Gardening for Amateurs 



built some exit must be provided for the 

 water in order to prevent flooding and to 

 avoid puddles. Concrete or granolithic is 

 fine for use on the surface, and an improve- 

 ment is obtained by using the tinted pre- 

 parations so often seen. Asphalt is also 

 serviceable, though not so pleasant to look 

 upon. 



An Amateur's Short Path. For the 

 amateur who is making a short path the 

 following plan is rather good : Mix together 

 1 part sifted ashes, 1 part sand, and 1 part 

 gravel, whin chips, or anything of that 

 nature in a fine condition, say about J to i 

 inch in size ; gather this in a heap with a 

 hole in the centre, the material, of course, 

 being dry. Into the hole pour a quantity of 

 hot coal-tar, mix the mass together as a 

 builder prepares mortar, and when the heap 

 is thick and sticky, somewhat like ordinary 

 mortar, spread a thick layer on the surface 

 of the path, and level it roughly with the 

 spade. Now blind the whole with a fair 

 sprinkling of sand, not adding too much, 

 and roll it down until perfectly level and 

 hard ; fine shell gravel instead of sand, or 

 a mixture of both, gives a pleasing white 

 tint to the otherwise dead-black surface. 

 If a road-metalling installation is near at 

 hand it is sometimes possible to get whin or 

 granite chips treated with tar which can be 

 spread on the surface and rolled down as 

 in the above method. 



Flagged Pathways. Old paving-stones 

 are suitable for this kind of work, but they 

 should first be broken up into irregular 

 pieces. Build a good foundation ; cover it 

 with a thin layer of sandy loam, then lay 

 the larger pieces flat on this ; fill up the larger 

 interstices with the fragments, but leave 

 crevices filled with soil, 2 inches or so broad, 

 here and there. Make up a compost of equal 

 parts of loam, sand and leaf -mould, sweep 

 this over the path, and let it settle in the 

 joints. Many plants can now be established 

 in these joints containing soil, and a pretty 

 effect is obtained. Suitable hardy plants 

 are the Ivy-leaved Toadflax, dwarf Veronicas, 

 alpine Pinks, Antennaria, small tufted Cam- 

 panulas, Thrift, Thyme, some of the Sedums 

 or Stonecrops, Saxifrages, and others. These 

 flagged paths form a charming feature in an 

 old-world garden or near the rockery. 



Showing a path badly made, big and little 



stones and gravel being indiscriminately 



mixed. 



Grass Paths and Alleys. Grass paths 

 are pleasing, but they do not stand a lot of 

 traffic, and unless well tended, continuously 

 mown, and thoroughly drained, they never 

 look nice. No particular method of building 

 is carried out, and the path may generally 

 be considered as a continuation of the lawn, 

 and the details given in the notes on laying 

 turf are applicable to the formation of grass 

 paths. 



The actual dimensions of paths are deter- 

 mined by the size of the garden ; a large 



A well-made walk, with cement surface 

 rounded off by a piece of wood as at A. 



