G R A 
This Hands in the lift of medicinal plants, but is very 
rarely ufed in England, though it is recommended by 
fotne good writers as a purger of ferous and choleric 
humours. 
The fecond fort grows naturally in North America, 
from whence I received the feeds. This .grows natu- 
rally in moift places, where it riles more than a foot 
high, but in England I have not feen it more than 
eight inches ; the leaves are blunt, and indented at 
their extremities ; the flowers are white, and come 
cut from the fide of the ftalks, like thofe of the other, 
but are not iucceeded by feeds here. It may be pro- 
pagated in the fame manner as the firft fort, and re- 
quires the fame treatment. 
The feeds of the third fort were fent me from Car- 
thagena, where it was found growing naturally in 
places where there had been Handing waters, which 
were then dried up ; this plant grew about nine inches 
high, with a weak ftalk, and the leaves placed oppo- 
fite ; they were about three quarters of an inch long, 
and half an inch broad, fawed on their edges •, the 
flowers came out Angle on each fide the ftalk •, they 
were white, and much fmaller than thofe of the firft 
fort, but were not fucceeded by feeds, fo the plant 
was loft here. 
GRAVEL and Grafs are naturally ornaments to a 
country-feat, and the glory of the Englifh gardens, 
and things in which we excel all other nations, as 
France, Holland, Flanders^ &c. 
There are different forts of Gravel, but for thofe who 
can conveniently have it, I approve of that Gravel on 
Blackheath, as preferable to moft that we have in 
England •, it confifting of fmooth even pebbles, which, 
when mixed with a due quantity of loam, will bind 
exceeding clofe, and look very beautiful, and conti- 
nue handfome longer than any other fort of Gravel 
which I have yet feen. 
Some recommend a fort of iron-mould Gravel, or 
Gravel with a little binding loam amongft it, than 
which nothing, they fay, binds better when it is dry 
but in wet weather it is apt to ftick to the heels of 
one’s Ihoes, and will never appear handfome. 
Sometimes loam is mixed with Gravel that is over 
fandy or fharp, which muft be very well blended to- 
gether, and let lie in heaps, after which it will bind 
like a rock. 
There are many kinds of Gravel which do not bind, 
and thereby caule a continual trouble of rolling, to lit- 
tle or no purpofe ; as for fuch. 
If the Gravel be loofe or fandy, you ffiould take one 
load of ftrong loam, to two or three of Gravel, and fo 
caft them well together, andturnthismixtureoverthree 
or four times, that they may be well blended toge- 
ther ; if this is done in proper porportion, it will bind 
well, and not ftick to the feet in wet weather. 
There are many different opinions about the choice 
of Gravel ; feme are for having the Gravel as white as 
pofiible, and in order to make the walks more fo, they 
roll them well with ftone rollers, which are often hewn 
by the mafons, that they may add a whitenefs to the 
walks ; but this renders it very troublefome to the 
eyes, by reflecting the rays of light fo ftrongly, there- 
fore this fhould ever be avoided •, and luch Gravel as 
will lie fmooth, and refled the leaft, fhould be pre- 
ferred. 
Some fereen the Gravel too fine, which is an error 
for if it be caft into a round heap, and the great ftones 
only raked off, it will be the better. 
Some are apt to lay Gravel-walks too round, but this 
is likewife an error, becaufe they are not fo goo'd to 
walk upon, and befides, it makes them look nar- 
row •, one inch rife is enough in a crown for a walk 
of five feet *, and it will be fufficient, if a walk be ten 
feet wide, that it lies two inches higher in the middle 
than it does on each fide •, if fifteen feet, three inches ; 
twenty feet, four ; and fo in proportion. 
