-The front gardens are divided by a light wire fence, in the centre of which is the pedestal o, surmounted by a handsome sculptured vase of Coade's artificial stone. The back gardens are separated by a fined wall, which, though only 10 in. thick, yet, being built with bricks set on edge, and not having the ends of the bricks quite flush with the wall on the north side, has a flue left in it 4 in. wide. The wall on the north side is chiefly covered with ivy; and, consequently, the surface of its brickwork is entirely concealed. At the lower end of the back gardens is a double shed (p); and on the south side of the party wall was a hot-house (q), and a greenhouse, or glass case (r), for green-bouse plants, which were trained to upright wires, against the flued wall; one species to each wire. Over each rafter of the hot-house was an iron rod, placed so as to be about 4 in. from the glass, and connected with light horizontal rods for the purpose of supporting a canvas covering during the winter nights, or in very hot weather in summer, when shading is required. This covering, when not in use, was rolled up by means of a pulley, on a rod which extended the whole length of the house, so as to be completely concealed from the sight, and secure from the weather.

There were similar canvas coverings for the glass case (r): s is a double wire trellis for training fruit shrubs, such as gooseberries, on both sides; and in the south garden there was an additional trellis (t), placed on a dwarf wall, for ornamental shrubs. These trellises, the dwarf wall, and other arrangements, will be better understood by the section fig, 65.; in which a is the green-house, with the flued party wall behind; b b, the two paved walks in the sunk area; c, the strip of grass between these paved walks; d, the shelf for alpines in pots; e e e, the double trellises; f f, the gravel walks; g g g, raised beds for herbaceous plants; h h, borders for the arboretum and fruticetum; i i, miscellaneous borders; and l, the southern party wall. Between the dwarf wall under the trellis and the glass case, or green-house, the ground was lowered, so as to form the sunk area (b c b), which was on the same level as the floor of the back kitchen, and that of the hot-house (q in fig. 63.). On the south side of this area there was a stone shelf (u) for alpines in pots; on the north side, the green-house, or glass case (r), before mentioned; and the space between had a paved walk on each side, and in the centre a strip of grass, as already shown in the section fig. 65. In the middle of this small grass-plot, at w, was a socket for a double clothes-post; that is, a post having two horizontal arms at top, each of which supported a clothesline, which was fastened to a hook in the rafter of the hot-house at one end, and passed over a pulley fixed to the basement of the veranda wall at the other.

When the clothes-post was not wanted, it was taken down, and laid in a place appropriated for it, under the stone shelf u. At the hot-house end of the grass-plot, the alpine shelf terminated in a shallow cistern for marsh plants, and a deep cistern at v for aquatics. Near the cistern v was a sundial, and at the opposite end of the grass-plot a vase, the plinth under which formed a cover to a liquid manure tank, supplied from the water-closets. The double shed p has a turret with a clock, in the centre of the gable facing the houses (as shown in the section, fig. 65.), and a semicircular window in the centre of that towards the lane, which lights the lofts of both sheds; so that, from whichever side it is viewed, this double shed is symmetrical, and appears as completely a single one, as the double dwelling to which it belongs appears to be only one house. The shed belonging to the north house is fitted up as a wash-house on the ground floor, and it has a loft over. The shed on the south side has three floors: the middle floor, which is shown in the plan, is one step above the level of the walks of the garden, and the ascent to it from the hothouse was by four steps.

In it there are a potting bench, a pump, a carpenter's bench, and a wooden safe for preserving fruit, bulbous roots, or large specimens of plants that will not lie flat between paper; and, against the walls, a small glass case for a garden library, for the use of the gardener, and shelves for seeds, roots, tallies, etc. Beneath the potting bench are bins for different kinds of soils, empty pots, etc. There is a wooden staircase to the floor above, and there was a stone staircase to the floor below. The floor below contained a fireplace for heating the hot-house and green-house, with a space for fuel or lumber, and the remaining space was used for growing mushrooms, or forcing rhubarb, chicory, etc. The loft floor is for mats, and for onions, bulbs, and similar articles; with an opening to the machinery of the clock, for winding it up; and the half of the window, before mentioned, opening to the back lane. The smoke from the fires of both sheds came out through the vertical openings between the columns of the turret, in order to avoid the incongruous appearance of a chimney top over a clock; the turret being for the purpose of supporting a vane to indicate the direction of the wind to both houses.

At x y, in the south garden, were two pits for green-house plants, 4 ft deep, with hollow walls and hollow bottoms; and with an iron rod over each rafter, and about 4 in. above it, for the purpose of keeping the canvas covering necessary in winter a few inches from the glass, so as to preserve a non-conducting vacuity between the canvas and the glass. The part of the walls of these pits that was above ground was covered with ivy, to keep them warm. The bed s is planted with trees and a few flowers; and the border at 1 was a trough with a brick bottom and sides, for marine and bog plants. At & & & are brick pedestals, 9 in. square, and 1 ft. high, for supporting vases, or pots of choice plants when in flower; or which might be used for seats: the pedestal indicated at m, in the south garden, is surmounted by a statue in Portland stone; and that at a, by a crouching Venns in Austin's composition. At 2 2, in the front garden, are brick pedestals supporting vases, but which were formerly used as stands for bee-hives covered with earthenware covers, which were scored to imitate a straw hive; and at 3, in the back garden, was a Polish hive, fixed against the wall. [The hot-house, green-house, cold pits, stone shelf for alpines, etc, in the back garden, were removed in 1844, some months after the death of Mr. Loudon, and the space filled up, and laid with grass, to avoid the expense of keeping it up in its original state.]

Fig. 66. is an isometrical view of the house and both gardens, in which will be observed most of the objects described, except the trellises, and the trees and shrubs; which are omitted, to leave the ground plan more distinct.