GIFT OF
ARGEMONE GRANDIFLORA. Large-flowered Mexican Poppy,
THE GARDEN;
It '
OB
„ FAMILIAR INSTRUCTIONS
FOR THE
LAYING OUT AND MANAGEMENT OF A FLOWER GARDEN.
WITH
ILLUSTRATIVE
ON
PHILADELPHIA :
B. LIPPIJSTCOTT & CO
1861.
.
Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1834,
BY S. G. GOODRICH,
in the Clerk's Office of the Edstrict Court of Massachusetts.
PREFACE.
THERE is no pursuit which combines in a
higher degree utility and pleasure than that
of gardening. It is therefore desirable that
young persons should very early form a taste
for it. If in childhood they have their atten-
tion turned to it, and learn the names of flow-
ers and plants, and the modes of cultivating
them, they will not only be likely to relish
the pursuit in after life, but they will gain a
kind of knowledge, which they will find grati-
fying as well as profitable.
This work is designed for youth, and it is
hoped it may be the means of drawing some
438937
iv PREFACE.
of them into a taste for the innocent and
cheerful and useful pursuit of gardening. It
is hoped also that these pages may serve to
communicate some valuable and pleasing
knowledge to older readers.
CONTENTS.
LETTER I.
JANUARY.
Directions for laying out a Flower Garden. — Dutch
gardens. — Turf border. — South wall, and South border
Climbers. — Arbour. — Designs for Centre Bed. — Borders,
nature of Soil requisite, Draining, * Compost. — American
border. — Distance at which American shrubs should be
planted ; why planted in bog earth.— Different plants
used for edging borders. — Instructions for Edging. —
Gravel Walks. — Distinction between Shrubs, Annuals,
&c. Page 15.
LETTER II.
FEBRUARY.
Edging to borders. — Hints for planting Herbaceous
Plants, as to height, colour and time of flowering. —
VI CONTENTS.
Distance to be observed between roots and patches of
seed. Tools most necessary for a young gardener. —
Evergreens, and their treatment. — Eoots of Flowering
Shrubs. — Pruning. — Turf. — Instructions for sowing Au-
ricula and Polyanthus seeds, and Hardy Annuals. —
Marking Sticks Page 35.
LETTER III.
MARCH.
Succession bed. — Bed of Scarlet Anemonies and Pur-
ple Orchises. — Advice as to Florists' flowers. — How to
make border for Ranunculuses. — Garden made gay by
Annuals. — Method of raising Half-hardy Annuals. —
Those to be sown at the end of the month. — Seed bed
for Perennials and Biennials. — Size of plants. — Ameri-
can shrubs and evergreens to be transplanted. — Rose-
trees Page 47.
LETTER IV.
APRIL.
Dreariness of the garden at this season. — Flowers in
bloom — Change produced in habits of plants by climate.
CONTENTS. Vll
— Dividing herbaceous plants. — Annuals to be sown in
April. — Plant out, or pot, Half-hardy Annuals. — Method.
— Flowers in bloom during the month. — Edging, of
Hearts-ease. — Rockwork. — Tie up and protect Hyacinths
and Tulips. — Cheap awning for them. — Reasons why
plants require light. — Tender Annuals to be sown. —
Raise Balm of Gilead and Verbena. — Directions for
growing the common sorts of Carnations Page 58.
LETTER V.
MAY.
Basket sent. — Contents. — Roots of Dahlias, &c. pre-
served during winter, to be planted and propagated. —
New Annuals. — Green-house plants to be put in warm
border. — Cuttings to be made of plants sent. — Cheiran-
thus Tristis and other plants scentless during the day. —
Directions for making and striking cuttings of different
plants. — Flowers in bloom during the month. — Plant
Indian Pinks, Stocks, and tender Annuals. — Shade and
water them. — Sow Half-hardy Annuals. — Work to be
done during the month .... Page 75.
Vlll CONTENTS.
LETTER VI.
JUNE.
Neatness of the Dutch. — Hand weeding. — Hoeing. —
Raking. — Tying up herbaceous plants. — Sticking them.
— Take up Bulbs to dry. — Reason why they should be
taken up ; leaves not to be injured. — Directions for strik-
ing Pink pipings, cuttings of China, Moss, and other
Roses. — Carnation cuttings, and slips of different plants,
how to make. — Keep Garden neat. — Plant Perennials and
Biennials in beds. — Plant bulbs of Bella Donna, Guern-
sey Lily, and Colchicum, &c. — Make cuttings of Green-
house plants. — Propagate Chrysanthemums. — Instruc-
tions for making Flower Baskets, Ornamental Vases and
Tables. — Clip Edgings and Weed Gravel. — Tie up Car-
nations and Pink plants and their pods. — Flowers in
bloom — Sow Brompton Stock Seed, for the next year
Page 92.
LETTER VII.
JULY.
Fruits of industry. — Gardening considered as a ration-
al amusement. — On order. — Flowers in bloom during the
CONTENTS. iX
month. — How to make layers of Carnations. — Reason
why so made. — May be raised by Pipings. — Varieties of
Carnations. — Work to be done in Garden. — Gather
Seeds, and dry them. — How to make a descriptive Cata-
logue of Carnations. — To raise cuttings of Green-house
plants and others. — Seedling Pinks. — On Watering. —
Take up Bulbous Roots. — Tree Roses. — Method of bud-
ding Rose Stocks Page 115
LETTER VIII.
AUGUST.
The Tree Carnation. — Strike cuttings of it. — Poor
persons fond of flowers. — Artisans great Florists. — Dis-
tinction between Gardeners, Florists, and Botanists-; of-
ten confounded. — Botany ; its advantages.- -Continue to
lay Carnations. — Treatment of those potted. — Lay Indian
Pinks. — Reason why weak plants require shading, and
air is excluded from cuttings. — Raise bulbous roots from
seed. — Ferraria tigridia. — Divide Herbaceous plants. —
Transplant Seedling Biennials, &c. — Shade newly plant-
ed Seedlings. — Sow Mignonette in pots. — Divide Rock
plants. — Plants in flower. — Lobelias ; easily propagated
Page 132
X CONTENTS.
LETTER IX.
SEPTEMBER.
Carnations. — Transplant Pink Pipings, if rooted. — Di-
rections for making Box edgings. — Collecting Seeds. —
Plant out and pot Brompton Stocks. — American Border.
— Prepare Turf for use. — Plants in flower. — Russian Vi-
olets.— Carnations; how prevented from bursting. — An
old tree made ornamental. — Use of Latin names in Bo-
tany ....... Page 153.
LETTER X.
OCTOBER.
In-door amusements more fitted to the winter season
than gardening. — Prepare Bulb bed ; how to plant it. —
Narcissus planted under a wall. — Treatment of Bulbs
which are to blow in pots. — Reasons for such treatment.
— Bulbous plants natives of dry climates. — Sand put to
drain the roots. — Planting Tulips and Anemonies. — Take
up Green-house plants. — Object of Cold Frames. — Clear-
ing borders, and dividing herbaceous roots. — Prune flow-
er shrubs, and put sticks to them. — Care to be observed
in pruning shrubs to be transplanted. — Plants in bloom
during the month .... Page 163.
CONTENTS. XI
LETTER XL
NOVEMBER.
Dig up borders, and trim roots. — Prune shrubs ; clean
sticks. — Take off suckers. — Dig in dead leaves or rotten
dung. — Plant Tulips and Ranunculuses ; protect them
from frost and heavy rains. — Collect leaves. — Sweep and
roll gravel walks. — Attend to Carnation beds, and Alpine
plants. — Bodies which retain heat longest. — Effect of cold
without snow, on Alpine .plants. — Snow preserves plants
in Alpine regions. — Alpine and American Springs com-
pared.— Cold frame a substitute for snow. — Plant Alpine
plants in dry situations. — Take up Dahlia roots, &c. —
Plants in bloom Page 178.
LETTER XII.
DECEMBER.
Vegetable physiology attempted to be defined ; its im-
portance as a science. — Gardening leads to love of or-
der and neatness. — Distinguished men have been fond of
Xll
CONTENTS.
gardening. — Sweep and roll during the whole winter. —
Attend to the frames, and prevent the plants in them from
growing too freely. — Conclusion . . Page 192
THE GARDEN.
LETTER I.
January.
YOUR request that I should send you a
monthly journal of my garden, and give in-
structions for the laying out and management
of your own, gave me great pleasure. I shall
indeed be happy to give you all the information
I possess. My garden still continues a favour-
ite amusement and occupation. As the season
is not yet sufficiently advanced to make a mere
journal interesting, I intend to devote this and
the two following letters to the instructions ne -
?essary for the formation of the garden, and to
16 LAYING OUT [JAIN.
give you the result of all my experience on the
subject. From my recollections of the shrub-
beries of , and from your description, I
know exactly where the plot of ground allotted
to you is situated. It is an oblong square piece,
surrounded on two sides by the kitchen garden
wall and the paling of the orchard, and, on the
other two, by the nursery, which is irregular
on the longest side opposite the wall. It is a
delightful spot, and so well sheltered, that the
tenderest of our out-door plants will live and
thrive there. I rejoice that it is quite shut out
from the rest of the garden, as this will enable
you to give it a character as a whole, without
its being interfered with by the arrangements of
your neighbours. I think, that as three sides
of it are perfectly straight, the fourth should be
made straight also, and then laid out in formal
>eds, in the Dutch style, which is an excellent
THE FLOWER GARDEN. 17
plan where there is but little space, and flowers
only are intended to be" cultivated; for though
this method of laying out a garden supposes
the intention of making each bed contain only
one kind of flowers, yet I consider that it
may be equally adapted to a mixed flower
garden.
Notwithstanding what I have stated, I am well
aware of the beauty of the wild and irregular
in the arrangement of pleasure grounds ; but
this, to produce a good effect, requires space ;
and, to be really beautiful, there should Ijjj
inequality of surface, and the power of produc-
ing a variety of form without confusion. It is
indispensable, also, that the whole plan should
not be seen at once, but this, with your little
nook, you cannot hope to accomplish ; I recom-
mend you, therefore, to content yourself with
neatness and regularity ; conceiving your main
2 B
18 ARRANGEMENT OF BORDERS. [JAN.
object is to have as much room to show off the
flowers as possible.
Now for the rules as to the making the gar-
den— the irregular piece, which you take off to
make the parallelogram, or oblong square, may
be planted with our own American shrubs ;
these, you will observe, grow well in the shade,
and will not be injured by being close to the
plantations. As soon as you have given the
ground a regular form, make a border three
feet wide in front of the wall, which I propose
C, should cover with creepers, and such
itiful flowering shrubs as, in this climate,
require to be grown against a wall for protec-
tion ; and I think, as show is your object, you
will not mind sacrificing the two old peach
trees, which cover it at present. This wall
being towards the south, renders it invaluable.
However bare and ugly it may appear at pre-
FURNISHING THE BORDERS. 19
sent, you will be content when it is covered
the flowers of the Bignonia radicans, or trum-
pet flower, the jasmine, Zinnia, a beautiful
flower, the Calycanthus precox, or scented all-
spice, (which blows in the middle of the winter,
and is so fragrant, that a single blossom is suffi-
cient to perfume a whole room,) the mule and
common passion flowers; and many others that
I can name to you.
After planting the shrubs, which are to grow
against the wall, the remainder of the border
must be devoted to such delicate plants as re-
quire a warm situation, particularly to tender
bulbs, of which there are many — but more of
these hereafter.
Let a wide border be made under the un-
, sightly paling which you dislike so much ; this,
when covered with clematis honeysuckles, Vir-
ginian creeper, &c., and the border filled with
20 THE ARBOUR. [JAN.
roses and shrubs, you will not be displeased
with, but like it, I hope, as much as the sides
next to the shrubbery.
Having now disposed of the appearances in
your garden with which you are dissatisfied,
and directed you to make a border round three
sides of it, I proceed to the fourth. I remem-
ber, you enter through the shrubbery on that
side. At first, I hardly knew what to propose
that you should do with it, because the trees
that bound it are so large, that a border under
them would be of little use ; till I recollected
the pleasure we all enjoyed, two years ago, in
building an arbour, and my promise of making
you a copy of the drawing my eldest sister
made of us whilst at our work, (which I will
send in my next letter.) Our arbour is now
covered with creepers, the shrubs are grown
large, and I have so much pleasure in seeing
THE ARBOUR. 21
my sisters, when the weather is fine, bring their
work or books, to amuse themselves in it while
I am employed in my garden, that I strongly
advise you to build one on that side, as near the
trees as possible ; particularly, as by planting a
few evergreens round the seat, with some
woodbines and trailing roses at the foot of the
trees, you will soon have an arbour there.
When I hear your determination on this point,
I shall send plans and instructions for making
this most useful ornament to your garden.
Thus, we have disposed of all the outside
parts as follows : — first, the turf border, for the
American shrubs ; — secondly, the ugly paling
mantled over with creepers, morning glory,
roses, &LC. ; — thirdly, the south wall, covered
. with the more delicate and rare plants ; and,
lastly, on the shaded side, an arbour.
The middle of the garden, which is the most
22 DESIGNS FOR THE CENTRE BED. [JAN.
difficult to arrange, is next to be considered. I
am somewhat at a loss what to recommend you
to take for a centre : I think either an oval or a
lozenge, with little beds arranged round it, cor-
responding with its shape, best suited to a small
garden; but I have lately seen one so very
pretty, that I must describe it. The centre
was in the form of a Maltese cross, round which
a continuation of narrow beds, divided by walks,
were placed ; they continued the same pattern,
the whole still forming the Maltese cross.
The best thing you can do, will be to draw
on paper several designs, and then choose that
which you like best, and think most suited to
the situation ; I have attempted to assist you in
this, and send you two patterns. The dark
parts are intended to represent the beds, and
the white the gravel walks. I think I should
recommend No. 1, as it will suit the shape of
LAYING OUT THE GROUND.
23
your garden better than the Maltese cross ; be-
sides, the latter, to have a very good effect,
should fre cut out (Jn a lawn, or, at least, there
should be grass walks. After you have deter-
mined on your plan, mark out the borders with
No. 1.
sticks, taking care that the smallest is at least
two feet wide. The making these must be
next attended to ; and this must be done with
great care and patience, or the labour of plant-
* ing will be lost. As much depends on the
soil, examine well the nature of yours : if it
Crumbles easily, and appears sandy, you need
24 EXAMINATION OP SOIL. [JAN.
only dig and enrich it with decayed leaves ; but
if you have a clayey soil to contend with, as I
have in my garden, you must dig out the earth
to the depth of two feet, and put in a layer of
brick rubbish, or coarse gravel and stones, the
use of which is to drain off the water when
there is much wet : this is quite necessary ;
therefore do not omit to do so, or you will
probably lose the best plants in the winter:
this happened to me, because I was too impa-
tient to make my garden, and had no one to
give me advice about it. You, of course, know,
that most of the plants grown in our gardens
come from foreign countries, from countries that
are warmer than New England, and particularly
from places where there is less rain and snow.
If, during the winter, when the plants are in a
dormant state, the roots are too much soaked
with wet, they get mouldy, and rot, they are
SOIL FOR AMERICAN PLANTS. 25
also more liable to be injured when it freezes,
by the water which is in the root, becoming ice.
This draining of the borders is, therefore, the
first thing to be considered ; after which, fill '
them with a mixture of light loam, sand, and
bog-earth, if you have it in sufficient quantity ;
if not, you must be contented with the loam,^
some sand, and a very small quantity of rotten
leaves ; you should let the borders remain un-
touched a few days, to allow the loose earth to
settle, or sink down, before you plant the roots,
&c.
As to the border for American plants, the soil
should be entirely sandy or bog earth. As
rhododendrons, the magnolia glanca, azaleas,
and laurels, grow large, they should be planted
£t the back of the border, and not too closely
together. I should say that rhododendrons
should be at least five feet apart, or they will
C
26 AMERICAN PLANTS. [JAN.
soon become crowded, and spoil each other:
this crowding is the great mistake of all young
gardeners. Always bear in mind, that in plant-
ing you must have " a prophetic eye," and
look at what the garden will be, rather than
\vhat it is. The reason why the shrubs I have
named are planted in bog earth is, because it is
their natural soil, — the ground they grow in
when wild. You will see that their roots are
composed of a number of little fibres, not much
thicker than hairs : peat soil being sandy, loose,
and not clinging, and stiff like clay, is therefore
best suited for their small roots to wander about
in, and to collect nourishment from the earth ;
for, you may well suppose, that if they were
planted in a clayey sort of earth, their fine roots
could not penetrate through so stiff a mass.
As I have made it a point that you should not
plant your shrubs too close, you may think the
EDGINGS FOR BORDERS. 27
spaces between them will look bare and unfi-
nished ; in which case they may be filled up, in
the spring, with stocks or other annuals or bien-
nials. The coreopsis, or tick-seed sun flower,
is a very showy plant, and will look well among
your shrubs — the species tinctoria, native of
-Arkansaw, is very beautiful.
When the borders are filled, they should be
edged, before you. set about making the walks.
Dutch box is the best plant to use for this pur-
pose ; though daisies, London pride, grass pinks,
violets, and dwarf periwinkle, make a pretty
edging, yet some of these lose their leaves, and
some grow too rapidly for a small garden. The
edging should be put down with great care.
Nothing makes a garden appear more untidy
' than crooked lines ; therefore do not spare your
labour ; and, to ensure the lines being straight,
make use of a string, fastened to two sticks,
28 GRAVEL WALKS. [JAN.
stretched along the part you intend to plant.
