138 JOTTINGS OF A GENTLEMAN GARDENER 



tically covered with such vicious weeds as dandelions, 

 docks, coltsfoot, thistles, stinking groundsel, bindweed, 

 feverfew, twitch, etc. It looks hopeless, but it is by no 

 means so. My advice is to make an entirely new start, 

 dig up everything in the borders and burn it, sacrifice the 

 few perennials, for the roots of the weeds will be hopelessly 

 matted in amongst their roots and would start to growing 

 and spreading as soon as the perennials were replanted. 



So dig the whole lot up, and entirely clear the surface 

 of the border of any weeds. Make a fire and burn the lot, 

 beginning with the drier foliage, and finishing with the 

 roots and the soil adhering to them. The border should 

 now be trenched 2 ft. deep if possible, in the manner 

 described in Chapter XXIV, the soil being well broken 

 up with a digging fork and every single bit of root picked 

 out. 



If the border cannot be trenched, then it must be dug 

 with a deep spade (blade 12 ins. long). The displaced 

 earth must be thoroughly broken up, stirred, etc., and all 

 visible bits of root picked out. 



A less laborious way is to well dig over the ground 

 with a deep spade, and while digging and breaking up the 

 soil to scatter fresh gaslime freely all over it. This 

 powerful material is unsurpassed as a soil cleanser. It 

 kills the roots of weeds, and grubs, and disease germs all 

 at one time. But it should be applied to vacant land 

 only, and nothing must be planted there for at least three 

 whole months. The best time to apply it is in the very 

 early winter, and not more than I Ib. per square yard 

 should be used. 



If, however, the case is not so bad and the ground not 

 thickly covered or matted with such weeds, border plants 

 need not usually be removed and destroyed. The fork 

 and the spade are often quite sufficient to remove the 

 weeds without making a great deal of disturbance. 

 Generally speaking, the fork is more useful lor the purpose 

 than the spade. The spade is likely to cut through the 

 roots, and leave a part of them in the ground. But a 



