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74

THE FRIEND OF ALL.

THE GARDEN AND ORCHARD.

Antiquity of Gardens................    74

Approximation, only an..............    78

Arbor, a Rustic......................    76

Calendar for the Year................    76

Choice of Situation...................    74

Cropping and Delving...............    75

Delving and Cropping................    75

Drainage and Water.................    74

GARDENING.

Ferneries............................    76

Flower-Beds.........................    76

Forming the Garden.................    75

Gardens, Antiquity of................    74

Ground-Plan of Garden..............    75

Laying Out..........................    75

Manuring............................    75

Needed Tools.........................    75

Plan, a Specimen.....................    75

Preparation of the Soil...............    74

Rustic Arbor.........................    76

Situation, Choice of..................    74

Soil, Preparation of the..............    74

Tools Needed........................    75

Water and Drainage..................    74

Yearly Calendar.....................    76

ANTIQUITY OF GARDENS.

Horticulture (Latin, hortus, a garden, and cul-
tura,
cultivation), or the art of cultivating gar­
dens, is a very ancient art. At the very thresh­
old of Hebrew antiquity, man was put into the
“Garden of Eden,” to dress it and to keep it.
On the monuments of Assyria and Egypt, most
interesting and elaborate representations of gar­
dens are preserved. History has brought down
to us the record of the hanging gardens of Baby­
lon and the floating gardens of Cashmere and
Mexico. From the earliest times great attention
was paid to them in Assyria, Chaldea, Palestine,
Persia, Japan, China and India; and references
to them are continually to be met with in all
literature.

CHOICE OF SITUATION.

Where circumstances permit a choice, a gar­
den ought to be as fully as possible exposed
to the rays of the sun, and a gentle slope to
the south, southeast or southwest is prefera­
ble to a level. Its form, unless some peculiarity
of situation determines it otherwise, is usually a
parallelogram; and it is considered desirable
that it should be longer from east to west than
from north to south, in order to have as much as
possible of the best exposure. A brick wall is the
best inclosure, next a good hedge, or a fence.

PREPARATION OF THE SOIL.

The soil of a garden should be prepared with
a degree of care almost impossible to apply
to a whole farm. A deep, rich and easily pen­
etrable soil is desirable; and where it can be
afforded, the soil of a garden is sometimes al­
most entirely artificial; more generally, means
are used for bettering the original soil. Of

these means, one of the most important is
trenching, by which the soil is deepened, and it
is desirable that the soil of a garden should be at
least three feet deep. The proper depth of
trenching, however, depends on the original
depth of the soil and the nature of the subsoil;
where the soil is pretty uniform to a considerable
depth, the deepest trenching is advantageous;
and the available soil may often be deepened by
incorporating a portion of the subsoil with it;
but if too much of a subsoil unsuited for vegeta­
tion is at once thrown up by trenching, it may
communicate its own barrenness to the soil, be­
fore it is mellowed by exposure to the air, ma­
nures and the processes of cultivation. A stiff
clay soil is very unsuitable for many of the crops
required in a garden, and ought to be mixed with
as much sand and vegetable matter as can easily
be procured, both at the formation of the gar­
den and afterward.

DRAINAGE AND WATER.

It is of course necessary in all cases that a
garden be thoroughly drained. It is also of
great consequence to have the means of irriga­
tion, or at least of abundant watering, which,
even where the climate is generally moist,
greatly tends to increase the product in dry
seasons, and is almost always necessary to the
perfection of certain crops. Indeed, if water can
be obtained to form a small pond, or to pass
through the garden as a rivulet, it may not only
be turned to account for purposes of ornament,
but also of utility, in the production of many
plants which cannot be successfully cultivated
otherwise. The use of water is far from being
so common as it might be in our gardens; even
a cranberry-patch, although a pleasant thing and


THE GARDEN AND ORCHARD.                                          75

of easy attainment, being seldom thought of. |
The Chinese are better acquainted with it, and
cultivate aquatic plants to an extent that has
never been equaled among any other people.

MANURING.

