£42 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
Horticulture in Greenland. 
It may be well for us iu this middle climate, of 
which we so often and unjustly complain, to think 
occasionally of the inhabitants further north, in 
their attempts to till the earth. The Danes in 
Upper Greenland have hardly two months ofSum- 
mer, yet they cultivate their gardens with much 
zeal. In this short season, of course they can 
not ripen fruits or seeds ; but they get seeds from 
warmer climates and raise vegetables for the use 
of their leaves. Radishes do well there, and cab¬ 
bage, spinach, salads, and chervil grow vigorous¬ 
ly, but do not acquire the flavor which they pos¬ 
sess in lower latitudes. Potatoes manage to get 
as large as nuts. Manure is said to be of but 
little use, because there is not heat enough to de¬ 
compose it unless it lies exposed for several 
years. This decomposition, however, can be 
brought about by artificial means. Seeds are of¬ 
ten started in hot-houses and dwellings, and then 
set out in the open ground. At best, it is horti¬ 
culture under difficulties, of which we never 
dreamed. Perhaps some of our discontented 
farmers and gardeners are desirous to migrate up 
there 1 Who will offer himself 1 
A Talk about Landscape Gardening. 
The organization of “ Farmers’ Clubs ” in 
every neighborhood or town has been frequently 
advocated in the Agriculturist. Not less valuable 
are Horticultural Clubs wherever there can be 
gathered a half dozen or more persons bound to¬ 
gether by a common interest in gardening. Such 
clubs are already formed in many villages 
throughout the country. The members meet 
weekly or monthly as the case may be, and talk 
over various topics connected with fruit growing, 
flowers, and garden productions generally. They 
thus render each other mutual assistance, and 
promote a higher degree of taste. As an illus¬ 
tration, we present an outline report of a meet¬ 
ing we attended recently in the interior of New- 
York State. The Horticultural Society of the 
village is composed of the Faculty of a college, 
and some dozen or more other gentlemen in the 
town who are practically interested in horticul¬ 
ture. The objects discussed in their meetings 
take a wide range, embracing theory and prac¬ 
tice, and both the useful and the ornamental. On 
the evening referred to, the subject of conversa¬ 
tion was Landscape Gardening, more especially in 
reference to the improvement of grounds of small ex¬ 
tent. After an address on this subject by a lit¬ 
erary gentleman, miscellaneous observations were 
made by several members, of which the follow¬ 
ing is an outline: 
Mr. A.—Questioned whether we could really 
practice landscape gardening in this country. 
Very few men own land enough to make a land¬ 
scape out of, except here and there a farmer ; 
and such men generally care more for crops than 
for landscapes. But if we mean simply orna¬ 
mental gardening, on a scale large or small, ac¬ 
cording to circumstances, that we can have. In 
arranging the grounds of a country residence, we 
should not be governed by a set of arbitrary 
rules : there are no universal laws, applicable to 
every case. There are, indeed, certain general 
principles which are always to be regarded, but 
in their application we must be governed very 
much by circumstances. We should study na¬ 
ture. In planting groups of trees, we should set 
a variety of sorts together, and so obtain the 
fieedom and spirit of natural scenery. Here and 
there, an evergreen should crop out from among 
deciduous trees ; and spiry-topped trees, like the 
larch and Lombardy poplar, should shoot up from 
the midst of round-headed trees, to break their 
monotony. Trees of dark foliage should be set 
in the foreground of one’s premises, and lighter 
ones in the rear, so as to give the place an ap¬ 
pearance of large extent. 
Mr. B.—Would have more of nature and less 
of art appear in our ornamental grounds. The 
trees should be of all sorts and sizes, and plant¬ 
ed at random. Serpentine walks and clipped 
hedges and trees in rows looked juvenile to him. 
You see no such boys’ play in nature. If trees 
should ever be set out with any design in view, 
it should be simply to break off the winds from 
the stormy quarter. There let them stand in 
thick belts and masses. There is little need of 
shade in our cold climate ; the warm sun should 
be let in freely upon our houses and our lawns. 
By no means, should we set trees where they 
would obstruct a fine prospect. A wide sweep 
of the horizon is of the greatest importance. 
Mr. C.—As to following nature, there are some 
limitations. Nature has deformities as well as 
beauties, and we are not abliged to copy them 
both. Let us take our key-note from nature, and 
then go on to make better music than she would 
if unaided. In other words, the rural improver 
should aim to catch the prevailing spirit of the 
place he is to adorn, and then shape his plan to 
that. In this way, his grounds will have a natur¬ 
al look, and yet be above nature, and each place 
will differ from every other. 
Mr. D.—Had not studied or practiced land¬ 
scape gardening much, but had seen some of the 
finer displays of the art in foreign countries. He 
instanced, particularly, Chatsworth, in England, 
the famous seat of the Duke of Devonshire. 
