SPRING WORK 37 
cases, of course, the covering must be taken off 
the next morning unless the weather is extremely 
severe. Few hardy plants, however, are injured by 
April cold; bleeding heart, astilbe, crown imperial 
and some of the lilies, which have tender shoots, 
are exceptions. The greater danger is too much 
protection once growth has set in. 
One reason why so many plants “winter kill” 
is because they are murdered in spring. Each, 
if it disappears for the winter, has its own time 
to show itself, and unless its precise location is 
remembered—which ought to be the case—it is un- 
safe to put an implement into the soil, lest some- 
thing be beheaded and, lacking the strength, fail 
to rise to the occasion a second time. 
When April, say, is half over remove the last 
of the litter, if it is not to remain to be worked in. 
Use the left hand, and a basket, for this, and, with 
a two-tined steel table fork or the point of a nar- 
row trowel held in the right hand, stir the soil 
gently around the crowns of plants and between— 
if you are sure that everything is above ground or 
so far below that cultivation will not be hazardous. 
At the same time, pull up any weeds that have 
got a start—some will have survived the winter— 
and destroy, or remove to a nursery row, all seed- 
ling plants that are out of place. Make a note, 
too, of plants that require division or transfer to 
a more favorable location. 
Early cultivation of the soil is among the most 
important of April operations. It not only en- 