A liberal supply of manure is necessary for a
garden ; the kinds of manure must be accommo­
dated to the soil and to the different plants,
and must often also depend in part on other
circumstances. Care must be taken not to
overdose with guano, or indeed with strong
manure of any kind, by which plants may be
killed rather than nourished. Farm­yard or sta­
ble manure ought in general to be subjected to a
process of decomposition in heaps before being
used, and great advantage is derived from mix­
ing it with other substances to form composts.
Nor ought any of the weeds and other refuse vege­
table products of the garden to be thrown away
or burned, but all should be gathered into some
designated corner, there to decompose and form
a heap of vegetable mould, which is for many
purposes one of the best manures that can be
used.

DELVING AND CROPPING.

A garden ought to be delved or dug with
the spade in the end of autumn, except where
the presence of a crop prevents, the ground be­
ing left very rough, to expose the soil as much
as possible to the influences of the weather.
When the crops are planted in spring, a slight
stirring of the surface is all that is required.
The usefulness of a garden, however, is much
increased by making a considerable part of it
produce crops nearly the whole year. Of course,
constant cropping requires frequent and abun­
dant manuring; and care must be taken that
each crop be succeeded by one of a totally dif­
ferent kind: a rule which is indeed applicable as
far as possible to agriculture as well as gardening.

LAYING OUT.

The garden, if in the form of a parallelogram,
is usually divided into smaller ones, and these
into plots and beds for different kinds of plants.
Paths within the plots, intended only for a single
season, may be made by merely treading with
the feet. The permanent walks should be more
carefully made, usually by throwing out the
earth to the depth of eight or ten inches, and
filling the place with stones, cinders, broken
bricks, slag or some such substance containing
no nutriment for plants, and covering this
again with gravel. The borders of the plots
are often occupied by currant and gooseberry
bushes.

A SPECIMEN PLAN.

A plan is here subjoined. Of course, situation
and other circumstances so far vary that you

may not be able to adopt this style ; still you may
derive such lessons from it as will assist you in
carrying out a different design.

TOOLS NEEDED.

A pair of soft leather gloves, a spade, a small
hand-fork, a trowel, a Dutch hoe, a gallon water-
pot, a garden-line, a peck rubbish-basket, a ham­
mer, a draw-hoe, a dibble, a rake, a small pair of
shears, a three-foot rod, a pair of pruning-scissors,
a garden-knife, a wooden basket for seeds, etc.,
a wooden mallet and an apron with a pocket in
front. If the tools can be kept in a sheltered
spot near the garden during the summer months,
it would be an advantage ; in the winter, when
not required, they should be taken indoors, and,
after being cleaned, the parts liable to rust should
be oiled with a brush and marked, for sake of
distinction, with the initials. It would be well to
be provided with a good deal box, divided into
compartments, for containing the small tools and
other sundries, as flower-sticks, labels, pegs,
string, nails, shreds, tallies and seeds, which
should be properly arranged, so as to allow of
ready access to them in the busy season.

FORMING THE GARDEN.

The gratification of your taste must be deter­
mined by the space at your disposal. The edg­
ings on each side of your main walks should be
of such a kind that, in case of heavy rain, they
will prevent the soil being washed into the walks.
Box edgings are not desirable, as, from frequent
raking and brushing, they are apt to decay; thus
gaps are left here and there, which can only be


76                                                      THE FRIEND OF ALL.

properly replaced by planting the whole afresh.
Bricks are to be discarded. A rustic edge formed
of round pieces of wood, cut in equal lengths,
and fastened in close together with a mallet, is
good and easily repaired. Ivy and all kinds of
growing edges harbor slugs, snails and other va­
rieties of destructive vermin. Some of the orna­
mental tile-borderings for flower-gardens are
very pleasant to the eye, answer all purposes, and
with care will last for years.

FLOWER-BEDS.

