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+The Project Gutenberg EBook of Manual of Gardening, by L. H. Bailey
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most
+other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions
+whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of
+the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at
+www.gutenberg.org.  If you are not located in the United States, you'll have
+to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook.
+
+Title: Manual of Gardening
+
+Author: L. H. Bailey
+
+Release Date: October 8, 2003 [EBook #9550]
+[Most recently updated: April 17, 2020]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: UTF-8
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MANUAL OF GARDENING ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by by Steve Schulze and Project Gutenberg Distributed Proofreaders
+
+[Illustration]
+
+
+
+
+
+Manual of Gardening
+
+A PRACTICAL GUIDE
+TO THE MAKING OF HOME GROUNDS AND THE GROWING OF FLOWERS, FRUITS, AND
+VEGETABLES FOR HOME USE
+
+by L. H. Bailey
+
+SECOND EDITION
+
+1910
+
+
+Contents
+
+ EXPLANATION
+ CHAPTER I. THE POINT OF VIEW
+
+_What a garden is_
+
+ CHAPTER II. THE GENERAL PLAN OR THEORY OF THE PLACE
+
+_The plan of the grounds_
+
+_The picture in the landscape_
+
+_Birds; and cats_
+
+_The planting is part of the design or picture_
+
+_The flower-growing should be part of the design_
+
+Defects in flower-growing
+
+Lawn flower-beds
+
+Flower-borders
+
+The old-fashioned garden
+
+Contents of the flower-borders
+
+_The value of plants may lie in foliage and form rather than in bloom_
+
+Odd and formal trees
+
+Poplars and the like
+
+Plant-forms
+
+_Various specific examples_
+
+An example
+
+Another example
+
+A third example
+
+A small back yard
+
+A city lot
+
+General remarks
+
+_Review_
+
+ CHAPTER III. EXECUTION OF SOME OF THE LANDSCAPE FEATURES
+
+_The grading_
+
+_The terrace_
+
+_The bounding lines_
+
+_Walks and drives_
+
+The question of drainage, curbing, and gutters
+
+The materials
+
+_Making the borders_
+
+_Making the lawn_
+
+Preparing the ground
+
+The kind of grass
+
+When and how to sow the seed
+
+Securing a firm sod
+
+The mowing
+
+Fall treatment
+
+Spring treatment
+
+Watering lawns
+
+Sodding the lawn
+
+A combination of sodding and seeding
+
+Sowing with sod
+
+Other ground covers
+
+ CHAPTER IV. THE HANDLING OF THE LAND
+
+_The draining of the land_
+
+_Trenching and subsoiling_
+
+_Preparation of the surface_
+
+_The saving of moisture_
+
+_Hand tools for weeding and subsequent tillage and other hand work_
+
+The hoe
+
+Scarifiers
+
+Hand-weeders
+
+Trowels and their kind
+
+Rollers
+
+Markers
+
+_Enriching the land_
+
+ CHAPTER V. THE HANDLING OF THE PLANTS
+
+_Sowing the seeds_
+
+_Propagating by cuttings_
+
+Dormant stem-cuttings
+
+Cuttings of roots
+
+Green cuttings
+
+Cuttings of leaves
+
+General treatment
+
+_Transplanting young seedlings_
+
+_Transplanting established plants and trees_
+
+Tub-plants
+
+When to transplant
+
+Depth to transplant
+
+Making the rows straight
+
+Cutting-back; filling
+
+Removing very large trees
+
+_Winter protection of plants_
+
+_Pruning_
+
+_Tree surgery and protection_
+
+Tree guards
+
+Mice and rabbits
+
+Girdled trees
+
+Repairing street trees
+
+_The grafting of plants_
+
+_Keeping records of the plantation_
+
+_The storing of fruits and vegetables_
+
+_The forcing of plants_
+
+Coldframes
+
+Hotbeds
+
+Management of hotbeds
+
+ CHAPTER VI. PROTECTING PLANTS FROM THINGS THAT PREY ON THEM
+
+_Screens and covers_
+
+_Fumigating_
+
+_Soaking tubers and seeds_
+
+_Spraying_
+
+_Insecticide spraying formulas_
+
+_Fungicide spraying formulas_
+
+_Treatment for some of the common insects_
+
+_Treatment for some of the common plant diseases_
+
+ CHAPTER VII. THE GROWING OF THE ORNAMENTAL PLANTS—THE CLASSES OF
+ PLANTS, AND LISTS
+
+_Planting for immediate effect_
+
+_The use of “foliage” trees and shrubs_
+
+_Windbreaks and screens_
+
+_The making of hedges_
+
+_The borders_
+
+_The flower-beds_
+
+Bedding effects
+
+Plants for subtropical effects
+
+_Aquatic and bog plants_
+
+_Rockeries and alpine plants_
+
+1. PLANTS FOR CARPET-BEDS
+
+_Lists for carpet-beds_
+
+2. THE ANNUAL PLANTS
+
+_List of annuals by color of flowers_
+
+_Useful annuals for edgings of beds and walks, and for ribbon-beds_
+
+_Annuals that continue to bloom after frost_
+
+_List of annuals suitable for bedding_ (_that is, for “mass-effects” of
+color_)
+
+_List of annuals by height_
+
+_Distances for planting annuals_
+
+3. HARDY HERBACEOUS PERENNIALS
+
+_Perennial herbs suitable for lawn and “planting” effects_
+
+_A brief seasonal flower-garden or border list of herbaceous
+perennials_
+
+_One hundred extra-hardy perennial herbs_
+
+4. BULBS AND TUBERS
+
+_Fall-planted bulbs_
+
+_List of outdoor fall-planted bulbs for the North_
+
+_Winter bulbs_
+
+_Summer bulbs_
+
+5. THE SHRUBBERY
+
+_List of shrubbery plants for the North_
+
+_Shrubs for the South_
+
+6. CLIMBING PLANTS
+
+_Annual herbaceous climbers_
+
+_Perennial herbaceous climbers_
+
+_Woody perennial climbers_
+
+_Climbing roses_
+
+7. TREES FOR LAWNS AND STREETS
+
+_List of hardy deciduous trees for the North_
+
+_Non-coniferous trees for the South_
+
+8. CONIFEROUS EVERGREEN SHRUBS AND TREES
+
+_List of shrubby conifers_
+
+_Arboreous conifers_
+
+_Conifers for the South_
+
+9. WINDOW-GARDENS
+
+_The window-box for outside effect_
+
+_The inside window-garden, or “house plants”_
+
+_Bulbs in the window-garden_
+
+_Watering house plants_
+
+_Hanging baskets_
+
+_Aquarium_
+
+ CHAPTER VIII. THE GROWING OF THE ORNAMENTAL PLANTS—INSTRUCTIONS OF
+ PARTICULAR KINDS
+
+Abutilons; agapanthus; alstremeria; amaryllis; anemone; aralia;
+araucaria; auricula; azaleas; begonias; cactus; caladium; calceolaria;
+calla; camellias; cannas; carnations; century plants; chrysanthemums;
+cineraria; clematis; coleus; crocus; croton; cyclamen; dahlia; ferns;
+freesia; fuchsia; geranium; gladiolus; gloxinia; grevillea; hollyhocks;
+hyacinths; iris; lily; lily-of-the-valley; mignonette; moon-flowers;
+narcissus; oleander; oxalis; palms; pandanus; pansy; pelargonium;
+peony; phlox; primulas; rhododendrons; rose; smilax; stocks; sweet pea;
+swainsona; tuberose; tulips; violet; wax plant.
+
+
+ CHAPTER IX. THE GROWING OF THE FRUIT PLANTS
+
+_Dwarf fruit-trees_
+
+_Age and size of trees_
+
+_Pruning_
+
+_Thinning the fruit_
+
+_Washing and scrubbing the trees_
+
+_Gathering and keeping fruit_
+
+Almond; apples; apricot; blackberry; cherry; cranberry; currant;
+dewberry; fig; gooseberry; grape; mulberry; nuts; orange; peach; pear;
+plum; quince; raspberry; strawberry;
+
+
+ CHAPTER X. THE GROWING OF THE VEGETABLE PLANTS
+
+_Vegetables for six_
+
+_The classes of vegetables_
+
+_The culture of the leading vegetables_
+
+Asparagus; artichoke; artichoke; Jerusalem; bean; beet; broccoli;
+brussels sprouts; cabbage; carrot; cauliflower; celeriac; celery;
+chard; chicory; chervil; chives; collards; corn salad; corn; cress;
+cucumber; dandelion; egg-plant; endive; garlic; horseradish; kale;
+kohlrabi; leek; lettuce; mushroom; mustard; muskmelon; okra; onion;
+parsley; parsnip; pea; pepper; potato; radish; rhubarb; salsify;
+sea-kale; sorrel; spearmint; spinach; squash; sweet-potato; tomato;
+turnips and rutabagas; watermelon.
+
+
+ CHAPTER XI. SEASONAL REMINDERS
+
+For the North
+
+For the South
+
+ INDEX
+
+
+LIST OF PLATES
+
+PLATE I. The open center.
+
+PLATE II. The plan of the place.
+
+PLATE III. Open-center treatment in a semi-tropical country.
+
+PLATE IV. Subtropical bedding against a building. Caladiums, cannas,
+abutilons, permanent rhododendrons, and other large stuff, with
+tuberous begonias and balsams between.
+
+PLATE V. A subtropical bed. Center of cannas, with border of
+_Pennisetum longistylum_ (a grass) started in late February or early
+March.
+
+PLATE VI. A tree that gives character to a place.
+
+PLATE VII. Bedding with palms. If a bricked-up pit is made about the
+porch, pot palms may be plunged in it in spring and tub conifers in
+winter; and fall bulbs in tin cans (so that the receptacles will not
+split with frost) may be plunged among the evergreens.
+
+PLATE VIII. A well-planted entrance. Common trees and bushes, with
+Boston ivy. on the post, and _Berberis Thunbergii_ in front.
+
+PLATE IX. A rocky bank covered with permanent informal planting.
+
+PLATE X. A shallow lawn pond, containing water-lilies, variegated sweet
+flag, iris, and subtropical bedding at the rear; fountain covered with
+parrot’s feather (_Myriophyllum proserpinacoides_).
+
+PLATE XI. A back yard with summer house, and gardens beyond.
+
+PLATE XII. A back yard with heavy flower-garden planting.
+
+PLATE XIII. The pageant of summer. Gardens of C.W. Dowdeswell, England,
+from a painting by Miss Parsons.
+
+PLATE XIV. Virginia creeper screen, on an old fence, with wall-flowers
+and hollyhocks in front.
+
+PLATE XV. Scuppernong grape, the arbor vine of the South. This plate
+shows the noted scuppernongs on Roanoke Island, of which the origin is
+unknown, but which were of great size more than one hundred years ago.
+
+PLATE XVI. A flower-garden of China asters, with border of one of the
+dusty millers (_Centaurea_).
+
+PLATE XVII. The peony. One of the most steadfast of garden flowers.
+
+PLATE XVIII. Cornflower or bachelor’s button. _Centaurea Cyanus_.
+
+PLATE XIX. Pyracantha in fruit. One of the best ornamental-fruited
+plants for the middle and milder latitudes.
+
+PLATE XX. A simple but effective window-box, containing geraniums,
+petunias, verbenas, heliotrope, and vines.
+
+PLATE XXI. The king of fruits. Newtown as grown in the Pacific country.
+
+PLATE XXII. Wall-training of a pear tree.
+
+PLATE XXIII. Cherry currant.
+
+PLATE XXIV. Golden Bantam sweet corn.
+
+PLATE XXV. The garden radish, grown in fall, of the usual spring sorts.
+
+
+
+
+EXPLANATION
+
+
+It has been my desire to reconstruct the two books, “Garden-Making” and
+“Practical Garden-Book”; but inasmuch as these books have found a
+constituency in their present form, it has seemed best to let them
+stand as they are and to continue their publication as long as the
+demand maintains itself, and to prepare a new work on gardening. This
+new work I now offer as “A Manual of Gardening.” It is a combination
+and revision of the main parts of the other two books, together with
+much new material and the results of the experience of ten added years.
+
+A book of this kind cannot be drawn wholly from one’s own practice,
+unless it is designed to have a very restricted and local application.
+Many of the best suggestions in such a book will have come from
+correspondents, questioners, and those who enjoy talking about gardens;
+and my situation has been such that these communications have come to
+me freely. I have always tried, however, to test all such suggestions
+by experience and to make them my own before offering them to my
+reader. I must express my special obligation to those persons who
+collaborated in the preparation of the other two books, and whose
+contributions have been freely used in this one: to C.E. Hunn, a
+gardener of long experience; Professor Ernest Walker, reared as a
+commercial florist; Professor L.R. Taft and Professor F.A. Waugh, well
+known for their studies and writings in horticultural subjects.
+
+In making this book, I have had constantly in mind the home-maker
+himself or herself rather than the professional gardener. It is of the
+greatest importance that we attach many persons to the land; and I am
+convinced that an interest in gardening will naturally take the place
+of many desires that are much more difficult to gratify, and that lie
+beyond the reach of the average man or woman.
+
+It has been my good fortune to have seen amateur and commercial
+gardening in all parts of the United States, and I have tried to
+express something of this generality in the book; yet my experience, as
+well as that of my original collaborators, is of the northeastern
+states, and the book is therefore necessarily written from this region
+as a base. One gardening book cannot be made to apply in its practice
+in all parts of the United States and Canada unless its instructions
+are so general as to be practically useless; but the principles and
+points of view may have wider application. While I have tried to give
+only the soundest and most tested advice, I cannot hope to have escaped
+errors and shortcomings, and I shall be grateful to my reader if he
+will advise me of mistakes or faults that he may discover. I shall
+expect to use such information in the making of subsequent editions.
+
+Of course an author cannot hold himself responsible for failures that
+his reader may suffer. The statements in a book of this kind are in the
+nature of advice, and it may or it may not apply in particular
+conditions, and the success or failure is the result mostly of the
+judgment and carefulness of the operator. I hope that no reader of a
+gardening book will ever conceive the idea that reading a book and
+following it literally will make him a gardener. He must always assume
+his own risks, and this will be the first step in his personal
+progress.
+
+I should explain that the botanical nomenclature of this book is that
+of the “Cyclopedia of American Horticulture,” unless otherwise stated.
+The exceptions are the “trade names,” or those used by nurserymen and
+seedsmen in the sale of their stock.
+
+I should further explain the reason for omitting ligatures and using
+such words as peony, spirea, dracena, cobea. As technical Latin
+formularies, the compounds must of course be retained, as in _Pæonia
+officinalis_, _Spiræa Thunbergi_, _Dracæna fragrans_, _Cobœa scandens_;
+but as Anglicized words of common speech it is time to follow the
+custom of general literature, in which the combinations æ and œ have
+disappeared. This simplification was begun in the “Cyclopedia of
+American Horticulture” and has been continued in other writings.
+
+L. H. BAILEY.
+
+
+ITHACA, NEW YORK,
+January 20, 1910.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER I
+THE POINT OF VIEW
+
+
+I. The open center. I. The open center.
+
+Wherever there is soil, plants grow and produce their kind, and all
+plants are interesting; when a person makes a choice as to what plants
+he shall grow in any given place, he becomes a gardener or a farmer;
+and if the conditions are such that he cannot make a choice, he may
+adopt the plants that grow there by nature, and by making the most of
+them may still be a gardener or a farmer in some degree.
+
+Every family, therefore, may have a garden. If there is not a foot of
+land, there are porches or windows. Wherever there is sunlight, plants
+may be made to grow; and one plant in a tin-can may be a more helpful
+and inspiring garden to some mind than a whole acre of lawn and flowers
+may be to another.
+
+The satisfaction of a garden does not depend on the area, nor, happily,
+on the cost or rarity of the plants. It depends on the temper of the
+person. One must first seek to love plants and nature, and then to
+cultivate the happy peace of mind that is satisfied with little.
+
+In the vast majority of cases a person will be happier if he has no
+rigid and arbitrary notions, for gardens are moodish, particularly with
+the novice. If plants grow and thrive, he should be happy; and if the
+plants that thrive chance not to be the ones that he planted, they are
+plants nevertheless, and nature is satisfied with them.
+
+We are wont to covet the things that we cannot have; but we are happier
+when we love the things that grow because they must. A patch of lusty
+pigweeds, growing and crowding in luxuriant abandon, may be a better
+and more worthy object of affection than a bed of coleuses in which
+every spark of life and spirit and individuality has been sheared out
+and suppressed. The man who worries morning and night about the
+dandelions in the lawn will find great relief in loving the dandelions.
+Each blossom is worth more than a gold coin, as it shines in the
+exuberant sunlight of the growing spring, and attracts the insects to
+its bosom. Little children like the dandelions: why may not we? Love
+the things nearest at hand; and love intensely. If I were to write a
+motto over the gate of a garden, I should choose the remark that
+Socrates is said to have made as he saw the luxuries in the market,
+“How much there is in the world that I do not want!”
+
+I verily believe that this paragraph I have just written is worth more
+than all the advice with which I intend to cram the succeeding pages,
+notwithstanding the fact that I have most assiduously extracted this
+advice from various worthy but, happily, long-forgotten authors.
+Happiness is a quality of a person, not of a plant or a garden; and the
+anticipation of joy in the writing of a book may be the reason why so
+many books on garden-making have been written. Of course, all these
+books have been good and useful. It would be ungrateful, at the least,
+for the present writer to say otherwise; but books grow old, and the
+advice becomes too familiar. The sentences need to be transposed and
+the order of the chapters varied, now and then, or interest lags. Or,
+to speak plainly, a new book of advice on handicraft is needed in every
+decade, or perhaps oftener in these days of many publishers. There has
+been a long and worthy procession of these handbooks,—Gardiner &
+Hepburn, M’Mahon, Cobbett—original, pungent, versatile
+Cobbett!—Fessenden, Squibb, Bridgeman, Sayers, Buist, and a dozen more,
+each one a little richer because the others had been written. But even
+the fact that all books pass into oblivion does not deter another hand
+from making still another venture.
+
+I expect, then, that every person who reads this book will make a
+garden, or will try to make one; but if only tares grow where roses are
+desired, I must remind the reader that at the outset I advised
+pigweeds. The book, therefore, will suit everybody,—the experienced
+gardener, because it will be a repetition of what he already knows; and
+the novice, because it will apply as well to a garden of burdocks as of
+onions.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 1. The ornamental burdock]
+
+_What a garden is_.
+
+A garden is the personal part of an estate, the area that is most
+intimately associated with the private life of the home. Originally,
+the garden was the area inside the inclosure or lines of fortification,
+in distinction from the unprotected area or fields that lay beyond; and
+this latter area was the particular domain of agriculture. This book
+understands the garden to be that part of the personal or home premises
+devoted to ornament, and to the growing of vegetables and fruits. The
+garden, therefore, is an ill-defined demesne; but the reader must not
+make the mistake of defining it by dimensions, for one may have a
+garden in a flower-pot or on a thousand acres. In other words, this
+book declares that every bit of land that is not used for buildings,
+walks, drives, and fences, should be planted. What we shall
+plant—whether sward, lilacs, thistles, cabbages, pears, chrysanthemums,
+or tomatoes—we shall talk about as we proceed.
+
+The only way to keep land perfectly unproductive is to keep it moving.
+The moment the owner lets it alone, the planting has begun. In my own
+garden, this first planting is of pigweeds. These may be followed, the
+next year, by ragweeds, then by docks and thistles, with here and there
+a start of clover and grass; and it all ends in June-grass and
+dandelions.
+
+Nature does not allow the land to remain bare and idle. Even the banks
+where plaster and lath were dumped two or three years ago are now
+luxuriant with burdocks and sweet clover; and yet persons who pass
+those dumps every day say that they can grow nothing in their own yard
+because the soil is so poor! Yet I venture that those same persons
+furnish most of the pigweed seed that I use on my garden.
+
+The lesson is that there is no soil—where a house would be built—so
+poor that something worth while cannot be grown on it. If burdocks will
+grow, something else will grow; or if nothing else will grow, then I
+prefer burdocks to sand and rubbish.
+
+The burdock is one of the most striking and decorative of plants, and a
+good piece of it against a building or on a rough bank is just as
+useful as many plants that cost money and are difficult to grow. I had
+a good clump of burdock under my study window, and it was a great
+comfort; but the man would persist in wanting to cut it down when he
+mowed the lawn. When I remonstrated, he declared that it was nothing
+but burdock; but I insisted that, so far from being burdock, it was
+really Lappa major, since which time the plant and its offspring have
+enjoyed his utmost respect. And I find that most of my friends reserve
+their appreciation of a plant until they have learned its name and its
+family connections.
+
+The dump-place that I mentioned has a surface area of nearly one
+hundred and fifty square feet, and I find that it has grown over two
+hundred good plants of one kind or another this year. This is more than
+my gardener accomplished on an equal area, with manure and water and a
+man to help. The difference was that the plants on the dump wanted to
+grow, and the imported plants in the garden did not want to grow. It
+was the difference between a willing horse and a balky horse. If a
+person wants to show his skill, he may choose the balky plant; but if
+he wants fun and comfort in gardening, he would better choose the
+willing one.
+
+I have never been able to find out when the burdocks and mustard were
+planted on the dump; and I am sure that they were never hoed or
+watered. Nature practices a wonderfully rigid economy. For nearly half
+the summer she even refused rain to the plants, but still they thrived;
+yet I staid home from a vacation one summer that I might keep my plants
+from dying. I have since learned that if the plants in my hardy borders
+cannot take care of themselves for a time, they are little comfort to
+me.
+
+The joy of garden-making lies in the mental attitude and in the
+sentiments.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER II
+THE GENERAL PLAN OR THEORY OF THE PLACE
+
+Having now discussed the most essential elements of gardening, we may
+give attention to such minor features as the actual way in which a
+satisfying garden is to be planned and executed.
+
+Speaking broadly, a person will get from a garden what he puts into it;
+and it is of the first importance, therefore, that a clear conception
+of the work be formulated at the outset. I do not mean to say that the
+garden will always turn out what it was desired that it should be; but
+the failure to turn out properly is usually some fault in the first
+plan or some neglect in execution.
+
+Sometimes the disappointment in an ornamental garden is a result of
+confusion of ideas as to what a garden is for. One of my friends was
+greatly disappointed on returning to his garden early in September to
+find that it was not so full and floriferous as when he left it in
+July. He had not learned the simple lesson that even a flower-garden
+should exhibit the natural progress of the season. If the garden begins
+to show ragged places and to decline in late August or early September,
+it is what occurs in all surrounding vegetation. The year is maturing.
+The garden ought to express the feeling of the different months. The
+failing leaves and expended plants are therefore to be looked on, to
+some extent at least, as the natural order and destiny of a good
+garden.
+
+These attributes are well exhibited in the vegetable-garden. In the
+spring, the vegetable-garden is a model of neatness and precision. The
+rows are straight. There are no missing plants. The earth is mellow and
+fresh. Weeds are absent. One takes his friends to the garden, and he
+makes pictures of it. By late June or early July, the plants have begun
+to sprawl and to get out of shape. The bugs have taken some of them.
+The rows are no longer trim and precise. The earth is hot and dry. The
+weeds are making headway. By August and September, the garden has lost
+its early regularity and freshness. The camera is put aside. The
+visitors are not taken to it: the gardener prefers to go alone to find
+the melon or the tomatoes, and he comes away as soon as he has secured
+his product. Now, as a matter of fact, the garden has been going
+through its regular seasonal growth. It is natural that it become
+ragged. It is not necessary that weeds conquer it; but I suspect that
+it would be a very poor garden, and certainly an uninteresting one, if
+it retained the dress of childhood at the time when it should develop
+the personalities of age.
+
+There are two types of outdoor gardening in which the progress of the
+season is not definitely expressed,—in the carpet-bedding kind, and in
+the subtropical kind. I hope that my reader will get a clear
+distinction in these matters, for it is exceedingly important. The
+carpet-bedding gardening is the making of figure-beds in house-leeks
+and achyranthes and coleus and sanitalia, and other things that can be
+grown in compact masses and possibly sheared to keep them within place
+and bounds; the reader sees these beds in perfection in some of the
+parks and about florists’ establishments; he will understand at once
+that they are not meant in any way to express the season, for the
+difference between them in September and June is only that they may be
+more perfect in September. The subtropical gardening (plates IV and V)
+is the planting out of house-grown stuff, in order to produce given
+effects, of such plants as palms, dracenas, crotons, caladiums,
+papyrus, together with such luxuriant things as dahlias and cannas and
+large ornamental grasses and castor beans; these plants are to produce
+effects quite foreign to the expression of a northern landscape, and
+they are usually at their best and are most luxuriant when overtaken by
+the fall frosts.
+
+Now, the home gardener usually relies on plants that more or less come
+and go with the seasons. He pieces out and extends the season, to be
+sure; but a garden with pansies, pinks, sweet william, roses, sweet
+peas, petunias, marigolds, salpiglossis, sweet sultan, poppies,
+zinnias, asters, cosmos, and the rest, is a progress-of-the-season
+garden, nevertheless; and if it is a garden of herbaceous perennials,
+it still more completely expresses the time-of-year.
+
+My reader will now consider, perhaps, whether he would have his garden
+accent and heighten his natural year from spring to fall, or whether he
+desires to thrust into his year a feeling of another order of
+vegetation. Either is allowable; but the gardener should distinguish at
+the outset.
+
+I wish to suggest to my reader, also, that it is possible for the
+garden to retain some interest even in the winter months. I sometimes
+question whether it is altogether wise to clear out the old garden
+stems too completely and too smoothly in the fall, and thereby
+obliterate every mark of it for the winter months; but however this may
+be, there are two ways by which the garden year may be extended: by
+planting things that bloom very late in fall and others that bloom very
+early in spring; by using freely, in the backgrounds, of bushes and
+trees that have interesting winter characters.
+
+_The plan of the grounds_ (see Plate II).
+
+
+II. The plan of the place. II. The plan of the place. The arrangement
+of the property (which is in New York) is determined by an existing
+woodland to the left or southeast of the house and a natural opening to
+the southwest of the house. The house is colonial, and the entire
+treatment is one of considerable simplicity. Wild or woodland gardens
+have been developed to the right and left of the entrance, the latter
+or entrance lawns being left severely simple and plain in their
+treatment. To the rear of the house a turf terrace raised three steps
+above the general grade of the lawn leads to a general lawn terminated
+by a small garden exedra or teahouse with a fountain in its center, and
+to two shrub gardens forming interesting and closed pockets of lawn.
+The stable and vegetable gardens are located to the south of the house
+in a natural opening in the woodland. The design is made by a
+professional landscape architect.
+
+
+One cannot expect satisfaction in the planting and developing of a home
+area unless he has a clear conception of what is to be done. This
+necessarily follows, since the pleasure that one derives from any
+enterprise depends chiefly on the definiteness of his ideals and his
+ability to develop them. The homemaker should develop his plan before
+he attempts to develop his place. He must study the various
+subdivisions in order that the premises may meet all his needs. He
+should determine the locations of the leading features of the place and
+the relative importance to be given to the various parts of it,—as of
+the landscape parts, the ornamental areas, the vegetable-garden, and
+the fruit plantation.
+
+The details of the planting may be determined in part as the place
+develops; it is only the structural features and purposes that need to
+be determined beforehand in most small properties. The incidental
+modifications that may be made in the planting from time to time keep
+the interest alive and allow the planter to gratify his desire to
+experiment with new plants and new methods.
+
+It must be understood that I am now speaking of ordinary home grounds
+which the home-maker desires to improve by himself. If the area is
+large enough to present distinct landscape features, it is always best
+to employ a landscape architect of recognized merit, in the same spirit
+that one would employ an architect. The details, however, may even then
+be filled in by the owner, if he is so inclined, following out the plan
+that the landscape architect makes.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 2. Diagram of a back yard.]
+
+It is desirable to have a definite plan on paper (drawn to scale) for
+the location of the leading features of the place. These features are
+the residence, the out-houses, the walks and drives, the service areas
+(as clothes yards), the border planting, flower-garden,
+vegetable-garden, and fruit-garden. It should not be expected that the
+map plan can be followed in every detail, but it will serve as a
+general guide; and if it is made on a large enough scale, the different
+kinds of plants can be located in their proper positions, and a record
+of the place be kept. It is nearly always unsatisfactory, for both
+owner and designer, if a plan of the place is made without a personal
+inspection of the area. Lines that look well on a map may not adjust
+themselves readily to the varying contours of the place itself, and the
+location of the features inside the grounds will depend also in a very
+large measure on the objects that lie outside it. For example, all
+interesting and bold views should be brought into the place, and all
+unsightly objects in the immediate vicinity should be planted out.
+
+A plan of a back yard of a narrow city lot is given in Fig. 2, showing
+the heavy border planting of trees and shrubs, with the skirting border
+of flowers. In the front are two large trees, that are desired for
+shade. It will readily be seen from this plan how extensive the area
+for flowers becomes when they are placed along such a devious border.
+More color effect can be got from such an arrangement of the flowers
+than could be secured if the whole area were planted to flower-beds.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 3. Plan of a rough area.]
+
+A contour map plan of a very rough piece of ground is shown in Fig. 3.
+The sides of the place are high, and it becomes necessary to carry a
+walk through the middle area; and on either side of the front, it
+skirts the banks. Such a plan is usually unsightly on paper, but may
+nevertheless fit special cases very well. The plan is inserted here for
+the purpose of illustrating the fact that a plan that will work on the
+ground does not necessarily work on a map.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 4. Suggestion for a school-ground on a
+four-corners.]
+
+In charting a place, it is important to locate the points from which
+the walks are to start, and at which they are to emerge from the
+grounds. These two points are then joined by direct and simple curves;
+and alongside the walks, especially in angles or bold curves, planting
+may be inserted.
+
+A suggestion for school premises on a four-corners, and which the
+pupils enter from three directions, is made in Fig. 4. The two
+playgrounds are separated by a broken group of bushes extending from
+the building to the rear boundary; but, in general, the spaces are kept
+open, and the heavy border-masses clothe the place and make it
+home-like. The lineal extent of the group margins is astonishingly
+large, and along all these margins flowers may be planted, if desired.
+
+If there is only six feet between a schoolhouse and the fence, there is
+still room for a border of shrubs. This border should be between the
+walk and the fence,—on the very boundary,—not between the walk and the
+building, for in the latter case the planting divides the premises and
+weakens the effect. A space two feet wide will allow of an irregular
+wall of bushes, if tall buildings do not cut out the light; and if the
+area is one hundred feet long, thirty to fifty kinds of shrubs and
+flowers can be grown to perfection, and the school-grounds will be
+practically no smaller for the plantation.
+
+One cannot make a plan of a place until he knows what he wants to do
+with the property; and therefore we may devote the remainder of this
+chapter to developing the idea in the layout of the premises rather
+than to the details of map-making and planting.
+
+Because I speak of the free treatment of garden spaces in this book it
+must not be inferred that any reflection is intended on the “formal”
+garden. There are many places in which the formal or “architect’s
+garden” is much to be desired; but each of these cases should be
+treated wholly by itself and be made a part of the architectural
+setting of the place. These questions are outside the sphere of this
+book. All formal gardens are properly individual studies.
+
+All very special types of garden design are naturally excluded from a
+book of this kind, such types, for example, as Japanese gardening.
+Persons who desire to develop these specialties will secure the
+services of persons who are skilled in them; and there are also books
+and magazine articles to which they may go.
+
+_The picture in the landscape_.
+
+The deficiency in most home grounds is not so much that there is too
+little planting of trees and shrubs as that this planting is
+meaningless. Every yard should be a picture. That is, the area should
+be set off from other areas, and it should have such a character that
+the observer catches its entire effect and purpose without stopping to
+analyze its parts. The yard should be one thing, one area, with every
+feature contributing its part to one strong and homogeneous effect.
+
+[Illustration: Fig 5. The common or nursery way of planting]
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 6. The proper or pictorial type of planting]
+
+These remarks will become concrete if the reader turns his eye to Figs.
+5 and 6. The former represents a common type of planting of front
+yards. The bushes and trees are scattered promiscuously over the area.
+Such a yard has no purpose, no central idea. It shows plainly that the
+planter had no constructive conception, no grasp of any design, and no
+appreciation of the fundamental elements of the beauty of landscape.
+Its only merit is the fact that trees and shrubs have been planted; and
+this, to most minds, comprises the essence and sum of the ornamentation
+of grounds. Every tree and bush is an individual alone, unattended,
+disconnected from its environments, and, therefore, meaningless. Such a
+yard is only a nursery.
+
+The other plan (Fig. 6) is a picture. The eye catches its meaning at
+once. The central idea is the residence, with a free and open
+greensward in front of it The same trees and bushes that were scattered
+haphazard over Fig. 5 are massed into a framework to give effectiveness
+to the picture of home and comfort. This style of planting makes a
+landscape, even though the area be no larger than a parlor. The other
+style is only a collection of curious plants. The one has an instant
+and abiding pictorial effect, which is restful and satisfying: the
+observer exclaims, “What a beautiful home this is!” The other piques
+one’s curiosity, obscures the residence, divides and distracts the
+attention: the observer exclaims, “What excellent lilac bushes are
+these!”
+
+An inquiry into the causes of the unlike impressions that one receives
+from a given landscape and from a painting of it explains the subject
+admirably. One reason why the picture appeals to us more than the
+landscape is because the picture is condensed, and the mind becomes
+acquainted with its entire purpose at once, while the landscape is so
+broad that the individual objects at first fix the attention, and it is
+only by a process of synthesis that the unity of the landscape finally
+becomes apparent. This is admirably illustrated in photographs. One of
+the first surprises that the novice experiences in the use of the
+camera is the discovery that very tame scenes become interesting and
+often even spirited in the photograph. But there is something more than
+mere condensation in this vitalizing and beautifying effect of the
+photograph or the painting: individual objects are so much reduced that
+they no longer appeal to us as distinct subjects, and however uncouth
+they may be in the reality, they make no impression in the picture; the
+thin and sere sward may appear rather like a closely shaven lawn or a
+new-mown meadow. And again, the picture sets a limit to the scene; it
+frames it, and thereby cuts off all extraneous and confusing or
+irrelevant landscapes.
+
+These remarks are illustrated in the aesthetics of landscape gardening.
+It is the artist’s one desire to make pictures in the landscape. This
+is done in two ways: by the form of plantations, and by the use of
+vistas. He will throw his plantations into such positions that open and
+yet more or less confined areas of greensward are presented to the
+observer at various points. This picture-like opening is nearly or
+quite devoid of small or individual objects, which usually destroy the
+unity of such areas and are meaningless in themselves. A vista is a
+narrow opening or view between plantations to a distant landscape. It
+cuts up the broad horizon into portions that are readily cognizable. It
+frames parts of the country-side. The verdurous sides of the planting
+are the sides of the frame; the foreground is the bottom, and the sky
+is the top. It is of the utmost importance that good views be left or
+secured from the best windows of the house (not forgetting the kitchen
+window); in fact, the placing of the house may often be determined by
+the views that may be appropriated.
+
+If a landscape is a picture, it must have a canvas. This canvas is the
+greensward. Upon this, the artist paints with tree and bush and flower
+as the painter does upon his canvas with brush and pigments. The
+opportunity for artistic composition and design is nowhere so great as
+in the landscape garden, because no other art has such a limitless
+field for the expression of its emotions. It is not strange, if this be
+true, that there have been few great landscape gardeners, and that,
+falling short of art, the landscape gardener too often works in the
+sphere of the artisan. There can be no rules for landscape gardening,
+any more than there can be for painting or sculpture. The operator may
+be taught how to hold the brush or strike the chisel or plant the tree,
+but he remains an operator; the art is intellectual and emotional and
+will not confine itself in precepts.
+
+The making of a good and spacious lawn, then, is the very first
+practical consideration in a landscape garden.
+
+The lawn provided, the gardener conceives what is the dominant and
+central feature in the place, and then throws the entire premises into
+subordination to this feature. In home grounds this central feature is
+the house. To scatter trees and bushes over the area defeats the
+fundamental purpose of the place,—the purpose to make every part of the
+grounds lead up to the home and to accentuate its homelikeness.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 7. A house]
+
+A house must have a background if it is to become a home. A house that
+stands on a bare plain or hill is a part of the universe, not a part of
+a home. Recall the cozy little farm-house that is backed by a wood or
+an orchard; then compare some pretentious structure that stands apart
+from all planting. Yet how many are the farm-houses that stand as stark
+and cold against the sky as if they were competing with the moon! We
+would not believe it possible for a man to live in a house twenty-five
+years and not, by accident, allow some tree to grow, were it not that
+it is so!
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 8 A home]
+
+Of course these remarks about the lawn are meant for those countries
+where greensward is the natural ground cover. In the South and in arid
+countries, greensward is not the prevailing feature of the landscape,
+and in these regions the landscape design may take on a wholly
+different character, if the work is to be nature-like. We have not yet
+developed other conceptions of landscape work to any perfect extent,
+and we inject the English greensward treatment even into deserts. We
+may look for the time when a brown landscape garden may be made in a
+brown country, and it may be good art not to attempt a broad open
+center in regions in which undergrowth rather than sod is the natural
+ground cover. In parts of the United States we are developing a good
+Spanish-American architecture, perhaps we may develop a recognized
+comparable landscape treatment as an artistic expression.
+
+_Birds; and cats_
+
+The picture in the landscape is not complete without birds, and the
+birds should comprise more species than English sparrows. If one is to
+have birds on his premises, he must (1) attract them and (2) protect
+them.
+
+One attracts birds by providing places in which they may nest. The free
+border plantings have distinct advantages in attracting chipping
+sparrows, catbirds, and other species. The bluebirds, house wrens, and
+martins may be attracted by boxes in which they can build.
+
+One may attract birds by feeding them and supplying water. Suet for
+woodpeckers and others, grain and crumbs for other kinds, and taking
+care not to frighten or molest them, will soon win the confidence of
+the birds. A slowly running or dripping fountain, with a good rim on
+which they may perch, will also attract them, and it is no mean
+enjoyment to watch the birds at bathing. Or, if one does not care to go
+to the expense of a bird fountain, he may supply their wants by means
+of a shallow dish of water set on the lawn.
+
+The birds will need protection from cats. There is no more reason why
+cats should roam at will and uncontrolled than that dogs or horses or
+poultry should be allowed unlimited license. A cat away from home is a
+trespasser and should be so treated. A person has no more right to
+inflict a cat on a neighborhood than to inflict a goat or rabbits or
+any other nuisance. All persons who keep cats should feel the same
+responsibility for them that they feel for other property; and they
+should be willing to forfeit their property right when they forfeit
+their control. The cats not only destroy birds, but they break the
+peace. The caterwauling at night will not be permitted in well-governed
+communities any more than the shooting of fire-arms or vicious talking
+will be allowed: all night-roaming cats should be gathered in, just as
+stray dogs and tramps are provided for.
+
+I do not dislike cats, but I desire to see them kept at home and within
+control. If persons say that they cannot keep them on their own
+premises, then these persons should not be allowed to have them. A bell
+on the cat will prevent it from capturing old birds, and this may
+answer a good purpose late in the season; but it will not stop the
+robbing of nests or the taking of young birds, and here is where the
+greatest havoc is wrought.
+
+It is often asserted that cats must roam in order that rats and mice
+may be reduced; but probably few house mice and few rats are got by
+wandering cats; and, again, many cats are not mousers. There are other
+ways of controlling rats and mice; or if cats are employed for this
+purpose, see that they are restricted to the places where the house
+rats and mice are to be found.
+
+Many persons like squirrels about the place, but they cannot expect to
+have both birds and squirrels unless very special precautions are
+taken.
+
+The English or house sparrow drives away the native birds, although he
+is himself an attractive inhabitant in winter, particularly where
+native birds are not resident. The English sparrow should be kept in
+reduced numbers. This can be easily accomplished by poisoning them in
+winter (when other birds are not endangered) with wheat soaked in
+strychnine water. The contents of one of the eighth-ounce vials of
+strychnine that may be secured at a drug store is added to sufficient
+water to cover a quart of wheat. Let the wheat stand in the poison
+water twenty-four to forty-eight hours (but not long enough for the
+grains to sprout), then dry the wheat thoroughly. It cannot be
+distinguished from ordinary wheat, and sparrows usually eat it freely,
+particularly if they are in the habit of eating scattered grain and
+crumbs. Of course, the greatest caution must be exercised that in the
+use of such highly poisonous materials, accidents do not occur with
+other animals or with human beings.
+
+
+III. Open center treatment in a semi-tropical country. III. Open center
+treatment in a semi-tropical country.
+
+
+Illustration: The nursery or single-specimen type of planting in a
+front yard
+
+_The planting is part of the design or picture._
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 10 A native fence-row] [Ilustration: Fig. 11 Birds
+build their nests here]
+
+If the reader catches the full meaning of these pages, he has acquired
+some of the primary conceptions in landscape gardening. The suggestion
+will grow upon him day by day; and if he is of an observing turn of
+mind, he will find that this simple lesson will revolutionize his habit
+of thought respecting the planting of grounds and the beauty of
+landscapes. He will see that a bush or flower-bed that is no part of
+any general purpose or design—that is, which does not contribute to the
+making of a picture—might better never have been planted. For myself, I
+would rather have a bare and open pasture than such a yard as that
+shown in Fig. 9, even though it contained the choicest plants of every
+land. The pasture would at least be plain and restful and
+unpretentious; but the yard would be full of effort and fidget.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 12. A free-and-easy planting of things wild and
+tame.]
+
+Reduced to a single expression, all this means that the greatest
+artistic value in planting lies in the effect of the mass, and not in
+the individual plant. A mass has the greater value because it presents
+a much greater range and variety of forms, colors, shades, and
+textures, because it has sufficient extent or dimensions to add
+structural character to a place, and because its features are so
+continuous and so well blended that the mind is not distracted by
+incidental and irrelevant ideas. Two pictures will illustrate all this.
+Figures 10, 11 are pictures of natural copses. The former stretches
+along a field and makes a lawn of a bit of meadow which lies in front
+of it. The landscape has become so small and so well defined by this
+bank of verdure that it has a familiar and personal feeling. The great,
+bare, open meadows are too ill-defined and too extended to give any
+domestic feeling; but here is a part of the meadow set off into an area
+that one can compass with his affections.
+
+These masses in Figs. 10, 11, and 12 have their own intrinsic merits,
+as well as their office in defining a bit of nature. One is attracted
+by the freedom of arrangement, the irregularity of sky-line, the bold
+bays and promontories, and the infinite play of light and shade. The
+observer is interested in each because it has character, or features,
+that no other mass in all the world possesses. He knows that the birds
+build their nests in the tangle and the rabbits find it a covert.
+
+Now let the reader turn to Fig. 9, which is a picture of an “improved”
+city yard. Here there is no structural outline to the planting, no
+defining of the area, no continuous flow of the form and color. Every
+bush is what every other one is or may be, and there are hundreds like
+them in the same town. The birds shun them. Only the bugs find any
+happiness in them. The place has no fundamental design or idea, no lawn
+upon which a picture may be constructed. This yard is like a sentence
+or a conversation in which every word is equally emphasized.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 13. An open treatment of a school-ground. More
+trees might be placed in the area, if desired.]
+
+In bold contrast with this yard is the open-center treatment in Fig.
+13. Here there is pictorial effect; and there is opportunity along the
+borders to distribute trees and shrubs that may be desired as
+individual specimens.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 14. A rill much as nature made it.] [Illustration:
+Fig. 15. A rill “improved,” so that it will not look “ragged” and
+unkempt.] The motive that shears the trees also razes the copse, in
+order that the gardener or “improver” may show his art. Compare Figs.
+14 and 15. Many persons seem to fear that they will never be known to
+the world unless they expend a great amount of muscle or do something
+emphatic or spectacular; and their fears are usually well founded.
+
+It is not enough that trees and bushes be planted in masses. They must
+be kept in masses by letting them grow freely in a natural way. The
+pruning-knife is the most inveterate enemy of shrubbery. Pictures 16
+and 17 illustrate what I mean. The former represents a good group of
+bushes so far as arrangement is concerned; but it has been ruined by
+the shears. The attention of the observer is instantly arrested by the
+individual bushes. Instead of one free and expressive object, there are
+several stiff and expressionless ones. If the observer stops to
+consider his own thoughts when he comes upon such a collection, he will
+likely find himself counting the bushes; or, at least, he will be
+making mental comparisons of the various bushes, and wondering why they
+are not all sheared to be exactly alike. Figure 17 shows how the same
+“artist” has treated two deutzias and a juniper. Much the same effect
+could have been secured, and with much less trouble, by laying two
+flour barrels end to end and standing a third one between them.
+
+[Illustration: 16. The making of a good group, but spoiled by the
+pruning shears.]
+
+[Illustration: 17. The three guardsmen.] [Illustration: Fig. 18 A bit
+of semi-rustic work built into a native growth] I must hasten to say
+that I have not the slightest objection to the shearing of trees. The
+only trouble is in calling the practice art and in putting the trees
+where people must see them (unless they are part of a recognized
+formal-garden design). If the operator simply calls the business
+shearing, and puts the things where he and others who like them may see
+them, objection could not be raised. Some persons like painted stones,
+others iron bulldogs in the front yard and the word “welcome” worked
+into the door-mat, and others like barbered trees. So long as these
+likes are purely personal, it would seem to be better taste to put such
+curiosities in the back yard, where the owner may admire them without
+molestation
+
+There is a persistent desire among workmen to shear and to trim: it
+displays their industry. It is a great thing to be able to allow the
+freedom of nature to remain. The artist often builds his structures
+into a native planting (as in Fig. 18) rather than to trust himself to
+produce a good result by planting on razed surfaces.
