How To Manage A Little Garden All The Year Round

Source: The Book Of Sports
Category: CARPENTERING.



JANUARY.

The chief wish of the little gardener this month is to take advantage of
the hard frosts, and during their prevalence, to wheel upon his ground
such manure as may be necessary. It should be wheeled in at this time,
because, while the frost is hard, the wheelbarrow can pass over the
paths and beds without doing much injury, nor will the dung and rubbish
in its moving make more dirt than can be easily swept up. The manure
should be left in heaps, and not spread till the time comes for digging
it in.

In the middle or latter end of the month, should the weather be fine and
open, attention should be given to the cutting of the gooseberry,
currant, and raspberry-trees, and to the planting of off-sets from each,
or of cuttings, as directed. A crop of peas might be sown, as well as
mustard and cress, and a few broad-beans for coming in early. The peas
and beans should be sown in rows, about a yard apart, and a little
spinach might be sown in a broad drill, made by the hoe between them.
The gravel-walks should be turned up in the first thaw and left in a
ridge, ready for turning down and rolling when the weather becomes fine
and dry.

Radishes may also now be sown in beds prepared by digging and freshly
turned up. The seed should be thrown in, not too thickly, and raked
over. Straw should then be placed upon it to keep off the birds, or a
Guy and feathers. The straw must be kept over the beds in the frosty
weather and during the night, and taken off in the morning.

Now is the time to plant bulbous roots, such as snow-drops, crocuses,
tulips, hyacinths, jonquils, daffodils, and flags; and off-sets of
bulbous roots may be planted in beds. Anemones and ranunculuses may also
be planted in dry weather, and some of the most hardy of the perennial
and biennial shrubs, as asters, Canterbury-bells, and campanulas, may be
planted.

FEBRUARY.

In February, the young gardener will find much to do. In the
flower-garden, he may finish planting the remainder of the bulbous
roots, such as the star of Bethlehem, fritillarias, narcissuses, and
gladioluses, in beds or borders, all for flowering the same year. Some
may be planted in pots to flower in the house, or they may be placed in
the hot-bed for early flowering. Some of the hardy annual flower-seeds
may now be sown.

In the kitchen-garden, if we may so call it, a little crop of turnips
may be sown to come in early. Cabbage-plants may be set in rows; and a
little lettuce-seed may be sown under the frame in the hot-bed. This
frame should be well covered at night, and slightly raised in the day
time, when the weather is mild, to give the plants within it light and
air.

MARCH.

In the flower-garden, the gardener may begin to sow in beds, borders and
pots, larkspurs, candy-tuft, lupines, sweet-peas, Venus's looking-glass,
pansies, stocks, sweet-scabius, and many others.

In the culinary department, now is the time to sow a little bed of
onions in a well-manured bed. A bed for carrots may also be prepared,
and the seed sown and well trodden down. A bed of parsnips should also
be prepared in the same way; and another crop of peas of the marrow-fat
kind may be planted in drills in the same manner as the former. And
now, perhaps, the cabbages will require the earth to be drawn to their
stems; and, if the little gardener has room, he may plant three or four
rows of early potatoes. They should be the cuttings of large ones, with
not more than two eyes in each piece, and should be planted with manure
in rows, about two feet and a half apart and about a foot distant from
each other.

APRIL.

Now is the time to begin sowing the more tender annual flower seeds.
Some should be sown in the hot-bed; such as African and French
marigolds, Indian pinks, China-asters, yellow-sultanas; and many others
of the hardy kind, wall-flowers, Canterbury-bells, French honey-suckles,
mignonette, pinks, and daises may be planted.

In the kitchen department, kidney-beans may be sown, and at the latter
end of the month scarlet-runners and French-beans may be planted. It is
not a bad plan to raise a few scarlet-runners in the hot-bed, and to
plant them out when they have formed roots, and two or three leaves at
the head. But as these kinds of beans are very tender, they should be
carefully watched, and covered with straw on the sudden appearance of
frost, which often takes place in this month.

MAY.

