



SCISSORS FOR GARDEN USE. 453 



SCORZONERA. 



catalogues of the seedsmen and nursery- 



Scissors for Garden Use, &c. 



The necessity for scissors in gardening is 

 so palpable that it is not requisite to enlarge 

 much on the minor operations for which 

 they are called into action, namely, those 

 of cutting flowers and foliage in the garden 

 and in the greenhouse. It will be sufficient 

 to observe that for the preservation of 

 flowers, fronds of ferns, &c., in water, it 

 is always better to snip them from the 

 plants that bear them than to break them 

 away. For cutting flowers any ordinary 



semicircular notch is made in one blade 

 to hold the shoot while the sharp blade 

 is being brought down upon it and forced 

 through it ; in the latter, the sliding action 

 that is imparted to the blade turned 

 towards the spectator causes the cut that 

 is made by it to partake in some degree 

 of the drawing action of the knife blade, 

 and to exert less of the direct and 

 downward pressure cf the ordinary scis* 

 sors. Pruning scissors cost from 2s. to 

 35. 6d. per pair ; but the Improved 

 Sliding Pruning Scissors cost 55. per 

 pair. Scissors, and especially those used 

 for thinning grapes, as figured at B, should 



kind of scissors will do ; but for the more 

 important operations in which their aid is 

 sought, namely, pruning and thinning 

 fruit, scissors of a different form and des- 

 cription are required. Types of desirable 

 forms are given in the accompanying 

 illustration, in which A shows a pair of 

 scissors adapted for general purposes. 

 The pointed shape shown in B is pre- 

 ferable for thinning grapes, the pointed 

 termination of the blades rendering their 

 introduction between closely packed berries 

 far easier, and with far less chance of 

 injury to those that are to remain, than 

 blades with broad and blunted points. 

 For pruning, an operation for which 

 scissors have been coming more and more 

 into use since the trimming and forming 

 of trees by pinching has been adopted, 

 an instrument with short, broad, strong 

 blades is necessary. Of pruning scissors, 

 the ordinary kind is shown at c, and an 

 improved kind at D. In the former, a 



SCISSORS FOR PRUNING, &C. 



always be carefully wiped and cleaned 

 after using them, and all scissors used in 

 gardening operations should be provided 

 with stout leather sheaths. 



Scorzonera (not. ord. compos'itse). 



The culture of the scorzonera is similar 

 to that described for salsafy, -which see, 

 but the rows should be from 15 to 18 

 inches apart, and the plants from 9 to 12 

 inches apart in the rows. To have it large, 

 it should remain over the second season. 

 It seldom grows large enough for use the 

 first year, but is none lh worse lor re- 

 maining two or even three years before 

 using. 



