418 



LAYING OUT THE KITCHEN GARDEN. 



sun and winds, or the exhaustion of crops of vegetables. The subsoil of the 

 borders, however, ought in every case to be drained. In 'planting fruit-trees 

 in the kitchen garden^ we would on no account whatever introduce standards, 

 or any description of fruit-tree, in those partsof the open garden which are to be 

 cropped with herbaceous vegetables; because such trees injure the surrounding 

 crops by their shade, and never produce much fruit, or fruit of good quality, 

 in consequence of their roots being forced down into the subsoil by the neces- 

 sary stirring of the soil among the herbaceous crops. We have enlarged on this 

 subject elsewhere, (^Sub. Gard. 1st ed. p. 202,) and we therefore only add 

 that we recommend no fruit-trees to be planted in the kitchen-garden ex- 

 cepting against the walls, against espalier rails, in rows along the walks, or in 

 compartments by themselves. It may be objected to what we recommend, that 

 it is contrary to the practice of market-gardeners, who in general grow fruit- 

 trees among their culinary crops ; but to this we reply, that the fruit of such 

 trees, and the flavour of the crops which grow under them, must necessarily 

 be far inferior to that of fruit grown on trees which draw their nourishment 

 from the surface of the soil, and of vegetables which enjoy the full benefit of 

 the sun and air. Market-gardeners know this, though their customers may 

 not. A forcing department, a frame ground and a reserve ground, are 

 accompaniments to every complete kitchen-garden, and even the smallest 

 has at least a reserve and frame ground. The two latter accompaniments 

 are generally placed exterior to the walls of the garden, in that part of the 

 slip which is nearest the stables, and the forcing department is sometimes 

 placed there also ; though more generally it consists of glass structures placed 

 against the north wall of the garden. The best outer fence for a garden is a 

 sunk wall, the ditch in which it is built serving as a main drain, into which 

 all the drains in the interior may discharge themselves. The wall of this 

 fence may be carried up three feet or four feet above the surface of the ground, 

 to render it more formidable as a fence, without at the same time producing 

 too much shelter and shade in the slip. In many places it is customary to 

 surround tlie slip with a shrubbery bounded by a hedge, which has a very 

 good effect for a few years while the trees are young, but when they grow 

 large they produce an injurious degree of shelter and shade. The main 

 entrance to a kitchen-garden should always be so placed as to look towards 

 the main feature v/ithin, this feature necessarily being the south side of the 

 north wall, not only because that wall supports the hot-houses when there 

 are any within the garden, but because on it are grown the finest fruits. As 

 an example of a kitchen-garden arranged agreeably to the foregoing obser- 

 vations, but combining also a flower-garden, as being frequently required in 

 a suburban villa, we refer to fig. 830. It contains one acre within the walls, 

 and half an acre in the slips ; and the following references will explain the 

 details. 



1. Flower-garden. 



2. Conservatory. 

 8. Green-house. 



4. Forcing-house for flowers. 



5. Back- shed. 



6. Area for setting out green-house 



plants in summer. 



7. Culin^rydepartments with espaliers. 



8. Espalier-borders. 



9. Pond, surrounded with a stone 



margin. 



10. Forcing department. 



11. Water- basin. 



12. Ranges of pits for melons, cu- 



cumbers, &c. 



13. Pine-stovc. 



