ON VINERIES. 



quire water, previous to beginning to force them. I 

 have invariably found, that unless great care is exer- 

 cised in pricking up the surface of the borders, the 

 water will not percolate regularly down through the soil. 

 The cultivator must be the best judge as to how much 

 water to give the border. I would recommend, when 

 borders require water, to do it thoroughly j I strongly 

 object to watering by driblets, which never reach 

 the roots. I recommend gardeners and amateurs to 

 get an instrument made of steel, pretty much the 

 shape of a cheese-trier or joiner's auger, about three 

 feet long. By applying this in different parts of the 

 border periodically, it will be seen which part requires 

 water most, as I have found in my experience that it 

 sometimes varies in this respect. The amateur and 

 gardener will easily understand, after the steel trier is 

 used and the soil drawn out, that when the earth falls off 

 it easily it is time to prick up the surface of the border, 

 and water thoroughly with water, say from 70° to 75°, 

 and, if necessary, a little liquid manure in it. This 

 advice mostly refers to inside borders. I have found that, 

 in very dry seasons, the outside borders require equal care 

 and attention, especially in the south of England, or 

 indeed almost any place where the substratum is a chalk 

 or gravelly formation. 



