HISTORY OF G ARDENING. P a k t I.
gvapes of the sweetwater kind (the pareyl-drwjf) In March and April. The Low
Countries are celebrated for good varieties of tho apple and pcar. The supplies of
these articles sent to the maikcts of Brussels, Antwerp, and Amsterdam are equal to, if
not beyond, any thing of the kind to he met with elsewhere in Europe. The climate of
Elaiidors suits those fruits ; that of Holland is rather adverse to flavour, from its
moisture ; hut poaches, pines, and melons attain a larger size than in Franco. Toumay
is so much celebrated for its pears, that the Ghent Society, in 1816, oflercd a prize for
“ the best explanation of the causes of tho superiority in size, beauty, and flavour, of the
pears grown at Toiirnay.” {Neill’s Hort. Tour, p. 333.) Forcing in pits and frames
is carried to great perfection in Holland ; and melons, grapes, and pines are, at the
present time (1832), sent to the Loudon and Paris markets, and sold at prices for
which they cannot be grown in England. The vine has long been cultivated in South
Brabant, on land said not to be fit for any other produce, and excellent wine produced.
( Gard. Mag., vol. ii. p. 87.) There arc now vineyards hetwocn Namnr and Liege, near
the lofty castle of Huy, where the vine was never cultivated before. {Ibid., vol. vi.
p. 69 6.7 Vineyards are common towards the Rhine. The level pieces of ground next
to that river are exceedingly well and neatly cultivated with grain and vegetables,
interspersed with orchai'ds of fruit trees, apples, pears, cherries, and walnuts : the
sloping sides of tho hills arc covered with vineyards ; and above these the higher parts
arc clothed with forest trees or coppice wood to their vciy smnmits. ( Tour in South
Holland, 1830.)
188. A great many new and excellent varieties o f pears have been raised from seed in
the Netherlands, by Dr. Van Mons of Bmsscls, Count Coloma of Malines, M. Louis
Stoffels, also of Malines, aud others. Dr. V an Mons informed the late Mr. Braddick
that he had raised 80,000 new pears, of which not many scores were worth growing.
Mr. Braddick asked him, “ if his own taste were called upon to decide tho question, to
which of all his new pears he would give the preference.” Ho immediately replied,
with much vivacity, “ the Bourré S p en ce ;” and added, “ this fmit, to my taste, is
inestimable, and it has no competitor.” {Gard. Mag., vol. i. p. 145.) Mr. Braddick has
the merit of having been one of the first to introduce the best new Flemish pears into
England ; and, through his efforts and those of the London Horticultural Society, they
are now common in all the British nui-serics.
189. The art o f improving the quality o f fru its is said to have originated in Belgium;
and wliile the Academy of Munich were doubting tho possibility of this description of
improvement, and even giving a prize to an essay which maintained tho negative side of
the question, the art had already made immense progi-css in the Netherlands. I t is not
meant that new fruits were never raised from seeds before ; but that the business of
raising new sorts of tmits from seeds was never before undertaken on scientific principles.
Chance has at all times, and in all countries, discovered new sorts of limits from seeds
that have sprung up accidentally ; but it was only in Belgium, towards the latter end of
the eighteenth century, that seedlings were raised soientifically. Professor Van Mons
made the first attempt, and obtained four exquisite poai-s, viz. the Passe Colmar, tho
Beun-é de Ranz, the Bourré Spence (named in honour of tho celebrated entomologist),
and the Bourré d’Hiver. Les Délices d’Hardenpont was raised in the garden of
Counsellor Hardenpont. Other amateurs have devoted themselves to the same subject,
and obtained several pears of cxceUent quality ; the Bonne de Mons, tho Doyenné do
Mons, and many more. M. Scart procured Lo Napoleon ; and that learned pomologist
tho Abbé Duquosne raised, among others, the excellent Marie Louise. M. Petit pursued
those researches which M. Duqucsne was obliged to abandon from ill health, and from
other causes. In Flanders, they discovered tho incomparable Fondante dn Bois ; the
capuchins of Louvaino obtained their Pastorale ; and the Comte de Coloma, of Malines,
I’Urbaniste. During these times, thousands of plants wore originated annually at
Brussels, with a view of stndying tho quality of their fmits. The result of the whole
has been published by Professor Van Mons, in a catalogue dated Louvaine, 1823.
{Messager des Sciences et des Arts, 1826, p. 77.)
190. Standard fr u it trees in Holland and the Netherlands are very generally trained in
what is called the en quenouille or distaff manner ; and the advantages of this mode, as
respects the saving of room, and the avoiding injurious shade to the vegetables near,
are obvious. I t is not, however, equally clear that this form is favourable to the production
of fruit. A horticulturist {Gard. Mag., vol. ii. p. 226.), who has resided for some
time in Belgium, says a fair crop is very seldom seen on trees so trained. The same
observation will apply to standard pcar trees trained en pyramide ; wliich mode of
training differs from the en quenouille mode only in not having the points of the young
shoots tied down by cords attached to their extremities and fastened to the stem of the
tree. Pear trees trained en pyramide, however, when grafted on quince stocks, generally
bear well.
