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THE GARDENER. 



CHAPTEE I. 



GENERAL OBSERVATIONS, ILLUSTRATIVE CF THE 

 PRINCIPLES OF GARDENING. 



ITH respect to the qualifications necessary 

 to the Gardener, I assume, first, that every 

 1 man who is to become one can read and 

 ^ write, for it will be necessary that he should 

 consult books and reports, and keep notes. He will 

 also find it his advantao;e to study Vegetable Physiology, 

 the nature of plants, their proper food and appropriate 

 soil, and to acquire such knowledge of their peculiari- 

 ties as will enable him to give them proper treatment. 



The nature of my subject requires that I should ge- 

 neralize somewhat, and enter a little into the Theory 

 of Gardening, before proceeding with its details. 



Vegetable Physiology is a delightful science, which, 

 while it tends to expand the mind, and make one 

 think of the wonderful works of God, is not in itself 

 a subject of great difficulty. It is a legible page in 

 the book of nature, which a man of ordinary powers 

 may read as he walks in his garden, if he has had 

 some elementary instructions respecting the principles 

 relating to vegetable life. He sees indeed by his own 

 observations, without the aid of books or philosophy, 

 that plants germinate, breathe, receive nourishment, 

 and perspire ; that they have vital functions, though 