Mr. E.—Fully to master the theory and prac¬ 
tice of landscape gardening, one needs to devote 
much time and thought to the subject. For 
most persons who wish to improve large grounds 
in the best manner, the only safe way is to em¬ 
ploy a professed landscape-gardener, and then im¬ 
plicitly follow out his plans. But many persons 
do not feel able to meet this expense, and many 
others wish to shape their grounds to their own 
liking. It must be confessed, there is much 
pleasure in this, even though we make some 
blunders. In choosing a site for my house, I 
would by no means select level ground. Much as 
is said against the bleak hills, I love them. Low 
wet soils are quite objectionable, and a house 
surrounded by offensive sights is worse off than 
one merely beaten by the wind. Thick masses 
of trees and shrubbery will tame the wind of 
nearly all its savageness. It is a very general 
practice to lay out one’s premises in squares and 
triangles, but I would not advise this. It is much 
pleasanter to see those easy, flowing curves in 
which nature so much delights. 
Mr. F.—All men should not be governed by the 
same rule; let each follow his own taste and 
convenience. We are in danger of running things 
too much in one mold. In riding along the streets 
of a village, you will see each fence and carriage- 
road, and each walk and each flower-bed just 
like the next neighbor’s. Why should there not 
be some independent thinking and original work¬ 
ing here 1 Let each man forget what his neigh¬ 
bor has done, and strike out a plan suited to his 
own ground and his means and taste. Then we 
should have some variety. 
Mr. G.—Straight lines are not to be discarded. 
Their obvious utility recommends their general 
use. In planning the grounds of a village resi¬ 
dence, I would set a row of trees in front of my 
house and on each side. The building should 
stand back a convenient distance from the street, 
and a straight walk should lead to it from the 
fiont gate. Large trees should occupy the cen¬ 
ter, and smaller ones the boundaries. The walks 
should he made in the most thorough manner, on 
a base of broken stones, and covered with grav¬ 
el. I must disagree with those who recommend 
a hill-top for a residence. The winds, the toil¬ 
someness of the ascent and descent are great ob¬ 
jections. Level ground is much more comfort¬ 
able, and every way less objectionable. 
Mr. Ii.—Would endeavor, first of all, to give 
his premises a home-look, by surrounding them 
with belts of trees set in easy, flowing lines, and 
with hedges and scattered groups of shrubbery. 
Such planting would conceal any unpleasant ob¬ 
jects in the neighborhood, and would shelter the 
house and grounds from violent winds. Yet, 
care should be taken not to hide any fine view. 
By a little art, trees may be so set as to highten 
the beauty of a prospect, by furnishing a fore¬ 
ground or frame to the picture beyond. Great 
pains should be bestowed on the making and 
keeping of lawns. Vigorous and well-formed 
trees should be a leading object of attainment. 
Groups of trees, also, and shrubs and thickets 
should find their place in one’s plan. These 
should be so interspersed, that the whole of one’s 
premises can not be seen at the first sight. It is 
sometimes well to have several distinct scenes in 
one’s grounds. Glimpses of each may be caught, 
here and there, through vistas and openings, and 
yet so indistinctly, that the premises will appear 
of indefinite extent, and the scenes within them 
of great variety. And yet, in all this variety, 
there should be a prevailing harmony throughout 
the whole scene. 
Mr. I.—Would not be governed by any iron rule 
in his improvements. Loudon, and Itepton and 
Downing were but men, and fallible men too. I 
would, perhaps, lay down a general plan in out¬ 
line at the beginning, and work according to it 
from year to year, but would not hesitate to mod¬ 
ify it, as my views and tastes should change. 
Each man’s place should be the embodiment of 
his own ideas and tastes. He should plant to 
please himself, not his neighbors. If he plants a 
tree at first in the wrong place, let him not hesi¬ 
tate afterwards to cut it down. Many residences 
in all parts of the country are now suffering from 
the lacl.oof nerve on the part of their owners, 
who can not bear to cut down a tree after it is 
once planted and finely growing. Their grounds 
are crowded with dense jungles, concealing the 
house, and making it damp and unwholesome, 
killing out the grass and shrubbery in the yard, 
and excluding variety and freedom of view. 
Open spaces are as important as thickly planted 
portions; sunlight as shade. In reference to the 
kinds of trees to be planted, I would only say, 
choose those which are perfectly hardy and well 
adapted to the soil. Others may be rarer and 
more beautiful, but for most persons, they re¬ 
quire too much time and care in their manage¬ 
ment. 
The foregoing random sketches hardly do jus¬ 
tice to the several gentlemen who took part in 
the discussion ; but they will perhaps show how 
pleasant such Club-meetings may be made, and 
they may furnish some useful hints to our read¬ 
ers. 
Paul Pry, espying a man who was digging in a 
large pit, and being disposed to rally him, asked 
him, what he was digging.—“A big hole,’’was 
the reply.—“ And what are you going to do with 
such a big hole,” said Paul_“ Going to cut it 
into small holes, and retail them to you fellows 
to set fence posts in.’’ 
