340 



JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



valuable in the kitchen garden, especially on the north, north-east, and 

 south-west. It has been usual to surround kitchen gardens with walls 

 10 to 12 feet or more in height, and these also serve the purpose of pro- 

 viding suitable positions for growing choice fruits. An idea was published 

 some years since of building the glass-houses around the kitchen garden 

 in place of walls, and thus saving expense when new gardens were formed, 

 but I am not aware of it having been put into practice. Thick hedges of 

 holly or yew are sometimes used for shelter ; they have one great disad- 

 vantage, the roots travelling into the garden and robbing the vegetables. 

 For the same reason large forest trees should never be grown within 100 

 yards of the cropping ground. 



The shape of the garden has an important bearing on the supply of 

 vegetables. For convenience of building the walls it is usual to choose a 

 square or oblong shape ; I much prefer the oblong if the longest diameter 

 is from east to west, because it gives a greater extent of warm borders, 

 i.e. those with a south aspect, and, conversely, cool borders with a north 

 aspect. These are two important items in extending the supply of 

 various vegetables. 



The size of the kitchen garden must depend on the number of persons 

 to be supplied, and we must remember that fruits of various kinds have 

 usually to be accommodated in the same enclosure. The kitchen garden 

 at Belvoir Castle, of which I have the honour to have charge, contains 

 nearly 7 acres within the walls, and about 1\ acres outside ; in addition 

 to this there are about 4 acres of orchards ; so that we are not depending 

 on the kitchen garden for a full supply of Apples and Plums, although 

 some are grown there. Of the above total of 14] acres, the portion used 

 for growing vegetables is 2 J acres ; about 2\ acres are occupied by fruits 

 of various kinds : the remaining 9£ acres are occupied by greenhouses, 

 vineries, the usual offices, and store rooms ; a portion is devoted to 

 herbaceous flowers ; the necessary roads and walks claim a considerable 

 part ; and the remainder is used for growing a stock of plants for the 

 spring bedding. 



The 2f acres devoted to vegetables alone are thus divided among them : 

 Taking the unit as 37 square yards, Asparagus stands at 32 ; Artichokes 

 (Globe and Jerusalem), 8 ; Beans of various kinds, the chief of which are 

 Scarlet Runners, 15; Brussels Sprouts, 14; Broccoli and Cauliflower, 

 24 ; Cabbages, 17 ; Carrots, 14 ; Parsnips, 3 ; Beet, 4 ; Celery, 27 ; 

 Borse-radiah, 8 ; Leeks. 3; Kale, 4; Peas, 36 ; Potatos, early, 15, mid- 

 season or second early, 50; Seakale, 14; Spinach, 9; Onions, 19; 

 Savoys, 20 ; Turnips, for autumn and winter, 9 ; Shallots, Garlic, 

 Salsafv. herbs <>f various kinds, and things not required in large quantities, 

 • portions of the remainder of the garden; Early Turnips are 

 grown between the rows of Peas; Lettuces are grown between the rows 

 of Celery ; Summer Spinach between the rows of Peas; and a few other 

 toinga in a similar way, and thus we make the most of the ground. 



I: " ' "y • -H is not always possible to follow a strict rule in 



tin . M th< quantity <>t the various kinds of vegetables required varies so 

 much, but a few broad principles are adhered to ; for instance, two crops 

 of the same kind are not allowed to follow each other. Leguminous crops 

 do not require BO much nitrogen as green crops; they are therefore 



