SIZE— FORM.] 



PKACTICE OF HOKTICULTURE. 



[WATKR- SUPPLY. 



may be carrii-il iiit.i rlVcct ul diici', or pro- 

 gressively, according to tlie wants and wishes 

 of the owner. Thus tho walla may bo built ; 

 artificial Bhelter planted, it* required; tho 

 ground drained, levelled, and trenched, so that 

 tho fruit trees may be early ]>lante(l, as it 

 requires some years to brin;; the majority of 

 them to a fruit-bearing state." 



SIZE. 

 As a niatter of course, the size of a garden 

 must be determined by the amount of pro- 

 ducts desired to be obtained from it, the place 

 in which it is situated, the family it is to 

 supply, and, in some degree, their social posi- 

 tion. It should, however, be proportioned to 

 the dwelling to which it is attached, and to 

 the number of iuhabitants it does or may 

 coutain. Tiiis is a judicious rule; yet it is 

 always better to have the garden too large 

 thau too small ; and it is not considered 

 anomalous for a large garden to be annexed 

 to a small house. It is well known that there 

 are some families who care very little about 

 vegetables ; whilst there are others who prefer 

 them to almost every other kind of food. 

 Some will go for weeks together without them, 

 whilst others will not go a day. Accordingly, 

 it may be as v>ell to state, that the quantity of 

 ground to be laid out for a family of four 

 persons, exclusive of servants, should be a 

 rood, provided it be good working, open 

 ground ; and the same proportion preserved 

 ia calculating for higher numbers. If it be 

 possible, however, to allow more, it should be 

 done, as the over-ground may be allotted for 

 the cultivation of tho strawberry in all its 

 varieties ; or, if not for this, it may be stocked 

 in such a manner as to secure the family 

 from, at any time, running short of vegetables. 

 It should also be considered that artichokes, 

 asparagus, and a long succession of peas and 

 beans, require a quantity of ground ; whilst if 

 cucumbers, melons, &c., are to be raised in 

 any considerable quantity, the hot-beds neces- 

 sary for them will occupy a good deal of room. 



FORM. 



Either a square or an oblong is the form 



most approved of by practical men for a 



garden. Abercrombie, however, proposed the 



long octagon form ; or, in other words, an 



oblong with tho angles cut uli', a.sHigning, aa a 

 reason, that it equalised the advantages of 

 aspect beLwoeu the inner and outer hides of 

 tho wall. Hill recommended a geometrical 

 square, " set out in such a manner that each 

 wall may have as much brielit of tiio sun aa 

 possible." Besides these, circular, oval, and 

 irregular figures have bcLMi recommended and 

 adopted ; but tho general opinion is, that tho 

 square or oblong form is the most convenient; 

 but every form appears to bo admissible. 

 " Tho oval, polygonal, and trapezium forms 

 have been adopted for the walls of a garden," 

 says Mr. Loudon, '* in order to procure a more 

 equal distribution of sun and shade ; but the 

 inconveniences attending tlie culture and 

 management of the compartments of such 

 gardens are considerable. Nor does it appear 

 that an equal distribution of sun is so suitable 

 as that of having some walls as advantageously 

 exposed as possible for tho more delicate 

 fruits, and others less so for hardier aorta, 

 and for retarding fruits." 



WATER-SUPPLY- 



"Water is one of the most essential elements 

 in all garden operations. To a kitchen garden 

 it is indispensable ; and from whatever source 

 it is supplied, it should be kept either in open 

 cisterns, reservoirs, or in pipes properly pro- 

 tected, in different parts of the garden. It 

 should, also, be handy to the hot-houses. 

 Many kitchen crops are lost, or produced of 

 very inferior quality, from being denied a 

 sufficiency of water. It is from this circum- 

 stance that lettuces and cabbages are often 

 hard and stringy ; that turnips and radishes 

 do not swell ; that onions decay ; and that 

 cauliflowers die off. Generally, in dry seasons 

 all the Crueifera (turnips, cabbages, radishes, 

 &c.) become stunted, or covered with insects, 

 even in ricli deep soils. Even the foliage of 

 fruit, as well as other trees, require watering 

 in dry seasons. By dispensing it freely, it 

 destroys and prevents the accumulation of 

 insects, and the fruit of the strawberry-bush, 

 and other fruits, are enlarged by it. "If 

 there be no natural stream that can be con- 

 ducted through a garden," observes Nicol, 

 " water should bo conveyed from the nearest 

 river, lake, or pond ; sofc water being most 

 desirable for the use of a garden." 



035 



