EXCELSIOR 
53.00 PER YEAR, 
ingle No., Eight Cents, 
NEW YORK CITY AND ROCHESTER, N. Y. 
FOR THE WEEK ENDING SATURDAY, MAY 
41 Park Row 
82 Rullalo St. 
New York 
Rochester. 
[Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year lSU'J, by D. ij 
T. Moore, in the Clerk 
3 Office of the District Court of 
the United states for the Sonthorn~Dlatrlct of New York.] 
rbormtltart 
aim ouiy me tiro ken bits or brick, stone, 
chips, etc,, accumulated on building the 
house, and then Lay out and form the foot 
paths by merely covering their surface lines 
with an Inch or so of gravel, and, on the 
occurrence of every rain or frost, wade 
through mud and scold their “ man ” because 
the walks were not smooth and dry like 
neighbor John’s. Wo hope no readers of 
the Rora.Ii have ever been guilty of a like 
[ error, and to keep our present read era IVom 
such perpetration We propose to say a word 
on how foot paths should be made. 
Having the line of path-way defined by 
means of pegs marking its outlines, and also 
the grade, determining its rise or fall corres¬ 
ponding with the adjoining surface, if the 
soil is clay or a clayey loam, jiroseed to ex 
cavate, say four inches deep at the outsides 
and curving downward to the depth of one 
foot within nine inches of the center, then 
dig the center to a depth of tivo feet; from 
the surface in the form of a V rounded at 
THE LARCH—VARIETIES! 
I see, by the Rural and other publica¬ 
tions, that there is, at this time, considerable 
inquiry as to what seeds, or young trees, 
would be best to plant for timber, shade, 
shelter, ornament, &c. Allow me to men¬ 
tion the Larch, (by many improperly called 
Tamarack or Hackmatack,) as being both 
useful and ornamental. Some persons are 
of the opinion that the European Larch is 
far better than the American, while others 
say that the American Larch is every way 
superior to the European. There may be 
a slight variation, owing to soil and climate, 
hut the fact is, there are several kinds of 
Larch, both in Europe and America, which 
vary as much in quality and value as the 
different kinds of pine or oak do; and the 
reason why persons so often differ about the 
quality and usefulness of the Larch is, be¬ 
cause they have used one kind in Europe 
and another in America, or vice versa. 
Now, in order £0 get at the facts in the 
case, we will begin with the Larix microcar- 
pa, the poorest and most common of the 
Larch family. This is a small tree, growing 
from thirty to fifty feet high, and from four 
to ten inches in diameter; the color of the 
wood is a dirty white, and where the limbs 
come out of the tree there is a bulb or bunch 
as big as yofirfist, or larger, according to the 
size ot the limb, out of which the limb grows 
upward at an angle of forty-five degrees. 
This kind, although a handsome tree, is not 
valuable for timber, unless it bo for rafters 
to a house or barn, or in some similar situa¬ 
tion, where it is always kept dry. It is some- 
outfine. Boo that the bottom of the center 
U*e has a fall sufficient to cause a rapid, 
ready flow of water. Have ready stone or 
broken bricks, varying from throw to six 
inches diameter, lay these along and fill with 
them the entire of the center trench ; next 
spread three inches of dry rubbish, such us 
wood clappings, shavings, Hikings from the 
wood-house, for the purpose of securing 
certain and rapid drainage by preventing 
any earth that may be in the upper covering 
of gravel fr*m washing iu and choking up 
the main drain. Use for the next and main 
ti Ilin 
Use for the next and 
any coarse gravel that will pack 
firmly, until within about two inches of the 
surface; roll and tread this thoroughly and 
then dress the surface of two inches thick 
with gravel thoroughly screened, so that 
there be no pebbles larger than one quarter 
of an inch diameter. Spread this evenly, 
and tread it firmly, then rake with the hack 
of a rake for the purpose of making a con¬ 
vex-shape, so as to throw the rain rapidly 
from the middle to the sides, and finally 
finish by rolling with a heavy roller. 
The curve or convex form of the walk is a 
t>oint ol no little moment, and requires, per¬ 
haps, a better eye and more care than all the 
rest of the work. If the walk is too flat, 
puddles of water will form; and if it is too 
strong it will he unpleasant walking thereon. 
It is perhaps desirable, therefore, to give a 
rule for the best form of curve. It will be 
found that a rise ol half an inch for every 
foot that the pathway is wide, will make a 
good curve for all walks up to six feet in 
width, so that a walk of four feet wide would 
require the middle two inches higher than 
the sides; and a walk of six feet wide, three 
inches above. 
A professional gardener, accustomed to 
the work of grading and rolling, will form 
the path very regularly by his eye; but an 
inexperienced person will find it expedient 
to have a piece of board the length of the 
width of the walk, and about six inches 
wide, with a curve formed oil one side to 
meet the want of the walk ; he can then lay it 
down from time to time, and so form a line 
that without its use would more than likely 
be far from correct. 
There are also one or more other kinds of 
Larch, one of which—the color of the wood 
being a brownish red—Ls valuable for cabi¬ 
net work, receiving a polish superior to that 
of mahogany. Isaac Esmay. 
St. Joseph Co., Ind. 
Laucii is very easy to grow. Sow as soon 
as the ground is diy enough to sow any seeds 
in the spring, in light sandy sod; cover with 
brush wood or anything that will make a 
partial shade through the summer. They 
GARDEN WALKS. 
We are not disposed to cavil at what is 
performed, but at, times, when visiting gen¬ 
tlemen’s grounds, we feel like giving the 
owner a hint, hut refrain because of the per¬ 
sonal feeling it may possibly engender. 
When we find walks with rolling, rough 
ground, luoso to the shoe, or it’ compact, 
with a dull color, we feel that there is some¬ 
thing wrong either in the construction of 
the walks or the care of the gardener. 
If the paths were properly made then the 
gardener having charge is censurable for 
uny neglect of appearance, or preventing 
their being walked upon any day in the 
year. Ilut if the walks have been made on 
the principle that “ it will answer for the 
present,” then the gardener should never be 
held accountable. Many a man gives to the 
creation of his lawn and flower beds due and 
proper labor, but when the walks are being 
made is unwilling to expend the time or 
labor really necessary to the formation of a 
path that at all times may be found dry and 
smooth to the foot. 
Edgings. —The Editor of the Gardener’s 
Monthly says:—“ There is nothing that will 
make as good a border as Box, or some of 
the dwarf ArborvitflBS. Of flowering planks, 
the best is the Perennial Candytuft. Thi 3 
will flower in April. Tho mountain or Moss 
Pink —Phlox subulata —is a pretty edging. 
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