72 PRINCIPLES OF GAEDENING. [CH. II. 



tage consequent upon removing all water from a soil 

 not retainable by its own absorbent powers ; and I 

 will only state one relative fact, viz., that at Lord 

 Hatherton's residence, Teddesley Hay, in Stafford- 

 shire, four hundred and sixty-seven acres, formerly 

 letting for an average rental of 12s. per acre, were 

 all drained for an outlay of M. 4s. Id. per acre, 

 and their rental now averages more than 31s. per 

 acre ! 



To plants in pots good drainage is not less 

 essential than to those in oui' borders. 



To secure this not only should at least two inches 

 of rubbly charcoal be placed beneath the soil put 

 into the pots, but the soil itself should be allowed to 

 retain its pebbles, instead of hav- 

 ing them sifted out, as was the an- 

 cient practice. Hunt's pots, re- 

 presented in the annexed figures, 

 are well calculated to facilitate 

 drainage, and, by permitting the 

 passage of air beneath the pots, 

 they also admit it more readily to 

 the roots. 



Drainage, however, is not the only desideratum to 

 potted plants, for they have many other difficulties 

 to contend against, from which those in the open soil 

 are presei'ved. The soil, at a few inches below its 



