DIG 



[ 330 ] 



DIG 



ground, that if one corner is much 

 lower than another, carry on the lower 

 part somewhat first, in a slanting di- 

 rection, as far as necessary. Likewise, 

 in finishing any pieces of digging, 

 gradually round upon the lower side 

 so as to finish at the highest corner ; 

 and having dug to where you intend to 

 finish, then use the earth taken out of 

 the first trench to make the last open- 

 ing equal with the other ground. In 

 plain digging dunged ground, if the 

 dung is quite rotten you may dig clean 

 through, giving each spit a clean turn 

 to hury the dung in the hottom of the 

 trench ; hut if you cannot readily do 

 this, trim the dung a spade's width at a 

 time into the furrow or open trench, 

 and so dig the ground upon it, which is 

 rather the most effectual method, whe- 

 ther rotten or long fresh dung. 



All weeds that are perennial should 

 he carefully picked out, particularly 

 couch-grass and bear-bind. But annual 

 weeds, groundsel, and the like, should 

 he turned down to the bottom of the 

 trench, where they will rot. 



A man will dig by plain digging of 

 light free-working clean ground, eight, 

 ten, or twelve rods a day, from six to 

 six, though in some of the light clean 

 ground about London, a man will turn 

 up fifteen or twenty rods a day, from 

 five to seven; but in stiff stubborn soils, 

 a man may work hard for six or eight 

 rods in a day of twelve hours. Trench- 

 Ing, if only one spade deep, without the 

 crumbs or shovelling at bottom, a man 

 will dig almost as much as by plain 

 digging ; or two spades' depth, from 

 four to six rods a day may be good 

 work, though in harsh working ground 

 digging three or four rods per day may 

 be hard work. (Mawe}. Most gar- 

 den soils dig best the day after a fall 

 of rain ; and if the soil has in its 

 composition a larger proportion than 

 usual of clay, the operation will be fa- 

 cilitated by dipping occasionally the 

 spade into water. Most gardeners ob- 

 ject to digging while snow is upon the 

 ground, and the objection is not mere 

 prejudice, for experience proves tl.r 

 bad result of the practice. The evil is 

 owing to the great quantity of heat 

 required to reduce ice or snow from 



the solid to the fluid state ; and when 

 buried so that the atmospheric heat 

 cannot act directly upon it, the thawing 

 must be very slowly effected, by the 

 abstraction of heat from the soil by 

 which the frozen mass is surrounded. 

 Instances have occured of frozen soil 

 not being completely thawed at mid- 

 summer. 



DIGITA'LIS. Foxglove. (From the 

 Latin digitate, a finger-stall; referring 

 to the shape of the flowers. Nat. ord., 

 Fiyvjorts [Scrophulariaceee]. Linn., 

 l-Didynamia 2-Anyiospermia.} 



The seeds should be sown in the autumn, 

 when sown in the spring they often remain 

 twelve months before they sprout. Division ; 

 and most of them plentifully by seeds ; common 

 soil. 



BIENNIALS. 



D. eriosta'cliya (woolly-spiked). 3. Brown, 

 yellow. July. Russia. 1827. 



ferrugi'nea (rusty). 4. Brown. July. Italy. 

 1597- 



purpu'rea (purple. Common Foxglove}. 4. 



July. Britain. 

 aUlu (white). 4. July. Britain. 



PERENNIALS. 



i'gua (ambiguous). 3. Light yellow. 

 July, Switzerland. 1595. 



au'reu (golden). 3. Yellow. July. Greece. 



1816. 



fusce'scens (dark brown) . 2. Red. July. 



Hungary. 1823. 



fu'lva (tawny). 3. Brown. June. 



lacinia'ta (cut-leaned). l. Yellow. June. 



Spain. 1827. 



lannga'ta (smooth-teamed). 2. Yellow. July. 



Hungary. 1816. 



lana'tu (woolly). 2. Yellow. June. Hun- 



gary. 1789. 



leucophce'a (grey). 2. White, brown. June. 



Greece. 1788. 



lu'tea (yellow). 2. July. France. 1629. 

 fuca'ta (dyed). 2. Yellow, red. June. 



South Europe. 



me'dia (intermediate)- 2. Yellow. June. 



Germany. 1817. 



micra'nthu (small-flowered). 2. Yellow, 



brown. July. Switzerland. 1817. 



mi' nor (smaller), ij. Purple. July. Spain. 



1789- 



nervo'sa (large - nerved - leaved) . Yellow . 



July. 1836. 



obscu'ra (obscure). 1. Orange. June. Spain. 



1778. Half-hardy evergreen. 



ochroleu'ca (yellowish- white). 4. June. 



Europe. 



orienta'lift (eastern). l. White. June. 



Levant. 1820. 



parviflo'ra (small-flowered). l. Brown. 



July. 1798. 



purpura'scens (purplish). 2. Pink. June. 



Germany. 1776- 



ri'glda (stiff). 1. Yellow, red. June. 



D. amb 



