MAR.] FLOWERS. 475 



fully stirring the surface among them with a small 

 wooden spatula or wedge, and dressing all smooth 

 and neat about the alleys with the rake. If the 

 season be early, many of the hyacinths, and poly- 

 anthus narcissuses, will be far advanced, and should 

 be supported to neat small sticks or wires, painted 

 green, in order to prevent them from being injured 

 by high winds ; tying loosely with bits of green 

 worsted. The like should be done with the rare 

 sorts of tulips, jonquils, narcissuses, &c. as they ad- 

 vance. 



Those who are curious about hyacinths and tulips, 

 and wish to have them flower in perfection, defend 

 them from bad weather or too much wet at this 

 time, by placing mats or canvas covers over them, 

 suspended upon hoops ; also, afterwards, in order to 

 prolong the season of their beauty, thus shade them 

 from the mid-day sun ; exposing them to his rays in 

 clear weather, only mornings and evenings, or in 

 cloudy weather, the whole day. 



There are different ways of constructing this kind 

 of covering, or awning. Strong hoops, or poles of 

 ash, hazel, chesnut or willow, are generally stretched 

 over the beds, at the distance of thirty inches from 

 each other ; their ends being firmly fixed into the 

 earth. Over these, double garden mats are spread; 

 and their edges are kept down by stones or bricks, 

 and sometimes by heavy deals, or by cuts of small 

 trees. But people that are nice in this matter use 

 oil-cloth for defending from heavy rains, and thin 

 canvas, or sheeting, for screens against winds and the 

 sun ; and instead of coarse hoops, have a row of 



