SOIL, PLANTING 



many, and certainly possess the important merit of per- 

 manence and of requiring little expense to maintain them. 

 The writer greatly prefers the appearance of those made 

 of timber, which, also, seem to be more acceptable to 

 the plants themselves. Wire trellis ought always to be 

 painted so as to keep the frost from having the effect 

 on the plants it would have were they left exposed. 



Wooden trellis is very inexpensive, and its duration 

 will be all the greater if it receives one or two coats 

 of paint before being nailed together. A common 

 thickness is a quarter-inch, but a little more is advis- 

 able. Three coats of paint are necessary at first, and 

 one of raw linseed oil before painting will repay the 

 outlay. Ready-made trellis is largely used, and is 

 generally of good quality, while it is considerably 

 cheaper than if made to order by an ordinary carpenter. 

 Where it has to be affixed to posts sunk in the ground, 

 the latter should be creosoted, tarred, or charred at the 

 base and, if possible, fixed in concrete. 



One of the best methods of training climbers to walls 

 is by means of galvanised wires attached to spikes with 

 eyes and tightened with a raidisseur at one end. There 

 are several suitable kinds of spikes and raidisseurs. These 

 wires are also suitable for climbers grown under glass. 



For such climbers as Clematis flammula a good support 

 is supplied by fixing lengths of wide-meshed wire netting 

 to the wall, an inch or two from it, each length being 

 fastened to the next by tying wire. 



For archways and arbours either wire or wood may 

 be used, and the wire arches sold in such quantity do 

 very well, though buyers sometimes make the mistake 

 of purchasing an arch which is too low in the centre, 

 with the result that the climbers are in the way of those 

 passing beneath. Seven or eight feet will be more 

 suitable than six. Rustic arches are expensive, and 

 need not be of an elaborate character where they are 



