146 The Gardener's New Director. 

 is not to be had, take the bottom of a well rotted Me- 

 lon or Cucumber-bed; to every eight barrows of this 

 put one of fea-fand; but fliould your loam be of a fan- 

 dy texture, add thereto a third of fat marie: this com- 



poft 



is well confumed. Thefe Ihould be mixed fix or eight 

 months at leaft before they are ufed ; but if it be a year, 

 it will be the better ; and (hould be often turned, that 

 their parts may be the better united, as alfo the clods 

 well broken. This earth fhould not be fcreened very 

 fine ; for if you only clear it of the great ftones, it will 

 be better for the planis than when it is made too fine. 

 You fliouid always avoid mixing any fand with the earth, 

 unlefs it be extremely fliff ; and then it will be neceflfary 

 to have it mixed at leaft fix months or a year before it 

 is ufed ; and it muft be frequently turned, that the fand 

 may be incorporated in the earth, fo as to divide its 

 parts: but you ihould not put more than a fixth part of 

 fand ; for too much fand is very injurious to thefe plants. 



In the fummer-feafon, when the weather is warm, 

 thefe plants mull be frequently watered ; but you ftiould 

 not give them large quantities at a time : you muft alfo 

 be very careful, that the moifture is not detained in the 

 pots, by the holes being flopped ; for that will foon de- 

 ilroy the plants. If the feafon is warm, they fhould 

 be watered every other day; but in a cold feafon, 

 twice a week will be often enough : and during the fum- 

 mer-feafon, you fhould once a week water them gently 

 all over their leaves ; which will walh the filth from 

 off them, and thereby greatly promote the growth of 

 the plants. 



There are fome perfons who frequently fhift thefe 

 plants from pot to pot : but this is by no means to be 

 praftifed by thofe who propofe to have large well-fla- 

 voured fruit ; for unlefs the pots be filled with the roots, 

 by the time the plants begin to Ihew their fruit, they 

 commonly produce fmall fruit, which have generally 

 large crowns on them : fo that the plants will not re- 

 quire to be new-potted oftener than twice in a feafon : 

 the firfl time ihould be about the end cf April, when 



the 