If you have sufficient space for flower-beds, let
them be of the oval and circle shape. A raised
bed or mound in the center of the garden for
growing flowers relieves the flat surface. The
size and number of the beds must accord with
the extent of your garden. With flower-beds
you can better harmonize the colors by massing
them ; that is, supposing you to have a piece of
ground each side of the center plot, these por­
tions may be devoted to the culture of the
chrysanthemum, herbaceous plants, etc. If you
have not this advantage, it would be better to
dispense with beds, and plant on the mixed sys­
tem, practicing as much method as possible in
the arrangements of color, height, season of
flowering, etc, so as to have few blank spots
throughout the year. If you design beds, there
will be no need to employ the same labor and
materials in making the walks that encircle the
beds as in the case of the divisions. A slight
coat of gravel to distinguish them will suffice, as
it is possible that in the following season you
may alter your plan. This can be more readily
accomplished if the walks are not made for per­
manent use. The edgings round the beds can
be made of a very hardy plant, viz., Cerastemum
tomentosum,
which can be propagated in the
spring by division, and planted two inches apart.
It will increase and spread very fast. Do not let
it flower, but keep it evenly clipped with the
shears both in width and height. You need not
afterwards disturb it, except for the purpose of
reducing it.

A RUSTIC ARBOR.

Against the fence, wall or similar shelter in
the rear of your garden, construct a rustic arbor;
in the absence of such an advantage, form a back
with little difficulty of upright stakes well secured
in the ground ; the sides the same ; but the roof
should be willow or ash stakes, as they bend to
any shape. Dip the ends of the stakes to be in­
serted in the ground in tar previously, as it will
preserve them for a greater length of time. In
splicing the stakes, notch the parts where you
tie them together; the same with the stiff rods
used as cross supports to the upright. Having

erected the arbor, make a seat inside, where in
the hot days of summer you may read and study.
The flooring can be made of small stones, collected
at convenience, and may be formed into some
device. Select some species of climbing plant
to cover the arbor. Hops are pretty and rapid
in growth ; but they often become so infested in
the autumn with green fly, as to make them un­
pleasant to handle. As annuals, nasturtiums,
convolvulus major and scarlet runner are suit­
able.

FERNERIES.
Each side of the arbor raise a mound of earth.
The under portion can be composed of any rub­
bish which makes a good drainage; over this
form a rockwork, either with stones, blocks of
wood, stumps of trees or any similar material
that can be obtained. On this, when finished,
plant a collection of ferns. They do not require
a great depth of soil, but like their roots screened
from the scorching rays of the sun ; their fronds
develop themselves luxuriantly in shady nooks;
though fond of moisture, they dislike being satu­
rated. Syringing or watering with a fine rose at
the close of a warm summer day is what they
delight in.

CALENDAR FOR THE YEAR.

Having executed your plans in the formation
of the garden, and quite prepared it for the re­
ception of plants, you must now consider how
you shall furnish it with those kinds of plants
that will make it attractive and interesting, not
only at the present but at all seasons, and that
you may do so we will begin with the year, and
say something of what is to be done in every
month of it.

January is a month in which very little can be
done out of doors, unless you can on favorable
days benefit the soil by digging in any leaves or
other nutritious substances you may have col­
lected in a heap during the autumn in some out-
of-the-way corner. If not sufficiently decayed,
you had better turn it over three or four times
with your fork before you use it. In digging, the
rougher you leave the soil for the present, the
more will it be benefited in the future. Be care­
ful not to disturb crocuses, snowdrops, or any
other bulbous roots you may have planted, as
they are fast pushing upwards, especially the
snowdrops. It is to be hoped that you have
marked their positions by carefully-written labels.
If you have any plants whose roots are likely
to be injured by the frost, as hardy fuchsias or
tea-scented roses, cover them with some coal-
ashes.

Your leisure time in the house should be em­
ployed in making pegs with sharp points from
old birch brooms, making and painting flower-


THE GARDEN AND ORCHARD.                                          77

sticks, and preparing labels, as in a few weeks
you will be requiring them. During the summer
months you will have kept a memorandum of
any improvements that may have been sug­
gested to you: now is the period to prepare for
carrying them out. Do not clear away the
decayed fronds or leaves that may be deposited
on the surface of the fernery, as they are a pro­
tection to the future fronds. A little earth sifted
over them will prevent them being scattered by
the wind. If you have a small frame for keeping
calceolarias, stocks, etc., it would be a great
help. Protect them by coverings from severe
frost, but on all fine days admit air and pick off
withered leaves.

February.Let your spare moments be em­
ployed in the same way as recommended last
month. Any bulbs, such as tulips, etc., that are
not planted, should be during the first fortnight
of this month.

