IMPLEMENTS AND ACCESSORIES 47 



French gardening. It certainly appears much easier 

 to fill a manure-basket with a long-handled fork than 

 with a short one, and the long-handled spade or shovel 

 is a convenience when filling the frames with soil. 



WATERING 



Under ordinary conditions the proper application 

 of water to the roots of plants requires a good deal of 

 care and judgment, as every professional gardener 

 knows. When, however, plants are grown under 

 forced conditions under cloches and lights on hot-beds, 

 it is more than ever essential that watering should 

 be done carefully and judiciously. All plants do not 

 absorb water from the soil at the same rate. The 

 roots of some kinds are much more active than those 

 of others ; consequently, the gardener must have this 

 knowledge " at the back of his head " whenever he 

 waters his crops. The temperature, both outside and 

 inside the frames and cloches, must be taken into 

 account, also the particular period of the year, and the 

 weather actually prevailing at the time. Sometimes 

 an abundance of water will be given, but on other 

 occasions perhaps a mere sprinkling overhead will 

 suffice for the same crops. Over-watering i.e. giving 

 too much must be just as carefully avoided as under- 

 watering, or not giving sufficient when the plants need 

 it. In the case of over- watering the soil or mould is 

 apt to become sour and sodden, fresh air is excluded, 

 the tender roots perish through suffocation or absence 

 of oxygen, or the lower leaves are attacked with some 

 fungoid disease which sets up rapid discoloration and 

 decay throughout the entire plant. On the other 



