Planning a Vegetable Garden

To make a vegetable garden as attractive as possible, dwarf hedges or aromatic plants, kept tidy by regular clipping, may be planted around the outer sides of the various plots and they will also give protection from cold winds. Here, lavender and rosemary, hyssop and sage, all of them perennial plants and of woody habit, should be grown. They will add a touch of old world charm besides providing valuable material to use in pot pourris and scent bags and for stuffings. Rows of to that part of the garden which is usually less aesthetically pleasing than the rest of the garden, parsley and chives may be grown by the inner path edges so that they are, at all times, readily available to the housewife without dirtying her shoes.

The asparagus bed will he permanent and should be given an open, sunny position where it may be left undisturbed for years. There should also be a section for a seed bed which should he brought to a fine tilth, and here radishes and spring onions may be sown in shallow drills and seed of lettuce, Brussels sprouts, cabbage and cauliflower, the young plants being transplanted when large enough to handle.

If given a specially prepared bed, the seedlings may be more readily controlled for pest and disease and can be covered with cloches ifnecessary during adverse weather, whilst their watering is the easier if growing together. The seed bed may be prepared on ground which is close to the greenhouse and cold frames while nearby should be a supply of mains water which will be readily available for those plants growing in the seed bed or under glass and which will need constant supplies of moisture to keep them growing. If mains water is not available, rain water should be collected from the roof of the greenhouse and shed and stored in a tank or barrel for use when required.