Part 9

Before planting operations are taken in hand, the beds should first be thoroughly prepared, and made ready for the reception of the trees. As with everything else connected with the management of a garden, a good beginning, followed by careful attention and proper treatment, generally means a successful result. Although the yew is a gross feeding tree, it will thrive fairly well in almost any poor soil; but it is advisable only to plant in a soil of a nature that will, as far as possible, suit the requirements of the various trees it is intended to carry. Everything that can be done at this period to ensure the future success of the garden should be carefully attended to.

It must be borne in mind that a Topiary garden when completed will in all probability endure for an indefinite length of time—perhaps for hundreds of years. Any extra labour or expense devoted to the work of initiation will, therefore, be fully repaid in the future.

If the land that has been selected for the garden is composed of loam of a rich, mellow nature, all that is necessary will be to trench the ground two or three “spits” deep. If the soil is of a limestone composition it will be to the advantage of the yew trees, as these seem to grow well and vigorously in a soil of this kind. But if, on the other hand, the soil be of a poor, hungry nature, it will be advisable to remove it altogether, to the depth of two or three feet, replacing it with good loam of a more suitable character.

COTTAGE AT DITCHEAT, SOMERSET ]

Nothing will answer this purpose better than the top “spit” off old pasture or meadow land. The top “spit” only should be used, and this should not be removed to a greater depth than five or six inches. Turf taken off at this depth will generally contain all that is best in the soil of either pasture or meadow land.

Although not absolutely necessary, it will be found advantageous if the loam be obtained six or eight months previous to the time when it will be required for use. It should be removed from the fields, and carefully stacked, in order to kill the grass and partially decay the turf. Partially decayed loam is in all respects better than that which has just been procured from the fields. The trees make better roots in it, and it is also easier to chop with the spade—a thing which will be found necessary to do before it can be put on the beds. The grass has also to be considered; and unless this is covered by a good depth of ordinary garden soil, it will prove exceedingly troublesome during at least the first year after planting. Of course, if the garden be a large one, and operations can be carried out on a large scale, the removal of the old soil and replacement by other and more suitable loam will entail a considerable amount both of labour and expense. But, as I have before observed, nothing should be left undone at this period of the work that will help to ensure its future success.

There is, however, another and more simple method of replacing the soil, and one which may answer the purpose equally well. After the beds have been made, the places may be marked out where it is intended to plant the trees. The soil may then be removed and a hole made of from four to five feet in diameter and from two to three feet in depth, according to the size of the tree it is proposed to plant. By following this method the labour and cost of removing the entire soil from the beds and replacing it with new loam will be to a great extent reduced, and results obtained which should be almost, if not quite as satisfactory. The remaining soil left in the beds, no matter how poor it may be, can soon be made rich enough for either herbaceous or bedding plants by a liberal use of manure.

When the beds have been prepared for the reception of the trees, planting should be at once proceeded with, provided, of course, that the planting season be at hand. Like all other forms of tree-planting, it should be done as soon as possible after the proper time arrives; or, to be more explicit, from the middle of October to the middle of November.

Although the work of lifting and transplanting yew trees and box can be carried on with perfect safety up to the end of the year or even up to the end of January, the earlier season is undoubtedly the better. The soil has then more chance to get settled about the roots before the advent of hard weather. I have seen yew trees lifted and transplanted even in June, but do not consider it to be by any means a suitable time for the work, and it is not a practice to be recommended. If left so late in the year as June, constant attention must be paid to watering, else the result will be disastrous.

If the trees have been growing for a few years in a reserve nursery-garden close at hand, they can be lifted and replanted without undue exposure to the open air or drying winds; but if they have to be brought from afar, and have had to undergo a long railway journey, they are almost certain to be found on arrival to be dry at the roots. In this case, they should be at once unpacked and submerged in a tank of water for a few hours, and then heeled into the ground as near as possible to the place where planting is to be carried on, and afterwards lifted and replanted as required.

No rank manure of any kind should be used either mixed with the soil, or applied to the roots of the trees, or the result will be injurious. If manure of any kind be employed, nothing is better for the purpose than coarse bones used in moderate quantities—about one barrow load of bones to twenty or twenty-five barrows of loam.

