2^4 '^^^ Gardener's New Director. 

 may reach them, and draw from thence fufficient to fup- 

 port a ftrong flower the iucceeding year, and to fupply 

 thefucculency of their ftrong ftems and bells; then fill the 

 trench with the compofl as dire6ted in page 272, until it 

 be near equal with the lurface of the path-way ; then 

 on the furface of the comport lay one inch of your fandy 

 earth, the purefl: and fineil you have : When you are to 

 plant four or five roots in breadth, in five feet beds, and 

 eleven inches every way root from root, in the quincunx 

 order, and not nearer to the outer extremity of the bed 

 than fix inches ; the roots you are to fet down with your 

 fingers, to the depth of one inch, and over them lay on 

 three inches of the compol!: riddled over it, with one of 

 good garden mould, fo that no more than the depth of 

 four inches v. ill be above the top of the bulbs. I have 

 frequently planted them, with great fuccefs, about the 

 beginning of QBoheVi when I covered them with no 

 more than two inches of compofl until the beginning of 

 November ; for when they are too much covered, they 

 will not flrike out their fibres, but rot, the air, by the 

 depth of earth, being excluded from them, which, 

 by a thin covering, is admitted fo as to provoke them to 

 fend out their fibres. As foon as the frofts fet in, or 

 by the end of November, cover your beds with two 

 inches of good earth, and three of old rotten tan-bark, 

 or fallen leaves of trees, and alfo two feet beyond the 

 extremities of the beds; filling the alleys between the 

 beds (which may be two feet broad) as high as the 

 furface, there to remain until the end of February, or 

 beginning of March, according as the weather is mild 

 or fevere, and then to be removed with the hand only, 

 for the better protedion of the flioots, which at this 

 time will begin to appear. In the place of tan, as a co- 

 ■vering to the bed, I have ufed peale haulm, which is a 

 much lighter covering, and more eafily admits the ran- 

 cid vapours of the beds to pafs off, which, when con- 

 fined, deflroys the root ; and, the better to protect them 

 from this evil, is the occafion of making every thing 

 fo fine we lay over them : when the tan is ufed, be 

 careful to remove it as foon as the feverity of the wea- 

 ther is gone, for then your roots will germinate fafl:, and 

 requirs the admilTicn of the air lo promote it. I always 



planted 



