DRAINING IN GENERAL. 53 



and the first season it was very beautiful, but towards the 

 close of the season, some looked very poorly and others went 

 dead, the stock itself having died before the head. The mar 

 was paid for his clump ; and though he was to do great things 

 the next year, he did not make his appearance ; eight or ten 

 lia^nng become blemishes, they were taken up, and, to our 

 astonishment, they had been sunk to keep their heads uniform, 

 some six inches, some a foot, and one nearly eighteen inches. 

 This led to a general trial of all the sickly ones, and they had 

 been sunk in the same way, but not so deep. From this time 

 we never trusted anybody that we bought of to plant roses. 

 We ought, however, to state, that the rose nurserpnan was 

 not an EngHsli nurseryman, and that we never heard of this 

 trick being tried before or since ; but we can imagine that 

 there may have been others who, to make a pair match better, 

 may have put one deeper without dreaming of the conse- 

 quences ; and we know, from long experience, that many trees 

 are much the worse for it, although they have not actually 

 died under the inliiction. 



DEAIXI^^G m GENEEAL, 



AND THE MODES OF EXECUTING IT. 



Although we have touched on this subject in the early 

 occupation of a garden and laying it out, it is so essential to 

 the well-being of everything, and the want of it has defeated 

 so many excellent florists and amateurs in their attempts to 

 cultivate florists' flowers and plants, that we propose to take 

 up the subject in all its bearings, and provide something like a 

 remedy for stagnant water under every possible disadvantage. 

 The Fens of Lincolnshire present us with a lesson that ought 

 to be deeply engraven on the mind of every occupant of 

 ground — a low and swampy level, below the bed of every 

 adjacent river, often covered entirely with water, and always 

 soddened, at one time worthless, and not only uncultivated, 

 but uncultivable, presented no very great temptation to owner- 

 ship. Common observers had considered it for years useless, 

 because, as they thought, it could not be drained. It was not 

 difficult to make a hole for the water to drain into, but the 

 hole would immediately fill without any drains running into 

 it, and there ended the hopes. However, men who thought a 

 little beyond their neighbours could see that, if by any means 



