THE SOIL AND ITS TREATMENT 13 



levelled with the rake, and it will be noticed from 

 the sketch (fig. i) that the cloches in the first row are 

 almost on the level, while the two behind are raised 

 up. If the soil at the back drops down into a slope, 



FIG. i. RAISED SLOPING BED FOR CLOCHES. 



it may be chopped down straight with the spade, and 

 spread over the surface ; or it may be left to buttress 

 up the entire bed. 



WATER SUPPLY 



Without a good supply of water the cultivation of 

 early produce on the French system is out of the 

 question. One of the most important points, therefore, 

 to bear in mind when selecting a site for a French 

 garden is to find out whether there is likely to be an 

 abundance of water or not. In the great majority 

 of cases it may be impossible or ruinously expensive 

 to have water from any of the companies. It must, 

 therefore, be secured either from streams, ponds, or 

 wells. In any case, it will be necessary to secure it 

 in such large quantities that the supply is not likely 

 to fail at a critical moment. 



In a garden of any size, remote from companies' 

 water mains, it will be necessary to have a large storage 



