August 14. We this day looked at the different Oxford nurseries. In 1804, there were only two gardens of this description; that of Mr. Tegg, and that of Mr. Penson. There are now four others. Still the taste at Oxford is more for the sensual, than for the intellectual part of gardening. The principal products of all these nurseries are culinary vegetables and fruits; and the next, showy and fragrant flowers. What the gentlemen of the colleges desire most, is what the preacher Huntington says was preferred by the cookmaid at the place where he was gardener, viz. "a flower in a pot, and one that would stand." A geranium, a rose, a night-smelling stock, and mignonette, we were informed, would sell, but not any of the new calceolarias or fuchsias, because in the rooms of the colleges they would not "stand." Forced fruits, such as strawberries and cucumbers, pay remarkably well.
