Weekly Chillicothe crisis. (Chillicothe, Livingston Co., Mo.) 1878-19??, 1879-04-03
PREPARING A GARDEN.
Some Errors to be Avoided in Preparing
the Soil for Vegetables.
PROM Hsrpei's Bazar.

Some Errors to be Avoided in Preparing
the Soil for Vegetables.
Prom Harpeis Bazar.
Many people commence the preparation
Of thcir gardens too early in the season
before the soil has become sufficiently dry
and frigblc. Ii digging is done when thu
earth is wet and cloggy the operation
causes the soil to become like unbaket
bricks, which aftcrward gives large
amount of additional labor to sufficiently
pulvcrize it and render it suitable for seed
sowing and for setting out young plants
! 1t should not, therefore, be commenced
until the sun and drying winds have evap'
| GRATED all excess of water. Spadng with
spade is now seldom done by iirst-class
gardeners, the hat'tinel spading fork be.
ing used in preference, as the soil can be
more thoroughly aud better pulyeri2ed
with 1t than with spade. 1t is also Tar
better implement for spading among fruit
trees, shrubs, and hardy plants IN the
flower garden. as it does not cut and de-
stroy the surface roots.
IIlIhltIk llt oOll ltl llt hlANIitu Eu
den is the first work to be done, as many
vegetable seeds do not vegctate freely If
sown when the ground is too warm The
first operation is the spreading Of the ma
nure, hOrsc manure being the best for gem
eral purposes. If hog, sheep, or chicken
manure is to he used. it should be first
prepared by mixing it with plenty ofgood
dry soil, and breaking down and pulveriz-
ing all lamps. This will enable it to be
more evenly and easily spread, for if left
in lumpy state one plant is liable to
have too much manure, whilst another
may not have any, or at any rate less than
lbs share. Horse or stable-yard manure
should have all the long straw, corn stalks
or other rubbish well shaken out of it. 1t
Is not necessary for ordinary garden pur-
poses that the manure should be rOtte1.
1t may be applied quite fresh, only less of
il being used than when rottcd, as 1t is
much stronger, Manure should always be
very evenly spread, and in small quanti-
ties at time, as when exposed
to the action of the sun and
the high, drying winds OF March and
April, a large proportion Of its
strength is evaporated and so wasted The
spading fork, when used in digging un-
occupied soil, should always be inserted
nearly pcrpcndiCularly to the depth OF
eight or nine inches, the slices not being
more than five or six inches wide il
much wider the soil cannot be sufficiently
and if the fork is not inserted
to a sufficient depth the roots OF the young
plants will not penetrate deep enough to
enable them to Withstand any drought.
The operation of trenching, or digging
the soil two or more spades deep, is gen
orally wrongly performed, as the bottom
soil is brought to the surface, and the top
soil buried below. In such cases the soil
brought to the surface is almost always
poor and Of hungry nature, totally un-
lifted for young plant life. The proper
way OF doing 1t Is to open trench two or
more feet wide and a spade deep, throw
ing the top solto one side, then spread |
some manure in the bottom of the trench
and spade 1t into the bottom soil; on this |
throw the top soil OF the next trench, in.
with it some manure. and so
on, trench attcs trench, until the plot is
inished, filing up the last trench with |
he top soil taken from the first trench.
In spading among fruit trees or shrubs,
he fork should be much more inclined in
the hand, and only thin layers of soil
urnel over, for if thrust deeper the roots
ler the surface will be broken and des.
royed to tbe great injury of the tree
frees and shrubs require very little ma
lure at any one time, only needing as
much as will prevent the exhaustion Of
he soil by their bearing fruit, and this
ioes not require to be deeply dug in.
'our beds should not be spaded until all
he plants have made their appearance
.boye ground, for if done too soon they
re liable to be injured by the fork or
pade, They do not need much masure,
4 a general rule.
1t is 4 very common practice for men
,ho me employed to work in gardens, es-
'ecially when spading among groups of
krubs, to work the beds much higher IN
he centre than at the sides. This is
'rong, as it throws all the rainfall from
he centre to the edges, and the central
hrubs do not get their proper supply of
Moisture. In all cases tho surface should
e kept quite level. 1t is IL sure sign that ,
he so-called gardner i7 an lgnoramus and
oes not understand his business. The
peration of spading is considered by t
lott people as a very simple one, which
ny laborer can perform, but it is really a I
est whether the man employed to do it is
practical gardner or only 4 common a
lhorer. In the very many cases where a I,
egular gardner is not or can not be kept,
he work has to he done by common
lborrr, but in such cases his work should {
e supervised by IN intelligent en- I
loyer, for the success of the garden for i
he season may largely depend upon its '
eing properly done at the first. It the q
oil is not well pulveri2cd seeds sown in a
do not vegetatc freely, or they grow ir.
egularly, and young plants set out in it
10 not take root freely, and in the case OF
vegetables, produce deformed,
ough and stringy roots.