274 



THE GARDENER'S ASSISTANT. 



are disposed in their places, then the inter- 

 vening ground should be filled in with nurse 

 trees that are only to remain for a time, until 

 their size and the well-being of the permanent 

 trees require their removal, a matter which has 

 been previously noted. It may be remarked 

 that there is a wide difference betwixt the treat- 

 ment for trees in the pleasure-ground and such 

 as are planted in woods with the object of pro- 

 ducing timber; in the case of the latter it is 

 essential so to treat them that a good straight 

 trunk, free from branches, be secured, while in 

 the pleasure-ground it is symmetrical develop- 

 ment of form which is required; and with this 

 end in view each tree, through all the stage of 

 its existence, should have sufficient space to 

 extend its branches to the fullest extent, and 

 this cannot occur if thinning be not resorted to 

 in good time. In grounds of small extent, where 

 a belt of trees has been planted on or near the 

 boundary line with the object of shutting out 

 an undesirable object or poor prospect, it often 

 happens that the trees are left to themselves to 

 struggle for existence as best they may, until 

 they become in course of time as naked at the 

 bottom as hop poles, and the object for which 

 they were first planted completely defeated; 

 whereas, had the treatment been in accordance 

 with the intentions of the planter, not only 

 would they have formed a block that could not 

 have been seen through, but each tree would 

 have been a handsome object in itself. 



These belts best serve their purpose when 

 they consist of half a dozen rows of trees or 

 even more. The species employed may consist 

 of Maples, Sycamore, green and golden Yews, 

 Lime, Horse-chestnut, Walnut, Crab, with a 

 few Spruce and Douglas Firs, intermixed. The 

 undergrowth may be Rhododendrons if the soil 

 be suitable, Bamboos, Laurel, Holly, Mahonia 

 Aquifolium, and Privet, which grow sufficiently 

 high for the purpose of seclusion. The beauty 

 of these belts may be increased by planting on 

 the margins some of the numerous species of 

 flowering shrubs. 



In the case of the shrubs in the pleasure- 

 ground it is very important, as with the trees, 

 to make, first of all, a selection of those which 

 will be permanent ones, and before planting to 

 consider well how much space they will require 

 when they arrive at their full development. As 

 with trees, so with shrubs, it is better to err 

 on the side of allowing them abundant space. 

 When the permanent plants are in their places 

 the intervals should be filled in with others 

 which are to stand for a time onlv. In the 



choice of these filling-in plants it is well, so far 

 as is consistent with the demand for variety, 

 to select such kinds as will readily bear trans- 

 planting, as, if this is not kept in view, many 

 will ultimately have to be sacrificed that might, 

 if of a nature to bear transplanting well after 

 some years, be useful for removing elsewhere. 



Shrubs being for the most part of a naturally 

 bushy habit, they do not get naked at the 

 bottom through insufficiency of space, to the 

 same extent as do trees; yet they should by no 

 means be neglected in this matter, as over- 

 crowding is as fatal to their ever becoming 

 perfect examples of their kind, which should be 

 the condition aimed at in the case of every plant 

 employed in places making any pretension to 

 high-class culture. Before, then, the plants used 

 for filling-in, encroach in any way upon those 

 intended to remain as the permanent furnishing 

 of the place, they should be thinned by degrees, 

 as more space becomes necessary. Where the se- 

 lection of kinds is suited to the soil and locality, 

 the ground well prepared, and the planting 

 property carried out, shrubs, like trees, re- 

 quire little attention except this timely thinning 

 — nature in their case not failing to play her 

 part, if we only allow them the space they re- 

 quire. 



Pruning may be had recourse to in some cases 

 with advantage, especially amongst deciduous 

 subjects, many of which will be all the better 

 for some amount of cutting back when first 

 planted, and for a few years afterwards. It 

 sometimes happens that when a shrub is one 

 of a choice species or variety, cutting back is 

 preferable to entire removal. The knife should 

 be sparingly used amongst evergreen shrubs, 

 and never employed so as to destroy the natural 

 habit of the plant. The practice of keeping the 

 common and Portugal Laurels, Aucuba, &c, 

 annually cut-in to limit their size, until they are 

 as formal as if cast in a mould, is a most objec- 

 tionable one when carried out in the shrubbery 

 proper, or upon isolated specimens on a lawn. 

 It is generally done to prevent fast-growing 

 shrubs encroaching upon others, but it is much 

 preferable, both on the score of appearance and 

 in regard to the well-being of the shrubs in- 

 tended to remain, to transplant some of them 

 elsewhere. 



The belief that many evergreen shrubs are 

 injured by the application of manure, Rhodo- 

 dendrons especially, is a mistake. In sandy 

 and infertile soils most species of shrubs are 

 much benefited by the use of well-rotted manure, 

 such as that of spent hot-beds; and an occasional 



