352 



THE GENESEE FAEMER. 



MS. GLASSES GASDENING BOOK. 



I AM the son of that ever-to-be-lamented lady 

 good Mrs. Glasse, whose instructions in cookery 

 liave achieved an immortal reputation. Her hus- 

 band, a painstaking man, was very fond of his gar- 

 den, and he used to imitate his wife by collecting 

 good receipts for managing his crops just as she 

 did her kitchen stuff. Like her my poor father had 

 an aversion to reasons. " Sally," he would say to 

 his wife (her real name was Molly, but she got the 

 name of Sally in a family where slie lived,) " never 

 give a reason. Peojile don't want to know why a 

 dish should be cooked ; all they care about is to be 

 told how to cook it. Reasons are only tit for law- 

 yers ; when people are paid for arguing why then 

 of course they must chop logic, and try to win by 

 help of reasons. But cooks slioidd be taught to do, 

 not to talk. I never knew a talking cook worth 

 her board. And I 've a notion it's much tlie same 

 with gardening. You see wliat capital crops Tom 

 Moore there, at the end of the Green Lane, always 

 has; and yet he can hardly Avrite his nam^e. But 

 Mr. S.'imuel up at the Hall, who is quite a scholar, 

 calls things by Latin names, and is never done with 

 talking, and whose wall trees are beautifuDy cut, 

 aoeording to what he calls principle, has not half so 

 much. I've learnt many things from Tom, and 

 uneommon good advice he gives; but never a rea- 

 son. One day he said to me, ' Mind you sow that 

 Early Horn seed tliis Aveek ;' and when I asked him 

 whether the week after wouldn't do as well, ' Ko,' 

 says he, ' it won't. I tell you to sow it this week.' 

 But I didn't, for 1 thought a few days couldn't 

 signify, and I hadn't lialf a crop, which was very 

 late too, and Tom had a full crop fit for pulling very 

 near three weeks sooner. And so I think Tom the 

 best gardener of the two." 



Ps Many and many a year did my father work at 

 his garden ; and when plenty of jnoney came in 

 from the booksellers (he used to call my mother's 

 book his cow) he got a bigger piece of ground, and 

 grew flowers, and built a Vinery or two, and at 

 last got up a long brick pit in which he grew Pine 

 Apples. I shall never forget the old gentleman's 

 joy when he came back from the show at Hintern, 

 where he beat Mr. Samuel with Pine Apples and 

 Celery. " There," he said, smoothing down his 

 chin with his right hand, " that comes of doing 

 and not chattering, (he was a little lively that eve- 

 ning.) Never, my boy, trouble yourself to know 

 why one way is better than another. Find out by 

 experience which is the best way, and do that. — 

 There's nothing like experience. When you walk 

 you don't want to know the reason why you can 

 stand upright and get along with one leg following 

 the other ; if you did want to know you wouldn't 

 fine out. So I say with gardening. Isaac Ker was 

 the best Pine grower in our county ; and nobody's 

 Celery was as fine as Tom Moore's. Isaac showed 

 me how to do as he did, and Tom did the same. 

 I never asked a question, but did as they did, and 

 now, lad, I've won — I've Avon — against all Mr. 

 Samuel's book learning." 



The old gentleman was all his life collecting gar- 

 dening receipts. He tried as many as he could, 

 and when they didn't answer he scratched them 

 out of his book ; for he had a large book in which 

 he wrote them — it had been the ledger of a smart 

 young general shopkeeper in our village who broke 



before he had time to put anything into it. "When 

 the receipts turned out right he marked a cross 

 against them. "When he couldn't try them he used 

 in an evening in winter to talk about them to 

 Isaac and Tom at their smoking club, Avhich met 

 once a month ; and mended them or threw theni 

 away according as the receipts agreed or didn't 

 agree with their practice. And so in course of 

 time an amazing quantity of things were jotted 

 down. He even used to get some things from 

 mother, because as he said, "if Sally should be 

 called away from me I shan't know her ways of 

 cooking, and pickling, and preserving, and dishing 

 up the things when they are grown ; and it's no 

 use to grow things if one don't know how to make 

 them fit to eat." 



It is a good many years now since father died, 

 and I have looked about in gardens to see what 

 was going on, without learning much, except about 

 new plants and the way of growing them. And 

 the more I see, and the longer I live, the more I am 

 sure that father was right in his ways. I see good 

 plain plodding men, not great scholors, managing 

 well, Avithout expense that is not wanted ; and I see 

 others Avith their mouth full of fine words, talking 

 of picturesque and gardenesque, and lines of beauty 

 and giving Latin names to weeds, and shaking their 

 Avise heads over chemistry, and geology, and mete- 

 orology, Avho can't get a decent crop out of a 

 kitchen garden or orchard. So I am thinking that 

 father's receipts may be of use to others as they 

 were to him ; and with your approval I will send! 

 you some every now and then. Only you must 

 mind that they remain my own property, and are 

 not to be made into a book by you or anybody 

 else Avithout my leave. As I don't wish to hide 

 my name, I subscribe myself Peter Glasse, Little 

 O'iceley. 



1. ilow TO MAKE OLD AmEEICAN PlANTS TOtTNG 



AGAIN. — Cut them down almost to the ground in 

 May or August. May is best. They will shoot 

 nicely, and make plants as good as new. It's of no 

 use to cut them half way down. That won't an- 

 swer. 



2. HoAv TO LAY Turf in Dry Weather. — Make 

 the ground firm* nice and level. Rake otf all the 

 stones. Sift over the ground some fine burnt clay. 

 If you can get it, sift over that the dust of oil-cake, 

 or some malt combings, or just a little guano ; half 

 a pound to a rod is plenty lor guano. Give a good 

 watering. Tlien lay doAvn the turf as fast as you 

 can, beat it Avell, and then leave it alone. It wJU 

 get hold directly. 



.3. How TO GET AtTTtTMN RADISHES. — SoW the 



seed of the Early White or Crimson Turnip at the 

 end of August or in the first week of September. — 

 Choose a nice warm border and a light damp soil. 

 They Avill be ready in October. If you want to 

 keep them in November, strip off their leaves, and 

 pack in dry sand. 



4. IIoAV TO SAVE Sweet Herbs. — Gather Sage, 

 Thyme, Marjoram, Basil, Savory, and such things 

 any time in September. Tie them in small bunches 

 with string having a loop. Hang them by the 

 heels to nails in a dry place, such as a shed or out- 

 house, where there is a thorough draft and no sun ; 

 the faster they are dried the better they ai-e, pro- 

 vided the sun does not shine on them. When dry 

 hang them up in a dry room. If put into bags 

 mind they are not made of brown paper. _ 



