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First Steps Toward a Garden

And because the breath of flowers is far sweeter in the air (where it comes and goes, like the warbling of music) than in the hand, therefore nothing is more fit for that delight than to know what be the flowers and plants that do best perfume the air.

—Bacon.

If you want a flower garden, you can begin work as early as March. Does that sound strange—with cold winds and occasional snow? Ah, but the plans should all be laid then, and many things started in the house.

Four steps must be taken before starting actual work:

First.—Find out what space you can have for your garden.

Second.—Consider the soil, situation, surroundings.

Third.—Make a list of seeds, bulbs, etc., desired.

Fourth.—Decide on planting with view to height and color.

As to the first step, find out positively where you can have your garden. It makes considerable difference whether you can have the whole back yard, a plot along the walk, a round bed in the center of the lawn (only worse than none at all!), or a window-box. You can not very well decide on a single plant until this is settled.

As to the second step, learn all you can about the soil, situation, surroundings. Is your ground rich or poor? If light and sandy, you can grow such flowers as nasturtiums and mignonette. By adding fertilizer you can have poppies, roses, and dahlias. If the ground is heavy and stiff with clay, you can still have your roses and dahlias if you will add both manure and sand. So find out what kind of earth you are going to work with. Quite poor soil will grow sweet alyssum, California poppies, coreopsis and geraniums, while rich soil is needed for asters, larkspur, zinnias and marigolds. And think about your location (a dry spot being necessary for portulaca, and a cool, moist place for lily-of-the-valley), as well as bear in mind whether your garden is sheltered and warm or exposed to the chilly winds. Any desert can be made to blossom as the rose—if you only know how.

As to the third step, make the list of the seeds, bulbs, etc., that you would like, with the idea of having some flowers in bloom the whole summer long. If you are lucky enough to have a kind friend or neighbor give you of her store, they will probably be good and come up as they should. If you have to buy, though, be sure to go to a first-class, reliable dealer, for you don't want to waste your time and money on old things that won't grow.

Then last of all, decide on your planting from this list with a view to height and color, so that you will arrange to the best advantage—the nasturtiums which climb, for instance, going to the back of the bed against wall or trellis, while the dwarf variety should be at the front.