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Dedication
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Much has been said of the Ellindel Arboretum as the foremost example of gardening and horticulture in the Basin, though for too long we have kept that wisdom among our own people, and failed to share it throughout the world.

That the Serenwilde boasts of having the most thriving and varied plants of any collection has been true since the days of Ellindel herself, and the forest has certain advantages when it comes to growing the most persnickety of species: the greenhouse, of course, which has stood through most of modern history; and the undeniable expertise of Abetyu the gardener, who like an old oak has sheltered and shepherded many of our most delicate specimens. This book is dedicated to them.

This book is dedicated also to all who bring forth green and growing things, among all nations: to those who tend the water gardens in Celest, and the workers of the Transcendental Aviary in Hallifax, and even to those who bear the unenviable task of trying to prise forth life from tainted soil. They who follow the mortal impulse to plant a seed and gather the flowers and the fruit follow still the way of nature, wherever their paths might bring them. We have not forgotten you.

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Introduction
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Among all the nations of the world, from New Celest to dark Magnagora, with perhaps the exception of free-spirited Gaudiguch, everyone seems to agree on one thing: rules and regulations for the citizenry abound, with clauses within clauses covering every possible eventuality, and detailing the processes of dealing with them. And yet, when it comes to gardening, many gardeners fail to realize that the same foresight is just as necessary. In the Serenwilde, we have the Sacred Leaves of the forest that all abide by willingly in order to dwell among us; but even more so, we know that there are some laws that cannot be flouted: the law of consequences, and the law of nature.

These are, incidentally, the laws that govern the growth of a garden. A wayward urchin of Magnagora may escape the arm of the law, if he is witty and commits his thefts in the dark. A supplicant of Celest may be granted mercy in the eyes of the Supernals. But there is no court in which to plead on behalf of your asparagus sprouts when they die beneath a late hailstorm because you have planted the seeds before the first of Kiani.

This treatise will therefore endeavour to lay out insofar as possible the unwritten laws of gardening, for all common species generally seen in the Basin of Life, so that even beginners who have never held a trowel before can follow along in these arts. Gardening is an art, some say, but it is no less a science - it is sacred, as all things grow are sacred, to we who live within the eaves of this forest, and yet it is not a mystery.

No arcana is involved here, nor even the arts of the druids, merely a good eye for the weather and keen observation of the astrological signs to count the turning of the seasons. We, the friends of the Arboretum, shall engage ourselves in leading the reader by the hand and directing him throughout the year in order to receive the bounty of the good earth.

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Sunlight
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The first item we must discuss is a generality, which corresponds to the geography of the Basin, and that is the measure of sunlight and of heat, and their effects on the growth of plants. Below we have imparted a table which describes the amount of sunlight received and the warmth of the weather on the same days during the year, measured at various points throughout the Basin.

A gardener of the Serenwilde would of course be able to discern the amount of heat by feeling the light of the sun on his skin, but in lieu of such experience, which cannot be taught through a book, we have chosen to use a prototype device developed by Professor Gargle von Fixit of the Star Hopper, which measures temperature, though as the device is uncalibrated, we have chosen to create our own scale, with the temperature at the Ellindel Memorial in the Serenwilde, at noon on the 1st of Estar (midwinter) and the 1st of Dvarsh (midsummer) as baseline measurements.

The amount of sunlight is measured by the length of time in minutes for which our point of measurement receives the sun. Though the time of day from sunrise to sunset does not vary much across all locations, the angle of at which light comes throughout the year causes measurements to vary. All points of measurement have been chosen from open spaces, so that no manmade structures are obstructing the light, representing ideal conditions for most types of plants at that particular location, with the intent of measuring the naturally available amount of sunlight.

Together, these statistics describe the intensity and time of sunlight received by the plants. In the absence of druidic powers or the influence of the fae, these two factors are the most important in determining the healthy growth of vegetation.

