January 13, 187fi. 1 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



35 



filled aa they nsually are in an ably-managed gentleman's 

 garden. In the Teach honse I noticed that the trees were 

 planted about l feet apart, and trained as cordons up the 

 rafters, and I was informed that by the system good crops of 

 fruit are secured. 



The church is in close proximity to the Hall, and presents 

 more the appearance of a cathedral than a parish church. It 

 is of the Norman period, and a tine example of that style of 

 architecture. It is full of historic interest, and its many monu- 

 ments and tablets are worthy of examination. In one of the 

 vestries I saw an old will which has to be read once a-year 

 from the pulpit, and for which the minister receives 5s. 



I have dwelt longer on this grand old place than I con- 

 templated. It would betray a want of gratitude on my part 

 to conclude these notes without acknowledging the courtesy I 

 received from Mr. Pearce, the highly respected head gardener. 



and 60 on to the top, where the manure ought to be more 

 decayed on account of the plants soon reaching it. If the sur- 

 face soil is of a clayey nature, lay it up as rough as possible, 

 and it will become pulverised, and its condition wilt be im- 

 proved by the addition of mortar rubbish at the time of working 

 it down for planting. Such beds in well-drained land would 

 last for several years with the usual assistance in spring and 

 summer cultivation ; but if the beds are not to be permanent, 

 a depth of 2 feet, with the bottom being broken up and manure 

 added in the usual way, will be sufficient. 



It is always best to select a piece of ground as open as possible 

 and that is not permeated by the roots of trees. It is scarcely 

 possible to work Asparagus soil about too much before the beds 

 are planted, and that is why I advise the ground being prepared 

 early ; and as the proper time for planting is the latter end of 

 March or April, according to the forward state of the weather, 

 this will give fully two months for the soil to be thoroughly 

 pulverised. 



Melboukne hall. 



It is no mere compliment to Mr. Pearce to add that everything 

 was in excellent keeping. — R. 



NOTES ON VILLA and SUBUEBAN GARDENING. 



Pkepaking ground for Asparagus beds may very seasonably 

 form one of the operations to be done now. It will be best, 

 where two or more beds are to be made, that the whole of the 

 ground bs prepared at one time, because though it is customary 

 to leave alleys of a certain width between each bed, the roots 

 of the plants will occupy the whole space in time, and will 

 therefore be benefited by that space being enriched as weU as 

 the other. 



Asparagus delights in a rich, deep, alluvial soil, and if the 

 soil is shallow or poor it must be made good and deep. Now, 

 the question of depth much depends whether the bed is to be a 

 permanent one, or whether the Asparagus is to be prepared by 

 a few seasons' growth tor forcing purposes. I apprehend that 

 as this vegetable is so easily and inexpensively forced in spring 

 that very few who grow it do not force it also ; if so, the labour 

 of making the beds is very much lessened, and especially in 

 shallow soils ; whereas, if permanent beds are made, most of 

 the soil would have to be wheeled away and be replaced by a 

 more suitable compost. I have enriched the soil to the depth 

 of 4 feet in places where it could be done by placing a layer of 

 manure at the bottom, and then digging it in and mixing it well 

 as the work goes on ; then a layer of soil and another of manure, 



JrAt the time of planting level the soil down as fine as possible, 

 then take 3 inches of it off, lay it in the alleys, then lay the 

 plants out in rows, spreading out the roots well, and when all is 

 done return the soil iu a careful manner. Do the work during 

 a period of fine weather if possible. — Thomas Record. 



DOINGS OP THE LAST AND WORK FOE 

 THE PRESENT WEEK. 



KITCHEN GAEDEN. 



The work is well forward iu this department, and some ground 

 that would have only been dug over will be trenched instead. 

 It has been frequently stated that oiir ground is trenched and 

 manured of necessity to support the crops of vegetables through 

 the drought of summer. The light shallow soil resting on gravel 

 becomes exhausted of moisture very speedily ; and unless we 

 either water copiously at a time when labour is most valuable 

 to us, or trench and manure well at this time or in the autumn, 

 the most valuable of the culinary crops are comparative failures. 

 When it is necessary to water vegetables it is best to do it 

 thoroughly, and mulch over the surface of the ground after. 

 Heavy clay soil has its disadvantages, but for the general run 

 of seasons it is by far the best for kitchen-garden crops. For 

 the earliest crops the light soil has an advantage, as not only 

 do the seeds vegetate more readily, but the plants grow more 

 freely afterwards. But the owner of heavy soil may do much 

 to forward his crops by careful preparation of the soil, and als 







