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THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
March 11. 
Our reasons are these:—We have, of late years, re¬ 
ceived a vast accession to our pears, plums, cherries, &e., 
whilst the peaches, nectarines, and vines, have scarcely 
received any addition. Now the latter, we all know, 
demand, in most parts of Britain, a south aspect, whilst 
three-fourths of the former are as good, or better from 
east to west aspects. In addition, no advance has been 
made worth recording in our north-wall fruits, hence we 
see that on a full consideration of the question, east 
and west aspects may fairly be multiplied at the cost 
of south and north; at least such we should say as far 
north as Birmingham, at least. It may here be ob¬ 
served, however, that we should not expect such argu¬ 
ments to reign paramount. In laying out new places, 
the locality must be well studied, the site of the mansion 
will not unfrequently, in some degree, dictate the site, 
form, and size of the kitchen and fruit gardens. 
General Arrangement.' —It is still customary to 
establish wall borders, and marginal borders; and these, 
with the walls back and front deducted, leave the whole 
interior totally unshaded for the production of superior 
vegetables. We know of no arrangement superior to 
this, which recommends itself on the joint score of 
convenience, simplicity, and true economy. The wall 
borders are generally appropriated to early crops, and, 
indeed, once the spade introduced, crops of all kinds 
are but too apt to find a place there. This wo protest 
against, as also against any digging over the roots of 
fruit trees. 
This brings us to the width of the wall border. It 
is customary to make this border nearly or quite as wide 
as the wall is high, but why this should have become a 
kind of rule it is not easy to say. As to seeing the 
trees to advantage, it is probable that about sixteen to 
twenty feet gives a superior effect. This, however, 
should be made a subordinate consideration; trees well 
managed, look well at any distance, and certainly in 
this department of gardening economy is before mere 
effect. We must, therefore, suggest eight feet as the 
maximum width, with the understanding that no vege¬ 
table culture takes place ; nevertheless, we are prepared 
to concede a flower-border on the two feet next the walk, 
or the margin of this border. This margin, if deco 
rated with flowers, might be furnished with the herba¬ 
ceous and annual tribes ; at any rate, things which 
could be transplanted any autumn without loss, in the 
event of operations connected with the trees becoming 
necessary. We must here confess, that under peculiar 
modes of surface culture, we crop such with the smaller 
vegetables, salads, &c., and without the least injury to 
the trees; but it is dangerous, we fear, to suggest such 
to the unpractised. 
And now to the marginal borders: these are generally 
made to surround every quarter, or square, of the 
garden; and we would, in all cases where convenient, 
constitute four quarters, by two main walks at right 
angles, intersecting each other in the centre. If the 
plot to be devoted to fruit and vegetable culture is of an 
irregular form, let the largest rectangle be formed out 
of it, and with the opposite sides equal, and let the rest 
be thrown into slips, or devoted to ornamental planting, 
or indeed, what we should do in many cases, where 
economy of space is highly necessary, blend the useful 
and the sweet together. 
I he marginal borders with us, are about eight feet in 
width, and less would scarcely prove sufficient. Those 
who are severely limited for room must be content, we 
suppose, with six feet, less than which can by no means 
answer. It the trees are of the pyramidal character, 
root-pruned, and on dwarfing stocks, the latter width 
will lie amply sufficient ; if rough espaliers, as some 
call them, or, in other words, dwarf standards, eight feet 
is little enough, and even then root-pruning, if the soil 
is of a fertile character, must be had recourse to. 
The distance between the trees must also be ruled, 
less or more, by similar circumstances; but in all cases 
it is well to leave much room between the trees this 
way, especially when they run north and south, as much 
of the valuable solar light is lost from eleven a.m. to 
one, when the trees are too close in this direction. 
Nothing has -yet been said as to the width of the 
walks. There are two phases under which to view this 
part of the question—the one, a necessary amount of 
breathing room; the other, proportion. For the former, 
some five feet will do ; the latter, of course, must be 
determined by the general tone and size of the gardens, 
together with their pretensions. Some princely gardens 
of perhaps nearly half-a-score acres, possess, and very 
properly, we think, a central carriage drive through 
the midst; but then the sides of the drive are in pro¬ 
portion, and composed of strong features of a dignified 
yet systematic character. 
Slips. —Wherever a kitchen-garden is chalked out, 
some fragments on the outer side come to hand, and 
those on the side of dress grounds not unfrequently par¬ 
take of both characters. When next a road, a lane, or 
the farm buildings, they may preserve an identity of 
style with the interior, between walls. Slips are fre¬ 
quently liable to more trespass than the interior; they 
are, therefore, not the best places for the Greengages, 
Moorparks, and Jargonelles. In general, late fruits are 
best adapted ; such indeed as require housing awhile to 
render them palatable. 
Sites for f ruit trees and bushes .—As we have before 
stated in The Cottage Gardener, it is folly to deep 
trench, manure, &c., in common, the whole interior. 
This is all very proper for vegetable culture, but in 
order to economise expenses, the fruit-tree stations should 
receive a special preparation. Of what use is it to put 
in cart loads of turf where bairows-full will suffice. If 
the soil is of mediocre quality, and the general texture, 
in a mechanical point of view, is good, six barrows of 
prepared soil will do as well as six cart loads, for trees 
under a dwarfing system, and this alone is worthy of 
practice, within walls at least. 
The platform mode of planting has been so frequently 
recommended and explained in previous numbers of this 
work, that neither space nor occasion require a repetition 
here. Those who do not possess the earlier numbers of 
The Cottage Gardener, will do well to add them to 
the horticultural division of their library; for not in 
one department alone, but in all those of our clever and 
eminently practical coadjutors, will these volumes be 
found to present a mass of sound information, which is 
seldom surpassed, and which will as seldom mislead. 
A few matters only remain for observation. First, as 
to site : a steady incline to the south-east if possible— 
next, the south, and lastly the south-west, will be found 
highly eligible. In all cases, if a, permanent supply of 
water can be obtained, we would establish a reservoir in 
the centre of the garden ; and, as irrigation is a great 
essential to some crops, and especially to hot soils, the 
proprietor, about forming a new garden, has it in his 
power so to scheme his matters as that such may with 
facility be carried out, with regard to such things as 
strawberries, black-currants, raspberries, asparagus, &c. 
The whole being a parallelogram, vegetable cropping 
can be earned out with facility, precision, and without 
loss of time, which is always involved in the working of 
gardens, the lines of which are not right-angled. 
As to selections of fruits by name, that alone will 
require some two or three columns of these pages: many 
such may be found in back numbers. In the vegetable 
department, a deep and friable soil should be selected or 
made; nothing insures the permanent welfare of a vege¬ 
table garden so much as depth of material. Without 
this, whether in the garden or the farm, a waste of 
manure is the sure consequence. 
