318 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
January 23. 
of gardening he will devote himself to during life. I 
will take them in rotation. If he intends to be a 
Nursery Gardener, whether as master or foreman, he 
should particularly direct his attention to propagation, 
such as raising plants from cuttings and seeds; and 
also, the peculiar arts of budding and grafting; and in 
this day, the art of hybridizing, to improve fruits, 
vegetables, and flowers. IIo should aim to acquire a 
correct knowledge of the kinds now in existence, so as 
to know which sorts will he most profitable to the 
grower. 
If he has the ambition to desire to be an Artist 
Gardener, such as is now known by the term Landscape 
Gardener, he should study the art of drawing in per¬ 
spective, as well as mere plans of gardens or garden 
buildings ; hut as both these branches arc not so much 
in demand as the third branch, it is to that the greatest 
number of young men should direct their attention; 
and when they have attained the rank of foremen, to 
strive with all their powers to render themselves fit 
for a head-gardener’s situation in a gentleman’s family. 
And hero, let me press upon my young friends this fact, 
that in every pursuit of life, the surest way to obtain 
success is to deserve it. And I would further observe, 
that there is no country in the world where a gardener 
has a better chance to get a good situation than in 
England. And yet we find there are many that do not 
succeed well, or continue to keep a good situation when 
they obtain it. Why is this? Chiefly, it is because 
too many young men take situations before they are 
fit for them; aud what is the consequence? They lose, 
very soon, their first place; do not acquire a character for 
ability and steadiness, and they almost ever after con¬ 
tinue at the foot of the ladder, and eventually become 
nursery or market-gardener’s labourers. This is a rock 
upon which many a promising youth splits, and suffers in 
consequence. I say, no man is fit for a head-gardener’s 
place until he has been foreman for at least three or 
four years in a good placo. It would be of great service 
to him, even then, to get into one of the London 
nurseries for a year or two, and then look for, and wait 
patiently for, a good placo in a good family. He will be 
tempted to take a place; many will very likely be offered 
to him; but I bid him beware, and remember, that one 
false step at first will scarcely ever be recovered. I n- 
different places are plentiful. Sadly, too many of the 
gentry are difficult to satisfy, and are often changing 
their gardeners, and that renders such places often 
vacant. The young, inconsiderate man thinks that he 
can please and manage the most difficult of masters; 
accepts the place; perhaps marries on the strength of 
that opinion; and is in danger of being ruined for life. 
Now, every man aims, or ought to aim, at procuring, by 
the exercise of his talents, an independence for his old 
ag e >—such as, I am truly happy to say, my good friend, 
Mr. Beaton has achieved. May he live long to enjoy it. 
Let me ask any young man seriously to consider this 
point, and, as far as he possibly can, choose such a place 
as he can manage, and keep it as long as possible, till he 
has made a provision for the evening of his days. In 
order to accomplish this, my young man should begin to 
lay by a portion of his wages the first, or, at farthest, the 
second year after he has obtained a head place; and this 
he should unremittingly persevere in till his object is 
attained. Set a certain sum apart for that purposo 
annually, even if it be only ten pounds a year. That 
sum, with interest added yearly, will, by the time he is 
fifty years of age, buy an annuity sufficient to keep him 
in all the necessaries of life. I mention this low sum, 
though I am well aware that a steady, careful man will, 
even in a moderate place, save consididerably more, and 
will, of course, be able to purchase a more liberal annuity. 
T. Appleby. 
C To be continued .) 
THE USES OF A THREE-LIGHT FRAME. 
A correspondent having enquired whether Sea-kale 
and Rhubarb might yet be forced in a frame, the 
dimensions of which ho gives as twelvo feet by six, 
and as his case very likely represents many others, 
inasmuch as many persons who have only a frame in 
which all their forcing, sheltering, and other work of 
this kind is performed in the whole year, it may not be 
out of place to detail the various purposes to which a 
single three-light frame may be put, with other work 
connected therewith; and in doing so, I will not shrink 
from describing those homely shifts, which even those 
having a greater range of glass structures at command 
are now and then obliged to adopt, as it will be 
necessary to borrow many supposititious ideas;—I never¬ 
theless trust that none will be introduced but what are 
likely to be wanted to meet many cases all demanding 
consideration. 
In the first place, let us suppose an amateur living in 
the suburbs of a large town or city, and his garden- 
ground and other premises of a very limited extent; 
but having a taste for gardening, and some leisure time, 
he is willing to devote a part of it in the healthy and 
interesting pursuit of rearing such productions as his 
wants or inclinations suggest; and at the same time, 
we suppose he is not afraid of the labour nor trouble 
such a pursuit costs; but is prepared to meet such 
labour in that manful spirit which-ensures a successful 
issue to all exertions. Well, then, we will suppose Iris 
back-yards to be (as many are) surrounded by high walls 
or buildings ; yet on one or more sides an opening exists, 
whereby a good share of sunshine may find its way in 
at all times; well, then, in this back-yard it is fair to 
suppose the amateur will be anxious to have his little, 
humble, forcing contrivance erected, and whatever else, 
in the portable way, will be supposed to find a sort of a 
home there; for apart from this, we will suppose there is 
a small garden devoted to the growth of such things as 
the taste of the party delights in, and which we will, at a 
future time, make some remarks upon; but, in the mean 
time, will confine the present chapter to the uses of a 
“ three-light frame ” throughout the year. 
Beginning with the autumn—that season in which 
Nature has pointed out as a sort of resting time for the 
cultivator, for that is the time in which we will suppose 
glass structures, not expressly devoted to particular 
objects, generally receive a now class of inmates; we will 
suppose, that the amateur has a taste for flowers, aud 
that he has a few flower-beds, in which he grows some 
of the most popular flowering plants of what are termed 
the “ bedding” ones ; a portion of these it is, therefore, 
necessary to save through the winter each year ; and the 
frame, having dono duty in the Cucumber or Melon¬ 
forcing way during the summer, is in a condition to 
receive this class of plants at a time when they can no 
longer be trusted with safety out-of-doors, w’hich we will 
suppose to be the middlo of October, or, it might be, a 
little later, if the frame be still wanted for its summer 
crop; but the plants must be sheltered at night, in 
some way or other, lest sudden frost nip them off ere 
they be housed. 
Leaving the time for removing them into the frame 
for those to determine who have the manipulation, it is 
proper to say here, that a thorough cleansing of the 
inside of the frame and glass ought to take place ore it 
be used, and if it be not mounted on brickwork, in some¬ 
thing like pit-fashion, it must be set on a piece of dry, 
sound ground; some parties excavate for it; but this I 
object to; I would rather have it on the surface, on some 
spot where worms are not likely to be numerous nor 
troublosome; a full exposure to the midday’s sun is 
also necessary; in fact, it ought to have the full amount 
of sunshine the whole day. On this plot let the frame 
