Small Gardens, and How to Make the Most of Them

hs, Beds,

s and bedding-The new style versus the old-Flower-b

after it is mown, and also assist in the tidying up, thus giving the man leisure to attend to other matters. Where tennis or more especially croquet is played, great care should be taken to keep the turf level; inequalities can always be remedied in the winter or early spring. Fine soil should be scattered over each depression where these are only slight, and a little seed sown about March; but when the turf is very uneven it is a better plan to lift it, fill up underneath with soil, and re-lay, rolling well so that it may settle down properly. To keep a lawn even constant rolling is most necessary. Even when the lawn is smooth, it

to fall over the tiles, this arrangement is rather stiff. When laying gravel down, see that it is of a "binding" quality, and laid fairly thick, as this method is economical in the long run, because it can be easily turned. The paths must be kept clear of weeds, and, except in the wild portion, f

selves to filling up stars, though a crescent-shaped bed suits the low-growing kinds very well. As a rule only one or two different kinds of flowers should be used in the same bed, and if a good display of blossom is required these must be frequently changed. Cuttings a year old make the best bedding-plants in a general way, for, though the quantity of bloom may not be quite so great the habit is mor

rearing its panicles of flowers from a carpet of aubrietia, alyssum, or forget-me-not, which all flower in spring. In this way each foot of ground has something to interest us at all seasons of the year. Lilies have been planted amongst rhododendrons and azaleas for some time past, and now the system has been extended. When once we have made up our minds to have no bare soi

sen, so that the plants in front blend with the creepers on the wall. The inconsistency of people in this matter is very noticeable, for they will mix shades in their borders which they would not dream of allowing on their dinner-tables. Who has not had his teeth set on edge by the sight of a p

proportion of manure. On the other hand, if it is heavy, cold, and clayey, sand must be added to make it porous, and thus improve the drainage. Where t