October 20, 1900 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
121 
with a sandy compost should be used for dibbling 
them into. A place in a small frame having a 
normal temperature of 6o° will suit them till they 
are rooted. 
Making a Lawn.— A.L.: Despite the fact that 
special publications on this subject have recently 
been noticed in our columns, we receive sundry 
queries about certain points connected with the 
making of lawns, &c. We can only say here that to 
obtain a level on ground now very uneven horning 
rods have to be employed. But a rough general 
level can be cast up first, judging simply by the 
eyes unaidedly. Then starting from some fixed 
point, where a level headed pin has been driven 
down, you should work round this pin in all four 
directions, knocking down other pins like the first 
one, and taking their level from the first one inserted. 
This is done by looking over the top of a horning 
rod placed on the top of the central pin, and thereby 
catching the level of one placed on top of the sur¬ 
rounding pins, so that if the pins are driven too low 
they may be raised, and if not low enough they are 
beaten to the proper level. The surface soil should 
be good, and ought to be firm. A mixture of the 
best grass seeds should be selected, and sown at the 
rate of one and a half to two bushels per half 
acre. 
Treatment of Crinums.— T., Minto : At this time 
ripen the bulbs as well as you can, Expose them to 
all the sunshine there is going, and keep them 
sufficiently supplied with water to maintain healthy 
working roots. Soon, of course, they will be under 
treatment to rest them during winter. One of the 
most important facts to remember in the culture of 
all bulbous plants is that the better ripened and 
more fully developed they are, the surer will they 
flower (and flower well) during the succeeding year. 
Pot or top-dress the plants in March, and in June 
place them out of doors. 
A SUBURBAN GARDEN. 
One of the finest traits of the present day, in the 
dispensation of their means by those who are 
successful and well-to-do, is the thought and appre¬ 
ciation which the wealthy give to gardens and gar¬ 
dening. When the comforts necessary to a happy 
home have been provided for, generally the first 
consideration after this is the provision of as ample 
and beautiful a garden as possible, for it is recognised 
not merely as a place where so many stationary 
beauties and pleasantries can be enjoyed, but also as 
an area for recreation, and it is the fittest place of all, 
for quite contemplation, study, and rest. Those 
who make up their minds on these points, and whose 
temperaments incline them to the quiter pleasures, 
are never disappointed when they interest them¬ 
selves in the culture of plants and flowers, and in 
the planning and working of a garden. 
The owner of the suburban garden, which we are 
about to describe, is James Webster, Esq., whose 
house and grounds are situated at 70, Lewisham 
High Road, New Cross, London. New Cross is a 
large district or vestry in the south-eastern part of 
this mightiest city of the world. To glance at the 
illustrations here shown (and we are sorry that con¬ 
siderations of space prevented other equally pretty 
and characteristic photographs from being em 
ployed) one would be dubious in accepting a state¬ 
ment that these represented a typical London subur¬ 
ban garden. The apparent vigour both of the foliar 
and flower display, seems to reflect more the purity 
of country air and sunshine, than the real conditions 
of pent-up and hot reflected air with its suffusion of 
sulphurous smoke which is found in London. But 
Mr. Webster is fortunate enough to possess a pretty 
garden, and to love it, too. And when a gentleman 
takes active interest in the what and wherefore of 
the operations which rule the formation or keeping 
of the garden, one seldom finds it other than 
successful. The garden is not newly made, though 
improvements have recently been enacted under 
contract by Messrs. J. Laing & Sons, of Forest Hill, 
S.E. In the first instance, however, the garden had 
been arranged sensibly and with taste. Where space 
is limited, the trained landscapist exercises the rules 
of his craft when planning and planting, to deceive 
the visitor or surveyor in his estimate of apparent 
extent. This, the designer accomplishes by his 
system of planting, whereby vistas may be formed, or 
open stretches are introduced ; and skilfully planned 
features which one would only expect to find in more 
extensive domains are ingeniously contrived, the aim 
being to impress one that amplitude is certainly a 
feature of the garden. 
