N  .vem'ier  4,  1^97. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER 
427 
A  VISIT  TO  SAWBRIDOEWORTH. 
A  DENSE  fog  hung  over  London  on  a  recent  day,  when  the  writer  set 
out  to  make  his  first  visit  to  Messrs.  T.  Rivers  &  Son’s  nurseries  at  Saw- 
hridgeworth,  and  it  was  not  until  Harlow  was  well  nigh  reached  that  the 
sun  shone  through  the  mist.  As  the  journey  had  never  been  made 
before,  and  the  reputation  of  the  firm  was  well  known,  the  pleasure  of 
the  visit  was  accentuated.  What  with  the  fog  and  special  trains  for 
some  races  the  time  occupied  in  travelling  afforded  ample  time  for 
meditation  and  speculation  upon  what  would  be  seen  when  the  destination 
was  eventually  reached.  The  picture  presented  by  the  grand  fruit  trees 
in  pots  staged  by  the  firm  at  the  Crystal  Palace  Show  was  recalled,  as 
were  the  dishes  of  handsome  Apples  and  Pears,  with  the  splendid  Grapes 
seen  on  the  same  occasion.  “Will  anything  like  those  be  seen  ?”  was  the 
mental  question,  and  the  day  provided  the  answer  of,  “  Ves,  and  some¬ 
thing  more.” 
The  firm  is  of  wide  reputation  for  its  fruit  trees,  and  of  these  it  is 
justly  proud,  but  its  genealogical  tree  is  certainly  worthy  of  a  brief 
]3aragraph.  It  was  from  Mr. 
T.  Francis  Rivers,  the  present 
talented  head  of  the  firm,  and  of 
whom  we  give  a  portrait,  repro¬ 
duced  from  a  photograph  by 
Mr.  A.  Maxwell,  Bishop  Stort- 
ford,  that  the  following  par¬ 
ticulars  were  gleaned.  It  appears 
that  the  family  has  been  estab¬ 
lished  there  for  nearly  two 
centuries,  though  Mr.  Rivers  did 
not  state  decidedly  that  fruit 
trees  were  then  grown  for  sale. 
The  house  of  1720  was  moated 
and  armed  for  the  exclusion  of 
unwelcome  visitors,  but  in  1897 
the  characteristic  principally 
apparent  is  the  hearty  British 
welcome  that  is  afforded.  It  is 
probable  that  the  times  were 
more  troublous  in  the  days  of 
the  first  of  the  Georges  than 
under  the  beneficent  regime  of 
Queen  Victoria.  The  moat  even 
no  longer  remains,  having  been 
filled  in  two  generations  ago 
because,  in  the  words  of  our 
guide,  “  it  was  a  nuisance.” 
For  a  century  and  a  half 
the  cultivation  of  fruit  has  been 
carried  out,  and  it  is  sufficient 
testimony  to  the  excellence  of 
the  trees  supplied  to  know  that 
even  now  no  signs  of  decrease 
are  on  the  horizon.  The  styles 
of  training  have  changed  no 
doubt,  and  the  output  must  have 
grown  with  the  years,  but  what¬ 
ever  the  form  and  whatever  the 
number,  the  stamp  of  Rivers 
proclaims  the  quality.  Fre¬ 
quently  in  cultivating  the  ground 
Roman  coins  of  varying  values 
have  been  unearthed ;  but,  inter¬ 
esting  though  these  undoubtedly 
are,  we  must  hold  to  opr  pre¬ 
ference  for  the  gold  and  silver 
of  to-day.  There  were  pieces  of 
money  broken,  bent,  and  clipped, 
with  others  almost  perfect ;  but 
all  were  passed  with  a  cursory 
glance,  for  it  was  from  these  that  we  were  to  adjourn  to  see  the  trees 
of  all  shapes  and  sizes,  kinds  and  varieties,  and  to  these  it  behoves  a 
gardening  journal  to  give  the  most  attention. 
The  late  Mr.  Thomas  Rivers  did  great  work  in  the  fruit  world,  and 
splendidly  has  his  son  trodden  in  his  footsteps.  If  one  dwell  a  moment 
on  the  many  fruits  emanating  from  Rivers  of  Sawbridgeworth  one  may 
form  some  conception  of  what  has  been  done. 
Acreage  ai^d  Soil. 
The  number  of  acres  actually  devoted  to  fruit  culture  is  about  200> 
but  the  estate  is  considerably  larger  than  this,  and  is  utilised  for  general 
farming.  The  advantage  of  this  extra  ground  is  obvious,  for  it  provides 
new  space  on  which  fruit  can  be  placed  for  a  change  of  ground.  As  of 
many  other  crops  the  soil  becomes  “  tired  ”  of  always  supporting  fruit, 
and  if  a  change  be  not  given  there  will  be  a  certain  eventual  deterioration 
in  quality.  Such  must  not  be,  so  the  crops  are  changed,  and  what  has 
been  farm  land  becomes  fruit  garden,  and  v/ce  versa.  So  it  is  that  year 
by  year  the  same  standard  is  maintained,  and  it  is  the  constant  endeavour 
of  the  chief  and  his  two  sons  to  keep  at  least  at  the  normal  level,  and  if 
possible  to  rise  above  it.  Of  course  with  such  an  area  the  natural  staple 
varies  very  considerably,  but  almost  all  of  it  is  a  medium  loam,  which 
suits  fruit  admirably  if  thoroughly  cultivated. 
