432 Bicton Gardens, their Culture and Management. 



cropped to that degree that there is no chance of trenching :" 

 but I contrive to find time in some way to trench all spare 

 ground; by which means I always have a bit ready for suc- 

 cessional crops, which is planned in my mind from time to 

 time. I take my line and spade to one of those pieces of 

 ground, measure it out, at least 6 ft. from row to row, 

 stretching the line from end to end across the ridges, and merely 

 shovel out a shape of a celery trench 2 ft. wide ; if the ground 

 has not previously been well manured, I of course shovel out 

 the trench something deeper, to admit of manure, which should 

 be good, strong, tolerably rotten dung of any kind. I then take 

 the plants up carefully with a trowel, with good balls of earth ; 

 and plant them, if required extra large, from 12 in. to 15 in. from 

 plant to plant, if of the usual size from 10 in. to 12 in. ; taking 

 care never to plant deep into the subsoil, or to put the plant 

 below the collar, for I would sooner see half of the roots ex- 

 posed, than the eighth part of an inch of the heart buried. In 

 earthing up, never by any means begin too early, for by that 

 plan much of the celery gets considerably injured : and, instead 

 of muddling it about with earth ten or twelve times, once or twice, 

 or at most three times, earthing is quite sufficient to bring it to 

 proper perfection. Every body knows that celery is fond of 

 plenty of water, likewise of manure liquid : but in hot weather 

 never Avater it over-head with a rose on your watering-pot ; but 

 pour abundance about the roots out of the spout, with a brushy 

 stick put into the spout of the watering-pot, so as to cause the 

 Avater to come out more gently, and not wash out the roots ; 

 using a watering-pot at the same time in each hand, it keeps a 

 man better on the balance. 



To combat that destructive insect and rust which have attacked 

 and destroyed so much celery of late years, I find there is nothing 

 equal to soot dusted all over the plants when the leaves are 

 moist, so that it will adhere. For instance, I had the whole of 

 the celery attacked in these gardens last September^ so that to 

 all appearance it would be scorched up in a few days. It did 

 not happen to be showery weather at the time, so I took the 

 garden engine and gave it all a good washing, having a man to 

 follow me dusting the soot all over it. Having thirteen rows in 

 the garden, I dressed twelve of them twice, which perfectly 

 cleansed them ; the thirteenth is now remaining there scorched 

 up from end to end as if it had been fired, without one head fit 

 for use. I mean to allow this bed to stand for a time, that any 

 gardener who may happen to call to see me may be convinced of 

 the correctness of my remarks. 



I have worked amongst many acres of celery : 1 3 acres are the 

 most tiiat I have cultivated in one garden during one season ; 

 but I have seen three crops taken off the same piece of ground 