To make your walks, (which should be of
gravel,) you must dig out of the earth, and this,
if it be good for any thing, strew on the borders,
to make them higher than the walks. They
should be shelving on each side, to enable the
water to run off. At the bottom of the walk, put
about six inches of brick rubbish, and on this
about six inches of gravel, throwing the coarser
kind at the bottom. You will observe, that the
drain to the walks will also serve as a drain to
the borders, unless your soil, as I said before,
be very clayey. After laying a coating of fine
gravel at the top, and making the walks a little
rounded, to allow the water to flow to the sides,
they should be rolled. I ought to have told
you before to make them wide enough to admit
the roller, or you will not like their appearance
in wet weather. I tell you much of what the
PLEASURE IN GARDENING. 29
gardener will perhaps assist you in ; but I think
it right that you should know the reasons why
these things are done, in order to see that they
are well done; besides, I hope you will find
amusement in learning all these details. There
are very few ready-made pleasures. I am sure
my sisters feel far more delight in the nose-
gays they gather out of their own garden, with
which they decorate the school-room, than the
rich Miss Marsdens do in the magnificent pro-
ductions of their papa's hot-houses. The gar-
dener brings into their drawing-room the fine
amaryllis, passion-flowers, and cactus, which
he has raised with much trouble and at such
cost ; and after the young ladies have stared
at them, wondered if they smell, and learned
their price, they are thrown awray, or forgotten.
My sister Jane has long cultivated her garden
with great care : she knows the names, habits,
30 DIFFERENT KINDS OF PLANTS. [JAN.
and method of treating and raising all kinds of
flowers ; and, remembering the trouble she has
had with them, likes them the more. She has
undertaken the management of the flower gar-
den, which, owing to my mother's delicate state
of health, was much neglected last year ; and I
am enabled now, through her kindness, to send
you a larger basket of roots, &c. than my own
garden would have afforded. It contains some
very good shrubs, herbaceous roots, creepers,
and seeds of annuals.
Before I tell you what to do writh the plants
I send, as you are quite a beginner, I had better
explain the difference between shrubs, herba-
ceous plants, biennials, and annuals.
The shrub is, in general, a low, woody,
branching plant. Such are the rose, jasmine,
rhododendron, lilac, honeysuckle, &,c. ; though
there are many which grow to a great size, as
the acacia, fee. These are again divided into
FLOWERING SHRUBS. 31
evergreen: such are the laurels and kalmias ; and
deciduous, or those, of which the leaves fall off
in the winter, and the stem survives ; as, for
instance, the lilac and laburnum. All these are
propagated either by layers, cuttings, or suck-
ers, and sometimes by seeds.
The root only of the herbaceous plant lives
through the winter; the flower stem dies as
soon as it has performed its duty, and is repro-
duced in the spring ; such are the campanula,
or bell flower, the sweet-william, and many
others; and these are generally increased by
dividing the roots, sometimes also by seeds and
cuttings.
The biennial is a plant usually grown from
seed, requiring, however, two years before it
arrives at perfection and produces flowers, after
which it dwindles away, and dies. Canterbury
bells, foxgloves, &.c. are biennials.
32 FLOWERING SHRUBS. [JAN.
The name of an annual, denotes the short-
ness of its life : sweet peas, larkspurs, migno-
nette, poppies, &c., are annuals ; they are all
raised from seed, though many of the scarcer
sorts might be grown from cuttings. As for the
creepers, they are for the most part deciduous
shrubs, requiring the support of sticks, or trel-
lis ; many annuals, as Convolvulus major, re-
quire the like support.
To return to the basket. It contains a plant
of Jasminum revolytum, the flowers of which
are yellowr, large, and very fragrant ; Clematis
Florida, whose dirty white flowers appear at a
distance like the passion-fkwer ; and the scarlet
flowered Pyrus Japonica. These are to be
planted at the foot of your wall, and trained
against it. I have sent them in pots, that you
may wait till the season is more advanced, be-
fore you plant them out, You may plant, to
FLOWERING SHRUBS. 33
run up a pole of your intended arbour, Peri-
ploca Grceca follicle vine, which is an elegant,
though not very showy climber. For the pal-
ing, I send plants of Corchorus Japonica, which
will do well against it, and its bright yellow
flowers will repay you soon for the trouble of
planting, as they make their appearance very
early. It is a native of China ; and, though it
stands the cold of our winter, it thrives best in
a sheltered situation, particularly as it blossoms
when the weather is very unfavourable. The
Virginian creeper grows very fast ; its principal
beauty, however, is the bright scarlet hue of its
leaves in the autumn. Among the prettiest
American shrubs I can offer you, are the rhodo-
dendron, andromeda, the odoriferous kind, and
'kalmia. Plant in the rose and shrub border, the
winter berry-tree, which is so called, because,
in the winter, it is covered with bright scarlet
3
34 FLOWERING SHRUBS. [JAN
berries : — this, I think, you will consider a very
pretty shrub, and it helps well to make out a
winter nosegay. Besides these, you will find
in the basket, many common herbaceous plants
for the other border; but as the names are
marked on all, I must refer you to the gar-
dener, if you require any particulars as to plant-
ing. In my next, I will give the necessary
directions for sowing the seeds of annuals, and
answer any inquiries you may make ; as I shall
expect to hear of the safe arrival of the basket.
Ever your sincere friend,
G
ARRANGEMENT OF PLANTS. 35
LETTER II.
February.
IN planting shrubs and herbaceous roots,
and in sowing patches of seeds, I must request
you to pay great attention, first, as to the height
they will attain when in flower ; arranging them
so that the dwarf sorts may be in front, and the
taller at the back.
My beds usually consist of three or four rows
of plants, each row nine inches apart:— in the
front are planted pinks, violets, hepaticas, prim-
roses, varieties of cowslip and oxlip, snowdrops,
and crocuses ; in the next are stocks, sweet-
williams, some sorts of campanulas, and peonies,
&,c. ; in the back rows, scarlet lychnis, poppies,
monks-hood, splendid sage, and other tall grow-
ing plants.
FEBRUAR\.
BUILDING THE AEBOUR.
PLACING FLOWERING ROOTS. 37
Secondly, the colour of the flowers should be
well considered, and great care taken to avoid
placing two plants, whose flowers are of the
same hue, together.
Thirdly, the time of their flowering should
be attended to, and, in a mingled flower gar-
den, contrive so to scatter them about, as to
prevent one part of your border appearing
without blossoms, while the rest is brilliant
from the number of plants in bloom in it. All
this cannot be managed in one year. Nothing
but a little experience, and some care, will
enable you to attain any thing like perfection
in the arrangement of plants, as to size, colour,
and time of flowering. The roots, or patches
of seed, must be placed at distances equal to
the space between the rows, namely, about
nine inches; the plants are not to be placed
immediately behind each other, but exactly
38 EVERGREEN SHRUBS. [PFB.
half way betwixt, to allow oLall being seen.
But should there be a walk entirely round the
bed, then the tallest plants, of course, must be
placed in the centre.
Hitherto, I have said nothing about garden
tools. It is absolutely necessary for you to have
a small strong spade, a rake, a trowel, a water-
ing-pot, a hoe, a birch broom, and a wheelbar-
row of your own, in order that you may not be
perpetually borrowing tools from the gardener,
which are, besides, too heavy for you to use
with pleasure. These you may buy by degrees ;
beginning with the three first, as being the
most wanted.
I should recommend you to plant, about the
middle of the next month, a few evergreen
shrubs, such as rhododendrons, balsam fir, holly,
and laurel, round the place where you intend to
build your seat, or summer-house. These are
FLOWERING SHRUBS. 39
all the shrubs of this description that I should
think desirable for a small garden ; and I must
caution you against placing any one of them in
the middle of the flower beds, as is usually
done by young gardeners, who are not aware
how soon they grow too large for the place in
which they are planted, and shade the border ;
besides, in the summer, they have a very ugly,
dingy look.
The only time at which evergreens appear
to advantage is during the winter: even then
they should be planted in large masses, and
your garden is too small to allow of this being
done.
Flowering shrubs, which have grown too
luxuriant or straggling, should be cut and tied
up, their suckers taken away, (which may be
planted where they are most wanted, to fill up
vacant spaces,) and the earth should be dug
40 PRUNING. [FEB.
neatly about their roots. If, however, the shrubs
are in a bed, in which there are herbaceous
roots, it is better to use a fork than a spade, as
it is less likely to injure the roots that have net
yet appeared above ground.
You will find the new plants require pruning
in a short time, particularly those which are of
quick growth ; on this point, perhaps, it will be
better to consult the gardener. I doubt wheth-
er I could give you any good general rules for
managing this part of the gardener's art: for
there are some trees which do not bear pruning
at all, such as the fir, larch, cypress, and cedar
tribe ; and on some plants the buds, which are
in the spring to produce flowers, are formed on
the old wood, as the shoots of the preceding
year are called ; such are the double-blossomed
peach, the syririga, &c. ; and thus you must be
careful what you cut away.
LAYING TURF. 41
In general, the best plan is to cut off all the
straggling shoots, and to shorten them to about
half the length you wish the plant to grow ; as,
whenever a tree has been cut, it will shoot out
with greater vigour, provided it be in health;
indeed, cutting a shrub entirely down is often
resorted to, with success, when it appears to
be dying, after all other means have failed to
restore it to health.
Besides shortening the branches, you should
observe if there be any cross branches, that
rub against each other ; in which case, one of
them ought to be sacrificed ; but, on these
points, little can be learned except from expe-
rience. I shall, in a future letter, give a short
account of the formation of the bloom and leaf
Turf is generally laid about the first of April,
but, from the size of your garden, I do not
D
42 SOWING SEEDS. [FEB.
suppose any will be required. I ought to have
mentioned, while I was writing on edgings, that
a border of turf, six inches wide, cut very
close, makes a very neat edging, but more
labour and attention is required to keep it in
order than box, and it does not answer well,
except where the beds are very large, and the
edges consist chiefly of straight lines : besides,
the corners of turf are apt to be trodden down
and worn out.
It is in March, that the seeds of auriculas
and polyanthuses should be sown in boxes;
but these and all the flowers usually called
florists' flowers, (among which are carnations,
tulips, anemonies, &c.) are so difficult of culti-
vation, that I advise a novice in gardening to be
contented with possessing a few of the hardiest
auriculas and handsomest polyanthuses in his
borders, and not attempt to grow the finer
sorts.
SOWING SEEDS. 43
I shall begin the last of March, if the season
is favourable, to sow, in patches, hardy annuals,
which are to remain in the borders where they
are sown ; such as lupins, sweet-peas, candy-
tuft, Virginian stock, and pink and yellow
hawk-weed. In sowing these, I take away a
little of the earth from the place where the
seed is to be sown, and after making the place
quite even, I sprinkle a little seed on it, cover
it over with fine light mould : the seeds must
be sown deeper in the earth, according to their
size. Lupins and seeds of the same description
ought to be put in separately : a ring with six
lupins, planted three inches apart, will make a
good patch.
. The places where seeds are sown should
always be marked by sticks, having the names
of the plants on them ; because, in sowing the
second time, it is proper to know what is in the
44 SOWING SEEDS. [FEB.
ground, that you may not put flowers of the
same colour too near each other. The sticks
are to be prepared in the following manner:
some laths must be cut into pieces six inches
long, and made pointed at one end, and smooth
on one side of the other end, on which a small
quantity of white paint is to be rubbed with a
bit of flannel, as thinly as possible, and the
names of thQ seeds written with a black-lead
pencil, while the paint is wet. This process
will effectually prevent the rain from effacing
what is written on these markers. Herbaceous
plants may be marked in the same manner,
only that part of the stick which is put into the
ground ought to be dipped in pitch, to prevent
it's decaying during the winter.
Yours very truly,
G
HELLEBORUS NIGER. Christmas Rose.
ERANTHIS HYEMALIS. Winter Hellebore, or Aconite.
BULBOUS ROOTS. 47
LETTER UL
March.
I MUST now give a description of my succes-
sion bed, as I name the .border into which I
have collected all my Spring flowering bulbs.
It is diamond shaped ; at each corner are plac-
ed anemonies, and hepaticas, of the last of
which I possess five varieties ; the double and
single blue, double and single pink, and single
white; but as the single white is not very
showy, and does not grow freely, I have not
given it so distinguished a place as the others.
Entirely round this diamond, and close to
the box edging, is a row of yellow aconite, the
seed of which was sown last June ; and next
to that one of double snowdrops : then comes
a row of the early crocuses, which are called
48 BULBOUS ROOTS. [MARCH.
cloth of gold, and which have the merit of
opening when there is no sun, which is not the
case with the other sorts : after these, there is
a row of blue crocuses, then one of white ; «
rows of the late flowering yellow and dark
blue, follow.
Next to the crocuses, are three rows of hya-
cinths; and the middle its filled with early
tulips, which, though not of the finest kinds,
make a very good show when in blossom.
You are, perhaps, surprised at my possessing
so many bulbs; I have but little money to
spend in purchases, and as I think the greatest
pleasure consists in raising plants one's-self, I did
not buy these, or at least only a few ; I have
been some time collecting them.
The different sorts of crocuses, I have long
had ; and as they increase very rapidly, a good
•stock is soon obtained.
FORCED AND WILD HYACINTHS. 49
The hyacinths are those which have been
forced in pots, and were given to me by the
gardener, year after year, because they were
too much exhausted to force again. I there-
fore planted them in good soil, that they might
recover strength, after the unnatural way in
which they had been treated.
The tulips were mostly offsets, obtained at
different times, and which in two years become
good flowering roots.
Opposite to this bed is one of the same size
and shape, which I have filled with scarlet ane-
monies and blue hyacinths, or wild orchises,
dug up from the woods and hedges. These
two kinds flower together, and the colours
contrast admirably ; the idea was taken from a
bed of red anemonies and dark blue hyacinths ;
but, as I was unable to buy the latter, I substi-
tuted the purple orchis which abounds in our
4 E
50 RANUNCULUSES. [MARCH.
woods. These borders are the pride of my
summer garden.
In order that the anemonies should flower at
the same time as the orchises, they should be
planted at the end of October. The violets,
snowdrops, crocuses, and hepaticas, are so
very forward, that I expect they will be in
bloom in April.
Since you have got some roots, and are
determined on growing them, I shall copy from
a book on gardening, the simplest method of
making a suitable bed ; but, as I said before, I
do not recommend you, wrhilst a beginner, to
cultivate what are termed florists' flowers.
When you know more on the subject in gene-
ral, if you feel inclined to grow carnations,
ranunculuses, auriculas, &c., I should advise
you to buy " Hogg on the Carnation," which is
an amusing and very instructive little book. — -
SOIL FOR RANUNCULUSES. 51
But to continue my instructions : — the bed for
ranunculuses should be from eighteen inches to
two feet deep, and not raised more than four
inches above the level of the walks, in order
to preserve the moisture more effectually.
At about five inches below the surface, should
be placed a stratum of two-year old rotten
cow-dung, mixed with earth, six or eight inches
thick; but the earth above, where the roots
are to be planted, should be perfectly free from
dung, which would prove injurious rather than
beneficial, if too near them.
The fibres will draw sufficient nourishment
from it at the depth mentioned; but if the
dung were placed deeper, it would not receive
so much advantage from the action of the air,
which is an object of consequence.
The surface of the bed should be raked per-
52 PLANTING RANUNCULUSES. [MARCH.
fectly flat, and the roots planted in rows, at the
distance of about five inches from each other.
It is better to plant in shallow trenches,
made nearly two inches deep, than to make
holes for the reception of the roots. The
making the holes hardens the surrounding
earth, and the holes are sometimes not well
filled up, and there is then an open cup left at
the bottom, which holds the water, and not
unfrequently causes the root to rot.
A little clean coarse sand should be sprink-
led into the trenches, and the roots should be
placed with the claws downwards, from three
to four inches asunder, according to their size.
When the trench has received the roots, it
should be carefully filled up with the same
earth that was taken out, so as to cover the
root exactly one inch and a half. It is not
usual to plant ranunculuses intended for show
HERBACEOUS ANNUALS. 53
(i. e. to blow in the greatest perfection,) after
the middle of March.
I have/ however, planted them in patches in
the borders in April, and they flowered there
very well ; so that, if you think the preparing
the bed too troublesome, you may put them in
one of your shadiest borders, and you will
have a good chance of their blowing tolerably
well.
As it will require some time to get a good
collection of herbaceous plants, you must be
contented, this year, with annuals ; and you
will find that you can make your garden quite
as gay with the commonest of these, as with
many of the rarer sorts.
In order that the half-hardy annuals should
blow early, it is usual, about this time, to sow
them on a gentle hot-bed, or in pots placed
near light, in a garden frame, or green-house ;
54 HALF-HARDY ANNUALS. [MARCH.
but, unless you can transplant, or prick them
out, as the gardeners say, into another frame,
when they come up, or pot them, about four
in a pot, and keep them in the frame, or green-
house, till they can be safely planted out in the
open borders in May, it is better to wait till
the end of the month, or the beginning of April,
before you sow the seeds of ten week stocks,
Indian pinks, marvel of Peru, French and Afri-
can marygolds, China asters, &c.
