April 1. 
COUNTRY GENTLEMAN’S COMPANION. 
13 
with alao a due sprinkling of ixias, amaryllises, 1 iliums, 
1 jonquils, hyacinths, croons, tulip, polyanthus, auriculas, prim¬ 
roses, &c\, with some of the most showy annual (lowering 
plants, such as cenothera, Clarkia, clintonia, larkspur, 
1 mignonette, candytuft, stock, nemophiiti, sweet peas, and 
various other kinds: lmt in all cases let no edging of 
flowering plants, or any other kind of plants lie made, as a 
j continued row of one sort spoils a picture, in the same way 
I as you might spoil one of Claude's by drawing a line across 
it. It will be seen by this arrangement of fruit trees in the 
| pleasure-ground that no orchard will he required ; as the 
j groups of fruit trees and bushes can be so blended with 
other plants as to be both ornamental and useful. 
For the kitchen garden, when it has been trenched and 
the soil well mixed together, if in the month of April, seeds 
of the following kind may be at once sown :—Stone, Swedish 
and Dutch turnips, early York, and Battersea cabbages (as 
early kinds); flat, Dutch, drum-head, and bullock-lieart 
shaped for later kinds; carrot, parsnip, onion, radish, lettuce, 
endive, spinach, mangold wurtzel, cauliflower, brocoli, leek, 
savoy, broad beans, and dwarf peas. In all eases, after 
levelling the ground and smoothing it, cover the seeds with 
decayed leaves or rotted manure. If no rain has as yet 
: fallen, water the ground before sowing the seed. The 
paddock or the land for pasture must be ploughed up at 
once, taking care to set one ploughman after the other, with 
a coulter that will cut into the subsoil as deep as possible in 
I the same furrow. Some potatoes may be put in and covered 
j over with manure, but so far beneath the top as when they 
: are earthed the ground will remain level. Seeds of lucerne, 
I clover, Dutch, English, Bokhara, crimson and Italian, ought 
j all to be put in separate patches otherwise they will not 
[ prosper. Patches of rye grass, Italian and English, as well 
I as the Timothy grass, and various other kinds, may now be 
| put in. If the uncultivated parts of the estate possess not 
j good herbage grasses, a due sprinkling of the. clovers, medi- 
cagos, and the above kinds, may be of use ; even the Scotch 
i thistle may be a source of profit if cut and beaten to pieces 
i before it scatters its seed,—with many other herbs and 
I plants, which will be introduced to our readers as well 
suited to prosper in the climate of Victoria. 
It must be borne in mind that the making out of a flower, 
fruit, vegetable or any other kind of garden or small farm, is 
one thing, and that the keeping of the same in order is 
! another. In a country like this, weeds are comparatively 
j easily destroyed,—much more so than in moist climates in 
! many parts of Europe : a good agriculturist or horticulturist 
j should never allow a weed to run to seed, or deep-rooted 
: plants, that will hurt the crops, to remain long undisturbed. 
The ground in every part wants frequent stirring, to admit 
the rain, air, and frost, if any; but if none, the sun's rays 
will often effect the same purpose. The English, Scotch, 
and Irish gardeners are far behind the French, German, 
Turk, Tartar, Russian, and Persian gardeners,, in knowing 
i the value of keeping the grounds not too smooth. Planta- 
j tions dug and kept rough at the top keep longer clean, admit 
| the rain more easily, and the air and heat, which are often 
necessary. The grass meadows often want forking up or 
loosening, to let the air in and make tire plants grow'; and 
round the roots of fruit trees the same is wantedRo be done 
for the same purpose. All crops, such as barley, lucerne, 
clover, wheat, oats, tares, peas, beans, ought to he kept free 
from weeds; and all the trees, shrubs, herbaceous plants, and 
every tiling else, ought to be planted shallow, and tile surface 
of the earth round the stem kept covered with rotted manure 
during the first year of planting. 
EARTHENWARE PIPES INSTEAD OF FLUES. 
I avi induced to offer the few following remarks upon the 
heating of greenhouses by earthenware tubes, from read¬ 
ing an article in your journal by Mr. R, FiSh. He seems 
to recommend that, for a short distance from the furnace, 
the flue should be made of brickwork; but from tlie very 
material of which the tubes are made, or should be (fireclay), 
this, I think, is absolutely unnecessary. 
