20 



THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 



and nicely placed to the first rays 

 of the morning sun, that you might 

 turn to hetter account than you do, 

 and where many choice things would 

 flourish, that you never thought of 

 cultivating ? Are your fruit bushes 

 crowded and cankered, your tree- 

 fruits overgrown, and many of them 

 occupying ground for which their 

 annual crops are no equivalent ; and if 

 none of tliese things that may be al- 

 tered for the better, could you not, by 

 a little earnest labour, improve a bad 

 aspect, and extend your space, so as to 

 gain every inch possible of open soil, 

 on which your skill may have fair play ? 

 I know from what I see everywhere, as 

 I travel up and down the country, 

 that there are few gardens, and es- 

 pecially those of the industrious classes, 

 but might be made to produce double 

 what they do, and everything of better 

 quality, if the tenants had but the 

 courage to cut down an old maple here, 

 or a straggling elder there, or if the 

 fence was repaired, the hedge cut close 

 in, the walks made few and straight, 

 and no wider than three feet, and every 

 inch of wall covered with something 

 either useful, or beautiful, or both. 

 See what j 7 ou can do as to the figure, 

 extent, and exposure of your ground, 

 before you lay out your plans for crop- 

 ping ; — for good soil, a free ventilation 

 of air, and plenty of sun at all times, are 

 the main elements of the first start in 

 profitable gardening. 



Now, whatever the shape, aspect, or 

 quality of the soil, you will find it very 

 advantageous to secure one or two 

 narrow borders under a wall or fence, 

 or, perhaps, you may have a continu- 

 ous border all round, on one side, 

 enjoying early sun, and on another, 

 but little of it. These borders are of 

 great value. In early spring, when 

 the first sowings of lettuce, cabbage, 

 horn carrot and such things are made, 

 a border under a wall is the best place 

 for them, especially if it has the 

 morning and midday sun, and be well 

 drained. All tender things, got in a 

 little before the usual time, would do 

 well in such a position, and many may 

 be safely sown there at a time when 

 they would perish if exposed in the 

 more open ground. The first crop of 



ash-leaved kidneys, and a little of 

 every summer vegetable, may be thus 

 obtained a fortnight sooner than in 

 the open ground, and from seed-beds 

 in such a position, plants for putting 

 out may be raised to great advantage. 

 The borders exposed to the north will 

 not be less useful, for the practical 

 gardener is as glad of a shady spot as 

 he is of plenty of sun elsewhere, and 

 many things, lettuce especially, maybe 

 had, late in the season, when those 

 fully exposed to the sun, will be "bolt- 

 ing" to seed. The walls and borders 

 arranged with a continuous walk 

 round them, leave the open space 

 clear for general operations. Here 

 utility must determine the general 

 plan, fancy must be put out of the 

 question. We must have as many 

 large square patches as we can get, 

 with no permanent walks, but narrow 

 alleys, only trodden with the foot, and 

 every year turned over, and fresh ones 

 made elsewhere, unless the extent of 

 the ground renders a permanent walk 

 or two necessary, and then they should 

 be just wide enough for a loaded wheel- 

 barrow to pass freely, and without 

 damage to the plants that grow next 

 the edging. 



Reducing these principles to one 

 general scheme, we will suppose the 

 reader in possession of an oblong plot 

 of ground, for that is the figure most 

 common. A wall runs all round ; on 

 the north and east sides it is highest ; 

 lowest on the south ; it is surrounded 

 by a border four, eight, or twelve feet 

 wide, according to the extent of the 

 ground. The walk is three feet and a 

 half wide, but three feet will do, and 

 just allow the barrow to pass conve- 

 niently. These walks ought to be well 

 made, either of good gravel on a deep 

 bottom of clinkers, ashes, or building- 

 rubbish, or of concrete, as Mr._ Beaton 

 advises, thus — 



A layer of stones, brick-bats, shells, 

 or clinkers, six inches deep, to form a 

 dry bottom ; a layer of chalk or lime, 

 in the proportion of one to ten of the 

 stones, or other foundation, and well 

 rolled and watered, to the thickness of 

 three inches, with a rise of two inches 

 in the centre ; over this half an inch 

 of gravel and lime, or fine chalk ; 