If you have no garden lights, you may, for the
purpose of raising the half-hardy annuals, make
a bed of a little hot dung, and put about three
inches of mould on it. Before you sow the
seeds, bend over it1* some hazel sticks, in the
form of hoops, and throw a mat over the hoops,
at night, to protect the seedlings from the frost,
giving them the full benefit of light and sun in
the daytime : but as this will be a troublesome
BIENNIALS AND PERENNIALS. 55
operation, I should advise you, this year, to
apply to the gardener for all the common half-
hardy annuals, as he will, of course, have a hot-
bed to grow them on.
I will send, in May, seedlings of the newest
sorts of annuals, which have lately been intro-
duced into this country. I have told you how
to raise them, in case you wish to do so
yourself.
While on the subject of sowing seeds, I must
advise that, some time next month, a bed be
sown with perennials and biennials, so as to
have them ready to plant out in the autumn ;
the best are wallflowers, rose campions, sweet-
williams, Canterbury bells, foxgloves, French
honeysuckles, scabious and Chinese hollyhocks ;
the three latter will probably flower this year.
When the plants make their appearance, the
bed must be thinned out, and the seedlings, as
56 INDIGENOUS SHRUBS, &c. [MARCH.
soon as they have five or six leaves, should
be planted in the places where they are to
remain.
But beware of crowding your garden by
planting too many, as they will all grow large
and tall, except the wallflower. Consider also,
when you plant out seedlings, the size they will
be when full-grown, and allow sufficient space
for them to attain that size, without injuring the
plants that may be near them.
Our indigenous shrubs and evergreens may
be planted soon, if required ; they must be ta-
ken up with good balls of earth attached to the
roots, that the smaller fibres may be disturbed
and broken as little as possible. Continue also
to transplant rose trees, and to take suckers
from them, in order to make new plants ; tak-
ing care, however, that the suckers have roots,
otherwise, you will not succeed in removing
INDIGENOUS SHRUBS, &c. 57
them ; or, at least, it will be long before they
recover.
I hope to hear that you are better pleased
with your garden than when I last heard from
you, and that you think it will soon be as
great an amusement to you, as mine is to,
dear Harry,
Yours affectionately,
G.
58 FLOWERING LILIES, &c [APRIL,
LETTER IV.
April 6th.
You complain of the garden being dreary,
and expect a flourishing account of mine. This
is a bad sign : it seems that you are not con-
tented with your own, and begin to covet that
of your neighbour.
I am almost inclined to send you a long
letter on this subject. Do you, then, suppose
I have a secret method of flowering lilies
and roses, in the open ground, in April ? As
your crocuses, hepaticas, and violets are in
bloom, your garden must be nearly as gay as
mine is ; for, besides those I have named, I can
only boast of a few anemonies, and snowdrops,
and the yellow aconite.
THE YELLOW ACONITE. 59
The yellow aconite is one of the earliest
of the spring flowers; it is very gay, and,
if you can procure seeds, I almost recom-
mend you to make an edging of it, by sow-
ing a row quite close to your box. In May
it will produce seeds, and the plant will lie
down and remain at rest, till again, at the end
of nine months, it is called into action by the
early spring. This aconite (the common or
popular name of which I do not know) is, I
believe, a native of the countries where the
snow lies long, and on the melting of which,
the plant and flower come forth at once, and
live through the short sumrtier, awaiting to be
buried again in snow.
It is singular, that variation of climate should
not vary the habits of plants ; but although
plants that come from warm countries, are,
by degrees, made to bear the cold of this
60 HERBACEOUS PLANTS. [APRIL
climate, still, the- alteration made in what may
be termed the habits of the plant, is very small.
You will, I think, find this subject very
interesting, when you know more about gar-
dening, and grow in the open air some of
those beautiful plants, which have, till very
lately, been entirely confined to our stoves,
and which are now successfully cultivated,
during the summer, in our gardens.
You may now divide and plant the roots of
any hardy herbaceous plants that are too large:
this is, therefore, the season to ask for such
roots as the gardener, or your friends, can
spare.
I have been extremely busy since I last
wrote, digging some borders which were neg-
lected last autumn. I have had many herba-
ceous plants to divide and replant, and am
now going to make a bed foi some ranuncu-
HALF-HARDY ANNUALS. 61
luses, which I have raised from seed. The
spring-planted ranunculuses flower very late ;
they must; therefore, be planted in a shady
border, as the sun, in July, is almost too pow-
erful for them.
You may sow the following seeds in the
course of this month, if the season is favourable :
mimulus lutea, or monkey-flower, sweet peas,
pink and yellow hawk-weed, flos adonis, lark-
spur, Venus' looking-glass, (the large sort,
called campanula pentagon, is very handsome,)
mignonette, convolvulus minor, stock, mallows,
or any other hardy annuals.
By the middle of next month, begin to plant
out any half-hardy annuals that are ready ; or,
if your soil is stiff, pot them, three or four in a
pot, and keep them in a frame green-house,
or sheltered with hoops and a mat at night, and
Him them out after they have rooted well and
62 POTTING HALF-HARDY ANNUALS. [APRIL.
begun to grow ; by which means, they will not
be so much checked by the change, as in
transplanting them at once from the hot-bed
into the open ground.
This reminds irfe that I ought to tell you, it
is necessary to pay great attention to keeping
the roots of plants, that are grown in pots, well
drained ; to effect which, a piece of broken
pot, or tile, is placed over the hole at the
bottom of the pot, and brick rubbish, broken
small, should then be put in so as to fill up a
fourth of it ; but all this care is not necessary
in potting annuals, which are, in the course of
a few weeks, to be transplanted into the
border. The broken brick, or tiles, at the
bottpm, secure the surplus water passing off
through the hole at the bottom ; if they were
not placed there, the water mixing with the
earth at the bottom would remain, and rot the
roots of the plants.
OROBUS VERWJS. Early Flowering Orobus, or Bitter Vttch.
IRIS PERSICA. Persian 2rt9.
FLOWERS IN BLOOM. 65
My garden promises to be gay very shortly :
the hyacinths are beginning to burst ; the vio-
lets, double primroses, (of which I have the
common yellow, the purple, the white, and the
crimson,) wallflowers, daffodils, and crown-im-
perials, are in flower ; some other more tender
plants, I expect, will blossom early next month.
Among these are the common Pulmonaria, or
lungwort, with its pretty variously coloured
bells, some pink, some purple, and others dark
blue ; the Canada columbine, (rather a scarce
plant,) Fritillaria of different kinds, Orobus
vernus, (a small pink pea, to my taste, the
prettiest early herbaceous flower we have,) and
the beautiful Persian iris, which appears to
some people to possess a perfume as sweet
and powerful as the violet, while to others it is
perfectly scentless. My Sanguinaria Cana-
densis will flower in the turf before the month
5 F
66* VARIETIES OF HEARTS-EASE. [APRIL.
is over: it is a plant I admire, as well on ac-
count of the leaf, as because all plants in blos-
som at this season of the year are valuable.
One of my greatest favourites is the hearts-
ease, of which I have twelve very distinct varie-
ties. I have planted an edging of these, by di-
viding the patches into separate plants, round a
border I lately made for rock plants, in a very
dull corner of my garden, where nothing grew
before but dark brown trefoil.
With the aid of a few large stones, clinkers,
and flints thrown carelessly about, and the in-
tervals filled with fine mould, and planted with
different sorts of dwarf cistus, houseleeks, peri-
winkle, the small variegated leaved sort of snap-
dragon, that you must have seen on old walls,
and the last, not least in my estimation, the
modest Houstonia cc&rulea, which our poets
have celebrated, — I have made a very pretty
ROCK PLANTS. 67
addition to my borders, in a part of my garden
that was formerly very ugly, and on that ac-
count always neglected.
It is usual for persons who have hyacinths
and tulips to tie them up to short sticks, as soon
as the flowers begin to be top-heavy. When
you have a bed of fine hyacinths, you must
protect them from sun, rain, and wind : the sun
not only causes the blossoms to ^ fade, but
shortens the time of their continuance in per-
fection.
The rains and winds of this month are
equally destructive : indeed, an April storm
will sometimes strip off half the bells from
the flower stalks, and snap in two some of the
heaviest and finest blossoms ; so if you wish
to make a good show, and to double its dura-
tion, build a cover over them.
The great tulip and hyacinth fanciers have a
68 CHEAP AWNING FOR BULBS. (APRIL.
temporary awning for this purpose. The plan
I have adopted is cheap, and is as follows.
Get stakes four feet long ; stick a row of them
on each side of the bed, eighteen inches apart ;
drive them a foot into the ground, and tie rods
between them, to reach across the bed, to sup-
port the awning. This awning may be made
of any cheap material, such as coarse calico,
or old canvass, or a mat thrown over will
answer the same purpose ; but care must be
taken to remove this covering at all times, ex-
cept during the full sunshine, or when there
are driving winds or rains ; if not, you will de-
prive the flowers of light ; and as all vegetable
colours depend on light, the blossoms, without
it, will be pale ; and the instinct, if I may so call
it, of plants leading them to seek the light, its
absence causes them to expend their strength
in growing tall in search of more, and then
they become what is termed drawn.
EFFECT OF LIGHT ON PLANTS. 69
You will soon learn this property of plants ;
and observe that those grown in the shade are
always both paler and taller than similar kinds
grown where the light is admitted freely, and
that the colours of plants, particularly the
green, depend on light, and light only. This
may soon be proved by putting a pot over any
growing plant, and you will find that it will
lose its green colour ; but that when the light
is again admitted, it recovers it.
Hence the common process of blanching or
whitening endive for the table, by tying up the
plant with bass, so that the light is shut out
from the inner leaves, the putting pots over
sea-kale, and covering up celery with earth:
all of which, being deprived of light, soon be
come white.
Among the tender annuals, which should
now be sown, are coxcombs, tricolours, globe
70 TENDER ANNUALS. [APRIL
amaranthus, ice plants, stramoniums, egg plants,
and balsams. The three first named are too
tender to be planted out in the borders, till
very late in the season, when they are in
flower, and should not therefore be sown by
any one who has not a green-house or frame
to grow them in, as they cannot safely be put
out of doors till they are nearly full grown.
I should not advise you to have more than
two or three egg plants, as they are more sin-
gular than showy : the purple variety is the
handsomest. Datura stramonium is very hand-
some, but produces but few flowers.
You might sow some seed of balm of Gilead,
or raise plants from cuttings : this is a perennial
plant, very useful to plant out in May, as it
grows freely. On account of the delightful fra-
grance of the leaf, it isjery useful for the green
part of a nosegay ; and when dried, it continues
CARNATIONS FROM SEED. 71
highly aromatic, and is a great addition to a
pot-pourri, or sweet-pot.
The green-house Verbena also may be grown
out of doors for the same purpose : against a
wall, it will live during the winter. I must tell
you it is a deciduous plant, that you may not
imagine it to be dead when you see it stripped
of its leaves.
May is the month in which carnation seed
ought to be sown. I have already said, that
it is necessary to be what is called a florist, in
order to grow these flowers in perfection ; but,
nevertheless, I have been so much amused by
raising varieties of them, from seed sent to me
from Berlin, (where they are celebrated for
carnations,) that I cannot help giving a short
account of my method of managing them. It
is very simple.
The seed is sown at this season in pans, and
72 CARNATIONS PROM SEED. [APRIL
set near the light in the green-house, or in a
frame, or even in the open air, if there is nei-
ther frame nor green-house. As soon as it
comes up, the pans are taken out, and placed
under an east wall, and sufficiently watered in
dry weather. In June, the seedlings are plant-
ed in a bed of fine light mould, in rows, six
inches apart, and kept well watered during dry
weather. In the autumn, hoops are put over,
(in the way I have already directed with re-
spect to hyacinths,) in order that they may be
covered over with mats in frosty or wet wea-
ther, the wet being quite as injurious as the
frost. In the beginning of April following, every
other one may be transplanted into the borders,
and the rest left to flower in the bed.
In the course of the next month, I shall send
a basket of plants with my letter, but I shall
probably have so much of my spare time taken
CARNATIONS FROM SEED. 73
up with digging up the plants I send, naming
and packing them with moss, that I shall not
perhaps have time enough to write so long a
letter as usual. As you desired to have two or
three sketches of our garden, I have sent one ;
and you may expect to have one occasionally,
when I have time to copy it ; for I cannot yet
draw from nature well enough to present you
with any of my own.
Ever your affectionate friend,
G G.
APRIL.
THE YOUNG GARDENERS.
PROPAGATING DAHLIAS. 75
LETTER V.
May.
You will receive with this letter a basket,
containing some half-hardy annuals, and green-
house plants. I also send a few roots of Dah-
lias, marvel of Peru, and Commelina codestis.
These roots were taken out of the ground in
the autumn, before the frost had set in; the
earth wras shaken from them, and they \vere
placed on a shelf in the green-house during
the winter.
You must treat them in the same manner,
if you wish to preserve them for the next year :
a closet or cellar, if not too damp, wrill do equal-
ly well. They may soon be planted in the
ground ; and if you want more Dahlias, or mar-
vel of Peru, you must propagate them by taking
76 PROPAGATING DAHLIAS. [MAY.
off cuttings, with a small piece of the root, call-
ed the tuber, attached to each. These should
be put intto pots, and set in a frame, or green-
house, till they have struck ; or if you can crib
a fortnight's birth for them, in a corner of a
cucumber bed, they will strike root much
quicker ; and they may be sooner planted in
the open ground, so as to flower this year.
If, however, you strike them in a hot-bed, you
must put them into the green-house, to harden,
as it is called, that is, to make the change
of temperature less violent before you plant
them in the garden. If you took them out of
the hot-bed, and put them immediately into
the ground, the sudden and great change would
almost kill them.
This treatment applies to all plants raised in
the same manner. These cuttings will flower
the first year, quite as well as the old plants ;
ESCHSCHOLTZIA CALIFORNICA. Calif ornian L'schsc/ivltzia
(ENOTHERA LINDLEYANA. Lindlcy's (Enothcra.
NEW ANNUALS. 79
and I think you will find this the best month to
take the cuttings.
Among --the annuals I send, are three new
sorts, of our own North American plants : pray
give them the best places under your wall.
They are marked Clarkia pulchella, Escholt-
zia Californica, and JEnothera Lindlyana. Es-
choltzia cannot properly be called an annual,
because its root, if taken up and kept during
the winter in sand, will flower again when
replanted in the spring ; or it will live in a dry
situation through the winter. Its beautiful deep
chrome yellow flowers are not unlike those of
the horned poppy, which I have seen on the
sea-shore. I find that this plant sows itself so
freely, that, wherever I have planted it, I have
the next year had hundreds of young seedlings
come up round the old plant.
There are many plants that are more easily
80 GREEN-HOUSE PLANTS. [MAY.
increased, by allowing the seed-pods to ripen
and drop the seeds on the ground, than if they
were gathered and sowed with the greatest
care ; when you find this the case, it is well, in
the autumn, when the seed is nearly ripe, to
rake the ground a little round the plant, and not
to permit it to be disturbed till the seeds have
come up. I believe the reason for these plants
increasing spontaneously is, that the seed re-
quires to be sown as soon as it is ripe.
I advise that you plant out the green-house
plants which I have sent, in your warmest bor-
der, where they will flower far better than in
pots : you must take cuttings from them, when-
ever you see any fit, which will be when the
shoot has attained its full size. These cuttings
must be kept in a green-house, or cold frame,
during the winter. You will find it better, ateo,
to take cuttings of those geraniums and green-
CLARKIA PULCHELLA. Pretty Clarkia
6
82 GREEN-HOUSE PLANTS. [MAY
house plants which you plant out, than to take
up the old plants, as they never, in my opinion,
thrive when confined in pots, after being allow-
ed to grow freely, which they do when planted
in the borders; besides, the cuttings do not
occupy half the space of the old plants.
The sorts I send are quite common ; and
should you not succeed with the cuttings, you
will replace them, next year, at a trifling ex-
pense. The prettiest plant among them is Cal-
ceolaria rugosa, which will be covered all the
summer with bright yellow flowers, which ap-
pear at first sight like little balls, till, on examin-
ing them, you see the reason why it is called
Calceolaria, or slipper wort. You need not
take cuttings of this plant till the autumn.
You will admire, also, the Petunia nyctagini-
flora, which is very nearly allied to the to-
bacco plant, and is commonly called white
tobacco.
THE NIGHT STOCK. 83
You will find two kinds of Penstemon, (or
beard-tongue) and Lychnis coronaria. The
latter is a most splendid flower, and I should
recommend its roots to be taken up in the
autumn and potted, as it is an herbaceous plant,
and cuttings of it may be struck, next spring,
when it shoots up.
I think you will be pleased with the pretty
purple Verbena aubletia ; but the very eye of
the packet is the Verbena melindris. Its bright,
deep, rich scarlet, surpasses even the best
geranium's colour : it grows as freely as grass :
every slip you stick into a pot strikes root, and
soon flowers. It will not stand the winter
any more than the Verbena aubletia; so that
you must plant some cuttings in pots in the
month of August, and keep them in a green-
house through the winter.
There is in the basket one plant, Cheiranthus
LYCHNIS CORONARIA. Chinese Lychnis
MIFPY PLANTS. 85
tristis, or night-flowering stock, which, when
you see it first open, you will wonder why I,
who profess to grow showy flowers only, should
have sent it, as its small, dirty looking blossom
will not appear to have the least merit. You
will smell it; and if it should happen to be
morning when you do so, you will feel tempted
to root it out as being both ugly and scentless ;
but have patience till the evening, and you will
find its perfume as singular as it is delicious. It
is one of the freest flowering plants I know,
and will not leave off till killed by the frosts ;
and I think the more blossoms you gather, the
more it produces.
