283 
jounxAL 
OF  HORTICULTURE  AXD  COTTAGE  GARDEXER. 
September  24,  1903. 
5mpnev  Uall,  ^roitwicb. 
Sometime.'^  the  garden  makes  the  gardener;  generally  the 
gardener  makes  the  garden.  By  his  etfort  or  want  of  effort,  so 
is  tlie  garden  rich  or  poor,  well  dressed  or  ill,  beautiful  and  plenti¬ 
ful  in  its  products  and  features,  or  otherwise.  Impnej^  is  a  garden 
where  the  man  in  charge  makes  the  impress  of  his  assiduity 
apparent  in  many  ways.  He  cultivates  well ;  he  cultivates  in¬ 
tensively.  The  walls  of  the  Muscat  vinery  afford  an  illustration, 
for  they  are  clothed  with  cordon  Pears,  a  thing  not  to  be  seen 
once  in  a  hundred  places;  and  if  the  reader  will  follow  these 
notes  to  their  conclusion,  he  will  find  that  the  mo.st  is  made  of 
the  available  space  and  materials. 
The  estate,  if  not  very  extensive,  is  well  planned,  and  has 
charming  features.  Impney  Hall  is  a  beautiful  mansion  built  of 
ornamental  red  brick  and  creamy  vsandstone,  in  turreted  style, 
with  Grecian  angles,  giving  it  an  air  of  elegance  and  grace  that 
pleases  everyone.  The  powers  of  the  architect  had  been  further 
exercised  at  the  time  of  erection  in  1875.  by  cai'rying  out  his  plan 
tp_forni  a  handsome  terrace,  surrounded  by  an  ornamental  wall, 
and  having  flights  of  steps,  a  forecourt,  and  a  lovely  fountain 
and  statuettas  within  its  area.  This  terrace  is  on  the  west  front, 
and  furnishes  the  best  scenic  view  of  the  park,  and  a  wooded 
eminence  named  Pidzer  Hill,  that  culminates  the  scene  about 
half  a  mile  in  front.  This  little  verdant  Oak  covered  hill,  rising 
500ft,  gives  much  character  to  the  immediate  environs  and  is 
well  known  locally.  Between  the  hill  and  the  terrace  lies  an 
oimamental  sheet  of  placid  water,  whose  sindous  shore  is  suitably 
planted.  With  wood,  lake,  paAt,  deer,  and  plenty  of  enlivening 
bird  life,  the  surroundings  are  very  pleasant. 
The  Terrace  Carden. 
The  prettily  designed  walls  of  the  terrace  are  laden  with 
Grimson  Rambler  Roses,  whose  floriferousness  could  certainly  not 
have  been  surpassedi  Finding  that  the  stone  of  which  the  wall 
is  built  was  not  weathering  well,  but  was  likely  to  crumble  rapidly, 
Mr.  Corbett,  the  owner,  had  it  covered  with  the  clo.se-growing 
Ampelopsis,  whose  growth  is  now  enswathing  the  material,  and 
jso  protecting  it.  Along  the  top  of  the  same  wall  are  fixed  marble 
sculptures  of  the  head  and  busts  of  twelve  or  fifteen  Roman 
generals,  statesmen,  and  emperors.  The  terrace  parterre  is  nicely 
bedded  in  the  conv'entional  manner ;  and  in  keeping  with  the 
strictly  formal  scheme  are  . the  upright  Yews  and  shrubs  dotted 
here  and  there.  This'  western  front  altogether  is  of  I'ich  interest 
in  a  number  of  ways. 
The  kept  grounds  contain  .some  shapely  Wellingtonias  and 
Cedruses,  and  the  single  line  of  the  former  that  skirt  the  outer 
limit  on  one  side  of  the  fruit  and  vegetable  garden,  are  most 
imposing  and  exceedingly  handsome.  Between  them  and  the 
garden  wall  (outside  the  tatter)  there  are  magnificent  hardy  plant 
borders  (separated  by  a  central  path),  whose  great  feature  at  the 
season  of  my  visit  was  the  bold  groups  of  Spirsea  Aruncus,  and  the 
.standard  plants  of  William  Allan  Richardson  Rose.  Pseonies  in 
the  early  .summer,  Dahlia.s  and  Delphiniums  later,  together  with 
Pinks,  Stocks,  Pyrethrums,  Asters,  and  many  other  of  the  be.st 
sub.jects  of  the  English  flower  border,  were  here  noticeable.  The 
verge  i.s  of  grass,  is  kept  in  indme  condition.  Some  Cupressus 
macrocarpa  trees,  20ft  high,  in  line  with  the  fruit  room  and  offices, 
were  good  of  their  kind,  but  Impney  is  not  famous  for  its 
coniferous  or  its  flowering  trees. 
