to your field, nor be fo beautiful, as if it had never been touched at all at the top. § XXI. Of Ornamental Plants in Hedging. Although ornament ought only to be confidered as a fecondary object by the farmer; yet, where it can be united with the useful, it need not be wholly difregarded. The country is, perhaps, the best field for allowing the fympathetic affections of the mind to be exerted with the moft unbounded freedom, which forms the bafis of that defire for universal harmony, that constitutes a true and correct taste; which is, perhaps, the best preservative that the mind can ever meet with, against every low and fordid affection. Let not, then, the man, who wishes to be extensively useful to his country, to his family, and, of confequence, to himself, close his 1 but ra his eyes upon the beauties of nature; If, then, you do not despise ornament entirely, or difregard the beauties of nature, you may render your hedges very beautiful, without any additional expence, by intermixing a few plants of pyracantha with your thorns when you plant them. The pyracantha (evergreen thorn) is one of the most beautiful evergreens that we have in this country; but, as it is a weakly plant, unable to support itself, it has, in general, been but little attended to. If a flip of this were planted between every second or third thorn, it would, in a fhort time, fpread fo far on every fide, as to meet ; and, being fupported by the hawthorn, would rife to the top of the hedge, and render the whole as beautiful as if it were composed of this plant alone. And, as its large clufters of fcarlet berries hang upon it during the greateft part of the winter-feafon, by it, the hedge would be made not only closer and warmer during the winter, but also, more pleafing to the eye than it otherwife would have been. This plant is not an exceeding quick grower, but it is by no means difficult to rear; every twig of it, if stuck into a good foil, taking root as readily as a willow. As I have planted it in this manner among my own hedges, and find it answer the intended purpose, I can recommend it with the greater freedom. If you are defirous of rendering your hedges ftill more agreeable, it may be easily done, by planting, through them, a few twigs of different kinds of honeyfuckles (wood bine); or intermixing with them a few of the most hardy and freeft shooting kinds of rofes, which will grow without any extraordinary degree of attention or care. It will be best, however, not to plant the honeyfuckles till the hedge is two or three years old; as fome kinds of these grow fo very faft as might put the hedge in fome danger of being choaked by them, if they were planted at the fame time with it. A few plants of the crab-tree, intermixed with the whitethorn, form alfo a moft agreeable variety, as the beautiful blush-coloured bloffom of that plant, fo early in fummer, is extremely delightful. I might here enumerate feveral other fhrubs that could, with propriety, be employed for adorning hedges; but, as this is, in fome measure, foreign to the defign of this effay, which is chiefly calculated to convey useful instruction, more than the foregoing hints T hints on this head, might juftly be deemed fuperfluous. XXII. Of the Use of the Willow in Fencing. Although the white-thorn be, in general, the most proper plant for making fences, yet, there are several others that may be fuccessfully employed on fome occafions; which, for fome particular purposes, may be even preferable to it. Among thefe, you will perhaps be surprised to hear me mention the willow; yet, I have found that it may be employed, in some cases, with very great advantage, by a particular method of training it, not generally known, which I shall now endeavour to defcribe. It is, in general, imagined, that the willow can be made to thrive no where except in wet or boggy ground; but this is one of those vulgar errors, founded upon inaccu rate |