THE SOUTHERN PLANTER. 



295 



exhilarating, from being pursued in the 

 open air, floriculture is justly considered 

 to be a fine and harmless recreation, which 

 by leading to tranquil contemplation of 

 natural beauty, and diverting the mind 

 from gross worldly occupations, has a pos- 

 itively moral, and therefore, highly bene- 

 ficial tendency. It has also the advantage 

 of being open to the pursuit of high and 

 low, rich and poor, the over-worked -man 

 of business, and the industrious mechanic. 

 It is confined to no particular degree or 

 situation. It may be followed with equal 

 enjoyment by individuals of both sexes, 

 and as is well known, on every imaginable 

 scale, from that of the single flower-pot, 

 or ornamental border, to the princely green- 

 house and the exquisitely varied parterre. 

 We love flowers. We even love the wild 

 flowers of our woods and fields, and their 

 cultivation has afforded us great pleasure. 

 The natural grace, simplicity, and attrac- 

 tive coloring of flowers, have afforded end- 

 less themes for moralists and poets, and 

 volumes have been written to show how 

 many associations of feeling, simple and 

 sublime, these beauteous objects are cal- 

 culated to excite. 



As our desire is to improve the taste as 

 well as the understanding, we hope to be 

 excused for pausing a few moments over 

 this agreeable view of flower culture. 

 Few natural objects are more poetical, or 

 more calculated to refine the morals and 

 taste, than flowers. "From the majestic 

 sun-flower, towering above her sisters of 

 the garden, and faithfully turning to wel- 

 come the god of day, to the little, humble 

 and well known weed that is said to close 

 its eyes before impending showers, there is 

 scarcely one flower that may not, from its 

 loveliness., its perfume, its natural situation, 

 or its classical association, be considered 

 highly poetical." 



As the welcome messenger of spring, 

 the snowdrop claims our first regard ; and 

 numberless are the lays in which the 

 beauties of this little modest flower are 

 sung. The snowdrop teaches us a les- 

 son, too, it marks out the progress of time. 

 We cannot behold it without feeling that 

 another spring has come, and immediately 

 our thoughts recur to the events which 

 have occurred since last its fairy bells were 

 expanded. Whether the "cowslip which 

 spangles the green," or the violet, while 

 it pleases by its modest, retiring beauty, 



possesses the additional charm of the most 

 exquisite of all perfumes, which inhaled 

 with the pure and invigorating breezes of 

 spring, always bring back in remembrance, 

 a lively conception of the delightful sea- 

 son. Thus, in poetical language, the "vio- 

 let-scented gale," is synonymous with those 

 accumulated and sweetly blended gratifi- 

 cations which we derive from odors, flowers, 

 and balmy breezes ; and above all from the 

 contemplation of renovated nature once 

 more bursting forth into beauty and per- 

 fection. 



An error, not , uncommon, in deciding 

 w r hich flowers shall be planted, is to select 

 numbers, merely for their variety or novel- 

 ty, without reference to what will be their 

 appearance w r hen in bloom, and which gen- 

 erally leads to disappointment. Unless for 

 botanical illustration, make a choice of 

 flowers on two principles — those which 

 will be beautiful w r hen in bloom, although 

 common, and those which will bloom at 

 the particular season required, to ensure a 

 succession of variegated beauty from spring 

 to autumn. The true amateur gardener 

 takes a pride in cultivating and improving 

 even the common wild flowers of our fields, 

 urging them, by careful culture, to the 

 highest state of perfection, as to size and 

 brilliancy of coloring, of which they are 

 susceptible. 



C. N. B. 



Genesee Farmer. 



A Good Market Garden, &c. 



In a private letter, enclosing a subscrip- 

 tion to the Genesee Farmer, our esteemed 

 correspondent, Samuel Williams, of Wa- 

 terloo, N. Y., gives an account of a visit 

 to a market garden in his vicinity, which 

 we take the liberty of extracting, for the 

 benefit of our readers : 



"It was by no means at my suggestion 

 that you get one of our best practical farmers 

 for a customer, as I had not seen him in a 

 year or more. He said he had exchanged 



the occasionally with a neighbor, for 



the Genesee Farmer, but it was a bad plan, 

 as he always wanted a paper at hand for 

 reference, and to study at leisure its 

 weightier matters. True, we have but 

 few such farmers, and 'pity 'tis, 'tis true.' 



"I have just been to see an English- 

 man's market garden, which beats any one 

 I had ever before seen, even my own, ex- 

 cept in corn, wurzel, cabbages and Lima 



