82 



THE BOOK OF GARDENING. 



In order to grow this handsome garden favourite well, the 

 ground requires preparation, and a light sandy soil is best. If 

 the soil is heavy, it must be well drained, and some road- 

 or river-sand spread thickly over the surface, and lightly 

 forked in. At one time I grew several thousands of the finer 

 Gladioli varieties (seedlings and the best French sorts to name), 



Fig. 42. — A Group of Florists' Gladioli. 



and the soil was always prepared by trenching deeply the previous 

 autumn. I mixed up some cow- and stable-manure in equal 

 proportions ; this was turned over two or three times, until the 

 violent heat had abated, and the manure was half decayed. Two 

 layers of this were worked in during the process of trenching, 

 one layer at the depth of i8in., and another at 9in. This 

 would be the maximum depth. Sometimes the greatest depth 



