50 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND 



it. When you level the ground, it should be done after rain ; 

 you may then sow some small crops in the borders, such as 

 Lettuce or Spinage, or Cabbage for transplanting ; but let not 

 any of the Brassica tribe come to full growth. Leaving Cab- 

 bage and Broccoli on borders, near fruit-trees, draws the 

 ground very much, fills the borders with insects, and also pre- 

 vents the sun and air from penetrating into the gi-ound. 



When the sun can have free access to the border, it adds 

 much to the flavour of the fruit. If you can spare the ground 

 on the cross-borders in winter, it wiU be of great service to the 

 trees to ridge it up as loose as you can, and let it lie in that 

 state all winter, to mellow and sweeten. 



If the soil be strong, I would recommend planting of ap- 

 ple-trees that are grafted on Paradise Stocks ; but if the soil 

 be light. Free Stocks will do much better. 



When the ground is a strong clay or brick earth, mix it 

 with old lime-rubbish or coal-ashes, street-dung or sand ; but 

 what I use for the borders against the walls, and which I pre- 

 fer to every other manure, is a vegetable mould produced from 

 leaves of trees, which may be obtained in the following manner : 



Collect annually as many loads of leaves as you con- 

 veniently can, which make up into hot-beads for late melons 

 and cucumbers, and for early potatoes, &c. First plant the 

 beds with early potatoes ; at the same time sow radish and 

 lettuce seeds mixed together. When the radishes are pulled, 

 thin the lettuces, leaving a sufficient quantity for a crop ; by 

 the time the lettuces are fit for cutting, the potatoes begin to 

 cover the bed. After the lettuces are all cut, you should put 

 some of the leaf-mould close up to the stems of the potatoes, 

 which will run very fast into the fresh manure, and produce a 

 fine early crop. When you have dug up the potatoes, take off 

 all the fine vegetable mould till you come to the leaves that are 

 not yet rotten ; then with a fork turn up the leaves, adding some 

 fresh leaves at the same time, which will cause a fresh heat to 

 come up in the bed ; when this is done, put on the lights and 

 keep them close for three or four davs : If the weather be fine 

 and clear, there will, by that time, be a fine sweet gentle 

 heat*. 



You may then sow or plant melons or cucumbers in the 

 beds. 



* What is here said about the use of leaves in the course of their rotting 

 is not altogether applicable to America ; but it will be very useful for the 

 A."»ier!can planter to know, that rotten leaves are so useful, as he can always 

 get enough of them. Nor would hot-beads of leaves be altogether useless in 

 Ameiica for spring lettuces, cucumbers, radishes, S;c. &c. 



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