44 



CANADIAN FARM YEAR BOOK. 



greatest use in gardens, whether large 

 or small, and is very inexpensive to 

 construct. 



Annual Flowers. — Those that bloom 

 the same year as the seed is sown and 

 then die, and they embrace two 

 classes, hardy and half-hardy, a good 

 example of the former being the sweet 

 pea, and of the last mentioned the 

 china aster. 



Biennial Flowers. — These some- 

 times through early sowing will pro- 

 duce plants that flower the same year, 

 but this is simply a matter of culti- 

 vation. A biennial means a plant 

 that flowers the year after the seed 

 has been sown, and the hollyhock may 

 be cited as an example. The sowing 

 takes place in early summer. 



Everlasting Flowers. — These are 

 real flowers, although their appear- 

 ance when dried suggests that they 

 are composed of some paper-like ma- 

 terial. The immortelles, so called from 

 the years they will remain in much 

 the same c-nndition, are among the 

 best known of the everlastings. Rho- 

 danthe and Helichrysum are types. 



Levelling a Lawn. — Levelling or 

 grading are regarded as difficult op- 

 erations, but this is not so. An abso- 

 lutely flat surface is not always either 

 necessary or desirable. Advice may 

 be summed up as follows: — Having 

 worked the main body of soil as near- 

 ly level as the eye will guide, after a 

 glanco from more than one divection, 

 decide what shall be the height. Set 

 a shallow brick here and at some 

 point several feet distant place an- 

 other. Upon these a piece of stiff 

 quartering or a narrow board that 

 will not sag should be set, and a com- 

 mon spirit level used to get this per- 

 fectly horizontal, raising or lowering 

 the bricks until this is obtained. Put 

 a little soil to this, or remove, as ne- 

 cessary. Repeat this operation from 

 various positions, always taking care 

 that the first guide brick set is al- 

 ways on the level. Of course each 

 other brick, after it is adjusted, will 

 be of the same height, and can be 

 taken as a guide accordingly. A 

 strong piece of string tightly stretch- 

 ed from point to point, is a good guide 

 in the earlier stage, and by driving a 

 few pegs at various parts of the 

 ground, the tops of which are at the 

 desired level, all risk of movement 

 will be avoided. 



Turf for Lawns. — This should be 

 obtained from fields fed over frater- 

 nally by sheep, but as a rule excellent 

 lawns are obtainable from the best 

 seed mixtures, each nurseryman usu- 

 ally having his own preparation. 

 When turf, however, is used, it is ab- 

 solutely necessary that It should be 

 free from weeds, particularly twitch, 

 dandelions, plantain and thistles. Cut 

 each turf about 3 inches deep and 

 roll them grass side downwards until 

 they are used, which should be as 

 soon as possible. When the turf is 

 set spread over it some loamy soil, 

 which work in well with a broom into 

 the crevices. Roll and sweep well 

 and give plenty of water during the 

 first summer especially. 



Lawn Grass. — ^This should never be 

 cut until it has grown quite two 

 inches after growth has begun in the 

 spring, and then only at first clipped 

 off, in the case of freshly made lawns 

 in particular. A close watch should 

 be kept for weeks. Roll the lawn oc- 

 casionally. 



Dimensions of Tennis Lawn. — A 



full court should be as follows: — 

 Length, 78 feet; width, 3 6 feet; and 

 for single court, a width of 27 feet; 

 the net to be in the centre and extend 

 3 feet over each side of the court. 

 Height at the ends 3% feet, centre 3 

 feet, and service lines 21 feet from 

 the net on each side. Total area of 

 lawn to give ample space on outside 

 of court should be 120 feet by 66 

 feet. 



Hardy Flowers. — A class of plants 

 not affected by frost, that is, will live 

 the year through. 



Garden Tools. — These are of sev- 

 eral kinds, each adapted to a certain 

 purpose, the principal implements be- 

 ing the spade, fork, hoe, rake, saw, 

 and small cultivator, which accom- 

 plishes good work and is very useful 

 in saving time. Always take care of 

 tools, alloting them a place apart, 

 and cleanse well after use. 



Labels. — The use of labels may be 

 overdone, but trees, shrubs, flowers 

 and vegetables that are not familiar 

 should be clearly named. Thes€ may 

 be made of zinc, and obtained from 

 the nurseryman, or, in the case of- 

 fleeting things, such as annuals and 

 vegetables, strips of wood, the sur- 

 face made smooth and painted over 



