THE COTTAGE GAllDENEli. 
H0VEW13ER 13. 
I 10 
WOODCKAET. | 
{OoHlinuvd from Vol. XIV. ihujc 4(J7.) j 
Een’ges. —In my last iiaitor on tliis subject, 1 i'ully 
described bow to raise, in the sliortcst time, a good, band- 
some fence of Holly; but as even that is tbe best fence, 
yet it takes, at least, live years to form it cll'ectually, 
unless tlio owner sbould go to tbe expense of procuring 
Hollies from a nursery of a proper size at once. Sucli 
plants would cost from-sixpence to niuepenco eaob, 
besides tbe carriage and planting; and as the jdauts ' 
sbould stand, at least, six in a yard, tbe expense would ^ 
be somewhat heavy. Taking lliese circumstances into ' 
consideration, the next inquiry would be, wliat is tbe ; 
next best hedge plant? Undoubtedly, our common 
White Thorn is tbe plant for the juirpose. When well 1 
managed, it is a most excellent fence, as everybody . 
knows; but everybody does not know bow to manage 
it, sim])le though the matter may seem. I suppose, if 1 ' 
was to toll any farmer that be did not know bow to 
manage bis fences, be would set me down for a fool, if 
not for sometbing woi’se. Yet it is a fact, that tbere arc 
very few good Ttiorn hedges in Britain. I mean, few in 
comparison to tbe extent of such fences. 
AVbat constitutes a good Thorn fence? 1 have one, 
and only one, in my mind’s eye, that conics up to my j 
notion of a real good fence, and it bas been a good ; 
one for more than forty years in my own knowledge. | 
Do not tliink I am going to sound a trumpet in my own ! 
praise; 1 bad nothing to do with cither planting it, or | 
taking care of it alterwards. This fence is tbe boundary | 
of a small nursery in Yorkshire, protecting it from tbe 
turnpike road to lloundbay, near Leeds. This nursery 
was formed, i believe, by a Mr. Taylor, and, of course, 
tlie hedge planted by him. Jt certainly bad tlie ad- i 
vantage of being jirotectcd from cattle on the nursery | 
side, and was shielded Ifom them on tbe road side by 
posts and rails, with a ditch between. Tbe fence is six 
feet high, and two feet through at tbe base. It is of what 
is called tbe bog’s-back form ; but it would bo a truly 
lean bog that bad such a back; tlie letter would be 
a truer description of it. Imagine that letter six feet 
high, two feet at tbe base, and ending with its sharp 
ridge, and you have a good idea of my beau ideal of a 
perfect fence, tborougbly impervious to man or beast. 
To form sucb an excellent fence, tbe same method 
sbould bo followed in regard to ])lantiug as that 1 
described for tbe Holly hedge ; that is, in low, wet j 
situations, a ditch sbould be dug on eacli side of tbe . 
site fertile hedge, tbe soil out of tbe ditclics sbould be 
thrown on to the space two-and-a-balf feet v\*ide the 
hedge is to occupy, which soil would raise it high 
enough to allow dry soil for tbe hedge to grow in, 
besides draining tbe site. This preparing for tbe 
plants may be done now, or any time during tbe 
summer. Then, as soon as the leaves fall oil' the Thorns, 
let them be planted, with a liberal allowance of dung 
mixed with the soil, to encourage their growth. Tbe , 
expense of tbe dung would be repaid by tbe ra})id ^ 
growth of tbe Thorns. i 
The question may be asked, what is the best age of | 
I horns to plant lor hedges? I answer, two years’ | 
transplanted Thorns arc tbe best; better than younger, 
and more certain to grow well than older. Two-year- 
old seedlings would do, if they bad not been sown loo 
thick in the bed, though I jircfer sucb as have been 
transplanted, because they have more librous roots. 
Many planters put in a double row of tbe qnickwood, 
as it is called, but that is a waste of plants. One row, 
six inches apart, is quite sullicient, and better, loo, for 
this simple, undeniable reason; that there is more 
nutriment lor one plant in tbe same space than for two. 
