Oc/.J 



THE CULINARY GARDEN. 



S51 



WORK TO BE DONE IN THE CULINARY GARDEN. 



All vacant pieces of ground should now be either trenched 

 or dug deep, leaving the surface as rough as possible, or 

 ridged up in long narrow ridges, so that the frost may pene- 

 I'ate through it. This operation of winter fallowing, either 

 by trenching, digging, or ridging, is of infinitely more im- 

 portance to garden-ground than all the manures that can be 

 given it without. 



Clear away all decayed leaves, and dig them into the ground 

 or carry them to the compost-yard for vegetable mould. If a 

 garden be thus laid up in fallow, it will have a neat and 

 orderly appearance all winter, and will be contemplated with 

 more pleasure by its owner than if left in that state of neg- 

 lected confusion, in which we generally see kitchen-gardens 

 at this season. It will be a saving of labour to the gar- 

 dener in spring, as well as materially improving the soil. In 

 strong clayey wet soils, this is of the utmost importance, and 

 few gardens are so light and sandy as to be injured by it. 



Heaps of different sorts of compost for manure should be 

 turned over, and properly mixed, but this should be done in 

 dry weather. Draw in fresh loam, turf, and other such like 

 matter, to incorporate with dung, and be not sparing in col- 

 lecting such materials. Composts thus prepared are always 

 better than rank dung ; too much, therefore, cannot be col- 

 lected, and no season of the year is better adapted for that 

 business than the present 



