JOURNAL OP HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



[ Maroh 1, 1877. 



bed. Again, how rarely do we meet with a young gardener 

 having any knowledge of the different varieties of either hardy 

 frnits or vegetables ; and I ask, How many are there who can 

 name at sisht say half a dozen sorts of Gooseberries or Straw- 

 berries ? How many could at eight nama three varieties of 

 Peas or of Broccoli? This is, I think, a state of things which 

 we all ought to try and remedy without further delay, as I can 

 conceive nothing so humiliating to a head gardener as his 

 being obliged to acquire a knowledge of kitchen gardening 

 fiom those under him ; and what can lower him so much in 

 the estimation of his men as an inability to show them how 

 to properly handle the spade or rake, arts which cannot well 

 be learnt in after lite? I would sincerely urge those who have 

 not had the good fortune to be well trained in the kitchen 

 garden during their apprenticeship to lose no time in placing 

 themselves under some good practical gardener where kitchen 

 gardening is well done, oven if this step should involve pecu- 

 niary loss and a sacrifice of personal comfort. When a gardener 

 enters upon his first responsible situaliou he should make it 

 one of his first duties to take stock of the kitchen garden, and, 

 having ascertained as soon as possible the requirements, likes, 

 and dislikes of the family, he should arrange his crops for the 

 following season, allotting as nearly as he can to each vegetable 

 the proportion likely to be at his disposal, and taking care to 

 avoid a glut or a famine at any time. 



The following is the plan I adopt :— On some fine day in 

 autumn I go round pocket-book in hand, and on one page I 

 draw a rough plan of the garden, on which I affix a number to 

 each border and quarter ; I then number the succeeding pages 

 to correspond, and proceed to allot the next year's crops to 

 each plot, arranging what is to be dug or trenched, heavily or 

 lightly manured. The south borders I consider most valuable, 

 inasmuch as the earliest vegetables are always most highly 

 appreciated, for which reason these borders should always be 

 divided into several parts, of which the first would be occupied 

 with early Peas sown about the second week in November, 

 and which I consider a good crop to precede Strawberries for 

 the following year. Allow me to remark in passing that not- 

 withstanding all the high trumpet soundings about Alpha, 

 Ringleader, Emerald Gem, Blue Peter, or William I., I have not 

 found one Pea to surpass the old Dillistone's Early lor the first 

 dish. The adjoining piece of ground I give to early Potatoes, 

 always taking care to have them well sprouted before planting; 

 and for the first dish I have not yet met with any to beat the 

 old Ashleaf Kidney, of which, however, there are many spurious 

 stocks or so-called improved Aahleaved Kidneys. The true sort 

 is easily known, as, when commencing their growth, they have 

 smooth yellow sprouts with green points, whilst the bulk of 

 the others have purple sprouts. In the remaining portions of 

 the south borders places should be found for winter Onions, 

 early Carrots, Turnips, Cauliflowers, Broad and Kidney Beans, 

 Radishes, Lettuces, &a., and when these come off the land is 

 usually in good condition for late crops of French Beans, 

 Spinach, Turnips, Salading, &c. 



The east and west borders are always useful for a variety of 

 crops successional to those grown under more favourable oir- 

 cnmstances, whilst the north border is valuable for lata Siraw- 

 berries. Turnips, Saladinp, Parcley, Herbs, and many otlier 

 things. I may rtmark that it is better not to occupy Iruit- 

 tree borders with tall vegetables or anything likely to injure 

 the trees on the walls. 



Turning now to the main portion of the garden, we shall 

 have to determine how the quarters are to be cropped. In the 

 first place, a good space must be set apart for Potatoes; and in 

 my experience I have always found that, in addition to manure. 

 Potatoes are much benefited by a little fresh lime being applied 

 to the land at planting time, as, besides the good done to the 

 land, the quahty of the Potatoes is much improved. If the 

 land has been recently trenched, and is in good condition after 

 the second early Potatoes, fine crops of late Broccoli, Savoys, 

 or winter greens may be had, and those in turn may be ad- 

 vantageously succeeded by Celery. The year following the 

 maiu crop of Peas will do very well where the Celery has been, 

 taking care to have the Peas where the Celery trenches were, 

 as in this way the manure serves for two crops. The part of 

 the garden allotted to Carrots, Beet, Par-nips, and Onions 

 ought always to be trenched at least two spits deep some time 

 during the preceding autumn, and well mauured for the crop 

 of Onions. The best time to sow spring Onions is so soon ua 

 you can trample on the ground without the soil sticking to 

 your boots. 1 have for a number of years found wood ashes 

 very beneficial to Onions, Carrots, Beet, and Turnips. When 



the seed is sown I have the drills filled up with the ashes, the 

 back of the rake is then drawn over the whole, and in due time 

 the seed sprouts Btrongly through the loose surface, which 

 never cakes, no matter how many showers there may have been 

 in the interim, and, moreover, I never knew Onions, when 

 treated as I have described, to be badly attacked with the grub 

 so common in old gardens. Onions mako a very good crop to 

 precede Cabbages, as they are got off the ground early in the 

 autumn, and the Cabbage plants get a good hold of the soil 

 before winter sets in. 



