120 THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 



most suitable, as they will not be so likely to damp off. They suc- 

 ceed admirably in good, turfy loam, leaf-mould, and a small propor- 

 tion of sand. A light, airy position is the most conducive to a firm, 

 short-jointed growth, and an abundant bloom. 



When growing freely, plentiful supplies of soft water will be 

 required, but in the winter the soil should be kept just moist only. 

 In the spring, prune the shoots back to two or three joints from the 

 base, and when they begin to make new growth, turn them out of 

 the pots, reduce the ball of soil slightly, and put iu one or two sizes 

 larger ; no further repotting or stopping will be required through- 

 out the season. Those intended for the flower garden must be 

 hardened off, and planted out towards the end of May, and they 

 should have a sunny situation. If it is intended to keep them over 

 the winter, lift at the end of September, put in the smallest pots 

 possible, winter in the greenhouse, and prune them back in the 

 spring. 



FOEMATION OF THE KITCHEN GARDEN. 



p extremely simple are the first principles to be observed 

 in the laying out of a kitchen garden, that they may 

 be disposed of, as principles, in a few words. The 

 ground should be rectangular, and slightly sloping to 

 the south, divided into convenient-sized plots, with 

 good walks of sufBcient width between; it should be effectually 

 drained ; the soil should be a deep fertile loam ; there should be 

 sheltering plantations on the north and east, substantial boundary 

 walls on all four sides, and a suitable extent should be screened by 

 means of hedges or walls, to serve as frame ground and compost 

 and rubbish yard. Finally, there must be an abundant water 

 supply, and the climate must be genial, and characterized by an 

 equable temperature, never very cold in winter, not subject to 

 severe frosts in the later days of spring, and exempt from the trying 

 times of excessive heat and drought by which the summer is occa- 

 sionally characterized in many parts of Great Britain, which may 

 be described as less than perfect for horticultural purposes. 



The amateur need not take alarm at this brief sketch of essential 

 primary principles. Vegetables and fruit are produced in plenty 

 where none of them can be fully realized, and, from first to last^ 

 gardening in this country is a continuous conflict with difficulties. 

 "We look out of window on one of our own kitchen plots, which in 

 shape approximates to a very long wedge, or a cross between a 

 parabola and an isosceles triangle. From another window we view 

 another plot which is of no shape at all, but comes nearest to a 

 rhomboid out of joint, the sides and angles violently unequal, so 

 that symmetrical division is impossible. The first piece is embel- 

 lished with a brook that overflows half the ground when extra 

 heavy rains occur, and is as dry as dust in a droughty summer. 

 The other piece consists of untamed clay, with water at a depth of 



