January, 1915 
HOUSE AND GARDEN 
31 
low that its owner has had to build it all up into beds with sod 
edges, the surfaces of which are a foot to eighteen inches above 
the walks. No one living on the place before him had ever been 
able to grow anything. On another place, a friend of mine has 
overcome just the reverse conditions. He had nothing to build 
his garden on but what was practically a sand-bank. By the 
addition of wood ashes and an occasional dressing of dried muck, 
which he was able to get in a wheel-barrow from a near-by river, 
he has succeeded in growing almost every garden vegetable. Both 
of these gardeners are workingmen who have had no resources 
for improving 
the adverse con- 
dit i o n s except 
their own spare 
time and the de¬ 
termination to 
grow things. 
But if there is 
an opportunity to 
select the garden 
site, pick out pre¬ 
ferably a spot 
which faces the 
south or south¬ 
east. If it slopes 
gently and is pro¬ 
tected on the 
north or north¬ 
west, there is a 
further a d v a n- 
tage. Above all, 
must the garden 
spot be well 
drained. With 
modern methods 
of irrigation it is 
an easy matter to 
supply an abun¬ 
dance of water 
to the driest gar¬ 
den. But the wet 
garden is, in 
m any respects, 
foredoomed to failure. The garden's past history is also im¬ 
portant. The well-managed garden spot becomes richer and 
better year after year. But a garden that has been neglected be¬ 
comes so weedy that it is far better to change it if possible, on 
account of the extra amount of labor which weedy soil necessi¬ 
tates. On the other hand, it is much more work to break up and 
get into shape a new piece of ground, especially if it must be 
worked by hand. With heavy sod it is next to impossible to make 
the soil as finely pulverized as it should be the first year. Part 
old and part new ground, however, is a very good combination, 
and some crops do better where there is a great amount of humus 
in the soil, even if it is not so thoroughly pulverized. 
Also get your garden as near the house as possible. A dis¬ 
tance of even a short walk away will make a great difference in the 
pleasure and the work of taking care of it. If the garden must 
be at some distance from the house, then plan to fix 
some place to keep your tools, garden line, seeds, etc., 
near it. A miniature shed, such as may be readily 
constructed from an old piano-box or large dry-goods 
box, covered with roofing paper to keep out the 
weather, and painted for appearances, will save enough 
steps during the first month to pay for the time re¬ 
quired in putting it up. You can disregard the old 
idea that the garden must be out of sight. If you are going to 
take good care of it, it will be as attractive looking as a flower 
garden. If there is any possibility of your not taking such care 
of it, then you had better put it in sight, anyway, as that will be 
some incentive to your keeping it clean and cultivated. 
When you have decided on the spot where your garden is to be 
located, make careful measurements, and jot them down. While 
it is more convenient to have the garden all in one spot, it is by 
no means necessary; and if the small fruits and such perennials 
as strawberries and asparagus and rhubarb are kept together, the 
work will be 
lightened. After 
you have taken 
the measu r e- 
merits, take time 
some evening to 
make a careful 
plan, drawn to 
scale, of the size 
and shape of 
your garden. 
This should be 
large enough so 
that spaces of a 
foot can be readi¬ 
ly shown. Any 
trees, stones, 
path s, shadows 
from walls, steep 
grades, or other 
similar character¬ 
istics, should also 
be indicated. 
Such an outline 
is absolutely nec¬ 
essary before one 
can p lan the 
year’s work sys¬ 
tematically. Even 
if there were but 
one planting of 
seed to be made, 
a carefully made 
planting plan would be worth while. To make the best use of 
companion crops and succession crops, it is an absolute necessity. 
On another Saturday afternoon some time this month, even 
though the ground be covered with snow, make arrangements for 
your spring supply of manure. An abundance of plant-food 
must form the basis of any successful garden, and where manure 
is to be had, part of it should be bought in this form. If at all 
practical to do so, you should personally investigate what you are 
buying before you get it. Some manure is hardly worth the 
hauling, but really good manure will be well worth several dollars 
a load, especially if your garden has not been abundantly sup¬ 
plied with it during the past year or two. The value of manure 
depends upon what has been fed the animals producing it, and 
upon how it has been kept, more than upon the kind it is. For 
(Continued on page 62) 
Arrange for a place to keep your tools and gardening impedimenta — and keep them there. This will save both your 
time and the tools. A coat of paint or a new tar-paper roof will help brighten up the shed 
