THE GAKDENER'S ASSISTANT. 



In the case of smaller establishments the kitchen- 

 garden may be placed in close proximity to the 

 house, or even occupy the whole ground on one 

 side of it. 



Fig. 788 is a plan showing the position of 

 the kitchen-garden in relation to the house and 

 other parts of the garden. 



If the kitchen-garden is situated directly south 

 from the mansion it cannot be entered without 



the first view being among the most uninviting 

 in the whole garden, that of sheds and other 

 buildings behind the glass structures, which are 

 generally of such a description as should be 

 concealed as much as possible. If situated to 

 the north, such an objection does not arise, the 

 houses being then approached directly in front. 

 But on the other hand, when the kitchen-garden 

 is north of the house, it can rarely be screened 



Plan showing site for 



KITCHEN GARDEN 



when the main entrance is 



from west. 



Fig. 71 



by means of plantations of trees without sacri- 

 ficing a considerable portion of light. If, how- 

 ever, the site is either on the east or west side 

 of the mansion, these objections will not apply; 

 neither will they if the situation is in a south- 

 east or south-west direction from the mansion. 



Generally a position on the east side is to be 

 preferred, especially where the contour of the 

 ground requires artificial shelter to be formed 

 against the north and north-east winds. Sup- 

 posing the ground to be level, and the garden 

 placed to the south-west, then to shelter it 

 from the north and north-east winds, high trees 

 at some distance, as they ought to be from 

 the garden, would certainly interfere with the 

 pleasure-grounds; whereas, if the garden is 



placed on the east side, the necessary shelter 

 would be farther from the mansion than the 

 garden itself, and therefore would not come 

 within the space required for ornamental pur- 

 poses. 



2. Soil. — The nature of the soil in a garden is 

 of primary importance, although in the first in- 

 stance it may be subordinate to the site and 

 exposure, which when once fixed are intended 

 to be permanent. Soil, on the other hand, can 

 be altered and improved to suit the crops at 

 the pleasure of the owner, and at a compara- 

 tively small cost. The best soil for a kitchen- 

 garden is a good sound loam of a slightly cal- 

 careous nature, or a sandy loam mixed with 

 certain proportions of lime and humus to render 



