er who makes no
mistakes. Her shrubs are seldom regular in outline, but they are
beautiful, all the same, and graceful, every one of them, with a grace
that is the result of informality and naturalness. Therefore never prune
a shrub unless it really needs it, and let the need be determined by
something more than mere lack of uniformity in its development. Much of
the charm of Nature's workmanship is the result of irregularity which
never does violence to the laws of symmetry and grace. Study the
wayside shrub until you discover the secret of it, and apply the
knowledge thus gained to the management of your home garden.

Shrubs can be set in fall or spring. Some persons will tell you that
spring planting is preferable, and give you good reasons for their
preference. Others will advance what seem to be equally good reasons for
preferring to plant in fall. So far as my experience goes, I see but
little difference in results.

By planting in spring, you get your shrub into the ground before it
begins to grow.

By planting in fall, you get it into the ground after it has completed
its annual growth.

You will have to be governed by circumstances, and do the best you can
under them, and you will find, I feel quite sure, that good results will
come from planting at either season.

If you plant in spring, do not defer the work until after your plants
have begun growing. Do it as soon as the frost is out of the ground.

If in fall, do it as soon as possible after the plant has fully
completed the growth of the season, and "ripened off," as we say. In
other words, is in that dormant condition which follows the completion
of its yearly work. This will be shown by the falling of its leaves.

Never starve a shrub while it is small and young, under the impression
that, because it is small, it doesn't make much difference how you use
it. It makes all the difference in the world. Much of its future
usefulness depends on the treatment it receives at this period. What you
want to do is to give it a good start. And after it gets well started,
keep it going steadily ahead. Allow no grass or weeds to grow close to
it and force it to dispute with them for its share of nutriment in the
soil about its roots.

It is a good plan to spread a bushel or more of coarse litter about each
shrub in fall. Not because it needs protection in the sense that a
tender plant needs it, but because a mulch keeps the frost from working
harm at its root