+
+In this discussion, I have tried to enforce the importance of the open
+center in non-formal home grounds in greensward regions. Of course this
+does not mean that there may not be central planting in particular
+cases where the conditions distinctly call for it nor that there may
+not be trees on the lawn. If one has the placing of the trees, he may
+see that they are not scattered aimlessly; but if good trees are
+already growing on the place, it would be folly to think of removing
+them merely because they are not in the best ideal positions; in such
+case, it may be very necessary to adapt the treatment of the area to
+the trees. The home-maker should always consider, also, the planting of
+a few trees in such places as to shade and protect the residence: the
+more closely they can be made a part of the general design or handling
+of the place, the better the results will be.
+
+_The flower-growing should be part of the design._
+
+I do not mean to discourage the use of brilliant flowers and bright
+foliage and striking forms of vegetation; but these things are never
+primary considerations in a good domain. The structural elements of the
+place are designed first. The flanking and bordering masses are then
+planted. Finally the flowers and accessories are put in, as a house is
+painted after it is built. Flowers appear to best advantage when seen
+against a background of foliage, and they are then, also, an integral
+part of the picture. The flower-garden, as such, should be at the rear
+or side of a place, as all other personal appurtenances are; but
+flowers and bright leaves may be freely scattered along the borders and
+near the foliage masses.
+
+It is a common saying that many persons have no love or appreciation of
+flowers, but it is probably nearer to the truth to say that no person
+is wholly lacking in this respect. Even those persons who declare that
+they care nothing for flowers are generally deceived by their dislike
+of flower-beds and the conventional methods of flower-growing. I know
+many persons who stoutly deny any liking for flowers, but who,
+nevertheless, are rejoiced with the blossoming of the orchards and the
+purpling of the clover fields. The fault may not lie so much with the
+persons themselves as with the methods of growing and displaying the
+flowers.
+
+Defects in flower-growing.
+
+The greatest defect with our flower-growing is the stinginess of it. We
+grow our flowers as if they were the choicest rarities, to be coddled
+in a hotbed or under a bell-jar, and then to be exhibited as single
+specimens in some little pinched and ridiculous hole cut in the turf,
+or perched upon an ant-hill that some gardener has laboriously heaped
+oh a lawn. Nature, on the other hand, grows many of her flowers in the
+most luxurious abandon, and one can pick an armful without offense. She
+grows her flowers in earnest, as a man grows a crop of corn. One can
+revel in the color and the fragrance and be satisfied.
+
+The next defect with our flower-growing is the flower-bed. Nature has
+no time to make flower-bed designs: she is busy growing flowers. And,
+then, if she were given to flower-beds, the whole effect would be lost,
+for she could no longer be luxurious and wanton, and if a flower were
+picked her whole scheme might be upset. Imagine a geranium-bed or a
+coleus-bed, with its wonderful “design,” set out into a wood or in a
+free and open landscape! Even the birds would laugh at it!
+
+What I want to say is that we should grow flowers freely when we make a
+flower-garden. We should have enough of them to make the effort worth
+the while. I sympathize with the man who likes sunflowers. There are
+enough of them to be worth looking at. They fill the eye. Now show this
+man ten feet square of pinks or asters, or daisies, all growing free
+and easy and he will tell you that he likes them. All this has a
+particular application to the farmer, who is often said to dislike
+flowers. He grows potatoes and buckwheat and weeds by the acre: two or
+three unhappy pinks or geraniums are not enough to make an impression.
+
+Lawn flower-beds.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 19 Hole-in-the-ground gardening] The easiest way to
+spoil a good lawn is to put a flower-bed in it; and the most effective
+way in which to show off flowers to the least advantage is to plant
+them in a bed in the greensward. Flowers need a background. We do not
+hang our pictures on fence-posts. If flowers are to be grown on a lawn,
+let them be of the hardy kind, which can be naturalized in the sod and
+which grow freely in the tall unmown grass; or else perennials of such
+nature that they make attractive clumps by themselves. Lawns should be
+free and generous, but the more they are cut up and worried with
+trivial effects, the smaller and meaner they look.
+
+[Illustration: 20. Worth paying admittance price to see!] But even if
+we consider these lawn flower-beds wholly apart from their
+surroundings, we must admit that they are at best unsatisfactory. It
+generally amounts to this, that we have four months of sparse and
+downcast vegetation, one month of limp and frost-bitten plants, and
+seven months of bare earth (Fig 19) I am not now opposing the
+carpet-beds which professional gardeners make in parks and other
+museums. I like museums, and some of the carpet-beds and set pieces are
+“fearfully and wonderfully made” (see Fig 20) I am directing my remarks
+to those humble home-made flower-beds that are so common in lawns of
+country and city homes alike. These beds are cut from the good fresh
+turf, often in the most fantastic designs, and are filled with such
+plants as the women of the place may be able to carry over in cellars
+or in the window. The plants themselves may look very well in pots, but
+when they are turned out of doors, they have a sorry time for a month
+adapting themselves to the sun and winds, and it is generally well on
+towards midsummer before they begin to cover the earth. During all
+these weeks they have demanded more time and labor than would have been
+needed to care for a plantation of much greater size and which would
+have given flowers every day from the time the birds began to nest in
+the spring until the last robin had flown in November.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 21 An artist’s flower border]
+
+Flower-borders.
+
+[Illustration: 22. Petunias against a background of osiers.]
+[Illustration: 23. A sowing of flowers along a marginal planting.] We
+should acquire the habit of speaking of the flower-border. The border
+planting of which we have spoken sets bounds to the place, and makes it
+one’s own. The person lives inside his place, not on it. Along these
+borders, against groups, often by the corners of the residence or in
+front of porches—these are places for flowers. Ten flowers against a
+background are more effective than a hundred in the open yard.
+
+I have asked a professional artist, Mr Mathews, to draw me the kind of
+a flower-bed that he likes. It is shown in Fig. 21. It is a border,—a
+strip of land two or three feet wide along a fence. This is the place
+where pigweeds usually grow. Here he has planted marigolds, gladiolus,
+golden rod, wild asters, China asters, and—best of all—hollyhocks. Any
+one would like that flower-garden It has some of that local and
+indefinable charm that always attaches to an “old-fashioned garden”
+with its medley of form and color Nearly every yard has some such strip
+of land along a rear walk or fence or against a building It is the
+easiest thing to plant it,—ever so much easier than digging the
+characterless geranium bed into the center of an inoffensive lawn. The
+suggestions are carried further in 22 to 25.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 24. An open back yard. Flowers may be thrown in
+freely along the borders, but they would spoil the lawn if placed in
+its center.] [Illustration: Fig. 25. A flower garden at the rear or one
+side of the place.]
+
+The old-fashioned garden.
+
+Speaking of the old-fashioned garden recalls one of William Falconer’s
+excellent paragraphs (“Gardening,” November 15, 1897, p. 75): “We tried
+it in Schenley Park this year. We needed a handy dumping ground, and
+hit on the head of a deep ravine between two woods; into it we dumped
+hundreds upon hundreds of wagon loads of rock and clay, filling it near
+to the top, then surfaced it with good soil. Here we planted some
+shrubs, and broadcast among them set out scarlet poppies,
+eschscholtzias, dwarf nasturtiums, snapdragons, pansies, marigolds, and
+all manner of hardy herbaceous plants, having enough of each sort to
+make a mass of its kind and color, and the effect was fine. In the
+middle was a plantation of hundreds of clumps of Japan and German
+irises interplanted, thence succeeded by thousands of gladioli, and
+banded with montbretias, from which we had flowers till frost. The
+steep face of this hill was graded a little and a series of winding
+stone steps set into it, making the descent into the hollow quite easy;
+the stones were the rough uneven slabs secured in blasting the rocks
+when grading in other parts of the park, and both along outer edges of
+the steps and the sides of the upper walk a wide belt of moss pink was
+planted; and the banks all about were planted with shrubs, vines, wild
+roses, columbines, and other plants. More cameras and kodaks were
+leveled by visitors at this piece of gardening than at any other spot
+in the park, and still we had acres of painted summer beds.”
+
+Contents of the flower-borders.
+
+There is no prescribed rule as to what one should put into these
+informal flower-borders. Put in them the plants you like. Perhaps the
+greater part of them should be perennials that come up of themselves
+every spring, and that are hardy and reliable. Wild flowers are
+particularly effective. Every one knows that many of the native herbs
+of woods and glades are more attractive than some of the most prized
+garden flowers. The greater part of these native flowers grow readily
+in cultivation, sometimes even in places which, in soil and exposure,
+are much unlike their native haunts. Many of them make thickened roots,
+and they may be safely transplanted at any time after the flowers have
+passed. To most persons the wild flowers are less known than many
+exotics that have smaller merit, and the extension of cultivation is
+constantly tending to annihilate them. Here, then, in the informal
+flower-border, is an opportunity to rescue them. Then one may sow in
+freely of easy-growing annuals, as marigolds, China asters, petunias
+and phloxes, and sweet peas.
+
+[Illustration: 26. Making the most of a rock.] One of the advantages of
+these borders lying at the boundary is that they are always ready to
+receive more plants, unless they are full. That is, their symmetry is
+not marred if some plants are pulled out and others are put in. And if
+the weeds now and then get a start, very little harm is done. Such a
+border half full of weeds is handsomer than the average
+hole-in-the-lawn geranium bed. An ample border may receive wild plants
+every month in the year when the frost is out of the ground. Plants are
+dug in the woods or fields, whenever one is on an excursion, even if in
+July. The tops are cut off, the roots kept moist until they are placed
+in the border; most of these much-abused plants will grow. To be sure,
+one will secure some weeds; but then, the weeds are a part of the
+collection! Of course, some plants will resent this treatment, but the
+border may be a happy family, and be all the better and more personal
+because it is the result of moments of relaxation. Such a border has
+something new and interesting every month of the growing season; and
+even in the winter the tall clumps of grasses and aster-stems hold
+their banners above the snow and are a source of delight to every
+frolicsome bevy of snowbirds.
+
+I have spoken of a weedland to suggest how simple and easy a thing it
+is to make an attractive mass-plantation. One may make the most of a
+rock (Fig. 26) or bank, or other undesirable feature of the place. Dig
+up the ground and make it rich, and then set plants in it. You will not
+get it to suit you the first year, and perhaps not the second or the
+third; you can always pull out plants and put more in. I should not
+want a lawn-garden so perfect that I could not change it in some
+character each year; I should lose interest in it.
+
+It must not be understood that I am speaking only for mixed borders. On
+the contrary, it is much better in most cases that each border or bed
+be dominated by the expression of one kind of flower or bush. In one
+place a person may desire a wild aster effect, or a petunia effect, or
+a larkspur effect, or a rhododendron effect; or it may be desirable to
+run heavily to strong foliage effects in one direction and to light
+flower effects in another. The mixed border is rather more a
+flower-garden idea than a landscape idea; when it shall be desirable to
+emphasize the one and when the other, cannot be set down in a book.
+
+_The value of plants may lie in foliage and form rather than in bloom._
+
+[Illustration: 27. The plant-form in a perennial salvia.] What kinds of
+shrubs and flowers to plant is a wholly secondary and largely a
+personal consideration. The main plantings are made up of hardy and
+vigorous species; then the things that you like are added. There is
+endless choice in the species, but the arrangement or disposition of
+the plants is far more important than the kinds; and the foliage and
+form of the plant are usually of more importance than its bloom.
+
+The appreciation of foliage effects in the landscape is a higher type
+of feeling than the desire for mere color. Flowers are transitory, but
+foliage and plant forms are abiding. The common roses have very little
+value for landscape planting because the foliage and habit of the
+rose-bush are not attractive, the leaves are inveterately attacked by
+bugs, and the blossoms are fleeting. Some of the wild roses and the
+Japanese _Rosa rugosa_, however, have distinct merit for mass effects.
+
+Even the common flowers, as marigold, zinnias, and gaillardias, are
+interesting as plant forms long before they come into bloom. To many
+persons the most satisfying epoch in the garden is that preceding the
+bloom, for the habits and stature of the plants are then unobscured.
+The early stages of lilies, daffodils, and all perennials are most
+interesting; and one never appreciates a garden until he realizes that
+this is so.
+
+[Illustration: 28. Funkia, or day-lily. Where lies the chief
+interest,--in the plant-form or in the bloom?] [Illustration: 29. A
+large-leaved nicotiana.] Now let the reader, with these suggestions in
+mind, observe for one week the plant-forms in the humble herbs that he
+meets, whether these herbs are strong garden plants or the striking
+sculpturing of mulleins, burdocks, and jimson-weed. Figures 27 to 31
+will be suggestive.
+
+Wild bushes are nearly always attractive in form and habit when planted
+in borders and groups. They improve in appearance under cultivation
+because they are given a better chance to grow. In wild nature there is
+such fierce struggle for existence that plants usually grow to few or
+single stems, and they are sparse and scraggly in form; but once given
+all the room they want and a good soil, they become luxurious, full,
+and comely. In most home grounds in the country the body of the
+planting may be very effectively composed of bushes taken from the
+adjacent woods and fields. The masses may then be enlivened by the
+addition here and there of cultivated bushes, and the planting of
+flowers and herbs about the borders. It is not essential that one know
+the names of these wild bushes, although a knowledge of their botanical
+kinships will add greatly to the pleasure of growing them. Neither will
+they look common when transferred to the lawn. There are not many
+persons who know even the commonest wild bushes intimately, and the
+things change so much in looks when removed to rich ground that few
+home-makers recognize them.
+
+[Illustration: 30. The awkward century plant that has been laboriously
+carried over winter year by year in the cellar: compare with other
+plants here shown as to its value as a lawn subject.]
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 31. Making a picture with rhubarb.]
+
+Odd and formal trees.
+
+[Illustration: Fig 32. A weeping tree at one side of the grounds and
+supported by a background.] It is but a corollary of this discussion to
+say that plants which are simply odd or grotesque or unusual should be
+used with the greatest caution, for they introduce extraneous and
+jarring effects. They are little in sympathy with a landscape garden.
+An artist would not care to paint an evergreen that is sheared into
+some grotesque shape. It is only curious, and shows what a man with
+plenty of time and long pruning shears can accomplish. A weeping tree
+(particularly of a small-growing species) is usually seen to best
+advantage when it stands against a group or mass of foliage (Fig. 32),
+as a promontory, adding zest and spirit to the border; it then has
+relation with the place.
+
+This leads me to speak of the planting of the Lombardy poplar, which
+may be taken as a type of the formal tree, and as an illustration of
+what I mean to express. Its chief merits to the average planter are the
+quickness of its growth and the readiness with which it multiplies by
+sprouts. But in the North it is likely to be a short-lived tree, it
+suffers from storms, and it has few really useful qualities. It may be
+used to some advantage in windbreaks for peach orchards and other
+short-lived plantations; but after a few years a screen of Lombardies
+begins to fail, and the habit of suckering from the root adds to its
+undesirable features. For shade it has little merit, and for timber
+none. Persons like it because it is striking, and this, in an artistic
+sense, is its gravest fault. It is unlike anything else in our
+landscape, and does not fit into our scenery well. A row of Lombardies
+along a roadside is like a row of exclamation points!
+
+
+IV. Subtropical bedding against a building. Caladiums, cannas,
+abutilons, permanent rhododendrons, and other large stuff, with
+tuberous begonias and balsams between. IV. Subtropical bedding against
+a building. Caladiums, cannas, abutilons, permanent rhododendrons, and
+other large stuff, with tuberous begonias and balsams between.
+
+But the Lombardy can often be used to good effect as one factor in a
+group of trees, where its spire-like shape, towering above the
+surrounding foliage, may lend a spirited charm to the landscape. It
+combines well in such groups if it stands in visual nearness to
+chimneys or other tall formal objects. Then it gives a sort of
+architectural finish and spirit to a group; but the effect is generally
+lessened, if not altogether spoiled, in small places, if more than one
+Lombardy is in view. One or two specimens may often be used to give
+vigor to heavy plantations about low buildings, and the effect is
+generally best if they are seen beyond or at the rear of the building.
+Note the use that the artist has made of them in the backgrounds in
+Figs. 12, 13, and 43.
+
+Poplars and the like.
+
+Another defect in common ornamental planting, which is well illustrated
+in the use of poplars, is the desire for plants merely because they
+grow rapidly. A very rapid-growing tree nearly always produces cheap
+effects. This is well illustrated in the common planting of willows and
+poplars about summer places or lake shores. Their effect is almost
+wholly one of thinness and temporariness. There is little that suggests
+strength or durability in willows and poplars, and for this reason they
+should usually be employed as minor or secondary features in ornamental
+or home grounds. When quick results are desired, nothing is better to
+plant than these trees; but better trees, as maples, oaks, or elms,
+should be planted with them, and the poplars and willows should be
+removed as rapidly as the other species begin to afford protection.
+When the plantation finally assumes its permanent characters, a few of
+the remaining poplars and willows, judiciously left, may afford very
+excellent effects; but no one who has an artist’s feeling would be
+content to construct the framework of his place of these rapid-growing
+and soft-wooded trees.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 33. A spring expression worth securing. Catkins of
+the small poplar.] [Illustration: Fig. 34. Plant-form in
+cherries.--Reine Hortense.] I have said that the legitimate use of
+poplars in ornamental grounds is in the production of minor or
+secondary effects. As a rule, they are less adapted to isolated
+planting as specimen trees than to using in composition,—that is, as
+parts of general groups of trees, where their characters serve to break
+the monotony of heavier forms and heavier foliage. The poplars are gay
+trees, as a rule, especially those, like the aspens, that have a
+trembling foliage. Their leaves are bright and the tree-tops are thin.
+The common aspen or “popple,” _Populus tremuloides_, of our woods, is a
+meritorious little tree for certain effects. Its dangling catkins (Fig.
+33), light, dancing foliage, and silver-gray limbs, are always
+cheering, and its autumn color is one of the purest golden-yellows of
+our landscape. It is good to see a tree of it standing out in front of
+a group of maples or evergreens.
+
+Plant-forms.
+
+Before one attains to great sensitiveness in the appreciation of
+gardens, he learns to distinguish plants by their forms. This is
+particularly true for trees and shrubs. Each species has its own
+“expression,” which is determined by the size that is natural to it,
+mode of branching, form of top, twig characters, bark characters,
+foliage characters, and to some extent its flower and fruit characters.
+It is a useful practice for one to train his eye by learning the
+difference in expression of the trees of different varieties of
+cherries or pears or apples or other fruits, if he has access to a
+plantation of them. The differences in cherries and pears are very
+marked (Figs. 34-36). He may also contrast and compare carefully the
+kinds of any tree or shrub of which there are two or three species in
+the neighborhood, learning to distinguish them without close
+examination; as the sugar maple, red maple, soft maple, and Norway
+maple (if it is planted); the white or American elm, the cork elm, the
+slippery elm, the planted European elms; the aspen, large-toothed
+poplar, cottonwood, balm of gilead, Carolina poplar, Lombardy poplar;
+the main species of oaks; the hickories; and the like.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 35. Morello cherry.] [Illustration: Fig. 36. May
+Duke cherry.] It will not be long before the observer learns that many
+of the tree and shrub characters are most marked in winter; and he will
+begin unconsciously to add the winter to his year.
+
+_Various specific examples_.
+
+The foregoing remarks will mean more if the reader is shown some
+concrete examples. I have chosen a few cases, not because they are the
+best, or even because they are always good enough for models, but
+because they lie in my way and illustrate what I desire to teach.
+
+A front yard example.
+
+We will first look at a very ordinary front yard. It contained no
+plants, except a pear tree standing near the corner of the house. Four
+years later sees the yard as shown in Fig. 37. An exochorda is the
+large bush in the very foreground, and the porch foundation is screened
+and a border is thereby given to the lawn. The length of this planting
+from end to end is about fourteen feet, with a projection towards the
+front on the left of ten feet. In the bay at the base of this
+projection the planting is only two feet wide or deep, and from here it
+gradually swings out to the steps, eight feet wide. The prominent
+large-leaved plant near the steps is a bramble, _Rubus odoratus_, very
+common in the neighborhood, and it is a choice plant for decorative
+planting, when it is kept under control. The plants in this border in
+front of the porch are all from the wild, and comprise a prickly ash,
+several plants of two wild osiers or dogwoods, a spice bush, rose, wild
+sunflowers and asters and golden-rods. The promontory at the left is a
+more ambitious but less effective mass. It contains an exochorda, a
+reed, variegated elder, sacaline, variegated dogwood, tansy, and a
+young tree of wild crab. At the rear of the plantation, next the house,
+one sees the pear tree. The best single part of the planting is the
+reed (_Arundo Donax_) overtopping the exochorda. The photograph was
+taken early in summer, before the reed had become conspicuous.
+
+[Illustration: 37. The planting in a simple front yard.]
+
+A ground plan of this planting is shown in Fig. 38. At A is the walk
+and B the steps. An opening at D serves as a passage. The main
+planting, in front of the porch, fourteen feet long, received twelve
+plants, some of which have now spread into large clumps. At 1 is a
+large bush of osier, _Cornus Baileyi_, one of the best red-stemmed
+bushes. At 2 is a mass of _Rubus odoratus_; at 5 asters and
+golden-rods; at 3 a clump of wild sunflowers. The projecting planting
+on the left comprises about ten plants, of which 4 is exochorda, 6 is
+arundo or reed, at the back of which is a large clump of sacaline, and
+7 is a variegated-leaved elder.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 38. Plan of the planting shown in Fig. 37.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 39. Diagram of a back-yard planting. 50 x 90 feet.]
+
+Another example.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 40. The beginning of a landscape garden.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 41. The result in five years.]
+
+A back yard is shown in Fig. 39. The owner wanted a tennis court, and
+the yard is so small as not to allow of wide planting at the borders.
+However, something could be done. On the left is a weedland border,
+which formed the basis of the discussion of wild plants on page 35. In
+the first place, a good lawn was made. In the second place, no walks or
+drives were laid in the area. The drive for grocers’ wagons and coal is
+seen in the rear, ninety feet from the house. From I to J is the
+weedland, separating the area from the neighbor’s premises. Near I is a
+clump of roses. At K is a large bunch of golden-rods. H marks a clump
+of yucca. G is a cabin, covered with vines on the front. From G to F is
+an irregular border, about six feet wide, containing barberries,
+forsythias, wild elder, and other bushes. D E is a screen of Russian
+mulberry, setting off the clothes yard from the front lawn. Near the
+back porch, at the end of the screen, is an arbor covered with wild
+grapes, making a play-house for the children. A clump of lilacs stands
+at A. At B is a vine-covered screen, serving as a hammock support. The
+lawn made and the planting done, it was next necessary to lay the
+walks. These are wholly informal affairs, made by sinking a plank ten
+inches wide into the ground to a level with the sod. The border
+plantings of this yard are too straight and regular for the most
+artistic results, but such was necessary in order not to encroach upon
+the central space. Yet the reader will no doubt agree that this yard is
+much better than it could be made by any system of scattered and
+spotted planting. Let him imagine how a glowing carpet-bed would look
+set down in the center of this lawn!
+
+A third example.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 42. A meaningless back-yard planting, and an
+unnecessary drive.] [Illustration: Fig. 43. Suggestions for improving
+Fig. 42.]
+
+The making of a landscape picture is well illustrated in Figs. 40, 41.
+The former shows a small clay field (seventy-five feet wide, and three
+hundred feet deep), with a barn at the rear. In front of the barn is a
+screen of willows. The observer is looking from the dwelling-house. The
+area has been plowed and seeded for a lawn. The operator has then
+marked out a devious line upon either border with a hoe handle, and all
+the space between these borders has been gone over with a garden roller
+to mark the area of the desired greensward.
+
+The borders are now planted with a variety of small trees, bushes, and
+herbs. Five years later the view shown in Fig. 41 was taken.
+
+A small back yard.
+
+A back yard is shown in Fig. 42. It is approximately sixty feet square.
+At present it contains a drive, which is unnecessary, expensive to keep
+in repair, and destructive of any attempt to make a picture of the
+area. The place could be improved by planting it somewhat after the
+manner of Fig. 43.
+
+
+V. A subtropical bed. Center of cannas, with border of _Pennisetum
+longistylum_ (a grass) started in late February or early March. V. A
+subtropical bed. Center of cannas, with border of _Pennisetum
+longistylum_ (a grass) started in late February or early March.
+
+
+A city lot.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 44. Present outline of a city back yard, desired to
+be planted.]
+
+A plan of a city lot is given in Fig. 44. The area is fifty by one
+hundred, and the house occupies the greater part of the width. It is
+level, but the surrounding land is higher, resulting in a sharp
+terrace, three or four feet high, on the rear, E D. This terrace
+vanishes at C on the right, but extends nearly the whole length of the
+other side, gradually diminishing as it approaches A. There is a
+terrace two feet high extending from A to B, along the front. Beyond
+the line E D is the rear of an establishment which it is desired to
+hide. Since the terraces set definite borders to this little place, it
+is desirable to plant the boundaries rather heavily. If the adjoining
+lawns were on the same level, or if the neighbors would allow one area
+to be merged into the other by pleasant slopes, the three yards might
+be made into one picture; but the place must remain isolated.
+
+There are three problems of structural planting in the place: to
+provide a cover or screen at the rear; to provide lower border masses
+on the side terraces; to plant next the foundations of the house. Aside
+from these problems, the grower is entitled to have a certain number of
+specimen plants, if he has particular liking for given types, but these
+specimens must be planted in some relation to the structural masses,
+and not in the middle of the lawn.
+
+The owner desired a mixed planting, for variety. The following shrubs
+were actually selected and planted. The place is in central New York:—
+
+_Shrubs for the tall background_
+
+
+2 Barberry, _Berberis vulgaris_ and var. _purpurea_.
+
+1 Cornus Mas.
+
+2 Tall deutzias.
+
+3 Lilacs.
+
+2 Mock oranges, _Philadelphus grandiflorus_ and _P. coronarius_.
+
+2 Variegated elders.
+
+2 Eleagnus, _Elœagnus hortensis_ and _E. longipes_.
+
+1 Exochorda.
+
+2 Hibiscuses.
+
+ Privet.
+
+3 Viburnums.
+
+1 Snowball.
+
+1 Tartarian honeysuckle.
+
+1 Silver Bell, _Halesia tetraptera_.
+
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 45. The planting of the terrace in Fig. 44.]
+
+These were planted on the sloping bank of the terrace, from E to D. The
+terrace has an incline, or width, of about three feet. Figure 45 shows
+this terrace after the planting was completed, looking from the point
+C.
+
+_Shrubs of medium size, suitable for side plantings and groups in the
+foregoing example_
+
+
+3 Barberries, _Berberis Thunbergii_.
+
+3 Osier dogwoods, variegated.
+
+2 Japanese quinces, _Cydonia Japonica_ and _C. Maulei_.
+
+4 Tall deutzias.
+
+1 Variegated elder.
+
+7 Weigelas, assorted colors.
+
+1 Rhodotypos.
+
+9 Spireas of medium growth, assorted.
+
+1 Rubus odoratus.
+
+1 Lonicera fragrantissima.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 46. Said to have been planted.]
+
+Most of these shrubs were planted in a border two feet wide, extending
+from B to C D, the planting beginning about ten feet back from the
+street. Some of them were placed on the terrace at the left, extending
+from E one-fourth of the distance to A. The plants were set about two
+feet apart. A strong clump was placed at N to screen the back yard. In
+this back yard a few small fruit trees and a strawberry bed were
+planted.
+
+_Low informal shrubs for front of porch and banking against house_
+
+
+3 Deutzia gracilis.
+
+6 Kerrias, green and variegated.
+
+3 Daphne Mezereum.
+
+3 Lonicera Halliana.
+
+3 Rubus phœnicolasius.
+
+3 Symphoricarpus vulgaris.
+
+4 Mahonias.
+
+1 Ribes aureum.
+
+1 Ribes sanguineum.
+
+1 Rubus cratægifolius.
+
+1 Rubus fruticosus var. laciniatus.
+
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 47. An area well filled. Compare Fig. 46.]
+
+These bushes were planted against the front of the house (a porch on a
+high foundation extends to the right from O), from the walk around to
+P, and a few of them were placed at the rear of the house.
+
+_Specimen shrubs for mere ornament, for this place_
+
+
+Azalea.
+
+Rhododendron.
+
+Rose.
+
+2 Hydrangeas.
+
+1 Snowball.
+
+1 each Forsythia suspensa and F. viridissima.
+
+2 Flowering almonds.
+
+
+These were planted in conspicuous places here and there against the
+other masses.
+
+Here are one hundred excellent and interesting bushes planted in a yard
+only fifty feet wide and one hundred feet deep, and yet the place has
+as much room in it as it had before. There is abundant opportunity
+along the borders for dropping in cannas, dahlias, hollyhocks, asters,
+geraniums, coleuses, and other brilliant plants. The bushes will soon
+begin to crowd, to be sure, but a mass is wanted, and the narrowness of
+the plantations will allow each bush to develop itself laterally to
+perfection. If the borders become too thick, however, it is an easy
+matter to remove some of the bushes; but they probably will not.
+Picture the color and variety and life in that little yard. And if a
+pigweed now and then gets a start in the border, it would do no harm to
+let it alone: it belongs there! Then picture the same area filled with
+disconnected, spotty, dyspeptic, and unspirited flower-beds and rose
+bushes!
+
+Various examples.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 48. The screening of the tennis-screen.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 49. At the bottom of the clothes-post.]
+
+Strong and bare foundations should be relieved by heavy planting. Fill
+the corners with snow-drifts of foliage. Plant with a free hand, as if
+you meant it (compare Figs. 46 and 47). The corner by the steps is a
+perennial source of bad temper. The lawn-mower will not touch it, and
+the grass has to be cut with a butcher-knife. If nothing else comes to
+hand, let a burdock grow in it (Fig. 1).
+
+The tennis-screen may be relieved by a background (Fig. 48), and a
+clump of ribbon-grass or something else is out of the way against a
+post (Fig. 49).
+
+Excellent mass effects may be secured by cutting well-established
+plants of sumac, ailanthus, basswood, and other strong-growing things,
+to the ground each year, for the purpose of securing the stout shoots.
+Figure 50 will give the hint.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 50. Young shoots of ailanthus (and sunflowers for
+variety).]
+
+But if one has no area which he can make into a lawn and upon which he
+can plant such verdurous masses, what then may he do? Even then there
+may be opportunity for a little neat and artistic planting. Even if one
+lives in a rented house, he may bring in a bush or an herb from the
+woods, and paint a picture with it. Plant it in the corner by the
+steps, in front of the porch, at the corner of the house,—almost
+anywhere except in the center of the lawn. Make the ground rich, secure
+a strong root, and plant it with care; then wait. The little clump will
+not only have a beauty and interest of its own, but it may add
+immensely to the furniture of the yard.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 51. A backyard cabin.]
+
+About these clumps one may plant bulbs of glowing tulips or dainty
+snowdrops and lilies-of-the-valley; and these may be followed with
+pansies and phlox and other simple folk. Very soon one finds himself
+deeply interested in these random and detached pictures, and almost
+before he is aware he finds that he has rounded off the corners of the
+house, made snug little arbors of wild grapes and clematis, covered the
+rear fence and the outhouse with actinidia and bitter-sweet, and has
+thrown in dashes of color with hollyhocks, cannas, and lilies, and has
+tied the foundations of the buildings to the greensward by low strands
+of vines or deft bits of planting. He soon comes to feel that flowers
+are most expressive of the best emotions when they are daintily dropped
+in here and there against a background of foliage, or else made a
+side-piece in the place. There is no limit to the adaptations; Figs. 51
+to 58 suggest some of the backyard possibilities.
+
+Presently he rebels at the bold, harsh, and impudent designs of some of
+the gardeners, and grows into a resourceful love of plant forms and
+verdure. He may still like the weeping and cut-leaved and party-colored
+trees of the horticulturist, but he sees that their best effects are to
+be had when they are planted sparingly, as borders or promontories of
+the structural masses.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 52. A garden path with hedgerows, trellis, and
+bench, in formal treatment.]
+
+The best planting, as the best painting and the best music, is possible
+only with the best and tenderest feeling and the closest living with
+nature. One’s place grows to be a reflection of himself, changing as he
+changes, and expressing his life and sympathies to the last.
+
+_Review_
+
+We have now discussed some of the principles and applications of
+landscape architecture or landscape gardening, particularly in
+reference to the planting. The object of landscape gardening is _to
+make a picture_. All the grading, seeding, planting, are incidental and
+supplemental to this one central idea. The greensward is the canvas,
+the house or some other prominent point is the central figure, the
+planting completes the composition and adds the color.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 53. An enclosure for lawn games.] [Illustration:
+Fig. 54. Sunlight and shadow.]
+
+The second conception is the principle that _the picture should have a
+landscape effect_. That is, it should be nature-like. Carpet-beds are
+masses of color, not pictures. They are the little garnishings and
+reliefs that are to be used very cautiously, as little eccentricities
+and conventionalisms in a building should never be more than very minor
+features.
+
+Every other concept in landscape gardening is subordinate to these two.
+Some of the most important of these secondary yet underlying
+considerations are as follows:—
+
+The place is to be conceived of as _a unit_. If a building is not
+pleasing, ask an architect to improve it. The real architect will study
+the building as a whole, grasp its design and meaning, and suggest
+improvements that will add to the forcefulness of the entire structure.
+A dabbler would add a chimney here, a window there, and apply various
+daubs of paint to the building. Each of these features might be good in
+itself. The paints might be the best of ochre, ultramarine, or paris
+green, but they might have no relation to the building as a whole and
+would be only ludicrous. These two examples illustrate the difference
+between landscape gardening and the scattering over the place of mere
+ornamental features.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 55. An upland garden, with grass-grown steps,
+sundial, and edge of foxgloves.] [Illustration: Fig. 56. A garden
+corner.]
+
+There should be _one central and emphatic point in the picture_. A
+picture of a battle draws its interest from the action of a central
+figure or group. The moment the incidental and lateral figures are made
+as prominent as the central figures, the picture loses emphasis, life,
+and meaning. The borders of a place are of less importance than its
+center. Therefore:
+
+_Keep the center of the place open_;
+
+_Frame and mass the sides; Avoid scattered effects_.
+
+In a landscape picture _flowers are incidents_. They add emphasis,
+supply color, give variety and finish; they are the ornaments, but the
+lawn and the mass-plantings make the framework. One flower in the
+border, and made an incident of the picture, is more effective than
+twenty flowers in the center of the lawn.
+
+More depends on _the positions that plants occupy with reference to
+each other and to the structural design of the place_, than on the
+intrinsic merits of the plants themselves.
+
+Landscape gardening, then, is the embellishment of grounds in such a
+way that they will have a nature-like or landscape effect. The flowers
+and accessories may heighten and accelerate the effect, but they should
+not contradict it.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 57. An old-fashioned doorway.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 58. An informally treated stream.]
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER III
+EXECUTION OF SOME OF THE LANDSCAPE FEATURES
+
+The general lay-out of a small home property having now been
+considered, we may discuss the practical operations of executing the
+plan. It is not intended in this chapter to discuss the general
+question of how to handle the soil: that discussion comes in Chapter
+IV; nor in detail how to handle plants: that occurs in Chapters V to X;
+but the subjects of grading, laying out of walks and drives, executing
+the border plantings, and the making of lawns, may be briefly
+considered.
+
+Of course the instructions given in a book, however complete, are very
+inadequate and unsatisfactory as compared with the advice of a good
+experienced person. It is not always possible to find such a person,
+however; and it is no little satisfaction to the homemaker if he can
+feel that he can handle the work himself, even at the expense of some
+mistakes.
+
+
+_The grading_.
+
+The first consideration is to grade the land. Grading is very
+expensive, especially if performed at a season when the soil is heavy
+with water. Every effort should be made, therefore, to reduce the
+grading to a minimum and still secure a pleasing contour. A good time
+to grade, if one has the time, is in the fall before the heavy rains
+come, and then allow the surface to settle until spring, when the
+finish may be made. All filling will settle in time unless thoroughly
+tamped as it proceeds.
+
+The smaller the area the more pains must be taken with the grading; but
+in any plat that is one hundred feet or more square, very considerable
+undulations may be left in the surface with excellent effect. In lawns
+of this size, or even half this size, it is rarely advisable to have
+them perfectly flat and level. They should slope gradually away from
+the house; and when the lawn is seventy-five feet or more in width, it
+may be slightly crowning with good effect. A lawn should never be
+hollow,—that is, lower in the center than at the borders,—and broad
+lawns that are perfectly flat and level often appear to be hollow. A
+slope of one foot in twenty or thirty is none too much for a pleasant
+grade in lawns of some extent.
+
+In small places, the grading may be done by the eye, unless there are
+very particular conditions to meet. In large or difficult areas, it is
+well to have the place contoured by instruments. This is particularly
+desirable if the grading is to be done on contract. A basal or datum
+line is established, above or below which all surfaces are to be shaped
+at measured distances. Even in small yards, such a datum line is
+desirable for the best kind of work.
+
+_The terrace_.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 59. A terrace in the distance; in the foreground an
+ideal “running out” of the bank.]
+
+In places in which the natural slope is very perceptible, there is a
+tendency to terrace the lawn for the purpose of making the various
+parts or sections of it more or less level and plane. In nearly all
+cases, however, a terrace in a main lawn is objectionable. It cuts the
+lawn into two or more portions, and thereby makes it look smaller and
+spoils the effect of the picture. A terrace always obtrudes a hard and
+rigid line, and fastens the attention upon itself rather than upon the
+landscape. Terraces are also expensive to make and to keep in order;
+and a shabby terrace is always distracting.
+
+When formal effects are desired, their success depends, however, very
+largely on the rigidity of the lines and the care with which they are
+maintained. If a terrace is necessary, it should be in the form of a
+retaining wall next the street, or else it should lie next the
+building, giving as broad and continuous a lawn as possible. It should
+be remembered, however, that a terrace next a building should not be a
+part of the landscape, but a part of the architecture; that is, it
+should serve as a base to the building. It will at once be seen,
+therefore, that terraces are most in place against those buildings that
+have strong horizontal lines, and they are little suitable against
+buildings with very broken lines and mixed or gothic features. In order
+to join the terrace to the building, it is usually advisable to place
+some architectural feature upon its crown, as a balustrade, and to
+ascend it by means of architectural steps. The terrace elevation,
+therefore, becomes a part of the base of the building, and the top of
+it is an esplanade.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 60. Treatment of a sloping lawn.]
+
+A simple and gradually sloping bank can nearly always be made to take
+the place of a terrace. For example, let the operator make a terrace,
+with sharp angles above and below, in the fall of the year; in the
+spring, he will find (if he has not sodded it heavily) that nature has
+taken the matter in hand and the upper angle of the terrace has been
+washed away and deposited in the lower angle, and the result is the
+beginning of a good series of curves. Figure 59 shows an ideal slope,
+with its double curve, comprising a convex curve on the top of the
+bank, and a concave curve at the lower part. This is a slope that would
+ordinarily be terraced, but in its present condition it is a part of
+the landscape picture. It may be mown as readily as any other part of
+the lawn, and it takes care of itself.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 61. Treatment of a very steep bank.]
+
+The diagrams in Fig. 60 indicate poor and good treatment of a lawn. The
+terraces are not needed in this case; or if they are, they should never
+be made as at 1. The same dip could be taken up in a single curved
+bank, as at 3, but the better way, in general, is to give the treatment
+shown in 2. Figure 61 shows how a very high terrace, 4, can be
+supplaced by a sloping bank 5. Figure 62 shows a terrace that falls
+away too suddenly from the house.
+
+_The bounding lines_.
+
+In grading to the borders of the place, it is not always necessary, nor
+even desirable, that a continuous contour should be maintained,
+especially if the border is higher or lower than the lawn. A somewhat
+irregular line of grade will appear to be most natural, and lend itself
+best to effective planting. This is specially true in the grade to
+watercourses, which, as a rule, should be more or less devious or
+winding; and the adjacent land should, therefore, present various
+heights and contours. It is not always necessary, however, to make
+distinct banks along water-courses, particularly if the place is small
+and the natural lay of the land is more or less plane or flat. A very
+slight depression, as shown in Fig. 63, may answer all the purposes of
+a water grade in such places.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 62. A terrace or slope that falls too suddenly away
+from a building. There should be a level place or esplanade next the
+building, if possible.]
+[Illustration: 63. Shaping the land down to a water-course.]
+
+If it is desirable that the lawn be as large and spacious as possible,
+then the boundary of it should be removed. Take away the fences,
+curbing, and other right lines. In rural places, a sunken fence may
+sometimes be placed athwart the lawn at its farther edge for the
+purpose of keeping cattle off the place, and thereby bring in the
+adjacent landscape. Figure 64 suggests how this may be done. The
+depression near the foot of the lawn, which is really a ditch and
+scarcely visible from the upper part of the place because of the slight
+elevation on its inner rim, answers all the purposes of a fence.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 64. A sunken fence athwart a foreground.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 65. Protecting a tree in filled land.]
+
+Nearly all trees are injured if the dirt is filled about the base to
+the depth of a foot or more. The natural base of the plant should be
+exposed so far as possible, not only for protection of the tree, but
+because the base of a tree trunk is one of its most distinctive
+features. Oaks, maples, and in fact most trees will lose their bark
+near the crown if the dirt is piled against them; and this is
+especially true if the water tends to settle about the trunks. Figure
+65 shows how this difficulty may be obviated. A well is stoned up,
+allowing a space of a foot or two on all sides, and tile drains are
+laid about the base of the well, as shown in the diagram at the right.
+A grating to cover a well is also shown. It is often possible to make a
+sloping bank just above the tree, and to allow the ground to fall away
+from the roots on the lower side, so that there is no well or hole; but
+this is practicable only when the land below, the tree is considerably
+lower than that above it.
+
+If much of the surface is to be removed, the good top earth should be
+saved, and placed back on the area, in which to sow the grass seed and
+to make the plantings. This top soil may be piled at one side out of
+the way while the grading is proceeding.
+
+_Walks and drives_.
+
+So far as the picture in the landscape is concerned, walks and drives
+are blemishes. Since they are necessary, however, they must form a part
+of the landscape design. They should be as few as possible, not only
+because they interfere with the artistic composition, but also because
+they are expensive to make and to maintain.
+
+Most places have too many, rather than too few, walks and drives. Small
+city areas rarely need a driveway entrance, not even to the back door.
+The back yard in Fig. 39 illustrates this point. The distance from the
+house to the street on the back is about ninety feet, yet there is no
+driveway in the place. The coal and provisions are carried in; and,
+although the deliverymen may complain at first, they very soon accept
+the inevitable. It is not worth the while to maintain a drive in such a
+place for the convenience of truckmen and grocers. Neither is it often
+necessary to have a drive in the front yard if the house is within
+seventy-five or one hundred feet of the street. When a drive is
+necessary, it should enter, if possible, at the side of the residence,
+and not make a circle in the front lawn. This remark may not apply to
+areas of a half acre or more.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 66. Forms of front walks.]
+
+The drives and walks should be direct. They should go where they appear
+to go, and should be practically the shortest distances between the
+points to be reached. Figure 66 illustrates some of the problems
+connected with walks to the front door. A common type of walk is _a_,
+and it is a nuisance. The time that one loses in going around the
+cameo-set in the center would be sufficient, if conserved, to lengthen
+a man’s life by several months or a year. Such a device has no merit in
+art or convenience. Walk _b_ is better, but still is not ideal,
+inasmuch as it makes too much of a right-angled curve, and the
+pedestrian desires to cut across the corner. Such a walk, also, usually
+extends too far beyond the corner of the house to make it appear to be
+direct. It has the merit, however, of leaving the center of the lawn
+practically untouched. The curve in walk _d_ is ordinarily unnecessary
+unless the ground is rolling. In small places, like this, it is better
+to have a straight walk directly from the sidewalk to the house. In
+fact, this is true in nearly all cases in which the lawn is not more
+than forty to seventy-five feet deep. Plan _c_ is also inexcusable. A
+straight walk would answer every purpose better. Any walk that passes
+the house, and returns to it, _e_, is inexcusable unless it is
+necessary to make a very steep ascent. If most of the traveling is in
+one direction from the house, a walk like _f_ may be the most direct
+and efficient. It is known as a direct curve, and is a compound of a
+concave and a convex curve.
+
+It is essential that any service walk or drive, however long, should be
+continuous in direction and design from end to end. Figure 67
+illustrates a long drive that contradicts this principle.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 67. A patched-up drive, showing meaningless
+crooks.]
+
+It is a series of meaningless curves. The reason for these curves is
+the fact that the drive was extended from time to time as new houses
+were added to the villa. The reader will easily perceive how all the
+kinks might be taken out of this drive and one direct and bold curve be
+substituted.
+
+The question of drainage, curbing, and gutters.
+
+Thorough drainage, natural or artificial, is essential to hard and
+permanent walks and drives. This point is too often neglected. On the
+draining and grading of residence streets a well-known landscape
+gardener, O.C. Simonds, writes as follows in “Park and Cemetery”:
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 68. Treatment of walk and drive in a suburban
+region. There are no curbs.]
