vi PB ACTIO AL GUIDE TO GABDEN PLANTS 



on under each particular genus and species. The various kinds of 

 Soils, Manures, and Plant-foods have also regeived a good deal of 

 notice, chiefly because the importance of such subjects is as a rule 

 not fully grasped by amateurs. Intimately connected with Soils and 

 Manures are the various operations for the improvement of the soil, 

 such as Digging, Trenching, Hoeing, Baking, Mulching, Draiinage &c., 

 all of which are explained to the reader. The management of Lawns 

 and Pathways is also dealt with in this portion of the work. 



Part II. is devoted entirely to the Flower Garden, that is to say, to 

 the Description, Culture, and Propagation of all the most beautiful 

 Haedt Annuals and Biennials ; Hardy Herbaceous Perennials ; 

 Bulbous Plants ; Kock Garden Plants ; Hardy Water and Bog 

 Plants ; Ornamental and Flowering Trees and Shrubs, including 

 Conifers ; Hardy Bamboos, and other ornamental Grasses ; besides 

 Hardy Ferns, Horsetails, Clubmosses &c. 



This important part of the work includes almost everything worthy 

 of a place in the garden. As many as 133 Natural Orders, containing 

 over 1000 Genera and several thousand Species, have been described 

 and fully dealt with in regard to Culture and Propagation in every case. 

 The plants have been arranged on a systematic basis, and that laid 

 down by Bentham and Hooker in their standard work, the ' Genera 

 Plantarum,' has been followed in the main. The natural orders, 

 beginning with the Crowfoot Order (Banunculacem) , and ending wdth 

 the Clubmosses (LycopodiacecB), follow each other according to their 

 natural relationship, and the genera in each order are arranged in the 

 same way. The species belonging to each genus, however, follow each 

 other in alphabetical order for the sake of convenient reference. 



The value of arranging all the flowering plants thus in their natural 

 groups is fully discussed at p. 120 under the article on the ' Classifica- 

 tion of Plants,' and need not be further referred to in this place, except 

 to say that it is hoped the arrangement on such a basis will at once 

 commend itself to every reader interested not only in growing plants, 

 but also in studying them, and comparing their characteristics one with 

 another. So that the reader may be able to see at a glance some of 

 the choicest plants belonging to the various groups referred to above, 

 a careful selection has been made from each of them. Thus there vdll 

 be no difficulty in choosing any Annuals or Biennials, Hardy Herba- 

 ceous Perennials, Flowering Trees and Shrubs &c. one may wish to 

 cultivate in his or her garden. 



As colour plays a very important part in artistic gardening nowa- 

 days, lists are also given of Hardy Plants, having flowers of white, red, 

 blue, yellow, purple, and other shades. These lists will be valuable for 



