42 G 
GARDENS IN WINTER. 
large stones, sticks, weeds, and other incum- 
brances. And what then ? Why then comes 
the management of the winter garden. Pro- 
vide Evergreens, which may he had cheaply 
enough, and wherever there is too large a 
space hare, plant some of them. They need 
not, and should not, be crowded. A border 
does not look so well any way as when the 
objects can be seen distinctly, and are not 
confused. Let the Evergreens be varied. 
Box, Acuba Japonica, Common Laurel, 
Holly, Firs, Portugal Laurel, Arbor Vita?, 
and many other subjects, are different from 
each other in colour and habit ; and here and 
there one placed where there is too much 
vacancy, will give a finish, that could hardly 
be anticipated by those who have not done it. 
And in parts of the Dutch garden, and the small 
beds wherein the summer beauties have died 
or disappeared, plant Evergreens. Those fit 
for this purpose are still more cheap than the 
Shrubs needful for the borders ; for these 
ought to be as small as they can be got — a foot 
high should be the extent. Let the contents 
of the beds be uniform, and let the plants be 
placed in them in a regular manner at proper 
distances. You do not want to fill a bed up 
close, as the flowers fill them ; they should be 
a foot apart, or as near it as will enable you 
to dispose the numbers best adapted to the 
necessary uniformity in the planting. Dwarf 
plants could be had for a mere trifle ; move them 
when the time comes in the spring, for putting 
out the flowers, and not till then. The same 
day that sees the Evergreens removed, sees 
their places supplied by the prepared summer 
crops of flowers. If these plants have been 
sunk in pots, they will only require to be 
sunk in them again, at some unimportant part 
of the ground, to rest until wanted again ; and 
the same may be said of such as must be re- 
moved from the borders. In laying out the 
different plants for the geometrical gardens, 
Dwarf Red Cedars and Dwarf Arbor Vita;, 
even if only six inches high, are pretty objects, 
and might alternately fill the beds nearest the 
centre. Dwarf Green and Variegated Hollies 
might alternately fill those further outwards. 
Small Portugal Laurel and Acuba Japonica, 
might have alternate beds, yet nearer the out- 
side ; and all these things would be growing 
into money, merely requiring to be shifted to 
and from their growing and winter quarters, 
as required. None but those who have been 
witness to these alterations, can form the least 
conception of the improvement that Evergreens 
give the place in winter ; and we assert that 
it is the first object, or rather should be the 
first object, of a gardener or amateur to keep 
the beds and borders well furnished. When 
these dwarf or other plants have been all the 
winter in the beds or borders, and require to 
be removed, and are not in pots, they may 
be takeruand planted about a foot apart, any- 
where together, until they are wanted again 
for a similar purpose ; but as they would do 
very well a year or two in pots, it would be 
as well to pot them into old pots, and bed 
them out, as they will then suffer less by 
removals spring and fall. A public writer, 
some time since, in a work which many people 
quote as an authority, actually recommended 
gardeners to furnish their borders and beds in 
winter, by cutting branches of Evergreens, 
and pruning them up into the forms of shrubs 
with a pointed stem, and so thrust these into 
the ground ; and he assured the public that 
they would keep green all the winter and 
spring. The experienced portion of the gar- 
dening world were disgusted at the meanness 
of the idea, and the injury it was calculated to 
do the trade, and many were the remonstrances 
against so degrading a contrivance ; but when 
the amateurs who had faith in the publication 
in which it appeared, followed the advice, and 
found these Evergreens brown, even before 
Christmas had fairly passed, they were in- 
dignant at being the dupes of so groundless 
a theory, and so mean and humiliating a 
counsel. The fact is, that the person who 
advanced the deception, and boasted that it 
would look as well as if planted, though he 
held a respectable situation, was writing to 
make himself conspicuous, and was thoroughly 
ignorant of the effect which the weather, in 
winter time, had on branches of Evergreens, 
or he never would have asserted that they 
would remain green all the winter and spring. 
He had seen cuttings of Evergreens look as 
well in the spring as they did when they were 
put in, and, upon this fact, he assumed that 
branches would. The cuttings were not struck 
when he saw them, yet looked quite as fresh 
and he followed out the principle upon which al 
theorists base their speculations, " what is 
true with respect to one thing must be true 
with respect to all others." The branches, 
however, did not happen to be one -year old 
wood, and did not obtain the protection of a 
hand-glass each, but encountered all the drying 
winds and hot sun, and turned brown as ra- 
pidly as they well could, much to the annoy- 
ance of the persons who acted upon such 
advice, and rendered themselves the laughing- 
stocks of their neighbours ; these brown 
" Evergreens" rendering their fancy gardens 
very soon conspicuous, and when removed, 
leaving them very bare. Besides all this, sup- 
posing it had answered, what would the 
deception have saved ? A few pounds, per- 
haps, for which the employer's character as a 
gentleman of liberal principles would be bar- 
tered, and his place made a deception as 
unworthy of a decent establishment, as of the 