This is not the only flower which emits no
odour during the daytime, though it is the com-
monest of this description, and the sweetest,
excepting always the pretty Erinus lychnidea,
the scent of which resembles vanilla.
86 MAKING AND STRIKING CUTTINGS. [MAY.
This, however, is a green-house plant, and is
difficult to manage, being what gardeners call
miffy; which means, that it suddenly dies,
without any apparent cause ; though I believe
the cause to be too much water, and want of
sufficiently well draining the pots, as I have
before explained.
I planted out the only one I had, last year,
in a warm border, after it had flowered in the
spring ; and it seemed to like the treatment
very well, as it flowered again in July. It is
not, I am sorry to say, so easy to raise from
cuttings as most green-house plants.
As I have mentioned making cuttings several
times in this letter, I ought to give a few direc-
tions on the subject. In the first place, all
cuttings should be 'made with a sharp knife,
exactly below any joint from whence leaves
snring forth, as it is from these joints that the
MANAGEMENT OF CUTTINGS. 87
roots proceed. Next, you will find the wood
of some plants, such as roses, &c., and, indeed,
I believe, of most shrubs, requires to be what is
termed ripe, that is, to have attained its full
maturity, or growth, before it is fit for cuttings ;
while again, in others, as heaths, &c., it is im-
possible to strike cuttings from any thing but
the young tender shoots.
I know no rule, by which I can tell you how
to distinguish between those plants which re-
quire to have the cuttings taken from the old or
from the young wood, except that if the wood,
when mature, is very hard, it is found not pos-
sible to make it strike roots, except in a young
state. These are exemplified in the case of
heaths, where the wood is extremely hard ;
and in the case of roses, where it is soft and
full of pith in the middle.
The pots, in which cuttings are to be struck,
88 CUTTINGS OP GREEN-HOUSE PLANTS.[MAY.
must be well drained; and as many cuttings
may be put in, quite close to the edge of the
pot, as it will hold without crowding them, if
they do not require being covered with a small
glass, which is only necessary for cuttings of
very tender plants, as heaths, or such as are
made very early in the spring ; in which case,
they are put close together in the middle of the
pot, and a small bell-glass, *or a finger or water-
glass, put over them.
Very little water need be given them, enough
only to keep the cuttings alive, as more will
cause them to rot. They require also to be
shaded from the sun, and yet to have plenty of
light; they ought to be potted off singly in
small pots, as soon as they have taken root.
As almost all green-house plants will strike
during the spring and summer months, it is not
advisable to defer taking cuttings till the au-
CUTTINGS OF GREEN-HOUSE PLANTS. 89
tumn ; because, in most cases, the young plants
would not be sufficiently established or rooted
in the pots before winter ; and they ought to
be kept 'From growing during that season.
Nothing weakens plants so much as growing
when they should be at rest. This you must
have noticed in the case of common flowers
that are forced, or brought into flower early in
the spring, which require a full year to recover
their vigour.
While on the subject of propagating green-
house plants, I must recommend to your no-
tice a book,* which, when you can afford to
buy it, and have acquired a little more experi-
ence, you will find very useful as a manual,
particularly as it will inform you by name, how
to strike each different plant ; and is one of the
few books that are of much use to a person
* Sweet's Botanical Cultivator.
H
90 FLOWERS IN BLOOM. [MAY.
generally fond of flowers. With this, and a
little experience, you will soon become a tole-
rable gardener.
My tulips will soon be in full bloom and
beauty. Besides jonquils, I have Muscari mos-
chatum, or musk hyacinth, the flowrer of which
is not pretty, but makes amends for its want of
beauty by its fragrance. In the peat border, I
have a beautiful and rare kind of Uvularia. The
cinnamon and China roses are beginning to
open. I have also some columbines, yellow
alysson, and Anemone pulsatilla, or Pasque
flower, an English plant, and very beautiful ;
besides several varieties of the Anemone hor-
tensis, or scarlet anemone ; of these last I have
a whole row, and their scarlet heads look like a
line of soldiers. I could name a few other
plants, either in flower or just bursting ; but I
only know their Latin names, and I fear to tire
you with a list of them.
ANNUALS TO BE SAVED. 91
You may, at this time, sow some of the half-
hardy annuals in the open borders : they will
flower late in the autumn, if the season be at all
favourable! The best and most showy of these
are Indian pinks, Marvel of Peru, French and
African marygolds, Chrysanthemum tricolor,
and Persicaria. Remember, however, that the
Persicaria is a very tall plant. Put in also every
month till July, where you have room, a few
seeds of common annuals, and they will flower
even as late as November.
I think that, what with weeding, raking, ty-
ing up flower stems, planting out what I have
sent, and keeping them watered till the first
shower, you will have more than enough to do,
till I write again.
Yours very sincerely,
G.
92 PULLING UP WEEDS. [JUNE.
LETTER VI.
June 2.
WHEN I recommended that your garden
should be laid out in the Dutch fashion, I forgot
to remind you that neatness is the peculiar
character of the Dutch, both in their gardens
and houses. I hope this hint will not be
throwrn away, especially as you will soon find
that sowing and planting are not the only em-
ployments of a gardener.
Weeds will soon begin to grow, and as it is
only the sluggard who has weeds in his garden,
I hope none are growing in your little patch.
It would be a sure sign of idleness if any were
found. In so small a garden, the weeds must
be pulled up by the hand, as fast as they make
their appearance.
WEEDING AND RAKING. 93
I do not at all approve of hoeing in a flower
garden. It may be done in a shrubbery, or
where the borders are filled with coarse-grow-
ing herbaceous plants, or where they are so
wide as to make it impossible to weed them
without trampling down the earth. As soon as
the beds are weeded, loosen the earth between
the plants a little with a hoe, previously to rak-
ing the borders. Raking, however, requires
some care, and will be better learned by
wratching a gardener perform this work, than
by any instructions I can give.
When a border is well raked, it is perfectly
even and smooth, and no scratches of the rake
are left behind. I leave it to your own discre-
tion as to how often it is necessary to weed
and rake : the oftener this is done, of course
the neater the garden will be.
I find, by always pulling up the weeds as fast
94 HARDY AND TENDER ANNUALS. [JUNE.
as they come through, although I have a large
piece of ground to take care of, it is not neces-
sary to weed and rake it, as regularly as it is
to sweep it : this should be done once a week.
After a shower, as soon as the gravel is suffi-
ciently dry to prevent its sticking to the roller,
the walks should always be rolled.
When the herbaceous flower stems begin to
shoot up and appear to require support, they
should be tied with twisted bass to sticks, of
different length, according to the height the
plant will attain; the bass being previously
soaked in water, to make it tough.
Continue to sow both hardy and tender an-
nuals, to keep up a succession of flowers. This
is an important point to attend to : it will re-
quire some experience and forethought, to pre-
vent your flowers from being so sown or plant-
ed, as to blow all at one time.
TAKING UP BULBS. 95
It will now be time for you to take up those
bulbs, of which the leaves are nearly decayed.
I can fix no particular day for this operation ;
because, as the bulbs flower at different sea-
sons, so the leaves also will decay at different
times ; but the general rule is, to take them up
carefully, as soon as the leaves have turned
yellow, and to lay them under a south wall to
dry and ripen ; taking care to cover them with
fine, dry, sandy earth, in layers, so that they
may not touch each other. When the leaves
are quite decayed, remove the bulbs, and
spread them to dry under shelter of a green-
house, or in a room ; and, finally, after cleaning
them from the dirt, take off their old coats, or
skins, and put them away in bags, or drawers, in
a cool, dry place, till they are wanted for replant-
ing in the autumn. Do not fail to look at them,
to see that they do not get damp and mouldy.
If this happens, they will, most likely, rot.
96 NATURAL ECONOMY OF BULBS. [JUNE.
I must here explain why bulbs are taken up
every year : the great object is, in this, as in all
other operations of gardening, to imitate na-
ture : to make the existence of foreign plants, as
near as can be what it is in their native place.
Tulips, hyacinths, and most of those bulbs
which are taken up, come from countries where
the whole summer is dry, and in winter the
ground is covered with snow ; the spring rains
alone call them into life and flower. Travellers
describe whole regions in Persia as being co-
vered in the spring with enamelled carpets of
scilla (hyacinths,) tulips, and other bulbous
plants: long drought succeeds the rains of
spring, the leaves die away, and the plant
rests again under the dry earth till the following
spring.
As, in our country, they can have no dry
earth to rest in during the summer, the best
CAUTIONS RESPECTING BULBS. U
imitation of their natural state is to take up the
bulb, and keep it dry ; as it would otherwise be
rotted by the summer rains, or caused to grow
in the autumn ; in which latter case, the plant
would not flower in the spring, as the flower
stalks would be killed by the wet and cold of
winter, before, or soon after, it came to the
surface.
There is another point on which I must guard
you, namely ; not to cut off the leaves of tulips,
hyacinths, and other bulbs, whilst green. This
is often done by ignorant gardeners ; and the
plant is thereby either killed, or injured for a
long time. You will easily understand the rea-
son of this ; nature having provided that, in the
very earliest of the spring, the plant should
throw up its leaves, and, soon after, its flower
stem : it has no time to lose.
When the spring goes, the rain for the year
7 I
98 CAUTIONS RESPECTING BULBS. [JUNE.
is at an end ; and there is, as we have just
seen, no time for the formation of the flower
and the roots in early spring. As soon, there-
fore, as the tulip or hyacinth has blown, new
force is collected from the sap in the long
green leaves, and the rudiments of the flower
and leaf for the next year are formed in the
heart of the root, where they lie dormant
through the winter. If then you cut away the
growing green leaves, you destroy the means of
making the flower and leaves for the next year ;
and you might almost as well at once root up
the plant. This applies to crocuses, lilies, &c.
You must not, therefore, in your taste for
neatness, tear away any green leaves of bulbous
roots, or your future prospects of bloom will be
blighted. If you wish to be convinced by ex-
periment, of what I tell you, (as, indeed, you
should be, in all things relating to natural histo-
PIPINGS OF PINKS. 99
ry,) you have only to cut in two a hyacinth root
in July, and you will then see the rudiments of
the leaves, and flower already formed for the
succeeding year.
But to return to my directions. I must
advise you now to make pipings of pinks, if you
can procure any good sorts, or to make some,
at any rate, from your own ; as these plants re-
quire to be renewed annually, in order to pre-
serve their colours, and to procure fine flowers.
For this purpose, dig a bed of rich earth, half
a foot deep, let it be the size of the hand-glass
you intend to use, and sift the mould through a
coarse sieve ; press the mould firm, and set the
hand-glass on the bed to make a mark, that
you may not plant any of the pipings be-
yond where the edge of the glass comes ; then
take the slips from the plants, pare a little bit
off at the hard end, and cut off a few of the
100 CUTTINGS AND SLIPS. [JUNE.
bottom leaves : it is usual also to cut about half
an inch from the top leaves; but, as I have
shewn that plants receive nourishment from
their leaves, the most scientific gardeners con-
sider it wrong to do so.
After this, with a small pointed stick, prick
them into the bed, about an inch apart ; water
them gently, but well; this settles the earth
round the part in the ground, tightly. If this
were not done, the air would get to the wound-
ed part of the plant, dry up the juices, or sap,
and prevent the formation of the new root.
Then put on the hand-glass, so close that no
air can get in ; let them have strong sun heat,
but no air till they begin to grow : water them
plentifully, with a fine nose to your watering-
pot, and they will strike quickly.
If you have more room under your hand-
glass than you require, you may put in some
PLANTING OUT PERENNIALS, '&cV 101
cuttings of China and moss roses, or any other
kinds of roses which will strike at the same
time. Yet, if you have more than one hand-
glass, it is* better to keep the pinks separate.
Carnation cuttings will strike in the same man-
ner ; and so will scarlet lychnis, double rockets,
rose campions, double wall-flowers, sweet-wil-
liams, and Indian pinks. Slips of all these
plants strike better than cuttings: by slips, I
mean the small branches of the plants slipped
or pulled off at the part where they spring from
the main stems, or stronger branches ; in all
cases, a small piece should be cut off the hard
end with a sharp knife, before the slip is put
into the ground.
You will find much trouble now in keeping
your garden as neat as a Dutchman's, unless
you are very active in sticking and tying up
such herbaceous and annual plants as require
102 PLANTING OUT PERENNIALS. [JUNE.
it; and in cutting off old flower stems and
broken shoots. The sweet peas should have
branching supports, and the convolvulus major
long slender poles to twine round. You should
now plant out the remainder of the tender an-
nuals, or they will not have time to grow before
the season forces them into flower : keep them
well watered till they have taken root.
The Canterbury bells, rockets, and all the
perennial and biennial plants, sown in the
spring, which are for the next year's stock,
should now be planted in beds, at about six
inches from each other, till the autumn, when
they may be transplanted into the borders.
Bulbs, lilies, colchicums, and autumn crocuses
should be planted about the end of this month,
to flower in the autumn. Do not confound the
two latter, as they are different plants : the col-
ehicum is often called autumn crocus, which it is
PROPAGATING CHRYSANTHEMUMS. 103
not in reality. The stamens of the flower of
the real autumn crocus, of which there are se-
veral varieties, produce saffron ; the root of the
colchicunr is used in medicine.
You ought now to put in practice the instruc-
tions I gave you in my last letter, for making
cuttings, as June is reckoned a good month for
striking green-house plants.
Chrysanthemums may now be propagated in
various ways : the most simple is, to take off a
single stem, with some of the roots adhering to
the bit pulled off: this method ensures success :
the plants require only to be potted singly in
small pots, watered/and placed in the shade till
they have rooted; but it is considered, that
cuttings make the handsomest plants, and pro-
duce most flowers : to make them, about five
joints should be cut from the old plant, and
set, either singly in thumb pots, or several in
JUNE
RUSTIC FLOWER STANDS.
RUSTIC FLOWER BASKET. 105
larger pots : they must be put in a frame, or
under a hand-glass, till they have struck, when
they may be taken out, and transplanted into
larger pots.
I have lately been employed in constructing
a very pretty ornament for a corner of my
garden; and as you may make one yourself
with very little trouble, I will explain how I
set about it.
The main part is merely a round, flat basket, in
which some plants were sent from a nursery-
man: this is set on four short stakes, with some
crooked pieces of wood nailed on them, as rus-
tic work, in the same way as the rustic seats and
tables are made : these branches are fixed on,
to prevent the four legs having a formal appear-
ance : the inside is smeared with melted pitch,
to prevent its rotting: this, however, may be
dispensed with, as the basket is easily re-
106 RUSTIC FLOWER BASKET. [JUNE.
newed: it is then filled with fine rich mould,
and in it are plunged pots of all sorts of tender
annuals and green-house plants.
I had previously made some holes in the
sides of the basket, into which holes I intro-
duced several trailing plants and creepers,
which look extremely pretty ; some peeping out
covered with different coloured flowers ; others
twining round the wicker-work; and others
hanging down, and in some places touching the
ground. To manage this well, I found it
necessary, when the basket was partly filled
with mould, to open the wicker-work a little in
places; and, after putting the plant inside, I
drewr it through the hole, leaving the roots only
in the basket, which I then continued to fill
with mould.
The plants I have put in it are, first, Calceo-
laria rugosa, of which I sent you a specimen ;
LOBELIA SIPHILITICA. Blue American Lobelia.
108 RUSTIC FLOWER BASKET. [JUNE.
Lobelia splendens, Mimulus rivularis, and Se-
nec4o elegans, or purple groundsel, and China
asters ; and round the edge, a border of
hearts-ease, of different colours. The earth at
the top of the basket is covered with moss,
pegged down, so as to conceal the pots that
the plants are growing in : when any of these
go out of bloom, they are replaced by fresh
pots.
Very pretty tables and vases are constructed
somewhat in this manner : I shall send, in my
next letter, a sketch, which I lately made of
some : perhaps, as you are a good carpenter,
you may contrive to make one, if not exactly
like it, at least in the same style.
Out of the sides peep Verbena melindris, the
pretty small blue Lobelia, and the yellow
nummularia, or moneywort, which, though an
English weed, and found in any wet meadow,
MANAGEMENT OF CARNATIONS. 109
is not to be neglected, since, in damp shady
places, where scarcely any other plant will
grow, it creeps upon the ground, covering it
entirely with its bright green leaves in the
spring, and in the summer with its golden
flowers, which are not unlike strings of gold
eagles.
You see, I have been fully employed since I
wrote ; besides, I have had much work to do :
my box edgings have been clipped, and my
gravel has been weeded ; this is very necessa-
ry, otherwise the seeds of the weeds, which
spring through it, if allowed to ripen, would be
scattered all over the garden.
I am now very busy tying up carnations;
cutting off their small flower buds, in order
that those left may blossom finer; and tying
fine bass round those flower pods that are
rather round than long, to prevent their burst-
110 FLOWERS IN BLOSSOM. [JUNE.
4T
ing: and this I do to my fine pinks. I also slit
the flower cup a little lengthwise, at every
notch, to make it open evenly, and form a fine
round flower. My garden now fully repays
me for all my trouble : it is extremely gay, the
roses are beginning to flower.