For the depth of Gravel-walks, fix or eight inches may 
do well enough, but afoot thicknefs will be fufficient 
for any ; but then there fhould always be a depth of 
rubbifh laid under the Gravel, efpecially if the 
$ 
G R A 
ground is wet •, in which cafe there cannot be too 
much care to fill the bottom of the walks with large 
ftones, flints, brick rubbifh, chalk, or any other mate- 
rials which can be belt procured, which will drain off 
the moifture from the Gravel, and prevent its being- 
poachy in wet weather •, but as it may be difficult in 
iome places to procure a fufficient quantity of thefe 
• materials to lay in the bottom of the walks, fo there 
may be a bed of Heath, or Furze, which ever can be 
procured at the leaft expence, laid under the Gravel to 
keep it dry : and if either of thefe are ufed green,, they 
will lie a long time, as they will be covered from air, 
and thefe will prevent the Gravel from getting down 
into the clay, and will always keep the Gravel dry ; 
and where there is not this precaution in the firft lay- 
ing of the Gravel upon clay, the water being detained 
by the clay, will caufe the Gravel to be poachy when- 
ever there is much rain. 
In making of Gravel-walks, there muft be great re- 
gard had to the level of the ground, fo as to lay the 
walks with eafy defeents toward the low parts of the 
ground, that the wet may be drained off eafily ; for 
when this is omitted, the water will he upon the walks 
a confiderable time after hard rains, which will ren- 
der them unfit for life, efpecially when the ground is 
naturally wet or ftrong ; but where the ground is level, 
and there are no declivities to carry off the wet, it will 
be proper to have fink-ftones laid by the Tides of the 
walks, at convenient diftances, to let off the wet and 
where the ground is naturally dry, that the water will 
foon foak away, the drains of the fink-ftones may be 
contrived fo as to convey the water in feffpools, 
from which the water will foak away in a Ihort time ; 
but in wet land there fhould be under-ground drains, 
to convey the wet off, either into ponds, ditches, or 
the neareft place to receive it ; for where this is not 
well provided for, the walks will never be fo hand- 
fome or fo ufeful. 
The month of March is the propereft time for laying 
Gravel ; it is not prudent to do it fooner, or to lay 
walks in any of the winter months before that time.' 
Some indeed turn up Gravel-walks in ridges in De- 
cember, in order to kill the weeds •, but this is very- 
wrong, for befides that it deprives them of the be- 
nefit of them all the winter, it does not anfwer the end 
for which it is done, but rather the contrary for 
though it does kill the weeds for the prelent, yet it 
adds a fertility to them, as to the great future in- 
creale of both them and Grafs. 
If conftant rolling them after the rains and froft will 
not effe&ually kill the weeds and mofs, you fhould 
turn the walks in March, and lay them down at the 
fame time. 
In order to deftroy worms that fpoil the beauty of 
Gravel, or Grafs-walks, fome recommended the water- 
ing them well with water, in which Walnut-tree 
leaves have been fteeped, and made very bitter, efpe- 
cially thofe places moft annoyed with them ; and this 
they lay, as foon as it reaches them, will make {hem 
come out haftily, fo that they may be gathered •, but 
if, in the firft laying of the walks, there is a uood bed 
of lime rubbifh laid in the bottom, it is the moft ef- 
fectual method to keep out the worms, for they do 
not care to harbour near lime. 
G R E E N-H OUSE, or Confervatory. 
As of late years there have been great quantities of 
curious exotic plants introduced into the Englifh gar- 
dens, fo the number of Green-houfes, or Con fury a to- ' 
ries, have increafed-, and not only a greater flrilj in the 
management and ordering of thefe plants has increafed 
therewith, but aifo a greater knowledge of the ftruc- 
ture and contrivance of thefe places, fo as to render 
them both ufeful and ornamental, hath been acquired ; 
and fince there are many particulars to be obler/ed in 
the conftruttion of thefe houfes, whereby they will be 
greatly improved, I thought it neceffary not only to 
give the heft inftrudions for this I was capable of, but 
aifo to give a defign of one in the manner I would 
chule to erebt it, upon the annexed copper-plate. 
2 
As 
