FORMATION AND MANAGEMENT OF GARDENS. 17 



the surface soil down on the bottom of the trench, and if 

 it is very poor, add a little manure, or good surface earth. 

 Autumn is by far the best time for transplanting, and it 

 can safely be done as soon as the leaves are dropped. Cut 

 down the plants to within four inches above the roots be- 

 fore planting. Several authors recommend planting in 

 double rows, but I decidedly prefer a single one. Assort 

 the plants in two parcels, those of large and those of 

 small size, and lay the smaller ones aside for the richest 

 ground. Stretch the line firmly, and place the plants in 

 as straight a line as possible, one foot apart ; fill up the 

 trench with earth, leaving about two inches above ground ; 

 press the earth not too firmly, but water plentifully, and 

 after that, level the whole nicely." 



" Trimming. It is perfectly useless to plant a hedge 

 and leave it to be killed by weeds, or grow without trim- 

 ming. A young hedge will require the same amount of 

 labor as a row of Indian 

 corn. The plants having 

 been cut down so much, will, 

 of course, start vigorously 

 the ensuing spring. A good ^ 

 hedge ought never to be 

 trimmed in any other than in 



. , , . Fig. 2. SECTION OF HEDGE. 



a conical shape, as in ngure 2. 



When trimmed in a conical shape, every shoot will enjoy 

 the fall benefit of air, light, and moisture, and by this 

 simple and natural method, a hedge can be shorn into a 

 strong wall of verdure, so green and close from, bottom to 

 top, that even a sparrow cannot, without difficulty , pass 

 through it. In order to make a hedge so thick and im- 

 pervious as above mentioned, it is necessary to go to 

 work even in the first summer, with a pair of hedge 

 shears, pruning the young growth, when about three 

 months old, at the same time laying down some of the 

 most vigorous shoots to fill up any vacant places found 