March.—You may now divide any perennial
and herbaceous plants which you may wish to
lessen or increase. Never let any of this kind
of plants get too large, because they rob the soil
of its nutritious properties. No garden is com­
plete without that beautiful autumnal flower, the
chrysanthemum. Now is the season to propa­
gate it. The dwarf or pompone varieties are
most desirable for small gardens, because they
flower early and in more profusion than the
larger varieties. Three or four rooted pieces
will make a good patch ; but, if you cannot ob­
tain that number, one will do, as, by stopping
the shoots at intervals till the beginning of July,
it will make a nice plant. They are fond of plenty
of water, and rich manure applied to their roots.

If you can do so, you might grow one of each
in a pot. They should be managed thus: as
soon as the stem has made five or six eyes, pinch
off the top. It will then push out shoots from
each eye, which train and tie to neat sticks as
they grow. When they have made four joints,
stop them again. Thus treated, by the autumn
you will have good bushy plants, either for de­
corating your window or presenting to your
friends.

You should now stir the soil with the Dutch
hoe and level it with your rake preparatory to
the sowing of seeds. If you possess a frame,
sow asters, stocks and sweet-peas in pots. In
doing so put plenty of drainage in the pots and
fill them with soil to within an inch of the edge;
then with a rose give the soil a good soaking of
water. Then you may sow the seed, covering it
with some fine mold, intermixed with a little
silver sand. Keep them shaded till they begin
to grow. This will prevent them from requiring
water till they have vegetated, as frequent water­
ings previously are apt to rot the seed.

You should now think of purchasing any seeds
you may require, as all annuals do better if sown
not later than the first week in next month. The
present is the proper season to prune rose-trees.
Cut the strong shoots back, leaving three of the
dormant buds.

April.The garden is fast becoming cheerful.
Polyanthuses and wallflowers are now beginning
to bloom freely. The annuals must be sown
without delay. Use a small hand-fork for loos­
ening the soil after you have sown the seeds.
Pat them in the earth with the back of the fork.
As soon as they have grown so that you can
handle them with your thumb and finger, pull
up the weakest and leave the remainder an inch
or more apart; after which, if the days are warm,
you may, towards evening, sprinkle them with a
fine rose. If the earth is rich with manure, they
will grow strong and weedy, in which case they
will exceed their usual height. As they progress,
it would be advisable to stick a few pieces of
birch or brushwood among the weakest growers,
to enable them to withstand heavy rains and
wind.

May.—Get some of the bedding varieties of
plants. Do not select strong growers, as they
often yield the least flowers. The dwarf sorts of
scarlet geraniums, calceolarias and verbenas are
in general the most abundant bloomers. There
is a dwarf white flowering dahlia, named Alba
nana, that needs no sticks to support it, and will
continue to produce a great quantity of flowers
till the frost destroys them. It is useful to cut
from for bouquets.

Keep the ground free from weeds by the use of
the Dutch hoe. Do not give your young plants
too much water, but a gentle sprinkling over their
foliage of an evening: such practice refreshes
them very much, besides cleansing their leaves
of any dust that may accumulate. Tulips will
be in bloom this month. If you wish to prolong
their beauty, you must contrive some kind of
covering to protect them from the rays of the
midday sun and heavy showers.

June.—The summer roses will be in full bloom
this month. Keep the buds clear of green fly,
for which purpose use a soft brush or feather;
look also for the maggot. The curling of the
leaf is a certain sign ; examine it, and you will
find the insect. It destroys the bud by piercing
a hole in it; therefore the leaves must be con­
stantly watched. Pinks will now be in perfec­
tion. Keep them tied to neat stakes, and if you
want large flowers you must pick off some of the
smaller buds where there are more than two or
three on the same stalk. The white variety is
easily propagated, and much grown on account
of its scent. For increasing them by cuttings,
cover the soil about an inch deep in silver sand,


78

THE FRIEND OF ALL. ‘

then put a propagating-glass over them, and
shade them till rooted, which you will observe
by their commencing to grow. Then gradually
admit air till you entirely remove the glass. At­
tend to the training of your climbers; put sticks
to your sweet-peas. You may by the end of this
month dig up the tulip or any other bulbs you
may desire, dry them, after which clean and put
them in bags till required for planting.

