A subsequent letter on this subject, by "A Lover of Facts," contrasts the case of a gardener out of a situation with a house-servant under the same circumstances. The former, he says, gets employment from the nurseryman, in general, as soon as he asks for it; the latter enters his name at an office for servants, and waits till he hears of another place, without being able to earn any thing in the mean time. Perhaps, in the course of a month or two, both he and the gardener have spent all they had saved when in place; but while the gardener can still exist in consequence of the employment which he receives from the nurseryman, the footman or butler is reduced to the greatest extremity. "A Lover of Facts," therefore, as well as "A Nurseryman,' thinks gardeners are more indebted to nurserymen than nurserymen are to gardeners; and as far as respects the immediate benefits which the former derive from the latter, we are decidedly of his opinion, convinced that a nurseryman might get his work done much cheaper and better by labourers in his employ permanently, than by the employment of professed gardeners casually. As a proof of this, we may refer to the nursery of Mr. Donald of Woking, Surrey, where the operations are performed with a degree of accuracy and neatness not always to be met with in the London and Edinburgh nurseries, and in which the workmen are common country labourers. The single circumstance that makes it worth a nurseryman's while to employ, for short and indefinite periods, gardeners out of place, is the hope of getting their custom, when in the wheel of fortune, a place turns up. It is a satisfactory concurrence of circumstances that commercial and serving gardeners are thus mutually dependent.-Cond. ART. V. On improving the Gardens of Cottagers. By Mr. WILLIAM WILSON, Gardener to W. J. Bethell, Esq. at Merley Gardens, Winborne, Dorsetshire. Sir, NOTHING can be more laudable than a wish to improve, as far as we possibly can, the condition of those individuals whom it has pleased a wise and just Providence to place in the more humble walks of life. You call, and with much propriety, upon the gardeners of the nobility and gentry to assist you in your disinterested endeavours to do good to this class; and as an individual belonging to that profession, I, of course, feel myself included in the general appeal. I most sincerely lament, Sir, that I am at present placed in a situation where I can do but little, except by my advice; however, what little I can do I shall always, to the best of my judgment, feel pleasure in doing, whenever opportunity occurs. I am also well assured that a wish to assist in this matter is a prevailing one amongst gardeners of all descriptions; not only are they instigated to this by the gratifying employment of doing good, but also from the pleasure of seeing others devote their minds to a rational and useful occupation, from which they themselves have derived much gratification. At the same time, I am truly sorry to say, that so little encouragement is given to gardeners in general by their employers, that almost nothing can be expected while those who have the means and power not only appear indifferent themselves, but even place restrictions on those who would willingly lend their aid under their influence and patronage. I am aware, Sir, from actual observation, that there are gentlemen who would much rather see such things as a few cuttings of gooseberry or currant trees consumed by the fire, or a few spare roots or seeds of useful vegetables (not easily to be come at by labourers) given to their pigs, or even thrown to the dunghill; and I also know that there is a suspicious sort of blindness, and a littleness of mind which prevails amongst some of the higher orders, so that if their gardeners should by chance give away a cutting of a gooseberry or other article, he is supposed to be either directly or indirectly turning it to his own pecuniary advantage. Yes, Sir, even where a mutual exchange has only been made, (certainly more for their master's interest than their own convenience,) I have known it strictly forbidden, or if otherwise, obliged to be done as if it were by stealth. Others, who do not go quite so far as to give such a peremptory refusal, still view an exchange for mutual accommodation, or a spare cutting, plant, or paper of seeds given away, with a jealous and distrustful eye, perhaps more galling to an honest and upright character. Now, Sir, while such erroneous and narrow-minded suspicions exist (and exist most assuredly they do), it must be a very material hinderance in the way of improvement; in fact, were it general, we might justly term it a complete barrier, almost impassable by human exertion. But let us hope for something better, and suppose that through your continued exertions an increasing spirit for this most important undertaking may be infused into the minds of the powerful and rich; and that they not only will encourage those under them to pay particular attention to the subject, but take an active and decided interest themselves, and by their patronage and approbation stimulate all classes to use their utmost endeavours to promote so desirable and useful an improvement. Let them look to those noble-minded and philanthropic individuals mentioned in some of your preceding pages: such examples are worthy of imitation. Let such conduct as the late Lord Cawdor's, by the means of my muchesteemed friend Mr. Buchan, be imitated and established, and in a short time I have little doubt but the success will be equal, at least in nine cases out of ten. Let gardeners not only be authorised but encouraged to distribute cuttings of trees of