THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 



107 



dug so deep as they are. But without 

 pipes very good drains may be made. 

 Cut a number of trenches three or four 

 feet deep, arranging them to fall into 

 the natural outlet, or turning them all j 

 to the lowest part of the ground. If j 

 there is no ditch or other way of getting ! 

 rid of the water, you may either dig a 

 hole and form a tank of puddled clay 

 to receive it, or trust to the absorbent 

 power of the lower stratum. Cut 

 the trenches three feet deep and three 

 feet wide at the top, sloping on each 

 side toward the bottom, so that a section 

 of the cutting will represent a wedge ; 

 then throw in one foot or eighteen 

 inches of broken glas-=, broken tiles, 

 and any kind of loose hard rubbish. 

 Over this lay a foot of woody cuttings 

 from a thorn hedge, and return the 

 earth. This is what is called a bush 

 drain ; if it has a fall into a tank or 

 ditch it is very effectual, but without 

 any such outlet it is still very servicea- 

 ble by quickly drawing off the surface- 

 water, and ridding the ground of one 

 of its worst enemies. 



The last suggestion to be offered in 

 this chapter is one bearing on the 

 question so much agitated of late, 

 how to expose the greatest superficial 

 breadth of soil to the atmosphere. A 

 wag, debating this question said, it 

 might be settled by putting the ground 

 on edge, and planting both sides of it ; 

 but you may be content with an experi- 

 ment of a less ambitious nature. There 

 is a mode of arranging the working 

 ground of a kitchen garden, which has 



many advantages as to the culture of 

 crops, and at the same time increases 

 the actual amount of surface for opera- 

 tions, and it is the disposal of the sur- 

 face into a regular series of banks. 

 These banks should run east and west, 

 so that one side of each forms a slope 

 to the north, and the other to the 

 south. In good soils these banks may 

 be twelve feet wide, and about five or 

 six feet high, but on thin soils six feet 

 wide at the base would do. By placing a 

 cut board, or a row of dwarf peas on the 

 top of each ridge, the south side will 

 be rendered still warmer, and on these 

 south sides crops of strawberries, 

 French beans, potatoes, horn carrots, 

 salads, &c, may be had a fortnight 

 earlier than in the open ground, and 

 the north sides will be equally useful 

 for retarding things that are wanted to 

 come in late, as well as for lettuces and 

 other succulent things that are wanted 

 in perfection in the driest and hottest 

 months, and which are apt to "bolt" 

 or lose their delicacy if too much ex- 

 posed to the sun. Contrary to what 

 might be expected, the watering-pot is 

 seldom required to these banks, though 

 on one side they are so much exposed 

 to the sun. The great depth of soil 

 encourages deep rooting, and hence the 

 stocks hold well against drought. All 

 ordinary seed beds should be four feet 

 wide, with two feet alleys between for 

 convenience of hoeing and dressing 

 the crop. The length of a bed is of 

 no consequence whatever. 



DIRECTIONS FOR OBTAINING THE SKELETONS OF LEAVES. 



Choose the most perfect leaves, and put 

 them into a large deep jowl or milk-pail of 

 rain-water. Place the vessel in a sunny fpot, 

 exposed to the air, and shake it now and 

 then, but by no means stir up the contents, 

 for that would injure the fibres of the leaves. 

 When the water dries away, fill up the 

 vessel again without changing the remaining 

 water. The leaves mu-t remain in water 

 until the outer skin is loosened from the fibre, 

 then they maybe taken out, and gently rubbed 

 between the fingers and thumb ; and in some 

 cases, a piece of soft flannel may be used for 

 the purpose. In some leaves, as the ivy and 



holly, the outer skin will come oft' whole, 

 or nearly so ; but in others, like the Mag- 

 nolia, it will require rubbing four or five 

 times, with intervals of several weeks. 



When the skeleton is perfect, it may be 

 bleached with a little chloride of lime, well 

 diluted with spring water. Sometimes, a few 

 minutes will suffiee; but leaves of strong 

 fibre often require some hours to whiten. 



July and August are the best months for 

 making choice of leaves. If, when held up 

 to the light, any small spots of decay or 

 crack be observed, it will not be a good leaf 

 to choose. 



