824 
THE GARDE KING WORLD 
October 15, 1904. 
Miniature Model Garden. 
Of all tlie’'innumerable' literature on gardening, I -have not 
observed anything relative to- miniature fewer gardens. As 
far as I know, the exhibiting of these miniature garden® was 
very keen -a fe-w years back. I would not argue that they 
were of much benefit- to gardeners, but they show skill and 
taste, -and -are a pleasing and novel exhibit of handiwork. 
Having assisted in making one- of these- a, few weeks- ago, it is 
my object to give an account of the- work with it, along with a 
photograph, which may lead some y-o-ung gardener to attempt 
it. Introducing this into our local shows here, after a lapse 
-o-f years, I have come under some sarcastic remarks from 
those, like myself, only a, journeyman, who -propound theories' 
very remarkable in- miniature work. I regret the want of har¬ 
mony which, should reign, 111 ore- s-o at o-ur local show's. Some 
cannot but- admire -their own exhibits, and pasisi others with 
contempt. 
Proceeding with the miniaturei flower garden-, have a bo-x 
made 4 ft- long by 3 ft. wide; mark off 3 ft. for the floral de-- 
sign, a terrace may then, be made- 4 in. high, at an angle of 
45 de-g., the remaining inches -to- be flat ait the top of the 
terrace. This -done, fix an edge 1-& in. deep to go round 
the entire box ; at. the -bottom edge of the box, cut out 
' 2 -in. exactly, this- will -biei the -entrance; an -arch or gate 
may be attached. Three -sets of step-s will requir e to -bo 
made for the terrace, 2 in. wide. Fix the -side, steps se¬ 
t-hat space be left; for a- border. The whole- concern 
given ia- -coat -o-f green paint, the horticultural opera-tea 
may take- it in hand. Commence four or five- days pre¬ 
vious to the show. 
Firstly, obtain, some good workable cla-y; the pro¬ 
curing of this- item, along with the- moss, creates- some 
excitement. With a- large- elstate at hand you can 
always find -these. Cover all the interior of the box, 
with the -exception- of thiei steps, with the day a-t a, slight 
de-p-th of a quarter of an inch. This may have exers-isea 
your patience for one night-, s® that a- halt- may induce 
new a-ct-i-om for the; drawing of the design. The design, 
if original, so- much the better, with not too many beds; 
whatever d® done- avoid eon-fining the flower beds. Have 
good -swards -o-f grass intervening. 
The accompanying illustration, will reveal a- simple 
design with sufficient beds, that is, thirteen, -as- 1 have 
already said, that we have- 36 in. to work on. Ha-ve a 
gravel wa-lk to- -go round all the central garden, with 
the usual borders and grass verges at eaich side. The 
smooth, and damp- day allows it to- be (sketched on 
freely. Exactness must be carried out- Two- 
half-moon beds will be enough isbow on- thei tlema-qe to-p. . Brush 
out all useless markings-, so that we have- distinct lines in¬ 
direct us in laying the moss. The necessity -o-f having this 
moss very fine-, and -of one- thickness, will -be- f-oun-d out in lay ing 
1 in. verges a,s shown in the p-h-o-to-graph. Lay the moss firmly 
o-n the clay between the lines marked off. Terrac-e and verges 
all mossed, givei it a- good watering through a- fine- rose-. With 
any round stick give" it -a, roll, and trim y-o-ur -edges, the ser¬ 
vices o-f a, Pennsylvania m-ower being avoided. 
But we musit- search, up the day to- -elevate- -o-ur flower beds. 
The bedding-out principle is before- us now, to be done the night 
previous to- the -show. Harmonious blending -of colours must 
be decided on-. Insert -the flowers singly in the clay. S-orne o-f 
the flowers we- used were Pelargoniums, Stocks, Calceolarias, 
Liuaria-, Agerait-um, Lobelia,, Alyssum, with quite a- variety in 
the borders. Neatness will give- it much effect, if carried out 
to- the full all through. The gravel must be. put on when it h-a-s 
arrived at- the -show, and any other miniature attractions. The- 
oiravel walk and grass walks between, the beds -a,re 2 in., als-o- the 
two side step-s-. Entrance -can he- made cin to the garden at 
eight- points from the gravel walk. 
The photograph will give reliable information. 
A. V. Main. 
Examinations. 
Nowadays everyone—even the gardener—must pass exa¬ 
minations-, and as there are probably as many failures, par¬ 
ticularly in horticultural examinations through want of method 
in preparation as through lack of knowledge-, the following 
notes may be of value to- s-orne- of your readers. The first 
thing to be done when it has- been decided to enter for a 
particular examination is- to- o-btain a co-py o-f the latest- 
syllabus and carefully study it, noting just what standard o-f 
knowledge is required, and how far your own, knowledge is 
below that standard. At tins time, too-, the questions set at 
previous examinations should be looked through and the style 
of the- questions borne in mind, as these n-o-t infrequently give 
a better idea of the requirements than the syllabus itself. 
Having digested the syllabus and determined what books you 
can obtain for use, ma,p o-ut your course of study, dividing up 
what vo-u have to, learn into sections. Each section should 
then be allowed a definite time in such a way that the whole 
of the work will be- covered two or three weeks before- the 
date of the examination. In allowing the period decided upon 
to each section, extra time should be allowed to those points in 
which you are weakest, and according to- individual needs; for 
instance, if you are not much used to- writing answers to 
questions-, more time should be given to this, while if you are 
weak in one subject, extra time should be allowed for that 
subject, proportionate- t-o- yo-ur knowledge of the others. At 
the end of ea-c-h section allow time- for a paper o-f questions on 
the work just completed. These questions should be answered 
a,s ; fully as- possible, and you should write all you know about 
each -one-. Then read up what you do- not know, complete 
those -that are, incomplete, and correct tho-se that are wrong. 
About, four or five times; at intervals, before the- examination 
a complete paper, such as was set- at a previous examination, 
should be worked through in every respect as it would be- at 
the examination, allowing yourself the exact time and the same 
number of questions to choose from. From this yo-u will gain 
not only practice- in writing answers-, but als-o- an idea of your 
state of knowledge, though, of course, the question® must be 
taken, at random and not- previously prepared f-o-r. 
As the- examination approaches, you should have covered 
the whole ground, and should know both your strongest and 
your weakest points; these latter you will give special atten¬ 
tion, to during the revision, of the last few weeks, and if the 
work has been done thoroughly, and you have allowed suffi¬ 
cient time, there should be little doubt as to the- result. H. 
Wkhaw. 