191. The culinary vegetables o f Holland are brought to groat perfection. All the
B o o k L DUTCH GARDENS.
plants of cnltiu'c, and especially the cabbage tribe, turnip, onion, caiTot, &c,, arc gi'own
to a lai'ge size, and are very succulent.' Of plants edible in their natural state, as the
parsley and other herbs, and the fungi, they have excellent varieties. Eor leguminous
crops the climate is sometimes too moist in the early part of the season ; nevertheless
the Dutch grow in perfection tho Dutch runner kidney-hean, and the scarlet ntnncr.
Brassels is noted for the greens or sprouts, which bear tho name of that town ; and
Van Mons informs us {Hort. Trans, vol. iii. p. 1 9 7 .) th.at they are mentioned in the
market regulations of that city so early as 1 2 1 3 . Dr. Neill and his companions, in
1 8 1 7 , found the markets of Ghent and Amsterdam better supplied with culinary
vegetables than any others in the Low Countries. The cauliflower was excellent. Tho
Dutch also excel in asparagus, can’ots, and purslane.
19 2 . Forcing-houscs have been long in use in Holland; but the date of their introduction
we have not been able to learn. I t is singular that they arc not once mentioned in the
early editions of Van Oosten, published from 1 6 8 9 to 1 7 5 0 ; but Adanson {Families des
Plantes, preface), writing about the latter period, speaks of tho hothouses of the Dutch
in terms which evidently refer to forcing-houses. I t is, however, questioned by some
whether the Dutch had any forcing-houses, or hothouses, properly so called, as distinguished
from pits and frames, previously to the introduction of the pine-apple.
Before that period tanners’ bark was employed by them for making forcing-bcds.
Miller says, the idea of employing tan for hotbeds was brought over from Ilollaiid, and
that it was first used for r.aising orange trees in the beginning of King William’s reign.
I t then fell into disuse, and aftcrwai'ds w.as again applied to raising the pine-apple. The
Dutch manner of forcing is still practised in some places in England.
StmSECT. 4. Dutch Gardening, in respect to the planting o f Timber Trees and Hedges.
1 9 3 . Planting is not very general in Holland. In a country so thickly peopled, and so
conveniently situated in respect to marine commerce, it is not likely that much ground
woidd be devoted to merely useful plantations. In the more inland paifs of Flanders,
there are natural forests and extensive copses ; these have been, and continue to be, kept
up, and have been in some cases increased in extent by planting laud too poor for cultivation.
In EadcliiTs Report on the Agriculture o f Eastern Ilolstein, Flanders, &c., p. 8.,
1 8 1 9 , some account will be found of their management. We observed, in 1 8 1 9 , some
belts and clumps near Cambray, and that the Duke of Wellington was planting on his
cst.ate at Waterloo. Between Aranagoen and Rhcncn, a tract of land several miles in
extent, and no better in quality than Bagshot-heath, was planted with Scotch pines,
Weymouth pines, bcccli, and birch ; and many hundred acres adjoining had been sown
with acorns for copse, and enclosed with thorn hedges.
1 9 4 . Avenues, hedgerows, and osier-holts are the princip.al plantations of the Dutch.
In those they excel ; and tho country, in consequence, resembles a scries of gardens.
Avenue trees, chiefly elms and oaks, are trained for eight or ten years in the nursery ;
repeatedly removed, so as to become furnished with numerous fibrous roots ; and pmncd,
so as to have clean smooth stems from ten to fifteen foot liigh. Avenues, being public
property, a r e under the care of proper officers. Judging from the vigorous growth of
tho trees, and the manner in which they are pruned, these ofiiccrs seem to understand
their business, and to do their duty. Iu Rotterdam, on the quays, are perhaps tho finest
trees in Holland ; they are n anw -lc a v ed elms, upwards of fifty feet high, with clear
stems of twenty-five feet, and upwiu-ds of a century old. A t the Hague are remarkably
flue limes in the Mall, on the road to Schevcling ; and oaks, elms, and beeches, round
the palace called the House in the Wood. A tonrist who visited the palace in 1 8 3 0
says, “ it is protended that in this wood tliere are oak trees of 5 0 0 years’ growth ; but
we saw none that in England would not attain the size of the largest at most in 12 0
yoai-s. Some of these, however, and tho hocches and lindens, arc of respectable
size and healthy foliage.” {Tour in Smith Holland, &c., p. 73.) The hornbeam is
a VC1 7 common plant for tbe garden hedges. Eveiy plant in the row or hedge is
trained with an upright stem, and the side shoots are shorn so closely, that we often
find hedges of six or eight feet high, not more than eighteen inches wide at the base,
contracted to six inches wide at top. These hedges receive tlicir summer shearing in
July, hy whieh time scarlet runners are ready to shoot up from the garden side of tlieir
base ; and these, in the course of two months, cover the hedge with their fresh verdure
and brilliant blossoms, prosenting a good crop in October and the beginning of November.
Tho Dutch have also veiy excellent fleld-hedgos of birch and willow, as well as of
all the usual hedge plants ; and the gardeners arc particidaily dexterous at cutting, training,
and shearing them. Tho deep moist grounds on the banks of their estuaries are
particidarly favourable for the gi'owth of the willow ; and hoops of two years’ growth from
tho Dutch willow (a variety of Sàlix alba, with a brownish bark) are in great esteem in
conmicrcc. Their common basket willows (S . viminàlis and triandra) arc also excellent.
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