214 



GARDENING. 



April i, 



moisture slowly, and never contains 

 standing water that can compact or 

 sour it. 



Such a sub-soil la}-er is well formed 

 from soft bricks with their lower edges 

 removed as passageways for the running 

 water. All water for the plant must thus 

 pass upward through four inches of 

 porous brick before reaching the soil. But 

 other material can also be used. Cinders 

 and coarse gravel, from which all finer 

 parts have been sifted, can form an inch 

 or two on the bottom, with as much 

 more of the same sort but finer above, 

 and then the soil. With even the best of 

 such material it is an advantage to have 

 long metal troughs, with their sides 

 notched, inverted on the bottom and 

 extending from the entrance pipe across 

 the benches. These are put in place first, 

 and the gravel or cinders added after- 

 ward. They need be only about an inch 

 high. With brick, gravel, cinders, broken 

 stone, or any similar distributing layer 

 for the water; a most ample movement of 

 air is also provided for. Much of the time, 

 in fact, the spaces between the fragments 

 of the sub-soil are filled, not with water 

 but with air, and at no time are they 

 entirely filled with water, if the watering 

 is properly done. Moreover, the inlet 

 tubes on the front of the bench and the 

 overflow tubes at the rear permit some- 

 thing of a circulation of air through the 

 sub-stratum at all times. 



Whether the bottom of the bed shall be 

 formed of zinc, galvanized iron, cement, 

 or some other more or less perfectly 

 impervious material can be left to indi- 

 vidual preference. But a perfectly level, 

 water-tight bottom will distribute the 

 water the evenest and give the cultivator 

 the best control over the bench. 



I have been very explicit about the 

 character and structure of the sub-soil 

 layer for sub-watering because it has 

 seemed to me that some of those who 

 have writen in contemplation of the 

 establishment of a trial bench or house 

 were in danger of missing the most valu- 

 able feature of the method. Everyone 

 knows that if the water level under a 

 garden should stand in contact with the 

 loam, it would be very detrimental. We 

 are trying toestablish'artificially a water 

 table that never comes in contact with 

 the loam of the bench, and that contains 

 no fermentable or decomposing material. 



By this means the soil is never soaked 

 with liquid water, but takes all its moist- 

 ure by capillarity. 



A point on which I had not given 

 thought at the time 1113' paper was read 

 before the Carnation Society, was so 

 forcibly brought forward then that I have 

 been looking into the matter carefully 

 since. The point is in reference to the 

 possibility of successfully applying liquid 

 fertilizers to plants in connection with 

 sub-watering. My present view is that 

 any fertilizer, whether liquid manure, 

 ammonia, nitrates, phosphates or potash 

 may be mixed with the stream of water 

 so long as it does not contain solid mat- 

 ter to clog up the distributing sub-layer. 

 Nitrogen fertilizers especially could well 

 be applied in this manner, and the upward 

 movement of the water through the soil 

 would undoubtedly carry the fertilizing 

 ingredients with it. The soil of the bench 

 should be made reasonably rich at the 

 outset, especially with phosphates, and 

 then additional fertilizers for growth, 

 particularly manure water, can be added 

 in connection with sub-watering. 



J. C. Arthur. 



Miscellaneous. 



SPRINGDALE FARM. 



We present herewith some views of a 

 farm homestead, that of Mr. G. X. Car- 

 ruthers, near Oberlin, Ohio, which clearly 

 demonstrate that the residences of our 

 farmers in all parts of the country can be 

 made very pleasant places. True, the 

 soil here is well adapted to the cultiva- 

 tion of most kinds of plants, fruits and 

 flowers, as well as farm produce, and Mr. 

 Carruthers has a further advantage in 

 the considerable variety of elevation 

 which his place affords. There are high 

 grounds with gravely, sandy and loamy 

 soils; valleys with fertile deposits, broken 

 banks and sandy bottoms with living 

 springs and running streams. 



But these or similar conditions exist on 

 many farms which can hardly be called 

 attractive. It is simply a question of 

 giving the matter a little consideration 

 as to the best way to utilize the natural 

 advantages of a given site, and then judi- 

 ciously spending a few dollars on the 



labor and materials best calculated to 

 make it profitable or ornamental, or both 

 combined. It would be useless to make 

 an orchard in the swamp, but with little 

 trouble in many cases such objectionable 

 features may be eliminated or converted 

 into veritable gardens at small expense. 



The lower portions of the ornamental 

 grounds at Springdale Farm have been 

 turned to account in the formation of lily 

 ponds, the banks and numerous islets of 

 which are covered with such semi-aquatic 

 plants as cannas, irises, cyperus, arundo, 

 acorus, typha, etc., etc. Rustic bridges 

 are placed over the streams, and on the 

 higher ground trees and shrubs are 

 grouped for shelter and effect. Much 

 space is given to orchard plantations, 

 and small fruits and vegetables are grown 

 in sufficient quantity for home consump- 

 tion and interesting and valuable experi- 

 ments. 



A neat lawn dotted with flower beds 

 surrounds the dwelling, and a small 

 greenhouse does a vast amount of service 

 in providing shelter for tender bedding 

 plants, producing flowers for decorative 

 purposes in winter, starting early vegeta- 

 bles and flowers in spring, and in main- 

 taining a supply throughout the year of 

 those herbs which are indispensable in 

 every well regulated kitchen. The resi- 

 dence itself gives material aid in furnish- 

 ing support for grape vines, clematis, 

 honeysuckles and other decorative and 

 useful plants. 



Perhaps it would be impossible to ren- 

 der all our farm houses similarly pleasing, 

 but we are convinced that much can be 

 done on these lines to improve them, and 

 it seems to us especially desirable that all 

 those in a position to do so should at 

 least attempt to grow for themselves all 

 the fruits and vegetables required for 

 home use. Every farmer in the country 

 can do so, and with this departure, and 

 some little effort toward the adornment 

 of the home grounds, he will have taken 

 a long stride in the direction of that pros- 

 perity which attends the labors of a happy 

 and contented family. 



THE RESIDENCE AT SPRINGDALE FARM 



SEASONABLE NOTES. 



Though it will be near if not quite the 

 first of April before we can do much out- 

 door work, we shall in the meantime 

 make all the preparations for spring it is 

 possible to make. New borders will be 

 manured and dug over, older ones cleared 

 of mulching and accumulated rubbish. As 

 time goes along we shall fill up vacant 

 places in the herbaceous borders from the 

 reserve garden, divide up worthy subjects 

 and curtail overgrown ones. Little 

 known kinds which may have grown 

 too tall will be set back, and dwarf ones 

 brought forward, so that our borders 

 shall present an orderly appearance. 

 Tritomas, gladioli, acidantheras, gal- 

 tonias, montbretias, dahlias, Lobelia 

 fulgens, and other roots and bulbs which 

 have had winter storage will be put out 

 in appropriate places. The planting of 

 spring bedding stock — English daisies, 

 Silene pendula, Myosotis alpestris, violas 

 and pansies — may be done any time. The 

 trimming of shrubs, roses and climbers 

 will go on as the opportunity' offers. 

 With hybrid roses there is little choice 

 left after an American winter as to how we 

 shall prune them. They arealwavs killed 

 here level with the loose manure, or ban .- 

 ing of soil, which was placed about them 

 for protection the previous autumn, and all 

 that remains for us to do is to cut out the 

 injured, weak and mis-shapen branches. 

 Spring flowering shrubs are never trimmed 

 until they are past flowering. If trimmed 

 earlier we should probably cut away 



