184 JOTTINGS OF A GENTLEMAN GARDENER 



soil stirred about them with great advantage, and should 

 be thinned out. 



Finish winter digging. 



APRIL. 



Sow hardy annuals in clumps out of doors. 



Sow Sweet Peas in lines or clumps out of doors. 



Prick out hardy annuals sown last month in pots, using 

 large boxes of light soil for the purpose. 



Finish planting the rock-garden with alpines. 



Plant out Sweet Peas sown in pots in March, at the end 

 of this month. 



Prune roses and shrubs. 



Water hardy annuals sown out of doors regularly if the 

 weather is dry. 



Mulch roses with short manure. 



Plant out Calceolarias and Pentstemons in the borders 

 towards the end of the month. 



Plant out early-flowering border Chrysanthemums 

 towards the end of the month. 



Hoe flower borders regularly once a week, and remove 

 the weeds which are uprooted. 



Half-hardy annuals, half-hardy biennials, and half- 

 hardy perennials should now be hardened off. Hardy 

 biennials and hardy perennials raised from seed sown 

 earlier may now be planted out. 



Water newly planted perennials if there is a dry spell. 



Dahlias can now be started by putting the roots close 

 together in boxes in a warm corner. The roots should be 

 lightly covered with fine soil, and the tubers can be 

 shortened and trimmed up. 



Pansies and Violas may be freely planted out as an 

 edging to the borders. 



MAY. 



Sow half-hardy annuals out of doors. Half-hardy 

 biennials and half-hardy perennials may also be sown in 



