210 



Gardening for Amateurs 



tiles are best halved and laid on edge; 

 then they can be bedded with fine 

 sand, otherwise mortar must be used to 

 keep them firm. A pretty arrangement is 

 to lay tiles herring-bone fashion. Slabs 

 made of Portland cement and sand may also 

 be used for pathways, but this material 

 lacks the charm of those already mentioned. 

 So far as pioturesqueness of appearance is 

 concerned, small rounded stones or cobbles 

 are to be preferred, but a path formed of 

 these is not so pleasant to walk upon owing 



to ashes. The stones are pressed slightly 

 into the bed prepared for them, and are 

 then brought to the desired level by beat- 

 ing with a wooden hammer or mallet. It 

 is most necessary to ensure that the slabs 

 are quite firm, and do not rock or move 

 when trodden upon. Some gardeners place 

 a layer of mortar beneath the stones to 

 enable them to set firmly, but it is not really 

 necessary except perhaps in laying large 

 slabs on a broad terrace walk, or stones that 

 are so small as to be difficult to fix without 



Stone paving in a little formal garden. 



to the absence of a flat surface. The removal 

 of a stone here and there to allow for the 

 insertion of small plants adds considerably 

 to its attractiveness. 



Laying the Stones. The ground on 

 which they are to be laid must be made 

 fairly level. Beneath them there should be 

 a layer of sifted ashes, sifted soil, or sand of 

 such a depth that the thickest stones may 

 be properly laid without coming into con- 

 tact with irregularities in the ground. If 

 it is intended to plant in the cracks of the 

 path, sand with just a little sifted soil inter- 

 mixed, or sifted soil alone, is to be preferred 



such aid. Here and there spaces should be 

 left between big pieces of stone and between 

 groups of small stones or bricks and tiles so 

 that seeds or plants may be inserted. What- 

 ever material is used for forming the path, 

 it should be so laid that the edges come 

 level with the flower border, unless, as is 

 often done, a narrow edge is formed on 

 each side of and rather higher than the path 

 itself. If the surface of the paved way is 

 slightly uneven, as it probably will be un- 

 less mortar is used, it gains in picturesque- 

 ness and loses nothing in usefulness provid- 

 ing the edges of the stones or bricks are 