Now may be sown the tenderest of the annuals in the hot-beds, as
cock's-combs, tricolors, balsams, egg-plants, ice-plants, and others of
that kind. Dahlias may also be placed in the bed in this or the former
month, and suffered to sprout, previous to planting in the open ground.
Bulbous roots of every flower now out of bloom, and the leaves decayed,
may be taken up and the off-sets separated dry, and housed for future
planting.

Now is the time to plant melons, gourds, and pumpkins. The seeds of
these should be sown in April in the hot-bed, and the plants should be
transplanted into good ground in a warm spot, about the latter end of
the month. They will grow freely and produce ripe fruit in August.
Common pumpkins may be sown on one of the dunghills. The gourds, such as
the orange-gourd, may be planted near an arbour, and be trained up the
principal parts. French-beans and scarlet-runners may also be planted,
if not done before; and should the young gardener have raised any
tomatoes or capsicums in his hot-bed, now is the time to plant them out,
as well as the slips of geraniums and tobacco-plants.

The young gardener will now find employment in sticking peas and beans,
weeding and transplanting. And such broad-beans as are now in blossom,
should have their tops nipped off, to promote the setting of the pods.
But let him be very careful to look after the weeds, which now grow in
great abundance; and let him rake nicely all his borders and keep
everything clean and neat, as this is the most brilliant time of a
garden's beauty.

JUNE.

Look well to the strawberries, and see that they are well watered, which
operation should be performed in dry weather every other day. These
plants will by this time have made their runners, and these should be
cleared away, except those that may be required for making fresh beds,
which may now be planted. Trim the roots a little, and cut off the
strays or runners from each plant.

Look well at this period, morning and evening, for snails and other
insects, and after showers of rain in particular. If there should be any
small cherry trees or other fruit trees, they ought be netted or well
watched, or the birds will eat them.

All sorts of flowers may now be planted out into the borders. Some may
also be put in pots, such as balsams. Take care, however, that they are
removed in damp or showery weather. In dry weather, take up tulips,
crown-imperials, and jonquils, such as are past flowering, and pluck
away the off-sets: let them be well cleaned and dried in the shade from
the mid-day sun; then put each sort into separate bags or boxes, and
keep them in some dry apartment till September, October or November, at
which time they will have to be planted again. Most other bulbs may also
be now taken up and put away for future planting. June is also the
proper time to propagate pinks and carnations by pipings.

JULY.

This is the time to plant out savoys and cabbages for winter use.
Brocoli may also be planted, and some seed sown for a late spring crop.
The plants raised from this seed will be ready to put out, finally, in
the middle and towards the latter end of August and the beginning of
September, and will produce small heads in April and in the beginning of
May. Lettuces may be now planted out, and other seed sown for future
use. Spinach for winter may also be now sown; for this, that part of the
garden should be chosen that has the most of the winter's sun upon it.
Now is the very best time in the whole year to sow the large black
turnip-rooted radish for autumn and winter. The young gardener must at
this period be on the watch for such seeds, both of flowers and garden
vegetables, as are ripe. This should always be done in dry
weather,--cutting or pulling up the stems with the seeds in. They should
then be spread in an airy place where the sun and wind will dry them
thoroughly.

The various herbs, such as balm, penny-royal, sweet-marjorum, sage,
lavender, marigolds, should also be gathered up for winter use. Slips
may now be planted from any of these. Take the side shoots of the
branches four or five inches in length, and plant them in a shady
border, and do not forget to give them water.

The ground should be kept clear at this period from refuse leaves,
stumps of cabbages, haulm of peas and beans, and from all decaying
rubbish and litter. Cut box-edgings also; and if the operation of
budding is to be performed, now is the time to do it.

AUGUST.

Look over the flowers in borders from day to day, to see what they
require. When the shoots of rambling flowers interpose with each other,
they should be shortened, so that every plant may stand singly, as they
always appear to best advantage when they stand clear of each other.

In this month, we must still continue to look out for ripe flower-seeds;
also, there are several kinds of autumnal flower-bulbs, which may be
planted, such as the autumnal crocus and Guernsey-lily.

