490 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
June 17, 1905. 
Cottage Gardening. 
A Plea for Sympathy and Help. 
No section of gardening demands, possibly, 
more of our sympathy than the unassuming 
but ambitious efforts of the working man 
possessing the small garden plot in the front 
or rear of his cottage. Alter a hard and 
laborious day’s work has been ended, and the 
refreshing comforts of home supplied to an 
already very much worn out body and wearied 
minid, the happy possessor of a small gai'den 
retires from the comforts of the easy chair 
and evening paper to his flower and vegetable 
plot, to renew the struggles which per¬ 
haps he has engaged in for ten long hours of 
the day.already. But they differ immensely 
in their nature and effects upon his body and 
mind, inasmuch that in his own garden the 
physical tension ceases to operate as a labour, 
and becomes a pleasure. He is conscious 
that he now works for himself, the fruits of 
which he joyously anticipates in the great 
delight each little flower, each breadth of 
vegetables, as they peep through the soil, and 
add leaf after leaf to- the ever increasing 
stalk, gives to his anxious care, in response 
to his careful and paternal attention. This 
is true, but on account of his peculiar cir¬ 
cumstance 1 , relying as he invariably must 
upon his own resources for knowledge, a will¬ 
ing body and contented spirit necessarily 
have to suffer a certain loss of energy. 
This would have been avoided were gar¬ 
deners more willing to assist than smile at the 
ambitions and results of the operations of the 
man with the small unpretentious plot. We 
are so used to magnificent gardens, and so far 
beyond the small plot stage, that interest or 
helpful sympathy generally ceases to have 
existence, and therefore what is an achieve¬ 
ment of some magnitude in the eyes of our 
cottager friend creates in us little else than 
a smile. 
If we would, however, rather try to imagine 
ourselves similarly placed, we would be more 
likely to lend a sympathetic ear and a willing 
hand oftener than we do, and very often few 
amateurs appreciate the information greater 
than the cottager. His enthusiasm, energy, 
and labour, bestowed in pursuance of his 
hobby, is more real, more lasting, than is 
almost at any time to be found in the pro¬ 
fessional sphere. The results of his labours 
are not always favourable, and if so to the ex¬ 
tent of giving self gratification they are dearly 
bought. For want of knowledge his labours 
are very much increased, and hard gained ex¬ 
perience almost always is his teacher. Now, 
though the shortest means to an end is not 
always the most desirable, and not necessarily 
the best, in every case where want of know¬ 
ledge makes an operation very much more 
laborious it is clear that knowledge when 
procurable must be an advantage. 
Here then is an opportunity for those who 
can and who are sufficiently liberal minded 
to impart some of their experience to the 
deserving cottager. For want of knowing 
how to perform an operation the cottager 
wastes much time and energy in experiments, 
while if instruction was available all this 
would be avoided. Consequently a very few 
hints from an experienced gardener would 
often save his friend many an hour of unneces¬ 
sary labour and anxiety. Without such aid 
much of the success of the cottager is greatly 
protracted by a disposition to be 1 over atten¬ 
tive. Plants must be watered and chemically 
fed, whether requiring anything or not, with 
the regularity of baby-feeding. 
The result, of course, is failure. The nature 
and quality of a compost, the manner of appli¬ 
cation, also give the cottager thought, and 
he often has to find it out by experience. The 
proper use even of manure in every detail is 
not at all clearly understood. Pruning of 
trees and bushes, especially Roses, as a rule, 
is but vaguely understood, and seldom but a 
work of random. He knows that pruning is 
a necessary operation requiring his attention, 
and rightly or wrongly does it, with more or 
less serious results to the future production. 
A little knowledge timely bestowed in cases 
where so much enthusiasm prevails is a 
stimulus that would certainly contribute in 
a very material way to the progress of a 
greater interest of gardening among all who 
can command the luxury of the minutest plot. 
D. C. 
/- X 
QUR P RISE C OMPETITIONS. 
ESSAY COMPETITION (2). 
Prizes.— 
(1) What you state it costs for the 
up-keep of your garden per ann. for three years. 
(2) do. do. do. two years. 
(3) do. do. do. one year. 
Open to London suburban amateur readers 
only. (Competitions for readers in other towns 
will be announced later). 
“ What I do with my Small Garden ; 
what I get out of it, and what it costs 
me per annum.” 
The garden may be any shape, but the size 
must be between 500 and 800 square feet. Give a 
rough plan of the garden, showing beds and 
walks, and state if it is enclosed with a brick 
wall, open or closed fencing. If part of the gar¬ 
den is in the front of the house, state how this is 
utilised ; also whether the walls of the house are 
covered with climbers, fruit trees or otherwise. 