The Phlox ovata, the Iris Germanica, (or
common blue iris,) the Papaver Orientale, (or
fine scarlet herbaceous poppy,) the Fumaria
nobilis, the Geum coccineum, (or avens,) a
beautiful new plant, but now getting common;
the double and single yellow Welsh poppy, and
a very pretty blue flower, called Lithospermum
Orientale, are among those in blossom at pre-
sent, in my common borders, which I most
admire.
The border is still more shewy than it was
last month, as the azaleas and rhododendrons
are in full bloom : there is, besides, in flower in
BROMPTON STOCKS. Ill
it, a rare little plant, the Rubus arcticus : this
plant bears a small pink flower, resembling that
of the common blackberry, to which family it
belongs ; and though, in appearance, like a
blackberry, it is very delicious to eat.
I had nearly ended my letter, without giving
you a valuable piece of information, which is,
that you must not fail to sow, in an eastern
border, and in fine sifted mould, some Bromp-
ton stock seed, to have plants which will flower
next spring ; if you can put a hand-glass over
the seeds till they come up, so much the bet-
ter ; after they are up, take off the glass.
I should have been sorry if I had forgotten
this; because, next year, owing to my care-
lessness, you wrould have been without stock
plants, for these are to be kept through the
winter, to flower in the spring. I must not be
vSO careless of your interests in future. I fear, I
112 BROMPTOJN STOCKS. [JUNE.
am often led away, by a desire to talk of my
own garden, from subjects which are of more
interest and consequence to yours.
Ever your sincere friend,
G.
JULY.
ARRANGING THE NOSEGAY.
NEATNESS AND ORDER. 115
LETTER VII.
July 7.
You are now, I suppose, enjoying the fruits
of your industry, and your garden is brilliant
with flowers. Without meaning to moralize in
any great degree, on the subject of labour
sweetening pleasure, I think what I have before
written and so often told you, now comes con-
vincingly on your mind. Until you had yourself
reared plants, learned the means of doing so,
saw when you failed, and found out the reason
why you did so, the pleasure you enjoyed in
the mere looking at a flower, when little else
than its freshness, its scent, and its beauty,
pleased, was very different from that which you
now feel in regarding those which you have
raised yourself.
116 NEATNESS AND ORDER. [JULY
I never meant to persuade you that garden-
ing is the most important of occupations, nor
that the lessons you are to learn from it are of
such consequence, that nothing else is to be
sought after; yet, as we must all have amuse-
ments, I think few will deny that gardening is
one of the most rational. It conduces to health,
gives pain to no living thing, and, without any
very great exaggeration of its merit and praise,
you may, by devoting your play hours to your
garden, learn things that may be useful here-
after.
As I have got into a moralizing strain, let me
impress on you the value of a habit of keeping
all things neat, and in due order. The advan-
tage of so doing will be considerable ; the
neglect of it must prove fatal, as well to your
garden, as to whatever else you may engage
in. I could write you a long letter on this
ARRANGEMENT OF DUTIES. 117
subject ; having myself experienced the value
of this habit, it will give me pleasure to point
out to you all its advantages, in the hope that
you may be induced, even in early life, to adopt
maxims of arrangement and order, both in
thinking and acting.
You cannot hope to succeed in your garden,
nor indeed in any other occupation, without
reflection, — without really and fairly attending
to whatever you undertake, or plan; and if you
once acquire this habit with regard to your
garden, it will extend to the rest of your duties
and occupations. The consequences will be,
facility of action, even under embarrassing cir-
cumstances; time always at your disposal; your
mind free from anxious perplexities, such as
beset persons who have no determined plan of
action; and that respect and consideration in
the world, which punctuality and decision of
118 FLOWERS IN BLOOM. [JULY.
character never fail to command. But, lest
you should begin to doubt whether I am writing*
a discourse on ethics, or an epistle on horticul-
ture, I must return to your garden and to mine.
Among the gayest things which your garden
boasts of, I suppose the common annuals, sown
in the spring, are not the least showry. I know
not what you may have besides these in flower;
but, in addition to my roses, some of which are
still in bloom, I have, among the herbaceous
plants, Phlox stolonifera and Phlox am&na;
Spigelia Marylandica, or pink root ; the white,
the blue, and the purple Tradescantia Virgini-
ana, or spider wort ; Dianthus superbus, whose
pretty lilac flowers are deliciously swreet ;
Campanula Carpatica, which I consider one of
the most splendid of a very handsome tribe of
flowers, (the bell flowers,) Hemerocallis caru-
lea, Chinese day lily, Jlnchusa Italica, or
HEMEROCALLIS CJERULEA. Chinese Day Lily.
120 CARNATIONS. [JULY.
buglos, Lobelia siphilitica, which is singular
from its colour, and many others, too numerous
for detail : all, however, making a mass of
colour, and a show, which, I consider, puts me
high among young gardeners.
It is in July, that I always lay such carnations
as I wish to increase. I grow none that are
very tender ; but I have a great many showy
border carnations, which I have raised chiefly
from seed 5 these remain in the ground all the
winter through. I have occasionally potted a
few layers!1, to blow in pots ; but they require
such constant attention, that, unless you can
devote much time to them, and have, besides,
very fine varieties, they are not worth the
trouble.
The manner in which you must set about
making these layers is as follows : clean away
all weeds and litter from the roots of the plants
LAYING CARNATIONS. 121
to be laid, and spread fine mould, about two
inches thick, round them, that it may be ready
for the young roots to grow in: have some
small pegs, made from fejn stalks, or small
branches of trees ; cut off a few leaves from
the lower part of the shoot, and take about an
inch off those at the top of it; then, with a very
sharp knife, cut a slit half through the shoot
between two joints, at about the middle of it,
turning the sharp edge of the knifc* up wards;
cut the slit through the first joint to the middle
between it and the one above it ; then make a
hollow in the mould, bend down the cut part
of the shoot, peg it to the ground with its head
up, and cover the slit part with about half an
inch of mould. You may lay as many shoots
as you like, and as are fit, in this way ; the only
thing to be avoided, is taking such as have
begun to send out side shoots, for they will
not strike.
L
122 PROPAGATING BY LAYERS. [JULY.
You will see the reason of this process : you
create a wound at a joint; and where plants
are wounded, many have a tendency to make
roots when covered with earth: so far this
process is the same as that which takes place
in a cutting, except that the cutting is entirely
separated from the parent plant.
There are some plants, however, which will
not send out roots when entirely separated,
yet will strike when a wound is made, and the
communication and circulation are kept up with
the parent plant. This is called propagating
by layers.
In many cases, plants will strike both from
cuttings and layers; but the latter are more
certain, because of the communication between
the old plant, which keeps alive the half sepa-
rated cutting until it has formed new roots on
the part divided* after which, the layer be-
VARIETIES OF CARNATIONS. 123
comes a new plant, nourished from its own
resources, and may be safely separated, either
by transplanting to a bed, or by potting. This
may be Hone in the autumn or in the spring.
If you do not understand these directions,
or consider the operation of laying too trouble-
some, you may raise carnations by pipings, in
the same manner as you would pinks; but
they do not strike so freely as the layers, and
the plants are much weaker, because they are
longer in perfecting strong roots.
There are many varieties of carnations :
florists have divided them into Picotees, Painted
Ladies, Bizarres, and Flakes.
The flowers of the Picotees have a white
or yellow ground, and their edges are fringed
or jagged, and spotted with scarlet, red, purple,
or other colours.
The petals, or leaves of the flowers, of the
124 MANAGEMENT OF CARNATIONS. [JULY.
Painted Ladies, are coloured on the upper
side only, and white beneath.
The Bizarres are striped with three or more
colours; while the Flakes are of two colours
only.
The edges of the petals of all except the
Picotees, to be perfect, should be round and
smooth. Carnations with round pods are apt
to burst: to prevent wrhich, they should be
tied round with a thin bit of bass, and slit a
little at every notch, in the same manner as I
directed with respect to pinks. It is usual also,
to cut circular pieces of card, about two or
three inches in diameter, with a hole in the
middle, of the size of the bud, to receive the
lower part of the petals, just belowT the notch-
es of the cup: a slit is cut on one side, to
allow the petals to expand as much as possible.
This is put on before the flower opens.
You must pay great attention now to weed-
SEEDS OF SPRING FLOWERS. 125
mg, sweeping, tying up flower stems, and
cutting down such as are out of bloom and
decayed. No garden can appear neat, in
which these little things are not attended to.
The seeds of some of your spring flowers
are now ripe ; therefore gather those you wish
to save, and, after drying them in the air, clean
them from dirt, and put them away in small
bags, or packets : it is better not to take the
seeds out of the seed pods, as they keep much
better in them, (or, rather, do not dry too
much;) but they should be picked from the
stalks, otherwise they take up too much room.
My carnations now occupy the greatest part
of my time : wrhat with laying some, and at-
tending to those that are coming into bloom,
I am fully employed. The laying, you will
find, is rather slow work as it must be done
with great nicety.
126 PRESERVED CARNATIONS [JULY.
While writing on the subject of carnations,
I must tell you of a plan, adopted by a gentle-
man who is passionately fond of this flower, in
order to shew, at any time of the year, speci-
mens of the varieties he possesses. When
they are in full bloom, he chooses from each
the handsomest petal, and gums it down on
the leaf of a blank book kept for this purpose;
afterwards, he covers over the petal itself with
gum, which preserves its colour; opposite to
each petal is the name of the flower, or num-
ber of the pot, from which it was taken; so
that when, at any season, he gives his friends
cuttings or plants, he can shew them, at the
same time, the kinds they are taken from.
You may still continue to raise all sorts of
green-house plants from cuttings, likewise
sweet-williams, pinks, &c., though it is better
to do this earlier. The pinks and carnations,
CAUTION IN WATERING. 127
that have been raised from seed last year, will
blow about this time; and such as are not
worth preserving ought to be rooted up whilst
you can distinguish them. Any shoots of the
good ones, that are fit, may be laid.
I need not, I think, repeat every month my in-
structions concerning watering (in dry weather)
those seedlings, or newly planted roots, that
may require it. You will always be the best
judge yourself of what absolutely wants water;
and I need only caution you not to give too
much, especially where the soil is strong, or
close, as over watering will occasion the plants
to grow too much, and thereby exhaust their
strength in leaves ; in which case the flowers
will be but poor and few.
You must continue to take up such bulbous
roots as have lost their leaves, and put them
away till the time for replanting arrives.
128 STANDARD ROSE-TREES. [JULY.
• Crown imperials, martagons, and red lilies,
should not be long out of the ground, and may
be moved now, if you wish to do so.
I think you must have seen and admired the
standard rose-trees, which, of late years, it has
been the fashion to plant in most flower gar-
dens, on lawns, and even in shrubberies : they
are themselves so formal that they are a great
addition to a Dutch flower garden. As their
price is rather high, it may not be amiss to
inform you how they are made to grow in this
manner ; and as this is the season for budding
roses, you may perhaps be tempted to try your
skill.
The best mode of making standard roses is,
to dig up some strong plants of the common
rose, and cutting away all side shoots, le&ve
one stem : this may be done early in the au-
tumn, or in the summer, from the end of July
STANDARD ROSE-TREES. 129
till August. At about the height you desire
your tree to be, you must insert in the stem,
two or more buds of such roses as you wish to
grow on the standard.
This operation of budding, which is very
simple, consists in taking one of the buds when
completely formed, together with a piece of the
bark attached to it, and after cutting a slit in
the bark of the standard, or stock, as it is
termed, putting the bud into the slit. This is
done by slightly raising up the bark on each
side of the slit, then pressing the inserted bud
down in the place of the bark you have raised,
and tying a piece of wet bass round the stem,
so as to keep the bud in its place, and exclude
the air from the wound.
The circulation of the sap enters into the
bud, just as it did into the bark of the parent
stem; and, in the following spring, the bud ^ ill
130 VEGETABLE PHYSIOLOGY. [JULY.
shoot out, in the same manner as the other
buds of the plant. You must, however, cut
away all the branches, except those in which
you have inserted buds, and shorten the ends
of these ; you will have, in a short time, a large
rose-tree, the stem of which is a common red
rose, while the branches consist of shoots from
the buds of all other sorts you have inserted.
I do not hope that you can actually perform
budding from this description : I have merely
stated the general process. Ten minutes' prac-
tice, under the direction of a gardener, will
enable you to perform the operation, which,
though it requires care and neatness, is very
simple.
I should here call your attention to the study
of vegetable physiology ; for, without some
idea of this, you will not understand why the
l, so inserted, should grow, or why, having
VEGETABLE PHYSIOLOGY. 131
once discovered that it will grow, you may not
insert a rose-bud into the bark of an oak, with
an equal chance of success. This subject is
absolutely necessary for you to understand, if
you wish to become a good gardener, and to
reap all the instruction and amusement which
is to be derived from attending to your own
garden. But it is too long for this present
letter, and I must defer my intention to some
other opportunity.
G.
132 THE TREE-CARNATION. [AUG.
LETTER VIII.
August 3.
I FORGOT, when writing on the subject of
carnations, to remind you of the tree-carnation,
which is a very desirable plant, and has the
merit of being hardier, and of blowing longer,
than any other variety. Planted and trained
against a wall, it will begin to blow in June,
and continue to do so sometimes even after the
early frosts have set in; potted and put in a
frame, it will flower till Christmas. Should you
be able to obtain cuttings of this plant, they
will strike under a hand-glass. I think you will
have no difficulty in procuring them, as it is a
flower the cottagers appear to be very fond of;
for I often see it blossoming very finely against
their houses.
ARTISANS FLORISTS. 133
Many of the poor, at least the most industri-
ous and meritorious of the poor, are passionate-
ly fond of flowers; and I have always found
them much pleased when asked for cuttings of
any favourite plant. This I have no hesitation
in doing, when I see they have enough; be-
cause I always have it in my power to make
them some return, and because, also, I hope
that noticing and admiring their little gardens,
may induce them to continue so simple and
innocent an amusement, and to pass those few
hours which they can spare from labour, in the
midst of their families, rather than in idleness
or at the tavern.
It is remarked that those labourers whose
employments are most sedentary, such as
weavers, &c., are also more particularly fond
of growing plants, and are, in fact, great florists.
The Spitalfields weavers, it is said, have small
134 ARTISANS FLORISTS. [AUG.
gardens in the neighbourhood of Bethnal Green,
where they cultivate auriculas, tulips, &,c. The
Manchester and Birmingham weavers are cele
brated for their auriculas.
These flowers are, in many cases', a matter
of profit as well as amusement to the cultiva-
tors. Florists have instituted societies, or
meetings, at which they adjudge prizes to
those who produce the finest flowers; they
also sell at high prices any new and very fine
variety they may have raised. Should you
visit Lowell, our great manufacturing town,
you will observe flower-pots in many of the
factory windows, showing that the love of nature
is cherished, in the midst of the din and dust.
I have so often spoken of florists, that I think
I ought to explain what is meant by the word,
lest you should confound it with the terms
gardener and botanist, which have very diffe-
rent significations.
THE FLORIST. 135
A gardener I define as one generally fond of,
and conversant in gardening — who indiscrimi-
nately grows all plants which come in his way,
and which his space and means allow him to
cultivate.
A florist is one who confines his attention to
the particular cultivation of some two or three
plants ; carnations, pinks, tulips, hyacinths,
auriculas, and ranunculuses, are the principal
flowers : and these are well selected, for three
reasons: they are all beautiful; they all run
into numerous varieties, so that every grower is
continually raising something new ; and they
are flowers which improve, perhaps, more than
any others, by great care and cultivation.
The same tulip, or auricula, grown one sea-
son, without more than the ordinary care of a
general gardener, and grown the next with all
the care bestowed by a professed florist, will
AUGUST.
GARDEN SPORTS.
FLORISTS' FLOWERS. 13?
be so different, that you can hardly imagine it
to be the same.
Minute attention to the soil, to the time of
planting, to the watering, to the shading, all
conduce much to the improvement of the
flower.
Dahlias and geraniums are now also begin-
ning to be considered as florists' flowers, and
they come very well within the class.
I do not advise you, however, to be a florist :
there is but little variety in his garden : prover-
bially speaking/ «his eggs are all in one
basket :" the wire-worm, a swarm of earwigs,
or a storm of hail, may destroy the hope and
beauty of a whole year, at the moment wrhen
he expects to reap the reward of his care.
Besides, a florist's views being confined, his
notions of excellence become very refined, and
often fantastical. Great importance is attached
M
138 THE BOTANIST. [AUG.
to the shape and colour of a flower, that has
but little to do with its general beauty, and
depends chiefly on its rarity : add to this, the
best flowers of each class are often very dear,
from their scarceness, and the great demand
for them.
A botanist, again, is totally different from
both a florist and gardener, though the two are
often confounded by people who ought to
know better than to use wrong terms. One of
the Misses M. whom you may remember hav-
ing seen here, said, the other day, while walking
in my garden, that she was not aware I was a
florist ; and, in two minutes after, her mother
praised the beauty of my pinks and roses, was
glad to see I was such a good botanist, and
wished her daughters might become equally
learned : she was sure, it was not for want of
books, for they had all the best books on
botany at home.
BOTANY. 139
Now, if the young ladies should ever take
the trouble to grow pinks and roses, to please
their mamma, and look into all their "best
books on botany at home," I suspect they will
find nothing about the matter in them. I hope,
however, that you will be a botanist to a cer-
tain extent, as it adds much to the interest of
gardening. Many of the best gardeners are
botanists.
