392 VILLA GARDENING part v 



growing the preparation of the land is most essential ; it is, in fact, 

 the basis of the work. The trenching or digging in winter, the 

 further stirring in spring to pulverise the surface and fit it to re- 

 ceive the seeds, are all works of a preparatory character, and very 

 necessary if we wish to obtain tlie best possible results. The 

 reason why one man's crops fail and another's succeed may be 

 summed up in that one magic word. Land that is in good heart, 

 well manured, in good tilth, and sufficiently cultivated, may be 

 safely reckoned upon doing its duty to any crop for which it is 

 suitable. Capital judiciously laid out upon the land in the form of 

 labour or manure, or both, will prove a good investment ; but 

 more skill and judgment are required in working the land tlirough 

 its preparatory stages economically — neither withholding its ne- 

 cessities, nor casting away the chances of profit by lavish expendi- 

 ture (for there are tw^o sides to all questions, two rocks on which 

 our bark may split) — than in following the career of the crop 

 through its further progress till the end comes. Surface polish, 

 the hoeing and keei)ing dowai of weeds, is a good thing for the 

 crops ; but it is not preparation, neither can it in any sense take 

 its place. It is the deep stirring, the thorough intermixing and 

 the replenishing — the giving back to the earth in the shape of 

 manure what the previous crops had taken away — which constitutes 

 the real preparation. Of course, the forces of Nature — frost, wind, 

 rain, and sunshine — will all work for us if we aid them by opening 

 the earth's crust, unlocking the door with the spade, and so making 

 a way for them to enter. 



Rotation of Ckops. — Every one admits the necessity of this. 

 The foundation and prosperity of all things are built upon 

 " incessant change." It is true that there are exceptions. Onions 

 have been grown year after year in the same ground without any 

 perceptible deterioration. Potatoes, again, have but little change 

 in many gardens ; but neither of these crops occupy the ground for 

 a longer period than six months out of twelve, and during the 

 remainder of the year the land remains idle, or is resting. "We 

 ought not, I take it, to be content with only one crop per year, 

 especially when that only occupies the land half the year, so 

 that if it is to be cropped as well as it ought to be there 

 must be a rotation of some kind. I do not think any hard and 

 fast line should be drawn with reference to this matter, for if the 

 land is well cultivated and well manured, the question of rotation 

 may be — not altogether ignored, but not quite so strained in its 

 bearings. With this proviso, by way of detail I have roughly 

 given a short list of simple rotations which may, I hope, be useful. 

 Late Potatoes are better grown out in the open field, therefore I 