Last spring, a friend of mine purposed erecting a span- 
roofed greenhouse; and on speaking with me on the subject, 
I advised him to give the earthenware tubes a trial for the 
flues; and although both the architect and builder con¬ 
demned my plan, yet my friend followed my advice, and put 
in tube-flues up to within one brick off the furnace. It has 
acted most admirably, the flue heating with so little fuel (a 
mere handful sufficing), and in so short a time. The saving 
of fuel (gas coke), I estimate at more than fully one-half; 
and the heating of the flue is effected in less than one 
quarter the time required by a brick one. The cost, too (at 
least, in this neighbourhood), is so much less. So that this, 
with its heating qualities and the small amount of fuel con¬ 
sumed, render it admirably adapted for the purpose. 
The best article for stopping the joints more immedi¬ 
ately contiguous to the fire, is ground fire-clay, mixed with 
water to the consistency of .mortar ; and for the other parts, 
a stopping of oakum, or cement; but nothing will be found 
better than a mixture of clay and cow-dung; the latter sets 
well, and is less likely to crack, and will be found effectually 
to exclude any smoke from the house. 
In choosing the pipes, pick out those that are of a light 
colour aud with as little glaze upon them as possible; these 
being freer from iron, less burnt, and thereby less likely to 
fly, as it is termed. 
I may just remark, that I am not in the trade, being only 
an amateur florist.—J. C. 
DEATH OF TREES IN ST. PAUL’S 
CHURCHYARD. 
In reply to a question by Mr. Bowles in your last week's 
number, respecting the trees dying in St. Paul's Church¬ 
yard, I beg to inform him, that it was in consequence of a 
flock of sheep being turned in to eat the grass,.—barking the 
trees as far as they could reach. The trees were then bound 
up with common wadding, and this was the locks of dirty wool, 
or cobwebs, mentioned by him; there was no disease pre¬ 
viously. This I know to be a fact, having witnessed the whole 
transaction.— An Old Subscriber, SI. Paul’s Churchyard. 
CHILDREN’S GARDENS. 
No. I. 
The title of our article may, perhaps, excite a smile ; but 
we believe it will not be “ a smile of contempt” from any of 
our readers blessed with offspring. 
For our own part, we freely confess to a deep interest in 
these scenes of juvenile exertion, and always make a point 
of inquiring for their locality,—taking the proprietor for our 
guide, and listening attentively to all his hopes, plans, and 
queries. The amount of satisfaction derived from these in¬ 
spections has varied considerably. In some few instances, 
we have been joyfully led to a neat little plot, in which every 
plant showed the attention it had received from its owner, 
whose eye was earnestly fixed on the countenance of his 
visitor as he related the history of his pets, or called atten¬ 
tion to some particular favourite. On the other hand, we 
have been, too often, indifferently, even reluctantly, conducted 
to a neglected spot, tenanted by a few ill-grown plants trail¬ 
ing on the ground for want of a support, and choked with 
weeds ; the auswers elicited by our remarks proving, also, 
a total absence of interest in the whole affair, if our readers 
will but mentally run through the children's gardens within 
their own observation, we believe the result will corroborate 
our opinion, and the question will arise in their minds, as it 
has in our own, Why should there be so much listlessness, 
ami so many failures, in a pursuit into which most children 
enter with the greatest zeal ? In the hope that a few hints 
on this subjeot will lie acceptable to many of our readers, we 
purpose devoting a few columns to the matters connected 
with it. 
Let us begin by inquiring,—At what age are children c apa¬ 
ble of taking interest in gardening ? 
I answer, as soon as they are strong enough to handle a 
tool, or transplant a seedling. I have seen the garden of a 
little hoy, seven year’s old, as neat and flourishing as could 
be desired. If my memory serves me, young Beattie was still 
younger, when his father, by secretly sowing his name in 
mustard seed, taught him the lesson, that every effect must 
have a cause. I do not mean to assert, that at this early 
age a child is able really to work his ground, or even to ar¬ 
range his plants properly. All that is meant is, that he is 