+
+“The surface drainage is something that interests us whenever it rains
+or when the snow melts. It has been customary to locate catch-basins
+for receiving the surface water at street intersections. This
+arrangement causes most of the surface water from both streets to run
+past the crossings, making it necessary to depress the pavement, so
+that one must step down and up in going from one side of a street to
+the other, or else a passageway for the water must be made through the
+crossing. It may be said that a step down to the pavement and up again
+to the sidewalk at the street intersections is of no consequence, but
+it is really more elegant and satisfactory to have the walk practically
+continuous (Fig. 68). With the catch-basin at the corner, the stoppage
+of the inlet, or a great fall of rain, sometimes covers the crossing
+with water, so one must either wade or go out of his way. With
+catch-basins placed in the center of the blocks, or, if the blocks are
+long, at some distance from the crossing, the intersections can be kept
+relatively high and dry. Roadways are generally made crowning in the
+center so that water runs to the sides, but frequently the fall
+lengthwise of the roadway is less than it should be. City engineers are
+usually inclined to make the grade along the length of a street as
+nearly level as possible. Authorities who have given the subject of
+roads considerable study recommend a fall lengthwise of not less than
+one foot in one hundred and twenty-five, nor more than six feet in one
+hundred. Such grades are not always feasible, but a certain amount of
+variation in level can usually be made in a residence street which will
+make it much more pleasing in appearance, and have certain practical
+advantages in keeping the street dry. The water is usually confined to
+the edge of the pavement by curbing, which may rise anywhere from four
+to fourteen inches above the surface. This causes all the water falling
+on the roadway to seek the catch-basin and be wasted, excepting for its
+use in flushing the sewer. If the curbing, which is really unnecessary
+in most cases, were omitted, much of the surface water would soak into
+the ground between the sidewalk and the pavement, doing much good to
+trees, shrubs, and grass. The roots of the trees naturally extend as
+far, or farther, than their branches, and for their good the ground
+under the pavement and sidewalk should be supplied with a certain
+amount of moisture.
+
+
+VI. A tree that gives character to a place. VI. A tree that gives
+character to a place.
+
+“The arrangement made for the removal of surface water from the street
+must also take care of the surplus water from adjacent lots, so there
+is a practical advantage in having the level of the street lower than
+that of the ground adjoining. The appearance of houses and home grounds
+is also much better when they are higher than the street, and for this
+reason it is usually desirable to keep the latter as low as possible
+and give the underground pipes sufficient covering to protect them from
+frost. Where the ground is high and the sewers very deep, the grades
+should, of course, be determined with reference to surface conditions
+only. It sometimes happens that this general arrangement of the grades
+of home grounds, which is desirable on most accounts, causes water from
+melting snow to flow over the sidewalk in the winter time, where it may
+freeze and be dangerous to pedestrians. A slight depression of the lot
+away from the sidewalk and then an ascent toward the house would
+usually remedy this difficulty, and also make the house appear higher.
+Sometimes, however, a pipe should be placed underneath the sidewalk to
+allow water to reach the street from inside of the lot line. The aim in
+surface drainage should always be to keep the traveled portions of the
+street in the most perfect condition for use. The quick removal of
+surplus water from sidewalks, crossings, and roadways will help insure
+this result.”
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 69. A common form of edge for walk or drive.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 70. A better form.]
+
+These remarks concerning the curbings and hard edges of city streets
+may also be applied to walks and drives in small grounds. Figure 69,
+for example, shows the common method of treating the edge of a walk, by
+making a sharp and sheer elevation. This edge needs constant trimming,
+else it becomes unshapely; and this trimming tends to widen the walk.
+For general purposes, a border, like that shown in Fig. 70, is better.
+The sod rolls over until it meets the walk, and the lawn-mower is able
+to keep it in condition. If it becomes more or less rough and
+irregular, it is pounded down.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 71. Sod cutter.]
+
+If it is thought necessary to trim the edges of walks and drives, then
+one of the various kinds of sod-cutters that are sold by dealers may be
+used for the purpose, or an old hoe may have its shank straightened and
+the corners of the blade rounded off, as shown in Fig. 71, and this
+will answer all purposes of the common sod-cutter; or, a sharp,
+straight-edged spade may sometimes be used. The loose overhanging grass
+on these edges is ordinarily cut by large shears made for the purpose.
+
+Walks and drives should be laid in such direction that they will tend
+to drain themselves; but if it is necessary to have gutters, these
+should be deep and sharp at the bottom, for the water then draws
+together and tends to keep the gutter clean. A shallow and rounded
+brick or cobble gutter does not clean itself; it is very likely to fill
+with weeds, and vehicles often drive in it. The best gutters and curbs
+are now made of cement. Figure 72 shows a catch basin at the left of a
+walk or drive, and the tile laid underneath for the purpose of carrying
+away the surface water.
+
+The materials.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 72. Draining the gutter and the drive.]
+
+The best materials for the main walks are cement and stone flagging. In
+many soils, however, there is enough binding material in the land to
+make a good walk without the addition of any other material. Gravel,
+cinders, ashes, and the like, are nearly always inadvisable, for they
+are liable to be loose in dry weather and sticky in wet weather. In the
+laying of cement it is important that the walk be well drained by a
+layer of a foot or two of broken stone or brickbats, unless the walk is
+on loose and leachy land or in a frostless country.
+
+In back yards it is often best not to have any well-defined walk. A
+ramble across the sod may be as good. For a back walk, over which
+delivery men are to travel, one of the very best means is to sink a
+foot-wide plank into the earth on a level with the surface of the sod;
+and it is not necessary that the walk be perfectly straight. These
+walks do not interfere with the work of the lawn-mower, and they take
+care of themselves. When the plank rots, at the expiration of five to
+ten years, the plank is taken up and another one dropped in its place.
+This ordinarily makes the best kind of a walk alongside a rear border.
+(Plate XI.) In gardens, nothing is better for a walk than tanbark.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 73. Planting alongside a walk.]
+
+The sides of walks and drives may often be planted with shrubbery. It
+is not necessary that they always have prim and definite borders.
+Figure 73 illustrates a bank of foliage which breaks up the hard line
+of a walk, and serves also as a border for the growing of flowers and
+interesting specimens. This walk is also characterized by the absence
+of high and hard borders. Figure 68 illustrates this fact, and also
+shows how the parking between the walk and the street may be
+effectively planted.
+
+_Making the borders_.
+
+The borders and groups of planting are laid out on the paper plan.
+There are several ways of transferring them to the ground. Sometimes
+they are not made until after the lawn is established, when the
+inexperienced operator may more readily lay them out. Usually, however,
+the planting and lawn-making proceed more or less simultaneously. After
+the shaping of the ground has been completed, the areas are marked off
+by stakes, by a limp rope laid on the surface, or by a mark made with a
+rake handle. The margin once determined, the lawn may be seeded and
+rolled (Fig. 40), and the planting allowed to proceed as it may; or the
+planting may all be done inside the borders, and the seeding then be
+applied to the lawn. If the main dimensions of the borders and beds are
+carefully measured and marked by stakes, it is an easy matter to
+complete the outline by making a mark with a stick or rakestale.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 74. A bowered pathway.] [Illustration: Fig. 75.
+Objects for pity.]
+
+The planting may be done in spring or fall,—in fall preferably if the
+stock is ready (and of hardy species) and the land in perfect condition
+of drainage; usually, however, things are not ready early enough in the
+fall for any extended planting, and the work is commonly done as soon
+as the ground settles in spring (see Chapter V). Head the bushes back.
+Dig up the entire area. Spade up the ground, set the bushes thick, hoe
+them at intervals, and then let them go. If you do not like the bare
+earth between them, sow in the seeds of hardy annual flowers, like
+phlox, petunia, alyssum, and pinks. Never set the bushes in holes dug
+in the old sod (Fig. 75). The person who plants his shrubs in holes in
+the sward does not seriously mean to make any foliage mass, and it is
+likely that he does not know what relation the border mass has to
+artistic planting. The illustration, Fig. 76, shows the office that a
+shrubbery may perform in relation to a building; this particular
+building was erected in an open field.
+
+[Illustration: 76. A border group, limiting the space next the
+residence and separating it from the fields and the clothes-yards.]
+
+I have said to plant the bushes thick. This is for quick effect. It is
+an easy matter to thin the plantation if it becomes too thick. All
+common bushes may usually be planted as close as two to three feet
+apart each way, especially if one gets many of them from the fields, so
+that he does not have to buy them. If there are not sufficient of the
+permanent bushes for thick planting, the spaces may be tilled
+temporarily by cheaper or commoner bushes: but do not forget to remove
+the fillers as rapidly as the others need the room.
+
+_Making the lawn_.
+
+The first thing to be done in the making of a lawn is to establish the
+proper grade. This should be worked out with the greatest care, from
+the fact that when a lawn is once made, its level and contour should
+never be changed.
+
+Preparing the ground.
+
+The next important step is to prepare the ground deeply and thoroughly.
+The permanence of the sod will depend very largely on the fertility and
+preparation of the soil in the beginning. The soil should be deep and
+porous, so that the roots will strike far into it, and be enabled
+thereby to withstand droughts and cold winters. The best means of
+deepening the soil, as explained in Chapter IV, is by tile-draining;
+but it can also be accomplished to some extent by the use of the
+subsoil plow and by trenching. Since the lawn cannot be refitted,
+however, the subsoil is likely to fall back into a hard-pan in a few
+years if it has been subsoiled or trenched, whereas a good tile-drain
+affords a permanent amelioration of the under soil. Soils that are
+naturally loose and porous may not need this extra attention. In fact,
+lands that are very loose and sandy may require to be packed or
+cemented rather than loosened. One of the best means of doing this is
+to fill them with humus, so that the water will not leach through them
+rapidly. Nearly all lands that are designed for lawns are greatly
+benefited by heavy dressings of manure thoroughly worked into them in
+the beginning, although it is possible to get the ground too rich on
+the surface at first; it is not necessary that all the added plant-food
+be immediately available.
+
+The lawn will profit by an annual application of good chemical
+fertilizer. Ground bone is one of the best materials to apply, at the
+rate of three hundred to four hundred pounds to the acre. It is usually
+sown broadcast, early in spring. Dissolved South Carolina rock may be
+used instead, but the application will need to be heavier if similar
+results are expected. Yellow and poor grass may often be reinvigorated
+by an application of two hundred to three hundred pounds to the acre of
+nitrate of soda. Wood ashes are often good, particularly on soils that
+tend to be acid. Muriate of potash is not so often used, although it
+may produce excellent results in some cases. There is no invariable
+rule. The best plan is for the lawn-maker to try the different
+treatments on a little piece or corner of the lawn; in this way, he
+should secure more valuable information than can be got otherwise.
+
+The first operation after draining and grading is the plowing or
+spading of the surface. If the area is large enough to admit a team,
+the surface is worked down by means of harrows of various kinds.
+Afterwards it is leveled by means of shovels and hoes, and finally by
+garden rakes. The more finely and completely the soil is pulverized,
+the quicker the lawn may be secured, and the more permanent are the
+results.
+
+The kind of grass.
+
+The best grass for the body or foundation of lawns in the North is
+June-grass or Kentucky blue-grass (_Poa pratensis_), not Canada
+blue-grass (_Poa compressa_).
+
+Whether white clover or other seed should be sown with the grass seed
+is very largely a personal question. Some persons like it, and others
+do not. If it is desired, it may be sown directly after the grass seed
+is sown, at the rate of one to four quarts or more to the acre.
+
+For special purposes, other grasses may be used for lawns. Various
+kinds of lawn mixtures are on the market, for particular uses, and some
+of them are very good.
+
+A superintendent of parks in one of the Eastern cities gives the
+following experience on kinds of grass: “For the meadows on the large
+parks we generally use extra recleaned Kentucky blue-grass, red-top,
+and white clover, in the proportion of thirty pounds of blue-grass,
+thirty pounds of red-top, and ten pounds of white clover to the acre.
+Sometimes we use for smaller lawns the blue-grass and red-top without
+the white clover. We have used blue-grass, red-top, and Rhode Island
+bent in the proportion of twenty pounds each, and ten pounds of white
+clover to the acre, but the Rhode Island bent is so expensive that we
+rarely buy it. For grass in shady places, as in a grove, we use
+Kentucky blue-grass and rough-stalked meadow-grass (_Poa trivialis_) in
+equal parts at the rate of seventy pounds to the acre. On the golf
+links we use blue-grass without any mixture on some of the putting
+greens; sometimes we use Rhode Island bent, and on sandy greens we use
+red-top. We always buy each kind of seed separately and mix them, and
+are particular to get the best extra recleaned of each kind. Frequently
+we get the seed of three different dealers to secure the best.”
+
+In most cases, the June-grass germinates and grows somewhat slowly, and
+it is usually advisable to sow four or five quarts of timothy grass to
+the acre with the June-grass seed. The timothy comes on quickly and
+makes a green the first year, and the June-grass soon crowds it out. It
+is not advisable to sow grain in the lawn as a nurse to the grass. If
+the land is well prepared and the seed is sown in the cool part of the
+year, the grass ought to grow much better without the other crops than
+with them. Lands that are hard and lacking in nitrogen may be benefited
+if crimson clover (four or five quarts) is sown with the grass seed.
+This will make a green the first year, and will break up the subsoil by
+its deep roots and supply nitrogen, and being an annual plant it does
+not become troublesome, if mown frequently enough to prevent seeding.
+
+In the southern states, where June-grass does not thrive, Bermuda-grass
+is the leading species used for lawns; although there are two or three
+others, as the goose-grass of Florida, that may be used in special
+localities. Bermuda-grass is usually propagated by roots, but imported
+seed (said to be from Australia) is now available. The Bermuda-grass
+becomes reddish after frost; and English rye-grass may be sown on the
+Bermuda sod in August or September far south for winter green; in
+spring the Bermuda crowds it out.
+
+When and how to sow the seed.
+
+The lawn should be seeded when the land is moist and the weather
+comparatively cool. It is ordinarily most advisable to grade the lawn
+in late summer or early fall, because the land is then comparatively
+dry and can be moved cheaply. The surface can also be got in condition,
+perhaps, for sowing late in September or early in October in the North;
+or, if the surface has required much filling, it is well to leave it in
+a somewhat unfinished state until spring, in order that the soft places
+may settle and then be refilled before the seeding is done. If the seed
+can be sown early in the fall, before the rains come, the grass should
+be large enough, except in northernmost localities, to withstand the
+winter; but it is generally most desirable to sow in very early spring.
+If the land has been thoroughly prepared in the fall, the seed may be
+sown on one of the late light snows in spring and as the snow melts the
+seed is carried into the land, and germinates very quickly. If the seed
+is sown when the land is loose and workable, it should be raked in; and
+if the weather promises to be dry or the sowing is late, the surface
+should be rolled.
+
+The seeding is usually done broadcast by hand on all small areas, the
+sower going both ways (at right angles) across the area to lessen the
+likelihood of missing any part. Steep banks are sometimes sown with
+seed that is mixed in mold or earth to which water is added until the
+material will just run through the spout of a watering-can; the
+material is then poured on the surface, which is first made loose.
+
+Inasmuch as we desire to secure many very fine stalks of grass rather
+than a few large ones, it is essential that the seed be sown very
+thick. Three to five bushels to the acre is the ordinary application of
+grass seed (page 79).
+
+Securing a firm sod.
+
+The lawn will ordinarily produce a heavy crop of weeds the first year,
+especially if much stable manure has been used. The weeds need not be
+pulled, unless such vicious intruders as docks or other perennial
+plants gain a foothold; but the area should be mown frequently with a
+lawn-mower. The annual weeds die at the approach of cold, and they are
+kept down by the use of the lawn-mower, while the grass is not injured.
+
+It rarely happens that every part of the lawn will have an equal catch
+of grass. The bare or sparsely seeded places should be sown again every
+fall and spring until the lawn is finally complete. In fact, it
+requires constant attention to keep a lawn in good sod, and it must be
+continuously in the process of making. It is not every lawn area, or
+every part of the area, that is adapted to grass; and it may require
+long study to find out why it is not. Bare or poor places should be
+hetcheled up strongly with an iron-toothed rake, perhaps fertilized
+again, and then reseeded. It is unusual that a lawn does not need
+repairing every year. Lawns of several acres which become thin and
+mossy may be treated in essentially the same way by dragging them with
+a spike-tooth harrow in early spring as soon as the land is dry enough
+to hold a team. Chemical fertilizers and grass seed are now sown
+liberally, and the area is perhaps dragged again, although this is not
+always essential; and then the roller is applied to bring the surface
+into a smooth condition. To plow up these poor lawns is to renew all
+the battle with weeds, and really to make no progress; for, so long as
+the contour is correct, the lawn may be repaired by these surface
+applications.
+
+The stronger the sward, the less the trouble with weeds; yet it is
+practically impossible to keep dandelions and some other weeds out of
+lawns except by cutting them out with a knife thrust underground (there
+are good spuds manufactured for this purpose, Figs. 108 to 111). If the
+sod is very thin after the weeds are removed, sow more grass seed.
+
+The mowing.
+
+The mowing of the lawn should begin as soon as the grass is tall enough
+in the spring and continue at the necessary intervals throughout the
+summer. The most frequent mowings are needed early in the season, when
+the grass is growing rapidly. If it is mown frequently—say once or
+twice a week—in the periods of most vigorous growth, it will not be
+necessary to rake off the mowings. In fact, it is preferable to leave
+the grass on the lawn, to be driven into the surface by the rains and
+to afford a mulch. It is only when the lawn has been neglected and the
+grass has got so high that it becomes unsightly on the lawn, or when
+the growth is unusually luxurious, that it is necessary to take it off.
+In dry weather care should be taken not to mow the lawn any more than
+absolutely necessary. The grass should be rather long when it goes into
+the winter. In the last two months of open weather the grass makes
+small growth, and it tends to lop down and to cover the surface
+densely, which it should be allowed to do.
+
+Fall treatment.
+
+As a rule, it is not necessary to rake all the leaves off lawns in the
+fall. They afford an excellent mulch, and in the autumn months the
+leaves on the lawn are among the most attractive features of the
+landscape. The leaves generally blow off after a time, and if the place
+has been constructed with an open center and heavily planted sides, the
+leaves will be caught in these masses of trees and shrubs and there
+afford an excellent mulch. The ideal landscape planting, therefore,
+takes care of itself to a very large extent. It is bad economy to burn
+the leaves, especially if one has herbaceous borders, roses, and other
+plants that need a mulch. When the leaves are taken off the borders in
+the spring, they should be piled with the manure or other refuse and
+there allowed to pass into compost (pages 110, 111).
+
+If the land has been well prepared in the beginning, and its life is
+not sapped by large trees, it is ordinarily unnecessary to cover the
+lawn with manure in the fall. The common practice of covering grass
+with raw manure should be discouraged because the material is unsightly
+and unsavory, and the same results can be got with the use of
+commercial fertilizers combined with dressings of very fine and
+well-rotted compost or manure, and by not raking the lawn too clean of
+the mowings of the grass.
+
+Spring treatment.
+
+Every spring the lawn should be firmed by means of a roller, or, if the
+area is small, by means of a pounder, or the back of a spade in the
+hands of a vigorous man. The lawn-mower itself tends to pack the
+surface. If there are little irregularities in the surface, caused by
+depressions of an inch or so, and the highest places are not above the
+contour-line of the lawn, the surface may be brought to level by
+spreading fine, mellow soil over it, thereby filling up the
+depressions. The grass will quickly grow through this soil. Little
+hummocks may be cut off, some of the earth removed, and the sod
+replaced.
+
+Watering lawns.
+
+The common watering of lawns by means of lawn sprinklers usually does
+more harm than good. This results from the fact that the watering is
+generally done in clear weather, and the water is thrown through the
+air in very fine spray, so that a considerable part of it is lost in
+vapor. The ground is also hot, and the water does not pass deep into
+the soil. If the lawn is watered at all, it should be soaked; turn on
+the hose at nightfall and let it run until the land is wet as deep as
+it is dry, then move the hose to another place. A thorough soaking like
+this, a few times in a dry summer, will do more good than sprinkling
+every day. If the land is deeply prepared in the first place, so that
+the roots strike far into the soil, there is rarely need of watering
+unless the place is arid, the season unusually dry, or the moisture
+sucked out by trees. The surface sprinkling engenders a tendency of
+roots to start near the surface, and therefore the more the lawn is
+lightly watered, the greater is the necessity for watering it.
+
+Sodding the lawn.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 77. Cutting sod for a lawn.]
+
+Persons who desire to secure a lawn very quickly may sod the area
+rather than seed it, although the most permanent results are usually
+secured by seeding. Sodding, however, is expensive, and is to be used
+only about the borders of the place, near buildings, or in areas in
+which the owner can afford to expend considerable money. The best sod
+is that which is secured from an old pasture, and for two or three
+reasons. In the first place, it is the right kind of grass, the
+June-grass (in the North) being the species that oftenest runs into
+pastures and crowds out other plants. Again, it has been so closely
+eaten down, especially if it has been pastured by sheep, that it has
+made a very dense and well-filled sod, which can be rolled up in thin
+layers. In the third place, the soil in old pastures is likely to be
+rich from the droppings of animals.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 78. Economical sodding, the spaces being seeded.]
+
+In taking sod, it is important that it be cut very thin. An inch and a
+half thick is usually ample. It is ordinarily rolled up in strips a
+foot wide and of any length that will allow the rolls to be handled by
+one or two men. A foot-wide board is laid upon the turf, and the sod
+cut along either edge of it. One person then stands upon the strip of
+sod and rolls it towards himself, while another cuts it loose with a
+spade, as shown in Fig. 77. When the sod is laid, it is unrolled on the
+land and then firmly beaten down. Land that is to be sodded should be
+soft on top, so that the sod can be well pounded into it. If the sod is
+not well pounded down, it will settle unevenly and present a bad
+surface, and will also dry out and perhaps not live through a dry
+spell. It is almost impossible to pound down sod too firm. If the land
+is freshly plowed, it is important that the borders that are sodded be
+an inch or two lower than the adjacent land, because the land will
+settle in the course of a few weeks. In a dry time, the sod may be
+covered from a half inch to an inch with fine, mellow soil as a mulch.
+The grass should grow through this soil without difficulty. Upon
+terraces and steep banks, the sod may be held in place by driving
+wooden pegs through it.
+
+A combination of sodding and seeding.
+
+An “economical sodding” is described in “American Garden” (Fig. 78):
+“To obtain sufficient sod of suitable quality for covering
+terrace-slopes or small blocks that for any reason cannot well be
+seeded is often a difficult matter. In the accompanying illustration we
+show how a surface of sod may be used to good advantage over a larger
+area than its real measurement represents. This is done by laying the
+sods, cut in strips from six to ten inches wide, in lines and
+cross-lines, and after filling the spaces with good soil, sowing these
+spaces with grass-seed. Should the catch of seed for any reason be
+poor, the sod of the strips will tend to spread over the spaces between
+them, and failure to obtain a good sward within a reasonable time is
+almost out of the question. Also, if one needs sod and has no place
+from which to cut it except the lawn, by taking up blocks of sod,
+leaving strips and cross-strips, and treating the surface as described,
+the bare places are soon covered with green.”
+
+Sowing with sod.
+
+Lawns may be sown with pieces of sods rather than with seeds. Sods may
+be cut up into bits an inch or two square, and these may be scattered
+broadcast over the area and rolled into the land. While it is
+preferable that the pieces should lie right side up, this is not
+necessary if they are cut thin, and sown when the weather is cool and
+moist. Sowing pieces of sod is good practice when it is difficult to
+secure a catch from seed.
+
+If one were to maintain a permanent sod garden, at one side, for the
+selecting and growing of the very best sod (as he would grow a stock
+seed of corn or beans), this method should be the most rational of all
+procedures, at least until the time that we produce strains of lawn
+grass that come true from seeds.
+
+Other ground covers.
+
+Under trees, and in other shady places, it may be necessary to cover
+the ground with something else than grass. Good plants for such uses
+are periwinkle (_Vinca minor_, an evergreen trailer, often called
+“running myrtle”), moneywort (_Lysimachia nummularia_),
+lily-of-the-valley, and various kinds of sedge or carex. In some dark
+or shady places, and under some kinds of trees, it is practically
+impossible to secure a good lawn, and one may be obliged to resort to
+decumbent bushes or other forms of planting.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IV
+THE HANDLING OF THE LAND
+
+Almost any land contains enough food for the growing of good crops, but
+the food elements may be chemically unavailable, or there may be
+insufficient water to dissolve them. It is too long a story to explain
+at this place,—the philosophy of tillage and of enriching the land,—and
+the reader who desires to make excursions into this delightful subject
+should consult King on “The Soil,” Roberts on “The Fertility of the
+Land,” and recent writings of many kinds. The reader must accept my
+word for it that tilling the land renders it productive.
+
+I must call my reader’s attention to the fact that this book is on the
+making of gardens,—on the planning and the doing of the work from the
+year’s end to end,—not on the appreciation of a completed garden. I
+want the reader to know that a garden is not worth having unless he
+makes it with his own hands or helps to make it. He must work himself
+into it. He must know the pleasure of preparing the land, of contending
+with bugs and all other difficulties, for it is only thereby that he
+comes into appreciation of the real value of a garden.
+
+I am saying this to prepare the reader for the work that I lay out in
+this chapter. I want him to know the real joy that there is in the
+simple processes of breaking the earth and fitting it for the seed. The
+more pains he takes with these processes, naturally the keener will be
+his enjoyment of them. No one can have any other satisfaction than that
+of mere manual exercise if he does not know the reasons for what he
+does with his soil. I am sure that my keenest delight in a garden comes
+in the one month of the opening season and the other month of the
+closing season. These are the months when I work hardest and when I am
+nearest the soil. To feel the thrust of the spade, to smell the sweet
+earth, to prepare for the young plants and then to prepare for the
+closing year, to handle the tools with discrimination, to guard against
+frost, to be close with the rain and wind, to see the young things
+start into life and then to see them go down into winter,—these are
+some of the best of the joys of gardening. In this spirit we should
+take up the work of handling the land.
+
+_The draining of the land_.
+
+[Illustration: Fig 79. Ditching tools.] The first step in the
+preparation of land, after it has been thoroughly cleared and subdued
+of forest or previous vegetation, is to attend to the drainage. All
+land that is springy, low, and “sour,” or that holds the water in
+puddles for a day or two following heavy rains, should be thoroughly
+underdrained. Draining also improves the physical condition of the soil
+even when the land does not need the removal of superfluous water. In
+hard lands, it lowers the water-table, or tends to loosen and aerate
+the soil to a greater depth, and thereby enables it to hold more water
+without injury to plants. Drainage is particularly useful in dry but
+hard garden lands, because these lands are often in sod or permanently
+planted, and the soil cannot be broken up by deep tillage. Tile
+drainage is permanent subsoiling.
+
+Hard-baked cylindrical tiles make the best and most permanent drains.
+The ditches usually should not be less than two and one-half feet deep,
+and three or three and one-half feet is often better. In most garden
+areas, drains may be laid with profit as often as every thirty feet.
+Give all drains a good and continuous fall. For single drains and for
+laterals not over four hundred or five hundred feet long, a two and
+one-half inch tile is sufficient, unless much water must be carried
+from swales or springs. In stony countries, flat stones may be used in
+place of tiles, and persons who are skillful in laying them make drains
+as good and permanent as those constructed of tiles. The tiles or
+stones are covered with sods, straw, or paper, and the earth is then
+filled in. This temporary cover keeps the loose dirt out of the tiles,
+and by the time it is rotted the earth has settled into place.
+
+In small places, ditching must ordinarily be done wholly with hand
+tools. A common spade and pick are the implements usually employed,
+although a spade with a long handle and narrow blade, as shown in Fig.
+79, is very useful for excavating the bottom of the ditch.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 80. How to use a spade.]
+
+In most cases, much time and muscle are wasted in the use of the pick.
+If the digging is properly done, a spade can be used to cut the soil,
+even in fairly hard clay land, with no great difficulty. The essential
+point in the easy use of the spade is to manage so that one edge of the
+spade always cuts a free or exposed surface. The illustration (Fig. 80)
+will explain the method. When the operator endeavors to cut the soil in
+the method shown at A, he is obliged to break both edges at every
+thrust of the tool; but when he cuts the slice diagonally, first
+throwing his spade to the right and then to the left, as shown at B, he
+cuts only one side and is able to make progress without the expenditure
+of useless effort. These remarks will apply to any spading of the land.
+
+In large areas, horses may be used to facilitate the work of ditching.
+There are ditching plows and machines, which, however, need not be
+discussed here; but three or four furrows may be thrown out in either
+direction with a strong plow, and a subsoil plow be run behind to break
+up the hard-pan, and this may reduce the labor of digging as much as
+one-half. When the excavating is completed, the bottom of the ditch is
+evened up by means of a line or level, and the bed for the tiles is
+prepared by the use of a goose-neck scoop, shown in Fig. 79. It is very
+important that the outlets of drains be kept free of weeds and litter.
+If the outlet is built up with mason work, to hold the end of the tile
+intact, very much will be added to the permanency of the drain.
+
+
+VII. Bedding with palms. If a bricked-up pit is made about the porch,
+pot palms may be plunged in it in spring and pot conifers in winter;
+and fall bulbs in tin cans (so that the receptacles will not split with
+frost) may be plunged among the evergreens. VII. Bedding with palms. If
+a bricked-up pit is made about the porch, pot palms may be plunged in
+it in spring and pot conifers in winter; and fall bulbs in tin cans (so
+that the receptacles will not split with frost) may be plunged among
+the evergreens.
+
+
+_Trenching and subsoiling_.
+
+Although underdraining is the most important means of increasing the
+depth of the soil, it is not always practicable to lay drains through
+garden lands. In such cases, recourse is had to very deep preparation
+of the land, either every year or every two or three years.
+
+[Illustration: 81. Trenching with a spade.]
+
+In small garden areas, this deep preparation will ordinarily be done by
+trenching with a spade. This operation of trenching consists in
+breaking up the earth two spades deep. Figure 81 explains the
+operation. The section at the left shows a single spading, the earth
+being thrown over to the right, leaving the subsoil exposed the whole
+width of the bed. The section at the right shows a similar operation,
+so far as the surface spading is concerned, but the subsoil has also
+been cut as fast as it has been exposed. This under soil is not thrown
+out on the surface, and usually it is not inverted; but a spadeful is
+lifted and then allowed to drop so that it is thoroughly broken and
+pulverized in the manipulation.
+
+In all lands that have a hard and high subsoil, it is usually essential
+to practice trenching if the best results are to be secured; this is
+especially true when deep-rooted plants, as beets, parsnips, and other
+root-crops, are to be grown; it prepares the soil to hold moisture; and
+it allows the water of heavy rainfall to pass to greater depths rather
+than to be held as puddles and in mud on the surface.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 82. Home-made subsoil plow.] [Illustration: Fig.
+83. Forms of subsoil plows.] In places that can be entered with a team,
+deep and heavy plowing to the depth of seven to ten inches may be
+desirable on hard lands, especially if such lands cannot be plowed very
+often; and the depth of the pulverization is often extended by means of
+the subsoil plow. This subsoil plow does not turn a furrow, but a
+second team draws the implement behind the ordinary plow, and the
+bottom of the furrow is loosened and broken. Figure 82 shows a
+home-made subsoil plow, and Fig. 83 two types of commercial tools. It
+must be remembered that it is the hardest lands that need subsoiling
+and that, therefore, the subsoil plow should be exceedingly strong.
+
+_Preparation of the surface_.
+
+Every pains should be taken to prevent the surface of the land from
+becoming crusty or baked, for the hard surface establishes a capillary
+connection with the moist soil beneath, and is a means of passing off
+the water into the atmosphere. Loose and mellow soil also has more free
+plant-food, and provides the most congenial conditions for the growth
+of plants. The tools that one may use in preparing the surface soil are
+now so many and so well adapted to the work that the gardener should
+find special satisfaction in handling them.
+
+If the soil is a stiff clay, it is often advisable to plow it or dig it
+in the fall, allowing it to lie rough and loose all winter, so that the
+weathering may pulverize and slake it. If the clay is very tenacious,
+it may be necessary to throw leafmold or litter over the surface before
+the spading is done, to prevent the soil from running together or
+cementing before spring. With mellow and loamy lands, however, it is
+ordinarily best to leave the preparation of the surface until spring.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 84. Improvising a spading-fork.]
+
+In the preparation of the surface, the ordinary hand tools, or spades
+and shovels, may be used. If, however, the soil is mellow, a fork is a
+better tool than a spade, from the fact that it does not slice the
+soil, but tends to break it up into smaller and more irregular masses.
+The ordinary spading-fork, with strong flat tines, is a most
+serviceable tool; a spading-fork for soft ground may be made from an
+old manure fork by cutting down the tines, as shown in Fig. 84.
+
+It is important that the soil should not be sticky when it is prepared,
+as it is likely to become hard and baked and the physical condition be
+greatly injured. However, land that is too wet for the reception of
+seeds may still be thrown up loose with a spade or fork and allowed to
+dry, and after two or three days the surface preparation may be
+completed with the hoe and the rake. In ordinary soils the hoe is the
+tool to follow the spading-fork or the spade, but for the final
+preparation of the surface a steel garden-rake is the ideal implement.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 85. Excellent types of surface plows.]
+
+In areas, large enough to admit horse tools, the land can be fitted
+more economically by means of the various types of plows, harrows, and
+cultivators that are to be had of any dealer in agricultural
+implements. Figure 85 shows various types of model surface plows. The
+one shown at the upper left-hand is considered by Roberts, in his
+“Fertility of the Land,” to be the ideal general-purpose plow, as
+respects shape and method of construction.
+
+The type of machine to be used must be determined wholly by the
+character of the land and the purposes for which it is to be fitted.
+Lands that are hard and cloddy may be reduced by the use of the disk or
+Acme harrows, shown in Fig. 86; but those that are friable and mellow
+may not need such heavy and vigorous tools. On these mellower lands,
+the spring-tooth harrow, types of which are shown in Fig. 87, may
+follow the plow. On very hard lands, these spring-tooth harrows may
+follow the disk and Acme types. The final preparation of the land is
+accomplished by light implements of the pattern shown in Fig. 88. These
+spike-tooth smoothing-harrows do for the field what the hand-rake does
+for the garden-bed.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 86. Disk and Acme harrows, for the first working of
+hard or cloddy land.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 87. Spring-tooth harrows.]
+
+If it is desired to put a very fine finish on the surface of the ground
+by means of horse tools, implements like the Breed or Wiard weeder may
+be used. These are constructed on the principle of a spring-tooth horse
+hay-rake, and are most excellent, not only for fitting loose land for
+ordinary seeding, but also for subsequent tillage.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 88. Spike-tooth harrow.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 89. Spike-tooth and spring-tooth cultivators.]
+
+In areas that cannot be entered with a team, various one-horse
+implements may do the work that is accomplished by heavier tools in the
+field. The spring-tooth cultivator, shown at the right in Fig. 89, may
+do the kind of work that the spring-tooth harrows are expected to do on
+larger areas; and various adjustable spike-tooth cultivators, two of
+which are shown in Fig. 89, are useful for putting a finish on the
+land. These tools are also available for the tilling of the surface
+when crops are growing. The spring-tooth cultivator is a most useful
+tool for cultivating raspberries and blackberries, and other
+strong-rooted crops.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 90. Good type of wheel-hoe.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 91. A single-blade wheel-hoe.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 92. Double wheel-hoe, useful in straddling the
+row.]
+
+For still smaller areas, in which horses cannot be used and which are
+still too large for tilling wholly by means of hoes and rakes, various
+types of wheel-hoes may be used. These implements are now made in great
+variety of patterns, to suit any taste and almost any kind of tillage.
+For the best results, it is essential that the wheel should be large
+and with a broad tire, that it may override obstacles. Figure 90 shows
+an excellent type of wheel-hoe with five blades, and Fig. 91 shows one
+with a single blade and that may be used in very narrow rows.
+Two-wheeled hoes (Fig. 92) are often used, particularly when it is
+necessary to have the implement very steady, and the wheels may
+straddle the rows of low plants. Many of these wheel-hoes are provided
+with various shapes of blades, so that the implement may be adjusted to
+many kinds of work. Nearly all the weeding of beds of onions and like
+plants can be done by means of these wheel-hoes, if the ground is well
+prepared in the beginning; but it must be remembered that they are of
+comparatively small use on very hard and cloddy and stony lands.
+
+_The saving of moisture_.
+
+The garden must have a liberal supply of moisture. The first effort
+toward securing this supply should be the saving of the rainfall water.
+
+Proper preparation and tillage put the land in such condition that it
+holds the water of rainfall. Land that is very hard and compact may
+shed the rainfall, particularly if it is sloping and if the surface is
+bare of vegetation. If the hard-pan is near the surface, the land
+cannot hold much water, and any ordinary rainfall may fill it so full
+that it overflows, or puddles stand on the surface. On land in good
+tilth, the water of rainfall sinks away, and is not visible as free
+water.
+
+As soon as the moisture begins to pass from the superincumbent
+atmosphere, evaporation begins from the surface of the land. Any body
+interposed between the land and the air checks this evaporation; this
+is why there is moisture underneath a board. It is impracticable,
+however, to floor over the garden with boards, but any covering will
+have similar effect, but in different degree. A covering of sawdust or
+leaves or dry ashes will prevent the loss of moisture. So will a
+covering of dry earth. Now, inasmuch as the land is already covered
+with earth, it only remains to loosen up a layer or stratum on top in
+order to secure the mulch.
+
+All this is only a roundabout way of saying that frequent shallow
+surface tillage conserves moisture. The comparatively dry and loose
+mulch breaks up the capillary connection between the surface soil and
+the under soil, and while the mulch itself may be useless as a foraging
+ground for roots, it more than pays its keep by its preventing of the
+loss of moisture; and its own soluble plant-foods are washed down into
+the lower soil by the rains.
+
+As often as the surface becomes compact, the mulch should be renewed or
+repaired by the use of the rake or cultivator or harrow. Persons are
+deceived by supposing that so long as the surface remains moist, the
+land is in the best possible condition; a moist surface may mean that
+water is rapidly passing off into the atmosphere. A dry surface may
+mean that less evaporation is taking place, and there may be moister
+earth beneath it; and moisture is needed below the surface rather than
+on top. A finely raked bed is dry on top; but the footprints of the cat
+remain moist, for the animal packed the soil wherever it stepped and a
+capillary connection was established with the water reservoir beneath.
+Gardeners advise firming the earth over newly planted seeds to hasten
+germination. This is essential in dry times; but what we gain in
+hastening germination we lose in the more rapid evaporation of
+moisture. The lesson is that we should loosen the soil as soon as the
+seeds have germinated, to reduce evaporation to the minimum. Large
+seeds, as beans and peas, may be planted deep and have the earth firmed
+about them, and then the rake may be applied to the surface to stop the
+rise of moisture before it reaches the air.
+
+Two illustrations, adapted from Roberts’s “Fertility,” show good and
+poor preparation of the land. Figure 93 is a section of land twelve
+inches deep. The under soil has been finely broken and pulverized and
+then compacted. It is mellow but firm, and is an excellent water
+reservoir. Three inches of the surface is a mulch of loose and dry
+earth. Figure 94 shows an earth-mulch, but it is too shallow; and the
+under soil is so open and cloddy that the water runs through it.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 93. To illustrate good preparation of ground.]
+[Illustration: 94. To illustrate poor preparation of ground.]
+
+When the land is once properly prepared, the soil-mulch is maintained
+by surface-working tools. In field practice, these tools are harrows
+and horse cultivators of various kinds; in home garden practice they
+are wheel-hoes, rakes, and many patterns of hand hoes and scarifiers,
+with finger-weeders and other small implements for work directly among
+the plants.
+
+A garden soil is not in good condition when it is hard and crusted on
+top. The crust may be the cause of wasting water, it keeps out the air,
+and in general it is an uncongenial physical condition; but its
+evaporation of water is probably its chief defect. Instead of pouring
+water on the land, therefore, we first attempt to keep the moisture in
+the land. If, however, the soil becomes so dry in spite of you that the
+plants do not thrive, then water the bed. Do not _sprinkle_ it, but
+_water_ it. Wet it clear through at evening. Then in the morning, when
+the earth begins to dry, loosen the surface again to keep the water
+from getting away. Sprinkling the plants every day or two is one of the
+surest ways of spoiling them. We may water the ground with a
+garden-rake.
+
+_Hand tools for weeding and subsequent tillage and other hand work._
+
+Any of the cultivators and wheel-hoes are as useful for the subsequent
+tilling of the crop as for the initial preparation of the land, but
+there are other tools also that greatly facilitate the keeping of the
+plantation in order. Yet wholly aside from the value of a tool as an
+implement of tillage and as a weapon for the pursuit of weeds, is its
+merit merely as a shapely and interesting instrument. A man will take
+infinite pains to choose a gun or a fishing-rod to his liking, and a
+woman gives her best attention to the selecting of an umbrella; but a
+hoe is only a hoe and a rake only a rake. If one puts his personal
+choice into the securing of plants for a garden, so should he
+discriminate in the choice of hand tools, to secure those that are
+light, trim, well made, and precisely adapted to the work to be
+accomplished. A case of neat garden tools ought to be a great joy to a
+joyful gardener. So I am willing to enlarge on the subject of hoes and
+their kind.
+
+The hoe.
+
+[Illustration: 95. Useful forms of hoe-blades.]
+
+The common rectangular-bladed hoe is so thoroughly established in the
+popular mind that it is very difficult to introduce new patterns, even
+though they may be intrinsically superior. As a general-purpose tool,
+it is no doubt true that a common hoe is better than any of its
+modifications, but there are various patterns of hoe-blades that are
+greatly superior for special uses, and which ought to appeal to any
+quiet soul who loves a garden.
+
+The great width of the common blade does not admit of its being used in
+very narrow rows or very close to delicate plants, and it does not
+allow of the deep stirring of the soil in narrow spaces. It is also
+difficult to enter hard ground with such a broad face. Various pointed
+blades have been introduced from time to time, and most of them have
+merit. Some persons prefer two points to the hoe, as shown in Marvin’s
+blades, in Fig. 95. These interesting shapes represent the suggestions
+of gardeners who will not be bound by what the market affords, but who
+have blades cut and fitted for their own satisfaction.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 96. A stack of gardening weapons, comprising some
+of Tarryer’s weeding spuds and thimbles.]
+
+Persons who followed the entertaining writings of one who called
+himself Mr. A.B. Tarryer, in “American Garden,” a few years back, will
+recall the great variety of implements that he advised for the purpose
+of extirpating his hereditary foes, the weeds. A variety of these
+blades and tools is shown in Figs. 96 and 97. I shall let Mr. Tarryer
+tell his story at some length in order to lead my reader painlessly
+into a new field of gardening pleasures.
+
+Mr. Tarryer contends that the wheel-hoe is much too clumsy an affair to
+allow of the pursuit of an individual weed. While the operator is busy
+adjusting his machine and manipulating it about the corners of the
+garden, the quack-grass has escaped over the fence or has gone to seed
+at the other end of the plantation. He devised an expeditious tool for
+each little work to be performed on the garden,—for hard ground and
+soft, for old weeds and young (one of his implements was denominated
+“infant-damnation”).
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 97. Some of the details of the Tarryer tools.]
+
+“Scores of times during the season,” Mr. Tarryer writes, “the ten or
+fifteen minutes one has to enjoy in the flower, fruit, and vegetable
+garden—and that would suffice for the needful weeding with the hoes we
+are celebrating—would be lost in harnessing horses or adjusting and
+oiling squeaky wheel-hoes, even if everybody had them. The ‘American
+Garden’ is not big enough, nor my patience long enough, to give more
+than an inkling of the unspeakable merits of these weapons of society
+and civilization. When Mrs. Tarryer was showing twelve or fifteen acres
+of garden with never a weed to be seen, she valued her dozen or more of
+these light implements at five or ten dollars daily; whether they were
+in actual use or adorning the front hall, like a hunter’s or angler’s
+furniture, made no difference. But where are these millennial tools
+made and sold? Nowhere. They are as unknown as the Bible was in the
+dark ages, and we must give a few hints towards manufacturing them.
+
+“First, about the handles. The ordinary dealer or workman may say these
+knobs can be formed on any handles by winding them with leather; but
+just fancy a young maiden setting up her hoe meditatively and resting
+her hands and chin upon an old leather knob to reflect upon something
+that has been said to her in the garden, and we shall perceive that a
+knob by some other name would smell far sweeter. Moreover, trees grow
+large enough at the butt to furnish all the knobs we want—even for
+broom-sticks—though sawyers, turners, dealers, and the public seem not
+to be aware of it; yet it must be confessed we are so far gone in
+depravity that there will be trouble in getting those handles....
+
+“In a broadcast prayer of this public nature, absolute specifications
+would not be polite. Black walnut and butternut are fragrant as well as
+beautiful timber. Cherry is stiff, heavy, durable, and, like maple,
+takes a slippery polish. For fine, light handles, that the palm will
+stick to, butt cuts of poplar or cottonwood cannot be excelled, yet
+straight-grained ash will bear more careless usage.
+
+“The handles of Mrs. Tarryer’s hoes are never perfectly straight. All
+the bayonet class bend downward in use half an inch or more; all the
+thrust-hoe handles bend up in a regular curve (like a fiddle-bow turned
+over) two or three inches. Unless they are hung right, these hoes are
+very awkward things. When perfectly fit for one, they may not fit
+another; that is, a tall, keen-sighted person cannot use the hoe that
+is just fit for a very short one.... Curves in the handles throw
+centers of gravity where they belong. Good timber generally warps in a
+handle about right, only implement makers and babes in weeding may not
+know when it is made fast right side up in the hoe.
