100 POT-POURRI FROM A SURREY GARDEN 



is dry ; and do not pick them much the first year, as their 

 roots correspond to the top growth. Out o£f the flowers 

 as they appear. When injured by the frost, never cut 

 the branches down till quite late in the following year. It 

 is this cutting-back that causes the death of so many 

 plants ; the larger stems are hollow, and the water in 

 them either rots or freezes the roots. In November 

 cover the roots of the Verbena with a heap of dry ashes ; 

 this is all the care they require, and they will break up 

 stronger and finer each year. I have kept plants in this 

 way year after year, even in an open border. I believe 

 they would grow in London gardens as long as they have 

 plenty of sun ; and if the plant is weak when they begin to 

 grow in the spring, it would be well to pick off some of 

 the shoots. The cuttings strike quite easily all through 

 the summer in sand in a greenhouse or under a beU-glass. 

 May \^ih. — I suppose it is the same with everything in 

 life that one really cares about, and you must not, any of 

 you, be surprised if you have moments in your gardening 

 life of such profound depression and disappointment that 

 you will almost wish you had been content to leave 

 everything alone and have no garden at all. This is 

 especially the case in a district affected by smoke or 

 wind, or in a very light sandy soil. Five weeks without 

 a drop of rain, and everything bursts into flower and as 

 quickly goes off. Two or three days ago the lilacs were 

 quite beautiful, having responded well to last year's 

 pruning ; now they are faded and scentless, and almost 

 ugly. The German Irises, too, were blooming well, with 

 long healthy stalks. I find that what helps them here ia 

 to grow the small pieces one buys fr6m the nurseryman 

 for two or three years in rich garden soil, where they 

 grow quickly, making roots and leaves. After that I 

 move them into some dry border facing east or south, 

 and I find that they then flower as well as one 