The  Indoor  Fernery. 
The  indoor  Fernery  is,  however,  something  to  wonder  at,  and 
few  similar  places  are  to  be  found  in  gardens.  Another  large  and 
notable  indoor  fernery  is  at  Woodside,  near  Paisley,  in  Renfrew¬ 
shire  ;  and  etsewhere  one  finds  a  small  constructio'ii,  generally  the 
work  of  Pulhain,  London  ;  but  our  view’  on  the  opposite  page 
shows  the  Impney  house  to  be  of  considerable  dimensions,  and 
possessed  of  large  Tree  Ferns.  The  view  is  only  a  small  corner 
of  it,  and  indeed,  one  man  is  kept  employed  in  the  house  prac¬ 
tically  the  whole  year  through. 
Originally  a  disused  gravel  pit  close  to  the  mansion,  it  was 
transformed  to  what  it  now  is,  in  1890.  The  house  is  150ft  long 
by  00ft  wide.  It  is  approached  by  rugged  steps,  planted  with 
hardy  Ferns,  Ivies,  and  other  plants  ;  but  a  more  private  entrance 
is  from  the  liall,  through  a  grotto  to  the  fernery.  The  building 
is  heated  by  a  powerful  boiler  150ycLs  away,  and  the  six  6in  pipes 
are  hidden  by  built-up  rockwork.  The  rocks,  caves,  steps,  and 
Ijridges  are  formed  with  tufa  stone  brought  from  Matlock  Bath, 
and  about  200  tons  wei’e  used.  The  water  enters  dripping  at  a 
cave  in  one  end,  and  runs  in  a  winding  stream  the  whole  length  j 
of  the  house,  golden  carp  luxuriating  here.  In  suitable  places 
there  are  seats,  and  the  whole  structure  is  electrically  lighted. 
When  the  building  was  completed  Mr.  Corbett  imported  fifty  Tree 
Ferns  from  New  Zealand,  and  there  are,  of  course,  a  considerable 
vanety  of  other  Fern,  and  plants. 
The  Gla^s  Houses. 
The  progress  of  the.se  notes  has  now  brought  us  to  the  plant 
houses,  a  brief  review  of  which,  and  a  look  at  the  kitchen  garden, 
will  conclude  this  summary  survey.  The  glass  ranges  are  in  good 
keeping,  and  their  contents  are  meritorious  throughout.  Fruit 
is  a  leading  feature,  and  Mr.  Jordan,  the  gardener,  yearly  secures 
some  of  the  leading  awards  at  the  greater  English  s'hows^  as  clo.se 
Joturnal  readers  may  have  noticed.'  Strawberries  to  the  number 
of  1,800  are  forced  annuallj^,  and  Strawberries  entail  much  labour 
ere  they  yield  their  crops.  The  variety  employed  is  Royal 
Sovereign.  ■  .  , 
Melons  and  Tomatoes  are  plentiful,  and  the  variety  of  Tomato 
named  Worcester  Prolific,  which  is  a  new  one  of  Richard  Smith 
and  Co.’s,  crops  heavily,  and  has  nice  shapely  fruits;  while  of  the 
Melons  we  And  Royalty,  Briti.sh  Queen,  and  Frogmore  Orange 
each  in  favour.  The  latter  is  recommended  as  a  good  early  scarlet 
fleshed.  It  is  worthy  to  be  recorded  that  no  less  than  eleven 
batches  of  Melons  are  planted  each  year,  the  fii’st  cutting  being 
about  April  30,  and  the  last  at  the  end  of  the  present  month. 
The  earliest  batches  are  grown  in  pots,  and  only  one  fruit  is  taken 
from  each  plant.  .  . 