Table 1. This table lists locations from north to south of various common places in the Basin of Life, and the corresponding weather conditions at various points of the year. All measurements taken on the 1st of the month.

|---------------------------------------------------------------------|
|             |      Temperature      |       Length of Sun           |
| Location    |-------------------------------------------------------|
|             | Est | Kia | Dva | Jul |  Est  |  Kia  |  Dva  |  Jul  |
|---------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Serenwilde  |   0 |  42 | 100 |  47 |  9:15 | 12:43 | 15:06 | 11:44 |
|---------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Estelbar    |   10|  50 | 105 |  52 |  9:11 | 12:44 | 15:11 | 11:41 |
|---------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Tosha       |  -2 |  35 |  80 |  38 |  8:35 | 12:51 | 15:49 | 11:40 |
|---------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Clarramore  | -15 |  15 |  60 |  10 |  8:38 | 12:55 | 15:50 | 11:38 |
|---------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Delport     |  30 |  40 | 120 |  42 |  8:35 | 12:51 | 15:39 | 11:40 |
|---------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Caoimhe     |   5 |  35 |  98 |  38 |  8:38 | 12:52 | 15:30 | 11:38 |
|---------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Shallamurine|  -4 |  20 |  87 |  25 |  9:35 | 12:39 | 14:45 | 11:47 |
|---------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Bondero Bay |  18 |  63 | 112 |  59 |  9:30 | 12:45 | 15:30 | 11:28 |
|---------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Grey Moors  |  23 |  50 | 104 |  53 |  9:51 | 12:35 | 14:28 | 11:49 |
|---------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Glomdoring* |  13 |  68 | 122 |  54 |  7:26 | 10:40 | 12:35 |  7:45 |
|---------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Skarch      |  80 | 112 | 141 |  93 | 10:57 | 12:21 | 13:19 | 11:57 |
|---------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Blasted Lnd*|   2 |  49 | 113 |  51 |  7:17 | 10:25 | 12:13 |  8:02 |
|---------------------------------------------------------------------|
* Sunlight dimmed by unnatural shadow or smog.
** A particularly noteworthy circumstance that interferes with the applicability of this table is the recent unusual heat caused by the workings of Father Sun, which postdates our measurements. 

As we can easily see from the table above, weather conditions vary greatly in the Basin of Life, and any advice must be taken in conjunction with the actual circumstances at hand. One who wishes to plant strawberries in the scorching Skarch will need greater aid than we can give, and the same can be said for anyone who would try to grow drought-loving lavender in damp Clarramore, however pleasing the aesthetic palette might be. Nevertheless, when in later passages this book makes reference to sunlight and temperature, these are the measures which we will use.

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Sowing
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We shall start in the beginning of the year. Though Estar is cold and snow-laden, the gardener's work does not stop, but rather begins here, for it is during this time that the soil is prepared for the spring, and the seeds which must be sown in winter should be planted in this month. Another batch of these same seeds should be sown again in Urlachmar - these will grow in their own time, and ripen a few weeks after their earlier predecessors, thus ensuring a steady harvest of fresh kitchen vegetables throughout the summer and fall. The seeds are best sown two weeks apart to ensure proper ripening times.

Carrots, radishes and lettuce must be planted first. These can be sown directly into the winter soil, as they are hardy vegetables which can survive even a Serenwilde winter. Gardeners who observe temperatures generally warmer than that of Serenwilde should find no difficulty in having their seeds survive until spring. Indeed, the carrot patches of Estelbar, which has long been under the tutelage of Serenwilde, bear witness to the virtues of this method: growth rates of young plants are actually higher when sown in late winter than later in the year.

At this time, it is possible to plant radish, turnip and other less hardy plants in exposed beds, if covered beds prove too much of an impediment. This only applies if the weather holds fine: a sudden frost or a late winter snow can prove disastrous. If the gardener is willing to leave it to chance, he may begin to plant these now. Otherwise, he should either wait for Kiani, or - if he can secure the services of a druid or wiccan, to use their powers of guarding nature to ensure the survival of these seeds. As discussed, however, this book does not presuppose the aid of the forest folk.

