Advantages of a Resetve Garde7i. 347 



struck cuttings, of various little knick-knacks for ornamenting the 

 flower-garden through the ensuing summer : all these should be 

 in stone pots. All the structures should have wooden shutters, 

 which, in my opinion, are not sufficiently in use for general pur- 

 poses ; as they are extremely desirable as to economy, and more 

 particularly as to their use in preventing the necessity of strong 

 fires. 



Now, as to the disposition of the ground : supposing the 

 form of the whole plot to be a parallelogram, or an exact square, 

 with the pits, &c., at one end, and a reservoir or tank in the 

 centre, the rest of the ground might be formed into four com- 

 partments or squares, with a main walk of 4 ft. in width all 

 round the exterior, and two other walks intersecting each other 

 at the water tank, in the centre, of 4 ft. in width also. I 

 should then divide each of the squares into parallel beds, three 

 of them for flowers and plants of various kinds in soil : these 

 beds should be 4 ft. wide each, and the alleys of a sufficient width 

 to allow a wheelbarrow to get up between every two beds ; this 

 would require them to l)e about 2 ft. 4 in. ; but if this were 

 thought too much ground to spare for an alley, a couple of 

 small barrows might be kept specially for this garden, which 

 would run up an alley 2 ft. in width. The other squares, which 

 should be the warmest (if there were any difference between 

 them), and should be at the end next the houses or pits, I 

 would also divide into small beds (running in different direc- 

 tions, to furnish different climates as to light and shade) for 

 holding pots ; some of these beds should run north and south, 

 and others east and west : aloijg the centre of the alley between 

 every two beds in this pot ground, I would form a slight trellis 

 of plain stakes, crossing each other thinly in the diamond or any 

 other form, so that the meshes should be about 9 in. square ; and 

 along the foot of this trellis I would plant some small-leaved 

 plant, as a delicate skreen or shade. One of the most suitable 

 plants for this purpose that occurs to me at present is the»Spira3^a 

 bella, which, from its habit, would, I think, be particularly well 

 adapted for the purpose ; and, after being twined round every 

 stake, the remainder might be pruned away. The trellis should 

 be just high enough to throw its flickering shade the width of 

 the bed, and no more, when the sun had attained nearly its 

 greatest altitude, say the middle of June, which would be quite 

 enough for all practical purposes. These beds should be 4 ft. 

 wide also, and an alley of 2 ft. 6 in. would be necessary between 

 the side of the bed and the skreen. Whatever plant might be 

 employed for the purpose of forming this skreen, it is absolutely 

 necessary that it should be of small neat foliage, and of thin 

 straggling growth ; and if any one objects to using a plant for 

 this purpose, he may very easily employ thin canvass or bunt- 



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