AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
7 
garden be a parallelogram, square, or any irre¬ 
gular shape, whether the sizes we have above 
mentioned or not, it cannot well be laid out in 
any other than the regular style, or a very 
slight departure from it. This question settled, 
other considerations arise as to shelter, shade, 
&c., for the planting of small gardens is materi¬ 
ally affected by their position. Gardens in the 
rear of houses on a .street running east and 
west, are much more shaded than those situated 
on a street running in any other direction ; and 
of course are not so well adapted to the growth 
of some trees and plants, as those which have 
the full rays of the sun the greater part of the 
year; greenhouses or graperies when attached 
to such gardens must be at the extreme part of 
it, while in others they may be annexed to the 
house or immediately adjoin it. All these 
things are to be considered in laying out a com¬ 
plete suburban garden. 
The ground decided upon, we shall suppose 
the house, if not already built, to stand thirty 
feet from the street, or about that distance; this 
will allow a good space for planting what we 
shall term the front garden. The back garden, 
supposing the house to cover thirty feet more, 
will be ninety feet long, allowing the lot to be 
one hundred and fifty feet deep. The w r hole of 
the ground, both front and back, should then 
be thoroughly trenched. 
K is a very prevalent custom, if not a general 
one, even where trenching is performed, to con¬ 
fine this operation only to the ground to be 
planted, throwing the soil out of the walks, to 
make the borders deeper, and filling up the 
space with rubbish, gravel, &c.; but a little re¬ 
flection will show that this practice Is very ob¬ 
jectionable, especially if fruit trees are to be 
planted on the borders, for the earth under the 
walks is just so much available room for the 
roots to extend and find nourishment, being 
equivalent in fact to so much additional garden- 
room. All that is necessary is to throw out the 
soil on the surface of the walks, to the depth of 
six inches, and fill the space with gravel; re¬ 
membering, however, that all drains, if any are 
needed, should be made under the walks, which, 
if the location is retentive of moisture, will 
make them dry, firm, and comfortable at all sea¬ 
sons,—an important consideration, especially in 
spring and autumn, when a damp or muddy 
walk almost deters one from entering the garden, 
or at least destroys much of the enjoyment 
derived from a promenade through the grounds. 
The front garden, of such a size as we have 
supposed, (thirty feet deep and of greater or 
less width,) should be laid out with a straight 
walk from the gate to the front door, or a circu¬ 
lar one if the space is broad enough, and there 
are two entrance gates, one on each side. Noth¬ 
ing can be more objectionable than a curved 
walk on a level piece of ground, without any 
obvious reason to indicate the cause of such a 
curve. If a short bend is made in a walk, un¬ 
less in the right direction, the object to be at¬ 
tained is defeated; for there will be perpetual 
attempts to take the nearest route to the main 
entrance to the house, and the grass or border, 
whichever it may be, will be crossed and re¬ 
crossed at all times. When the gate is directly 
in front of the house, the walk should be 
straight; when on one or both sides, unless the 
entrance door is on the side, it should be curved; 
for if made straight for some distance and then 
turned at a right angle, a foot path will be like¬ 
ly to be formed across the grass. Hence the 
necessity of varying the line of walk according 
to the situation, construction of the house, &c.; 
but as a general rule, easy curves in the short¬ 
est direction, or straight lines, should be the 
guiding principle in making walks to small gar¬ 
dens. 
Another important consideration is, not to 
make too many walks. It is a common prac¬ 
tice, even in the smallest front gardens, to have 
a walk within two or three feet of the boundary 
fence. This is not only unnecessary, but it 
destroys the only chance there is of forming a 
plantation of trees and shrubs where they are 
most needed and look best, next the street. 
One walk only is necessary, unless the distance 
from the street to the house is more than 50 feet. 
The width of walks varies from four to six 
feet, according to the size and character of the 
house and extent of ground, the average being 
about five feet. If a semi-circular walk, for the 
passage of carriages or vehicles of any descrip¬ 
tion to the front door, it should be ten feet wide 
at least, and unless very limited for space, 
twelve feet. All these considerations being 
borne in mind, the walks can be staked out, 
gravelled and completed, and the ground made 
ready for planting. 
The garden in the rear of the house should 
be laid out on the same principle we have ad¬ 
vised above. If a square or parallelogram, run 
a neat walk parallel with the boundary fence, 
and four or six feet from it. This will leave a 
good space for fruit trees, as dwarfs or espaliers, 
or for grape vines or other climbing plants, 
trained to trellises against the fence, with goose¬ 
berries, raspberries, currants, &c., in front. On 
the other side should be a six foot border, if it 
is desirable to have a fruit garden, or choice 
shrubs and small growing trees if only an orna¬ 
mental one. The interior compartment being 
devoted to beds of flowers and flowering plants, 
to strawberries, &c., or to rhubarb, asparagus, 
or other vegetables, or to all combined, just as 
the taste or inclination of the proprietor may 
desire ; for on a piece of ground of the largest 
size we have named, (100 by 200 feet,) a great 
quantity of fruit and vegetables can be raised, 
after allowing a reasonable space for shrubs and 
flowers. But this cannot be done without con¬ 
siderable labor, and some expense. When a 
garden is to be laid out so as to be kept neat, 
without much expense, it should be mostly 
grass, and shrubs or trees. For a year or two, 
till the trees get well established, the ground 
should be cultivated; afterwards, it may be 
sown down to grass, when it will only need 
mowing occasionally to present a beautiful ap¬ 
pearance at all times. There are many persons 
who have not the time to devote to the manage¬ 
ment of a garden requiring much attention, and 
who do not wish to be at the expense of keep¬ 
ing a gardener, or hiring labor; to all such there 
is nothing which will afford more gratification 
than a choice selection of trees and shrubs, 
both deciduous and evergreen, judiciously ar¬ 
ranged so as to give variety at all seasons, and 
planted on a smooth and velvety turf. The less 
cross walks for gardens of this kind the better. 