Botany is the science of distinguishing and
classing plants, according to their peculiar
characteristics; and affords the means of re-
cognizing the marks whereby each individual
species may be known from another. I cannot
here enter into the whole scope of the science ;
you will find enough to satisfy you on the sub-
ject, if you look into one of the dictionaries or
encyclopaedias which you have at home. You
will there see how important it is to be able to
140 BOTANY. [AUG.
class and name plants with such certainty, that
on seeing a plant you may discover, by its cha-
racter, under what class it is arranged, and by
what name it is called.
Consider, even in the case of these letters,
what facilities this science has afforded. I have
been able, in two words, to point out, with cer-
tainty, the plant I mean. I tell you the name
of the family, or, I should call it, genus, to which
a plant belongs — say, a tulip, which is the
genus ; and as there are many sorts of tulips,
I add another name, which designates the par-
ticular sort of tulip. Now, by referring to any
botanical book, which contains the description
of the genus tulip, you will see whether the
flower you fancy to be a tulip, agrees with it :
if it does so, you have gained one step towards
ascertaining the true name of your plant. But,
as you find by your book that there are n^any
UTILITY OP BOTANY. 141
sorts of tulips, you examine the plant, and read
the descriptions of the different kinds, until you
find one that corresponds with your flower, and
then you have both genus and species.
Now, if this sort of character had not been
applied to this particular plant, and I wanted to
describe it to you, what difficulty should I have
found in making you understand, by letter, that
one I wished to describe! Try yourself to
write such a description of a plant, as shall give
every one who reads it a true notion of what
you intend to speak of; distinguish it from all
others in colour and shape, both of leaves,
flower, mode, and time of growing.
The time which you would find that this
would take, would be almost endless ; besides,
the talent and powers of remark which would
be required, both in the describer and the
reader, would be considerable.
142 PROVINCE OP BOTANY. [AUG.
Botany is a new science. In ancient times,
there were no such divisions of plants, and,
therefore, none or few of those described in the
works of old authors, can be with any certainty
known.
The mode of dividing plants into classes, is
done by taking some particular parts of the
flowers as characters, and all that answer in
that respect, are ranged under the same class ;
thus you will find what are termed the anthers,
always of the same number in a tulip, and this
is made to form one of the signs, or marks, of
the family ; and it is by knowing thoroughly
these signs, or marks, that a botanist is able at
once to distinguish any flower.
Suppose, therefore, a person wishes to tell
you all the flowers he finds growing on the
Alps, and he sends you a list of three hundred
names of the different genera, adding to the
LAYERS OF CARNATIONS. 143
name of the family or genus of each, what is
termed the specific name, to shew which particu-
lar kind belonging to the genus is intended.
Thus, on half a page, he can tell with certainty,
all the plants he wishes to describe; and
although you do not yourself know them, yet, by
referring to some botanical work, you are made
acquainted with their history, habits, &,c. ; but
if these means had not existed, what difficulties
would there not have been in describing each
particular plant ! Indeed, nothing short gf an
actual picture would be sufficient.
I shall be glad to learn that you are not con-
tent with growing plants only, but determine to
know them scientifically, and also their uses
and properties. The first book on botany you
look into will shew you how imperfect is my
description of the science.
I have made a long digression, but, I trust.
144 LAYERS OF CARNATIONS. [AUG.
not an uninteresting one. I now continue my
directions concerning carnations.
If you have not laid as many as are wanted,
or if those which are laid have not taken root,
you may continue to lay them during the
beginning of this month ; but it is not advisable
that this should be delayed till August, for,
unless the weather be very favourable, these
layers will not have time to make strong roots
before winter comes. The stems of such as
have done flowering should be cut off close to
the roots, and the sam& may be done by the
rooted layers which you intend to pot and keep
in frames during the winter. After they are
potted in fine, rich, light, vegetable mould, with
a small quantity of loam, they must be set in
a frame and watered. During the hot days,
they ought to be shaded from the sun, and
allowed no air till they have rooted, which you
CARNATION LAYERS. 145
will know by their leaves becoming erect; after
which, give them air, by degrees, till you can
venture to take the glass quite off.
I have told you what to do, but it is not my
practice to pot all my layers ; though-I gene-
rally keep a few carnations in pots, lest a very
severe or wet winter should destroy those left
out in the borders. I therefore take off half my
layers when they have rooted, and set them in
a bed as I do pinks, and protect them during
the frosty and wet weather with hoops and a
mat, in the same manner as I have before
directed ; the other half I leave on the parent
plant, and in the spring transplant them into
the borders.
You may lay Indian pinks, sweet-williams, or
any plants of a like natuie. Indian pinks,
however, are rather tender, irid do not so well
stand a hard, or wet winter.
10 N
146 MANAGEMENT OF CUTTINGS, &c. [AUG.
I have talked about shading weak plants from
the sun, and excluding air from cuttings, &,c.,
without, however, telling you the reason ; and
so far I have erred : for, when you learn the
reason, you will know when you ought to
do so.
The sun and air dry up the sap or moisture
of plants, and if a plant be weak, (which it is
when transplanted, because the roots, being
disturbed, and many of the small fibres injured,
it cannot exercise the office of collecting new
sap or nourishment,) then the object is to save
as much of the nourishment in the plant from
being exhausted as possible, by keeping away
the sun and air until it is in a state to furnish a
full supply of sap.
The same observation applies to a cutting
which has no roots: here it is material, except
in the case of very freely striking or rooting
MANAGEMENT OP CUTTINGS, &c. 147
plants, to keep all the sap in the plant until
new roots are formed to supply it with more •
and hence the reason of putting cuttings under
a glass, which excludes the air ; but, whenever
the roots are formed, the glasses should be
removed, as, by excluding the air, little sap is
exhausted, the roots are not called on to supply
much, and therefore (Jo not grow; and the
plant dwindles away.
Try this, and be convinced; one failure, with
the cause of it found out, will often teach more
than twenty successful experiments. Adversity
and misfortune, in all things, are good, though
hard mistresses.
If you have any wish to raise bulbous roots
from seeds, these should now be sown in pots
or boxes ; but it will be so long before these
seedlings come to perfection, even with great
experience and care, that I should advise you
148 THE TIGER FLOWER. [AUG.
to procure offsets of crown-imperials, martagon
lilies, irises, and others of this description:
paeonies, also, should be planted now.
I shall send, when I take them up, bulbs of
the magnificent Ferraria tigridia, (tiger flower,)
which I have succeeded in raising from seed so
well, that I had this year a large bed of flow-
ering plants of my own raising. Its flower is,
in my opinion, the handsomest among the bul-
bous-rooted, but, unfortunately, it is also the
shortest lived ; though it compensates for this,
in some measure, by producing daily, for nearly
three months, new flowers. I shall send, also,
one bulb of a very handsome yellow variety of
this plant, which is called Ferraria conchiflora.
I send, likewise, the arethusa bulbosa; it flowr-
ers in June, and has an elegant purple flower.
You may begin now to transplant and propa-
gate most sorts of herbaceous roots, by dividing
CAUTIONS IN TRANSPLANTING. 149
them, or by slipping off pieces of the plant,
which may be either potted or planted in the
borders. This work will depend, of course, on
the state of the weather. Should there have
been no rain, and the ground be hard and dry,
it must be deferred to a fitter time, as also
transplanting into the borders the seedling
biennials and perennials which were sown in
the spring.
When you transplant under a burning sun,
before the plant can recover, the sun takes
away the moisture, and the plant either dies, or
is so long recovering, that the season passes
away before it is able to produce its;flowers.
In case , you should be unavoidably obliged to
transplant in hot weather, shade the root with
a garden pot, which should be taken off at
night, that the plant may have the benefit of the
dew. When a plant which is too large to be
150 CAUTIONS IN TRANSPLANTING. [AUG.
covered by a pot is transplanted, a deep basket
will answer the purpose ; indeed, small baskets
are preferable to pots, and are manufactured for
the purpose of covering plants, at the establish-
ment for the education of the indigent blind.
I am now going to sow mignonette in pots,
to keep in a cold frame through the winter.
When the seedlings come up, I allow only four
plants to each pot, and give them as much air
as possible during the winter. After they
have flowered in the spring, I cut them down,
and turn them out in the borders, where they
make good plants, and flower again sooner than
the spring-sown seed. I am also busy collect-
ing plants for the rock work, which I told you
of. v Among these, saxifrages are what I am
most desirous of obtaining : now is the fit time
to divide them.
My garden continues to be very gay ; though
FLOWERS IN BLOOM. 151
the first blaze has passed off. I have in flower
three sorts of Lobelia; and, by the by, I ought
to have told you to get a plant of each in the
spring, as they are easily propagated by divid-
ing the roots, either as soon as they have flow-
ered, or in the spring : some of mine, in a turf
border, are now four feet high. My Salvia
splendens, (scarlet sage,) promises to be very
fine shortly ; and the Amaryllis lutea is flower-
ing very well; but the China asters are at
present the greatest attraction of my garden, as
the dahlias have not yet opened sufficiently to
shew all their beauty. I have many things, be-
sides, among the herbaceous plants ; such as
Jlsckpias tuberosa, (or orange coloured swallow-
wort;) different varieties of Phlox and Eupatori-
um; and three sorts ofLiatris, (gay feather,) viz:
spicata, squarrosa, and scariosa. The gerani-
ums, and other green-house plants, planted out
152 FLOWERS IN BLOOM. [AUG.
in May, are flowering well, especially four va-
rieties of Chelone, which I raised last year from
cuttings ; and am now going to strike cuttings
of yellow Gerandia and Orpine, or live-for-ever,
to keep through the winter.
I have written a longer letter than usual
to-day, but it will be the last long letter you
will receive from me on gardening, as I shall
have, towards the close of the year, but few
instructions to give.
Ever your affectionate friend,
G.
CARNATIONS. 153
LETTER IX.
September.
I HAVE already said so much on the cul-
ture of carnations, that I fear I shall tire you ;
yet I must add, that if you have potted any lay-
ers, and they are already rooted, they should
be taken out of the frame, and a small quantity
of water given to them in dry weather. I have
written more on carnations than on any flower,
perhaps because I have myself raised so many
showy, (though not what are considered valua-
ble varieties,) that it has become my favourite
flower: besides, I find the seedlings easily
grown in borders. They flower at a time when
the blaze of hardy annuals and roses is past,
and before the most tender flowers begin to
blossom ; added to this, T think the perfume of
154 PIPINGS OP PINKS. [SEPT.
the carnation nearly as delightful as that of the
rose or the violet; the plants remain a long time
in flower, and do not occupy much space.
I ought to have told you, in my last letter,
to transplant the pipings of pinks when they
have struck ; this is easily known, because they
begin to shoot up as soon as they have roots.
I should not think they will be much hurt from
being kept under the glass, if they have been
allowed air since they began to grow : this you
must not fail to do with all cuttings, before they
are transplanted into the borders, or the sud-
den chill occasioned by removing them at once
from the heat of the glass, added to the dis-
turbing of their roots, Avould seriously injure
tnem.
If you wish to have a bed of pinks next year,
prepare one now of light mould, rake it smooth,
tread it down, and plant the pipings in rows,
BOX EDGINGS. 155
five or six inches apart, and let the rows be at
the same distance from each other. Next
spring, take up every other plant, and put
them where they may be required, in the
borders.
It is not advisable to plant pipings at once in
the borders, as on account of their small size, it
is easier to water a bed of them, than to look
for them among other plants, and they are
therefore better attended to when together.
If you did not plant box edgings in the
spring, the latter end of the present month will
be the time when this should be done ; and
any edgings that have grow^n too thick, may be
divided. Slip the box plants, (each piece hav-
ing roots,) and plant them thick enough for the
shoots to touch each other, so as to form an
edging close enough to prevent the gravel get-
156 COLLECTING SEEDS. [SEPT.
ting into the borders. I have already told you
how to ensure the edges being straight.
You must have found it necessary to redou-
ble your attention and labour last month, in
order to keep your garden neat ; weeds at this
season, as well as flowers, grow apace : there
must also be added to the usual work of tying
up, rolling, cutting off dead flower stems, raking
borders, &LC., the additional trouble of clearing
them from the leaves of trees which may grow
near, and which, if left on the beds, give them
a very untidy look.
You must continue to collect seeds, and dry
them as I before directed. Be particular in
choosing a dry day for gathering them; for
seeds are apt to decay, if put away in a damp
state; from carelessness in this respect on the
part of those who raise seeds for sale, great
disappointment accrues to the purchaser. Some
PECULIARITIES OF THE BALSAM. 157
seeds require to be gathered before they are
perfectly ripe ; for when they come to full ma-
turity, they burst their pods and are lost ; for
example, the balsam, which is called impatient,
or irritable, from the seed flying out when the
seed vessel is touched.
This property of the balsam is very striking,
and is well worth your minute observation ; it
is one of the many and admirable means which
Providence has taken for the dispersion of
seeds, in order to continue the propagation of
the species. You will observe the elastic spring
which the seed vessel gives when touched ; so
as to throw the seed to some distance. This
property is more remarkable in the wild Eng-
lish balsam, or Noli me tangere ; and still more
in the spurting cucumber, or Elaterium.
I shall not digress into an account of the
different modes by which seeds are scattered :
158 SEEDLING STOCKS. [SEPT.
you must have remarked those which have
downy wings attached to them, as those of the
thistle, which float in the air for miles ; others
are carried to great distances by birds, &c.
These subjects are amusing, nay more than
merely amusing, they serve to display the wis-
dom of Providence in the creation ; they show
how great must He be who ordained and go-
verned even these minute things ; and how kind
must He be who created all for our enjoyment
and use.
I desired you in June, to sow some Bromp-
ton and Ten-week stocks : such plants as have
shot forth half a dozen leaves may be potted,
to be kept through the winter in a frame ; a few
may be pricked into the borders, to take the
chance of living through the winter : if they do
live, they will blow finer than those in the pots,
though not so early. The pots must be well
PREPARATION OF COMPOSTS. 159
drained, as stocks do not thrive well if kept
wet. About four of the Ten-weeks may be
put into a large sized pot ; but the Brompton
stocks should be potted singly, to flower finely.
Like all other plants, they must be watered
and shaded till the roots are established, and
then treated in the same manner as the mig-
nonette; allowing air whenever the weather
will permit, or they will grow too tall, and the
lower leaves will fall off: stocks merely require
to be kept from frost and damp.
If you intend to increase the size of the
shrub border, you ought now to get some fresh
turf, and put it in a heap ; turn it over occasion-
ally, that all parts may be in turn exposed to
the frost, which will cause it to fall to pieces ;
next spring it will be fit to use. Procure also
some light loam for potting, or making new
beds.
160 EFFECTS OF A RAINY SEASON. [SEPT.
My dahlias are now in full bloom, though I
cannot say they are as fine as I have had them
in some seasons ; this I attribute to the quantity
of rain that has fallen this year : it was the same
with the China asters ; they, like all the tender
annuals, grew so much after they were planted
out, that they became too large and coarse, ex-
pended their strength in foliage, and flowered
indifferently.
Besides many of the plants which I mention-
ed in my last as being in flower, I have now
Phlox pyramidalis, Aster amellus, and the Ca-
rolina lily: these, added to the dahlias and a
few hardy annuals sown late, keep up the re-
putation of my garden very well. Among the
most delightful flowers in bloom, at this season,
I consider the Liatris elegans (gay feather) to
hold a high rank. There is a description of
violet, the Russian, which is very valuable, since
IMPROVED CARNATION CURB. 161
it flowers during many of the summer and
autumn months. I wish we could obtain it.
I have lately seen a new method for prevent-
ing the pods of carnations from bursting, which
I think superiour to the old one : it consists in
cutting off both ends of a broad bean, and
thrusting out the contents: the skin of the
bean, which is remarkably tough, is then drawn
over the pod of the carnation; there it dries,
and its toughness prevents the carnation flower
from splitting it. This plan is better than that
of the card, which is unsightly.
We have turned what was formerly rather an
ugly object on the lawn, into an additional orna-
ment to the garden. You must remember the
cherry-tree, under which we have so often sat
and played together: for some years it has
been dying, and the gardener wished much to
cut it down. We resisted this, because this
tree has always been called "the children's
162 AN ORNAMENTAL PIECE. [SEPT.
cherry-tree." Last year, I begged permission to
make a border round it, and promised my
mother, if I did not succeed in making it orna-
mental before the end of the present autumn,
that we would no longer interfere to save it
from being rooted up. In the border I planted,
against the tree, variegated and evergreen ivy,
and every kind of creeper that I could procure:
my plan succeeded admirably; all have surviv-
ed, and the tree is more than half covered with
a luxuriant foliage, far superiour to what it natu-
rally should possess. The multiflora rose, dif-
ferent sorts of clematis, cluster flowering gly-
cine, and several other climbing plants, have
successfully decked it with flowers. The Vir-
ginian creeper, periploca, and ivy, will be its best
ornaments. I have also increased the width
of the border, and filled it with varieties of
hearts-ease.
Your affectionate friend, G.
DECLINE OP THE SEASON. 163
LETTER X.
October.
I AM delighted to hear that you found my
letters short; I infer from it, that our corres-
pondence continues to be interesting. I
have now so few general instructions to give,
that I must confine myself to finding employ-
ment for you during the few weeks that you
can yet work in the garden. I shall have
scarcely any directions to give you for Novem-
ber and December ; as, during these two
months, I amuse myself in-doors with books,
writing, and my other occupations, which I will
not take up your time in relating, lest you
should abandon your garden for some new%
amusement during trie last month that it is pos-
sible to work in it, with any degree of pleasure.