Urlachmar is the month to plant potatoes, under ideal conditions. We refer the reader once again to Estelbar's potato plots, which take advantage of being situated in relatively dry weather in Urlachmar. The method of planting potatoes is simple: unlike other plants, potatoes have no seeds to store, but instead the whole potato must be divided into chunks, and each chunk planted in the earth. It is important that each chunk have at least one "eye" - the naturally occuring dents in the potato. It is out of these that the potato will flourish. A chunk without an eye cannot grow into a potato. Let us not forget the tale of the young farmer of Paavik who wished to plant a crop of potatoes, but found himself short half his crop.

Kiani is the month where most seeds, even the most tender, may be sown. Of particular note is the asparagus, which we have determined for best effect must be sown after the 1st of Kiani, at least in a northern climate. These vegetables, although well-beloved by cooks, are choosy about their location: currently, Estelbar is the only village which produces asparagus on a large scale.

In sowing asparagus seeds, location and soil are important. The location should be one that is open to the sky, receiving much sunlight, as asparagus does not do well in shade. The soil should be fertile but light: the way to test this is to dig a hole in the ground and pour a bowl of water therein. If the water still remains after an hour (and you are not standing in an aquamancer's demesne) then the soil is too heavy and you should ideally choose a different location. If this proves impossible, then loosening and turning the soil and mixing it with gravel will help.

Seeds should now be sown moderately thickly, upon the ground - in rows if you please, though though eventually they will need to be thinned. After scattering the seeds, cover them with about half an inch of soil, and then rake well. These seeds will not come to fruition the same year, as asparagus is a multi-year crop. Instead, they will grow into young plants that must be overwintered and planted out again the next year.

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Warm Beds
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For other plants, however, more intensive work and protection is necessary. Radish and turnip in particular, despite their common and hardy appearance, do not actually take well to cold weather. From the Inner Sea and points south (with the exception, of course, of places in the Southern Mountains which experience much harsher climates than the lowlands) these may be sown without trouble. However, in colder climates, these must be planted in so-called "warm beds".

These warm beds are simply tilled earth, often in the shelter of a high wall or a hill or some other structure which blocks the howling winds of winter. First these beds are sown with seed, which is then covered over with mulch. If there is snow, rejoice: the snow will do much of the work on behalf of the gardener, as it counterintuitively helps to keep the earth warmer than the cold winter air outside.

If there is no snow and the weather grows colder still, strew another layer of hay or straw over the beds. Care must however be taken to ensure that this straw is fresh: decaying or contaminated straw can bring weevils or worse. Many a gardener has had cause to curse a stray loti spore among his mulch, when a few weeks later he finds his house covered with a sudden profusion of sparkly spores drifting into every nook and cranny.

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Pruning
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In the orchard, there is also work to be done. If there are new saplings planted in the orchard, be sure to cover those with mulch or straw to prevent damage from the cold. Older roots go deeper into the earth, except in some special cases such as in the Tosha Monastery, where the mountainous terrain results in a decent number of exposed roots even on century-old trees. As a rule of thumb, trees younger than two years should be protected in this manner.

For older trees, now is the season for pruning. It is possible to tell which branches need pruning by examining them: they will be brittle and brown, and the tips will break easily as opposed to having the tensile strength of green wood. Take off these branches close to the fork of the stem, in order to make it easier for new shoots to grow in the spring.

Be aware that, much as with the famed hydra of Lord Morgfyre, trees tend to have multiple shoots where one branch has been cut. At times this proves useful, and certain enterprising villages have taken to pruning their trees multiple times in order to encourage closer growth of branches and better production of fruit, though we in the Serenwilde generally let our charges take their own natural shapes.

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Transplant
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With fruit trees, Urlachmar is the season for transplanting. Saplings should have passed the winter in a greenhouse, or in an otherwise sheltered location, unless the tree is hardy or native to the land. In this month, however, the trees may be moved outside to their final, desired locations. In the Serenwilde, most trees are not thus transplanted except for those in the orchard in the Arboretum itself, since within the forest proper most trees are of the type to grow naturally within the climate. However, more diverse trees can be planted using this method, even before druidic interventions.