Denote the position of the house and the north 
end of the garden. State what you grow in the 
first instance, and about what it costs you to 
stock the garden, and what it costs you per annum 
for up-keep, including the cost of seeds, plants, 
and fertilisers. The essay should be from 500 to 
1,000 words, and should be sent in on or before 
July 1st. Mark envelopes left-hand corner with 
the words “ Small Garden.” 
V ___ 
A Relation of the Oyster Plant. 
(Mcrtensia echioides.) 
Many good and useful things in the way 
of blue flowering plants are found among the 
Mertensias. That of which we now write is 
quite a dwarf and very interesting little 
plant, bearing flowers of a rich deep blue. It 
hails from the Himalayas, consequently is 
admirably adapted for cultivation on rock 
work, where it is capable of making a brave 
■show and of exciting admiration. The centre 
of each bloom is lit up with a bright yellow 
eye, which adds great-ly to its beauty. 
The flowers are borne in racemes, and 
although these are small individually, they 
are freely produced for a period of several 
weeks during the early part of our summer. 
Another quality which may be attributed to 
this charming little Borage is that of a strong 
constitution. 
No pampering or coddling is necessary to 
induce the plant to make itself at home ; in 
fact, it can just look after itself, either on 
the rockery or in the front of a border, pro¬ 
viding, of course, decent soil is afforded and 
reasonable care exercised to prevent weeds 
overrunning and smothering it. 
Heather Bell. 
©y/afer "taifie/. 
Their Summer Treatment. 
Nympliaeas planted in April should now be 
growing freely, and the older plants will soon 
open their flower buds, if they have net 
already done so. In relation to this first crop 
of flowers, I have noticed that the buds which 
open first are those which attained consider¬ 
able size in the autumn and have remained 
dormant the wfhole winter. The quality of 
the resulting flower is in exact, proportion to 
the age of the. bud. 
Weeds also make their appearance, and 
must be carefully kept down. To do this, 
and for several other reasons, it is necessary 
to have some means of access to the plants. 
Where it is undesirable to lower the water 
this is often difficult. For the lake we use 
the boat, but find it rather unstable. Pools 
are easily treated by laying a ladder across. 
Medium-sized ponds are difficult. The best 
arrangement I have yet tried is a small wind¬ 
ing gear, by which a cable wire is drawn 
quite taut in any direction across the pond. 
The wire supports the lighter end of a long 
ladder, the butt resting on the bank ; a few 
planks are laid on this to make a platform, 
from which operations can be carried on. As 
the whole is easily removed, it is not un¬ 
sightly. The work of weeding may be divided 
into two sections and treated in two, differeir 
ways. Those close to the crowns must be 
pulled out by hand ; it is tedious work, but, 
fortunately, a Water Lily, as it strengthens, 
effectually smothers all weeds near it. Those 
in the spaces between the plants may lie re¬ 
moved with the old-fashioned Daisy rake. 
Strange weeds are constantly appearing in 
Water Lily ponds, carried there most likely 
by the feet and feathers of waterfowl, in the 
same way as the ova of coarse fish are carried to 
ponds intended exclusively for trout. These 
strangers must be watched for and exter¬ 
minated before they become a nuisance. 
A timely thinning out of the older leaves 
and the removal of dead ones adds much to 
the attractiveness of the Lilies, and allows 
the flowers to develop better. The strongest 
growers are apt to encroach on their weaker 
neighbours, and will soon strangle them if 
left in close proximity. Cut away the nearest 
leaves periodically, and move the plants when 
the season and opportunity permits. Nym- 
phaeas will succeed if moved, at any time 
from April to August, but we prefer the first 1 
two months, not only because tlhe plants are 1 
then in better condition, but when the mud is 
disturbed the sediment, as it settles, makes 
the leaves of the other plants very unsightly. 
In hot, dry weather, those parts wihich are 
above the water are sometimes affected by 
aphides. During July a black grub makes it» 
appearance, and eats tracks along the uppei 
side of the leaves, m some cases causing much 
disfigurement. A heavy thunderstonn oi a 
windy day washes off the former, but nothing 
is wholly effectual against the latter. Spray¬ 
ing with quassia extract kills those it reaches 
at the proper strength, nor does the sma 
quantity used appear to affect goldfish in the] 
same pond. Bordeaux mixture is recom¬ 
mended as an antidote to the green scum tha 
so often rises in small ponds, but the novin 
should be careful to try it on a small sea > 
first, as he might easily disfigure the leave; 
of.the Lilies at the same time. Even wliei 
distributed carefully over the pond at irs 
mixtures, oils, etc., are apt to float inn 
corners in greater quantities than intern e< 
and thus cause damage. • 