+
+“There are plenty of thrust-hoes in market, such as they are. Some have
+malleable iron sockets and bows—heavier to the buyer and cheaper to the
+dealer—instead of wrought-iron and steel, such as is required for true
+worth.”
+
+Scarifiers.
+
+[Illustration: 98. A scarifier.]
+[Illustration: 99. Home-made scarifier.]
+[Illustration: 100. Home-made scarifier or scraper.]
+
+[Illustration: 101. The common scarifier.]
+
+For many purposes, tools that scrape or scarify the surface are
+preferable to hoes that dig up the ground. Weeds may be kept down by
+cutting them off, as in walks and often in flower-beds, rather than by
+rooting them out. Figure 98 shows such a tool, and a home-made
+implement answering the same purpose is illustrated in Fig. 99. This
+latter tool is easily made from strong band-iron. Another type is
+suggested in Fig. 100, representing a slicing-hoe made by fastening a
+sheet of good metal to the tines of a broken fork. The kind chiefly in
+the market is shown in Fig. 101.
+
+Hand-weeders.
+
+[Illustration: 102. Good hand-weeders.]
+[Illustration: 103. A hand-weeder.]
+[Illustration: 104. A finger-weeder.]
+[Illustration: 105. A small hand-weeder.]
+
+For small beds of flowers or vegetables, hand-weeders of various
+patterns are essential to easy and efficient work. One of the best
+patterns, with long and short handles, is shown in Fig. 102. Another
+style, that may be made at home of hoop-iron, is drawn in Fig. 103. A
+finger-weeder is illustrated in Fig. 104. In Fig. 105 a common form is
+shown. Many patterns of hand-weeders are in the market, and other forms
+will suggest themselves to the operator.
+
+Trowels and their kind.
+
+Small hand-tools for digging, as trowels, dibbers, and spuds, may be
+had of dealers. In buying a trowel it is economy to pay an extra price
+and secure a steel blade with a strong shank that runs through the
+entire length of the handle. One of these tools will last several years
+and may be used in hard ground, but the cheap trowels are generally
+hardly worth the buying. A solid wrought-iron trowel all in one piece
+is also manufactured, and is the most durable pattern. A steel trowel
+may be secured to a long handle; or the blade of a broken trowel may be
+utilized in the same way (Fig. 106). A very good trowel may also be
+made from a discarded blade of a mowing machine (Fig. 107), and it
+answers the purpose of a hand-weeder.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 106. Long-handled trowel.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 107. Improvised trowel.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 108. Weed-spud.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 109. A good weed-spud.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 110. Weed-cutter.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 111. A weed-spud that lifts the weed.]
+
+Weed-spuds are shown in Figs. 108 to 111. The first is particularly
+serviceable in cutting docks and other strong weeds from lawns and
+pastures. It is provided with a brace to allow it to be thrust into the
+ground with the foot. It is seldom necessary to dig out perennial weeds
+to the tips of their deep roots, if the crown is severed a short
+distance below the surface.
+
+Rollers.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 112. Hand-roller.] [Illustration: Fig. 113. Roller
+and marker.]
+
+It is often essential that the land be compacted after it has been
+spaded or hoed, and some kind of hand-roller is then useful. Very
+efficient iron rollers are in the market, but a good one can be made
+from a hard chestnut or oak log, as shown in Fig. 112. (It should be
+remembered that when the surface is hard and compact, water escapes
+from it rapidly, and plants may suffer for moisture on arrival of warm
+weather.) The roller is useful in two ways—to compact the
+under-surface, in which case the surface should be again loosened as
+soon as the rolling is done; and to firm the earth about seeds (page
+98) or the roots of newly set plants.
+
+Markers.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 114. Roller and marker.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 115. Marking-stick.]
+
+A marker may often be combined with the roller to good advantage, as in
+Fig. 113. Ropes are secured about the cylinder at proper intervals, and
+these mark the rows. Knots may be placed in the ropes to indicate the
+places where plants are to be set or seeds dropped. An extension of the
+same idea is seen in Fig. 114, which shows iron or wooden pegs that
+make holes in which very small plants may be set. An L-shaped rod
+projects at one side to mark the place of the next row.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 116. Tool for spacing plants.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 117. Barrow rigged with a marker.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 118. Hand sled-marker.]
+
+In most cases the best and most expeditious method of marking out the
+garden is by the use of the garden line, which is secured to a reel
+(Fig. 96), but various other devices are often useful. For very small
+beds, drills or furrows may be made by a simple marking-stick (Fig.
+115). A handy marker is shown in Fig. 116. A marker can be rigged to a
+wheel-barrow, as in Fig. 117. A rod is secured underneath the front
+truss, and from its end an adjustable trailer, B, is hung. The wheel of
+the barrow marks the row, and the trailer indicates the place of the
+next row, thereby keeping the rows parallel. A hand sled-marker is
+shown in Fig. 118, and a similar device may be secured to the frame of
+a sulky cultivator (Fig. 119) or other wheel tool. A good adjustable
+sled-marker is outlined in Fig. 120.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 119. Trailing sled-marker.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 120. Adjustable sled-marker.]
+
+_Enriching the land_.
+
+Two problems are involved in the fertilizing of the land: the direct
+addition of plant-food, and the improvement of the physical structure
+of the soil. The latter office is often the more important.
+
+Lands that, on the one hand, are very hard and solid, with a tendency
+to bake, and, on the other, that are loose and leachy, are very greatly
+benefited by the addition of organic matter. When this organic
+matter—as animal and plant remains—decays and becomes thoroughly
+incorporated with the soil, it forms what is called humus. The addition
+of this humus makes the land mellow, friable, retentive of moisture,
+and promotes the general chemical activities of the soil. It also puts
+the soil in the best physical condition for the comfort and well-being
+of the plants. Very many of the lands that are said to be exhausted of
+plant-food still contain enough potash, phosphoric acid, and lime, and
+other fertilizing elements, to produce good crops; but they have been
+greatly injured in their physical condition by long-continued cropping,
+injudicious tillage, and the withholding of vegetable matter. A part of
+the marked results secured from the plowing under of clover is due to
+the incorporation of vegetable matter, wholly aside from the addition
+of fertilizing material; and this is emphatically true of clover
+because its deep-growing roots penetrate and break up the subsoil.
+
+Muck and leafmold are often very useful in ameliorating either very
+hard or very loose lands. Excellent humous material may be constantly
+at hand if the leaves, garden refuse, and some of the manure are piled
+and composted (p. 114). If the pile is turned several times a year, the
+material becomes fine and uniform in texture.
+
+The various questions associated with the fertilizing of the land are
+too large to be considered in detail here. Persons who desire to
+familiarize themselves with the subject should consult recent books. It
+may be said, however, that, as a rule, most lands contain all the
+elements of plant-food in sufficient quantities except potash,
+phosphoric acid, and nitrogen. In many cases, lime is very beneficial
+to land, usually because it corrects acidity and has a mechanical
+effect in pulverizing and flocculating clay and in cementing sands.
+
+The chief sources of commercial potash are muriate of potash, sulfate
+of potash, and wood ashes. For general purposes, the muriate of potash
+is now recommended, because it is comparatively cheap and the
+composition is uniform. A normal application of muriate of potash is
+200 to 300 pounds to the acre; but on some lands, where the greatest
+results are demanded, sometimes as much as twice this application may
+be made.
+
+Phosphoric acid is got in dissolved South Carolina and Florida rock and
+in various bone preparations. These materials are applied at the rate
+of 200 to 400 pounds to the acre.
+
+Commercial nitrogen is secured chiefly in the form of animal refuse, as
+blood and tankage, and in nitrate of soda. It is more likely to be lost
+by leaching through the land than the mineral substances are,
+especially if the land lacks humus. Nitrate of soda is very soluble,
+and should be applied in small quantities at intervals. Nitrogen, being
+the element which is mostly conducive to vegetative growth, tends to
+delay the season of maturity if applied heavily or late in the season.
+From 100 to 300 pounds of nitrate of soda may be applied to the acre,
+but it is ordinarily better to make two or three applications at
+intervals of three to six weeks. Fertilizing materials may be applied
+either in fall or spring; but in the case of nitrate of soda it is
+usually better not to apply in the fall unless the land has plenty of
+humus to prevent leaching, or on plants that start very early in the
+spring.
+
+Fertilizing material is sown broadcast, or it may be scattered lightly
+in furrows underneath the seeds, and then covered with earth. If sown
+broadcast, it may be applied either after the seeds are sown or before.
+It is usually better to apply it before, for although the rains carry
+it down, nevertheless the upward movement of water during the dry
+weather of the summer tends to bring it back to the surface. It is
+important that large lumps of fertilizer, especially muriate of potash
+and nitrate of soda, do not fall near the crowns of the plants;
+otherwise the plants may be seriously injured. It is a general
+principle, also, that it is best to use more sparingly of fertilizers
+than of tillage. The tendency is to make fertilizers do penance for the
+sins of neglect, but the results do not often meet one’s expectations.
+
+If one has only a small garden or a home yard, it ordinarily will not
+pay him to buy the chemicals separately, as suggested above, but he may
+purchase a complete fertilizer that is sold under a trademark or brand,
+and has a guaranteed analysis. If one is raising plants chiefly for
+their foliage, as rhubarb and ornamental bushes, he should choose a
+fertilizer comparatively rich in nitrogen; but if he desires chiefly
+fruit and flowers, the mineral elements, as potash and phosphoric acid,
+should usually be high. If one uses the chemicals, it is not necessary
+that they be mixed before application; in fact, it is usually better
+not to mix them, because some plants and some soils need more of one
+element than of another. Just what materials, and how much, different
+soils and plants require must be determined by the grower himself by
+observation and experiment; and it is one of the satisfactions of
+gardening to arrive at discrimination in such matters.
+
+Muriate of potash costs $40 and upwards per ton, sulfate about $48,
+dissolved boneblack about $24, ground bone about $30, kainit about $13,
+and nitrate of soda about 2-1/4 cents per pound. These prices vary, of
+course, with the composition or mechanical condition of materials, and
+with the state of the market. The average composition of unleached wood
+ashes in the market is about as follows: Potash, 5.2 per cent;
+phosphoric acid, 1.70 per cent; lime, 34 per cent; magnesia, 3.40 per
+cent. The average composition of kainit is 13.54 per cent potash, 1.15
+per cent lime.
+
+The fact that the soil itself is the greatest storehouse of plant-food
+is shown by the following average of thirty-five analyses of the total
+content of the first eight inches of surface soils, per acre: 3521
+pounds of nitrogen, 4400 pounds of phosphoric acid, 19,836 pounds of
+potash. Much of this is unavailable, but good tillage, green-manuring,
+and proper management tend to unlock it and at the same time to save it
+from waste.
+
+[Illustration: Fig 121. A good cart for collecting leaves and other
+materials.]
+
+Every careful gardener will take satisfaction in saving leaves and
+trimmings and stable refuse and making compost of it to supplement the
+native supplies in the soil. Some out-of-the-way corner will be found
+for a permanent pile, with room for piling it over from time to time.
+The pile will be screened by his garden planting. (Figure 121 suggests
+a useful cart for collecting such materials.) He will also save the
+power of his land by changing his crops to other parts of the garden,
+year by year, not growing his China asters or his snap-dragons or his
+potatoes or strawberries continuously on the same area; and thus, also,
+will his garden have a new face every year.
+
+Lest the reader may get the idea that there is no limit to be placed on
+the enriching of the soil, I will caution him at the end of my
+discussion that he may easily make the place so rich that some plants
+will overgrow and will not come into flowering or fruiting before
+frost, and flowers may lack brilliancy. On very rich land, scarlet sage
+will grow to great size but will not bloom in the northern season;
+sweet peas will run to vine; gaillardias and some other plants will
+break down; tomatoes and melons and peppers may be so late that the
+fruit will not ripen. Only experience and good judgment will safeguard
+the gardener as to how far he should or should not go.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER V
+THE HANDLING OF THE PLANTS
+
+There is a knack in the successful handling of plants that it is
+impossible to describe in print. All persons can improve their practice
+through diligent reading of useful gardening literature, but no amount
+of reading and advice will make a good gardener of a person who does
+not love to dig in a garden or who does not have a care for plants just
+because they are plants.
+
+To grow a plant well, one must learn its natural habits. Some persons
+learn this as if by intuition, acquiring the knowledge from close
+discrimination of the behavior of the plant. Often they are themselves
+unconscious of this knack of knowing what will make the plant to
+thrive; but it is not at all necessary to have such an intuitive
+judgment to enable one to be even more than a fairly good gardener.
+Diligent attention to the plant’s habits and requirements, and a real
+regard for the plant’s welfare, will make any person a successful
+plant-grower.
+
+Some of the things that a person should know about any plant he would
+grow are these:—
+
+Whether the plant matures in the first, second, third, or subsequent
+years; and when it naturally begins to fail.
+
+The time of the year or season in which it normally grows, blooms, or
+fruits; and whether it can be forced at other seasons.
+
+Whether it prefers a situation dry or moist or wet, hot or cool, sunny
+or shady.
+
+Its preferences as to soil, whether very rich or only moderately rich,
+sand or loam, or peat or clay.
+
+Its hardiness as to frost, wind, drought, heat.
+
+Whether it has any special requirements as to germination, and whether
+it transplants well.
+
+Whether it is specially liable to attack by insects or disease.
+
+Whether it has a special inability to grow two years in succession on
+the same land.
+
+Having suited the situation to the plant, and having prepared the
+ground well and made a resolution to keep it well, special attention
+must be given to such matters as these:—
+
+Guarding from all insects and diseases; and also from cats and chickens
+and dogs; and likewise from rabbits and mice.
+
+Protecting from weeds.
+
+Pruning, in the case of fruit trees and bushes, and also of ornamental
+woody plants on occasion, and sometimes even of annual herbs.
+
+Staking and tying, particularly of sprawly garden flowers.
+
+Persistent picking of seed pods or dead flowers from flower plants, in
+order to conserve the strength of the plant and to prolong its season
+of bloom.
+
+Watering in dry weather (but not sprinkling or dribbling).
+
+Thorough winter protecting of plants that need it.
+
+Removing dead leaves, broken branches, weak and sickly plants, and
+otherwise keeping the place tidy and trim.
+
+
+_Sowing the seeds_.
+
+Prepare the surface earth well, to make a good seed-bed. Plant when the
+ground is moist, if possible, and preferably just before a rain if the
+soil is of such character that it will not bake. For shallow-planted
+seeds, firm the earth above them by walking over the row or by patting
+it down with a hoe. Special care should be exercised not to sow very
+small and slow-germinating seeds, as celery, carrot, onion, in poorly
+prepared soil or in ground that bakes. With such seeds it is well to
+sow seeds of radish or turnip, for these germinate quickly and break
+the crust, and also mark the row so that tillage may be begun before
+the regular-crop seeds are up.
+
+Land may be prevented from baking over the seeds by scattering a very
+thin layer of fine litter, as chaff, or of sifted moss or mold, over
+the row. A board is sometimes laid on the row to retain the moisture,
+but it must be lifted gradually just as soon as the plants begin to
+break the ground, or the plants will be greatly injured. Whenever
+practicable, seed-beds of celery and other slow-germinating seeds
+should be shaded. If the beds are watered, be careful that the soil is
+not packed by the force of the water or baked by the sun. In thickly
+sown seed-beds, thin or transplant the plants as soon as they have made
+their first true leaves.
+
+For most home-grounds, seeds may be sown by hand, but for large areas
+of one crop, one of the many kinds of seed-sowers may be used. The
+particular methods of sowing seeds are usually specified in the seed
+catalogues, if other than ordinary treatment is required. The
+sled-markers (already described, p. 108) open a furrow of sufficient
+depth for the planting of most seeds. If marker furrows are not
+available, a furrow may be opened with a hoe for such deep-planted
+seeds as peas and sweet peas, or by a trowel or end of a rakestale for
+smaller seeds. In narrow beds or boxes, a stick or ruler (Fig. 115) may
+be used for opening creases to receive the seeds.
+
+The depth at which seeds are to be planted varies with the kind, the
+soil and its preparation, the season, and whether they are planted in
+the open or in the house. In boxes and under glass, it is a good rule
+that the seed be sown at a depth equal to twice its own diameter, but
+deeper sowing is usually necessary out of doors, particularly in hot
+and dry weather. Strong and hardy seeds, as peas, sweet peas, large
+fruit-tree seeds, may be planted three to six inches deep. Tender
+seeds, that are injured by cold and wet, may be planted after the
+ground is settled and warm at a greater depth than before that season.
+As a rule, nothing is gained by sowing tender seeds before the weather
+is thoroughly settled and the ground warm.
+
+_Propagating by cuttings_.
+
+Many common plants are propagated by cuttings rather than by seeds,
+particularly when it is desired to increase a particular variety.
+
+Cuttings are parts of plants inserted in soil or water with the
+intention that they shall grow and make new plants. They are of various
+kinds. They may be classified, with reference to the age of the wood or
+tissue, into two classes; viz. those made from perfectly hard or
+dormant wood (taken from the winter twigs of trees and bushes), and
+those made from more or less immature or growing wood. They may be
+classified again in respect to the part of the plants from which they
+are taken, as root-cuttings, tuber-cuttings (as the ordinary “seed”
+planted for potatoes), stem-cuttings, and leaf-cuttings.
+
+Dormant stem-cuttings.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 122. The planting of the dormant-wood cuttings.]
+
+Dormant-wood cuttings are used for grapes (Fig. 122), currants,
+gooseberries, willows, poplars, and many other kinds of soft-wooded
+trees and shrubs. Such cuttings are ordinarily taken in fall or winter,
+but cut into the proper lengths and then buried in sand or moss where
+they do not freeze, in order that the lower end may heal over or
+callous. In the spring these cuttings are set in the ground, preferably
+in a rather sandy and well-drained place.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 123. Carnation cutting.]
+
+Usually, hardwood cuttings are made with two to four joints or buds,
+and when they are planted, only the upper bud projects above the
+ground. They may be planted erect, as Fig. 122 shows, or somewhat
+slanting. In order that the cutting may reach down to moist earth, it
+is desirable that it should not be less than 6 in. long; and it is
+sometimes better if it is 8 to 12 in. If the wood is short-jointed,
+there may be several buds on a cutting of this length; and in order to
+prevent too many shoots from arising from these buds the lowermost buds
+are often cut out. Roots will start as readily if the lower buds are
+removed, since the buds grow into shoots and not into roots.
+
+Cuttings of currants, grapes, gooseberries, and the like may be set in
+rows that are far enough apart to admit of easy tillage either with
+horse or hand tools, and the cuttings may be placed 3 to 8 in. apart in
+the row. The English varieties of gooseberries, considerably grown in
+this country, do not propagate readily from cuttings.
+
+After the cuttings have grown one season, the plants are usually
+transplanted and given more room for the second year’s growth, after
+which time they are ready to be set in permanent plantations. In some
+cases, the plants are set at the end of the first year; but two-year
+plants are stronger and usually preferable.
+
+Cuttings of roots.
+
+Root-cuttings are used for blackberries, raspberries, and a few other
+things. They are ordinarily made of roots from the size of a lead
+pencil to one’s little finger, and are cut in lengths from 3 to 5 in.
+long. The cuttings are stored the same as stem-cuttings and allowed to
+callous. In the spring they are planted in a horizontal or nearly
+horizontal position in moist sandy soil, being entirely covered to a
+depth of 1 or 2 in.
+
+Green cuttings.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 124. Verbena cutting.]
+
+Softwood or greenwood cuttings are usually made of wood that is mature
+enough to break when it is bent sharply. When the wood is so soft that
+it will bend and not break, it is too immature, in the majority of
+plants, for the making of good cuttings.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 125. Leaf-cutting.]
+
+One to two joints is the proper length of a greenwood cutting. If of
+two joints, the lower leaves should be cut off and the upper leaves cut
+in two so that they do not present their entire surface to the air and
+thereby evaporate the plant juices too rapidly. If the cutting is of
+only one joint, the lower end is usually cut just above a joint. In
+either case, the cuttings are usually inserted in sand or well-washed
+gravel, nearly or quite up to the leaves. Keep the bed uniformly moist
+throughout its depth, but avoid any soil which holds so much moisture
+that it becomes muddy and sour. These cuttings should be shaded until
+they begin to emit their roots. Coleus, geraniums, fuchsias,
+carnations, and nearly all the common greenhouse and house plants, are
+propagated by these cuttings or slips (Figs. 123, 124).
+
+Cuttings of leaves.
+
+Leaf-cuttings are often used for the fancy-leaved begonias, gloxinias,
+and a few other plants. The young plant usually arises most readily
+from the leaf-stalk or petiole. The leaf, therefore, is inserted into
+the ground much as a green cutting is. Begonia leaves will throw out
+young plants from the main ribs when these veins or ribs are cut.
+Therefore, well-grown and firm begonia leaves are sometimes laid flat
+on the sand and the main veins cut; then the leaf is weighted down with
+pebbles or pegs so that these cut surfaces come into intimate contact
+with the soil beneath. The usual way, however, is to cut a triangular
+piece of the leaf (Fig. 125) and insert the tip in sand. So long as the
+cutting is alive, do not be discouraged, even if it do not start.
+
+
+VIII. A well-planted entrance. Common trees and bushes, with Boston ivy
+on the post, and _Berberis Thunbergii_ in front. VIII. A well-planted
+entrance. Common trees and bushes, with Boston ivy on the post, and
+_Berberis Thunbergii_ in front.
+
+
+General treatment of cuttings.
+
+In the growing of all greenwood and leaf-cuttings, it is well to
+remember that they should have a gentle bottom heat; the soil should be
+such that it will hold moisture and yet not remain wet; the air about
+the tops should not become close and stagnant, else the plants will
+damp off; and the tops should be shaded for a time. In order to control
+all the conditions, such cuttings are grown under cover, as in a
+greenhouse, coldframe, or a box in the residence window.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 126. Cuttings inserted in a double pot.]
+
+An excellent method of starting cuttings in the living room is to make
+a double pot, as shown in Fig. 126. Inside a 6-in. pot set a 4-in. pot.
+Fill the bottom, _a_, with gravel or bits of brick, for drainage. Plug
+the hole in the inside pot. Fill the spaces between, _c_, with earth,
+and in this set the cuttings. Water may be poured into the inner pot,
+_b_, to supply the moisture.
+
+_Transplanting young seedlings_.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 127. To check evaporation at transplanting.]
+
+In the transplanting of cabbages, tomatoes, flowers, and all plants
+recently started from seeds, it is important that the ground be
+thoroughly fined and compacted. Plants usually live better if
+transplanted into ground that has been freshly turned. If possible,
+transplant in cloudy or rainy weather, particularly if late in the
+season. Firm the earth snugly about the roots with the hands or feet,
+in order to bring up the soil moisture; but it is generally best to
+rake the surface in order to reëstablish the earth-mulch, unless the
+plants are so small that their roots cannot reach through the mulch (p.
+98).
+
+If the plants are taken from pots, water the pots some time in advance,
+and the ball of earth will fall out when the pot is inverted and tapped
+lightly. In taking up plants from the ground, it is advisable, also, to
+water them well some time before removing; the earth may then be held
+on the roots. See that the watering is done far enough in advance to
+allow the water to settle away and distribute itself; the earth should
+not be muddy when the plants are removed.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 128. Plants sheared and not sheared when
+transplanted.]
+
+In order to reduce the evaporation from the plant, shingles may be
+stuck into the ground to shade the plant; or a screen may be improvised
+with pieces of paper (Fig. 122), tin cans, inverted flower-pots,
+coverings of brush, or other means.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 129. Where to shear the tops of young plants.]
+
+It is nearly always advisable to remove some of the foliage,
+particularly if the plant has several leaves and if it has not been
+grown in a pot, and also if the transplanting is done in warm weather.
+Figure 128 shows a good treatment for transplanted plants. With the
+foliage all left on, the plants are likely to behave as in the upper
+row; but with most of it cut off, as in the lower row, there is little
+wilting, and new leaves soon start. Figure 129 also shows what part of
+the leaves may be cut off on transplanting. If the ground is freshly
+turned and the transplanting is well done, it rarely will be necessary
+to water the plants; but if watering is necessary, it should be done at
+nightfall, and the surface should be loosened the next morning or as
+soon as it becomes dry.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 130. Trowel dibber.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 131. The dibber.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 132. Home-made padded dibber.]
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 133. Dibber and crow-bar combined.]
+
+In the transplanting of young plants, some kind of a dibber should be
+used to make the holes. Dibbers make holes without removing any of the
+earth. A good form of dibber is shown in Fig. 130, which is like a flat
+or plane trowel. Many persons prefer a cylindrical and conical dibber,
+like that shown in Fig. 131. For hard soils and larger plants, a strong
+dibber may be made from a limb that has a right-angled branch to serve
+as a handle. This handle may be softened by slipping a piece of rubber
+hose on it (Fig. 132). A long iron dibber, which may also be used as a
+crow-bar, is shown in Fig. 133. In transplanting with the dibber, a
+hole is first made by a thrust of the tool, and the earth is then
+pressed against the root by means of the foot, hand, or the dibber
+itself (as in Fig. 131). The hole is not filled by putting in dirt at
+the top.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 134. Strawberry planter.]
+
+For large plants, a broader dibber may be used. An implement like that
+shown in Fig. 134 is useful for setting strawberries and other plants
+with large roots. It is made of two-inch plank, with a block on top to
+act as foot-rest and to prevent the blade from going too deep. In order
+to provide space for the foot and easily to direct the thrust, the
+handle may be placed at one side of the middle. For plunging pots, a
+dibber like that shown in Fig. 135 is useful, particularly when the
+soil is so hard that a long-pointed tool is necessary. The bottom of
+the hole may be filled with earth before the pot is inserted; but it is
+often advisable to leave the vacant space below (as in _b_) to provide
+drainage, to keep the plant from rooting, and to prevent earth-worms
+from entering the hole in the bottom of the pot. For smaller pots, the
+tool may be inserted a less depth (as at _c_).
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 135. The plunging of pots.]
+
+_Transplanting established plants and trees_.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 136. Setting large tub-plants in the lawn.]
+
+In setting potted plants out of doors, it is nearly always advisable to
+plunge them,—that is to set the pots into the earth,—unless the place
+is very wet. The pots are then watered by the rainfall, and demand
+little care. If the plants are to be returned to the house in the fall,
+they should not be allowed to root through the hole in the pot, and the
+rooting may be prevented by turning the pot around every few days.
+Large decorative plants may be made to look as if growing naturally in
+the lawn by sinking the pot or box just below the surface and rolling
+the sod over it, as suggested in Fig. 136. A space around and below the
+tub may be provided to insure drainage.
+
+Tub-plants.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 137. Plant-box with a movable side.]
+
+For the shifting of very large tub-plants, a box or tub with movable
+sides, as in Fig. 137, is handy and efficient. The plant-box
+recommended to parties who grew plants for exhibition at the World’s
+Fair is shown in Fig. 138. It is made of strong boards or planks. At A
+is shown the inside of one of two opposite sections or sides, four feet
+wide at top, three feet wide at bottom, and three feet high. The cleats
+are two-by-four scantlings, through which holes are bored to admit the
+bolts with which the box is to be held together. B is an outside view
+of one of the alternating sections, three feet four inches wide at top,
+two feet four inches at bottom, and three feet deep. A one-by-six strip
+is nailed through the center to give strength. C is an end view of A,
+showing the bolts and also a two-by-four cleat to which the bottom is
+to be nailed. This box was used mostly for transporting large growing
+stock to the exposition, the stock having been dug from the open and
+the box secured around the ball of earth.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 138. Box for transporting large transplanted
+stock.]
+
+When to transplant.
+
+In general, it is best to set hardy plants in the fall, particularly if
+the ground is fairly dry and the exposure is not too bleak. To this
+class belong most of the fruit trees and ornamental trees and shrubs;
+also hardy herbs, as columbines, peonies, lilies, bleeding-hearts, and
+the like. They should be planted as soon as they are thoroughly mature,
+so that the leaves begin to fall naturally. If any leaves remain on the
+tree or bush at planting time, strip them off, unless the plant is an
+evergreen. It is generally best not to cut back fall-planted trees to
+the full extent desired, but to shorten them three-fourths of the
+required amount in the fall, and take off the remaining fourth in the
+spring, so that no dead or dry tips are left on the plant. Evergreens,
+as pines and spruces, are not headed-in much, and usually not at all.
+
+All tender and very small plants should be set in the spring, in which
+case very early planting is desirable; and spring planting is always to
+be advised when the ground is not thoroughly drained and well prepared.
+
+Depth to transplant.
+
+In well-compacted land, trees and shrubs should be set at about the
+same depth as they stood in the nursery, but if the land has been
+deeply trenched or if it is loose from other causes, the plants should
+be set deeper, because the earth will probably settle. The hole should
+be filled with fine surface earth. It is generally not advisable to
+place manure in the hole, but if it is used, it should be of small
+amount and very thoroughly mixed with the earth, else it will cause the
+soil to dry out. In lawns and other places where surface tillage cannot
+be given, a light mulch of litter or manure may be placed about the
+plants; but the earth-mulch (page 98), when it can be secured, is much
+the best conserver of moisture.
+
+Making the rows straight.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 139. A planting board.]
+
+In order to set trees in rows, it is necessary to use a garden line
+(Fig. 96), or to mark out the ground with some of the devices already
+described (Figs. 113-120); or in large areas, the place may be staked
+out. In planting orchards, the area is laid out (preferably by a
+surveyor) with two or more rows of stakes so placed that a man may
+sight from one fixed point to another. Two or three men work to best
+advantage in such planting.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 140. Device for placing the tree.]
+
+There are various devices for locating the place of the stake after the
+stake has been removed and the hole dug, in case the area is not
+regularly staked out in such a way that sighting across the area may be
+employed. One of the simplest is shown in Fig. 139. It is a narrow and
+thin board with a notch in the center and a peg in either end, one of
+the pegs being stationary. The implement is so placed that the notch
+meets the stake, then one end of it is thrown out of the way until the
+hole is dug. When the implement is brought again to its original
+position, the notch mark’s the place of the stake and the tree. Figure
+140 is a device with a lid, in the end of which is a notch to mark the
+place of the stake. This lid is thrown back, as shown by the dotted
+lines, when the hole is being dug. Figure 141 shows a method of
+bringing trees in row by measuring from a line.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 141. Lining a tree from a stake.]
+
+Cutting-back; filling.
+
+In the planting of any tree or bush, the roots should be cut back
+beyond all breaks and serious bruises, and fine earth should be
+thoroughly filled in and firmed about them, as in Fig. 142. No
+implement is so good as the fingers for working the soil about the
+roots. If the tree has many roots, work it up and down slightly several
+times during the filling of the hole, to settle the earth in place.
+When the earth is thrown in carelessly, the roots are jammed together,
+and often an empty place is left beneath the crown, as in Fig. 143,
+which causes the roots to dry out.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 142: Proper planting of a tree.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 143: Careless planting of a tree.]
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 144. Pruned young tree.] [Illustration: Fig. 145.
+Pruned young tree.]
+
+The marks on the tops of these trees in Figs. 142 and 143 show where
+the branches may be cut. See also Fig. 152. Figures 144 and 145 show
+the tops of trees after pruning. Strong branchy trees, as apples,
+pears, and ornamental trees, are usually headed back in this way, upon
+planting. If the tree has one straight leader and many or several
+slender branches (Fig. 146), it is usually pruned, as in Fig. 147, each
+branch being cut back to one or two buds. If there are no branches, or
+very few of them,—in which case there will be good buds upon the main
+stem,—the leader may be cut back a third or half its length, to a mere
+whip. Ornamental bushes with long tops are usually cut back a third or
+a half when set, as shown in Fig. 45.
+
+Always leave a little of the small bud-making growth. The practice of
+cutting back shade trees to mere long clubs, or poles, with no small
+twigs, is to be discouraged. The tree in such case is obliged to force
+out adventitious buds from the old wood, and it may not have vigor
+enough to do this; and the process may be so long delayed as to allow
+the tree to be overtaken by drought before it gets a start.
+
+Removing very large trees.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 146: Peach tree.] [Illustration: Fig. 147: Peach
+tree pruned for planting.]
+
+Very large trees can often be moved with safety. It is essential that
+the transplanting be done when the trees are perfectly dormant,—winter
+being preferable,—that a large mass of earth and roots be taken with
+the tree, and that the top be vigorously cut back. Large trees are
+often moved in winter on a stone-boat, by securing a large ball of
+earth frozen about the roots. This frozen ball is secured by digging
+about the tree for several days in succession, so that the freezing
+progresses with the excavation. A good device for moving such trees is
+shown in Fig. 148. The trunk of the tree is securely wrapped with
+burlaps or other soft material, and a ring or chain is then secured
+about it. A long pole, _b_, is run over the truck of a wagon and the
+end of it is secured to the chain or ring upon the tree. This pole is a
+lever for raising the tree out of the ground. A team is hitched at _a_,
+and a man holds the pole _b_. Other and more elaborate devices are in
+use, but this explains the idea and is therefore sufficient for the
+present purpose; for when a person desires to remove a very large tree
+he should secure the services of an expert.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 148: Moving a large tree.]
+
+The following more explicit directions for moving large trees are by
+Edward Hicks, who has had much experience in the business, and who made
+this report to the press a few years ago: “In moving large trees, say
+those ten to twelve inches in diameter and twenty-five to thirty feet
+high, it is well to prepare them by trimming and cutting or sawing off
+the roots at a proper distance from the trunks, say six to eight feet,
+in June. The cut roots heal over and send out fibrous roots, which
+should not be injured more than is necessary in moving the trees next
+fall or spring. Young, thrifty maples and elms, originally from the
+nursery, do not need such preparation nearly as much as other and older
+trees. In moving a tree, we begin by digging a wide trench six to eight
+feet from it, leaving all possible roots fast to it. By digging under
+the tree in the wide trench, and working the soil out of the roots by
+means of round or dull-pointed sticks, the soil falls into the cavity
+made under the tree. Three or four men in as many hours could get so
+much of the soil away from the roots that it would be safe to attach a
+rope and tackle to the upper part of the trunk and to some adjoining
+post or tree for the purpose of pulling the tree over. A good quantity
+of bagging must be put around the tree under the rope to prevent
+injury, and care should be taken that the pulling of the rope does not
+split off or break a limb. A team is hitched to the end of the draft
+rope, and slowly driven in the proper direction to pull the tree over.
+If the tree does not readily tip over, dig under and cut off any fast
+root. While it is tipped over, work out more of the soil with the
+sticks. Now pass a large rope, double, around a few large roots close
+to the tree, leaving the ends of the rope turned up by the trunk to be
+used in lifting the tree at the proper time. Tip the tree in the
+opposite direction and put another large rope around the large roots
+close to the trunk; remove more soil and see that no roots are fast to
+the ground. Four guy-ropes attached to the upper parts of the tree, as
+shown in the cut (Fig. 149), should be put on properly and used to
+prevent the tree from tipping over too far as well as to keep it
+upright. A good deal of the soil can be put back in the hole without
+covering the roots to get it out of the way of the machine. The latter
+can now be placed about the tree by removing the front part, fastened
+by four bolts, placing the frame with the hind wheels around the tree
+and replacing the front parts. Two timbers, three-by-nine inches, and
+twenty feet long, are now placed on the ground under the hind wheels,
+and in front of them, parallel to each other for the purpose of keeping
+the hind wheels up out of the big hole when drawing the tree away; and
+they are also used while backing the hind wheels across the new hole in
+which the tree is to be planted. The machine (Figs. 149, 150) consists
+of a hind axle twelve feet long, and broad-tired wheels. The frame is
+made of spruce three-by-eight inches and twenty feet long. The braces
+are three-by-five inches and ten feet long, and upright three-by-nine
+inches and three feet high; these are bolted to the hind axle and main
+frame. The front axle has a set of blocks bolted together and of
+sufficient height to support the front end of the frame. Into the top
+timbers, three-by-six inches, hollows are cut at the proper distances
+to receive the ends of two locust rollers. A windlass or winch is put
+at each end of the frame, by which trees can easily and steadily be
+lifted and lowered, the large double ropes passing over the rollers to
+the windlasses. A locust boom is put across the machine under the frame
+and above the braces; iron pins hold it in place. The side guy-ropes
+are made fast to the ends of this boom. The other guy-ropes are made
+fast to the front and rear parts of the machine. Four rope loops are
+made fast inside of the frame, and are so placed that by passing a rope
+around the trunk of the tree and through the loops two or three times,
+a rope ring is made around the tree that will keep the trunk in the
+middle of the frame and not allow it to hit either the edges or the
+rollers—a very necessary safeguard. As the tree is slowly lifted by the
+windlasses, the guy-ropes are loosened, as needed. The tree will pass
+obstructions, such as trees by the roadside, but in doing so it is
+better to lean the tree backward. When the tree has arrived at its new
+place, the two timbers are placed along the opposite edges of the hole
+so that the hind wheels can be backed over it. The tree is then lowered
+to the proper depth, and made plumb by the guy-ropes, and good, mellow
+soil is thrown in and packed well into all the cavities under the
+roots. When the hole is half filled, several barrels of water should be
+poured in; this will wash the soil into the cavities under the center
+of the tree much better. When the water has settled away, fill in and
+pack the soil till the hole is little more than full. Leave a
+depression, so that all the rain that may fall will be retained. The
+tree should now be judiciously trimmed and the machine removed. Five
+men can take up, move, and plant a tree in a day, if the distance is
+short and the digging not too hard. The tree should be properly wired
+to stakes to prevent the wind from blowing it over. The front part of
+the machine is a part of our platform spring market-wagon, while the
+hind wheels are from a wood-axle wagon. A tree ten inches in diameter,
+with some dirt adhering to its roots, will weigh a ton or more.”
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 149. The tree ready to lift.]
+
+[Illustration: 150. The tree ready to move.]
+
+_Winter protection of plants_.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 151. Trees heeled-in for winter.]
+
+If the ground is not ready for planting in the fall, or if it is
+desired for any reason to delay until spring, the trees or bushes may
+be heeled-in, as illustrated in Fig. 151. The roots are laid in a
+furrow or trench, and are covered with well-firmed earth. Straw or
+manure may be thrown over the earth still further to protect the roots,
+but if it is thrown over the tops, mice may be attracted by it and the
+trees be girdled. Tender trees or bushes may be lightly covered to the
+tips with earth. Plants should be heeled-in only in loose, warm, loamy
+or sandy ground and in a well-drained place.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 152. Tree earthed up for winter.]
+
+Fall-planted trees should generally be mounded up, sometimes even as
+high as shown in Fig. 152. This hilling holds the plant in position,
+carries off the water, prevents too deep freezing, and holds the earth
+from heaving. The mound is taken away in the spring. It is sometimes
+advisable to mound-up established trees in the fall, but on
+well-drained land the practice is usually not necessary. In hilling
+trees, pains should be taken not to leave deep holes, from which the
+earth was dug, close to the tree, for water collects in them. Roses and
+many other bushes may be mounded in the fall with profit.
+
+It is always advisable to mulch plants that are set in the fall. Any
+loose and dry material—as straw, manure, leaves, leafmold, litter from
+yards and stables, pine boughs—may be used for this purpose. Very
+strong or compact manures, as those in which there is little straw or
+litter, should be avoided. The ground may be covered to a depth of five
+or six inches, or even a foot or more if the material is loose. Avoid
+throwing strong manure directly on the crown of the plants, especially
+of herbs, for the materials that leach from the manure sometimes injure
+the crown buds and the roots.
+
+This protection may also be given to established plants, particularly
+to those which, like roses and herbaceous plants, are expected to give
+a profusion of bloom the following year. This mulch affords not only
+winter protection, but is an efficient means of fertilizing the land. A
+large part of the plant-food materials have leached out of the mulch by
+spring, and have become incorporated in the soil, where the plant makes
+ready use of them.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 153: Covering plants in a box.]
+
+Mulches also serve a most useful purpose in preventing the ground from
+packing and baking by the weight of snows and rains, and the cementing
+action of too much water in the surface soil. In the spring, the
+coarser parts of the mulch may be removed, and the finer parts spaded
+or hoed into the ground.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 154: Covering plants in a barrel.]
+
+Tender bushes and small trees may be wrapped with straw, hay, burlaps,
+or pieces of matting or carpet. Even rather large trees, as bearing
+peach trees, are often baled up in this way, or sometimes with corn
+fodder, although the results in the protection of fruit-buds are not
+often very satisfactory. It is important that no grain is left in the
+baling material, else mice may be attracted to it. (The danger of
+gnawing by mice that nest in winter coverings is always to be
+anticipated.) It should be known, too, that the object in tying up or
+baling plants is not so much to protect from direct cold as to mitigate
+the effects of alternate freezing and thawing, and to protect from
+drying winds. Plants may be wrapped so thick and tight as to injure
+them.
+
+The labor of protecting large plants is often great and the results
+uncertain, and in most cases it is a question whether more satisfaction
+could not be attained by growing only hardy trees and shrubs.
+
+The objection to covering tender woody plants cannot be urged with
+equal force against tender herbs or very low bushes, for these are
+protected with ease. Even the ordinary mulch may afford sufficient
+protection; and if the tops kill back, the plant quickly renews itself
+from near the base, and in many plants—as in most hybrid perpetual
+roses—the best bloom is on these new growths of the season. Old boxes
+or barrels may be used to protect tender low plants (Figs. 153, 154).
+The box is filled with leaves or dry straw and either left open on top
+or covered with boards, boughs, or even with burlaps (Fig. 154).
+
+Connoisseurs of tender roses and other plants sometimes go to the pains
+of erecting a collapsible shed over the bush, and filling with leaves
+or straw. Whether this is worth while depends wholly on the degree of
+satisfaction that one derives from the growing of choice plants (see
+_Roses_, in Chap. VIII).
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 155. Laying down of trellis-grown blackberries.]
+
+The tops of plants may be laid down for the winter. Figure 155 shows a
+method of laying down blackberries, as practiced in the Hudson River
+valley. The plants were tied to a trellis, as the method is in that
+country, two wires (_a, b_) having been run on either side of the row.
+The posts are hinged on a pivot to a short post (_c_), and are held in
+position by a brace (_d_). The entire trellis is then laid down on the
+approach of winter, as shown in the illustration. The blackberry tops
+are so strong that they hold the wires up from the ground, even when
+the trellis is laid down. To hold the wires close to the earth, stakes
+are thrust over them in a slanting position, as shown at _n n_. The
+snow that drifts through the plants ordinarily affords sufficient
+protection for plants which are as hardy as grapes and berries. In
+fact, the species may be uninjured even without cover, since, in their
+prostrate position, they escape the cold and drying winds.
+
+In severe climates, or in the case of tender plants, the tops should be
+covered with straw, boughs, or litter, as recommended for regular
+mulch-covers. Sometimes a V-shaped trough made from two boards is
+placed over the stems of long or vine-like plants that have been laid
+down. All plants with slender or more or less pliant stems can be laid
+down with ease. With such protection, figs can be grown in the northern
+states. Peach and other fruit trees may be so trained as to be tipped
+over and covered.
+
+Laid-down plants are often injured if the covering remains too late in
+the spring. The ground warms up early, and may start the buds on parts
+of the buried plants, and these tender buds may be broken when the
+plants are raised, or injured by sun, wind, or frost. The plants should
+be raised while the wood and buds are still hard and dormant.
+
+_Pruning_.
+
+Pruning is necessary to keep plants in shape, to make them more
+floriferous and fruitful, and to hold them within bounds.
+
+Even annual plants often may be pruned to advantage. This is true of
+tomatoes, from which the superfluous or crowding shoots may be removed,
+especially if the land is so rich that they grow very luxuriantly;
+sometimes they are trained to a single stem and most of the side shoots
+are taken away as they appear. If plants of marigold, gaillardia, or
+other strong and spreading growers are held by stakes or wire-holders
+(a good practice), it may be advisable to remove the weak and sprawling
+shoots. Balsams give better results when side shoots are taken off. The
+removing of the old flowers, which is to be advised with flower-garden
+plants (page 116), is also a species of pruning.
+
+Distinction should be made between pruning and shearing. Plants are
+sheared into given shapes. This may be necessary in bedding-plants, and
+occasionally when a formal effect is desired in shrubs and trees; but
+the best taste is displayed, in the vast majority of cases, in allowing
+the plants to assume their natural habits, merely keeping them shapely,
+cutting out old or dead wood, and, in some cases, preventing such
+crowding of shoots as will reduce the size of the bloom. The common
+practice of shearing shrubbery is very much to be reprehended; this
+subject is discussed from another point of view on page 24.
+
+The pruner should know the flower-bearing habit of the plant that he
+prunes,—whether the bloom is on the shoots of last season or on the new
+wood of the present season, and whether the flower-buds of
+spring-blooming plants are separate from the leaf-buds. A very little
+careful observation will determine these points for any plant. (1) The
+spring-blooming woody plants usually produce their flowers from buds
+perfected the fall before and remaining dormant over winter. This is
+true of most fruit-trees, and such shrubs as lilac, forsythia, tree
+peony, wistaria, some spireas and viburnums, weigela, deutzia. Cutting
+back the shoots of these plants early in spring or late in fall,
+therefore, removes the bloom. The proper time to prune such plants
+(unless one intends to reduce or thin the bloom) is just after the
+flowering season. (2) The summer-blooming woody plants usually produce
+their flowers on shoots that grow early in the same season. This is
+true of grapes, quince, hybrid perpetual roses, shrubby hibiscus, crape
+myrtle, mock orange, hydrangea (paniculata), and others. Pruning in
+winter or early spring to secure strong new shoots is, therefore, the
+proper procedure in these cases.