You will observe I have not said anything about such vege- 

 tables as Asparagus, Globo Artichoke, Seakale, or Rhubarb, 

 which ars so often found in back out-of-the-way places ; these 

 I consider most valuable vegetables, and they will well repay 

 any extra labour bestowed upon them. Before making a new 

 plantation of these be sure to have the laud well manured and 

 deeply trenched, and, with ordinary attention afterwards, suc- 

 cess is almost certain. Such are a few general observations on 

 the management of the culinaiy garden ; and in conclusion I 

 would beg to be allowed earnestly to impress on all young head 

 gardeners to look well after the rotation of crops ; to keep the 

 garden clean and tidy ; to strive at all times to have a variety 

 of vegetables ready for the pot, and not to allow the salad-bowl 

 to be neglected. — [Darlington and Stockton Times.) 



DOINGS OF THE LAST AND WORK FOR 

 THE PRESENT WEEK. 



HARDY FKOIT GARDEN. 



So far the birds have not done any harm to the buds of the 

 Gooseberry bushes, which are now at that stage when they 

 usually attack them . The weather has been mild, and probably 

 green food of another sort has been plentiful. Pruning should 

 now be finished without any delay. We generally leave Morello 

 Cherry trees until the last, but they are now pruned and nailed. 

 The buds on the north walls are starting. It may not be gene- 

 rally known that the Morello as a pyramid succeeds well on the 

 dwarfing (Cerasus Mahaleb) stock, and it is possible to obtain 

 fruit for preserving purposes, as it ia not so much relished by 

 the birds as the other varieties. The old Kentish succeeds 

 quite as well on this stock, and they both make wonderfully 

 vigorous growth. The trees have a tendency to become over- 

 crowded with young wood, but this can be avoided by attention 

 in summer, and if it was not thinned-out at that time it ought 

 to be done at once. Wo have finished forking over the surface 

 of all the fruit-tree borders. Many gardeners object to this 

 operation ; they believe that it is uunecesfeary if not positively 

 injurious. In our light soil it is needful to give an annual 

 dressing of manure, and if this is left on the surface the birds 

 scratch it on to the walks, and the garden never looks in good 

 order ; whereas if the surface is merely forked over and care 

 taken not to injure the roots with the fork, the borders look 

 much neater. Should any weeds appear it is very easy to run 

 the Dutch hoe through amongst the trees. 



Gooseberry bushes require a good dressing of rich manure. 

 It is not easy to overfeed them ; and if the trees were infested 

 last season with the Gooseberry caterpillar it will be as well to 

 pare off the soil under the bushes with a spade to the depth of 

 u inches, and trench it down 'J inches or a foot under the sur- 

 face, bringing up the fresh soil to woiL under the bufhes in the 

 place i)f that winch has been removed. The Lancashire growers 

 plant their bushes on very highly manured soil, and they also 

 give copious supplies of manure water, and by judicious shading 

 and thinning of the fruit they grow the fruit of such a size as 

 has not been equalled in any other part of the Biitish Empire. 



When it is intended to regraft any of the Apple or Pear treeB 

 thoy ought to be headed-down in the early part of the winter; 

 but if they were not done at that time they may bo done at 

 once, and grafting may be performed about the end of March. 



The Strawberrj' quarters have again been hoed over. We are 

 partieular to have the plants quite free from weeds at this 

 season and until the flowers open. If the beds are clean at that 

 time there will be no danger of their being overgrown with 

 weeds until the fruit has been cleared off. 



CUCUMBER AND MELON UOUSES. 



Those who grow the above in frames will now require to pay 

 considerable attention to them. It will be necessary to cover 

 the frames with mats every night, and should there be any 

 symptoms of severe frost they ou^ht to be doubled-matted. At 

 the same time light and air must be as freely admitted to tbe 

 frames as the state of the weather will permit. When the heat 

 dechnes it must be increased by linings of stable manure and 

 leavi.'i'. The plants will make but little progress in Cdld weather, 

 and with the cold winds wo have had recently i t has scarcely 

 been possible to give air. Where there are eificiently heated 

 houses Melons that were sown the first week in the new year 

 1 ought to be considerably advanced. It is not well to retain the 



