362 SPRING GARDENING. 



The managers of these gardens are rightfully entitled 

 to be considered the pioneers of spring gardening ; by them 

 the ground has been cleared ; by them the plain path indi- 

 cated ; by others recognised and entered on. Henceforth 

 every good garden, when the family resides in the country 

 in spring time, must have its beds of evergreens and flowers 

 at that season, instead of the present bare unmeaning plots 

 of dull vapid earth. Flowers, at all times enjoyable, at all 

 times exhilarating, are doubly so in spring, from their 

 greater rarity, and from the bright contrast they present to 

 the desolation that reigns around. 



An extraordinary summer like that of 1868 opens to 

 the active and observing mind many fresh avenues of 

 thought. The summer just past has been more favourable 

 to the March and April garden than to that of July and 

 August, as many a worker on light dry soils especially 

 knows to his cost. Such should not hesitate one moment 

 in seizing on this new idea, and in substituting for the dull 

 unsightly beds of earth, too prevalent alas ! in spring, 

 masses of bright and beautiful flowers. 



Happily the task is neither difficult nor expensive ; the 

 plants used are frost-proof and cheap ; the labour is the 

 great item, and it would not be fair to represent that there 

 is not an increase under this head, but except where carried 

 out on a very extensive scale, spring gardening need not 

 entail any heavy additional cost even here. 



In all spring gardening, bulbs must form an important 

 part of the material, and they indeed are not costly. 

 Hyacinths (red, white, and blue) may be bought at 2 is. 

 the 100 ; Tulips (red, white, and yellow) at from 45. to I2s. 

 per 100 ; and Crocuses (white, yellow, purple, striped) at 

 from is. 6d. to 35. per 100. Then there are Jonquils 

 (yellow), Snowdrops (white), Anemones (blue, white, 

 scarlet, and variegated), none of them beyond the reach of 

 moderate means, and numberless others calculated to 

 secure diversity and to combine in forming a pleasing and 

 harmonious whole. 