+
+Remarks on pruning may be found under the discussion of roses and other
+plants in subsequent chapters, when the plants need any special or
+peculiar attention.
+
+Fruit-trees and shade-trees are usually pruned in winter, preferably
+late in winter, or in very early spring. However, there is usually no
+objection to moderate pruning at any time of the year; and moderate
+pruning every year, rather than violent pruning in occasional years, is
+to be advised. It is an old idea that summer pruning tends to favor the
+production of fruit-buds and therefore to make for fruitfulness; there
+is undoubtedly truth in this, but it must be remembered that
+fruitfulness is not the result of one treatment or condition, but of
+all the conditions under which the plant lives.
+
+All limbs should be removed close to the branch or trunk from which
+they arise, and the surface of the wound should be practically parallel
+with such branch or trunk, rather than to be cut back to stubs. The
+stubs do not heal readily.
+
+All wounds much above an inch across may be protected by a coat of good
+linseed-oil paint; but smaller wounds, if the tree is vigorous, usually
+require no protection. The object of the paint is to protect the wound
+from cracking and decay until the healing tissue covers it.
+
+Superfluous and interfering branches should be removed from
+fruit-trees, so that the top will be fairly open to sun and to the
+pickers. Well-pruned trees allow of an even distribution and uniform
+development of the fruit. Watersprouts and suckers should be removed as
+soon as they are discovered. How open the top may be, will depend on
+the climate. In the West, open trees suffer from sun-scald.
+
+The fruit-bearing habit of the fruit-tree must be considered in the
+pruning. The pruner should be able to distinguish fruit-buds from
+leaf-buds in such species as cherries, plums, apricot, peach, pear,
+apple, and so prune as to spare these buds or to thin them
+understandingly. The fruit-buds are distinguished by their position on
+the tree and by their size and shape. They may be on distinct “spurs”
+or short branches, in all the above fruits; or, as in the peach, they
+may be chiefly lateral on the new shoots (in the peach, the fruit-buds
+are usually two at a node and with a leaf-bud between them), or, as
+sometimes in apples and pears, they may be at the ends of last year’s
+growths. Fruit-buds are usually thicker, or “fatter,” than leaf-buds,
+and often fuzzy. Heading-back the tree of course tends to concentrate
+the fruit-buds and to keep them nearer the center of the tree-top; but
+heading-back must be combined with intelligent saving and thinning of
+the interior shoots. Heading-back of pears and peaches and plums is
+usually a very desirable practice.
+
+_Tree surgery and protection_.
+
+Aside from the regular pruning to develop the tree into its best form
+to enable it to do its best work, there are wounds and malformations to
+be treated. Recently, the treating of injured and decayed trees has
+received much attention, and “tree doctors” and “tree surgeons” have
+engaged in the business. If there are quacks among these people, there
+are also competent and reliable men who are doing useful service in
+saving and prolonging the life of trees; one should choose a tree
+doctor with the same care that he would choose any other doctor. The
+liability of injury to street trees in the modern city and the
+increasing regard for trees, render the services of good experts
+increasingly necessary.
+
+Street trees are injured by many causes: as, starving because of poor
+soil and lack of water under pavements; smoke and dust; leakage from
+gas mains and from electric installation; gnawing by horses; butchering
+by persons stringing wires; carelessness of contractors and builders;
+wind and ice storms; overcrowding; and the blundering work of persons
+who think that they know how to prune. Well-enforced municipal
+regulations should be able to control most of these troubles.
+
+Tree guards.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 156. Lath tree guard.] [Illustration: Fig. 157.
+Wire-and-post tree guard]
+
+Along roadsides and other exposed places it is often necessary to
+protect newly set trees from horses, boys, and vehicles. There are
+various kinds of tree guards for this purpose. The best types are those
+that are more or less open, so as to allow the free passage of air and
+which are so far removed from the body of the tree that its trunk may
+expand without difficulty. If the guards are very tight, they may shade
+the trunk so much that the tree may suffer when the guard is removed,
+and they prevent the discovery of insects and injuries. It is important
+that the guard does not fill with litter in which insects may harbor.
+As soon as the tree is old enough to escape injury, the guards should
+be removed. A very good guard, made of laths held together with three
+strips of band-iron, and secured to iron posts, is shown in Fig. 156.
+Figure 157. shows a guard made by winding fencing wire upon three posts
+or stakes. When there is likely to be danger from too great shading of
+the trunk, this latter form of guard is one of the best. There are good
+forms of tree guards on the market. Of course hitching-posts should be
+provided, wherever horses are to stand, to remove the temptation of
+hitching to trees. Figure 158, however, shows a very good device when a
+hitching post is not wanted. A strong stick, four or five feet long, is
+secured to the tree by a staple and at the lower end of the stick is a
+short chain with a snap in the end. The snap is secured to the bridle,
+and the horse is not able to reach the tree.
+
+[Illustration: Fig 158. How a horse may be hitched to a tree.]
+
+Mice and rabbits.
+
+Trees and bushes are often seriously injured by the gnawing of mice and
+rabbits. The best preventive is not to have the vermin. If there are no
+places in which rabbits and mice can burrow and breed, there will be
+little difficulty. At the approach of winter, if mice are feared, the
+dry litter should be removed from about the trees, or it should be
+packed down very firm, so that the mice cannot nest in it. If the
+rodents are very abundant, it may be advisable to wrap fine wire
+netting about the base of the tree. A boy who is fond of trapping or
+hunting will ordinarily solve the rabbit difficulty. Rags tied on
+sticks which are placed at intervals about the plantation will often
+frighten rabbits away.
+
+Girdled trees.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 159. Bridge-grafting a girdle.]
+
+Trees that are girdled by mice should be wrapped up as soon as
+discovered, so that the wood shall not become too dry. When warm
+weather approaches, shave off the edges of the girdle so that the
+healing tissue may grow freely, smear the whole surface with
+grafting-wax, or with clay, and bind the whole wound with strong
+cloths. Even though the tree is completely girdled for a distance of
+three or four inches, it usually may be saved by this treatment, unless
+the injury extends into the wood. The water from the roots rises
+through the soft wood and not between the bark and the wood, as
+commonly supposed. When this sap water has reached the foliage, it
+takes part in the elaboration of plant-food, and this food is
+distributed throughout the plant, the path of transfer being in the
+inner layers of bark. This food material, being distributed back to the
+girdle, will generally heal over the wound if the wood is not allowed
+to become dry.
+
+In some cases, however, it is necessary to join the bark above and
+below the girdle by means of cions, which are whittled to a wedge-shape
+on either end, and inserted underneath the two edges of the bark (Fig.
+159). The ends of the cions and the edges of the wound are held by a
+bandage of cloth, and the whole work is protected by melted
+grafting-wax poured upon it. [Footnote: A good grafting-wax is made as
+follows: Into a kettle place one part by weight of tallow, two parts of
+beeswax, four parts of rosin. When completely melted, pour into a tub
+or pail of cold water, then work it with the hands (which should be
+greased) until it develops a grain and becomes the color of taffy
+candy. The whole question of the propagation of plants is discussed in
+“The Nursery-Book.”]
+
+Repairing street trees.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 161. A wound, made by freezing, trimmed out and
+filled with cement.]
+
+The following advice on “tree surgery” is by A.D. Taylor (Bulletin 256,
+Cornell University, from which the accompanying illustrations are
+adapted):—
+
+“Tree surgery includes the intelligent protection of all mechanical
+injuries and cavities. Pruning requires a previous intimate knowledge
+of the habits of growth of trees; surgery, on the other hand, requires
+in addition a knowledge of the best methods for making cavities
+air-tight and preventing decay. The filling of cavities in trees has
+not been practiced sufficiently long to warrant making a definite
+statement as to the permanent success or failure of the operation; the
+work is still in an experimental stage. The caring for cavities in
+trees must be urged as the only means of preserving affected specimens,
+and the preservation of many noble specimens has been at least
+temporarily assured through the efforts of those practicing this kind
+of work.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 160. A cement-filled cavity at the base of a tree.]
+
+“Successful operation depends on two important factors: first, that all
+decayed parts of the cavity be wholly removed and the exposed surface
+thoroughly washed with an antiseptic; second, that the cavity, when
+filled, must be air tight and hermetically sealed if possible. Trees
+are treated as follows: The cavity is thoroughly cleaned by removing
+all decayed wood and washing the interior surface with a solution of
+copper sulfate and lime, in order to destroy any fungi that may remain.
+The edges of the cavity are cut smooth in order to allow free growth of
+the cambium after the cavity is filled. Any antiseptic, such as
+corrosive sublimate, creosote, or even paint, may answer the purpose;
+creosote, however, possesses the most penetrating powers of any. The
+method of filling the cavities depends to a great extent on their size
+and form. Very large cavities with great openings are generally bricked
+on the outside, over the opening, and filled on the inside with
+concrete, the brick serving the purpose of a retaining wall to hold the
+concrete in place. Concrete used for the main filling is usually made
+in the proportion of one part good Portland cement, two parts sand, and
+four parts crushed stone, the consistency of the mixture being such
+that it may be poured into the cavity and require little or no tamping
+to make the mass solid. (Fig. 160.)
+
+“Fillings thus made are considered by expert tree surgeons to be a
+permanent preventive of decay. The outside of the filling is always
+coated with a thin covering of concrete, consisting of one part cement
+to two parts fine sand. Cavities resulting from freezing, and which,
+though large on the inside, show only a long narrow crack on the
+outside, are most easily filled by placing a form against the entire
+length of the opening, having a space at the top through which the
+cement may be poured (Fig. 161). Another method of retaining the
+concrete is to reinforce it from the outside by driving rows of spikes
+along the inner surface of either side of the cavity and lacing a stout
+wire across the face of the cavity. For best results, all fillings must
+come flush with the inner bark when finished. During the first year,
+this growing tissue will spread over the outer edge of the filling,
+thus forming an hermetically sealed cavity. In the course of time, the
+outside of small or narrow openings should be completely covered with
+tissue, which buries the filling from view.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 162. Bridge-grafting or in-arching from saplings
+planted about the tree.]
+
+“It has been found that there is a tendency for portland cement to
+contract from the wood after it dries, leaving a space between the wood
+and the cement through which water and germs of decay may enter. A
+remedy for this defect has been suggested in the use of a thick coat of
+tar, or an elastic cement which might be spread over the surface of the
+cavity before filling. The cracking of portland cement on the surface
+of long cavities is caused by the swaying of trees during heavy storms,
+and should not occur if the filling is correctly done.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 163. Faulty methods of bracing a crotched tree. The
+lower method is wholly wrong. The upper method is good if the
+bolt-heads are properly counter-sunk and the bolts tightly fitted; but
+if the distance between the branches is great, it is better to have two
+bolts and join them by hooks, to allow of wind movements.]
+
+“In addition to the preservation of decayed specimens by filling the
+cavities, as above outlined, it has been proposed to strengthen the
+tree by treating it as shown in Fig. 162. Young saplings of the same
+species, after having become established as shown, are grafted by
+approach to the mature specimen.
+
+“Injury frequently results from error in the method of attempting to
+save broken, or to strengthen and support weak branches that are
+otherwise healthy. The means used for supporting cracked, wind-racked,
+and overladen branches which show a tendency to split at the forks are
+bolting and chaining. The practice of placing iron bands around large
+branches in order to protect them has resulted in much harm; as the
+tree grows and expands, such bands tighten, causing the bark to be
+broken and resulting after a few years in a partial girdling (Fig.
+163).
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 164. Trees ruined to allow of the passage of
+wires.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 165. Accommodating a wall to a valuable tree.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 166. The death of a long stub.]
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 167. Bungling pruning.] [Illustration: Fig. 168.
+The proper way to saw off a large limb. A cut is first made on the
+under side to prevent splitting down; then it is cut on the upper side.
+Then the entire “stub” is removed close to the trunk.]
+
+“To bolt a tree correctly is comparatively inexpensive. The safest
+method consists in passing a strong bolt through a hole bored in the
+branch for this purpose, and fastening it on the outside by means of a
+washer and a nut. Generally the washer has been placed against the bark
+and the nut then holds it in place. A better method of bolting, and one
+which insures a neat appearance of the branch in addition to serving as
+the most certain safeguard against the entrance of disease, is to
+counter-sink the nut in the bark and imbed it in portland cement. The
+hole for the sinking of the nut and washer is thickly coated with lead
+paint and then with a layer of cement, on which are placed the nut and
+washer, both of which are then imbedded in cement. If the outer surface
+of the nut be flush with the plane of the bark, within a few years it
+will be covered by the growing tissue.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 169. A weak-bodied young tree well supported;
+padding is placed under the bandages.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 170. The wrong way of attaching a guy rope.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 171. An allowable way of attaching a guy rope.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 172. The best way of attaching a guy rope, if a
+tree must be used as support.]
+
+“The inner ends of the rods in the two branches may be connected by a
+rod or chain. The preference for the chain over the rod attachment is
+based on the compressive and tensile stresses which come on the
+connection during wind storms. Rod connections are preferred, however,
+when rigidity is required, as in unions made close to the crotch; but
+for tying two branches together before they have shown signs of
+weakening at the fork, the chain may best be used, as the point of
+attachment may be placed some distance from the crotch, where the
+flexibility factor will be important and the strain comparatively
+small. Elms in an advanced stage of maturity, if subjected to severe
+climatic conditions, often show this tendency to split. These trees,
+especially, should be carefully inspected and means taken to preserve
+them, by bolting if necessary.”
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 173. A method of saving valuable trees along
+streets on which heavy lowering of grade has been made.]
+
+The illustrations, Figs. 164-173, are self-explanatory, and show poor
+practice and good practice in the care of trees.
+
+
+IX. A rocky bank covered with permanent informal planting. IX. A rocky
+bank covered with permanent informal planting.
+
+
+_The grafting of plants_.
+
+Grafting is the operation of inserting a piece of a plant into another
+plant with the intention that it shall grow. It differs from the making
+of cuttings in the fact that the severed part grows in another plant
+rather than in the soil.
+
+There are two general kinds of grafting—one of which inserts a piece of
+branch in the stock (grafting proper), and one which inserts only a bud
+with little or no wood attached (budding). In both cases the success of
+the operation depends on the growing together of the cambium of the
+cion (or cutting) and that of the stock. The cambium is the new and
+growing tissue lying underneath the bark and on the outside of the
+growing wood. Therefore, the line of demarcation between the bark and
+the wood should coincide when the cion and stock are joined.
+
+The plant on which the severed piece is set is called the stock. The
+part which is removed and set into the stock is called a cion if it is
+a piece of a branch, or a “bud” if it is only a single bud with a bit
+of tissue attached.
+
+The greater part of grafting and budding is performed when the cion or
+bud is nearly or quite dormant. That is, grafting is usually done late
+in winter and early in spring, and budding may be performed then, or
+late in summer, when the buds have nearly or quite matured.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 174. Budding. The “bud”; the opening to receive it;
+the bud tied.]
+
+The chief object of grafting is to perpetuate a kind of plant which
+will not reproduce itself from seed, or of which seed is very difficult
+to obtain. Cions or buds are therefore taken from this plant and set
+into whatever kind of plant is obtainable on which they will grow.
+Thus, if one wants to propagate the Baldwin apple, he does not for that
+purpose sow seeds thereof, but takes cions or buds from a Baldwin tree
+and grafts them into some other apple tree. The stocks are usually
+obtained from seeds. In the case of the apple, young plants are raised
+from seeds which are secured mostly from cider factories, without
+reference to the variety from which they came. When the seedlings have
+grown to a certain age, they are budded or grafted, the grafted part
+making the entire top of the tree; and the top bears fruit like that of
+the tree from which the cions were taken.
+
+There are many ways in which the union between cion and stock is made.
+Budding may be first discussed. It consists in inserting a bud
+underneath the bark of the stock, and the commonest practice is that
+which is shown in the illustrations. Budding is mostly performed in
+July, August, and early September, when the bark is still loose or in
+condition to peel. Twigs are cut from the tree which it is desired to
+propagate, and the buds are cut off with a sharp knife, a shield-shaped
+bit of bark (with possibly a little wood) being left with them (Fig.
+174). The bud is then shoved into a slit made in the stock, and it is
+held in place by tying with a soft strand. In two or three weeks the
+bud will have “stuck” (that is, it will have grown fast to the stock),
+and the strand is cut to prevent its strangling the stock. Ordinarily
+the bud does not grow until the following spring, at which time the
+entire stock or branch in which the bud is inserted is cut off an inch
+above the bud; and the bud thereby receives all the energy of the
+stock. Budding is the commonest grafting operation in nurseries. Seeds
+of peaches may be sown in spring, and the plants which result will be
+ready for budding that same August. The following spring, or a year
+from the planting of the seed, the stock is cut off just above the bud
+(which is inserted near the ground), and in the fall of that year the
+tree is ready for sale; that is, the top is one season old and the root
+is two seasons old, but in the trade it is known as a one-year-old
+tree. In the South, the peach stock may be budded in June or early July
+of the year in which the seed is planted, and the bud grows into a
+saleable tree the same year: this is known as June budding. In apples
+and pears the stock is usually two years old before it is budded, and
+the tree is not sold until the top has grown two or three years.
+Budding may be performed also in the spring, in which case the bud will
+grow the same season. Budding is always done on young growths,
+preferably on those not more than one year old.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 175. Whip-graft.]
+
+Grafting is the insertion of a small branch (or cion), usually bearing
+more than one bud. If grafting is employed on small stocks, it is
+customary to employ the whip-graft (Fig. 175). Both stock and cion are
+cut across diagonally, and a split made in each, so that one fits into
+the other. The graft is tied securely with a string, and then, if it is
+above ground, it is also waxed carefully.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 176. Cleft-graft before waxing.]
+
+In larger limbs or stocks, the common method is to employ the
+cleft-graft (Fig. 176). This consists in cutting off the stock,
+splitting it, and inserting a wedge-shaped cion in one or both sides of
+the split, taking care that the cambium layer of the cion matches that
+of the stock. The exposed surfaces are then securely covered with wax.
+
+Grafting is usually performed early in the spring, just before the buds
+swell. The cions should have been cut before this time, when they were
+perfectly dormant. Cions may be stored in sand in the cellar or in the
+ice-house, or they may be buried in the field. The object is to keep
+them fresh and dormant until they are wanted.
+
+If it is desired to change the top of an old plum, apple, or pear tree
+to some other variety, it is usually accomplished by means of the
+cleft-graft. If the tree is very young, budding or whip-grafting may be
+employed. On an old top the cions should begin to bear when three to
+four years old. All the main limbs should be grafted. It is important
+to keep down the suckers or watersprouts from around the grafts, and
+part of the remaining top should be cut away each year until the top is
+entirely changed over (which will result in two to four years).
+
+A good wax for covering the exposed parts is described in the footnote
+on page 145.
+
+_Keeping records of the plantation_.
+
+If one has a large and valuable collection of fruit or ornamental
+plants, it is desirable that he have some permanent record of them. The
+most satisfactory method is to label the plants, and then to make a
+chart or map on which the various plants are indicated in their proper
+positions. The labels are always liable to be lost and to become
+illegible, and they are often misplaced by careless workmen or
+mischievous boys.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 177. The common stake label.]
+
+For vegetables, annuals, and other temporary plants, the best labels
+are simple stakes, like that shown in Fig. 177. Garden stakes a foot
+long, an inch wide, and three-eighths inch thick may be bought of label
+manufacturers for three to five dollars a thousand. These take a soft
+pencil very readily, and if the labels are taken up in the fall and
+stored in a dry place, they will last two or three years.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 178. A good stake label, with the legend covered.]
+
+For more permanent herbaceous plants, as rhubarb and asparagus, or even
+for bushes, a stake that is sawed from clear pine or cypress, eighteen
+inches long, three inches wide, and an inch or more thick, affords a
+most excellent label. The lower end of the stake is sawed to a point,
+and is dipped in coal tar or creosote, or other preservative. The top
+of the stake is painted white, and the legend is written with a large
+and soft pencil. When the writing becomes illegible or the stake is
+needed for other plants, a shaving is taken off the face of the label
+with a plane, a fresh coat of paint added, and the label is as good as
+ever. These labels are strong enough to withstand shocks from
+whiffletrees and tools, and should last ten years.
+
+Whenever a legend is written with a lead pencil, it is advisable to use
+the pencil when the paint (which should be white lead) is still fresh
+or soft. Figure 178 shows a very good device for preserving the writing
+on the face of the label. A block of wood is secured to the label by
+means of a screw, covering the legend completely and protecting it from
+the weather.
+
+If more ornamental stake labels are desired, various types can be
+bought in the market, or one can be made after the fashion of Fig. 179.
+This is a zinc plate that can be painted black, on which the name is
+written with white paint. Many persons, however, prefer to paint the
+zinc white, and write or stamp the label with black ink or black type.
+Two strong wire legs are soldered to the label, and these prevent it
+from turning around. These labels are, of course, much more expensive
+than the ordinary stake labels, and are usually not so satisfactory,
+although more attractive.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 179. Metal stake label.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 180. Zinc tallies.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 181. Common zinc tally.]
+
+For labeling trees, various kinds of zinc tallies are in common use, as
+shown in Figs. 180 and 181. Fresh zinc takes a lead pencil readily, and
+the writing often becomes more legible as it becomes older, and it will
+usually remain three or four years. These labels are attached either by
+wires, as _a, b_, Fig. 180, or they are wound about the limb as shown
+in _c, d_, and _e_, in Fig. 180. The type of zinc label most in use is
+a simple strip of zinc, as shown in Fig. 181, wrapped about the limb.
+The metal is so flexible that it expands readily with the growth of the
+branch. While these zinc labels are durable, they are very
+inconspicuous because of their neutral color, and it is often difficult
+to find them in dense masses of foliage.
+
+The common wooden label of the nurserymen (Fig. 182) is perhaps as
+useful as any for general purposes. If the label has had a light coat
+of thin white lead, and the legend has been made with a soft lead
+pencil, the writing should remain legible four or five years. Fig. 183
+shows another type of label that is more durable, since the wire is
+stiff and large, and is secured around the limb by means of pincers.
+The large loop allows the limb to expand, and the stiff wire prevents
+the misplacing of the label by winds and workmen. The tally itself is
+what is known as the “package label” of the nurserymen, being six
+inches long, one and one-fourth inches wide, and costing (painted) less
+than one and one-half dollars a thousand. The legend is made with a
+lead pencil when the paint is fresh, and sometimes the label is dipped
+in thin white lead after the writing is made, so that the paint covers
+the writing with a very thin protecting coat. A similar label is shown
+in Fig. 184., which has a large wire loop, with a coil, to allow the
+expansion of the limb. The tallies of this type are often made of
+glass, or porcelain with the name indelibly printed in them. Figure
+185. shows a zinc tally, which is secured to the tree by means of a
+sharp and pointed wire driven into the wood. Some prefer to have two
+arms to this wire, driving one point on either side of the tree. If
+galvanized wire is used, these labels will last for many years.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 182. A common nursery label.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 183. Cornell tree label.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 184. Serviceable large-loop tree label.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 185. Zinc tree label.]
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 186. Injury by a tight label wire.]
+
+It is very important, when adjusting labels to trees, to be sure that
+the wire is not twisted tight against the wood. Figure 186 shows the
+injury that is likely to result from label wires. When a tree is
+constricted or girdled, it is very liable to be broken off by winds. It
+should be a rule to attach the label to a limb of minor importance, so
+that if the wire should injure the part, the loss will not be serious.
+When the label, Fig. 182, is applied, only the tips of the wire should
+be twisted together, leaving a large loop for the expansion of the
+limb.
+
+_The storing of fruits and vegetables_.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 187. The old-fashioned “outdoor cellar,” still a
+very useful and convenient storage place.]
+
+The principles involved in the storing of perishable products, as
+fruits and vegetables, differ with the different commodities. All the
+root-crops, and most fruits, need to be kept in a cool, moist, and
+uniform temperature if they are to be preserved a great length of time.
+Squashes, sweet-potatoes, and some other things need to be kept in an
+intermediate and what might be called a high temperature; and the
+atmosphere should be drier than for most other products. The low
+temperature has the effect of arresting decomposition and the work of
+fungi and bacteria. The moist atmosphere has the effect of preventing
+too great evaporation and the consequent shriveling.
+
+In the storing of any commodity, it is very important that the product
+is in proper condition for keeping. Discard all specimens that are
+bruised or are likely to decay. Much of the decay of fruits and
+vegetables in storage is not the fault of the storage process, but is
+really the work of diseases with which the materials are infected
+before they are put into storage. For example, if potatoes and cabbages
+are affected with the rot, it is practically impossible to keep them
+any length of time.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 188. Lean-to fruit cellar, covered with earth. The
+roof should be of cement or stone slabs. Provide a ventilator.]
+
+Apples, winter pears, and all roots, should be kept at a temperature
+somewhat near the freezing point. It should not rise above 40° F. for
+best results. Apples can be kept even at one or two degrees below the
+freezing point if the temperature is uniform. Cellars in which there
+are heaters are likely to be too dry and the temperature too high. In
+such places it is well to keep fresh vegetables and fruits in tight
+receptacles, and pack the roots in sand or moss in order to prevent
+shriveling. In these places, apples usually keep better if headed up in
+barrels than if kept on racks or shelves. In moist and cool cellars,
+however, it is preferable for the home supply to place them on shelves,
+not piling them more than five or six inches deep, for then they can be
+sorted over as occasion requires. In case of fruits, be sure that the
+specimens are not over-ripe when placed in storage. If apples are
+allowed to lie in the sun for a few days before being packed, they will
+ripen so much that it is very difficult to keep them.
+
+Cabbages should be kept at a low and uniform temperature, and water
+should be drained away from them. They are stored in many ways in the
+field, but success depends so much on the season, particular variety,
+ripeness, and the freedom from injuries by fungi and insects, that
+uniform results are rarely secured by any one method. The best results
+are to be expected when they can be kept in a house built for the
+purpose, in which the temperature is uniform and the air fairly moist.
+When stored out of doors, they are likely to freeze and thaw
+alternately; and if the water runs into the heads, mischief results.
+Sometimes they are easily stored by being piled into a conical heap on
+well-drained soil and covered with dry straw, and the straw covered
+with boards. It does not matter if they are frosted, provided they do
+not thaw out frequently. Sometimes cabbages are laid head down in a
+shallow furrow plowed in well-drained land, and over them is thrown
+straw, the stumps being allowed to project through the cover. It is
+only in winters of rather uniform temperature that good results are to
+be expected from such methods. These are some of the main
+considerations involved in the storing of such things as cabbage; the
+subject is mentioned again in the discussion of cabbage in Chapter X.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 189. A fruit storage house cooled by ice.]
+
+In the storing of all products, especially those which have soft and
+green matter, as cabbages, it is well to provide against the heating of
+the produce. If the things are buried out of doors, it is important to
+put on a very light cover at first so that the heat may escape. Cover
+them gradually as the cold weather comes on. This is important with all
+vegetables that are placed in pits, as potatoes, beets, and the like.
+If covered deeply at once, they are likely to heat and rot. All pits
+made out of doors should be on well-drained and preferably sandy land.
+
+When vegetables are wanted at intervals during the winter from pits, it
+is well to make compartment pits, each compartment holding a wagon load
+or whatever quantity will be likely to be wanted at each time. These
+pits are sunk in well-drained land, and between each of the two pits is
+left a wall of earth about a foot thick. One pit can then be emptied in
+cold weather without interfering with the others.
+
+An outside cellar is better than a house cellar in which there is a
+heater, but it is not so handy. If it is near the house, it need not be
+inconvenient, however. A house is usually healthier if the cellar is
+not used for storage. House cellars used for storage should have a
+ventilating shaft.
+
+Some of the principles involved in an ice-cooled storage house are
+explained in the diagram, Fig. 189. If the reader desires to make a
+careful study of storage and storage structures, he should consult
+cyclopedias and special articles.
+
+_The forcing of plants_.
+
+There are three general means (aside from greenhouses) of forcing
+plants ahead of their season in the early spring—by means of
+forcing-hills and hand-boxes, by coldframes, and by hotbeds.
+
+The forcing-hill is an arrangement by means of which a single plant or
+a single “hill” of plants may be forced where it permanently stands.
+This type of forcing may be applied to perennial plants, as rhubarb and
+asparagus, or to annuals, as melons and cucumbers.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 190. Forcing-hill for rhubarb.]
+
+In Fig. 190 is illustrated a common method of hastening the growth of
+rhubarb in the spring. A box with four removable sides, two of which
+are shown in end section in the figure, is placed around the plant in
+the fall. The inside of the box is filled with straw or litter, and the
+outside is banked thoroughly with any refuse, to prevent the ground
+from freezing. When it is desired to start the plants, the covering is
+removed from both the inside and outside of the box and hot manure is
+piled around the box to its top.
+
+If the weather is yet cold, dry light leaves or straw may be placed
+inside the box; or a pane or sash of glass may be placed on top of the
+box, when it will become a coldframe. Rhubarb, asparagus, sea-kale, and
+similar plants may be advanced two or four weeks by means of this
+method of forcing. Some gardeners use old barrels or half-barrels in
+place of the box. The box, however, is better and handier, and the
+sides can be stored for future use.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 191. Forcing-hill, and the mold or frame for making
+it.]
+
+Plants that require a long season in which to mature, and which do not
+transplant readily, as melons and cucumbers, may be planted in
+forcing-hills in the field. One of these hills is shown in Fig. 191.
+The frame or mold is shown at the left. This mold is a box with flaring
+sides and no top or bottom, and provided with a handle. This frame is
+placed with the small end down at the point where the seeds are to be
+planted, and the earth is hilled up about it and firmly packed with the
+feet. The mold is then withdrawn, and a pane of glass is laid upon the
+top of the mound to concentrate the sun’s rays, and to prevent the bank
+from washing down with the rains. A clod of earth or a stone may be
+placed upon the pane to hold it down. Sometimes a brick is used as a
+mold. This type of forcing-hill is not much used, because the bank of
+earth is liable to be washed away, and heavy rain coming when the glass
+is off will fill the hill with water and drown the plant. However, it
+can be used to very good advantage when the gardener can give it close
+attention.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 192. Hand-box.]
+
+A forcing-hill is sometimes made by digging a hole in the ground and
+planting the seeds in the bottom of it, placing the pane of glass upon
+a slight ridge or mound which is made on the surface of the ground.
+This method is less desirable than the other, because the seeds are
+placed in the poorest and coldest soil, and the hole is very likely to
+fill with water in the early days of spring.
+
+An excellent type of forcing-hill is made by the use of the hand-box,
+as shown in Fig. 192. This is a rectangular box, without top or bottom,
+and a pane of glass is slipped into a groove at the top. It is really a
+miniature coldframe. The earth is banked up slightly about the box, in
+order to hold it against winds and to prevent the water from running
+into it. If these boxes are made of good lumber and painted, they will
+last for many years. Any size of glass may be used which is desired,
+but a ten-by-twelve pane is as good as any for general purposes.
+
+After the plants are thoroughly established in these forcing-hills, and
+the weather is settled, the protection is wholly removed, and the
+plants grow normally in the open.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 193. Glass forcing-hill.]
+
+A very good temporary protection may be given to tender plants by using
+four panes of glass, as explained in Fig. 193, the two inner panes
+being held together at the top by a block of wood through which four
+nails are driven. Plants are more likely to burn in these glass frames
+than in the hand-boxes, and such frames are not so well adapted to the
+protection of plants in very early spring; but they are often useful
+for special purposes.
+
+In all forcing-hills, as in coldframes and hotbeds, it is exceedingly
+important that the plants receive plenty of air on bright days. Plants
+that are kept too close become weak or “drawn”, and lose the ability to
+withstand changes of weather when the protection is removed. Even
+though the wind is cold and raw, the plants inside the frames
+ordinarily will not suffer if the glass is taken off when the sun is
+shining.
+
+Coldframes.
+
+A coldframe is nothing more than an enlarged hand-box; that is, instead
+of protecting but a single plant or a single hill with a single pane of
+glass, the frame is covered with sash, and is large enough to
+accommodate many plants.
+
+There are three general purposes for which a coldframe is used: For the
+starting of plants early in spring; for receiving partially hardened
+plants that have been started earlier in hotbeds and forcing-houses;
+for wintering young cabbages, lettuce, and other hardy plants that are
+sown in the fall.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 194. Coldframe against a building. Plants at E;
+sill of house at A; basement opening at B.]
+
+Coldframes are ordinarily placed near the buildings, and the plants are
+transplanted into the field when settled weather comes. Sometimes,
+however, they are made directly in the field where the plants are to
+remain, and the frames, and not the plants, are removed. When used for
+this latter purpose, the frames are made very cheap by running two rows
+of parallel planks through the field at a distance apart of six feet.
+The plank on the north is ordinarily ten to twelve inches wide, and
+that on the south eight to ten inches. These planks are held in place
+by stakes, and the sashes are laid across them. Seeds of radishes,
+beets, lettuce, and the like, are then sown beneath the sash, and when
+settled weather arrives, the sash and planks are removed and the plants
+are growing naturally in the field. Half-hardy plants, as those
+mentioned, may be started fully two or three weeks in advance of the
+normal season by this means.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 195. Weather screen, or coldframe, against a
+building.]
+
+One of the simplest types of coldframes is shown in Fig. 194, which is
+a lean-to against the foundation of a house. A sill is run just above
+the surface of the ground, and the sashes, shown at D, are laid on
+rafters which run from this sill to the sill of the house, A. If this
+frame is on the south side of the building, plants may be started even
+as early as a month before the opening of the season. Such lean-to
+frames are sometimes made against greenhouses or warm cellars, and heat
+is supplied to them by the opening of a door in the wall, as at B. In
+frames that are in such sunny positions as these, it is exceedingly
+important that care be taken to remove the sash, or at least to give
+ample ventilation, in all sunny days.
+
+A different type of lean-to structure is shown in Fig. 195. This may be
+either a temporary or permanent building, and it is generally used for
+the protection of half-hardy plants that are grown in pots and tubs. It
+may be used, however, for the purpose of forwarding pot-plants early in
+the spring and for protection of peaches, grapes, oranges, or other
+fruits in tubs or boxes. If it is desired merely to protect the plants
+through the winter, it is best to have the structure on the north side
+of the building, in order that the sun may not force the plants into
+activity.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 196. A pit or coldframe on permanent walls, and a
+useful adjunct to a garden. The rear cover is open (_a_).]
+[Illustration: Fig. 197. The usual form of coldframe.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 198. A strong and durable frame.]
+
+Another structure that may be used both to carry half-hardy plants over
+winter and for starting plants early in spring is shown in Fig. 196. It
+is really a miniature greenhouse without heat. It is well adapted for
+mild climates. The picture was made from a structure in the coast
+region of North Carolina.
+
+The common type of coldframe is shown in Fig. 197. It is twelve feet
+long and six feet wide, and is covered with four three-by-six sash. It
+is made of ordinary lumber loosely nailed together. If one expects to
+use coldframes or hotbeds every year, however, it is advisable to make
+the frames of two-inch stuff, well painted, and to join the parts by
+bolts and tenons, so that they may be taken apart and stored until
+needed for the next year’s crop. Figure 198 suggests a method of making
+frames so that they may be taken apart.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 199. A frame yard.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 200. Portable coldframe.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 201. A larger portable coldframe.]
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 202. A commodious portable frame.]
+
+It is always advisable to place coldframes and hotbeds in a protected
+place, and particularly to protect them from cold north winds.
+Buildings afford excellent protection, but the sun is sometimes too hot
+on the south side of large and light-colored buildings. One of the best
+means of protection is to plant a hedge of evergreens, as shown in Fig.
+199. It is always desirable, also to place all the coldframes and
+hotbeds close together, for the purpose of economizing time and labor.
+A regular area or yard may be set aside for this purpose.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 203. A low coldframe.]
+
+Various small and portable coldframes may be used about the garden for
+the protection of tender plants or to start them early in the spring.
+Pansies, daisies, and border carnations, for example, may be brought on
+very early by setting such frames over them or by planting them under
+the frames in the fall. These frames may be of any size desired, and
+the sash may be either removable, or, in case of small frames, they may
+be hinged at the top. Figs. 200-203 illustrate various types.
+
+Hotbeds.
+
+A hotbed differs from a coldframe in being provided with bottom heat.
+This heat is ordinarily supplied by means of fermenting manure, but it
+may be obtained from other fermenting material, as tanbark or leaves,
+or from artificial heat, as flues, steam pipes, or water pipes.
+
+The hotbed is used for the very early starting of plants; and when the
+plants have outgrown the bed, or have become too thick, they are
+transplanted into cooler hotbeds or into coldframes. There are some
+crops, however, that are carried to full maturity in the hotbed itself,
+as radishes and lettuce.
+
+The date at which the hotbed may be started with safety depends almost
+entirely on the means at command of heating it and on the skill of the
+operator. In the northern states, where outdoor gardening does not
+begin until the first or the last of May, hotbeds are sometimes started
+as early as January; but they are ordinarily delayed until early in
+March.
+
+The heat for hotbeds is commonly supplied by the fermentation of horse
+manure. It is important that the manure be as uniform as possible in
+composition and texture, that it come from highly fed horses, and is
+practically of the same age. The best results are usually secured with
+manure from livery stables, from which it can be obtained in large
+quantities in a short space of time. Perhaps as much as one half of the
+whole material should be of litter or straw that has been used in the
+bedding.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 204. Hotbed with manure on top of the ground.]
+
+The manure is placed in a long and shallow square-topped pile, not more
+than four or six feet high, as a rule, and is then allowed to ferment.
+Better results are generally obtained if the manure is piled under
+cover. If the weather is cold and fermentation does not start readily,
+wetting the pile with hot water may start it. The first fermentation is
+nearly always irregular; that is, it begins unequally in several places
+in the pile. In order to make the fermentation uniform, the pile must
+be turned occasionally, taking care to break up all hard lumps and to
+distribute the hot manure throughout the mass. It is sometimes
+necessary to turn the pile five or six times before it is finally used,
+although half this number of turnings is ordinarily sufficient. When
+the pile is steaming uniformly throughout, it is placed in the hotbed,
+and is covered with the earth in which the plants are to be grown.
+
+Hotbed frames are sometimes set on top of the pile of fermenting
+manure, as shown in Fig. 204. The manure should extend some distance
+beyond the edges of the frame; otherwise the frame will become too cold
+about the outside, and the plants will suffer.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 205. Section of a hotbed built with a pit.]
+
+It is preferable, however, to have a pit beneath the frame in which the
+manure is placed. If the bed is to be started in midwinter or very
+early in the spring, it is advisable to make this pit in the fall and
+to fill it with straw or other litter to prevent the earth from
+freezing deep. When it is time to make the bed, the litter is thrown
+out, and the ground is warm and ready to receive the fermenting manure.
+The pit should be a foot wider on either side than the width of the
+frame. Fig. 205 is a cross-section of such a hotbed pit. Upon the
+ground a layer of an inch or two of any coarse material is placed to
+keep the manure off the cold earth. Upon this, from twelve to thirty
+inches of manure is placed. Above the manure is a thin layer of
+leafmold or some porous material, that will serve as a distributor of
+the heat, and above this is four or five inches of soft garden loam, in
+which the plants are to be grown.
+
+It is advisable to place the manure in the pit in layers, each stratum
+to be thoroughly trodden down before another one is put in. These
+layers should be four to eight inches in thickness. By this means the
+mass is easily made uniform in consistency. Manure that has too much
+straw for the best results, and which will therefore soon part with its
+heat, will spring up quickly when the pressure of the feet is removed.
+Manure that has too little straw, and which therefore will not heat
+well or will spend its heat quickly, will pack down into a soggy mass
+underneath the feet. When the manure has sufficient litter, it will
+give a springy feeling to the feet as a person walks over it, but will
+not fluff up when the pressure is removed. The quantity of manure to be
+used will depend on its quality, and also on the season in which the
+hotbed is made. The earlier the bed is made, the larger should be the
+quantity of manure. Hotbeds that are intended to hold for two months
+should have about two feet of manure, as a rule.
+
+The manure will ordinarily heat very vigorously for a few days after it
+is placed in the bed. A soil thermometer should be thrust through the
+earth down to the manure, and the frame kept tightly closed. When the
+temperature is passing below 90°, seeds of the warm plants, like
+tomatoes, may be sown, and when it passes below 80° or 70°, the seeds
+of cooler plants may be sown.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 206 Parallel runs of hotbeds with racks for holding
+sashes.]
+
+If hotbeds are to be used every year, permanent pits should be provided
+for them. Pits are made from two to three feet deep, preferably the
+former depth, and are walled up with stone or brick. It is important
+that they be given good drainage from below. In the summer-time, after
+the sash are stripped, the old beds may be used for the growing of
+various delicate crops, as melons or half-hardy flowers. In this
+position, the plants can be protected in the fall. As already
+suggested, the pits should be cleaned out in the fall and filled with
+litter to facilitate the work of making the new bed in the winter or
+spring.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 207. Manure-heated greenhouse.]
+
+Various modifications of the common type of hotbed will suggest
+themselves to the operator. The frames should ordinarily run in
+parallel rows, so that a man walking between them can attend to the
+ventilation of two rows of sash at once. Fig. 206 shows a different
+arrangement. There are two parallel runs, with walks on the outside,
+and between them are racks to receive the sash from the adjacent
+frames. The sash from the left-hand bed are run to the right, and those
+from the right-hand bed are run to the left. Running on racks, the
+operator does not need to handle them, and the breakage of glass is
+therefore less; but this system is little used because of the
+difficulty of reaching the farther side of the bed from the single
+walk.
+
+If the hotbed were high enough and broad enough to allow a man to work
+inside, we should have a forcing-house. Such a structure is shown in
+Fig. 207, upon one side of which the manure and soil are already in
+place. These manure-heated houses are often very efficient, and are a
+good make-shift until such time as the gardener can afford to put in
+flue or pipe heat.
+
+Hotbeds may be heated by means of steam or hot water. They can be piped
+from the heater in a dwelling-house or greenhouse. Fig. 208 shows a
+hotbed with two pipes, in the positions 7, 7 beneath the bed. The earth
+is shown at 4, and the plants (which, in this case, are vines) are
+growing upon a rack, at 6. There are doors in the end of the house,
+shown in 2, 2, which may be used for ventilation or for admitting air
+underneath the beds. The pipes should not be surrounded by earth, but
+should run through a free air space.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 208. Pipe-heated hotbed.]
+
+It would scarcely pay to put in a hot water or steam heater for the
+express purpose of heating hotbeds, for if such an expense were
+incurred, it would be better to make a forcing-house. Hotbeds may be
+heated, however, with hot-air flues with very good results. A home-made
+brick furnace may be constructed in a pit at one end of the run and
+underneath a shed, and the smoke and hot air, instead of being carried
+directly upwards, is carried through a slightly rising horizontal pipe
+that runs underneath the beds. For some distance from the furnace, this
+flue may be made of brick or unvitrified sewer pipe, but stove-pipe may
+be used for the greater part of the run. The chimney is ordinarily at
+the farther end of the run of beds. It should be high, in order to
+provide a good draft. If the run of beds is long, there should be a
+rise in the underlying pipe of at least one foot in twenty-five. The
+greater the rise in this pipe, the more perfect will be the draft. If
+the runs are not too long, the underlying pipe may return underneath
+the beds and enter a chimney directly over the back end of the furnace,
+and such a chimney, being warmed from the furnace, will ordinarily have
+an excellent draft. The underlying pipe should occupy a free space or
+pit beneath the beds, and whenever it lies near to the floor of the bed
+or is very hot, it should be covered with asbestos cloth. While such
+flue-heated hotbeds may be eminently successful with a grower or
+builder of experience, it may nevertheless be said, as a general
+statement, that whenever such trouble and expense are incurred, it is
+better to make a forcing-house. The subject of forcing-houses and
+greenhouses is not discussed in this book.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 209. Useful kinds of watering-pots. These are
+adapted to different uses, as are different forms of hoes or pruning
+tools.]
+
+The most satisfactory material for use in hotbed and cold-frame sash is
+double-thick, second-quality glass; and panes twelve inches wide are
+ordinarily broad enough, and they suffer comparatively little in
+breakage. For coldframes, however, various oiled papers and waterproof
+cloths may be used, particularly for plants that are started little in
+advance of the opening of the season. When these materials are used, it
+is not necessary to have expensive sash, but rectangular frames are
+made from strips of pine seven-eighths inch thick and two and one-half
+inches wide, halved together at the corners and each corner reënforced
+by a square carriage-corner, such as is used by carriage-makers to
+secure the corners of buggy boxes. These corners can be bought by the
+pound at hardware stores.
+
+Management of hotbeds.
+
+Close attention is required in the management of hotbeds, to insure
+that they do not become too hot when the sun comes out suddenly, and to
+give plenty of fresh air.
+
+Ventilation is usually effected by raising the sash at the upper end
+and letting it rest upon a block. Whenever the temperature is above
+freezing point, it is generally advisable to take the sash off part
+way, as shown in the central part of Fig. 199, or even to strip it off
+entirely, as shown in Fig. 197.