Now weed and water seedlings, and shift such pot-flowers as require it
into larger pots. In doing this, rub off the moulds and matted fibres
from the roots, and throw away part of the outward, loose old earth.
Then, having put a little fresh earth into the old pots, with a piece of
broken tile over the hole in the bottom, put in your plant, and fill all
the sides round with nice soft mould.

SEPTEMBER.

In the third or fourth week of this month, it will be proper to begin to
plant the choice hyacinth and tulip roots for an early spring blossom.
The bed should be dug at least one full spade deep, breaking the earth
fine and laying the bed even by raking, and then plant the bulbs about
six inches apart. Ranunculus beds or borders may be prepared in the same
way, and the plants planted similarly, about two inches deep. Take care
of the new carnation and pink pipings or layers, and let them be
transplanted as soon as convenient. Perennial plants, such as
carnations, pinks, and sweet-williams, may now be transplanted. Now may
be sown the seeds of bulbous flower roots, as tulips, crown-imperials,
hyacinths, and most other bulbs. Evergreens may now be transplanted,
and much work be done in the preparation of manure, and gathering in
crops of various kinds.

OCTOBER.

This month again ushers in planting in various ways. In the kitchen
department, beans may be planted for an early crop in the succeeding
spring; that is, if the frost does not nip them. A warm border, under a
south wall is the best place for them. A few peas may be sown also, to
try the chance of the winter. Sow lettuce and small salad and radishes;
also transplant lettuces to situations to stand till the spring. A few
rows of cabbages for the winter and spring should now be planted, and
winter spinach sown. Now is a good time to begin to dig up parsnips and
carrots to store away for winter; and now all ground not in use should
be well dug up and trenched, to lie ready for the winter's frost to act
upon it. Now gather various fruits as they are fully ripe, and choose
dry days for so doing.

NOVEMBER.

The season is now closing, yet a good deal is to be done by those who
love a garden,--a vast deal of planting and transplanting of every
variety of flowers. Roots of many may be separated, and fresh sorts
planted. Nearly every kind of bulbous roots, if not previously planted,
may now be put in the earth. The cuttings of gooseberry and currant
trees may also be planted, and young trees raised in the spring be
transplanted to their proper situation. It is also a good time to plant
filberts, hazel-nuts, and barberries. Strawberry plants should have a
dressing of good manure.

DECEMBER.

Make neat the borders, dig all loose ground, turn the manure, plant
suckers from old roots, roll green and gravel walks, gather seeds on
fine days, cut away old wood, nail fruit trees, prepare hot-beds, get
matting to put over tender plants during the frost, look over seeds, and
see that they are dry and properly put away and make all clean, nice,
and neat for the coming spring.

* * * * *

Such is an outline of what a boy may be expected to do with his little
garden. A great deal more is to be learned than can be learned from a
book; but if the young gardener will keep his eyes open, reflect on the
reasons for doing things, and pay attention to the voice of experience,
he will probably reap more real delight from his few yards of ground
than from all the toys and playthings he ever possessed.






There is not a more useful and pleasant amusement than that of
"Carpentering." Every boy should be able to do little jobs with the
plane and chisel; for whether he may turn out a gentleman or a poor man,
it will be of great use to him. If a gentleman, he can amuse himself
with it, and if a poor man, it will be of essential service to be able
to put up a row of palings in his garden, to make a gate, to build a
pig-stye, to make and fix up shelves, build out-houses, and perform
sundry odd jobs about the house for his comfort and convenience.

Every boy should have a box of tools, and a bench to work at, also a
little room or loft for a workshop. He ought to obtain good tools, and
by no means buy the boxes of rubbish sold to boys for their amusement.
He should go the ironmonger's and purchase the following tools; of
course, out of his own savings,--his own pocket-money,--and not apply to
his parents for it.

Two saws, one small and one hand-saw.
Four gimlets of different sizes.
One pair of pincers.
One pair of plyers.
Four chisels of different sizes.
One gouge.
Two hammers, large and small.
One mallet.
Two bradawls.
Two planes, long and short.
Two flies, large and small.
One level.
One square.
One screw-driver.
Nails, screws, rings, glue-pot, hone, oil, etc.

He must also manage to obtain a carpenter's-bench, which he cannot very
well do without, and then he may begin carpentering with expedition.


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