Speaking  of  thorough  cultivation  makes  it  permissible  to  mention 
here  that  when  a  fresh  piece  of  ground  is  appropriated  for  fruit,  the 
whole  of  it  is  deeply  trenched  and  good  manure  added  ;  thus  abundance 
of  soil  is  loosened,  in  which  the  roots  may  find  plenty  of  food,  and  from 
which  they  come  in  the  form  of  a  mass  of  fibres.  One  portion  of  the 
nursery  faces  the  south,  and  on  this  the  trees  make  wonderful  progress 
—  not  growing  luxuriantly,  but  producing  wood  and  buds  that  ripen 
thoroughly  well.  Another  advantage  enjoyed  by  this  nursery  is  that  it 
is  close  to  the  canal  and  the  rail,  so  that  despatch  is  rendered  easy,  while 
manure  can  be  brought  close  on  to  the  ground.  At  first  glance  the  soil 
in  places  does  not  look  very  kind,  but  it  Iweaks  down  under  culture,  and 
gives  a  medium  than  which  no  better  could  be  desired  for  the  particular 
purpose  that  it  is  used  for. 
Standards  and  Bushes. 
The  standards  of  various  kinds  of  fruits  with  which  so  much  land 
is  occupied  number  many  thousands.  Immense  numbers  of  them  are 
young  and  in  the  proper  condition  for  sale,  while  others  are  considerably 
older,  and  are  in  profitable  bearing.  These  comprise  the  leading 
varieties  that  find  the  greatest 
favour  in  the  various  markets. 
The  most  conspicuous  features 
of  these  are  the  cleanliness  of 
the  bark,  the  openness  of  the 
heads,  and  the  number  of  fruit 
buds  with  which  each  is  studded. 
This  year  the  crop  has  not  been 
a  very  heavy  one,  but  the  trees 
promise  well  for  another  year. 
Pears,  Plums,  and  Apples  form 
the  bulk  of  the  standards  observed 
in  different  parts  of  the  nurseries, 
and  whether  young  or  old  they 
look  as  though  they  are  capable 
of  rendering  a  thoroughly  good 
account  of  themselves  in  the 
years  to  come.  The  several 
other  kinds  of  fruit  grown  as 
standards  occupy  a  considerable 
amount  of  space,  and  are  pos¬ 
sessed  of  the  same  pleasing 
characteristics. 
Numerous  as  are  the  standard 
trees  those  trained  in  the  form 
of  bushes  or  pyramids  are  no 
less  so.  As  with  the  standards 
there  are  trees  of  various  ages, 
but  there  is  no  variation  in 
quality,  all  being  uniform  in  this 
respect.  The  regularity  is  very 
striking  as  one  traverses  quarter 
after  quarter  and  finds  the  same 
conditions  prevailing  in  each. 
It  was  some  of  these  shaped  trees 
that  we  examined  at  the  roots, 
as  the  lifting  was  in  progress, 
and  were  surprised  at  the  extra¬ 
ordinary  number  of  fibrous  roots 
that  each  one  carried.  It  was 
not  a  case  of  one  being  good  in 
this  respect,  but  all  the  trees 
looked  alike.  It  was  apparent, 
too,  that  the  utmost  care  is  taken 
in  the  lifting,  for  the  number  of 
fibres  broken  was  very  small, 
much  less  indeed  than  one  would 
have  thought  from  the  appear¬ 
ance  of  the  ground,  which  before 
the  insertion  of  the  tool,  does 
not  look  very  inviting,  nor  give 
much  promise  of  clean,  healthy  roots.  Currants,  Gooseberries,  and 
Strtfwberries  take  up  proportionately  large  areas  of  ground,  and  are  in 
capital  form. 
Trained  Trees. 
Amongst  the  trained  trees  we  noticed  and  admired  Plums,  Peaches, 
Nectarines,  Cherries,  Apples,  and  Pears  in  all  stages  from  one  year  old. 
Besides  those  in  fan  and  espalier  form  there  were  gridiron  shaped  as 
well  as  cordons,  with  one  or  two  others  that  are  not  so  popular.  Some 
varieties  of  each  kind  Avere  particularly  notable  as  doing  better  than 
their  neighbours,  but  few  of  them  leave  room  for  much  adverse  criticism. 
The  fan-shaped  Peaches,  Nectarines,  and  Plums  looked  wonderfully  well, 
as  did  the  espalier  Apples  and  Pears.  Cordons  are  in  strong  force,  and 
the  quantities  of  them  grown  show  how  rapidly  they  are  advancing  in  public 
estimation.  One  might  easily  select  trees  here  that  would  occupy  any 
wall  immediately,  and  they  would  commence  fruiting  at  once,  or  small 
ones  could  be  chosen  and  trained  into  the  space  they  were  desired  to 
occupy.  In  the  latter  case  it  is  obviously  not  desirable  to  crop  the  trees 
the  first  season  or  two,  as  this  is  prejudicial  to  the  welfare  of  the  trees. 
Trees  in  Pots. 
The  majority  of  people  who  were  asked  for  what  Messrs.  Rivers  were 
most  celebrated  would  be  unanimous  in  responding,  “  For  their  pot  trees,” 
and  the  writer  feels  no  inclination  to  disagree  with  this  verdict,  for  they. 
Fig.  64.- Mr.  T.  Francis  Rivers. 