+
+Care should be taken not to water the plants at nightfall, especially
+in dull and cold weather, but to give them water in the morning, when
+the sun will soon bring the temperature up to its normal state. Skill
+and judgment in watering are of the greatest importance in the
+management of hotbeds; but this skill comes only from thoughtful
+practice. The satisfaction and effectiveness of the work are greatly
+increased by good hose connections and good watering-pots (Fig. 209).
+
+Some protection, other than the glass, must be given to hotbeds. They
+need covering on every cold night, and sometimes during the entire day
+in very severe weather. Very good material for covering the sash is
+matting, such as is used for covering floors. Old pieces of carpet may
+also be used. Various hotbed mattings are sold by dealers in gardeners’
+supplies.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 210. The making of straw mats.]
+
+Gardeners often make mats of rye straw, although the price of good
+straw and the excellence of manufactured materials make this home-made
+matting less desirable than formerly. Such mats are thick and durable,
+and are rolled up in the morning, as shown in Fig. 199. There are
+various methods of making these straw mats, but Fig. 210 illustrates
+one of the best. A frame is made after the manner of a saw-horse, with
+a double top, and tarred or marline twine is used for securing the
+strands of straw. It is customary to use six runs of this warp. Twelve
+spools of string are provided, six hanging on either side. Some persons
+wind the cord upon two twenty-penny nails, as shown in the figure,
+these nails being held together at one end by wire which is secured in
+notches filed into them. The other ends of the spikes are free, and
+allow the string to be caught between them, thus preventing the balls
+from unwinding as they hang upon the frame. Two wisps of straight rye
+straw are secured and laid upon the frame, with the butt ends outward
+and the heads overlapping. Two opposite spools are then brought up, and
+a hard knot is tied at each point. The projecting butts of the straw
+are then cut off with a hatchet, and the mat is allowed to drop through
+to receive the next pair of wisps. In making these mats, it is
+essential that the rye contains no ripe grain; otherwise it attracts
+the mice. It is best to grow rye for this especial purpose, and to cut
+it before the grain is in the milk, so that the straw does not need to
+be threshed.
+
+In addition to these coverings of straw or matting, it is sometimes
+necessary to provide board shutters to protect the beds, particularly
+if the plants are started very early in the season. These shutters are
+made of half-inch or five-eighths-inch pine lumber, and are the same
+size as the sash—three by six feet. They may be placed upon the sash
+underneath the matting, or they may be used above the matting. In some
+cases they are used without any matting.
+
+In the growing of plants in hotbeds, every effort should be made to
+prevent the plants from growing spindling, or becoming “drawn.” To make
+stocky plants, it is necessary to give room to each plant, to be sure
+that the distance from the plants to the glass is not great, to provide
+not too much water in dull and cold weather, and particularly to give
+abundance of air.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VI
+PROTECTING PLANTS FROM THINGS THAT PREY ON THEM
+
+Plants are preyed on by insects and fungi; and they are subject to
+various kinds of disease that, for the most part, are not yet
+understood. They are often injured also by mice and rabbits (p. 144),
+by moles, dogs, cats, and chickens; and fruit is eaten by birds. Moles
+may be troublesome on sandy land; they heave the ground by their
+burrowing and may often be killed by stamping when the burrow is being
+raised; there are mole traps that are more or less successful. Dogs and
+cats work injury mostly by walking across newly made gardens or lying
+in them. These animals, as well as chickens, should be kept within
+their proper place (p. 160); or if they roam at will, the garden must
+be inclosed in a tight wire fence or the beds protected by brush laid
+closely over them.
+
+The insects and diseases that attack garden plants are legion; and yet,
+for the most part, they are not very difficult to combat if one is
+timely and thorough in his operations. These difficulties may be
+divided into three great categories: the injuries wrought by insects;
+the injuries of parasitic fungi; the various types of so-called
+constitutional diseases, some of which are caused by germs or bacteria,
+and many of which have not yet been worked out by investigators.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 211. Shot-hole disease of plum.] [Illustration:
+Fig. 212. Hollyhock rust.]
+
+The diseases caused by parasitic fungi are usually distinguished by
+distinct marks, spots or blisters on the leaves or stems, and the
+gradual weakening or death of the part; and, in many cases, the leaves
+drop bodily. For the most part, these spots on the leaves or stems
+sooner or later exhibit a mildew-like or rusty appearance, due to the
+development of the spores or fruiting bodies. Fig. 211 illustrates the
+ravages of one of the parasitic fungi, the shot-hole fungus of the
+plum. Each spot probably represents a distinct attack of the fungus,
+and in this particular disease these injured parts of tissue are liable
+to fall out, leaving holes in the leaf. Plum leaves that are attacked
+early in the season by this disease usually drop prematurely; but
+sometimes the leaves persist, being riddled by holes at the close of
+the season. Fig. 212 is the rust of the hollyhock. In this case the
+pustules of the fungus are very definite on the under side of the leaf.
+The blisters of leaf-curl are shown in Fig. 213. The ragged work of
+apple scab fungus is shown in Fig. 214.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 213. Leaf-curl of peach, due to a fungus.]
+
+The constitutional and bacterial diseases usually affect the whole
+plant, or at least large portions of it; and the seat of attack is
+commonly not so much in the individual leaves as in the stems, the
+sources of food supply being thereby cut off from the foliage. The
+symptoms of this class of diseases are general weakening of plant when
+the disease affects the plant as a whole or when it attacks large
+branches; or sometimes the leaves shrivel and die about the edges or in
+large irregular discolored spots, but without the distinct pustular
+marks of the parasitic fungi. There is a general tendency for the
+foliage on plants affected with such diseases to shrivel and to hang on
+the stem for a time. One of the best illustrations of this type of
+disease is the pear-blight. Sometimes the plant gives rise to abnormal
+growths, as in the “willow shoots” of peaches affected with yellows
+(Fig. 215).
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 214. Leaves and fruits injured by fungi, chiefly
+apple-scab.]
+
+Another class of diseases are the root-galls. They are of various
+kinds. The root-gall of raspberries, crown-gall of peaches, apples, and
+other trees, is the most popularly recognized of this class of troubles
+(Fig. 216). It has long been known as a disease of nursery stock. Many
+states have laws against the sale of trees showing this disease. Its
+cause was unknown, until in 1907 Smith and Townsend, of the Bureau of
+Plant Industry, United States Department of Agriculture, undertook an
+investigation. They proved that it is a bacterial disease (caused by
+_Bacterium tumefaciens_); but just how the bacteria gain entrance to
+the root is not known. The same bacterium may cause galls on the stems
+of other plants, as, for example, on certain of the daisies. The
+“hairy-root” of apples, and certain galls that often appear on the
+limbs of large apple-trees, are also known to be caused by this same
+bacterium. The disease seems to be most serious and destructive on the
+raspberry, particularly the Cuthbert variety. The best thing to be done
+when the raspberry patch becomes infested is to root out the plants and
+destroy them, planting a new patch with clean stock on land that has
+not grown berries for some time. Notwithstanding the laws that have
+been made against the distribution of root-gall from nurseries, the
+evidence seems to show that it is not a serious disease of apples or
+peaches, at least not in the northeastern United States. It is not
+determined how far it may injure such trees.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 215. The slender tufted growth indicating peach
+yellows. The cause of this disease is undetermined.]
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 216. Gall on a raspberry root.] [Illustration: Fig.
+217. Canker-worm.]
+
+Of obvious insect injuries, there are two general types,—those wrought
+by insects that bite or chew their food, as the ordinary beetles and
+worms, and those wrought by insects that puncture the surface of the
+plant and derive their food by sucking the juices, as scale-insects and
+plant-lice. The canker-worm (Fig. 217) is a notable example of the
+former class; and many of these insects may be dispatched by the
+application of poison to the parts that they eat. It is apparent,
+however, that insects which suck the juice of the plant are not
+poisoned by any liquid that may be applied to the surface. They may be
+killed by various materials that act upon them externally, as the soap
+washes, miscible oils, kerosene emulsions, lime-and-sulfur sprays, and
+the like.
+
+There has been much activity in recent years in the identification and
+study of insects, fungi, and microorganisms that injure plants; and
+great numbers of bulletins and monographs have been published; and yet
+the gardener who has tried assiduously to follow these investigations
+is likely to go to his garden any morning and find troubles that he
+cannot identify and which perhaps even an investigator himself might
+not understand. It is important, therefore, that the gardener inform
+himself not only on particular kinds of insects and diseases, but that
+he develop a resourcefulness of his own. He should be able to do
+something, even if he does not know a complete remedy or specific. Some
+of the procedure, preventive and remedial, that needs always to be
+considered, is as follows:—
+
+Keep the place clean, and free from infection. Next to keeping the
+plants vigorous and strong, this is the first and best means of
+averting trouble from insects and fungi. Rubbish and all places in
+which the insects can hibernate and the fungi can propagate should be
+done away with. All fallen leaves from plants that have been attacked
+by fungi should be raked up and burned, and in the fall all diseased
+wood should be cut out and destroyed. It is important that diseased
+plants are not thrown on the manure heap, to be distributed through the
+garden the following season.
+
+Practice a rotation or alternation of crops (p. 114). Some of the
+diseases remain in the soil and attack the plant year after year.
+Whenever any crop shows signs of root disease, or soil disease, it is
+particularly important that another crop be grown on the place.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 218. A garden hand syringe.] [Illustration: Fig.
+219. A knapsack pump.]
+
+See that the disease or insect is not bred on weeds or other plants
+that are botanically related to the crop you grow. If the wild mallow,
+or plant known to children as “cheeses” _(Malva rotundifolia_), is
+destroyed, there will be much less difficulty with hollyhock rust. Do
+not let the cabbage club-root disease breed on wild turnips and other
+mustards, or black-knot on plum sprouts and wild cherries, or
+tent-caterpillars on wild cherries and other trees.
+
+Always be ready to resort to hand-picking. We have grown so accustomed
+to killing insects by other means that we have almost forgotten that
+hand-picking is often the surest and sometimes even the most
+expeditious means of checking an invasion in a home garden. Many
+insects can be jarred off early in the morning. Egg-masses on leaves
+and stems may be removed. Cutworms may be dug out. Diseased leaves may
+be picked off and burned; this will do much to combat the hollyhock
+rust, aster rust, and other infections.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 220 A compressed-air hand pump for garden work.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 221 A bucket pump.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 222 A bucket pump.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 223 A cart-mounted pump.]
+
+Keep close watch on the plants, and be prepared to strike quickly. It
+should be a matter of pride to a gardener to have in his workhouse a
+supply of the common insecticides and fungicides (Paris green or
+arsenate of lead, some of the tobacco preparations, white hellebore,
+whale-oil soap, bordeaux mixture, flowers of sulfur, carbonate of
+Copper for solution in ammonia), and also a good hand syringe (Fig.
+218), a knapsack pump (Figs. 219, 220), a bucket pump (Figs. 221, 222),
+a hand bellows or powder gun, perhaps a barrow outfit (Figs. 223, 224,
+225), and if the plantation is large enough, some kind of a force pump
+(Figs. 226, 227, 228). If one is always ready, there is little danger
+from any insect or disease that is controllable by spraying.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 224. A garden outfit.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 225. A cart-mounted barrel pump.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 226. A barrel hand pump.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 227. A barrel outfit, showing nozzles on extension
+rods for trees.] [Illustration: Fig. 228. A truck-mounted barrel hand
+spray Pump.]
+
+_Screens and covers_.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 229. Wire-covered box for protecting plants from
+insects.]
+
+There are various ways of keeping insects away from plants. One of the
+best is to cover the plants with fine mosquito-netting or to grow them
+in hand-frames, or to use a wire-covered box like that shown in Fig.
+229. In growing plants under such covers, care must be taken that the
+plants are not kept too close or confined; and in cases in which the
+insects hibernate in the soil, these boxes, by keeping the soil warm,
+may cause the insects to hatch all the sooner. In most cases, however,
+these covers are very efficient, especially for keeping the striped
+bugs off young plants of melons and cucumbers.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 230 Protecting from cut-worms.]
+
+Cut-worms may be kept away from plants by placing sheets of tin or of
+heavy glazed paper about the stem of the plant, as shown in Fig. 230.
+Climbing cut-worms are kept off young trees by the means shown in Fig.
+231. Or a roll of cotton may be placed about the trunk of the tree, a
+string being tied on the lower edge of the roll and the upper edge of
+the cotton turned down like the top of a boot; the insects cannot crawl
+over this obstruction (p. 203).
+
+The maggots that attack the roots of cabbages and cauliflowers may be
+kept from the plant by pieces of tarred paper, which are placed close
+about the stem upon the surface of the ground. Fig. 232 illustrates a
+hexagon of paper, and also shows a tool used for cutting it. This means
+of preventing the attacks of the cabbage maggot is described in detail
+by the late Professor Goff (for another method of controlling cabbage
+maggot see p. 201):—
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 231 Protecting trees from cut-worms.]
+
+“The cards are cut in a hexagonal form, in order better to economize
+the material, and a thinner grade of tarred paper than the ordinary
+roofing felt is used, as it is not only cheaper, but being more
+flexible, the cards made from it are more readily placed about the
+plant without being torn. The blade of the tool, which should be made
+by an expert blacksmith, is formed from a band of steel, bent in the
+form of a half hexagon, and then taking an acute angle, reaches nearly
+to the center, as shown in Fig. 232. The part making the star-shaped
+cut is formed from a separate piece of steel, so attached to the handle
+as to make a close joint with the blade. The latter is beveled from the
+outside all round, so that by removing the part making the star-shaped
+cut, the edge may be ground on a grindstone. It is important that the
+angles in the blade be made perfect, and that its outline represents an
+exact half hexagon. To use the tool, place the tarred paper on the end
+of a section of a log or piece of timber and first cut the lower edge
+into notches, as indicated at _a_, Fig. 232, using only one angle of
+the tool. Then commence at the left side and place the blade as
+indicated by the dotted lines, and strike at the end of the handle with
+a light mallet, and a complete card is made. Continue in this manner
+across the paper. The first cut of every alternate course will make an
+imperfect card, and the last cut in any course may be imperfect, but
+the other cuts will make perfect cards if the tool is correctly made,
+and properly used. The cards should be placed about the plants at the
+time of transplanting. To place the card, bend it slightly to open the
+slit, then slip it on to the center, the stem entering the slit, after
+which spread the card out flat, and press the points formed by the
+star-shaped cut snugly around the stem.”
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 232 Showing how paper is cut for protecting
+cabbages from maggots. The Goff device.]
+
+_Fumigating_.
+
+An effective means of destroying insects in glass houses is by
+fumigating with various kinds of smoke or vapors. The best material to
+use for general purposes is some form of tobacco or tobacco compounds.
+The old method of fumigating with tobacco is to burn slowly slightly
+dampened tobacco stems in a kettle or scuttle, allowing the house to be
+filled with the pungent smoke. Lately, however, fluid extracts and
+other preparations of tobacco have been brought into use, and these are
+so effective that the tobacco-stem method is becoming obsolete. The use
+of hydrocyanic acid gas in greenhouses is now coming to be common, for
+plant-lice, white-fly, and other insects. It is also used to fumigate
+nursery stock for San José scale, and mills and dwellings for such
+pests and vermin as become established in them. The following
+directions are from Cornell Bulletin 252 (from which the formulas in
+the succeeding pages, and most of the advice, are also taken):—
+
+“No general formula can be given for fumigating the different kinds of
+plants grown in greenhouses, as the species and varieties differ
+greatly in their ability to withstand the effects of the gas. Ferns and
+roses are very susceptible to injury, and fumigation if attempted at
+all should be performed with great caution. Fumigation will not kill
+insect eggs and thus must be repeated when the new brood appears.
+Fumigate only at night when there is no wind. Have the house as dry as
+possible and the temperature as near 60° as practicable.
+
+“Hydrocyanic acid gas is a deadly poison, and the greatest care is
+required in its use. Always use 98 to 100 per cent pure potassium
+cyanide and a good grade of commercial sulfuric acid. The chemicals are
+always combined in the following proportion: Potassium cyanide, 1 oz.;
+sulfuric acid, 2 fluid oz.; water, 4 fluid oz. Always use an earthen
+dish, _pour in the water first_, and add the sulfuric acid to it. Put
+the required amount of cyanide in a thin paper bag and when all is
+ready, drop it into the liquid and leave the room immediately. For
+mills and dwellings, use 1 oz. of cyanide for every 100 cu. ft. of
+space. Make the doors and windows as tight as possible by pasting
+strips of paper over the cracks. Remove the silverware and food, and if
+brass and nickel work cannot be removed, cover with vaseline. Place the
+proper amount of the acid and water for every room in 2-gal. jars. Use
+two or more in large rooms or halls. Weigh out the potassium cyanide in
+paper bags, and place them near the jars. When all is ready, drop the
+cyanide into the jars, beginning on the top floors, since the fumes are
+lighter than air. In large buildings, it is frequently necessary to
+suspend the bags of cyanide over the jars by cords running through
+screw eyes and all leading to a place near the door. By cutting all the
+cords at once the cyanide will be lowered into the jars and the
+operator may escape without injury. Let the fumigation continue all
+night, locking all outside doors and placing danger signs on the
+house.”
+
+In greenhouses, the white-fly on cucumbers and tomatoes may be killed
+by overnight fumigation with 1 oz. of potassium cyanide to every 1000
+cu. ft. of space; or with a kerosene emulsion spray or whale-oil soap,
+on plants not injured by these materials.
+
+The green aphis is dispatched in houses by fumigation with any of the
+tobacco preparations; on violets, by fumigation with 1/2 to 3/4 oz.
+potassium cyanide for every 1000 cu. ft. of space, leaving the gas in
+from 1/2 to 1 hr.
+
+The black aphis is more difficult to kill than the green aphis, but may
+be controlled by the same methods thoroughly used.
+
+_Soaking tubers and seeds_.
+
+Potato scab may be prevented, so far as planting infected “seed” is
+concerned, by soaking the seed tubers for half an hour in 30 gal. of
+water containing 1 pt. of commercial (about 40 per cent) formalin. Oats
+and wheat, when attacked by certain kinds of smut, may be rendered safe
+to sow by soaking for ten minutes in a similar solution. It is probable
+that some other tubers and seeds can be similarly treated with good
+results.
+
+Potatoes may also be soaked (for scab) one and one-half hours in a
+solution of corrosive sublimate, 1 oz. to 7 gal. of water.
+
+_Spraying_.
+
+The most effective means of destroying insects and fungi however, in
+any general or large way, is by the use of various sprays. The two
+general types of insecticides have already been mentioned—those that
+kill by poisoning, and those that kill by destroying the body of the
+insect. Of the former, there are three materials in common use—Paris
+green, arsenate of lead, and hellebore. Of the latter, the most usual
+at present are kerosene emulsion, miscible oils, and the lime-sulfur
+wash.
+
+Sprays for fungi usually depend for their efficiency on some form of
+copper or sulfur, or both. For surface mildews, as grape mildew,
+dusting flowers of sulfur on the foliage is a protection. In most
+cases, however, it is necessary to apply materials in liquid form,
+because they can be more thoroughly and economically distributed, and
+they adhere to the foliage better. The best general fungicide is the
+bordeaux mixture. It is generally, however, not advisable to use the
+bordeaux mixture on ornamental plants, because it discolors the foliage
+and makes the plants look very untidy. In such cases it is best to use
+the ammoniacal copper solution, which leaves no stain.
+
+In all spraying operations it is especially important that the
+applications be made the very moment the insect or disease is
+discovered, or in the case of fungous diseases, if one is expecting an
+attack, it is well to make an application of bordeaux mixture even
+before the disease appears. When the fungus once gets inside the plant
+tissue, it is very difficult to destroy it, inasmuch as fungicides act
+on these deep-seated fungi very largely by preventing their fruiting
+and their further spread on the surface of the leaf. For ordinary
+conditions, from two to four sprayings are necessary to dispatch the
+enemy. In spraying for insects in home gardens, it is often advisable
+to make a second application the day following the first one in order
+to destroy the remaining insects before they recover from the first
+treatment.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 233. Cyclone or vermorel type of nozzle, single and
+multiple.]
+
+There are many kinds of machines and devices for the application of
+sprays to plants. For a few individual specimens, the spray may be
+applied with a whisk, or with a common garden syringe. If one has a few
+trees to treat, however, it is best to have some kind of bucket pump
+like those shown in Figs. 221, 222. On a lawn or in a small garden a
+tank on wheels (Figs. 223, 224, 225) is handy and efficient. In such
+cases, or even for larger areas, some of the knapsack pumps (Figs. 219,
+220) are very desirable. These machines are always serviceable, because
+the operator stands so near to his work; but as they carry a
+comparatively small quantity of liquid and do not throw it rapidly,
+they are expensive when much work is to be done. Yet, in ordinary home
+grounds, the knapsack pump or compressed-air pump is one of the most
+efficient and practicable of all the spraying devices.
+
+For large areas, as for small orchards and fields, a barrel pump
+mounted on a wagon is best. Common types of barrel pumps are shown in
+Figs. 226, 227, 228. Commercial plantations are now sprayed by power
+machines. There are many good patterns of spraying machines, and the
+intending purchaser should send for catalogues to the various
+manufacturers. The addresses may be found in the advertising pages of
+rural papers.
+
+As to nozzles for spraying it may be said that there is no one pattern
+that is best for all purposes. For most uses in home grounds the
+cyclone or vermorel type (Fig. 233) will give best satisfaction. The
+pump manufacturers supply special nozzles for their machines.
+
+_Insecticide spraying formulas_.
+
+The two classes of insecticides are here described,—the poisons
+(arsenites and white hellebore) for chewing insects, as the beetles and
+all kinds of worms; the contact insecticides, as kerosene, oils, soap,
+tobacco, lime-sulfur, for plant-lice, scale, and insects in such
+position that the material cannot be fed to them (as maggots in the
+underground parts).
+
+_Paris green_.—The standard insecticidal poison. This is used in
+varying strengths, depending on the insect to be controlled and the
+kind of plant treated. Mix the Paris green into a paste and then add to
+the water. Keep the mixture thoroughly agitated while spraying. If for
+use on fruit trees, add 1 lb. of quick lime for every pound of Paris
+green to prevent burning the foliage. For potatoes it is frequently
+used alone, but it is much safer to use the lime. Paris green and
+bordeaux mixture may be combined without lessening the value of either,
+and the caustic action of the arsenic is prevented. The proportion of
+the poison to use is given under the various insects discussed in the
+succeeding pages.
+
+_Arsenate of lead_.—This can be applied in a stronger mixture than
+other arsenical poisons without injuring the foliage. It is, therefore,
+much used against beetles and other insects that are hard to poison, as
+elm-leaf beetle and canker-worm. It comes in the form of a paste and
+should be mixed thoroughly with a small quantity of water before
+placing in the sprayer, else the nozzles will clog. Arsenate of lead
+and bordeaux mixture can be combined without lessening the value of
+either. It is used in strengths varying from 4 to 10 lb. per 100 gal.,
+depending on the kind of insect to be killed.
+
+Arsenite of soda and arsenite of lime are sometimes used with bordeaux
+mixture.
+
+_White Hellebore_.—For wet application, use fresh white hellebore, 4
+oz.; water, 2 or 3 gal. For dry application, use hellebore, 1 lb.;
+flour or air-slaked lime, 5 lb. This is a white, yellowish powder made
+from the roots of the white hellebore plant. It loses its strength
+after a time and should be used fresh. It is used as a substitute for
+the arsenical poisons on plants or fruits soon to be eaten, as on
+currants and gooseberries for the currant-worm.
+
+_Tobacco_.—This is a valuable insecticide and is used in several forms.
+As a _dust_ it is used extensively in greenhouses for plant-lice, and
+in nurseries and about apple trees for the woolly aphis. Tobacco
+_decoction_ is made by steeping or soaking the stems in water. It is
+often used as a spray against plant-lice. Tobacco in the form of
+_extracts_, _punks_, and _powders_ is sold under various trade names
+for use in fumigating greenhouses. (See page 188.)
+
+_Kerosene emulsion_.—Hard, soft, or whale-oil soap, 1/2 lb.; water, 1
+gal.; kerosene, 2 gal. Dissolve the soap in hot water; remove from the
+fire and while still hot add the kerosene. Pump the liquid back into
+itself for five or ten minutes or until it becomes a creamy mass. If
+properly made, the oil will not separate out on cooling.
+
+For use on dormant trees, dilute with 5 to 7 parts of water. For
+killing plant-lice on foliage dilute with 10 to 15 parts of water.
+Crude oil emulsion is made in the same way by substituting crude oil in
+place of kerosene. The strength of oil emulsions is frequently
+indicated by the percentage of oil in the diluted liquid:—
+
+For a 10% emulsion add 17 gal. of water to 3 gal. stock emulsion.
+For a 15% emulsion add 10 1/3 gal. of water to 3 gal. stock emulsion.
+For a 20% emulsion add 7 gal. of water to 3 gal. stock emulsion.
+For a 25% emulsion add 5 gal. of water to 3 gal. stock emulsion.
+
+
+_Carbolic acid emulsion_.—Soap, 1 lb.; water, 1 gal.; crude carbolic
+acid, 1 pt. Dissolve the soap in hot water, add the carbolic acid, and
+agitate into an emulsion. For use against root-maggots, dilute with 30
+parts of water.
+
+_Soaps_.—An effective insecticide for plant-lice is _whale-oil soap_.
+Dissolve in hot water and dilute so as to obtain one pound of soap to
+every five or seven gallons of water. This strength is effective
+against plant-lice. It should be applied in stronger solutions,
+however, for scale insects. Home-made soaps and good laundry soaps,
+like Ivory soap, are often as effective as whale-oil soap.
+
+_Miscible oils_.—There are now on the market a number of preparations
+of petroleum and other oils intended primarily for use against the San
+José scale. They mix readily with cold water and are immediately ready
+for use. While quickly prepared, easily applied, and generally
+effective, they cost considerably more than lime-sulfur wash. They are,
+however, less corrosive to the pumps and more agreeable to use. They
+are especially valuable to the man with only a few trees or shrubs who
+would not care to go to the trouble and expense to make up the
+lime-sulfur wash. They should be diluted with not more than 10 or 12
+parts of water. Use only on dormant trees.
+
+_Lime and sulfur wash_.—Quicklime, 20 lb.; flowers of sulfur, 15 lb.;
+water, 50 gal. The lime and sulfur must be thoroughly boiled. An iron
+kettle is often convenient for the work. Proceed as follows: Place the
+lime in the kettle. Add hot water gradually in sufficient quantity to
+produce the most rapid slaking of the lime. When the lime begins to
+slake, add the sulfur and stir together. If convenient, keep the
+mixture covered with burlap to save the heat. After slaking has ceased,
+add more water and boil the mixture one hour. As the sulfur goes into
+solution, a rich orange-red or dark green color will appear. After
+boiling sufficiently, add water to the required amount and strain into
+the spray tank. The wash is most effective when applied warm, but may
+be applied cold. If one has access to a steam boiler, boiling with
+steam is more convenient and satisfactory. Barrels may be used for
+holding the mixture, and the steam applied by running a pipe or rubber
+hose into the mixture. Proceed in the same way until the lime is
+slaked, when the steam may be turned on. Continue boiling for 45 min.
+to an hour, or until sulfur is dissolved.
+
+This strength can be applied safely only when the trees are dormant. It
+is mainly an insecticide for San José scale, although it has
+considerable value as a fungicide.
+
+_Lime-sulfur mixtures and solutions for summer spraying_ are now coming
+to take the place of bordeaux in many cases. Scott’s self-boiled
+lime-sulfur mixture, described in U. S. D. A. Bureau Plant Industry
+Circ. 27 is now a standard fungicide for brown-rot and black-spot or
+scab of the peach. Concentrated lime-sulfur solutions, either home
+boiled or commercial, are effective against apple scab and have the
+advantage of not russeting the fruit. Such concentrates, testing 32°
+Baume, should be diluted at about 1 gal. to 30 of water. Apply at same
+time as with bordeaux. Add arsenate of lead as with bordeaux.
+
+_Fungicide spraying formulas_.
+
+The standard fungicide is bordeaux mixture, made in several forms. The
+second most important fungicide for the home gardener is ammoniacal
+copper carbonate. Sulfur dust (flowers of sulfur) and liver of sulfur
+(potassium sulfide) are also useful in dry or wet sprays for surface
+mildews. The lime-sulfur wash, primarily an insecticide, also has
+fungicidal property.
+
+_Bordeaux mixture_.—Copper sulfate, 5 lb.; stone lime or quicklime
+(unslaked), 5 lb.; water, 50 gal. This formula is the strength usually
+recommended. Stock mixtures of copper sulfate and lime are desirable.
+They are prepared in the following way:—
+
+(1) Dissolve the required amount of copper sulfate in water in the
+proportion of one pound to one gallon several hours before the solution
+is needed, the copper sulfate crystals being suspended in a sack near
+the top of the water. A solution of copper sulfate is heavier than
+water. As soon then, as the crystals begin to dissolve the solution
+will sink, keeping water in contact with the crystals. In this way, the
+crystals will dissolve much sooner than if placed in the bottom of the
+barrel of water. In case large quantities of stock solution are needed,
+two pounds of copper sulfate may be dissolved in one gallon of water.
+
+(2) Slake the required amount of lime in a tub or trough. Add the water
+slowly at first, so that the lime crumbles into a fine powder. If small
+quantities of lime are used, hot water is preferred. When completely
+slaked, or entirely powdered, add more water. When the lime has slaked
+sufficiently, add water to bring it to a thick milk, or to a certain
+number of gallons. The amount required for each tank of spray mixture
+can be secured approximately from this stock mixture, which should not
+be allowed to dry out.
+
+(3) Use five gallons of stock solution of copper sulfate for every
+fifty gallons of bordeaux required. Pour this into the tank. Add water
+until the tank is about two-thirds full. From the stock lime mixture
+take the required amount. Knowing the number of pounds of lime in the
+stock mixture and the volume of that mixture, one can take out
+approximately the number of pounds required. Dilute this a little by
+adding water, and strain into the tank. Stir the mixture, and add water
+to make the required amount. Experiment stations often recommend the
+diluting of both the copper sulfate solution and the lime mixture to
+one-half the required amount before pouring together. This is not
+necessary, and is often impracticable for commercial work. It is
+preferable to dilute the copper sulfate solution. Never pour together
+the strong stock mixtures and dilute afterward. Bordeaux mixture of
+other strengths, as recommended, is made in the same way, except that
+the amounts of copper sulfate and lime are varied.
+
+(4) It is not necessary to weigh the lime in making bordeaux mixture,
+for a simple test can be used to determine when enough of a stock lime
+mixture has been added. Dissolve an ounce of yellow prussiate of potash
+in a pint of water and label it “poison.” Cut a V-shaped slit in one
+side of the cork so that the liquid may be poured out in drops. Add the
+lime mixture to the diluted copper sulfate solution until the
+ferro-cyanide (or prussiate) test solution _will not turn brown_ when
+dropped from the bottle into the mixture. It is always best to add a
+considerable excess of lime.
+
+_“Sticker” or adhesive for bordeaux mixture_.—Resin, 2 lb.; sal soda
+(crystals), 1 lb.; water, 1 gal. Boil until of a clear brown color—one
+to one and one-half hours. Cook in iron kettle in the open. Add this
+amount to each fifty gallons of bordeaux for onions and cabbage. For
+other plants difficult to wet, add this amount to every one hundred
+gallons of the mixture. This mixture will prevent the bordeaux from
+being washed off by the heaviest rains.
+
+_Ammoniacal copper carbonate_.—Copper carbonate, 5 oz.; ammonia, 3 pt.;
+water, 50 gal. Dilute the ammonia in seven or eight parts of water.
+Make a paste of the copper carbonate with a little water. Add the paste
+to the diluted ammonia, and stir until dissolved. Add enough water to
+make fifty gallons. This mixture loses strength on standing, and
+therefore should be made as required. It is used in place of bordeaux
+when one wishes to avoid the coloring of maturing fruits or ornamental
+plants. Not as effective as bordeaux.
+
+_Potassium sulfide_.—Potassium sulfide (liver of sulfur), 3 oz.; water,
+10 gal. As this mixture loses strength on standing, it should be made
+just before using. It is particularly valuable for the powdery mildew
+of many plants, especially gooseberry, carnation rust, rose mildew,
+etc.
+
+_Sulfur_.—Sulfur has been found to possess considerable value as a
+fungicide. The flowers of sulfur may be sprinkled over the plants,
+particularly when they are wet. It is most effective in hot, dry
+weather. In rose houses it is mixed with half its bulk of lime, and
+made into a paste with water. This is painted on the steam pipes. The
+fumes destroy mildew on the roses. Mixed with lime, it has proved
+effective in the control of onion smut when drilled into the rows with
+the seed. Sulfur is not effective against black-rot of grapes.
+
+_Treatment for some of the common insects_.
+
+The most approved preventive and remedial treatments for such insect
+pests as are most likely to menace home grounds and plantations are
+here briefly discussed. In case of any unusual difficulty that he
+cannot control, the home-maker should take it up with the agricultural
+experiment station in the state, sending good specimens of the insect
+for identification. He should also have the publications of the
+station.
+
+The statements that are here made are intended as advice rather than as
+directions. They are chosen from good authorities (mostly from
+Slingerland and Crosby in this case); but the reader must, of course,
+assume his own risk in applying them. The effectiveness of any
+recommended treatment depends very largely on the care, thoroughness,
+and timeliness with which the work is done; and new methods and
+practices are constantly appearing as the result of new investigations.
+The dates given in these directions are for New York.
+
+_Aphis or plant-louse._—The stock remedies for aphides or plant-lice
+are kerosene emulsion and the tobacco preparations. Whale-oil soap is
+also good. The tobacco may be applied as a spray, or in the house as
+fumigation; the commercial forms of nicotine are excellent. (See page
+194.) Be sure to apply the remedy before the leaves have curled and
+afford protection for the lice; be sure, also, to hit the underside of
+the leaves, where the lice usually are. The presence of lice on trees
+is sometimes first discovered from the honey-dew that drops on walks.
+
+Usually the emulsion is diluted with 10-15 parts of water for
+plant-lice (see formula, page 194); but some of the species (as the
+dark brown cherry-leaf louse) require a stronger emulsion, about 6
+parts of water.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 234. Lady-bird beetle; larva above]
+
+The lady-birds (one of which is shown in Fig. 234) destroy great
+numbers of plant-lice, and their presence should therefore be
+encouraged.
+
+_Apple-maggot or “railroad-worm.”_—The small white maggots make
+brownish winding burrows in the flesh of the fruit, particularly in
+summer and early fall varieties. This insect cannot be reached by a
+spray as the parent fly inserts her eggs under the skin of the apple.
+When full-grown, the maggot leaves the fruit, passes into the ground,
+and there transforms inside a tough, leathery case. Tillage has been
+found to be of no value as a means of control. The only effective
+treatment is to pick up all windfalls every two or three days, and
+either to feed them out or to bury them deeply, thus killing the
+maggots.
+
+_Asparagus beetle_.—Clean cultural methods are usually sufficient to
+prevent the asparagus beetle’s seriously injuring well-established
+beds. Young plants require more or less protection. A good grade of
+arsenate of lead, 1 lb. to 25 gal. of water, will quickly destroy the
+grubs on the foliage of either young or old plants. Apply it with an
+ordinary sprinkling can, or better, use one of the numerous spraying
+devices now on the market. The necessity for treatment must be
+determined by the abundance of the pests. They should not be permitted
+to become abundant in midsummer or the over-wintering beetles may
+injure the shoots in the spring.
+
+_Blister-mite on apple and pear_.—The presence of this minute mite is
+indicated by small irregular brownish blisters on the leaves. Spray in
+late fall or early spring with the lime-sulfur wash, with kerosene
+emulsion, diluted with 5 parts of water, or miscible oil, 1 gal. in 10
+gal. of water.
+
+_Borers_.—The only certain remedy for borers is to dig them out, or to
+punch them out with a wire. Keep the space about the base of the tree
+clean, and watch closely for any sign of borers. The flat-headed borer
+of the apple works under the bark on the trunk and larger branches,
+particularly where much exposed to sun. The dead and sunken appearance
+of the bark indicates its presence. The round-headed borer works in the
+wood of apples, quinces, and other trees; it should be hunted for every
+spring and fall. On hard land, it is well to dig the earth away from
+the base of the tree and fill the space with coal ashes; this will make
+the work of examination much easier.
+
+The peach and apricot borer is the larva of a clear-wing moth. The
+larva burrows just under the bark near or beneath the surface of the
+ground; its presence is indicated by a gummy mass at the base of the
+tree. Dig out the borers in June and mound up the trees. At the same
+time, apply gas-tar or coal-tar to the trunk from the roots to a foot
+or more above the surface of the ground.
+
+The bronze birch borer is destroying many fine white birch trees in
+some parts of the country. Its presence is known by the dying of the
+top of the tree. There yet is no known way of preventing this borer
+from attacking white birches, and the only practicable and effective
+method so far found for checking its ravages is promptly to cut and
+burn the infested trees in autumn, in winter, or before May 1. There is
+no probability of saving a tree when the top branches are dead,
+although cutting out the dead parts may stay the trouble temporarily.
+Cut and burn such trees at once and thus prevent the spread of the
+insect.
+
+_Bud-moth on apple_.—The small brown caterpillars with black heads
+devour the tender leaves and flowers of the opening apple buds in early
+spring. Make two applications of either 1 lb. Paris green or 4 lb.
+arsenate of lead in 100 gal. of water; the first when the leaf-tips
+appear and the second just before the blossoms open. If necessary,
+spray again after the blossoms fall.
+
+_Cabbage and cauliflower insects_.—The green caterpillars that eat
+cabbage leaves and heads hatch from eggs laid by the common white
+butterfly (Fig. 295). There are several broods every season. If plants
+are not heading, spray with kerosene emulsion or with Paris green to
+which the sticker has been added. If heading, apply hellebore.
+
+The cabbage aphides, small mealy plant-lice, are especially troublesome
+during cool, dry seasons when their natural enemies are less active.
+Before the plants begin to head, spray with kerosene emulsion diluted
+with 6 parts of water, or whale-oil soap, 1 lb. in 6 gal. of water.
+
+The white maggots that feed on the roots hatch from eggs laid near the
+plant at the surface of the ground by a small fly somewhat resembling
+the common house fly. Hollow out the earth slightly around every plant
+and freely apply carbolic acid emulsion diluted with 30 parts of water.
+Begin the treatment early, a day or two after the plants are up or the
+next day after they are set out. Repeat the application every 7 to 10
+days until the latter part of May. It has also been found to be
+practicable to protect the plants by the use of tightly fitting cards
+cut from tarred paper. (See page 187.)
+
+_Canker-worms._—These caterpillars are small measuring-worms or loopers
+that defoliate apple trees in May and June (Fig. 217). The female moths
+are wingless, and in late fall or early spring crawl up the trunks of
+the trees to lay their eggs on the branches. Spray thoroughly once or
+twice, before the blossoms open, with 1 lb. Paris green or 4 lb.
+arsenate of lead in 100 gal. of water. Repeat the application after the
+blossoms fall. Prevent the ascent of the wingless females by means of
+sticky bands or wire-screen traps.
+
+_Case-bearers on apple_.—The small caterpillars live in pistol-shaped
+or cigar-shaped cases, about 1/4 in. long. They appear in spring on the
+opening buds at the same time as the bud-moth and may be controlled by
+the same means.
+
+_Codlin-moth._—The codlin-moth lays the eggs that produce the pinkish
+caterpillar which causes a large proportion of wormy apples and pears.
+The eggs are laid by a small moth on the leaves and on the skin of the
+fruit. Most of the caterpillars enter the apple at the blossom end.
+When the petals fall, the calyx is open and this is the time to spray.
+The calyx soon closes and keeps the poison inside ready for the young
+caterpillar’s first meal. After the calyx has closed, it is too late to
+spray effectively. The caterpillars become full grown in July and
+August, leave the fruit, crawl down on the trunk, and there most of
+them spin cocoons under the loose bark. In most parts of the country
+there are two broods annually. Immediately after the blossoms fall,
+spray with 1 lb. Paris green or 4 lb. arsenate of lead in 100 gal. of
+water. Repeat the application 7 to 10 days later. Use burlap bands on
+trunks, killing all caterpillars under them every ten days from July 1
+to August 1, and once later before winter.
+
+_Cucurbit (cucumber, melon, and squash) insects_.—Yellow, black-striped
+beetles appear in numbers and attack the plants as soon as they are up.
+Plant early squashes as a trap-crop around the field. Protect the vines
+with screens (Fig. 229) until they begin to run, or keep them covered
+with bordeaux mixture, thus making them distasteful to the beetles.
+
+Squash vines are frequently killed by a white caterpillar that burrows
+in the stem near the base of the plant. Plant a few early squashes
+between the rows of the late varieties as a trap-crop. As soon as the
+early crop is harvested, remove and burn the vines. When the vines are
+long enough, cover them at the joints with earth in order to develop
+secondary root systems for the plant in case the main stem is injured.
+
+Dark green plant-lice feed on the under sides of squash leaves, causing
+them to curl and wither. Spray with kerosene emulsion diluted with 6
+parts of water. It is necessary thoroughly to cover the under side of
+the leaves; the sprayer, therefore, must be fitted with an upturned
+nozzle. Burn the vines as soon as the crop is harvested and keep down
+all weeds.
+
+The stink-bug is very troublesome to squashes. The rusty-black adult
+emerges from hibernation in spring and lays its eggs on the under side
+of the leaves. The nymphs suck the sap from the leaves and stalks,
+causing serious injury. Trap the adults under boards in the spring.
+Examine the leaves for the smooth shining brownish eggs and destroy
+them. The young nymphs may be killed with kerosene emulsion.
+
+_Curculio_.—The adult curculio of the plum and peach is a small
+snout-beetle that inserts its eggs under the skin of the fruit and then
+makes a characteristic crescent-shaped cut beneath it. The grub feeds
+within the fruit and causes it to drop. When full grown, it enters the
+ground, changes in late summer to the beetle, which finally goes into
+hibernation in sheltered places. Spray plums just after blossoms fall
+with arsenate of lead, 6 to 8 lb. in 100 gal. of water, and repeat the
+application in about a week. After the fruit has set, jar the trees
+daily over a sheet or curculio-catcher and destroy the beetles; this is
+practically the only procedure for peaches, for they cannot be sprayed.
+
+The quince curculio is somewhat larger than that infesting the plum and
+differs in its life-history. The grubs leave the fruits in the fall and
+enter the ground, where they hibernate and transform to adults the next
+May, June, or July, depending on the season. When the adults appear,
+jar them from the tree on sheets or curculio-catchers and destroy them.
+To determine when they appear, jar a few trees daily, beginning the
+latter part of May in New York.
+
+_Currant-worm._—In the spring the small green, black-spotted larvae
+feed on the foliage of currants and gooseberries, beginning their work
+on the lower leaves. A second brood occurs in early summer. When worms
+first appear, spray with 1 lb. Paris green or 4 lb. arsenate of lead in
+100 gal. of water. Ordinarily the poison should be combined with
+bordeaux (for leaf-spot).
+
+_Cut-worms._—Probably the remedy for cut-worms most often practiced in
+gardens, and which cannot fail to be effective when faithfully carried
+out, is hand-picking with lanterns at night or digging them out from
+around the base of the infested plants during the day. Bushels of
+cut-worms have been gathered in this way, and with profit. When from
+some cause success does not attend the use of the poisoned baits, to be
+discussed next, hand-picking is the only other method yet recommended
+that can be relied upon to check cut-worm depredations.
+
+The best methods yet devised for killing cut-worms in any situation are
+the poisoned baits, using Paris green or arsenate of lead for the
+purpose. Poisoned bunches of clover or weeds have been thoroughly
+tested, even by the wagon-load, over large areas, and nearly all have
+reported them very effective; lamb’s quarters (pigweed), pepper-grass,
+and mullein are among the weeds especially attractive to cutworms. On
+small areas the making of the baits is done by hand, but they have been
+prepared on a large scale by spraying the plants in the field, cutting
+them with a scythe or machine, and pitching them from wagons in small
+bunches wherever desired. Distributed a few feet apart, between rows of
+garden plants at nightfall, they have attracted and killed enough
+cut-worms often to save a large proportion of the crop; if the bunches
+can be covered with a shingle, they will keep fresher much longer. The
+fresher the baits, and the more thoroughly the baiting is done, the
+more cut-worms one can destroy. However, it may sometimes happen that a
+sufficient quantity of such green succulent plants cannot be obtained
+early enough in the season in some localities. In this case, and we are
+not sure but in all cases, the poisoned bran mash can be used to the
+best advantage. It is easily made and applied at any time, is not
+expensive, and thus far the results show that it is a very attractive
+and effective bait. A tablespoonful can be quickly dropped around the
+base of each cabbage or tomato plant; small amounts may be easily
+scattered along the rows of onions and turnips, or a little dropped on
+a hill of corn or cucumbers.
+
+The best time to apply these poisoned baits is two or three days before
+any plants have come up or been set out in the garden. If the ground
+has been properly prepared, the worms will have had but little to eat
+for several days and they will thus seize the first opportunity to
+appease their hunger upon the baits, and wholesale destruction will
+result. The baits should always be applied at this time wherever
+cut-worms are expected. But it is not too late usually to save most of
+a crop after the pests have made their presence known by cutting off
+some of the plants. Act promptly and use the baits freely.
