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John Asslett, Nurseryman of Old Brentford

by Val Bott on 04/10/2018 · 0 Comments

John Asslett died on 29 November 1748 and the inventory of his property was completed by 19 January 1749 (1). In Old Brentford, the southern half of Ealing Parish, most of the nursery gardens lay between the High Street (the road between London and the West) and the area to the north now crossed by […]

Discovering West London Nursery Gardeners, 16 November 2017

by Val Bott on 13/11/2017 · 0 Comments

Val Bott’s talk at Kellogg College in Oxford will look at half a dozen gardening families in Brentford and Chiswick. They improved, grafted and propagated new stock, including the Williams pear. Some wrote books, issued prints and promoted their businesses profitably while a few failed miserably. They supplied plants, bulbs and seeds to estates over […]

The Greenings, Royal Gardeners, 19 September 2016

by Val Bott on 15/09/2016 · 0 Comments

I shall be giving a talk to the Brentford & Chiswick Local History Society on the evening of Monday, 19 September. This takes place at The Chiswick Memorial Club, Bourne Place, London W4, just off Dukes Avenue, at 7.30pm, and the Society welcome non-members at their talks, admission free. The talk will tell the story […]

Reputations

by Val Bott on 09/04/2014 · 0 Comments

A reputation for  reliability and quality was the key to success in business for 17th and 18th century nursery gardeners. This could be influenced by many factors, from a gardener’s training, through early employment, to the respect of patrons and colleagues. Personal testimonials passed on by satisfied customers were invaluable, while the emerging genre of […]