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John Veitch (horticulturist)
Encyclopedia
John Veitch (1752–1839) was the founder of the Veitch horticulture
Horticulture
Horticulture is the industry and science of plant cultivation including the process of preparing soil for the planting of seeds, tubers, or cuttings. Horticulturists work and conduct research in the disciplines of plant propagation and cultivation, crop production, plant breeding and genetic...
dynasty who created the Exeter
Exeter
Exeter is a historic city in Devon, England. It lies within the ceremonial county of Devon, of which it is the county town as well as the home of Devon County Council. Currently the administrative area has the status of a non-metropolitan district, and is therefore under the administration of the...
based firm of Veitch Nurseries
Veitch Nurseries
The Veitch Nurseries were the largest group of family-run plant nurseries in Europe during the 19th century. Started by John Veitch sometime before 1808, the original nursery grew substantially over several decades and was eventually split into two separate businesses - based at Chelsea and...
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Veitch was born in Ancrum
Ancrum
Ancrum is a village in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland, north of Jedburgh and south of St Boswells....
, near Jedburgh
Jedburgh
Jedburgh is a town and former royal burgh in the Scottish Borders and historically in Roxburghshire.-Location:Jedburgh lies on the Jed Water, a tributary of the River Teviot, it is only ten miles from the border with England and is dominated by the substantial ruins of Jedburgh Abbey...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, but left Scotland at an early age and walked to London to seek employment and his fortune. He found employment with the nursery business, Lees of Hammersmith
Hammersmith
Hammersmith is an urban centre in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in west London, England, in the United Kingdom, approximately five miles west of Charing Cross on the north bank of the River Thames...
on a wage of eight shillings a week. He then moved to Devon
Devon
Devon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with...
, to take up employment with Sir Thomas Dyke Acland, 7th Baronet
Sir Thomas Dyke Acland, 7th Baronet
Sir Thomas Dyke Acland, 7th Baronet was the son of Sir Hugh Acland, 6th Baronet and Cicely Wrothe.-Succession:He succeeded his father as baronet on the latter's death on 29 July 1728...
at Killerton
Killerton
Killerton is an 18th-century house in Broadclyst, Exeter, Devon, England, which, with its hillside garden and estate, has been owned by the National Trust since 1944 and is open to the public...
House, Broadclyst
Broadclyst
Broadclyst is a village and civil parish that lies approximately 5 miles northeast of the city of Exeter, in the district of East Devon, England, on the B3181. In 2001 its population was 2830....
. As well as making the most of the superb natural features at Killerton, Veitch had paths and borders added and made full use of the gentle south facing slope and sheltered aspect. He quickly became the agent for the Acland Estate and had established his first nursery at Budlake, near Killerton, by 1800.
Sir Thomas had died in 1785, and work on Killerton House had fallen into abeyance. Veitch carried on his flourishing business as a landscape consultant and tree contractor, and in 1800 he became firmly established as a nurseryman following an order for trees to the value of £1,212. These were for Luscombe Castle
Luscombe Castle
Luscombe Castle is a country house situated near the resort town of Dawlish, in the county of Devon in England. The house was built in 1800 for Charles Hoare, a prominent banker whose sister, Henrietta, was the widow of Sir Thomas Acland of Killerton, near Exeter.The house was designed by John...
where the renowned landscaper Humphry Repton
Humphry Repton
Humphry Repton was the last great English landscape designer of the eighteenth century, often regarded as the successor to Capability Brown; he also sowed the seeds of the more intricate and eclectic styles of the 19th century...
was undertaking a major replanting of the main valley area.
Veitch and his wife, Anna Davidson, had six children, including James, who helped his father on the Killerton estate from a very early age.
As the nursery business expanded, Veitch rented more land in 1810 before moving the operation to larger premises at Mount Radford, Exeter, in 1832. He was soon succeeded in the business by his son, James and grandson James junior
James Veitch, Jr.
James Veitch was the third in a long line of horticulturists who established the renowned family business Veitch Nurseries....
, with James taking over the Exeter nursery, while James junior was sent to London to train there for two years as a nurseryman, before returning to Exeter, where he helped his father improve and expand the Exeter nursery, before acquiring premises in Chelsea, London
Chelsea, London
Chelsea is an area of West London, England, bounded to the south by the River Thames, where its frontage runs from Chelsea Bridge along the Chelsea Embankment, Cheyne Walk, Lots Road and Chelsea Harbour. Its eastern boundary was once defined by the River Westbourne, which is now in a pipe above...
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John Veitch remained at Budlake and spent some time running down the nursery with another son, Thomas. As the Budlake venture closed other land purchases were made including, in 1836, a 7 acres (28,328 m²) site at Broadclyst
Broadclyst
Broadclyst is a village and civil parish that lies approximately 5 miles northeast of the city of Exeter, in the district of East Devon, England, on the B3181. In 2001 its population was 2830....
Heath called "Brockhill" to hold the majority of the tree stock from Budlake and in 1838 11 acre (0.04451546 km²) were purchased at Haldon
Haldon
The Haldon Hills, usually known simply as Haldon, is a ridge of high ground in Devon, England. It is situated between the River Exe and the River Teign and runs northwards from Teignmouth, on the coast, for about until it dwindles away north west of Exeter at the River Yeo, just south of Crediton...
for ornamentals. John Veitch entered retirement at Killerton aged 85 years and died there in 1839.