red, and costs about
2s. or 2s. 6d. =Wall-nails=, one inch long (the most useful size), are 2d.
a pound, and may be had at any ironmongers. The =shreds of cloth= may be
bought too, but anyone who deals at a tailor's can procure a mixed bundle
of cloth pieces for nothing, when there is the light labour of cutting
them into shreds, work of a few minutes only.

In choosing =watering-cans=, see that they are thoroughly good tin, as a
strong can will last for years; moreover, when it begins to leak it will
bear mending; they cost from 3s. upwards, the roses should be made to take
off as a rule, and a special place assigned to them on the shelf of the
tool-shed, as they readily get lost. =Syringes=, much used for washing off
insects, are rather expensive, consequently are not to be found in many
small gardens; a more fortunate friend will sometimes lend one, as there
is a good deal of freemasonry amongst people who indulge in the hobby of
gardening.

A thing everyone must have is =a thermometer=, in greenhouses they are
indispensable; the minimum kind are the most useful, telling one as they
do exactly the degree of frost experienced during the preceding night.
They may be bought at a chemist's for 1s. each, and must be re-set every
day; the aforesaid chemist will show any purchaser the way to do this--it
is quite simple.

=Raffia=, or =bass=, for tying flower-sticks, and =labels= are minor
necessities which cost little, though sticks may run into a good deal if
bought prepared for staking. Personally, I dislike both the coloured kinds
(never Nature's green) and the white. Both show far more than the
=unobtrusive sticks= obtained by cutting down the stalks of Michaelmas
daisies, for instance. =Galvanised iron stakes last practically for ever=,
and if they are of the twisted kind, no tying is required, greatly
lessening labour. It is a curious fact that though =arches made of iron
set up electrical disturbance= and injure the climbers, these stakes seem
to have no bad effect whatever. At the end of the autumn they should be
collected, and stored in a safe place till summer comes round again. Thin
ones suitable for carnations, etc., may be procured from A. Porter,
Storehouse, Maidstone, for 1s. a dozen, carriage paid. The thicker ones
can be made to order at small cost at any ironmonger's.

A handy man can often make =frames= himself, especially if they are not
required to be portable, and really these home-made ones answer