14a WOOD AND GARDEN 



necessary good and deep cultivation was, especially in 

 so very poor and shallow a soil as miae. Passing up 

 through the copse where there were some tall stems 

 of Liliwm, giganteum bearing the great upturned pods 

 of seed, my visitor stopped and said, " I don't believe 

 a word about your poor soil — look at the growth of 

 that Lily. Nothing could make that great stem ten 

 feet high in a poor soil, and there it is, just stuck 

 into the wood ! " I said nothing, knowing that 

 presently I could show a better answer than I could 

 frame in words. A little farther up in the copse we 

 came upon an excavation about twelve feet across 

 and four deep, and by its side a formidable mound 

 of sand, when my friend said, " Why are you making 

 all this mess in your pretty wood ? are you quarrying 

 stone, or is it for the cellar of a building ? and what 

 on earth are you going to do with that great heap of 

 sand ? why, there must be a dozen loads of it.'' That 

 was my moment of secret triumph, but I hope I bore 

 it meekly as I answered, " I only wanted to plant a 

 few more of those big Lihes, and you see in my soil 

 they would not have a chance unless the ground was 

 thoroughly prepared; look at the edge of the scarp 

 and see how the solid yellow sand comes to within 

 four inches of the top ; so I have a big wide hole dug ; 

 and look, there is the donkey-cart coming with the 

 first load of Dahlia-tops and soft plants that have been 

 for the summer in the south border. There will be 

 several of those little cartloads, each holding three 