The hedge being jdanted, it sbould be jnolected 
during its young years by a double row of jjosts and 
rails, if exposed to cattle, on both sides; but if next 
to a plantation of young or old trees, where no cattle 
are allowed to enter, tbe outside only need be fenced off. 
Tbe posts and rails slionld be, at least, six feet from the 
(|uickscts, in order that cows, or horses, could not reach 
over and browse off the young toj)S. yome planters re¬ 
commend cutting off tbe tops of Thorns at the time they 
are })lanted ; this, 1 think, is wrong. The plants ought 
to have one year’s growth to allow the roots to get bold 
of the soil. Then, in the Eebruary following, cut them 
down to within four inches of the soil. Each plant 
will then send forth three or four strong shoots, and 
thus lay the foundation of a thick, impenetrable fence. 
Tbe general management consists in keeping tbe 
ground constantly clear of w'ceds, and commencing, from | 
tbe second year, to form the hedge into tbe sba])e above 
alluded to. By allowing tbe lower branches consta)itly 
to project beyond tbe upper, they will kee|) always alive; 
whereas, if tbe upright method, with a Hat top is followed, 
the lower branches will die, by being drojiped upon and 
shaded by tbe up])er, and then the bottom of tbe hedge 
becomes naked and bare, giving ingress and egress to 
smaller animals, sucb as sheep, bares, &c. 
If tbe situation is a dry one, tbe ditch sbould be 
dispensed with by all means. Tbe raising tbe ground 
in sucb a situation is positively injurious to tbe well¬ 
being of tbe Thorn plants. All that will be necessary 
will be to trench tbe same space as that enclosed by the 
ditches, adding the same dressing of dung, fencing, &c. 
i cannot liud words strong enough to condemn tbe 
absurd fashion of j)lacing hedge plants on a raised 
bank in a high, dry situation. 1 see miles and miles of 
hedges so formed in sucb a situation; but they are 
never fences. The bank is a division, it may be of 
of bclds, or plantations, but it is no fence, nor ever will 
be. YY't it is tbe fashion, and, I fear, will be, till more 
sensible men arise and plant hedges in sucb situations 
on tbe "Hat, and show, by their success, tbe folly and 
absurdity of placing a moisture-loving ])lant like tbe 
Thorn, or the Holly, on a dry ridge of earth. 
T. Ai’i’EEBy. 
{'To he continued.') 
MUSimOOMS AND THElll CULTUBE. 
Tins singular production, at times, bailies the skill of 
tbe most careful cultivator, whilst at other times it 
yields a large return to tbe roughest or most unexpected 
l)Osition that was ever tried for their artificial growth. 
It, therefore, becomes dillicult to lay down definite rules 
whereby a certain supply can be obtained at all times. 
At certain seasons, say the autumn months, beds care¬ 
fully made up are almost sure to boar, because at that 
season they are produced naturally out-of-doors; later 
on, however, tbe chances diminish; not but that equally I 
good crops are obtained occasionally in Eebruary as in 1 
October, but the same treatment will not secure them at 
that time with a like certainty. All \\g can do in the 
way of reproducing the plant is by the mode common 
to many other jilants—a fibrous root running through 
the ground sends iqi its produce singly, or in clusters, all 
around the origin of the spot from which the ramilica- 
tioii took place. This fibrous substance, technically 
called spawn, is produced naturally, in great abundance, 
in some seasons and in certain places; at other times, it 
is found in dung-heaj)S which have laid long enough to 
allow it to properly fix itself, and many good crops of 
Alushrooms are the result, not the less worthy of atten¬ 
tion by coming unexpectedly. These matters, however, 
all tend to the conclusion, that the j)roi)agution and 
culture of Mushrooms dill’er essentially from most other 
plants we are in the habit of bestowing much care on, 
and that, after all, disappointments now-and-then occur 