It will be necessary to exercise great skill and forethought in arranging and planting the various trees with which it is intended to adorn the garden. Everything should be done to make the garden as unique, and at the same time as bright and attractive as possible. Now that such excellent varieties of golden yew are obtainable, a fairly large number of these should be planted. They should not, however, be allowed to predominate over the common green yew; but if a few be planted, it will help to relieve the sombre appearance of the ordinary English yew.

Box is another kind of tree that lends itself admirably to Topiary work, and one that should not be forgotten during the planting period, as a few of the different varieties of box will greatly add to the general effect. There are also the different varieties of holly and golden privet; but, as regards the former, unless it is purely for the sake of contrast, which is admired in all gardens, I should recommend its omission from the list of trees to be planted, as it does not lend itself to clipping. Its chief fault, however, is its untidy nature, which causes it to be a nuisance in a garden. It is perpetually shedding its leaves throughout the summer, when every garden should be looking its neatest.

No trees are more suitable for Topiary work than the different varieties of yew and the boxwood, as these are the most easily clipped and trained. Although the yew is an exceedingly slow-growing tree, it will, even with continual clipping, grow into a tree of large dimensions; and, if the whole garden has been planted at one time, instead of adding trees at intervals of a few years, there will be too much uniformity about it. This should be avoided as far as possible, and if a few box trees have been planted here and there, they will help to break the evenness of the garden, since box can be kept down to almost any size desired by the aid of constant clipping.

When the work of marking out the places and planting the trees is being done, avoid anything that will afterwards have a tendency to over-crowding. Allow plenty of space for each tree to develop into whatever size or shape may be desired, and then have plenty of space for each tree to be plainly and distinctly seen. Trees that are too thickly planted never have the same appearance as those that have been allowed sufficient space; neither is over-crowding beneficial. It has a great tendency to draw the trees up too quickly, at the expense of strong and robust growth.

When the planting operations are finished, each tree should be given a good mulching of farmyard manure. Nothing is more beneficial to the health and vigour of the trees than half decayed manure from the farmyard, applied as a mulching either to old or newly-planted trees. It is the best stimulant that can be applied, as it answers the two-fold purpose of imparting health and vigour to the trees and protecting the roots from frost during winter, although there is perhaps very little danger of frost doing any damage to the roots of the yew on account of its extreme hardiness. It is always safer to protect trees that have been recently planted, and the manure will certainly not be wasted.

CROSS IN YEW OVER THE GRAVE OF L.T.-GENERAL ARBUTHNOT, K.C.B., K.T.S., IN ST. BONIFACE CHURCHYARD, BONCHURCH, ISLE OF WIGHT ]

If the garden is an old established one and full of old trees, these will be greatly benefited by the aid of occasional top dressings of some sort of manure, or the trees will begin to show signs of deteriorating in course of time. More especially will top dressing be necessary if the ground or beds where the trees are planted is not liberally manured every year. But if manure is liberally applied, the necessity for top dressing the roots will not be so great; for the yew extends its roots for a long distance and therefore absorbs a great deal of whatever kind of manure is applied to the ground. Although chemical manures may be used for the sake of convenience, or lack of farmyard manure, they are not strongly recommended. Of course if farmyard manure cannot be obtained, then chemical manure of some sort will have to be resorted to, but this will not have the same desired effect in imparting vigour to the trees. The principal objection to farmyard manure arises on account of its unsightliness in the garden; but that can be remedied to a great extent by removing a few inches of soil from the roots and applying a layer of the manure, and afterwards replacing the soil. Liquid manure of any kind will be of the greatest benefit to old trees, and there is no doubt that chemical manure if applied to the roots at all, should be given in liquid form during spring or summer, when the weather is dry. It will greatly assist the trees in making good growth.

The clipped yew is of such a close nature that it takes very heavy rains to penetrate the roots.

MANAGEMENT OF OLD TREES

It is perhaps when the work of clipping and training the trees begins, that the most difficult part of the practical management of a Topiary garden is experienced; but as in this chapter I intend to deal only with old trees, I will leave the training and shaping of young trees to be described in another chapter.

