The Garden.

Clutha Leader, Volume I, Issue 24, 24 December 1874, Page 3

The Garden.

The very regular growth of the larger number of species of evergrens, especially of the spruces, renders pruning or trimming a very dangerous operation in the hands of an unskilled person. We would as soon " paint the lilly " as trim a well grown spruce or any other evergreen whatever. Where they have been neglected or crowded, or injured, and have become deformed or distorted, any necessary surgery should be done by a practiced hand, and any directions that could be given without knowing the circumstances of the tree would be hazardous to follow.

It is an amusing instance of folly to see persons carefully cultivating a very small circle of ground around a tree, supposing that the tree derives any benefit therefrom. The roots of a tree are known to extend at least to a distance from the stem equal to the height of the tree. The circle that should be cultivated around an apple tree 15 feet high, should therefore be 30 feet in diameter. The cultivation of a circle three feet in diameter might disturb the borers or other insect pests, but has no influence upon the roots whatever.

It is scarcely worth while to raise onions without plenty of manure. To attempt to grow onions on a reclaimed swamp however rich in organic matter without manui*e, will be a failure. Onions succeed best upon old land that has been constantly well manured, and on which onions have been grown fc.r many years. The longer this crop is grown upon the same land with plenty of manure the better it is. But the manure each year is absolutely necessary.

The sweet brier and stronger growing species of climbing roses make a very pretty ornamental hedge for a few years, but they soon become . enfeebled in growth, and more or less plants die out, leaving vacant places. By the application of manure to the surface of the soil, and occasional thinning out of the old canes, the vig*or and beauty of the hedge may be prolonged many years ; but such hedges are scarcely to be recommended for farm purposes, because cattle will browse the plants, and soon make passages for themselves through. The seed-pods, or <*< heps," as they are technically termed by gardeners, should be gathered when mature in the fall, and placed where they will ! remain moist for a few weeks, and as soon as the pulp is sufficiently decayed, wash out the seed. Then procure a strong box, and over the bottom scatter some sand, then a layer of seed, following with sand, and so on until the seed is all in j now nail on a cover, or what would be better, a wire screen, and -then bury the box in the ground, not deeply, but just sufficient to have it well covered, and the soil rounded up over it, in order to prevent too much j water entering. If rose seeds are sown in the open ground, they will seldom, if ever, germinate until the second year; consequently it is better to leave them in the box during two winters, and the one summer following the one in which they were gathered. The second spring sow the seeds and sand with which they were mixed, in good rich soil, covering about an inch deep. If the soil is rich enough and good care given, seedlings of sweetbriars, or climbing roses, should make a growth two or three feet the first season. There may be a better method of growing sweetbriar seedling, but having raised thousands in the manner described, I know it will answer the purpose well. Gardeners who raise new sorts of choice varieties sow the seeds in greenhouses, or other strictures where artificial Jjeat

is applied, and by this means, force the seed to germinate in a few months after gathering; but is not everyone who can afford to grow plants in this manner, or have the necessary conveniences for doing so.

They who have strawberry plants which have or have not made a good growth this year should consider the causes and the reasons. It is indispensable that the plants should be so far advanced during August as to be able to mature their buds by the middle of September or first of October. If the plants have not made a good growth, if they have barely lived, there will be but little fruit next year. To set plants in August that grow but little by the hist of September is no better than to plant the next spring, for there will be no. ciop until the following year, while the hazards arising from keeping weak plants through the winter, and the loss virtually results in a loss of time, of land, and of labor. From the time of planting*, the ground should be kept well cultivated, and it is probably true that a poor mellow soil, free from weeds, is more favorable for fruitage than a rich soil that is neglected; in fact, the act of cultivation always increases fertility by establishing a condition favorable for absorbing moisture and the invisable elements that make plant food. The European experiments of constant cropping on the same soil, with frequent ploughing* and yet with no addition of fertility, showed remarkable results, and fully demonstrated the great advantage of cultivation. It is to be said, therefore, that it does not pay to grow strawberries unless cultivation is thorough, and, of course, the ground should be rich. A quarter of an acre well cared for is much more profitable than any larger area that is neglected. Another matter is connected herewith deserving* attention. . It is customary for agricultural writers to give especial directions at the time of planting*, and it is considered out of place to give them after plants are grown. The truth is, failures are common, and it is when failures are apparent that one is to consider the | cause and to go back to the beginning, | for these ideas are more firmly im- | pressed. Stereotyped directions from month to month are of little value, | because the culture and care of plants is of one piece, extending over all the | months of the year, and unless all the parts aro considered as a whole, not much progress can be made. What is applicable to strawberries is just as applicable to other vegetation, and to iinderstand how to grow ono product well inevitably tends to the knowledge of growing everything else well, and therefore the first step toward being a good farmer is to be a good gardener, no matter on how small a scale. They who learn music learn first how to sound the notes. It is absurd to commence first by playing long and complicated pieces. — N. C. M.

Leather scraps are a very valuable fertilizer. The best way to utilize them is to bake them in an oven until they, become quite brittle, and then to pound them with a wooden stamper or a flail upon a barn floor. In this w&y any waste leather may be made useful. They furnish an acceptable fertlizer for grape vines, and may be hoed in around the roots.

LETTUCE.--r-Sow only a small quantity in very rich soil. Select staunch kinds, and use young, as they are apt to get bitter, and run to seed rather than to firm hearts.