CHAP. 20.—THE LAYING OUT OF GARDEN GROUND.
There is no doubt that the proper plan is, to have the gardens adjoining the country-house; and they should be watered, more particularly, by a river running in front of it, if possible; or else with water drawn from a well by the aid of a wheel or of pumps, or by swipes.942 The ground should be opened just as the west winds are beginning to prevail; fourteen days after which it should be got ready for autumn, and then before the winter solstice it should have another turning up. It will require eight men to dig a jugerum, manure being mixed with the earth to a depth of three feet: the ground, too, should be divided into plots or beds with raised and rounded edges, each of which should have a path dug round it, by means of which access may be afforded to the gardener and a channel formed for the water needed for irrigation.