July.—If you wish to bud any rose with other
varieties, this is a favorable month for the opera­
tion. Remove decayed flowers and seed-pods
from your annuals and other plants; it will ex­
tend their time of flowering. Your geraniums
will be fast coming into bloom. If very hot
weather, give them a liberal supply of water.
Endeavor to keep your garden in good trim ; tie
and peg all plants that require it. If by accident
you should break a geranium-shoot, put it in the
ground: it will root. You must discontinue
syringing or sprinkling plants in flower, as it
damages the bloom and causes them to lose
their flower. When using the Dutch hoe, don't
let it go in too deep, or it will injure the roots.
Uproot all annuals that have done flowering; at­
tend to the training of the shoots of your chrys­
anthemums. If they and the dahlias get attacked
with earwigs, have a thumb-pot, put some dry
moss in it, and lodge it in the plant or on the
stake that supports it; every morning take the
pot out, remove the moss, and empty the con­
tents into water or crush them with your feet.
Cloves and carnations may now be increased by
laying. The operation is simple: loosen the earth
about the plant with the hand-fork, then make a
cut half-way across the third joint of a shoot,
then peg it into the soil.

August.Bedding plants may be said to be at
their best during this month. If the weather is
very dry, continue to water freely. If you have,
or can obtain, convenience for wintering gera­
niums or such­like plants, you should commence
propagating them during the early part of this
month: they will root in the open ground or in
pots out of doors. You may increase the num­
ber of your violets by division. Choose the time
when we are likely to have warm showers, as
they will assist them to root at once. Select
a shady spot on which to plant them. Proceed
to note in your memorandum such alterations
or arrangements as you may wish for another
year.

September is apt to be a humid month ; plants
grow very fast; less water is needed. French
and German asters will be in perfection. When
they have attained their full size, cut them for
bouquets ; that will increase the size of the
after-blooms. Supply the roots of dahlias with
plenty of water; cut out all weak shoots ; gather

the seeds of plants you may wish to save, as
they are now ripe (you can clean them indoors at
your leisure). Plant wallflower, sweet-william,
etc.

October.Although many plants are yet gay,
still the beauty of the greater number is on the
decline. Towards the middle or latter part of
this month you may expect sharp frosts; place
any plants that you have struck, or any others
that need protection, so that, should there be
signs of a frost, you can immediately protect
them. Many plants, such as fuchsias, scarlet
geraniums, etc., will exist in a room during the
winter, where they can be properly secured from
the admission of frost, and you must keep them
from growing till the spring, by not giving them
more water than will just keep them alive. Cut­
tings of yellow calceolarias will now root quickly
in coarse sand. They need no other protection
than a cold frame for preserving them during
the winter. Chrysanthemum buds will be swelling
fast. Towards evening search for and destroy
earwigs. If you want fine flowers, pick off all
small buds, leaving one to each shoot. In tying
them out, afford all the room you can for each
stem.

November.—As leaves fall, collect them together
in a tidy heap, and by turning them over often
during the winter they will become excellent
manure for your garden in the spring. This is
the best month in the year for planting tulips,
crocuses, hyacinths, and other bulbs. Tulips
and hyacinths should be planted six inches deep;
the smaller bulbs three inches. If you have a
spot that you could plant a line of crocuses in
three rows of distinct colors, say yellow, white or
striped, and blue, the effect when in flower will
be dazzling. Dig up your dahlia roots, and after
allowing the water to drain out of the flower-
stalks, hang them up in a cupboard or cellar
where the frost cannot penetrate. If you have
not that convenience, put them in a box, and
cover them with dry sand.

December.Any stalks or refuse of plants can
be consumed by fire: the ashes will improve the
soil if mixed with it. Now the trees have shed
their leaves, clean up and put your garden in tidy
order.

ONLY AN APPROXIMATION.

Of course, this calendar cannot be accurately
followed, but allowances must be made for dif­
ferences of position and climate, and for varia­
tions in the seasons. When the dilettante asked
the painter Opie what he mixed his colors with,
the gruff answer was, “ With brains, sir.” Any
gardening calendar will have to be taken with
the same condiment.

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