+
+For mechanical means of protecting from cut-worms, see pp. 186-7.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 235. Elm-leaf beetle, adult, somewhat enlarged
+(after Howard).]
+
+_Elm-leaf beetle_.—Generally speaking one thorough and timely spraying
+is ample to control the elm-leaf beetle (Fig. 235). Use arsenate of
+lead, 1 lb. to 25 gal., and make the application to the under side of
+the leaves the latter part of May or very early in June in New York.
+Occasionally, when the beetle is very abundant, due in all probability
+to no spraying in earlier years, it may be advisable to make a second
+application, and the same may be true when conditions necessitate the
+application earlier than when it will be most efficacious. This latter
+condition is likely to obtain wherever a large number of trees must be
+treated with inadequate outfit.
+
+_Oyster-shell scale_.—This is an elongate scale or bark-louse, 1/8 in.
+in length, resembling an oyster shell in shape and often incrusting the
+bark of apple twigs. It hibernates as minute white eggs under the old
+scales. The eggs hatch during the latter part of May or in June, the
+date depending on the season. After they hatch, the young may be seen
+as tiny whitish lice crawling about on the bark. When these young
+appear, spray with kerosene emulsion, diluted with 6 parts of water, or
+whale-oil or any good soap, 1 lb. in 4 or 5 gal. of water.
+
+_Pear insects_.—The psylla is one of the most serious insects affecting
+the pear tree. It is a minute, yellowish, flat-bodied, sucking insect
+often found in the axils of the leaves and fruit early in the season.
+They develop into minute cicada-like jumping-lice. The young psyllas
+secrete a large quantity of honey-dew in which a peculiar black fungus
+grows, giving the bark a characteristic sooty appearance. There may be
+four broods annually and the trees are often seriously injured. After
+the blossoms fall, spray with kerosene emulsion, diluted with 6 parts
+of water, or whale-oil soap, 1 lb. in 4 or 5 gal. of water. Repeat the
+application at intervals of 3 to 7 days until the insects are under
+control.
+
+The pear slug is a small, slimy, dark green larva which skeletonizes
+the leaves in June, and a second brood appears in August. Spray
+thoroughly with 1 lb. Paris green, or 4 lb. arsenate of lead, in 100
+gal. of water.
+
+_Potato insects_.—The Colorado potato beetle, or potato-bug, emerges
+from hibernation in the spring and lays masses of orange eggs on the
+under side of the leaves. The larvae are known as “slugs” and
+“soft-shells” and cause most of the injury to the vines. Spray with
+Paris green, 2 lb. in 100 gal. of water, or arsenite of soda combined
+with bordeaux mixture. It may sometimes be necessary to use a greater
+strength of the poison, particularly on the older “slugs.”
+
+The small black flea-beetles riddle the leaves with holes and cause the
+foliage to die. Bordeaux mixture as applied for potato blight protects
+the plants by making them repellent to the beetles.
+
+_Raspberry, blackberry, and dewberry insects_.—The greenish, spiny
+larvae of the saw-fly feed on the tender leaves in spring. Spray with
+Paris green or arsenate of lead, or apply hellebore.
+
+The cane-borer is a grub that burrows down through the canes, causing
+them to die. In laying her eggs, the adult beetle girdles the tip of
+the cane with a ring of punctures, causing it to wither and droop. In
+midsummer, cut off and destroy the drooping tips.
+
+_Red spider_.—Minute reddish mites on the under sides of leaves in
+greenhouses and sometimes out of doors in dry weather. Syringe off the
+plants with clear water two or three times a week, taking care not to
+drench the beds.
+
+_Rose insects_.—The green plant-lice usually work on the buds, and the
+yellow leaf-hoppers feed on the leaves. Spray, whenever necessary, with
+kerosene emulsion, diluted with 6 parts of water, or whale-oil or any
+good soap, 1 lb. in 5 or 6 gal. of water.
+
+The rose-chafer is often a most pernicious pest on roses, grapes, and
+other plants. The ungainly, long-legged, grayish beetles occur in sandy
+regions and often swarm into vineyards and destroy the blossoms and
+foliage. Spray thoroughly with arsenate of lead, 10 lb. in 100 gal. of
+water. Repeat the application if necessary. (See under Rose in Chap.
+VIII.)
+
+_San José scale_.—This pernicious scale is nearly circular in outline
+and about the size of a small pin head, with a raised center. When
+abundant, it forms a crust on the branches and causes small red spots
+on the fruit. It multiplies with marvelous rapidity, there being three
+or four broods annually in New York, and each mother scale may give
+birth to several hundred young. The young are born alive, and breeding
+continues until late autumn when all stages are killed by the cold
+weather except the tiny half-grown black scales, many of which
+hibernate safely. Spray thoroughly in the fall after the leaves drop,
+or early in the spring before growth begins, with lime-sulfur wash, or
+miscible oil 1 gal. in 10 gal. of water. When badly infested, make two
+applications, one in the fall and another in the spring. In case of
+large old trees, 25 per cent crude oil emulsion should be applied just
+as the buds are swelling.
+
+In nurseries, after the trees are dug, fumigate with hydrocyanic acid
+gas, using 1 oz. of potassium cyanide for every 100 cu. ft. of space.
+Continue the fumigation from one-half to three-quarters of an hour. Do
+not fumigate the trees when they are wet, since the presence of
+moisture renders them liable to injury.
+
+_Tent-caterpillar_.—The insect hibernates in the egg stage. The eggs
+are glued in ring-like brownish masses around the smaller twigs, where
+they may be easily found and destroyed. The caterpillars appear in
+early spring, devour the tender leaves, and build unsightly nests on
+the smaller branches. This pest is usually controlled by the treatment
+recommended for the codlin-moth. Destroy the nests by burning or by
+wiping out when small. Often a bad pest on apple trees.
+
+_Violet gall-fly._—Violets grown under glass are often greatly injured
+by a very small maggot, which causes the edges of the leaves to curl,
+turn yellowish, and die. The adult is a very minute fly resembling a
+mosquito. Pick off and destroy infested leaves as soon as discovered.
+Fumigation is not advised for this insect or for red-spider.
+
+_White-fly._—The minute white-flies are common on greenhouse plants and
+often in summer on plants about gardens near greenhouses. The nymphs
+are small greenish, scale-like insects found on the under side of the
+leaves; the adults are minute, white, mealy-winged flies. Spray with
+kerosene emulsion or whale-oil soap; or if infesting cucumbers or
+tomatoes, fumigate over night with hydrocyanic acid gas, using 1 oz. of
+potassium cyanide to each 1000 cu. ft. of space. (See page 188.)
+
+_White grubs_.—The large curved white grubs that are so troublesome in
+lawns and strawberry fields are the larvae of the common June beetles.
+They live in the ground, feeding on the roots of grasses and weeds. Dig
+out grubs from beneath infested plants. Thorough early fall cultivation
+of land intended for strawberries will destroy many of the pupae. In
+lawns, remove the sod, destroy the grubs, and make new sward, when the
+infestation is bad.
+
+_Treatment for some of the common plant diseases_.
+
+The following advice (mostly adapted from Whetzel and Stewart) covers
+the most frequent types of fungous disease appearing to the home
+gardener. Many other kinds, however, will almost certainly attract his
+attention the first season if he looks closely. The standard remedy is
+bordeaux mixture; but because this material discolors the foliage the
+carbonate of copper is sometimes used instead. The treatments here
+recommended are for New York; but it should not be difficult to apply
+the dates elsewhere. The gardener must supplement all advice of this
+character with his own judgment and experience, and take his own risks.
+
+_Apple scab_.—Usually most evident on the fruit, forming blotches and
+scabs. Spray with bordeaux, 5-5-50 or 3-3-50; first, just before the
+blossoms open; second, just as the blossoms fall; third, 10 to 14 days
+after the blossoms fall. The second spraying seems to be the most
+important. Always apply _before_ rains, not _after_.
+
+_Asparagus rust_.—The most common and destructive disease of asparagus,
+producing reddish or black pustules on the stems and branches. Late in
+the fall, burn all affected plants. Fertilize liberally and cultivate
+thoroughly. During the cutting season, permit no plants to mature and
+cut all wild asparagus plants in vicinity once a week. Rust may be
+partially controlled by spraying with bordeaux, 5-5-50, containing a
+sticker of resin-sal-soda soap, but it is a difficult and expensive
+operation and probably not profitable except on large acreage. Begin
+spraying after cutting as soon as new shoots are 8 to 10 in. high and
+repeat once or twice a week until about September 15. Dusting with
+sulfur has proved effective in California.
+
+_Cabbage and cauliflower diseases_.—Black-rot is a bacterial disease;
+the plants drop their leaves and fail to head. Practice crop rotation;
+soak seed 15 min. in a solution made by dissolving one corrosive
+sublimate tablet in a pint of water. Tablets may be bought at drug
+stores.
+
+Club-root or club-foot is a well-known disease. The parasite lives in
+the soil. Practice crop rotation. Set only healthy plants. Do not use
+manure containing cabbage refuse. If necessary to use infested land,
+apply good stone lime, 2 to 5 tons per acre. Apply at least as early as
+the autumn before planting; two to four years is better. Lime the
+seed-bed in same way.
+
+_Carnation rust_.—This disease may be recognized by the brown, powdery
+pustules on the stem and leaves. Plant only the varieties least
+affected by it. Take cuttings only from healthy plants. Spray (in the
+field, once a week; in the greenhouse, once in two weeks) with copper
+sulfate, 1 lb. to 20 gal. of water. Keep the greenhouse air as dry and
+cool as is compatible with good growth. Keep the foliage free from
+moisture. Train the plants so as to secure a free circulation of air
+among them.
+
+_Chestnut_.—The bark disease of chestnut has become very serious in
+southeastern New York, causing the bark to sink and die and killing the
+tree. Cutting out the diseased places and treating aseptically may be
+useful in light cases, but badly infected trees are incurable, in the
+present state of our knowledge. Inspection of nursery stock and burning
+of affected trees is the only procedure now to be recommended. The
+disease is reported in New England and western New York.
+
+_Chrysanthemum leaf-spot._—Spray with bordeaux, 5-5-50, every ten days
+or often enough to protect new foliage. Ammoniacal copper carbonate may
+be used, but it is not so effective.
+
+_Cucumber diseases_.—“Wilt” is a disease caused by bacteria that are
+distributed chiefly by striped cucumber beetles. Destroy the beetles or
+drive them away by thorough spraying with bordeaux, 5-5-50. Gather and
+destroy all wilted leaves and plants. The most that can be expected is
+that the loss may be slightly reduced.
+
+Downy mildew is a serious fungous disease of the cucumber known among
+growers as “the blight.” The leaves become mottled with yellow, show
+dead spots, and then dry up. Spray with bordeaux, 5-5-50. Begin
+spraying when the plants begin to run, and repeat every 10 to 14 days
+throughout the season.
+
+_Currant diseases_.—Leaf-spots and anthracnose are caused by two or
+three different fungi. The leaves become spotted, turn yellow, and fall
+prematurely. They may be controlled by three to five sprayings with
+bordeaux, 5-5-50, but it is doubtful whether the diseases are
+sufficiently destructive on the average to warrant so much expense.
+
+_Gooseberry powdery mildew_.—The fruit and leaves are covered with a
+dirty white growth of fungus. In setting a new plantation, choose a
+site where the land is well underdrained and where there is a good
+circulation of air. Cut away drooping branches. Keep the ground
+underneath free from weeds. Spray with potassium sulfide, 1 oz. to 2
+gal.; begin when the buds are breaking and repeat every 7 to 10 days
+until the fruit is gathered. Powdery mildew is very destructive to the
+European varieties.
+
+_Grape black-rot._—Remove all “mummies” that cling to the arms at
+trimming time. Plow early, turning under all old mummies and diseased
+leaves. Rake all refuse under the vine into the last furrow and cover
+with the grape hoe. This cannot be too thoroughly done. The disease is
+favored by wet weather and weeds or grass in the vineyard. Use surface
+cultivation and keep down all weeds and grass. Keep the vines well
+sprouted; if necessary sprout twice. Spray with bordeaux mixture,
+5-5-50, until the middle of July, after that with ammoniacal copper
+carbonate. The number of sprayings will vary with the season. Make the
+first application when the third leaf shows. Infections take place with
+each rain, and occur throughout the growing season. The foliage should
+be protected by a coating of the spray before every rain. The new
+growth especially should be well sprayed.
+
+_Hollyhock rust_.—Fig. 212. Eradicate the wild mallow _(Malva
+rotundifolia)._ Remove all hollyhock leaves as soon as they show signs
+of rust. Spray several times with bordeaux mixture, taking care to
+cover both sides of leaves.
+
+_Lettuce drop or rot_.—This is a fungous disease often destructive in
+greenhouses, discovered by the sudden wilting of the plants. It is
+completely controlled by steam sterilization of the soil to the depth
+of two inches or more. If it is not feasible to sterilize the soil, use
+fresh soil for every crop of lettuce.
+
+_Muskmelon diseases_.—“Blight” is a very troublesome disease. The
+leaves show angular dead-brown spots, then dry up and die; the fruit
+often fails to ripen and lacks flavor. It is caused by the same fungus
+as is the downy mildew of cucumbers. While bordeaux has proved
+effective in controlling the downy mildew on cucumbers, it seems to be
+of little value in lessening the same disease on melons.
+
+“Wilt” is the same as the wilt of cucumbers; same treatment is given.
+
+_Peach diseases_.—Brown-rot is difficult to control. Plant resistant
+varieties. Prune the trees so as to let in sunlight and air. Thin the
+fruit well. As often as possible pick and destroy all rotten fruits. In
+the fall destroy all remaining fruits. Spray with bordeaux mixture
+before the buds break, or self-boiled lime-sulfur.
+
+Leaf-curl is a disease in which the leaves become swollen and distorted
+in spring and drop during June and July (Fig. 213). Elberta is an
+especially susceptible variety. Easily and completely controlled by
+spraying the trees once, before the buds swell, with bordeaux, 5-5-50,
+or with the lime-sulfur mixtures used for San José scale.
+
+Black-spot or scab often proves troublesome in wet seasons and
+particularly in damp or sheltered situations. While this disease
+attacks the twigs and leaves, it is most conspicuous and injurious on
+the fruit, where it appears as dark spots or blotches. In severe
+attacks the fruit cracks. In the treatment of this disease it is of
+prime importance _to secure a free circulation of air_ about the fruit.
+Accomplish this by avoiding low sites, by pruning, and by removal of
+windbreaks. Spray as for leaf-curl and follow with two applications of
+potassium sulfide, 1 oz. to 3 gal., the first being made soon after the
+fruit is set and the second when the fruit is half grown.
+
+Yellows is a so-called “physiological disease.” Cause unknown.
+Contagious, and serious in some localities. Known by the premature
+ripening of the fruit, by red streaks and spots in the flesh, and by
+the peculiar clusters of sickly, yellowish shoots that appear on the
+limbs here and there (Fig. 215). Dig out and burn diseased trees as
+soon as discovered.
+
+_Pear diseases_.—Fire-blight kills the twigs and branches, on which the
+leaves suddenly blacken and die but do not fall. It also produces
+cankers on the trunk and large limbs. Prune out blighted branches as
+soon as discovered, cutting 6 to 8 in. below the lowest evidences of
+the disease. Clean out limb and body cankers. Disinfect all large
+wounds with corrosive sublimate solution, 1 to 1000, and cover with
+coat of paint. Avoid forcing a rapid, succulent growth. Plant the
+varieties least affected.
+
+Pear scab is very similar to apple scab. It is very destructive to some
+varieties, as, for example, Flemish Beauty and Seckel. Spray three
+times with bordeaux, as for apple scab.
+
+_Plum and cherry diseases_.—Black-knot is a fungus, the spores of which
+are carried from tree to tree by the wind and thus spread the
+infection. Cut out and burn all knots as soon as discovered. See that
+the knots are removed from all plum and cherry trees in the
+neighborhood.
+
+Leaf-spot is a disease in which the leaves become covered with reddish
+or brown spots and fall prematurely (Fig. 211); badly affected trees
+winterkill. Often, the dead spots drop out, leaving clear-cut holes.
+Spray with bordeaux, 5-5-50. For cherries, make four applications:
+first, just before blossoms open; second, when fruit is free from
+calyx; third, two weeks later; fourth, two weeks after third. In plums
+it may be controlled by two or three applications of bordeaux, 5-5-50.
+Make the first one about ten days after the blossoms fall and the
+others at intervals of about three weeks. This applies to European
+varieties. Japan plums should not be sprayed with bordeaux.
+
+_Potato diseases_.—There are different kinds of potato blight and rot.
+The most important are early blight and late blight—both fungous
+diseases. Early blight affects only the foliage. Late blight kills the
+foliage and often rots the tubers. Two serious troubles often mistaken
+for blight are: (1) Tip burn, the browning of the tips and margins of
+the leaves due to dry weather; and (2) flea-beetle injury, in which the
+leaves show numerous small holes and then dry up. The loss from blight
+and flea-beetles is enormous—often, one-fourth to one-half the crop.
+For blight-rot and flea-beetles spray with bordeaux, 5-5-50. Begin when
+the plants are 6 to 8 in. high and repeat every 10 to 14 days during
+the season, making 5 to 7 applications in all. Use 40 to 100 gal. per
+acre at each application. Under conditions exceptionally favorable to
+blight it will pay to spray as often as once a week.
+
+Scab is caused by a fungus that attacks the surface of the tubers. It
+is carried over on diseased tubers and in the soil. In general, when
+land becomes badly infested with scab, it is best to plant it with
+other crops for several years. (See page 190.)
+
+_Raspberry diseases_.—Anthracnose is very destructive to black
+raspberries, but not often injurious to the red varieties. It is
+detected by the circular or elliptical gray scab-like spots on the
+canes. Avoid taking young plants from diseased plantations. Remove all
+old canes and badly diseased new ones as soon as the fruit is gathered.
+Although spraying with bordeaux, 5-5-50, will control the malady, the
+treatment may not be profitable. If spraying seems advisable, make the
+first application when the new canes are 6 to 8 in. high and follow
+with two more at intervals of 10 to 14 days.
+
+Cane-blight or wilt is a destructive disease affecting both red and
+black varieties. Fruiting canes suddenly wilt and die. It is caused by
+a fungus which attacks the cane at some point and kills the bark and
+wood, thereby causing the parts above to die. No successful treatment
+is known. In making new settings, use only plants from healthy
+plantations. Remove the fruiting canes as soon as the fruit is
+gathered.
+
+Red-rust is often serious on black varieties, but does not affect red
+ones. It is the same as red rust of blackberry. Dig up and destroy
+affected plants.
+
+_Rose diseases_.—Black leaf-spot is one of the commonest diseases of
+the rose. It causes the leaves to fall prematurely. Spray with
+bordeaux, 5-5-50, beginning as soon as the first spots appear on the
+leaves. Two or three applications at intervals of ten days will very
+largely control the disease. Ammoniacal copper carbonate may be used on
+roses grown under glass. Apply once a week until disease is under
+control.
+
+For mildew on greenhouse roses, keep the steam pipes painted with a
+paste made of equal parts lime and sulfur mixed up with water. The
+mildew is a surface-feeding fungus and is killed by the fumes of the
+sulfur. Outdoor roses that become infested with the mildew may be
+dusted with sulfur, or sprayed with a solution of potassium sulfide, 1
+oz. to 3 gal. water. Spray or dust with the sulfur two or three times
+at intervals of a week or ten days.
+
+_Strawberry leaf-spot._—The most common and serious fungous disease of
+the strawberry; also called rust and leaf-blight. The leaves show spots
+which at first are of a deep purple color, but later enlarge and the
+center becomes gray or nearly white. The fungus passes the winter in
+the old diseased leaves that fall to the ground. In setting new
+plantations, remove all diseased leaves from the plants before they are
+taken to the field. Soon after growth begins, spray the newly set
+plants with bordeaux, 5-5-50. Make three or four additional sprayings
+during the season. The following spring, spray just before blossoming
+and again 10 to 14 days later. If the bed is to be fruited a second
+time, mow the plants and burn over the beds as soon as the fruit is
+gathered. Plant resistant varieties.
+
+_Tomato leaf-spot._—The distinguishing character of this disease is
+that it begins on the lower leaves and works towards the top, killing
+the foliage as it goes. It is controlled with difficulty because it is
+carried over winter in the diseased leaves and tops that fall to the
+ground. When setting out plants, pinch off all the lower leaves that
+touch the ground; also any leaves that show suspicious-looking
+dead-spots. The trouble often starts in the seed-bed. Spray plants very
+thoroughly with bordeaux, 5-5-50, beginning as soon as the plants are
+set out. Stake and tie up for greater convenience in spraying. Spray
+under side of the leaves. Spray every week or ten days.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VII
+THE GROWING OF THE ORNAMENTAL PLANTS—THE CLASSES OF PLANTS, AND LISTS
+
+In choosing the kinds of plants for the main grounds the gardener
+should carefully distinguish two categories,—those plants to compose
+the structural masses and design of the place, and those that are to be
+used for mere ornament. The chief merits to be sought in the former are
+good foliage, pleasing form and habit, shades of green, and color of
+winter twigs. The merits of the latter lie chiefly in flowers or
+colored foliage.
+
+Each of these categories should be again divided. Of plants for the
+main design, there might be discussion of trees for a windbreak, of
+trees for shade; of shrubs for screens or heavy plantings, for the
+lighter side plantings, and for incidental masses about the buildings
+or on the lawn; and perhaps also of vines for porches and arbors, of
+evergreens, of hedges, and of the heavier herbaceous masses.
+
+Plants used for mere embellishment or ornamentation may be ranged again
+into categories for permanent herbaceous borders, for display beds,
+ribbon edgings, annuals for temporary effects, foliage beds, plants for
+adding color and emphasis to the shrubbery masses, plants desired to be
+grown as single specimens or as curiosities, and plants for porch-boxes
+and window-gardens.
+
+Having now briefly suggested the uses of the plants, we shall proceed
+to discuss them in reference to the making of home grounds. This
+chapter contains a brief consideration of:
+
+_Planting for immediate effect,_
+
+_The use of “foliage” trees and shrubs,_
+
+_Windbreaks and screens,_
+
+_The making of hedges,_
+
+_The borders,_
+
+_The flower-beds,_
+
+_Aquatic and bog plants,_
+
+_Rockeries and alpine plants;_
+
+
+and then it runs into nine sub-chapters, as follows:—
+
+1. Plants for carpet-beds, p. 234;
+
+2. The annual plants, p. 241;
+
+3. Hardy herbaceous perennials, p. 260;
+
+4. Bulbs and tubers, p. 281;
+
+5. The shrubbery, p. 290;
+
+6. Climbing plants, p. 307;
+
+7. Trees for lawns and streets, p. 319;
+
+8. Coniferous evergreen trees and shrubs, p. 331;
+
+9. Window-gardens, p. 336.
+
+And then, in Chapter VIII, the particular cultures of plants needing
+special care are briefly discussed.
+
+_Planting for immediate effect_.
+
+It is always legitimate, and, in fact, desirable, to plant for
+immediate effect. One may plant very thickly of rapid-growing trees and
+shrubs for this purpose. It is a fact, however, that very rapid-growing
+trees usually lack strong or artistic character. Other and better trees
+should be planted with them and the featureless kinds be gradually
+removed. (Page 41.)
+
+The effect of a new place may be greatly heightened by a dexterous use
+of annuals and other herbaceous stuff in the shrub plantations. Until
+the shrubbery covers the ground, temporary plants may be grown among
+them. Subtropical beds may give a very desirable temporary finish to
+places that are pretentious enough to make them seem in keeping.
+
+Very rough, hard, sterile, and stony banks may sometimes be covered
+with coltsfoot (_Tussilago Farfara_), sacaline, _Rubus cratœgifotius,_
+comfrey, and various wild growths that persist in similar places in the
+neighborhood.
+
+However much the planter may plan for immediate effects, the beauty of
+trees and shrubs comes with maturity and age, and this beauty is often
+delayed, or even obliterated, by shearing and excessive heading-back.
+At first, bushes are stiff and erect, but when they attain their full
+character, they usually droop or roll over to meet the sward. Some
+bushes make mounds of green much sooner than others that may even be
+closely related. Thus the common yellow-bell (_Forsythia virdissima_)
+remains stiff and hard for some years, whereas _F. suspensa_ makes a
+rolling heap of green in two or three years. Quick informal effects can
+also be secured by the use of Hall’s Japanese honeysuckle (_Lonicera
+Halliana_ of nurserymen), an evergreen in the South, and holding its
+leaves until midwinter or later in the North. It may be used for
+covering a rock, a pile of rubbish, a stump (Fig. 236), to fill a
+corner against a foundation, or it may be trained on a porch or arbor.
+There is a form with yellow-veined leaves. _Rosa Wichuraiana_ and some
+of the dewberries are useful for covering rough places.
+
+Many vines that are commonly used for porches and arbors may be
+employed also for the borders of shrub-plantations and for covering
+rough banks and rocks, quickly giving a finish to the cruder parts of
+the place. Such vines, among others, are various kinds of clematis,
+Virginia creeper, actinidia, akebia, trumpet creeper, periploca,
+bitter-sweet (_Solanum Dulcamara_), wax-work (_Celastrus scandens_).
+
+Of course, very good immediate effects may be secured by very close
+planting (page 222), but the homesteader must not neglect to thin out
+these plantations when the time comes.
+
+
+[Illustration: Fig 236. Stump covered with Japanese honeysuckle.]
+
+_The use of “foliage” trees and shrubs_.
+
+There is always a temptation to use too freely of the trees and shrubs
+that are characterized by abnormal or striking foliage. The subject is
+discussed in its artistic bearings on pages 40 and 41.
+
+As a rule, the yellow-leaved, spotted-leaved, variegated, and other
+abnormal “foliage” plants are less hardy and less reliable than the
+green-leaved or “natural” forms. They usually require more care, if
+they are kept in vigorous and seemly condition. Some marked exceptions
+to this are noted in the lists of trees and shrubs.
+
+There are some plants of striking foliage, however, that are perfectly
+reliable, but they are usually not of the “horticultural variety”
+class, their characteristics being normal to the species. Some of the
+silver or white-leaved poplars, for example, produce the most striking
+contrasts of foliage, particularly if set near darker trees, and for
+this reason they are much desired by many planters. Bolle’s poplar
+(_Populus Bolleana_ of the nurseries) is one of the best of these
+trees. Its habit is something like that of the Lombardy. The upper
+surface of the deeply lobed leaves is dark dull green, while the under
+surface is almost snowy white. Such emphatic trees as this should
+generally be partially obscured by planting them amongst other trees,
+so that they appear to mix with the other foliage; or else they should
+be seen at some distance. Other varieties of the common white poplar or
+abele are occasionally useful, although most of them sprout badly and
+may become a nuisance. But the planting of these immodest trees is so
+likely to be overdone that one scarcely dare recommend them, although,
+when skillfully used, they may be made to produce most excellent
+effects. If any reader has a particular fondness for trees of this
+class (or any others with woolly-white foliage) and if he has only an
+ordinary city lot or farm-yard to ornament, let him reduce his desires
+to a single tree, and then if that tree is planted in the interior of a
+group of other trees, no harm can result.
+
+_Windbreaks and screens_.
+
+A shelter-belt for the home grounds is often placed at the extreme edge
+of the home yard, toward the heaviest or prevailing wind. It may be a
+dense plantation of evergreens. If so, the Norway spruce is one of the
+best for general purposes in the northeastern states. For a lower belt
+the arbor vitae is excellent. Some of the pines, as the Scotch or
+Austrian, and the native white pine, are also to be advised,
+particularly if the belt is at some distance from the residence. As a
+rule, the coarser the tree the farther it should be placed from the
+house.
+
+The common deciduous trees of the region (as elm, maple, box-elder) may
+be planted in a row or rows for windbreaks. Good temporary shelter
+belts are secured by poplars and large willows. On the prairies and far
+north the laurel willow _(Salix laurifolia_ of the trade) is excellent.
+Where snow blows very badly, two lines of breaks may be planted three
+to six rods apart, so that the inclosed lane may catch the drift; this
+method is employed in prairie regions.
+
+Persons may desire to use the break as a screen to hide undesirable
+objects. If these objects are of a permanent character, as a barn or an
+unkempt property, evergreen trees should be used. For temporary
+screens, any of the very large-growing herbaceous plants may be
+employed. Very excellent subjects are sunflowers, the large-growing
+nicotianas, castor beans, large varieties of Indian corn, and plants of
+like growth. Excellent screens are sometimes made with vines on a
+trellis.
+
+Very efficient summer screens may be made with ailanthus, paulownia,
+basswood, sumac, and other plants that tend to throw up very vigorous
+shoots from the base. After these plants have been set a year or two,
+they are cut back nearly to the ground in winter or spring, and strong
+shoots are thrown up with great luxuriance during the summer, giving a
+dense screen and presenting a semi-tropical effect. For such purposes,
+the roots should be planted only two or three feet apart. If, after a
+time, the roots become so crowded that the shoots are weak, some of the
+plants may be removed. Top-dressing the area every fall with manure
+will tend to make the ground rich enough to afford a very heavy summer
+growth. (See Fig. 50.)
+
+_The making of hedges_.
+
+Hedges are much less used in this country than in Europe, and for
+several reasons. Our climate is dry, and most hedges do not thrive so
+well here as there; labor is high-priced, and the trimming is therefore
+likely to be neglected; our farms are so large that much fencing is
+required; timber and wire are cheaper than live hedges.
+
+However, hedges are used with good effect about the home grounds. In
+order to secure a good ornamental hedge, it is necessary to have a
+thoroughly well-prepared deep soil, to set the plants close, and to
+shear them at least twice every year. For evergreen hedges the most
+serviceable plant in general is the arbor vitae. The plants may be set
+at distances of 1 to 2-1/2 feet apart. For coarser hedges, the Norway
+spruce is used; and for still coarser ones, the Scotch and Austrian
+pines. In California the staple conifer hedge is made of Monterey
+cypress. For choice evergreen hedges about the grounds, particularly
+outside the northern states, some of the retinosporas are very useful.
+One of the most satisfactory of all coniferous plants for hedges is the
+common hemlock, which stands shearing well and makes a very soft and
+pleasing mass. The plants may be set from 2 to 4 feet apart.
+
+Other plants that hold their leaves and are good for hedges are the
+common box and the privets. Box hedges are the best for very low
+borders about walks and flower-beds. The dwarf variety can be kept down
+to a height of 6 inches to a foot for any number of years. The
+larger-growing varieties make excellent hedges 3, 4, and 5 feet high.
+The ordinary privet or prim holds its leaves well into winter in the
+North. The so-called Californian privet holds its leaves rather longer
+and stands better along the seashore. The mahonia makes a low, loose
+hedge or edging in locations where it will thrive. Pyracantha is also
+to be recommended where hardy. In the southern states, nothing is
+better than _Citrus trifoliata_. This is hardy even farther north than
+Washington in very favored localities. In the South, _Prunus
+Caroliniana_ is also used for hedges. Saltbush hedges are frequent in
+California.
+
+For hedges of deciduous plants, the most common species are the
+buckthorn, Japan quince, the European hawthorn and other thorns,
+tamarix, osage orange, honey locust, and various kinds of roses. Osage
+orange has been the most used for farm hedges. For home grounds,
+_Berberis Thunbergii_ makes an excellent free hedge; also _Spiræa
+Thunbergii_ and other spireas. The common _Rosa rugosa_ makes an
+attractive free hedge.
+
+Hedges should be trimmed the year after they are set, although they
+should not be sheared very closely until they reach the desired or
+permanent height. Thereafter they should be cut into the desired form
+in spring or fall, or both. If the plants are allowed to grow for a
+year or two without trimming, they lose their lower leaves and become
+open and straggly. Osage orange and some other plants are plashed; that
+is, the plants are set at an angle rather than perpendicularly, and
+they are wired together obliquely in such a way that they make an
+impenetrable barrier just above the surface of the ground.
+
+For closely clipped or sheared hedges, the best plants are arbor vitae,
+retinospora, hemlock, Norway spruce, privet, buckthorn, box, osage
+orange, pyracantha, _Citrus trifoliata_. The pyracantha _(Pyracantha
+coccinea_) is an evergreen shrub allied to cratægus, of which it is
+sometimes considered to be a species. It is also sometimes referred to
+cotoneaster. Although hardy in protected places in the North, it is
+essentially a bush of the middle and southern latitudes, and of
+California. It has persistent foliage and red berries. Var. _Lalandi_
+has orange-red berries.
+
+_The borders_.
+
+The word “border” is used to designate the heavy or continuous planting
+about the boundaries of a place, or along the walks and drives, or
+against the buildings, in distinction from planting on the lawn or in
+the interior spaces. A border receives different designations,
+depending on the kinds of plants that are grown therein: it may be a
+shrub-border, a flower-border, a hardy border for native and other
+plants, a vine-border, and the like.
+
+There are three rules for the choosing of plants for a hardy border:
+choose (1) those that you like best, (2) those that are adapted to the
+climate and soil, (3) those that are in place or in keeping with that
+part of the grounds.
+
+The earth for the border should be fertile. The whole ground should be
+plowed or spaded and the plants set irregularly in the space; or the
+back row may be set in a line. If the border is composed of shrubs, and
+is large, a horse cultivator may be run in and out between the plants
+for the first two or three years, since the shrubs will be set 2 to 4
+feet apart. Ordinarily, however, the tilling is done with hand tools.
+After the plants are once established and the border is filled, it is
+best to dig up as little as possible, for the digging disturbs the
+roots and breaks the crowns. It is usually best to pull out the weeds
+and give the border a top-dressing each fall of well-rotted manure. If
+the ground is not very rich, an application of ashes or some commercial
+fertilizer may be given from time to time.
+
+The border should be planted so thick as to allow the plants to run
+together, thereby giving one continuous effect. Most shrubs should be
+set 3 feet apart. Things as large as lilacs may go 4 feet and sometimes
+even more. Common herbaceous perennials, as bleeding heart,
+delphiniums, hollyhocks, and the like, should go from 12 to 18 inches.
+On the front edge of the border is a very excellent place for annual
+and tender flowering plants. Here, for example, one may make a fringe
+of asters, geraniums, coleus, or anything else he may choose. (Chap.
+II.)
+
+Into the heavy borders about the boundaries of the place the autumn
+leaves will drift and afford an excellent mulch. If these borders are
+planted with shrubs, the leaves may be left there to decay, and not be
+raked off in the spring.
+
+The general outline of the border facing the lawn should be more or
+less wavy or irregular, particularly if it is on the boundary of the
+place. Alongside a walk or drive the margins may follow the general
+directions of the walk or drive.
+
+In making borders of perennial flowers the most satisfactory results
+are secured if a large clump of each kind or variety is grown. The
+herbaceous border is one of the most flexible parts of grounds, since
+it has no regular or formal design. Allow ample space for each
+perennial root,—often as much as three or four square feet,—and then if
+the space is not filled the first year or two, scatter over the area
+seeds of poppies, sweet peas, asters, gilias, alyssum, or other
+annuals. Figures 237-239, from Long (“Popular Gardening,” i., 17, 18),
+suggest methods of making such borders. They are on a scale of ten feet
+to the inch. The entire surface is tilled, and the irregular diagrams
+designate the sizes of the clumps. The diagrams containing no names are
+to be filled with bulbs, annuals, and tender plants, if desired.
+
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 237. Suggestions for a border of spring flowers.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 238. A border of summer-flowering herbs.]
+
+It must not be supposed, however, that one cannot have a border unless
+he has wide marginal spaces about his grounds. It is surprising how
+many things one can grow in an old fence. Perennials that grow in
+fence-rows in fields ought also to grow in similar boundaries on the
+home grounds. Some of garden annuals will thrive alongside a fence,
+particularly if the fence does not shut off too much light; and many
+vines (both perennial and annual) will cover it effectively. Among
+annuals, the large-seeded, quick-germinating, rapid-growing kinds will
+do best. Sunflower, sweet pea, morning glory, Japanese hop, zinnia,
+marigold, amaranths, four o’clock, are some of the kinds that will hold
+their own. If the effort is made to grow plants in such places, it is
+important to give them all the advantage possible early in the season,
+so that they will get well ahead of the grass and weeds. Spade up the
+ground all you can. Add a little quick-acting fertilizer. It is best to
+start the plants in pots or small boxes, so that they will be in
+advance of the weeds when they are set out.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 239. An autumn-flowering border.]
+
+_The flower-beds._
+
+We must remember to distinguish two uses of flowers,—their part in a
+landscape design or picture, and their part in a bed or separate garden
+for bloom. We now consider the flower-bed proper; and we include in the
+flower-bed such “foliage” plants as coleus, celosia, croton, and canna,
+although the main object of the flower-bed is to produce an abundance
+of flowers.
+
+In making a flower-bed, see that the ground is well drained; that the
+subsoil is deep; that the land is in a mellow and friable condition,
+and that it is fertile. Each fall it may have a mulch of rotted manure
+or of leafmold, which may be spaded under deeply in the spring; or the
+land may be spaded and left rough in the fall, which is a good practice
+when the soil has much clay. Make the flower-beds as broad as possible,
+so that the roots of the grass running in from either side will not
+meet beneath the flowers and rob the beds of food and moisture. It is
+well to add a little commercial fertilizer each fall or spring.
+
+Although it is well to emphasize making the ground fertile, it must be
+remembered (as indicated at the close of Chap. IV) that it can easily
+be made too rich for such plants as we desire to keep within certain
+stature and for those from which we wish an abundance of bloom in a
+short season. In over-rich ground, nasturtiums and some other plants
+not only “run to vine,” but the bloom lacks brilliancy. When it is the
+leaf and vegetation that is wanted, there is little danger of making
+the ground too rich, although it is possible to make the plant so
+succulent and sappy that it becomes sprawly or breaks down; and other
+plants may be crippled and crowded out.
+
+There are various styles of flower-planting. The mixed border, planted
+with various hardy plants, and extending along either side of the
+garden-walk, was popular years ago; and, with modifications in
+position, form, and extent, has been a popular attachment to home
+grounds during the past few years. To produce the best effects the
+plants should be set close enough to cover the ground; and the
+selection should be such as to afford a continuity of bloom.
+
+The mixed flower-bed may contain only tender summer-blooming plants, in
+which case the bed, made up mostly of annuals, does not purport to
+express the entire season.
+
+In distinction from the mixed or non-homogeneous flowerbed are the
+various forms of “bedding,” in which plants are massed for the purpose
+of making a connected and homogeneous bold display of form or color.
+The bedding may be for the purpose of producing a strong effect of
+white, of blue, or of red; or of ribbon-like lines and edgings; or of
+luxurious and tropical expression; or to display boldly the features of
+a particular plant, as the tulip, the hyacinth, the chrysanthemum.
+
+In ribbon-bedding, flowering or foliage plants are arranged in
+ribbon-like lines of harmoniously contrasting colors, commonly
+accompanying walks or drives, but also suitable for marking limits, or
+for the side borders. In such beds, as well as the others, the tallest
+plants will be placed at the back, if the bed is to be seen from one
+side only, and the lowest at the front. If it is to be seen from both
+sides, then the tallest will stand in the center.
+
+A modification of the ribbon-line, bringing the contrasting colors
+together into masses forming circles or other patterns, is known as
+“massing,” or “massing in color,” and sometimes is spoken of as
+“carpet-bedding.”
+
+Carpet-bedding, however, belongs more properly to a style of bedding in
+which plants of dense, low, spreading habit—chiefly foliage plants,
+with leaves of different forms and colors—are planted in patterns not
+unlike carpets or rugs. It is often necessary to keep the plants
+sheared into limits. Carpet-bedding is such a specialized form of
+plant-growing that we shall treat of it separately.
+
+Beds containing the large foliage plants, for producing tropical
+effects, are composed, in the main, of subjects that are allowed to
+develop naturally. In the lower and more orderly massing, the plants
+are arranged not only in circles and patterns according to habit and
+height, but the selection is such that some or all may be kept within
+proper limits by pinching or trimming. Circles or masses composed of
+flowering plants usually cannot be cut back at the top, so that the
+habit of the plants must be known before planting; and the plants must
+be placed in parts of the bed where trimming will not be necessary.
+They may be clipped at the sides, however, in case the branches or
+leaves of one mass or line in the pattern grow beyond their proper
+bounds.
+
+The numbers of good annuals and perennials that may be used in
+flower-beds are now very large, and one may have a wide choice. Various
+lists from which one may choose are given at the end of this chapter;
+but special comment may be made on those most suitable for bedding, and
+in its modification in ribbon-work and sub-tropical massing.
+
+Bedding effects.
+
+Bedding is ordinarily a temporary species of planting; that is, the bed
+is filled anew each year. However, the term may be used to designate a
+permanent plantation in which the plants are heavily massed so as to
+give one continuous or emphatic display of form or color. Some of the
+best permanent bedding masses are made of the various hardy ornamental
+grasses, as eulalias, arundo, and the like. The color effects in
+bedding may be secured with flowers or with foliage.
+
+Summer bedding is often made by perennial plants that are carried over
+from the preceding year, or better, that are propagated for that
+particular purpose in February and March. Such plants as geranium,
+coleus, alyssum, scarlet salvia, ageratum, and heliotrope may be used
+for these beds. It is a common practice to use geranium plants which
+are in bloom during the winter for bedding out during the summer, but
+such plants are tall and ungainly in form and have expended the greater
+part of their energies. It is better to propagate new plants by taking
+cuttings or slips late in the winter and setting out young fresh
+vigorous subjects. (Page 30.)
+
+Some bedding is very temporary in its effect. Especially is this true
+of spring bedding, in which the subjects are tulips, hyacinths,
+crocuses, or other early-flowering bulbous plants. In this case, the
+ground is usually occupied later in the season by other plants. These
+later plants are commonly annuals, the seeds of which are sown amongst
+the bulbs as soon as the season is far enough advanced; or the annuals
+may be started in boxes and the plants transplanted amongst the bulbs
+as soon as the weather is fit.
+
+Many of the low-growing and compact continuous-flowering annuals are
+excellent for summer bedding effects. There is a list of some useful
+material for this purpose on page 249.
+
+Plants for subtropical effects (Plates IV and V).
+
+The number of plants suitable to produce a semitropical mass or for the
+center or back of a group, which may be readily grown from seed, is
+limited. Some of the best kinds, are included below.
+
+It will often be worth while to supplement these with others, to be had
+at the florists, such as caladiums, screw pines, _Ficus elastica,_
+araucarias, _Musa Ensete_, palms, dracenas, crotons, and others.
+Dahlias and tuberous begonias are also useful. About a pond the papyrus
+and lotus may be used.
+
+Practically all the plants used for this style of gardening are liable
+to injury from winds, and therefore the beds should be placed in a
+protected situation. The palms and some other greenhouse stuff do
+better if partially shaded.
+
+In the use of such plants, there are opportunities for the exercise of
+the nicest taste. A gross feeder, as the ricinus, in the midst of a bed
+of delicate annuals, is quite out of place; and a stately,
+royal-looking plant among humbler kinds often makes the latter look
+common, when if headed with a chief of their own rank all would appear
+to the best advantage.
+
+Some of the plants much used for subtropical bedding, and often started
+for that purpose in a greenhouse or coldframe, are:—
+
+Acalypha.
+Amarantus.
+Aralia Sieboldii (properly Fatsia Japonica).
+Bamboos.
+Caladium and colocasia.
+Canna.
+Coxcomb, particularly the new “foliage” kinds.
+Grasses, as eulalias, pampas-grass, pennisetums.
+Gunnera.
+Maize, the striped form.
+Ricinus or castor bean.
+Scarlet sage.
+Wigandia.
+
+
+_Aquatic and bog plants_.
+
+Some of the most interesting and ornamental of all plants grow in water
+and in wet places. It is possible to make an aquatic flower-garden, and
+also to use water and bog plants as a part of the landscape work.
+
+The essential consideration in the growing of aquatics is the making of
+the pond. It is possible to grow water-lilies in tubs and half barrels;
+but this does not provide sufficient room, and the plant-food is likely
+soon to be exhausted and the plants to fail. The small quantity of
+water is likely also to become foul.
+
+The best ponds are those made by good mason work, for the water does
+not become muddy by working among the plants. In cement ponds it is
+best to plant the roots of water-lilies in shallow boxes of earth (1
+foot deep and 3 or 4 feet square), or to hold the earth in mason-work
+compartments.
+
+
+X: A shallow lawn pond, containing water-lilies, variegated sweet flag,
+iris, and subtropical bedding at the rear; fountain covered with
+parrot’s feather _(Myriophyllum proserpinacoides_). X: A shallow lawn
+pond, containing water-lilies, variegated sweet flag, iris, and
+subtropical bedding at the rear; fountain covered with parrot’s feather
+_(Myriophyllum proserpinacoides_).
+
+Usually the ponds or tanks are not cement lined. In some soils a simple
+excavation will hold water, but it is usually necessary to give the
+tank some kind of lining. Clay is often used. The bottom and sides of
+the tank are pounded firm, and then covered with 3 to 6 in. of clay,
+which has been kneaded in the hands, or pounded and worked in a box.
+Handfuls or shovelfuls of the material are thrown forcibly upon the
+earth, the operator being careful not to walk upon the work. The clay
+is smoothed by means of a spade or maul, and it is then sanded.
