THE FLOKAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 271^ 



ing, I let them alone to shrink and die in their own time and 

 manner. 



It may be said that if we are careful and considerate, the trees 

 need not sufter so much as to injure their health, or seriously lessen 

 their productiveness. Now I grant this gladly, and if we could 

 always be sure that garden work would be done in a careful and 

 considerate manner, there might be a plausible defence set up for 

 the violation of principle we have now before us. But we never can 

 insure the quality of garden work from first to last. I have seen 

 men who should have known better grubbing down amongst the 

 roots of trees, and actually labouring hard to cut great roots away 

 because they interfered with the planting of rhubarb, or cabbages, 

 or something of that sort. At the very time of writing this I have 

 observed that a man of mine, who was planting out winter greens, 

 has dug the ground deeply to within six inches of a row of young 

 gooseberry trees, and has actually planted large growing kales so 

 close that their great leaves already cover the little trees, and in 

 the course of a month or so will kill them, that is, if I allow it. 

 When work is done on a wrong principle, we cannot expect from an 

 unthinking workman the careful and exceptional mode of procedure 

 needful to prevent a breakdown, and thus we come back to the pro- 

 position that fruits and vegetables should be kept apart, generally 

 speaking. 



The second proposition is that in the smallest garden the sepa- 

 ration is easily effected. Where there's a will there's a way, and 

 every separate case must be considered and disposed of on its merits. 



Suppose for the sake of a hypothetical solution of the difficulty, 

 that we put all the fruits at one end, and all the vegetables at the 

 other, and make it a law as severe as that of the Medes and Persians 

 that neither shall invade the other's department. That w^e will s^ 

 is solution No. 1. In working it out, we shall plant the trees in 

 rows at a sufficient distance apart with rows of black currants and 

 raspberries between, for these fruits thrive in partial shade. The 

 boundary lines of the fruit plot we shall plant with red and white 

 currants and gooseberries, for these require more air and light 

 than black currants and raspberries. This ground is not to be dug, 

 mind, for digging is a destructive business where fruits of any kind 

 are growing. If it be said we have not provided for the strawberries, 

 the answer is that they travel about, and require a new plot every 

 three years at least, and an open spot amongst the vegetables will 

 suit them admirably. The wise way is to plant a row or two of 

 strong runners every year, and every year destroy a row or two of 

 the oldest. 



But as there are several ways of killing a dog, so there are 

 several ways of saving the fruit-trees. Instead of planting them 

 all at one end, we may plant them all round the boundary. How 

 about the apples that hang over the road ? Think of that in time. 

 If they are likely to be safe, plant the trees near the roadway to hang 

 over and beautify it, and also to utilize the sunshine tliere which 

 you obtain for nothing, for it is of sunshine chiefly that fruits are 

 made. But on the inner side of the supposed belt of fruit-trees, 



September. 