164 PLANTING BULBS. [OCT.
I am now busily preparing a bed for my
bulbs ; this is a matter of great consequence !
If gardening teaches you neatness, it may also
teach you foresight ; for as you sow, so you
must reap ; and if you do not provide in winter,
your garden in the summer will be barren.
The soil I use for the bulbs is composed of
rich, light mould, sand, and rotten leaves. I
plant with a round-ended dibble, the hyacinths
and tulip roots in rows about five inches deep,
and six inches apart ; I put a little fine sand in
each hole before I put in the bulb, over which I
sprinkle a little more, and then cover it with
between three and four inches of earth. Cro-
cuses and snowdrops, of course, require to be
planted closer and not so deep. The narcis-
sus, I find, succeed best under a t south wall:
they should be planted as near the wall as pos-
sible, as the roots then receive less wet ; and
BULBS IN POTS. 165
may therefore be left in the ground, where they
will form fine patches. I have some planted in
this manner, which appear to me to flower finer
every year; in a bed, they should be planted
four inches apart, and three or four deep.
Bulbs intended to flower in pots should be
potted in good soil, such as I have described,
and placed in a frame, or under a south wall,
and then covered afoot deep with mould: this
process occasions the bulb to throw out roots
before the leaves begin to grow, and thus there
is good support for the leaves and flowers ; for
it is from the roots that a portion of the nou-
rishment is supplied: thus, by covering the bulb
deeply with earth, the roots, which will grow at
a temperature lower than the leaves, vegetate
first. This is the mode in which the plant
grows in its natural state ; and as I have said
before, the surest method of succeeding in
166 BULBS IN POTS. [OCT.
growing flowers will be, as much as possible, to
imitate nature.
The custom of planting bulbs at the top of
the pot, and then putting them into a green-
house, or warm room, effectually prevents them
from flowering well, as it sets the leaves and
the flower growing before there are sufficient
roots to afford them support. When the leaves
of the roots which have been buried have
grown from two to four inches above the pot,
they may be taken from the mould as they are
wanted, and placed in a green-house, or in the
window of a warm room, to flower. On taking
the pots out of the mould, the leaves will be
found of a sickly yellow colour.
I have already explained that the absence of
light is the cause of this ; placing them at a
window in a strong light will soon restore them
to their natural colour. This process of burying
MANAGEMENT OF BULBS. 167
the bulbs, which I have just mentioned, is not
much known to our gardeners ; it is, however,
the manner in which all the fine forced roots
are grown by the London nurserymen.
I have told you that most of the bulbous-
rooted plants are natives of dry climates, and
are only watered by the spring rains : take care,
therefore, that your bulbs do not have much wa-
ter till they begin to grow strongly ; and select
a place to bury them in, where they will be
sheltered from too much wet ; though a small
quantity will be necessary, when they begin to
graw freely. The soil they are covered with
should be light, so as to allow the rain to pass
quickly through. While they are in flower,
they may be well supplied with water. I told
you to put sand round each root: this is to
form a drain, because water is not retained by
sand ; it therefore prevents the wet from lodg-
ing round the roots, or in its coats.
168 PLANTING TULIPS. [OCT.
You will observe that a tulip, when well
grown, has a very hard skin : this should be
carefully taken off before planting, (so as not to
injure the rudiments of roots which you will
perceive at the bottom;) the reason why this
should be done, is, that the skin, when split by
the frost, forms a sort of cup which holds water;
hence the root, being held as it were in a basin
of water before it begins to grow, is often de-
Itroyed by the rot.
Those who grow narcissus and hyacinth roots
in glasses, should, after putting them in the
glasses, place them in a cold cellar, to make
the roots shoot at least three inches before the
leaves, for the reason I have already given.
About the middle of the month, anemonies
intended to flower early, should be planted in
the same manner as I formerly directed as to
ranunculuses, which may also be planted at the
ANEMONIES AND RANUNCULUSES. 169
end of the month, or in the beginning of No-
vember, unless the soil be cold and wet; in
which case, it is better to wait till the end of
February, or beginning of March.
As the roots of ranunculuses and anemonies
begin to swell as soon as they are put into the
ground, and do not vegetate for some time, it
will be necessary, if there is any sign of frosty
weather, to cover the ground with straw ; and
if the frost be very severe, a mat must be*
thrown over the straw, but both mat and straw
ought to be taken off as soon as the frost is gone.
The reason why this covering should be put
on is, because the root swells from the addition
of the water which it has soaked up, and as
water freezes much more readily than the
juices of the plant, the root is liable to be in-
jured by the frost ; and if once frozen before
vegetation has commenced, it decays.
P
170 PRESERVING GREEN HOUSE PLANTS. [OCT.
If the cuttings of the green-house plants
have failed in striking, you ought now to take up
the old plants, pot them, and place them in a
green-house, or cold frame. By cold frame, I
always mean one placed on the ground, without
warm dung or tan ; some ashes should be laid
at the bottom and beaten down hard, which, in
some measure, will prevent worms from getting
into the pots. This I think the best manner of
preserving all sorts of Alpine and hardy green-
house plants through the winter, such as scarlet
geraniums, chrysanthemums, aletriss, stocks, lo-
belias, &c. The latter sometimes survive the
winter in the open ground ; but, as a very hard
or wet season might destroy them, a few roots
ought always to be potted.
If the green-house or frame is too full to
admit of your putting the old plants in either,
you may adopt, for the geraniums, a plan I have
GENERAL DIRECTIONS. 171
seen practised with success, which is to strip
off the leaves and roll the plants up in a piece
of matting, and keep them in the cellar till the
spring, when they may be potted and planted
out again : they will require to be cut to a few
shoots, or they will not make handsome plants.
The different species of geraniums may be
increased in two ways, either by sowing the
seeds or parting the roots. Where the first
method is adopted, the seeds should be sown
in the autumn, as soon as they have become
perfectly ripened, either in pots or a shady
border in the garden, where the mould is light
and fine. As soon as the plants have acquired
a few inches in growth, they should be pricked
out into other pots, or beds of similar earth, at
the distance of five or six inches in the latter
case ; but where this cannot be done, they may
be permitted to remain until the following
172 GENERAL DIRECTIONS. [OCT
spring, and then be put out into other pots or
borders, where they are to continue, being oc-
casionally watered in a moderate manner.
In cases where the parting of the roots is
practised, care should be taken not to divide
them too much.
Continue to clear the borders of decayed
annuals, &c. ; to divide and transplant herba-
ceous plants, taking care to mark all roots with
sticks, lest, in digging, they should be injured
by the spade : in fact, I must advise you to
leave no work of this kind undone, as there is
always more general business to do in the
spring than at this time of year. You may also
cut back such flowering shrubs as have grown
too large, as soon as they lose their leaves ; put
sticks to those that require it, taking care
to suit the sticks to the size of the shrub, so
that they may be seen as little as possible.
PRUNING FLOWERING SHRUBS. 173
I think I have before warned you to take care,
in pruning shrubs, to distinguish between those
that form. -their blossom buds, at the end of the
shoots which are to produce the flowers in the
spring, and those which produce their flowers
from the shoots, or any part of the stem. The
lilac is an example of the former: the buds which
are to blow in the spring, are made in the autumn,
at the tips of the shoots ; and if you take, in
September, a full round bud of the lilac, you
will see the little embryo flowrer and leaves form-
ed ready for the next year. The rose is an ex-
ample of the latter class : here the flowers are
formed on the new spring shoots on any part
of the stem, and it is therefore best to prune
away, in the autumn, all the old shoots of the
preceding year, down to two or three buds,
from which the new shoots arise to produce
flowers in the following summer.
174 EVER BLOOMING ROSE. [OCT.
Towards the end of the month, you may
begin to transplant the following shrubs : — Al-
thea frutex, Daphne mezereon, lilacs, syringas,
honeysuckles, roses, jasmines, &,c. But let this
be done with care ; and do not, to save a little
trouble in digging, make the holes too small for
the roots, which should all be carefully preserv-
ed, (unless the plant grows too luxuriantly,) and
well spread out. If, however, the shrub grows
too freely, then cut the roots short, this will
check the growth for a year or two. Next see
that you place the stem upright in the hole;
and after having thrown in a little earth, shake
the tree, that the mould may settle about the
roots, and tread it over to keep the plant
steady.
When planting roses, endeavour to obtain
suckers of one called the Chinese ever blooming
rose ; it will help admirably to cover the paling,
CAUTIONS IN WATERING. 175
as it is a trailing rose. I have planted it against
a shed, which I have covered with ivy and other
creepers : , it grows very fast, and flowers very
early. Mine has been planted three years;
and, last year, it made one shoot, or sucker,
which was at least fifteen feet in length ; this
branched out on both sides, and, early in June,
was covered with blossoms : this year, also, it
has made a great many very strong suckers.
You must water the carnations, and all plants
that are in the cold frame, during the winter ;
but this must be done with great care and dis-
cretion. I have before observed, plants are
more likely to die from damp and water soak-
ing in the pots, than from cold. They ought
now to have the glasses put on the frames eve-
ry night ; but, during the day, they should have
plenty of air.
The frosts have not yet injured the dahlias ;
176 ROMAN ARBOUR. [OCT.
they are now almost the only ornament of the
garden: the stocks, mignonette, and some JEno-
theras, still exist, but they have nearly lost both
smell and colour. Some green-house plants,
which I turned out under a wall, are still lin-
gering in flower : Calceolaria rugosa; night-
scented stocks, and Plumbago capensis, (for-
merly considered a hot-house plant,) are among
the number.
You will receive, with this letter, the last
basket of plants that I shall send this year ; and
with it a drawing of a Roman arbour, which was
made from one discovered in the ruins of Pom-
peii; and which, in our love for classical
ornament, we mean, with the assistance of my
brother, to imitate at the end of our garden.
I must say, however, the seats which the Ro-
mans used for reclining on, do not appear to be
either pleasant or convenient.
OCTOBER.
A ROMAN ARBOUR.
178 TURNING UP BORDERS. [NOV.
LETTER XL
November.
MY instructions for the present month will
occupy but a short space ; though, perhaps, you
will employ some time in fulfilling them. I
know but little to be done during this month,
except digging the borders, and laying them up
rough and hollow, for the winter. Before be-
ginning to do this, pull up all the annuals ; then
trim round such roots as have grown too large,
as your plants should never be allowed to get
too big for the size of your garden.
Prune such shrubs as require it ; this you will
not do to azaleas and rhododendrons, nor to
any shrubs that have already formed their bloom
buds for the next year. Go round, and put
markers and sticks to such roots as require
TURNING UP BORDERS. 179
them, and take away the sticks of those from
which you have cut away the flower stems. If
the sticks be still sound, clean them, tie them
up in bundles, and put them away with the
tools ; this will save some labour next year, as
there will be fewer to cut. Take off suckers
where they are not wanted, and give them
away, or .plant them deep in the ground all to-
gether till the spring; this, in gardeners' lan-
guage, is called "laying them by the heels:"
perhaps you may then find some use for them.
After having done all this, turn over the bor-
ders with a small spade, or a fork, if you have
one, unless the soil be very light. The dead
leaves may be dug in, and buried deep in the
borders, as they are of great use in manuring
and lightening the soil ; but if the soil be much
exhausted or worn out, from having been long
cultivated without any manure, you will do well
180 PLANTING BULBS. [NOV
to dig in some very rotten dung, or an addi-
tional quantity of decayed leaves; though, in
general, it is best not to add much manure ; the
- flower borders are not to be raked after this
digging, but left rough all the winter, that the
frosts may break the ground and make it crum-
ble.
The tulips and ranunculus roots should be
planted about the middle of the month: the
hyacinths, I presume, were put in the ground
in October. The London tulip fanciers usually
plant their bulbs on or about the Lord Mayor's
day. You will say this is rather a cockney time
to fix on. Remember to protect them as well
as the anemonies, hyacinths, and ranunculuses,
from heavy rains, as well as from frosts ; espe-
cially from frosts coming after much rain, when
the roots are much saturated with wet. Should
the winter be very severe, you must put a little
straw over them
CAUTIONS AGAINST WET. 181
You ought now to collect a heap of leaves to
rot into mould for next year ; and your turf and
loam heaps should be turned and broken occa-
sionally. The gravel walks should be swept
and rolled every week during the winter, even
when there is no work to be done in the gar-
den: and indeed, I think you will find this no
bad exercise in cold weather.
Do not forget to pay great attention to the
beds of carnations; they must <be protected
from both frost and wet. And, I may here
mention again, that the great object with re-
spect to most of our garden plants, like carna-
tions, &LC., is to guard against too much wet ;
this is far more injurious than frost: many of
the plants in our gardens are killed by the
effects of wet more than by the frost.
This observation applies particularly to Alpine
plants, or those that come from mountainous
182 ALPINE PLANTS.
countries, which are covered all through the
winter with snow. You will be surprised to
find that a plant which, in its native country,
lives well through an eight months' winter, un-
der a coat of snow, dies and dwindles away
during our far milder climate.
I must try to explain this, as well as I can ;
and if I succeed, it will be of great advantage in
two ways : first, it will give you a habit of
thinking, and of looking into the reason of
things, and will teach you not to remain in silly
wonder at what you cannot understand; se-
condly, it will give you the best chance of grow-
ing Alpines, which are my favourite plants ; so,
indeed, they must be with all who have small
gardens; as they are generally dwarfs, and
very beautiful ; moreover, nearly all of them are
amongst our earliest harbingers of spring.
I must, however, make you a bit of a philoso-
PLANTS PROTECTED BY SNOW/ 183
\->her, to enable you to understand me. Some
bodies retain heat longer than others, and snow
is one of these bodies : different substances are
said to be good or bad conducters of heat, in
proportion to their capacity of keeping or losing
it. Air is a body, marble is a body, and water
is a body; but when marble and water are
surrounded by air, you find the air is warm, in
comparison with water and marble.
Now, if these bodies retained heat in the
same degree as the air which surrounds them,
their temperature would be the same ; yet you
find the water and marble colder than the air;
that is, the marble and the w^ater part writh
some of the heat to the air, which therefore has
more of it, and is consequently warmer: nowr,
snow does not part with heat quickly ; that is,
it does not become cold quickly, which is the
same thing ; and when it has formed a covering
184 CONTRAST OF CLIMATES. [NOV.
to the earth, and the external air is colder than
the snow, the snow retains, in a great degree,
its heat, and prevents the external air from
communicating its cold to the earth beneath;
so that plants under snow are thus, in a great
measure, prevented from experiencing the in-
tense cold of the external air ; in other words,
they are not colder than the snow itself, whilst,
however, the air is far colder.
In this country we have often intense cold,
and no thick coating of snow to cover the plants,
which are consequently left exposed, and are
killed by it. In addition, the rains of our au-
tumns and winters soak into the ground, and
into the heart of the plant ; and as the principle
or power of life is very weak during the winter,
the plant being in a dormant state, cannot resist
the effect of the water, which rots it, beginning
first with the leaves, which die on the approach
AN ALPINE SPRING. 185
of winter ; and the disease, or rot, is continued
from the dead to the living part.
Again, in the Alps, the plant, under the snow,
is prevented from growing till the snow melts
and the warm winds come; but in our cli-
mate, it happens often in the winter, and in the
early part of spring, that a few fine days will
cause the plant to grow before its time ; then
frosts return, check, and sometimes even kill
the opening buds, which were reserved for the
great effort of nature to be made in spring; the
consequence is, that the plant either dies, or
lingers in a poor miserable state of existence,
scarcely able to make leaves again to keep it
alive, far less to throw up flowers. Yet the
same plant, in its native Alps, secure under its
snow mantle, reposes throughout the cold, till
warmed by the sun, which at once melts the
snow and calls it into life and bloom in a few
Q
186 THE BRITISH SPRING. [NOV
days, without the fear of those chilling chances
which our uncertain climate dooms it to expe-
rience.
Without being a great traveller, I have seen
the effect of an Alpine spring. In May, all is
one mass of white snow, silence, and desolation.
The power of the sun, with the coming year, at
once turns the white to green, and in a few
days, whole rocks, whole districts, I may say,
are covered with white and yellow saxifrages,
different sorts of violets, primulas, and blue
gentians; and the little trailing strawberry
clings to the sides of endless ranges of towering
rocks : this change, effected in so short a time,
appears more like enchantment than the slowr
and uncertain return of spring to which we are
accustomed.
I do not write all this to put you out of hu-
mour with our spring : it has, like that of the
MANAGEMENT O^ ALPINE PLANTS. 187
Alps, its beauties : the fine sunny days coming
at intervals, a soft air, after the drying March
winds, the cheerfulness of the birds, and the
struggling plants venturing forth, (often too
boldly,) are perhaps as pleasing, from the vari-
ety and the uncertainty, as the sudden and
certain change I have attempted to describe.
You will see by what I have said, that, if you
grow Alpine plants, you must imitate, as far as
possible, an Alpine climate ; and, as you have
no certainty of allowing six months of snowy
jackets for the natives of snowclad hills, you
must discover a substitute for it : this will best
be found in a frame, in which the most tender
of these plants may be preserved during the
winter. Care must be taken that the pots be
well drained ; and a mat should be thrown over
the frames during very frosty weather.