Avoid this error. Let such walks as are neces- 
sary be broad, smooth and level; this will give 
character and expression to the garden, while a 
lot of narrow paths only fritters away all unity 
of appearance. 
Recipe for Making Grape Wine.— When 
the grapes are fully ripe, and have been re 
moved from the vineyard to the place assigned 
for making the wine, they should be assorted, 
and all the green and decayed ones removed. 
Th«n put them into a barrel, about a bushel at 
a time, stems and grapes, and pound them thor¬ 
oughly till all the grapes are mashed. Continue 
the process till all are finished that you wish to 
make up at that time. The next process is to 
press out the juice or must. Then to every 
gallon add two pounds of sugar, and stir it 
thoroughly till all the sugar is dissolved. It is 
then put into barrels for the purpose of ferment¬ 
ation, there to remain, with frequent filling up 
to supply the waste, till the pomace is all fer¬ 
mented off. A supply of the must should be 
on hand for that purpose. The barrels should 
not be bunged up until the fermenting process 
is about completed. This may be easily ascer¬ 
tained by placing your ear to the bung. If in 
April or May the wine should be found clear, it 
may be racked off, but if unsettled it should be 
left till fall. If the wine is found to be just 
what you want it at the time of racking, bottle 
as much as you choose; but if not, let it remain 
on the lees, and the article will increase in char¬ 
acter and strength. 
I would remark that all grapes raised in this 
suction of the country, do not contain enough 
sugar or saccharine matter to make good wine 
without the addition of sugar.— H. N. L., in 
Rural New- YorTcer. 
Apples at the West. — Letters from residents 
in the western part of the State of Ohio, men¬ 
tion that the crop of apples in that vicinity is 
very large, and the fruit is sold at low rates. 
Good apples are plenty at from 30 to 40 cents a 
bushel. 
Apples in Ohio. —There is a great apple crop 
in Western Ohio, where good ones are in abun¬ 
dance at 30 cents a bushel. 
To Destroy Vermin in Houses. —Take up 
your carpets—down your curtains. In a pail¬ 
ful of water (cold) mix well one pound of chlo¬ 
ride of lime—having first diluted it into a thin 
paste in a bowl of water, for facility of mixture.) 
With a mop, wet and saturate well the floor, 
skirtings, and any other wood work that will 
not suffer injury. Then shut the doors and 
windows close. If there should be a suspicion 
of other tenants in the bedstead, take that 
down too. In three or four hours all will have 
disappeared or perished; but to insure perfect 
immunity from the plague, it might be well 
to repeat the lustration a second time— i. e., a 
day or two after. 
-* 9 *- 
Canine Sagacity. —A correspondent of the 
Rome Sentinel tells a story of a wonderful dog 
residing in the western part of that town. A 
farmer named Donnelly sent his boy to watch a 
lot of cows. While in the field the lad was 
taken alarmingly ill, and became entirely help¬ 
less. His dog left him and went to the adjoin¬ 
ing field, where a young man was at work, and 
by repeatedly going up to him, and then run¬ 
ning a few rods toward the place where the boy 
lay, succeeded in attracting his attention, until 
the young man followed him, found his young 
master, and by applying cold water and other 
restoratives, he was able to get the lad home, 
who has since been restored to health. 
American Women.— The following charming 
passage is from “ Rural Hours,” by Miss 
Cooper, daughter of the late J. Fennimore 
Cooper. It so beautifully expresses the senti¬ 
ments of all women of pure feelings and correct 
principles, that it should be widely circulated : 
We American women certainly owe a debt of 
gratitude to our countrymen for their kindness 
and consideration of us generally. Gallantry 
may not always take a graceful form in this part 
of the world, and mere flattery may be worth 
as little here as elsewhere ; but there is a glow 
of general feeling toward women in the hearts 
of most American men, that is highly honor¬ 
able to them as a nation and as individuals. In 
no country is the protection given to woman’s 
helplessness more full and free—in no country 
is the assistance she receives from the strong 
arm so general—and no where does her weak¬ 
ness meet with more forbearance and consider¬ 
ation. Uuder such circumstances, it must be 
woman’s own fault if she be not thoroughly 
respected also. The position accorded to her is 
favorable ; it remains for her to fill it in a man- 
tier worthy her own sex, gratefully, kindly and 
simply; with truth and modesty of heart and 
life ; unwavering fidelity of feeling and princi¬ 
ple ; with patience, cheerfulness and sweetness 
of temper — no unfit return to those who smooth 
the daily path for her. 
TnE Miseries of Editing. — An editor at the 
dinner-table, being asked if he would take some 
pudding, replied in fit of abstraction, “Owing 
to crowd of other matter, I am unable to find 
room for it, 