good kinds, or roots and seeds that are useful and fitting for the consumption of those whom it is intended to benefit; I mean such things as can be spared from their employers' gardens without detriment to their interest, and would otherwise be wasted; for in every garden of any extent there are many superfluous productions which would be highly valuable to the poor cottager. I say let this be generally done, and the condition of the labourers on every gentleman's estate would be ameliorated, and their cottages and gardens rendered much more comfortable, clean, neat, and ornamental than they are at present. I have only to add, that if these remarks should have the effect of drawing to this subject the attention of any of your readers, better qualified to be useful, my greatest ambition will be gratified. I am, most respectfully, Sir, &c. Merley Gardens, Winborne, Dorsetshire, WILLIAM WILSON. Nov. 30. 1826. ART. VI. On Slate Tallies for naming Plants. Sir, A PLAN I have lately adopted for marking all descriptions of plants in my garden, appears to me so cheap and durable, that I am desirous, through the medium of your excellent Magazine, to make it generally known; conceiving, as I do not observe a similar method mentioned in your Encyclopædia of Gardening, it is not very frequently practised. The material I use is slate, which I cut into tallies of various sizes, from one to two inches wide, and from three to six, or even ten or twelve inches long: on these tallies I mark the name of a plant, or a number, with white lead. From the experience I have had, I am inclined to think these will come cheaper, and last much longer than any made of wood. The slate I use is the broken waste, of which large quantities are thrown away by slaters. These are very readily cut to the dimensions required, by procuring an iron similar to that used by slaters, which can be made by any blacksmith, and an old bill-hook or meat cleaver may be made into a tool for making the edges straight. I mark them with a camel's hair pencil, similar to those used by painters in lettering; the paint I get mixed in small quantities as I want it at a painter's. A little practice will enable any person to cut the slate with sufficient accuracy, and very soon to mark upon it with neatness, ease, and expedition. The permanent label described in your Encyclopædia of Gardening (§ 1386.) may be made of the same material, and a durable tie easily obtained, by using copper wire, which may be procured at any ironmonger's shop. December 8. 1826. SUFFOLCIENSIS. ART. VII. On the best Mode of growing such Culinary Vegetables as are raised annually from Seed. By Mr. W. B. ROSE, Gardener to F. Canning, Esq. at Foxcote House. Sir, THE plan I adopt for growing all garden-crops usually raised from seeds, and not transplanted afterwards, such as turnips, carrots, onions, lettuce, radishes, &c. &c. is, to sow them in drills, of different degrees of width and depth, according to the size of the seeds and the plants produced. As soon as they rise through the ground, I commence thinning and hoeing, repeating the operation several times, especially the hoeing between the rows. The advantage of frequently stirring the ground about plants is known; but it may not be obvious to every one that the soil can be stirred much deeper, when the hoe works along a continued straight line, as it does between rows, than it can be when it works in curves or irregular roundish spaces of limited extent, as it does among crops sown broadcast. I sow my onions in rows six inches apart, and I can stir between them to the depth of nine inches or a foot if I choose; but if they were sown broadcast, and every plant six inches from every other, I could not stir between them, with a common hoe, deeper than one or two inches. Stirring deep and frequently renders watering unnecessary, because a porous surface is less impervious to the heat of the sun than a solid one, and therefore keeps the ground beneath both cooler and moister. Any gardener who doubts this being the case, may convince himself of the fact by covering part of a bed of onions with three inches of rotten tan, and comparing the soil beneath the tan with that left bare, as to heat and dryness. (See p. 76.) Such a summer as the last proves the value of my plan; while the seedling crops of many of my neighbours were burnt up, mine were in luxuriance; my onions stood regularly at six inches apart, and were from eight inches to twelve inches in circumference; my carrots and parsnips stood at eight and ten inches, and measured from ten to fourteen inches in circumference, and all my other crops were in proportion. Some young trees, such as acacias (Cobbett's locusts), which I drilled in May last, and thinned out and stirred between the rows, are now three feet high. I have these and other articles ready to show in proof of what I assert. My soil is a deep sour clay, which I dig and dung before winter; going as deep as the soil will admit, as I find it a great advantage to bring up fresh earth. I am, Sir, &c. Foxcote, near Shipston-on-Stour, Worcestershire, Nov. 2. 1826. W. B. ROSE. The superiority of our correspondent's plan is unquestionable; we would recommend to him, and particularly to such as have the misfortune to prefer the broadcast mode, Mentor's Spanish hoe (p. 233.), which will go much deeper, either between rows, or in roundish spaces, than the common draw or thrust hoe. Cond. ART. VIII. On the good Effects of protecting the Stems of Fruit Trees. By WILLIAM STOWE, Esq. Surgeon, Buckingham. Sir, THE indefatigable and scientific president of the Horticultural Society, in the sixth volume of its Transactions, (G. Mag, |