No. 9. 



American Institute. 



269 



more of one than the other. The French 

 agriculturists say, that in common seasons 

 the clouds furnish the necessary shade for 

 most plants — but they recommend the pro- 

 per use of spread cloths to shade some plants 

 at proper times. Mr. Watson, late from 

 England, tells me of his mode of settmg 

 out cabbage plants, which was new to me. 

 He sets out the plants whenever it is conve- 

 nient, dry or wet time — and after they are 

 set, he puts boards along both sides of the 

 rows of plants within an inch or two of the 

 plants. The effect of which covering of the 

 soil, is to cause the plants to thrive in a sin- 

 gular manner, and also to do another vast 

 service to the gardeners, by preventing the 

 growth of weeds. The ground should be 

 dug two spades deep — and in drought, the 

 oftener the ground is hoed or stirred the 

 safer the plants, however dry the surface of 

 the soil may be. All farmers and garden- 

 ers, living as they do most at home, without 

 opportunities of comparing their work with 

 others, are extremely apt to think that they 

 know all about it, but occasionally when 

 they chance to see another man's garden 

 far superior to their own, they feel a mortifi- 

 cation, which however is seldom owned. 



Mr. Pike — I claim to be an exception to 

 that rule, for with all my investigation and 

 pains, I find that when I want the best vege- 

 tables, I must go to our markets for them. 

 For instance, I tried to raise horse radish, 

 but that in the markets goes entirely beyond 

 mine. 



John Lodge of Morrisania — I have been 

 a working gardener more than thirty years. 

 When one wants to begin making a garden, 

 he must first examine his soil deeply, and 

 sec that it is of the right stufl; He should 

 lay out his garden at right angles. His 

 paths must be high instead of being ditches, 

 and he must trench the whole garden from 

 two and a half to four feet in deptli, accord- 

 ing to the character of the soil. If it re- 

 quires draining, that must be 3one. I can 

 trench from two to three square rods in a 

 day; the effect is like that produced by the 

 eubsoil plough. This deep tillage gives 

 room for the tender fibrous roots of plants to 

 go deep and draw moisture and nutritition. 

 Why, sir! the onion will send down its little 

 fibrous roots from two to three feet deep. 

 No tree should be in a kitchen garden, nor 

 any flowers, they must be separated a consi- 

 derable distance from each other. I have 

 worked on 126 acres in England, where all 

 the ground was dug with the spade, and 

 when my spades, which at first are eleven 

 inches long, have worn off" from three-quar- 

 ters to an inch, I throw them aside. When 

 the garden has been trenched as deep as I 



have stated, the work is done for seven to 

 fifteen or even twenty years, and in it every 

 plant will have the proper chance to thrive. 

 I don't throw all the subsoil upon the sur- 

 face in this trenching. Paths are useful in 

 separating plants from each other as well as 

 for convenience to the gardener. Shade is 

 necessary for many plants. Our sun here 

 is often too hot for tjiem, gooseberries espe- 

 cially flourish in shade — strawberries ought 

 to be set in deep dug ground. Deep digging 

 has the effect of enabling the soil to retain 

 moisture, instead of being dried up. 



Mr. Pike — But it won't do to drain our soil 

 so much, we have too much dry weather for 

 that. Paths an inch or three inches below 

 the surface of the land arc good; I have 

 them so in my nursery. 



Ironius Smith of Astoria — I can tell our 

 friend Mr. Pike how he can raise fine horse 

 radish ; it is generally stuck away in some 

 corner or scattered about the garden. I dig 

 trenches two feet deep, fill them half full of 

 good manure of cows, pigs, &c. I then fork 

 up the bottom of the trench so as to mix 

 soil and manure, then fill in the trench with 

 good soil, then make holes at suitable dis- 

 tances, deep, and put in the roots. They 

 grow as long as my cane, tapermg down- 

 wards like a carrot, one solid root. A few 

 trenders only are necessary ; when I want 

 horse radish, I cut off" below the surface, 

 leaving the late root, which grows again, so 

 that they will for a long while continue a 

 fine supply every year. 



Mr. Lodge — After the summer is over, 

 always dig up the garden well, and leave it 

 so, for the benefit of the winter snows and 

 rains. 



Judge Van Wyck — We reasonably expect 

 from any garden or farm on a small scale, a 

 great production. Before we commence a 

 garden, we ought to know what the soil is to 

 a considerable depth; whether it contains 

 the four primitive earths — lime, sand, clay, 

 and magnesia in proper proportions; then if 

 all is right, work and manure it well ; for 

 roots it should be trenched deep. Plants 

 then find their nourishment, grow finely, are 

 tender, and are always sought in our mar- 

 kets. The morning sun is of peculiar im- 

 portance to plants. It is said that one hour 

 of it in the morning is worth two in the af- 

 ternoon, and we should avail ourselves of a 

 knowledge of our climate so as to manage 

 plants properly; we here generally have too 

 much of the heat of the sun — it is far differ- 

 ent in the moist climate of England. 



Mr. Wakeman — The greatest produce of 

 plants is best tested in gardens. Mr. Lodge 

 says he has paid in England $250 a year 

 rent per acre for a garden, and has produced 



