SHIFTING OF CROPS.

Crops must not be grown twice in rotation on the same ground. Peas and beans should be the crop after any of the roots, such as potatoes, carrots, and parsnips. Cabbages, and plants of that kind, may be sown and grown intermediately. The best rotation of crops will be found in any gardening book on the subject, and this the young gardener should make a subject of some study.

HOW TO MANAGE A LITTLE GARDEN ALL THE YEAR ROUND.

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.

PART VIII.

CARPENTERING.

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.

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.

USES OF THE VARIOUS TOOLS.

The Saw.—Before a saw can be used after it is purchased, it generally has to be "set," as it is termed; that is, its teeth are to be sharpened and placed a little outwards from the plane of its length. There are several kinds of saws, namely, the common hand-saw, the key-hole saw, and the small-toothed saw. The first is to cut planks and thick pieces of wood; the second is to cut holes in planks or boards; the third is to cut small pieces of wood, or those that require to be very nicely divided.

The Plane.—The plane is used to smooth boards with. There are several kinds of planes. The long plane and the short plane are the principal ones. Within the plane is the knife, which is fastened in by a knock of the hammer on the wedge inside, which is made so as to fix the edged knife at any distance from the bottom of the plane, either for thin or thick shaving. A very little direction from the carpenter will enable the young carpenter to fix his knife properly; and a knock on the end of the plane with a hammer will loosen it in a moment. The knife should be sharpened from time to time on the stone or hone. This should be done with great care, so as to preserve a proper angle at the edge and great evenness in every part, otherwise, the planing will be very imperfect.

In planing, the wood to be planed is either laid flat on the bench, with its end against the little pin, to prevent its moving, or fixed in the screw of the bench, and the plane being brought upon the top or edge of the wood, is pushed carefully, but somewhat sharply along. The shaving comes through the hole in the plane, and must be cleared away, from time to time, out of the way of the knife. Everything planed should be planed perfectly level, smooth, and even.

The Chisel.—The use of the chisel is to cut square or sharp-cornered holes in wood, especially mortices. A mortice is the hole cut in a post or other piece of wood, in which another piece of wood cut to fit it, called a tenon, is put. The tenon and mortice should both be cut exactly, and so that they fit at right angles, firmly and securely. Tenons and mortices are of perpetual use in carpentering, and the young carpenter should learn as quickly as possible to make them.

The Mallet is to be used instead of the hammer for a variety of purposes. In cutting mortices, it is the mallet and not the hammer that is used, and in almost all cases where the chisel is employed, the mallet should be used. Were we to use a hammer to knock the end of the chisel, we should soon split its handle, or so bruise it, as to make it unservicable.

The Gimlet and Bradawl.—The gimlet is used to bore awls with, so that nails when they are driven in may not split the wood. Bradawls are used for the same purpose, before smaller nails, called brads, are put in. A bradawl is sometimes called a nail-piercer. There is a thread gimlet now come into use, but this requires much care in handling: it must be very gently put in, and very gently taken out, or it will snap like a piece of glass; but it is a very useful tool, and is a great improvement upon the old gimlet.

Pincers and Plyers.—Pincers are used to take loose nails out of wood, to wrench off staples, or other things that have been attached to wood. Plyers are a smaller kind of pincers, and are used for small work in the same way. They are very useful tools, and it is impossible to do without them.

The Hammer.—Almost everybody knows how a hammer is used: it is used to drive nails with, and also to take them out. The hammer used to take out nails, is called a claw-hammer, from its having a claw at one part. The claw is placed under the head of the nail, when the handle of the hammer becomes a lever, and the head the fulcrum; and, placed in this position, the hand acquires great power,—sometimes amounting to at least a hundred-weight. In using a hammer, we should always be careful to use the kind of hammer necessary for the work to be done.

Files.—Files are of various uses, and we cannot do very well without them in carpentering. There are several kinds of files: one kind flat on one side and rounded at the other; another is flat on both sides, and another kind has three edges and three flat sides. The first is used for rasping wood or other things down to a level; and the others are used to file things into a point, or to cut them in pieces.

The Screw-driver is used to drive in and take out screws. It ought to have a very hard tough edge and a long handle. When placed in the head of the screw, to drive in, it should be turned from left to right, and in taking out, from right to left. There is a particular way of getting out a screw, which is only to be learned by a little practice. The knack consists in combining with nicety the pressure on the screw-head and the turning of the driver. The young carpenter will now and then find a very stubborn screw and fancy it quite impossible to get it out; but by a little perseverance, he soon finds out the knack of doing it; and what seemed immoveable yields to his skill and strength. There is one thing young carpenters frequently do, and that is, to use their chisels for screw-drivers; the consequence of this is, the spoiling of the chisel, for the edges are sure to break away.

The Level.—Every piece of work should be square and level, except when it is of a curved form, and then it should be reduced to the principles of the circle or ellipse. The level is used in putting up posts, palings, or work of any kind in an upright position. It consists of a hoard of wood, upon which a string is suspended, having a plummet at the end of it, which falls along a straight line at a right angle with the bottom of the level. To obtain a perfect perpendicular and perfect horizontal, the level is placed on the work till the line falls exactly over the nick at the top of the hole. The square is principally applied to things made at the bench, and is used to bring everything made to a right angle, so that a true level and perpendicular is thus secured.

STUFF.

The young carpenter will find it very difficult to work without stuff. He ought, therefore, to purchase a deal sawed into planks or boards, consisting of one three quarters of an inch thick, another one inch thick, and another half an inch thick. He ought, also, to obtain a slab not sawed at all, to cut out as occasion may require. He will then be provided with wood. He must also lay in a stock of various kinds of nails, screws, rings, hasps, hinges, etc., and, above all, a good substantial box to keep his tools and other matters in. This should be divided into compartments, and everything should be arranged in it with neatness and order.