5 i 4 GARDENING FOR BEGINNERS 



Geraniums, Verbenas, Phlox, Drummondi, Perennial Phlox, Auriculas, 

 Polyanthuses, and many other plants that thus produce their flowers, 

 have pips. These are sometimes prized for their size, their roundness, 

 the smoothness of their edges, as in Zonal Pelargoniums, or the fringed 

 nature of their edgings, as in Chinese Primroses. Some again are 

 thought much of for the substantial petal or colour. Still to each 

 separate flower on a truss, no matter of what, the term "pip" is thus 

 applied. Of course they vary very much in size and form, but all 

 possess the same name. 



Pointing. Whilst digging is generally understood to mean turning 

 the soil over the full depth of a spade or fork, " pointing " is work of 

 less arduous nature, and adopted chiefly on ground already cropped. 

 It often happens that ground between rows of crops gets hard or runs 

 together. It is then good practice to point it over. That is done with 

 a digging fork, which is forced into the ground to a depth of about 

 6 inches, and that portion of soil turned over and made neat. Some- 

 times a dressing of short manure, or of leaf soil, or decayed vegetable 

 matter, or of artificial manure, has to be first buried, and that is done 

 by pointing. Flower-borders or Rose-beds, which it is not safe to dig 

 deep, can be made to look fresh by pointing over the surface with a fork, 

 as mentioned. Again, ground dug in the winter on which it is intended 

 to sow or plant crops in the spring is often made more fit for cropping 

 if thus pointed over a few inches deep first. 



Porous. Soils that are porous are quite different to retentive ones. 

 If the latter retain water too freely, porous soils seem to part with it 

 too readily. Still porous soils, because the air can penetrate so 

 thoroughly into them, are invariably sweet, and they can be worked, 

 that is, trenched or dug, at almost any time. Porous soils also are warmer 

 than wet ones, and therefore crops may be sown or planted on them 

 earlier than on retentive soils. But if porous or loose soils part with 

 water readily, it is possible to correct that defect in the summer, so far 

 as atmospheric absorption or radiation is concerned, by keeping the 

 surface frequently stirred an inch in depth with a hoe, as such loose 

 surface soil acts as a mould or protection and helps the ground to retain 

 what moisture it may possess in hot weather. Sandy, peaty, gravelly, 

 and chalky soils are usually porous. They are, however, better when 

 trenched or otherwise deeply worked. 



Potting Manure. Gardeners who make up hot-beds with stable 

 manure prepare the manure by frequent turning and mixing, so that 

 there is far less waste of nitrogen than when manure is allowed to 

 ferment rapidly and excessively. The result is, that when, some time 

 later, the bed has served its purpose, the mass of manure is so decom- 

 posed and solid that it cuts out almost like soil. Such material well 

 chopped or broken up, especially after it has been partially dried, is 

 excellent to mix with soils, and decomposes so slowly that it shrinks 

 imperceptibly. Manure, no matter however short, mixed with potting 

 soils shrinks or decomposes and leaves the soil in the pots hollow when 

 it gets friable. Many who use potting compost in a large way, when 



