  life.  Only 
a  few  dajs  ago  the  writer  discovered  the  grower  hard  at  work 
amongst  his  plants,  but  he  was  not  too  busy  to  show  an  interested 
visitor  all  that  there  was  to  be  seen  in  the  many  houses.  It  is  a 
case  of  Orchids  to  right  of  one,  Orchids  to  left  of  one,  for  every 
house  is  full  to  repletion,  as  will  readily  be  understood,  when  it  is 
mentioned  that  the  collection  has  been  added  to  every  year  for  a 
very  long  time  indeed.  _ 
Perhaps  the  two  sections  represented  best  are  the  Cypripediums 
and  the  Masdevallias,  and  of  the  latter  the  Cambridge  Lodge  collec¬ 
tion  is  probably  one  of  the  finest  in  the  country.  Constant 
purchases  are  made  to  maintain  the  excellence  and  completeness 