It is a matter that requires both skill and experience, both on the part of the man who is handling the shears, and of the gardener who is superintending, and who is also responsible for the work. There is nothing which looks worse in a garden than trees not properly clipped, and no clipped work can be called properly done if all or even any shear marks are visible to the eye. Clipping and training of trees in a Topiary garden is work that should either be done properly or else not at all. If the greatest possible amount of care is not bestowed on the trees, they will very soon grow out of shape, and, of course, become unsightly; and nothing is wanted in a garden that is not pleasing to the eye.

If the garden is a very extensive one and contains a large number of old specimen trees, the work of clipping them and cleaning up afterwards is an undertaking that requires a great deal of time and labour, as the work is not of a nature that will allow men to hurry over it, and it is moreover a labour of skill and patience.

YEWS AT MONTACUTE, SOMERSET ]

In an old Formal Garden, where Topiary work is considered the principal feature, it is advisable to allow only men who are thoroughly experienced in the work to do the clipping. In fact, if the shape and symmetrical appearance of the trees are to be kept as nearly as possible perfect, experienced men are necessary. Of course, in any garden it will sometimes happen that the gardener may have to put a novice to do some part of the clipping, as fortunate indeed is the gardener in charge of a Topiary garden who can rely year after year on three or four men who are thoroughly trained and accustomed to the art of Topiary clipping. When it is found necessary to employ a person to do any part of the clipping who has not had any previous experience, he should only be allowed to begin on trees of the least importance, and those most concealed from view. The beginner will always find that a round or oval shaped tree is a great deal less difficult to work upon than a square one, or a hedge. Therefore, if possible, he should be allowed to get his hand in on round trees. It is always a wise plan when a novice is learning the work, to have a thoroughly experienced person working close at hand—but not on the same tree—to assist him and see that as few mistakes as possible are made. No hard and fast line can be drawn as to the exact date when the clipping season should begin, but it should be as soon as possible after the trees have completed their growth, as at that season the young shoots are soft, and not so difficult to clip. In any case it should not be later than the middle of September, especially if there is a large amount of clipping to be done. If it can be found convenient to start a fortnight or three weeks earlier, so much the better. More especially does this apply to beech or horn-beam, as they finish their growth sooner than the yew, and if they are not clipped immediately, the young shoots get hard and, of course, are more difficult to manage. Where there is enough clipping to keep three or four men at work for nine or ten weeks, the sooner the work is commenced after September comes in the better, as it enables the work to be got through before the severe frosts of winter set in. When the trees are of a large size—a thing that is generally the case in old gardens—scaffolding of some sort will be necessary, and for this purpose there is nothing better than trestles made to close up into as little space as possible, for the double purpose of storing them away in winter or at any time they are not required for use, and for the sake of convenience in carrying them about the garden. The trestles should be made in at least three different sizes, two of each size, or more if necessary. These, with the aid of a single plank laid across two equal sized trestles, will generally suffice for the work. Of course, the plank that is used must be strong enough to carry a man, and wide enough to give him plenty of standing room.

If the trees are old and practically perfected in shape, the work of clipping is not such a difficult matter as when the trees are in course of training. But it is usually the case that although many of the trees are old there are young ones coming on that have to be shaped. In the case of old trees, as a general rule, all that is required is to take off the year’s growth; clipping back to the old growth of the previous year.

Hard clipping of old trees is a practice that should to a certain extent be carried out, unless it is desired to enlarge the size of the tree. If this is the case, from one inch and a half to two inches of the year’s growth should be left on, but not more.

Altering the shape of old trees is a thing that should be avoided as far as possible, especially if the trees are well shaped and in a healthy condition. It sometimes happens that one or more trees in the garden may have been allowed through careless management or some other cause to grow out of shape; or perhaps an old tree may be obscuring the view in some way or other. In the case of such a thing happening, it will be necessary to use the pruning knife or saw rather severely, both of which can be used with perfect safety when they are in the hands of a person who thoroughly understands the yew; provided, of course, he does not go to extremes, the yew is a tree that will stand a fair amount of rough treatment, and one that can be twisted and cut into almost any shape desired.