Though  there  is  no  .special  pit  for  Pines,  ,iust  as  there  is  no 
orchard  house  for  pot  fruit  trees,  yet  the  gardener  at  Impney 
manages  to  cultivate  both  sections  :  the  Pines  in  the  centre  of 
a  irlant  stove,  and  the  pot  fruits  in  the  peacheries  and  vineries, 
placing  them  at  the  front  of  the  house,  beyond  the  trellis,  for  the 
sake  of  the  greater  light.  The  Pines  were  heavy  and  even,  some 
of  the  Queens  weighing  the  respectable  figure,  C.^lbs  ;  and  Smooth 
Cayennes  lib  heavier.  The  side  stages  of  this  house  contain 
shapely,  clean,  and  brilliant  Crotons. 
Pines  and  Bananas.] 
One  feels  disconsolate  on  reflecting  that  Pine  culture  is  so 
little  attempted  nowadays,  notwithstanding  a  plentiful  market 
supply  of  cheap  fruits;  for  the  latter  will  never  taste  so  well  as 
those  from  one’s  own  pits  and  houses.  In  order  to  give  the. 
yolunger  men  the  necessary  cultural  hints,  the  Journal  of  Horti¬ 
culture  still  supplies  occasional  “Jottings  on  Pines,”,  and  in  this 
connection  it  deserves  well  at  the  hands  of  gardeners. 
Then,  again,  there  are  the  Bananas,  a  plant  of  which  has  been 
figured  in  these  pages  bearing  the  enormous  crop  of  lOOlbs,  or 
256  “fingers.”  These  are  small  plants  in  small  pots,  and  a  great 
deal  of  space  is  certainly  not  nece.ssary  for  the  successful  culture 
of  this  nutritious  fruit.  In  what  I  will  cairVinery  No.  2,  there 
are  .seventeen  varieties  of  Grapes;  j’et  the  crops  are  highly  satis¬ 
factory,  and  the  Vines  in  good  condition.  Diamond  Jubilee  Grape 
is  being  discarded  because  of  its  inferior  flavour.  It  is  a  robust 
grower,  however,  and  therefore  may  please  some,  and  in  “American 
Gardening”  I  notice  that  a  man  who  has  “studied”  it  for  two 
years  says  he  considers  it  one  of  the  finest  black  Grapes  ever 
introduced.  Five  years  ago  he  inarched  it  on  Canon  Hall 
Muscat.  Thei'e  are  four  vineries,  also  Peach  and  Fig  houses. 
The  greenhouse  contained  the  usual  class  of  plants,  and  I  think 
there  is  room  in  many  gardens  for  greater  diversity,  and  the  lists 
of  plants  tried  at  Kew,  which  the  papers  publish  from  time  to 
time,  ought  to  be  of  service  in  this  respect.  Francoas,  Trache- 
lium  oseruleum,  Huinea  elegans  (silvery  form),  and  Lilium 
speciosum  among  other  things,  were  remarkably  fine.  In  a  top 
range  the  Zonal  Pelargoniums  were  as  fine  a  sight  as  a  traveller 
couid  regale  his  visual  sense  upon,  and  the  varieties  are  up  to  date. 
Probably  Phoenna  is  not  well  known,  and  I  name  it  in  case  that  be. 
It  is  of  the  Jacoby  stamp,  with  enormous  trusses.  Ian  Hamilton 
is  another  gem.  And  while  the  “Geraniums”  are  respected  and 
treated  as  they  deserve  to  be,  the  Gloxinias  from  Sutton’s  and 
Veitch’s  seed  strains,  are  another  pride  of  the  Impney  garden; 
and,  thirdl.y,  there  is  a  most  excellent  collection  of  C/j’clamens. 
The  Gloxinias  are  sown  in  July,  and  wintered  in  small  pots,  which 
saves  trouble  in  the  spring.  The  Cyclamens,  I  should  note,  are 
plunged  in  ashes,  in  cold  frames,  and  in  July  they  were  Gin  to 
8in  aci'oss  the  foliage,  so  that  ere  the  spring  they  will  furnish 
grand  plants.  Thei  new  Coleus  thyrsoideus,  and  Kalanchoo 
Kirki  are  among  the  novelties  doing  well. 
Lastly,  one  must  note  that  sweet  ro.sy-flowered  plant  Chironia 
