The Library of Work and Play: Gardening and Farming.Shaw, Ellen Eddy
General
The Library of Work and Play: Gardening and Farming.
Shaw, Ellen Eddy
Gardening -- Juvenile literature
"Now make the hole in the ground with the dibber just where you wish. A
motion, like that of a revolving top, is the one to use in working the
dibber. Water the hole. Drop a little soil in the bottom of the hole.
You see the dibber leaves an awkward little peak there at the bottom of
the hole. Water lodges there and stays. The tiny rootlets do not quite
reach into the bottom of the hole, and perhaps dangle in the water and
begin to decay. A little soil dropped in prevents all this. Now a little
plant goes in. Do not place it too low, nor too high in the hole. Have
the roots uncramped. Drop soil in gently and finally firm it all with
both hands.
"The sun must not shine too hotly for the first few days on these little
plants in their new home. They are not yet used to their surroundings
and must be coddled a bit if they are to do well.
"The remaining garden operations are weeding and constant cultivation. A
part of the work in the flower garden is close picking, if constant
bloom is wished.
"I have said nothing about how to plant different seeds because each of
you had tables to cover all of that.
"The object of this talk is to impress upon you the necessity for
careful preparation. Well-prepared soil, carefully handled tools and
plants are ways to success.
"Good tools, good seed, good hard work make for results such as will
satisfy your highest hopes. But it is not the result only that is worth
the struggle; the knowledge and the power are the greater glories."
VII
COMMON WEEDS
What a delight it would be if we could garden without weeds. But that is
well-nigh impossible. For these rascals, the weeds, are such persistent
fellows, so clever in their devices for getting over the surface of the
earth, so able to live where nothing else in the plant world can live,
that it is a discouraging matter to attempt to exterminate them. They
always seem to me like pushing sort of people trying to live among those
who do not want them. Then, too, they crowd the better class of
inhabitants out.
"There are a certain number of plants which we always looked upon as
weeds, such as burdock and wild carrot, for example. But if a beautiful
garden plant should persist in living and spreading itself over our
vegetable garden, then that, too, would become a weed. Over across the
sea in England the poppy grows wild in the fields. It looks very
beautiful to the traveler, because it makes lovely red splashes of
colour through the field. But I doubt very much if it looks really
attractive to the farmer. These things depend largely, do they not, upon
one's point of view?
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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