rSg6. 



GARDENING. 



315 



A CACTUS GARDEN 



have printed a whole chapter from the 

 Bible on that hillside, instead of simply a 

 proverb, but thanks to his inexperience 

 our credit is yet safe. Why, it isn't so 

 manv years ae;o that we read, or tried to 

 read, rather, the "Kulesand Regulations" 

 of a public garden printed with plants in 

 a big flower bed, and that too near the 

 "Hub of the Universe" in the t'. S. A.! 

 We deciphered this much, 'Dogsand baby 

 carriages not admitted," but with pride 

 and much readiness the designer himself 

 rattled off the rest to us. John, raise 

 your whip, both home and foreign mis- 

 sions need the lash, and use it. 



GRADING LAND. 

 We are doing a good deal of grading at 

 Schenley Park and may be "as we do it" 

 may be suggestive to others. The land 

 is uneven with many high steep banks, 

 and the soil is very clayey, and often with 

 much shale rock. To begin with, the sur- 

 face soil is removed by scoops, carts or 

 wagons to one side, so that when that 

 piece of ground has been graded the good 

 soil may be brought back upon it again. 

 .\ftcr removing the top soil we reduce the 

 bumps into the holes, and fill up the de- 

 pressions, carefully preserving the natural 

 wave, roll or contour of the land, and in- 

 sist upon easy, graceful lines, no matter 

 how steep they have to be. It now hap- 

 pens that we sometimes strike a vein or 

 layer of the most uncouth kind of bluish 

 or whitish clay, through which tree roots 

 could not penetrate and water would 

 hardly permeate; to leave this anyway 

 near the surface would be unwise, so we 

 pick it and cart it away to some dump or 

 deep hole that needs filling, and replace 

 with more congenial subsoil. All being 

 evened over we spread a good co ting of 

 manure over the subsod and plow it 

 under, and run a subsoil plow in the same 

 furrow. This finished we harrow the 

 land, and spread another layer of manure 

 over it. and now cart the surface soil back 

 on to it again, and even it all oyer. This 



leaves the land in good tilth for anything. 

 Many may urge that the manure should 

 all be kept at the top or mixed in with 

 the surface soil, and this would be good 

 practice in the case of agricultural crops, 

 and in the case of sandy or gravelly soil 

 of any kind; but when it comes to clay 

 ground that is being laid down perma- 

 nently to trees or grass, we prefer manur- 

 ing in the bottom for these reasons: Mix- 

 ing the manure with the clay keeps the 

 latter open and free to permeating roots, 

 the subsoil so treated does not compact 

 so hard as does that not so treated, it 

 catches water more readily than firmer 

 soil, and renders drouth less severe, and 

 as it is all worked alike the drainage is 

 much better and plant life surer than 

 when only holes are dug for the trees and 

 the surrounding ground is left hard. 



If necessary we can manure from the 

 surface also. Land so treated, with an 

 annual top-dressing of hard wood ashes 

 and some plain chemical fertilizer should 

 grow both trees and grass to most any- 

 one's satisfaction. 



SAND FILES flS PLAY GROUND FOR CHILDREN. 



Your Sunday-school suggestions, page 

 29!S, will find an echo in eve y reader's 

 heart, and in your position, to which you 

 are no*, called in vain, you will find many 

 an opportunity to foster outdoor life for 

 children and old. Haveyougot anysand 

 heaps or gravel hills in your parks on the 

 most frequented places, for the little ones 

 to play in, with water near by to wet it. 

 when they fiirm their own imaginary 

 structures? .\ plain stone coping around 

 the sand to keep it in place, will make it 

 nicer yet. 



Keep off the Gh.\ss.— Pardon my sug- 

 gestion but the large stretches of perfect 

 lawn with the public excluded from it, 

 seems to me always as if it were unjust 

 to have such rules, though reasonable 

 care is certainly necessary. [There are 

 no such "keep off the grass" rules in 

 Schepley Park. Except in among the 



flower beds in front of the great conserv- 

 atory, the public can walk where it 

 pleases; and as gravel walks give easv 

 access to all of the flower beds there is no 

 excuse in th^s instance for walking on the 

 sod there.— Ed.] W. Seliger. 



Conn. 



The Fruit Garden. 



GARB OF FRUIT TREES IN SUMMER. 



An orchardist who loves his business, 

 or who expects to draw an net income 

 from it, must see his trees and examine 

 them carefully as often as once a week. A 

 good deal of mischief ma v occur in any 

 orchard in less time than that, and if I 

 were to base my advice solelvon my own 

 practice I should double this fre(|uencv. 

 One who knows how and is accustomed 

 to the work, would not necessarilv stop 

 longer at a tree than is required for a 

 comprehensive glance on all sides. During 

 the web-worm season, which embraces 

 about a month after leafage, a daily 

 ob.servation is not too much to give anil 

 the observer should carrv a wire brush on 

 a pole with which to twist ofl^ the nests 

 and destroy their contents. This work 

 must be done early, or late, or both, as 

 during the warmer portions of the day 

 the worms are dispersed through the 

 trees at their work of destruction. ' 



Another job, which requires equallv 

 close attenion, is the inspection of the 

 state of the bark as regards bark-lice, 

 which can only be destroyed before the 

 spring brood has ceased moving about, 

 and has fastened itself to the bark. 



Pruning is always in order in an 

 orchard; and if rightly managed bv "rub- 

 bmg out." and the useofthelong handled 

 pruner, but little use of the saw will be 

 required. This pruner does away with 

 the use of the saw upon all branches less 

 than an inch in diameter; and when 

 proper care is used there will be few tq 



