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GARDEN HINTS. W 
" Tlie seedlings should be protected from frosts, but should have abundance of air, or they -will soon 
draw. As soon as they will stand exposure, plunge the pots under some sheltered wall or hedge, and 
they will form their first bulbs. Let them become dry in summer, and, if it be a wet season, turn the 
pots on their sides until the time for them to grow again. Let them remain in the seed-pots, and top- 
dress them with fresh loamy soil. When the bulbs are two years old, prepare, in an open airy 
situation, a bed of good loam mixed with sharp sand ; prepare the bed as for Tulips, &c, covering 
the entire surface with sand, in which the bulbs should be embedded ; plant the roots in rows three 
inches apart, and each root one inch apart in the row. They will stand three years in this bed, when 
they may be finally removed into a fresh bed of similar soil to flower : a few will flower the fifth year, 
but the greater portion not until the seventh. I do not take up the flowering roots oftener than every 
third season; but top-dress the beds every autumn. A little thoroughly decayed hotbed manure, 
mixed with the surface soil, aids them to produce fine flowers, but it must be well decomposed or it will 
do harm. The beds should be well drained, the prepared soil at least two feet deep, and the situation 
sheltered from north and east winds, which do much damage to the flowers." 
"When the strength of the flowering bulbs is an object, they should not be permitted to 
produce seeds, except such as may be actually required, as in hybridizing experiments, or for the 
purpose of increasing the stock of any rare kinds. This, indeed, is a general principle in the 
culture of flowering plants, but is sometimes overlooked in practice. Nor, in transplanting, 
should the bulbs be kept out of the ground longer than sufficient to dry and rest them. — M. 
dpfliuitt lints for Sltmtfrars. 
JUNE. 
fF the directions of preceding months have been properly carried out, the main business of the crop- 
ping season will have been completed, so that the gardener's hands will be at liberty to attend to those 
operations, upon the due performance of which the successful management of a garden in a great mea- 
sure depends. First among these, timely and sufficient watering of all such plants as require it is most 
important, for whether the plants be growing in pots, or have free root-room in the open ground, the 
same rules prevail, and must be observed, viz., to soak the whole mass of soil thoroughly whenever 
the plants require water. If the ground is hard, loosen it up, or make a few holes in it several inches 
deep, with the point of a thick stick. The water also should be warm, that is, it should not be used 
fresh from a cold spring ; but it should be pumped some time previous to using, and be exposed to the 
atmosphere, so as to get warmed by the sun. The use of gutta percha tubing for horticultural pur- 
poses can scarcely be over-rated, for if there is a head of water, or a force pump, or fountain, the 
water may be forced almost to any distance at a trifling cost, and by piercing a piece of tubing, the 
water may be dispersed like a gentle shower for hours together. A neighbour of ours has a length so 
pierced, which he places between his crops, say two rows of peas ; the water rises to the height of five 
or six feet, and falls like a gentle shower upon the crop for hours together, thus soaking the ground 
thoroughly, and imitating nature by keeping the atmosphere and the root moist at the same time. In 
the same way a bed of strawberries, a wall of trees, groups of flowers, or even the lawn is thoroughly 
soaked, without any more trouble than that of placing the tube and turning the water on. In this 
instance the water is served from the water works, and is always on the main. Another friend has 
attached tubing to his fountain, from which water is forced to every part of the garden. Contrivances 
like these are great aids to the gardener ; they economise time, and offer facOities for insuring crops 
and cleanliness, which cannot be too highly estimated. If the ground requires enriching, it is only 
necessaiy to sow some g-uano thinly over it prior to turning the water on, or to give a good soaking of 
liquid manure a short time before turning the water off, so that it may be diluted, and thoroughly 
washed to the roots of the plants. All suburban gardens may be watered in this way, and the expense, 
as compared with the gratification of seeing plants flourish, is not worthy of consideration, indeed, for 
ordinary gardens, no extra charge would be made. 
In the flower garden, complete the bedding out as quickly as possible, and attend rigidly to train- 
ing and nursing the plants afterwards, so as to induce them to start vigorously, and cover the beds in 
a short time. Roses are much infested with the grubs this season, and if they are not attended to 
immediately, the chance of a good bloom will be much decreased. Water the beds directly the buds 
begin to expand, plentcously with liquid manure, and syringe them occasionally, to check insects. In 
the herbaceous borders many plants will require training and staking; but do not bundle them together 
in the broom fashion, but rather thin out the weak shoots, so as to give the others room to amplify, 
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