The more hardy Alpine plants, which are left
-
188 DAHLIAS. [NOV.
out all the winter, should be planted high above
the ground, on rock work, that the wet may
drain off, and these, as well as such as are in
pots, should not have a southern aspect, lest
they be too early and treacherously coaxed
into vegetation. This treatment is absolutely
necessary^ to preserve all the primula tribe,
among which the auricula, (the most beautiful
of florists' flowers,) is classed.
I had almost forgotten the dahlias: I am
abdut to take up mine, their leaves being de-
stroyed by the frost three nights ago. I find
I am more fortunate than some of my friends,
whose dahlias were touched by the frost in the
middle of last month. I shall now take them,
cut off the stems close to the roots, and put
them away in a dry place, secure from cold and
damp till the spring.
The same must be done by the roots of mar-
J
ARGEMONE GRANDIFLORA. Large-lowered Mexican
190 DAHLIAS. [NOV.
vel of Peru and Commelina cczlestis. If, how-
ever, the soil be dry, the roots of dahlias may
be left in the ground all the winter, taking care
to put a shovel full of rotten leaves, or very rotten
dung, over the crown of each root. This is not,
however, quite safe, as the frost or wet some-
times destroys them.
The few plants that continue to flower are
very shabby, though (till my dahlias were de-
stroyed) I could gather a handsome nosegay
for the library twice a week ; I have now only
an Jlrgemone grandiflora, Dianthus superbus,
the white tobacco, double white chamomile,
yellow fumaria, a few asters, and some stocks,
to boast of; and the flowers of these are so
pale, and the plants have grown so tall and
straggling, that they are scarcely ornamental:
yet, as I feel that till the chrysanthemums blow,
they are all I am to have this year, I cannot
make up my mind to pull them up.
CHRYSANTHEMUMS. 191
I must now conclude, in order that we may
both profit by the few tolerably dry days that
we may have this month, to put our gardens in
proper order against the winter.
Ever yours sincerely,
G
192 VEGETABLE PHYSIOLOGY. [DEC.
LETTER XII.
December 3.
I HAVE really so little to add to my directions
for the last month, on the subject of the garden,
that, as we are to meet soon, I should not have
written again, had you not especially desired
that I should send one more letter on the sub-
ject, to add to the eleven I have already sent.
I am well pleased by the care you have taken
of these, and I hope they will be useful as a gar-
dening manual. I recommend, however, that
you should, from time to time, add your own
observations, and the results of your experience
to them. If this be done with care, you will
soon obtain a valuable stock of information.
My principal object has been to call your at-
tention, generally, to the subject of gardening
VEGETABLE PHYSIOLOGY. 193
and botany ; and I shall have, succeeded in my
object, if I induce you to think on the subject;
you must, however, seek elsewhere for more
detailed instruction.
If you should pay some attention to vegeta-
ble physiology, I think you would derive much
amusement from merely seeing and under-
standing the reason of the different operations
that are daily taking place in a garden.
Vegetable physiology is not, like botany, a
mere classification of plants, and determination
of their names : it is the science which makes
one acquainted with their internal and external
structure, their nature, habits, properties, man-
ner of growing, and the functions, or duties, of
their different organs : we learn from it, how the
hard and apparently dry seed, -on being placed
in the ground, begins to germinate, or bud
forth; and the reason why this process takes
13 R
194 VEGETABLE PHYSIOLOGY. [DEO.
place under ground only, when the seed is almost
entirely deprived of light and air, which are,
you already know, essentially necessary to the
health of that portion of the plant which is
above ground. You will trace the seed from
the first period of its existence, in the bosom of
the flower, through its various stages, till it
becomes an individual, separate plant.
After becoming acquainted with the natural
organs of plants, you will see how the sap, (ori-
ginally merely water, containing different crude
materials dissolved in it,) absorbed by the roots,
the extremities of which, for that purpose,
resemble little sponges, rises, every spring,
through the wood of the trees, and is conveyed
to the bud, which it developes, and to the
leaves, in which the evaporation of the useless
particles takes place, through pores furnished
lor that purpose. You will follow it in its
VEGETABLE PHYSIOLOGY. 195
descent through the bark, depositing, in its
progress, all the nourishing particles it contains,
and thereby increasing the tree in size and
height.
The examination of the flower, the different
modes in which the fruit is formed, and the pe-
culiar secretions of plants, (such as oils,, gums,
resin, milk, &c.,) cannot, I think, fail to interest.
Vegetable physiology is most pleasing, per-
haps, to those acquainted in some degree with
the physiology of animals; because they are
able to compare the organs, growth, &,c., of
both animal and vegetable kingdoms. It must
be regarded as an important science, if we
merely consider the direct benefits we derive
from some plants in nourishment for ourselves,
and many of the animals necessary to our
existence; and relief from sickness, by the
medicinal properties of others.
196 GARDENING AS AN AMUSEMENT.
Again, a close investigation of the structure,
habits, and diseases of plants, will not only ena-
ble us to distinguish such as are suited to our
climate, but, being intimately connected with
agriculture, will teach us how to administer to
the well being of those we already cultivate,
and thereby improve them, as well as to sup-
ply, artificially, those advantages which they
possess, naturally, in their own countries.
I have several times, I think, in my letters,
alluded to the usefulness of gardening, as an
amusement, in inculcating a love of industry,
order, and neatness : but I trust you will forgive
my repeating what I remember to have said
before, that I never wished to persuade you
that it is the most important of occupations.
I could quote what many great, and, what is
more, many good men have said with respect
to gardening, as an amusement fitted for good
GARDENING AS AN AMUSEMENT. 197
men. I shall, when I see you, relate some sto-
ries of the love of great men for the pursuit
itself. One of the wisest that ever lived in
England, — I mean Lord Bacon, — pursued gar
dening with eagerness and delight, and in its
pursuit made some of the experiments, and
acquired that habit of examination, which has
made him celebrated in every age.
We have not yet, in our country, paid that
attention to gardening, generally, which the
beauty of flowers and the benefits resulting to
the cultivator demand. But our Horticultural
Societies, by their exhibitions, are doing much
to awaken public attention, and it cannot be a
long time before the pleasures of the garden
and green-house will be fully appreciated by
our citizens.
You tell me, you continue so fond of the
garden, that you will brave the cold, during
198 OCCUPATIONS FOR THE MONTH. [DEC.
December, to work in it ; but there is little to
be done if you have finished digging, besides
keeping it swept and rolled. The frame plants,
however, must be attended to ; they must have
air, when the weather is mild, and be protected
with mats from the frosts. I have before said,
that, though the frost is to be kept from the
frames, the plants must not be allowed to grow,
with the exception of a few, to which it is natu-
ral to vegetate at this season : among these is
the Calceolaria. When you find any plant
beginning to grow, or draw, as it is termed, you
may be certain that you are treating it too
tenderly, and must alter your management,
allowing it, by degrees, more air. I have
already explained, in a preceding letter, the
reason of this.
I therefore now take my leave of the subject
on which we have been corresponding, regret-
CONCLUSION. 199
ting that I have not been able to give more
information, yet pleased to find that I have been
of some use to you.
Consider me ever as -
Your affectionate friend,
G.
INDEX.
A.
Aconite, Winter or Yellow 59
-flEnothera Lindlyana . 79
Alpine plants 181— 186.— Di-
rections for their manage-
ment 86
Alpine Spring, contrasted with
the spring in America 185
Amaryllis lutea . . . 151
American shrubs 18. 21. — Di-
rections respecting 25. 54
Anchusa Italica . . . 118
Anchusa sempervirens 118
Anemone hortensis, or Scar-
let Anemone ... 89
Anemone pulsatilla, or Pasque
flower 89
Anemonies 49. 89. — Time for
planting 168. — Instructions
. respecting . . 169. 180
Page
Annuals, general directions
for . 32, 33. 53. 62. 91
Annuals, hardy 43. 53. 91.
Annuals, half-hardy 53. 91
Annuals, tender 69. 89. 99
Arbour for a Garden . 20
Argemone Grandiflora, or
large flowered Mexican
Poppy 190
Arrangement of plants in
beds 35
Artisans mostly florists 133
Asclepias tuberosa . . 151
Aster amellus . . . 160
Auriculas, sowing seed of 42
Awning, a cheap, for bulbous
plants in flower . . 68
Azaleas 25. — Time of bloom-
ing 110
202
INDEX.
B.
Page
Bacon, Lord, fond of garden-
ing .... 7 . 197
Balm of Gilead, cuttings of 70
"Beds, forming of 22, 23.— To
be turned up for the win-
ter 179
—See Borders.
Biennials .... 55. 102
Bignonia radicans, or Trum-
pet flower .... 19
Borders, forming of 18. 25. —
Edgings for 27.— To be
turned up .... 179
Botanist, explanation of the
term 138. — Its misuse 139
Botany, how far essential to
the Gardener . . . 140
Box edgings . . .42. 155
Brompton stocks 111. 158
Bulbous roots raised from seed
147.— Soil proper for 165.
— Natural Economy of 97.
— Time for putting them in-
to the ground 164. 180.—
Instructions 97. 165, 166.—
When to be taken up 96.
Page
127.— Subsequent manage-
ment of them ... 96
Bulbous roots in glasses 168
Bulbous roots raised in pots 165
Bulbous roots, autumnal 102
C.
Calceolaria Rugosa 81. 176
Calceolaria, Yellow . 106
Californian Escholtzia . 79
Calycanthus precox . . 19
Campanula Carpatica . 118
Canada Columbine . . 65
Carnations raised from seed
71. 154.— Varieties 123.—
Descriptive catalogue of,
made from the petals 126.
Management of 124. 161.
181. — Cuttings and slips
100.— Layers 120. 125. 144.
— Cautions against wet 1*81 .
—The Tree variety . 132
Carolina Lily .... 160
Central bed, designs for 22
Cheiranthus tristis, or Night
Stock .82
Chinese Day Lily, see Heme-
rocallis Caerulea.
INDEX.
203
Page
Chinese Lychnis ... 82
Christmas Rose ... 46
Chrysanthemums, propaga-
tion of " 103
Clarkia Pulchella . . 79
Clematis Florida . . 32
Climates, contrast of . 184
Cloth of gold Crocus . 47
Colchicums, frequently identi-
fied with autumnal crocuses
102
Cold Frame .... 170
Commelina Ccelestis 75. 190
Composts to be prepared 159
Convolvulus major . . 32
Corchorus Japonica . . 33
Creepers 32
Crocuses 47. — Instructions for
planting 164
Crocuses, Autumnal 102. — To
be distinguished from Col-
chicums 102
Cuttings, various instructions
respecting 80. 86. 99. 101.
126. 146
D.
Dahlias, mode of propagating,
Page
75.— Growth 160. 175.—
When to be taken up 188
Dead leaves, useful as manure,
25. 179. 181.
Deciduous plants . . 32
Dianthus superbus 118. 190
Dividing roots of herbaceous
plants 148
Draining borders 25. — Plants
in pots 61
Dutch style of laying out a
Garden 16
E.
Edgings for borders 27. 41 . 155
Erinus Lychnidea . . - 84
Escholtzia Californiea . 79
Ever-blooming Rose . 174
Evergreens .... 30
F.
Ferraria Tigridia, or Tiger
flower 148
Florist, meaning of the term,
as distinguished from the
epithets " Gardener" and
"Botanist". ... 134
Flowering shrubs, manage-
ment of . 39
204
INDEX.
Page
Florists' Flowers . 42. 137
Fumaria Nobilis . . . 110
Fumaria, Yellow . . 190
G.
Garden, instructions for the
formation of a 15. 35. —
"Work in for January 15;
February 35; March 47;
April 58; May 75; June
92 ; July 115 ; August 132 ;
September 153 ; October
163; November 178; De-
cember 192
Garden and hot-house nose-
gays contrasted . . 29
Gardener, the, distinguished
from the Florist and Bota-
nist 134
Gardening, pleasure afforded
by it 29; Promotive of a
love of industry, neatness,
&c 116. 196
Geraniums .... 171
Geum coccineum . . 110
Gravel walks, making of 28.
— To be kept clear of weeds
109
Page
Greenhouse plants 80. 88.
125. — Directions for pre-
serving them during the
winter 171
H.
Hearts-ease .... 66
Helleborus Niger, or Christ-
mas rose .... 46
Hemerocallis Cserulea, or Chi-
nese Day Lily . . . 118
Herbaceous plants 30. 60. —
Dividing their roots 148
Hyacinth, the Musk . 89
Hyacinths 49. 67. See Bul-
bous roots.
Hyacinths, management of in
glasses 168. — Time for put-
ting them into the ground,
180
I.
Implements for gardening 38
Indian Pinks, laying of 145
Iris Germanica . . . 110
Iris Persica . . . ." 65
J.
Jasmine 19
Jasminum Revolutum . 32
INDEX.
205
K.
Kalmia
Page
31
L.
Layers of carnations 120. 125.
144 ; and of other plants
145
Laying out a Garden 15. 22
Leaves, decayed, their uses
as manure . 25. 180. 181
Liatris Scariosa . . 151
Liatris Spicata . . . 151
Liatris Squarrosa . . 151
Light essential to plants 69
Lilac, its mode of flowering
178
Lindley's ^Enothera . 79
Lithospermum Orientale 110
Lobelia 151
Lobelia, Blue ... 88
Lobelia Siphilitica, or Blue
American Lobelia . 120
Lobelia splendens . . 108
Lungwort 65
Lychnis Coronaria, or Chi-
nese Lychnis ... 82
M.
Markers, or sticks, to denote
the places of plants, of
Page
which the stems die away
in autumn . . . 172. 178
Marvel of Peru ... 188
Miffy, the gardeners' term for
flowers that die suddenly
86
Mignonette, preserved through
the winter .... 150
Mimulus rivularis . . 108
Moneywort .... 108
Multiflora Rose ... 162
Muscari Moschatum, or Musk
hyacinth .... 89
N.
Narcissus, best situation for
164. — Flowering in glasses
168
Neatness essential in garden-
ing 116. 156
Night Stock .... 85
Nosegays from the garden and
the hot-house, contrasted 29
Nummularia, or Moneywort
108
0.
Ornamental piece for a gar-
den 161
206
INDEX.
Page
Orobus Vernus, or Bitter
Vetch 65
P.
Papaver Orientale . . 110
Pasque flower . * . 89
Penstemon .... 82
Perennials, sowing 55. — Ma-
nagement of the plants 102 ;
their places to be marked in
winter .... 173. 179
Periploca Graeca ... 33
Persian Iris .... 65
Phlox, various sorts of . 151
Phlox Amoena ... 118
Phlox Ovata .... 110
Phlox Pyramidalis . . 160
Phlox Stolonifera . . 118
Petunia, or White Tobacco 81
Pinks, to make pipings of 99
154
Planting out seedlings . 61
Plants distinguished by their
several species 30. — Pro-
tected in winter by snow
183
Pleasures afforded by the Gar-
den . 29. 115. 116. 196
Plumbago Capensis . 176
Page
Polyanthus seed, when to be
sown 42
Precautions respecting the si-
tuations chosen for large
shrubs 38
Pruning .... 40. 173
Pulling up weeds . . 92
Pulmonaria, or Lungwort 65
Pyrus Japonica ... 32
R.
Ranunculuses, management
of 51. — Cautions relative to
putting them in the ground
169. 180
Rhododendrons 25. 33. 110.—
Caution in pruning them
173
Rock plants 66. 150
Rose, the Christmas 46; the
Ever-blooming . . 174
Roses, Standard, how to ob-
tain 128
Rubus Arcticus . . . Ill
Russian violet . . . 160
Rustic Flower Basket . 106
S.
Salvia splendens . . 151
Sanguinaria Canadensis 65
INDEX.
207
Page
Seeds, directions for sowing
42 ; for gathering and pre-
serving .... 125. 156
Shrubs, distinguishing cha-
racteristics of ... 30
Slipperwort .... 81
Slips of herbaceous plants 148
Snow, a preserver of plants
183
Snowdrops . . . . 164
Soil proper for different plants
25
Sowing flower seeds 42. 53.
. 55. 61. 90
Spiderwort, varieties of 118
Spigelia Marylandica . 118
Spring in the Alpine conn-
tries 185
Standard Rose-trees . 128
Stocks, when to be sown 111.
— Subsequent management
159
Stocks, Night-scented . 176
Succession bed of spring flow-
ers 47
Suckers to be removed and
preserved . . . 179
Sweet-williams . . . 145
Page
T.
Tender annuals . 69. 118
Ten-week stocks . . 158
Tiger flower .... 148
Tobacco, see Petunia.
Tools for Gardening . 38
Tradescantia Virginiana, or
Spiderwort .... 118
Transplanting in autumn 172
Tree carnation . . . 132
Trumpet flower ... 19
Tulips, instructions respecting
168. — Time for putting into
the ground 180. See Bul-
bous Roots.
Turf, laying of ... 41
Turf for Shrub Border 25. 159
V.
Vegetable physiology 130. 193
Verbena ..... 71
Verbena Aubletia . . 82
Verbena Melihdris . . 82
Vetch, Bitter, see Orobus Ver-
nus. •
Violets Autumnal . . 160
Virginian Creeper . . 33
U.
Uvularia 89
208
INDEX.
W.
Page
Watering plants during au-
tumn and winter . . 175
Wet, cautions against 181. 187
Winterberry tree . . 33
Page
Winter Hellebore, or Yellow
Aconite 59
Y.
Yellow Aconite ... 59
Yellow Gerandia . . 152
&
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