When transplanting, it is important to dig and prepare the trenches in which the saplings will go ahead of time: the less time the sapling's roots are exposed to air, the better. This trench should be dug at least as deep so as to reach an elfen's waist, or an igasho's knee.

The saplings to be transplanted should have been pruned already (see our discussion of pruning in Estar). This allows for less burden on the roots, which however careful the transplant is, are bound to suffer some damage. With fewer branches to serve nutrients to, the roots will be less stressed, and judicious pruning may make the difference between a tree that takes well to its new home and one that struggles for months.

On the day of transplant, be sure to get helpers. The sapling should be moved into the trench, and held such that the surface of the ground is level with the current line of soil upon the roots. It is important to hold the sapling at this height before backfilling in the soil. Too high, and you will expose the roots to the inclemencies of the weather and the burrowing of animals (if you happen to live in a place where animals roam); too low, and you will suffocate them.

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Flowers
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Regarding flowers, Estar is generally too early for most of them to be planted, unless in pots indoors or under glass in a greenhouse. Notable exceptions include: lavender, which needs to be planted in cold, moist weather to grow properly (though when it begins to sprout and grow into a bush it needs dryer climates); skyblooms and wind wisps, which do well year round in the cold; and tulips of all varieties, including the popular dusk and dawn variants.

For skyblooms and tulips alike, the ground should be well-fertilized but not too heavy. Silty clay is not ideal for these flowers, still less the rocky shale of the mountains. The earth intended to receive them should be light, crumbly loam, of a sort found within untainted forest or meadow. If such soil is not available, the existing ground may be improved by hoeing or additions of different types of soil. The important thing is to control the drainage of water: silt retains too much, rocky soil too little. As they are opposed to each other, the one may be improved with addition of the other.

In the flower garden, hardy plants may be sown in Urlachmar. Favourites include sunflowers and carnations, though the carnations require extra care. Usually, carnations are better preserved in indoor pots over the winter than grown from seed, and as they are more delicate than sunflowers, will require shelter in bad weather. If the weather grows cold in Urlachmar, or if there is a good deal of frost, it is important to place an upturned basket such as those that artisans may create over your young carnation sprouts, and to place a blanket over that, so that the frost may not kill the carnations. Do not of course forget to remove both basket and blanket once the weather turns fine again, or you will starve your plants of sun.

Towards the end of the month, as Urlachmar turns towards Kiani, it will be possible to start preparing the garden for amaranths. Though this flower is not popular in Serenwilde due to its associations, it is a long-blooming plant that will thrive throughout most of the summer season. Other options that can be planted during this time are simple raspberries (of the sort commonly found in Irshaw or Oleanvir) or irises.

It is also possible to dispense with soil entirely, and raise plants in water, cotton or some other matter. In fact, we have found that some of our gardener colleagues in Clarramore have managed to raise various fruits and flowers suspended in clouds, to good effect. Where good soil is available, this process is more labour intensive than may be worth it. However, in some cases, it may be considered, such as when the soil is blighted with pestilence, rot or otherwise unsuitable for life. More will be discussed on this elsewhere.

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Herbs
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Some useful herbs can of course be planted in winter, though which kind will depend to a great extent on the locale of the garden. Within our forest, marjoram, chervil, coltsfoot and galingale dominate the woods, and often will creep into a garden-bed even unwanted, in which case it becomes necessary to weed them out. Generally, Urlachmar is a good time to plant galingale, marjoram, rosehips, chervil, yarrow and other common herbs like these, which will have emerged from hibernation a few months prior. Urlachmar is not, however, a good time to plant sage, calamus or colewort, as these will not survive the soggy rains of Dioni. The season for herb-planting is however not limited to winter, but lasts year-round, and so features less heavily in our work.

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Conclusion
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As the discerning gardener can see, the idea that a gardener's work begins in spring is nothing but a misapprehension born of a false illusion: the  blossom is not the seed, and the reaping is not the sowing. He who wishes to have a thriving garden must put in the necessary work, nor shy away from labouring with his hands in the winter months. So it has been in the Ellindel Arboretum with the students of Abeytu for years beyond count, and so it can  be in your own garden, wherever you may call home.