We do not infer that in Mr. Webster’s garden the 
designer had scope to practice his greater art, but on 
a scale adapted to this suburban garden of an acre 
in extent, there seems to have been an attempt to 
give breadth and extent by only showing one portion 
at a time, and never an entire view of the whole 
from any point of vantage. At the north end or that 
portion furthest from the house, a fruitful orchard of 
half-standard Apple and Pear trees is located ; and 
behind the screen, which these fruit trees provide, a 
fair-sized poultry yard exists. The fowjs receive 
plenty of air and good light, so that all of them are 
strong and sturdy birds. Pigeon cots, rabbit 
hutches, and a number of convenient sheds that are 
handy for a variety of purposes are also to be found, 
and all of them are unobservable from the centre of 
the garden. The grounds are bounded on three 
sides by walls about 8 ft. or 9 ft. high. On the wall 
facing south young fan-shaped and horizontally 
trained Apple and Plum trees have been planted; 
and now that they are becoming established some 
exceedingly fine fruits have developed, fruits which 
for size, good form, and handsome appearance would 
be creditable even in the gardens of expert fruit 
growers. The situation and aspect of the wall on 
which these young trees are developing should be 
favourable for the production of heavy and well 
finished crops. The practice of summer mulching, 
and strict attention to pinching of the shoots in the 
late part of summer are the main factors to be borne 
in mind for their successful culture. Some shapely 
standard trees of Williams’ Bon Chretien Pear were 
on the point of yielding liberal crops at the time of 
our visit. Many of the fruits, however, were infested 
with the larvae of the Codlin Moth, one of the means 
of combating which is to spray the trees with Paris 
Green. This poisonous material is very dangerous 
in its effects, and the utmost care must be taken in 
all operations in which it is handled and used. One 
ounce of Paris Green to twenty gallons bf water 
furnishes an excellent insecticide for destroying the 
caterpillars before they enter the fruits. The 
solution should be sprayed over the trees and fruits 
when the latter are very small, and it is advisable to 
choose a quite, dull day for the operation. The 
spraying may be repeated at intervals of ten days 
for a period of six weeks. 
Besides the larger trees, bush fruits are repre¬ 
sented by clean and healthy Currants, of sorts, 
Raspberries, and a fine break of young Gooseberries. 
These receive the attention they demand, and in 
their season provide Mr. Webster and family with 
palatable dessert and produce for the table. In this 
screened-off part of the garden the vegetables are 
cultivated. Laing’s Crystal White Celery was 
magnificent, though grown rather too closely. The 
break of Cabbages (fine plants all of them) had 
suffered detriment from the ravages of the Cabbage 
caterpillars. It is sometimes advisable to make use 
of one's hens or ducks as natural agents in over¬ 
coming these unwelcome pests. After an infliction of 
this nature it is generally good practice to dress the 
surface soil with quicklime. Carrots, Salsify, both 
of which are very healthful vegetables, were each 
shown by fine crops. Tomatos were not grown to 
any extent out of doors, but in one of the glasshouses 
some remarkable pot specimens were seen. These 
were bearing heavy crops, and so unusually large 
were some of the fruits that they were weighed for 
curiosity’s sake. One of the heaviest reached J lb., 
and others came close upon this weight Perhaps 
such very large fruits are not recommendable for 
any method of use other than cooking ; but the fruits 
produced on Mr. Webster’s plants were very solid 
and of splendid flavour. Coming back to the vege¬ 
table garden, however, it is noticed how the skill of 
the designer has screened off this not quite esthetic 
section from the large tennis-lawn and other parts of 
the flower garden on which it borders. By the new 
arrangement of the garden a belt of choice Conifers 
has been planted between the lawn and the vegetable 
quarters. This belt of evergreen trees is at once 
utilitarian and ornamental. Over the tops of this, the 
as yet, dwarf Conifers and the Apple trees are seen. 
The lawn we have just spoken of is as level as a 
billiard table and almost as smooth—a happy, little 
playground for all manner of games. On the left 
side looking down the garden and skirtiQg this large 
lawn are the herbaceous borders, which contain a 
bright collection of hardy and summer flowering 
plants. These borders on the south side are backed 
up by shrubbery. On the opposite or north side 
stands the fruit wall above mentioned. In what 
might be termed the south-east section of the garden 
the formation merges outward in a winding and 
circular fashion, leaving abundance of space for more 
bush fruits, flower beds, and borders. Enormous 
Sunflowers, Phloxes, and Asters enliven the various 
parts here, and passing along under the Rose and 
Creeper ” covered arches a vinery placed at a 
short distance from the house brings us to a halt. 
We go inside and there count five Vines, on which 
we see from 250 to 300 bunches. The rods are 
planted in an outside border, and trained up and 
then down on both sides within the house. The 
T. Sturdjie.J [St, John's, S.E 
The Arbour in a Suburban Garden. 