+
+The water for the lily pond may be derived from a brook, spring, well,
+or a city water supply. The plants will thrive in any water that is
+used for domestic purposes. It is important that the water does not
+become stagnant and a breeding place for mosquitoes. There should be an
+outlet in the nature of a stand-pipe, that will control the depth of
+water. It is not necessary that the water run through the pond or tank
+rapidly, but only that a slow change take place. Sometimes the water is
+allowed to enter through a fountain-vase, in which water plants (such
+as parrot’s feather) may be grown (Plate X).
+
+In all ponds, a foot or 15 in. is sufficient depth of water to stand
+above the crowns of the plants; and the greatest depth of water should
+not be more than 3 ft. for all kinds of water-lilies. Half this depth
+is often sufficient. The soil should be 1 to 2 ft. deep, and very rich.
+Old cow manure may be mixed with rich loam. For the nympheas or
+water-lilies, 9 to 12 in. of soil is sufficient. Most of the foreign
+water-lilies are not hardy, but some of them may be grown with ease if
+the pond is covered in winter.
+
+Roots of hardy water-lilies may be planted as soon as the pond is clear
+of frost, but the tender kinds (which are also to be taken up in the
+fall) should not be planted till it is time to plant out geraniums.
+Sink the roots into the mud so that they are just buried, and weight
+them down with a stone or clod. The nelumbium, or so-called Egyptian
+lotus, should not be transplanted till growth begins to show in the
+roots in the spring. The roots are cleaned of decayed parts and covered
+with about 3 in. of soil. A foot or so of water is sufficient for lotus
+ponds. The roots of Egyptian lotus must not freeze. The roots of all
+water-lily-like plants should be frequently divided and renewed.
+
+With hardy aquatics, the water and roots are allowed to remain
+naturally over winter. In very cold climates, the pond is protected by
+throwing boards over it and covering with hay, straw, or evergreen
+boughs. It is well to supply an additional depth of water as a further
+protection.
+
+As a landscape feature, the pond should have a background, or setting,
+and its edges should be relieved, at least on sides and back, by
+plantings of bog plants. In permanent ponds of large size, plantings of
+willows, osiers, and other shrubbery may set off the area to advantage.
+Many of the wild marsh and pond plants are excellent for marginal
+plantings, as sedges, cat-tail, sweet-flag (there is a striped-leaved
+form), and some of the marsh grasses. Japanese iris makes an excellent
+effect in such places. For summer planting in or near ponds, caladium,
+umbrella-plant, and papyrus are good.
+
+If there is a stream, “branch,” or “run” through the place, it may
+often be made one of the most attractive parts of the premises by
+colonizing bog plants along it.
+
+_Rockeries, and alpine plants_.
+
+A rockery is a part of the place in which plants are grown in pockets
+between rocks. It is a flower-garden conception rather than a landscape
+feature, and therefore should be at one side or in the rear of the
+premises. Primarily, the object of using the rocks is to provide better
+conditions in which certain plants may grow; sometimes the rocks are
+employed to hold a springy or sloughing bank and the plants are used to
+cover the rocks; now and then a person wants a rock or a pile of stones
+in his yard, as another person would want a piece of statuary or a
+sheared evergreen. Sometimes the rocks are natural to the place and
+cannot well be removed; in this case the planning and planting should
+be such as to make them part of the picture.
+
+The real rock-garden, however, is a place in which to grow plants. The
+rocks are secondary. The rocks should not appear to be placed for
+display. If one is making a collection of rocks, he is pursuing geology
+rather than gardening.
+
+Yet many of the so-called rock-gardens are mere heaps of stones, placed
+where it seems to be convenient to pile stones rather than where the
+stones may improve conditions for the growing of plants.
+
+The plants that will naturally grow in rock pockets are those requiring
+a continuous supply of root moisture and a cool atmosphere. To place a
+rockery on a sand bank in the burning sun is therefore entirely out of
+character.
+
+Rock-garden plants are those of cool woods, of bogs, and particularly
+of high mountains and alpine regions. It is generally understood that a
+rock-garden is an alpine-garden, although this is not necessarily so.
+
+In this country alpine-gardening is little known, largely because of
+our hot dry summers and falls. But if one has a rather cool exposure
+and an unfailing water supply, he may succeed fairly well with many of
+the alpines, or at least with the semi-alpines.
+
+Most of the alpines are low and often tufted plants, and bloom in a
+spring temperature. In our long hot seasons, the alpine-garden may be
+expected to be dormant during much of the summer, unless other
+rock-loving plants are colonized in it. Alpine plants are of many
+kinds. They are specially to be found in the genera arenaria, silene,
+diapensia, primula, saxifraga, arabis, aubrietia, veronica, campanula,
+gentiana. They comprise a good number of ferns and many little heaths.
+
+A good rock-garden of any kind does not have the stones piled merely on
+the surface; they are sunken well into the ground and are so placed
+that there are deep chambers or channels that hold moisture and into
+which roots may penetrate. The pockets are filled with good fibrous
+moisture-holding earth, and often a little sphagnum or other moss is
+added. It must then be arranged so that the pockets never dry out.
+
+Rock-gardens are usually failures, because they violate these very
+simple elementary principles; but even when the soil conditions and
+moisture conditions are good, the habits of the rock plants must be
+learned, and this requires thoughtful experience. Rock-gardens cannot
+be generally recommended.
+
+1. PLANTS FOR CARPET-BEDS
+(By Ernest Walker)
+
+The beauty of the carpet-bed lies largely in its unity, sharp contrast
+and harmony of color, elegance—often simplicity—of design, nicety of
+execution, and the continued distinctness of outline due to scrupulous
+care. A generous allowance of green-sward on all sides contributes
+greatly to the general effect,—in fact it is indispensable.
+
+Whatever place is chosen for the bed, it should be in a sunny exposure.
+This, nor any kind of bed, should not be planted near large trees, as
+their greedy roots will rob the soil not only of its food, but of
+moisture. The shade also will be a menace. As the plants stand so
+thick, the soil should be well enriched, and spaded at least a foot
+deep. In planting, a space of at least six inches must be left between
+the outer row of plants and the edge of the grass. The very style of
+the bed requires that lines be straight, the curves uniform, and that
+they be kept so by the frequent and careful use of the shears. During
+dry periods watering will be necessary. The beds, however, should not
+be watered in the hot sunshine. Foliage plants are most in use, and are
+the ones which will prove the most satisfactory in the hands of the
+inexperienced, as they submit to severe clipping and are thus more
+easily managed.
+
+The following list will be helpful to the beginner. It embraces a
+number of the plants in common use for carpet-bedding, although not all
+of them. The usual heights are given in inches. This, of course, in
+different soils and under different treatment is more or less a
+variable quantity. The figures in parentheses suggest in inches
+suitable distances for planting in the row when immediate effects are
+expected. A verbena in rich soil will in time cover a circle three feet
+or more in diameter; other plants mentioned spread considerably; but
+when used in the carpet-bed, they must be planted close. One cannot
+wait for them to grow. The aim is to cover the ground at once. Although
+planted thick in the row, it will be desirable to leave more room
+between the rows in case of spreading plants like the verbena. Most of
+them, however, need little if any more space between the rows than is
+indicated by the figures given. In the list those plants that bear free
+clipping are marked with *:
+
+_Lists for carpet-beds._
+
+_The figure immediately following the name of plant indicates its
+height, the figures in parentheses the distance for planting, in
+inches_.
+
+1. LOW-GROWING PLANTS
+
+A. FOLIAGE PLANTS.
+
+         _Crimson_.—*Alternanthera amœna spectabilis, 6 (4-6).
+                          Alternanthera paronychioides major, 5 (3-6).
+                          Alternanthera versicolor, 5 (3-6).
+
+          _Yellow_.—Alternanthera aurea nana, 6 (4-6).
+
+_Gray, or whitish_.—Echeveria secunda, glauca, 1-1/2 (3-4).
+                          Echeveria metallica, 9 (6-8).
+                          Cineraria maritima, 15 (9-12).
+                          Sempervivum Californicum, 1-1/2 (3-4).
+                          Thymus argenteus, 6 (4-6).
+
+    _Bronze brown_.—Oxalis tropæoloides, 3 (3-4).
+
+_Variegated_
+      (white and green).—Geranium Mme. Salleroi, 6 (6-8).
+                          *Sweet alyssum, variegated, 6 (6-9).
+
+
+
+B. FLOWERING PLANTS.
+
+         _Scarlet_.—Phlox Drummondii, Dwarf, 6 (4-6).
+                          Cuphea platycentra, Cigar Plant, 6 (4-6).
+
+           _White_.—Sweet alyssum, Little Gem, 4 (4-6).
+                          Sweet alyssum, common, 6 (6-8).
+                          Phlox Drummondii, Dwarf, 6 (4-6).
+
+            _Blue_.—Lobelia, Crystal Palace, 6 (4-6).
+                          Ageratum, Dwarf Blue, 6 (6-8).
+
+
+
+
+2. PLANTS OF TALLER GROWTH
+
+
+
+A. FOLIAGE PLANTS.
+
+         _Crimson_.—*Coleus Verschaffeltii, 24 (9-12).
+                          *Achyranthes Lindeni, 18 (8-12).
+                          *Achyranthes Gilsoni, 12 (8-12).
+                          *Achyranthes Verschaffeltii, 12 (8-12).
+                          *Acalypha tricolor, 12-18 (12).
+
+          _Yellow_.—*Coleus, Golden Bedder, 24 (9-12).
+                          *Achyranthes, aurea reticulata, 12 (8-12).
+                          Golden feverfew (Pyrethrum parthenifolium
+                          aureum), (6-8).
+                          Bronze geranium, 12 (9).
+
+   _Silvery white_.—Dusty miller (Centaurea gymnocarpa), 12 (8-12).
+                          *Santolina Chamæcyparissus incana, 6-12
+                          (6-8).
+                          Geranium, Mountain of Snow, 12 (6-9).
+
+_Variegated_
+      (white and green).—*Stevia serrata var., 12-18 (8-12).
+                          Phalaris arundinaeca var., (grass), 24 (4-8).
+                          Cyperus alternifolius var., 24-30 (8-12).
+
+          _Bronze_.—*Acalypha marginata, 24 (12).
+
+
+B. FLOWERING PLANTS.
+
+         _Scarlet_.—Salvia splendens, 36 (12-18).
+                          Geraniums, 24 (12).
+                          Cuphea tricolor (C. Llavae), 18 (8-12).
+                          Dwarf nasturtium (Tropaeolum), 12-18 (12-18).
+                          Begonia, Vernon, 12 (6-8).
+                          Verbenas, 12 (6-12).
+                          Phlox Drummondii, Dwarf, 6 (4-6).
+
+           _White_.—Salvia splendens, White-flowered, 36 (12-18).
+                          Geraniums, 18-24 (12).
+                          Lantana, Innocence, 18-24 (8-12).
+                          Lantana, Queen Victoria, 24 (8-12).
+                          Verbena, Snow Queen, 12 (6-12).
+                          Ageratum, White, 9 (6-9).
+                          Phlox Drummondii, Dwarf, 6 (4-6).
+
+            _Pink_.—Petunia, Countess of Ellesmere, 18 (8-12).
+                          Lantana, 24 (8-12).
+                          Verbena, Beauty of Oxford, 6 (8-12).
+                          Phlox Drummondii, Dwarf, 6 (4-6).
+
+          _Yellow_.—Dwarf nasturtium, 12 (12-18).
+                          Anthemis coronaria fl. pl., 12 (6-8).
+
+            _Blue_.—Ageratum Mexicanum, 12 (6-8).
+                          Verbenas, 6 (6-12).
+                          Heliotrope, Queen of Violets, 18 (12-18).
+
+In Fig. 240 are shown a few designs suitable for carpet-beds. They are
+intended merely to be suggestive, not to be copied precisely. The
+simple forms and component parts of the more elaborate beds may be
+arranged into other designs. Likewise the arrangement of plants, which
+will be mentioned as suitable for making a given pattern, is only one
+of many possible combinations. The idea is merely to bring out the
+design distinctly. To accomplish this it is only necessary to use
+plants of contrasting color or growth. To illustrate how varied are the
+arrangements that may be used, and how easily different effects are
+produced with a single design, several different combinations of color
+for the bed No. 1 will be mentioned:
+
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 240. Designs for carpet-beds.]
+
+No. 1.—Arrangement A: Outside, Alternanthera amœna spectabilis; inside,
+Stevia serrata variegata. B: lobelia, Crystal Palace; Mme. Salleroi
+geranium. C: lobelia, Crystal Palace; scarlet dwarf phlox. D: sweet
+alyssum; petunia, Countess of Ellesmere. E: coleus, Golden Bedder;
+Coleus Verschaffeltii. F: Achyranthes Lindeni; yellow dwarf nasturtium.
+
+No. 2.—Outside, red alternanthera; middle, dusty miller; center, pink
+geranium.
+
+No. 3.—Outside, Alternanthera aurea nana; middle, Alternanthera amœna
+spectabilis; center, Anthemis coronaria.
+
+No. 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 12 may each be filled with a single color, or given
+a border of suitable plants if the planter so chooses.
+
+No. 9.—Ground, Alternanthera aurea nana; center, Acalypha tricolor;
+black dots, scarlet geranium.
+
+No. 10.—Ground of Centaurea gymnocarpa; circle, Achyranthes Lindeni;
+cross, Golden coleus.
+
+No. 11.—Border, Oxalis tropæoloides; center, blue heliotrope, blue
+ageratum, or Acalypha marginata; cross about the center, Thymus
+argenteus, or centaurea; scallop outside the cross, blue lobelia;
+corners, inside border, santolina.
+
+Designs 13 and 14 are, in character, somewhat in the style of a
+parterre; but instead of the intervening spaces in the bed being
+ordinary walks they are of grass. Such beds are of a useful type,
+because they may be made large and yet be executed with a comparatively
+small number of plants. They are especially suitable for the center of
+an open plot of lawn with definite formal boundaries on all sides, such
+as walks or drives. Whether they are to be composed of tall-growing or
+of low-growing plants will depend upon the distance they are to be from
+the observer. For a moderate-sized plot the following plants might be
+used:—
+
+No. 13.—Border, red alternanthera; second row, dwarf orange or yellow
+nasturtium; third row, Achyranthes Gilsoni, or Acalypha tricolor;
+central square, scarlet geraniums, with a border of Centaurea
+gymnocarpa; intervening spaces, grass. Instead of the square of
+geraniums, a vase might be substituted, or a clump of Salvia splendens.
+
+No. 14.—Composite beds like this and the former are always suggestive.
+They contain various features which may readily be recombined into
+other patterns. Sometimes it may be convenient to use only portions of
+the design. The reader should feel that no arrangement is arbitrary,
+but merely a suggestion that he may use with the utmost freedom, only
+keeping harmony in view. For No. 14, the following may be an acceptable
+planting arrangement: Border, Mme. Salleroi geranium; small dots, dwarf
+scarlet tropeolum; diamonds, blue lobelia; crescents, Stevia serrata
+variegata; inner border, crimson achyranthes or coleus; loops,
+Centaurea gymnocarpa; wedge-shaped portions, scarlet geranium.
+
+No. 15.—Suitable for a corner. Border, red alternanthera; second row,
+Alternanthera aurea nana; third row, red alternanthera; center,
+Echeveria Californica.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 241. Carpet-bed for a bay or recession in the
+border planting.]
+
+No. 16—Border, crimson alternanthera (another border of yellow
+alternanthera might be placed inside of this); ground, Echeveria
+secunda glauca; inner border, Oxalis tropæoloides; center,
+Alternanthera aurea nana. Or, inner border, Echeveria Californica;
+center, crimson alternanthera.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 242. Another circular carpet-bed.]
+
+No. 17.—Another bed intended to fill an angle. Its curved side will
+also fit it for use with a circular design. Border, dwarf blue
+ageratum; circle, blue lobelia; ground (3 parts), crimson
+alternanthera.
+
+Other carpet or mosaic beds (after Long), with the plants indicated,
+are shown in Figs. 241, 242.
+
+2. THE ANNUAL PLANTS
+
+The annual flowers of the seedsmen are those that give their best bloom
+in the very year in which the seeds are sown. True annuals are those
+plants that complete their entire life-cycle in one season. Some of the
+so-called annual flowers will continue to bloom the second and third
+years, but the bloom is so poor and sparse after the first season that
+it does not pay to keep them. Some perennials may be treated as annuals
+by starting the seeds early; Chinese pink, pansy and snapdragon are
+examples.
+
+The regular biennials may be treated practically as annuals; that is,
+seeds may be sown every year, and after the first year, therefore, a
+seasonal succession of bloom may be had. Of such are adlumia,
+Canterbury bell, lunaria, ipomopsis, Œnothera Lamarckiana; and
+foxglove, valerian, and some other perennials would better be treated
+as biennials.
+
+Most annuals will bloom in central New York if the seeds are sown in
+the open ground when the weather becomes thoroughly settled. But there
+are some kinds, as the late cosmos and moon-flowers, for which the
+northern season is commonly too short to give good bloom unless they
+are started very early indoors.
+
+If flowers of any annual are wanted extra early, the seeds should be
+started under cover. A greenhouse is not necessary for this purpose,
+although best results are to be expected with such a building. The seed
+may be sown in boxes, and these boxes then placed in a sheltered
+position on the warm side of a building. At night they may be covered
+with boards or matting. In very cold “spells” the boxes should be
+brought inside. In this simple way seeds may often be started one to
+three weeks ahead of the time when they can be sown in the open garden.
+Moreover, the plants are likely to receive better care in these boxes,
+and therefore to grow more rapidly. Of course, if still earlier results
+are desired, the seed should be sown in the kitchen, hotbed, coldframe,
+or in a greenhouse. In starting plants ahead of the season, be careful
+not to use too deep boxes. The gardener’s “flat” may be taken as a
+suggestion. Three inches of earth is sufficient, and in some cases (as
+when the plants are started late) half this depth is enough.
+
+The difficulty with early sown seedlings is “drawing up,” and weakness
+from crowding and want of light. This is most liable to occur with
+window-grown plants. Vigorous June-sown plants are better than such
+weaklings. It must be remembered that very early bloom usually means
+the shortening of the season at the other end; this may be remedied to
+some extent by making sowings at different times.
+
+The “hardy” annuals are such as develop readily without the aid of
+artificial heat. They are commonly sown in May or earlier, directly in
+the open ground where they are to grow. Florists often sow certain
+kinds in the fall, and winter the young plants in coldframes. They may
+also be wintered under a covering of leaves or evergreen boughs. Some
+of the hardy annuals (as sweet pea) withstand considerable frost. The
+“half-hardy” and “tender” annuals are alike in that they require more
+warmth for their germination and growth. The tender kinds are very
+quickly sensitive to frost. Both these, like the hardy kinds, may be
+sown in the open ground, but not until the weather has become settled
+and warm, which for the tender kinds will not commonly be before the
+first of June; but the tender kinds, at least, are preferably started
+in the house and transplanted to their outdoor beds. Of course, these
+terms are wholly relative. What may be a tender annual in Massachusetts
+may be a hardy annual or even a perennial in Louisiana.
+
+These terms as ordinarily used in this country refer to the northern
+states, or not farther south than middle Atlantic states.
+
+Some familiar examples of hardy annuals are sweet alyssum, ageratum,
+calendula, calliopsis, candytuft, Centaurea Cyanus, clarkia, larkspur,
+gilia, California poppy, morning-glory, marigold, mignonette,
+nemophila, pansy, phlox, pinks, poppies, portulaca, zinnia, sweet pea,
+scabiosa.
+
+Examples of half-hardy annuals are: China aster, alonsoa, balsam,
+petunia, ricinus, stocks, balloon-vine, martynia, salpiglossis,
+thunbergia, nasturtium, verbena.
+
+Examples of tender annuals: Amarantus, celosia or coxcomb, cosmos,
+cotton, Lobelia Erinus, cobea, gourds, ice-plant, sensitive-plant,
+solanums, torenia, and such things as dahlias, caladiums, and acalypha
+used for bedding and subtropical effects.
+
+Some annuals do not bear transplanting well; as poppies, bartonia,
+Venus’ looking-glass, the dwarf convolvulus, lupinus, and malope. It is
+best, therefore, to sow them where they are to grow.
+
+Some kinds (as poppies) do not bloom all summer, more especially not if
+allowed to produce seed. Of such kinds a second or third sowing at
+intervals will provide a succession. Preventing the formation of seeds
+prolongs their life and flowering period.
+
+A few of the annuals thrive in partial shade or where they receive
+sunshine for half the day; but most of them prefer a sunny situation.
+
+Any good garden soil is suitable for annuals. If not naturally fertile
+and friable, it should be made so by the application of well-rotted
+stable-manure or humus. The spading should be at least one foot deep.
+The upper six inches is then to be given a second turning to pulverize
+and mix it. After making the surface fine and smooth the soil should be
+pressed down with a board. The seed may now be sprinkled on the soil in
+lines or concentric circles, according to the method desired. After
+covering the seed, the soil should be again pressed down with a board.
+This promotes capillarity, by which the surface of the soil is better
+supplied with moisture from below. Always mark with a label the kind
+and position of all seed sown.
+
+If the flowers are to be grown about the edges of the lawn, make sure
+that the grass roots do not run underneath them and rob them of food
+and moisture. It is well to run a sharp spade deep into the ground
+about the edges of the bed every two or three weeks for the purpose of
+cutting off any grass roots that may have run into the bed. If beds are
+made in the turf, see that they are 3 ft. or more wide, so that the
+grass roots will not undermine them. Against the shrub borders, this
+precaution may not be necessary. In fact, it is desirable that the
+flowers fill all the space between the overhanging branches and the
+sod.
+
+It is surprising how few of the uncommon or little known annuals really
+have great merit for general purposes. There is nothing yet to take the
+place of the old-time groups, such as amaranths, zinnias, calendulas,
+daturas, balsams, annual pinks, candytufts, bachelor’s buttons,
+wallflowers, larkspurs, petunias, gaillardias, snapdragons, coxcombs,
+lobelias, coreopsis or calliopsis, California poppies, four-o’clocks,
+sweet sultans, phloxes, mignonettes, scabiosas, nasturtiums, marigolds,
+China asters, salpiglossis, nicotianas, pansies, portulacas, castor
+beans, poppies, sunflowers, verbenas, stocks, alyssums, and such good
+old running plants as scarlet runners, sweet peas, convolvuluses,
+ipomeas, tall nasturtiums, balloon vines, cobeas. Of the annual vines
+of recent introduction, the Japanese hop has at once taken a prominent
+place for the covering of fences and arbors, although it has no floral
+beauty to recommend it.
+
+For bold mass-displays of color in the rear parts of the grounds or
+along the borders, some of the coarser species are desirable. Good
+plants for such use are: sunflower and castor bean for the back rows;
+zinnias for bright effects in the scarlets and lilacs; African
+marigolds for brilliant yellows; nicotianas for whites. Unfortunately,
+we have no robust-growing annuals with good blues. Some of the
+larkspurs and the browallias are perhaps the nearest approach to them.
+
+For lower-growing and less gross mass-displays, the following are good:
+California poppies for oranges and yellows; sweet sultans for purples,
+whites, and pale yellows; petunias for purples, violets, and whites;
+larkspurs for blues and violets; bachelor’s buttons (or cornflowers)
+for blues; calliopsis and coreopsis and calendulas for yellows;
+gaillardias for red-yellows and orange-reds; China asters for many
+colors.
+
+For still less robustness, good mass-displays can be made with the
+following: alyssums and candytufts for whites; phloxes for whites and
+various pinks and reds; lobelias and browallias for blues; pinks for
+whites and various shades of pink; stocks for whites and reds;
+wallflowers for brown-yellows; verbenas for many colors.
+
+A garden of pleasant annual flowers is not complete that does not
+contain some of the “everlastings” or immortelles. These “paper
+flowers” are always interesting to children. They are not so desirable
+for the making of “dry bouquets” as for their value as a part of a
+garden. The colors are bright, the blooms hold long on the plant, and
+most of the kinds are very easy to grow. My favorite groups are the
+different kinds of xeranthemums and helichrysums. The globe amaranths,
+with clover-like heads (sometimes known as bachelor’s buttons), are
+good old favorites. Rhodanthes and acrocliniums are also good and
+reliable.
+
+The ornamental grasses should not be overlooked. They add a note to the
+flower-garden and to bouquets that is distinct and can be secured by no
+other plants. They are easily grown. Some of the good annual grasses
+are _Agrostis nebulosa_, the brizas, _Bromus brizæformis_, the species
+of eragrostis and pennisetums, and _Coix Lachryma_ as a curiosity. Such
+good lawn grasses as arundo, pampas-grass, eulalias, and erianthus are
+perennials and are therefore not included in this discussion.
+
+Some of the most reliable and easily grown annuals are given in the
+following lists (under the common trade names).
+
+_List of annuals by color of flowers._
+
+White Flowers
+
+
+Ageratum Mexicanum album.
+Alyssum, common sweet; compacta.
+Centranthus macrosiphon albus.
+China asters.
+Convolvulus major.
+Dianthus, Double White Margaret.
+Iberis amara; coronaria, White Rocket.
+Ipomœa hederacea.
+Lavatera alba.
+Malope grandiflora alba.
+Matthiola (Stocks), Cut and Come Again; Dresden Perpetual; Giant
+Perfection; White Pearl.
+Mirabilis longiflora alba.
+Nigella.
+Phlox, Dwarf Snowball; Leopoldii.
+Poppies, Flag of Truce; Shirley; The Mikado.
+Zinnia.
+
+Yellow and Orange Flowers
+
+
+Cacalia lutea.
+Calendula officinalis, common; Meteor; sulphurea; suffruticosa.
+Calliopsis bicolor marmorata; cardaminefolia; elegans picta.
+Cosmidium Burridgeanum.
+Erysimum Perofskianum.
+Eschscholtzia Californica.
+Hibiscus Africanus; Golden Bowl.
+Ipomœa coccinea lutea.
+Loasa tricolor.
+Tagetes, various kinds.
+Thunbergia alata Fryeri; aurantiaca.
+Tropaeolum, Dwarf, Lady Bird; Tall, Schulzi.
+Zinnia.
+
+Blue and Purple Flowers
+
+
+Ageratum Mexicanum; Mexicanum, Dwarf.
+Asperula setosa azurea.
+Brachycome iberidifolia.
+Browallia Czerniakowski; elata.
+Centaurea Cyanus, Victoria Dwarf Compact; Cyanus minor.
+China asters of several varieties.
+Convolvulus minor; minor unicaulis.
+Gilia achilleaefolia; capitata.
+Iberis umbellata; umbellata lilacina.
+Kaulfussia amelloides; atroviolacea.
+Lobelia Erinus; Erinus, Elegant.
+Nigella.
+Phlox variabilis atropurpurea.
+Salvia farinacea.
+Specularia.
+Verbena, Black-blue; caerulea; Golden-leaved.
+Whitlavia gloxinioides.
+
+Red and Rose-red Flowers
+
+
+Abromia umbellata.
+Alonsoa grandiflora.
+Cacalia, Scarlet.
+Clarkia elegans rosea.
+Convolvulus tricolor roseus.
+Dianthus, Half Dwarf Early Margaret; Dwarf Perpetual; Chinensis.
+Gaillardia picta.
+Ipomœa coccinea; volubilis.
+Matthiola annuus; Blood-red Ten Weeks; grandiflora, Dwarf.
+Papaver (Poppy) cardinale; Mephisto.
+Phaseolus multiflorus.
+Phlox, Large-flowering Dwarf; Dwarf Fireball; Black Warrior.
+Salvia coccinea.
+Saponaria.
+Tropaeolum, Dwarf, Tom Thumb.
+Verbena hybrida, Scarlet Defiance.
+Zinnia.
+
+
+_Useful annuals for edgings of beds and, walks, and for ribbon-beds._
+
+Ageraturn, blue and white.
+Alyssum, sweet.
+Brachycome.
+Calandrinia.
+Clarkia.
+Collinsias.
+Dianthuses or pinks.
+Gilia.
+Gypsophila muralis.
+Iberis or candytufts.
+Leptosiphons.
+Lobelia Erinus.
+Nemophilas.
+Nigellas.
+Portulaca or rose moss (Fig. 243).
+Saponaria Calabrica.
+Specularia.
+Torenia.
+Whitlavia.
+
+
+_Annuals that continue to bloom after frost_.
+
+This list is compiled from Bulletin 161, Cornell Experiment Station.
+Several hundred kinds of annuals were grown at this station (Ithaca,
+N.Y.) in 1897 and 1898. The notes are given in the original trade names
+under which the seedsmen supplied the stock.
+
+[Illustration: Figure 243. Portulaca, or rose moss.]
+
+Abronia umbellata.
+Adonis aestivalis; autumnale.
+Argemone grandiflora.
+Calendulas.
+Callirrhoë.
+Carduus benedictus.
+Centaurea Cyanus.
+Centauridium.
+Centranthus macro-
+Cerinthe retorta.  {siphon.
+Cheiranthus Cheiri.
+Chrysanthemums.
+Convolvulus minor; tricolor.
+Dianthus of various kinds.
+Elsholtzia cristata.
+Erysimum Perofskianum; Arkansanum.
+Eschscholtzias, in several varieties (Fig. 249).
+Gaillardia picta.
+Gilia achilleaefolia; capitata; laciniata; tricolor.
+Iberis affinis.
+Lavatera alba.
+Matthiolas or stocks.
+Œnothera rosea; Lamarckiana;
+Phlox Drummondii. {Drummondii.
+Podolepis affinis; chrysantha.
+Salvia coccinea; farinacea; Horminum.
+Verbenas.
+Vicia Gerardi.
+Virginian stocks.
+Viscaria elegans; oculata; Cœli-rosa.
+
+_List of annuals suitable for bedding (that is, for “mass effects” of
+color)._
+
+A list of this kind is necessarily both incomplete and imperfect,
+because good new varieties are frequently appearing, and the taste of
+the gardener must be consulted. Any plants may be used, broadly
+speaking, for bedding; but the following list (given in terms of trade
+names) suggests some of the best subjects to use when beds of solid,
+strong color are desired.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 244 Pansies]
+
+Adonis aestivalis; autumnalis.
+Ageratum Mexicanum; Mexicanum, Dwarf.
+Bartonia aurea.
+Cacalia.
+Calendula officinalis, in several forms; pluvialis; Pongei; sulphurea,
+  fl. pl.; suffruticosa.
+Calliopsis bicolor marmorata; cardaminefolia; elegans picta.
+Callirrhoë involucrata; pedata; pedata nana.
+Centaurea Americana; Cyanus, Victoria Dwarf Compact; Cyanus minor;
+suaveolens.
+China asters.
+Chrysanthemum Burridgeanum; carinatum; coronarium; tricolor.
+Convolvulus minor; tricolor.
+Cosmidium Burridgeanum.
+Delphinium, single; double.
+Dianthus, Double White Half Dwarf Margaret; Dwarf Perpetual;
+  Caryophyllus semperflorens; Chinensis, double; dentosus hybridus;
+  Heddewigii; imperialis; laciniatus, Salmon Queen; plumarius;
+  superbus, dwarf fl. pl.; picotee.
+Elsholtzia cristata.
+Eschscholtzia Californica; crocea; Mandarin; tenuifolia (Fig. 249).
+Gaillardia picta; picta Lorenziana.
+Gilia achilleaefolia; capitata; laciniata; linifolia; nivalis;
+tricolor.
+Godetia Whitneyi; grandiflora maculata; rubicunda splendens.
+Hibiscus Africanus; Golden Bowl.
+Iberis affinis; amara; coronaria; umbellata.
+Impatiens or balsam.
+Lavatera alba; trimestris.
+Linum grandiflorum.
+Madia elegans.
+Malope grandiflora.
+Matricaria eximia plena.
+Matthiola or stock, in many forms; Wallflower-leaved; bicornis.
+Nigella, or Love-in-a-mist.
+Œnothera Drummondii; Lamarckiana; rosea tetraptera.
+Papaver or poppy, of many kinds; cardinale; glaucum; umbrosum.
+Petunia, bedding kinds.
+Phlox Drummondii, in many varieties.
+Portulaca (Fig. 243).
+Salvia farinacea; Horminum; splendens.
+Schizanthus papilionaceus; pinnatus.
+Silene Armeria; pendula.
+Tagetes, or marigold, in many forms; erecta; patula; signata.
+Tropaeolum, Dwarf.
+Verbena auriculaeflora; Italica striata; hybrida; caerulea;
+Golden-leaved.
+Viscaria Cœli-rosa; elegans picta; oculata.
+Zinnia, Dwarf; elegans alba; Tom Thumb; Haageana; coccinea plena (Fig.
+247).
+
+
+XI. The back yard, with summer house, and gardens beyond. XI. The back
+yard, with summer house, and gardens beyond.
+
+
+_List of annuals by height_.
+
+It is obviously impossible to make any accurate or definite list of
+plants in terms of their height, but the beginner may be aided by
+approximate measurements. The following lists are made from Bulletin
+161 of the Cornell Experiment Station, which gives tabular data on many
+annuals grown at Ithaca, N.Y. Seeds of most of the kinds were sown in
+the open, rather late. “The soil varied somewhat, but it was light and
+well tilled, and only moderately rich.” Ordinary good care was given
+the plants. The average height of the plants of each kind at full
+growth, as they stood on the ground, is given in these lists. Of
+course, these heights might be less or more with different soils,
+different treatments, and different climates; but the figures are
+fairly comparable among themselves.
+
+The measurements are based on the stock supplied by leading seedsmen
+under the trade names here given. It is not unlikely that some of the
+discrepancies were due to mixture of seed or to stock being untrue to
+type; some of it may have been due to soil conditions. The same name
+may be found in two divisions in some instances, the plants having been
+grown from different lots of seeds. The lists will indicate to the
+grower what variations he may expect in any large lot of seeds.
+
+Seedsmen’s catalogues should be consulted for what the trade considers
+to be the proper and normal heights for the different plants.
+
+Plants 6-8 in. high
+
+
+Abronia umbellata grandiflora.
+Alyssum compactum.
+Callirrhoë involucrata.
+Godetia, Bijou, Lady Albemarle, and Lady Satin Rose.
+Gypsophila muralis.
+Kaulfussia amelloides.
+Leptosiphon hybridus.
+Linaria Maroccana.
+Lobelia Erinus and Erinus Elegant.
+Nemophila atomaria, discoidalis, insignis, and maculata.
+Nolana lanceolata, paradoxa, prostrata, and atriplicifolia.
+Podolepis chrysantha and affinis.
+Portulaca.
+Rhodanthe Manglesii.
+Sedum caeruleum.
+Silene pendula ruberrima.
+Verbena.
+
+
+Plants 9-12 in. high
+
+
+Alyssum.
+Asperula setosa azurea.
+Brachycome iberidifolia.
+Calandrinia umbellata elegans.
+Callirrhoë pedata nana.
+Centaurea Cyanus Victoria Dwarf Compact.
+Centranthus macrosiphon nanus.
+Collinsia bicolor, candidissima and multicolor marmorata.
+Convolvulus minor and tricolor.
+Eschscholtzia crocea.
+Gamolepis Tagetes.
+Gilia laciniata and linifolia.
+Godetia Duchess of Albany, Prince of Wales, Fairy Queen, Brilliant,
+grandiflora maculata, Whitneyi, Duke of Fife, rubicunda splendens.
+Helipterum corymbiflorum.
+Iberis affinis.
+Kaulfussia amelloides atroviolacea, and a. kermesina.
+Leptosiphon androsaceus and densiflorus.
+Linaria bipartita splendida.
+Matthiola dwarf Forcing Snowflake, Wallflower-leaved.
+Mesembryanthemum crystallinum.
+Mimulus cupreus.
+Nemophila atomaria oculata and marginata.
+Nigella.
+Nolana atriplicifolia.
+Omphalodes linifolia.
+Œnothera rosea and tetraptera.
+Phlox, Large-flowering Dwarf and Dwarf Snowball.
+Rhodanthe maculata.
+Saponaria Calabrica.
+Schizanthus pinnatus.
+Silene Armeria and pendula.
+Specularia.
+Viscaria oculata cserulea.
+
+
+Plants 13-17 in. high
+
+
+Abronia umbellata.
+Acroclinium album and roseum.
+Brachycome iberidifolia alba.
+Browallia Czerniakowski and elata.
+Cacalia.
+Calandrinia grandiflora.
+Calendula sulphurea flore pleno.
+Chrysanthemum carinatum.
+Collomia coccinea.
+Convolvulus minor and minor unicaulis.
+Dianthus, the Margaret varieties, Dwarf Perpetual, Caryophyllus
+  semperflorens, Chinensis, dentosus hybridus, Heddewigii, imperialis,
+  laciniatus, plumarius, superbus dwarf, picotee, Comtesse de Paris.
+Elsholtzia cristata.
+Eschscholtzia Californica, Mandarin, maritima and tenuifolia.
+Gaillardia picta.
+Gilia achillesefolia alba and nivalis.
+Helipterum Sanfordii.
+Hieracium, Bearded.
+Iberis amara, coronaria Empress, coronaria White Rocket,
+Sweet-scented, umbellata, umbellata carnea, and umbellata lilacina.
+Leptosiphon carmineus.
+Lupinus nanus, sulphureus.
+Malope grandiflora.
+Matthiola, Wallflower-leaved and Virginian stock.
+Mirabilis alba.
+Nigella.
+Œnothera Lamarckiana.
+Palafoxia Hookeriana.
+Papaver, Shirley and glaucum.
+Petunia.
+Phlox of many kinds.
+Salvia Horminum.
+Schizanthus papilionaceus.
+Statice Thouini and superba.
+Tagetes, Pride of the Garden and Dwarf.
+Tropaeolum, many kinds of dwarf.
+Venidium calendulaceum.
+Verbena of several kinds.
+Viscaria Cœli-rosa, elegans picta, oculata, and oculata alba.
+Whitlavia gloxinioides.
+
+
+Plants 18-23 in. high
+
+
+Adonis aestivalis and autumnalis.
+Amarantus atropurpureus.
+Calendula officinalis, Meteor, suffruticosa, and pluvialis.
+Calliopsis bicolor marmorata.
+Callirrhoë pedata.
+Centaurea Cyanus minor Blue and suaveolens.
+Centranthus macrosiphon.
+[Illustration: Fig. 245. Gaillardia, one of the showy garden annuals.]
+Chrysanthemum Burridgeanum, carinatum, tricolor Dunnettii.
+Cosmidium Burridgeanum.
+Delphinium (annual).
+Eutoca Wrangeliana.
+Gaillardia picta (Fig. 245), Lorenziana.
+Gilia achilleaefolia, a. rosea and tricolor.
+Helichrysum atrosanguineum.
+Ipomœa coccinea.
+Linum grandiflorum.
+Loasa tricolor.
+Lupinus albus, hirsutus and pubescens.
+Malope grandiflora alba.
+Matricaria eximia plena.
+Matthiola, several kinds.
+Œnothera Drummondii.
+Papaver Mephisto, cardinale, c. hybridum, c. Danebrog, umbrosum.
+Tagetes patula and signata.
+Vicia Gerardii.
+Whitlavia grandiflora and g. alba.
+Xeranthemum album and multiflorum album.
+Zinnias of many kinds (all not mentioned in other lists).
+
+
+Plants 24-30 in. high
+
+
+Bartonia aurea.
+Calendula officinalis fl. pl., Prince of Orange and Pongei.
+Calliopsis elegans picta.
+Cardiospermum Halicacabum.
+Carduus benedictus.
+Centaurea Cyanus minor Emperor William.
+Cheiranthus Cheiri.
+Chrysanthemum tricolor, t. hybridum and coronarium sulphureum fl. pl.
+Clarkia elegans rosea.
+Datura cornucopia.
+Erysimum Arkansanum and Perofskianum.
+Eutoca viscida.
+Gilia capitata alba.
+Helichrysum bracteatum and macranthum.
+Hibiscus Africanus.
+Impatiens, all varieties.
+Lupinus hirsutus pilosus.
+Matthiola Blood-red Ten Weeks, Cut and Come Again, grandiflora,
+  annuus, and others.
+Mirabilis Jalapa folio variegata and longiflora alba.
+Papaver, American Flag, Mikado and Double.
+Perilla laciniata and Nankinensis.
+Salvia farinacea.
+Tagetes Eldorado, Nugget of Gold, erecta fl. pl.
+Xeranthemum annuum and superbissimum fl. pl.
+Zinnia elegans alba fl. pl.
+
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 246. Wild phlox (_P. maculata_), one of the parents
+of the perennial garden phloxes.]
+
+Plants 31-40 in. high
+
+
+Acroclinium, double rose and white.
+Adonis aestivalis.
+Ageratum Mexicanum album and blue.
+Amarantus bicolor ruber.
+Argemone grandiflora.
+Centaurea Americana.
+Centauridium Drummondii.
+Cerinthe retorta. [c. double yellow.
+Chrysanthemum coronarium album and Clarkia elegans alba fl. pl.
+Cleome spinosa.
+Cyclanthera pedata.
+Datura fastuosa and New Golden
+Euphorbia marginata. [Queen.
+Gilia capitata alba.
+Helianthus Dwarf double and cucu-
+Hibiscus Golden Bowl. [merifolius.
+Lavatera trimestris.
+Madia elegans.
+Martynia craniolaria.
+Salvia coccinea.
+
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 247. Zinnias. Often known as “youth and old age.”]
+
+Plants 41 in. and above.
+
+
+Adonis autumnalis.
+Helianthus of several garden kinds (not mentioned elsewhere).
+Ricinus, all varieties.
+And many climbing vines.
+
+
+_Distances for planting annuals_ (or plants treated as annuals).
+
+Only an approximate idea can be given of the distances apart at which
+annuals should be planted, for not only does the distance depend on the
+fertility of the land (the stronger the soil the greater the distance),
+but also on the object the person has in growing the plants, whether to
+produce a solid mass effect or to secure strong specimen plants with
+large individual bloom. If specimen plants are to be raised, the
+distances should be liberal.
+
+The distances here given for some of the commoner annuals may be
+considered to represent average or usual spaces that single plants may
+occupy under ordinary conditions in flowerbeds, although it would
+probably be impossible to find any two gardeners or seedsmen who would
+agree on the details. These are suggestions rather than
+recommendations. It is always well to set or sow more plants than are
+wanted, for there is danger of loss from cut-worms and other causes.
+The general tendency is to let the plants stand too close together at
+maturity. In case of doubt, place plants described in books and
+catalogues as very dwarf at six inches, those as medium-sized at twelve
+inches, very large growers at two feet, and thin them out if they seem
+to demand it as they grow.
+
+The plants in these lists are thrown into four groups (rather than all
+placed together with the numbers after them) in order to classify the
+subject in the beginner’s mind.
+
+6 to 9 inches apart
+
+
+Ageratum, very dwarf kinds.
+Alyssum.
+Asperula setosa.
+Cacalia.
+Candytuft.
+Clarkia, dwarf.
+Collinsia.
+Gysophila muralis.
+Kaulfussia.
+Larkspur, dwarf kinds.
+Linaria.
+Linum grandiflorum
+Lobelia Erinus. Mignonette, dwarf kinds.
+Pansy.
+Phlox, very dwarf kinds.
+Pinks, very dwarf kinds.
+Rhodanthe.
+Schizopetalon.
+Silene Armeria.
+Snapdragon, dwarf.
+Sweet pea.
+Torenia.
+
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 248. Improved perennial phlox.]
+
+10 to 15 inches apart
+
+
+Those marked (ft.) are examples of plants that may usually stand at
+twelve inches.
+
+Abronia (ft.).
+Acroclinium.
+Adlumia.
+Adonis autumnalis.
+Ageratum, tall kinds.
+Alonsoa.
+Aster, China, smaller kinds (ft.).
+Balsam.
+Bartonia.
+Browallia.
+Calendula.
+California poppy (Eschscholtzia).
+Calliopsis.
+Cardiospermum.
+Carnation, flower-garden kinds (ft.).
+Celosia, small kinds.
+Centaurea Cyanus.
+Centauridium (ft.).
+Centranthus (ft.).
+Clarkia, tall (ft.).
+Convolvulus tricolor (ft.).
+Gaillardia, except on strong land.
+Gilias.
+Glaucium.
+Godetia (ft.).
+Gomphrena.
+Gypsophila elegans.
+Helichrysum (ft.).
+Hunnemannia.
+Jacobaea. {kinds.
+Larkspur, tall annual
+Malope. {varieties.
+Marigold, intermediate
+Mignonette, tall kinds.
+Mesembryanthemum
+  (ice-plant) (ft.).
+Morning-glory.
+Nasturtium, dwarf.
+Nemophila.
+Nigella.
+Petunia.
+Phlox Drummondii.
+Pinks.
+Poppies (6 to 18 in., according to variety).
+Portulaca (ft.).
+Salpiglossis (ft.).
+Scabiosa (ft.).
+Schizanthus.
+Snapdragon, tall kinds.
+Statice (ft.).
+Stock (ft.).
+Tagetes, dwarf French.
+Thunbergia (ft.).
+Verbena.
+Whitlavia (ft.), {(ft.).
+Zinnia, very dwarf kinds
+
+
+[Illustration: Fig 249. Eschscholtzia, or California poppy. One-half
+size.]
+
+18 to 24 inches
+
+
+Amarantus.
+Ammobium.
+Argemone.
+Aster, China, the big kinds (or rows 2 ft. apart and plants 1 ft. in
+row).
+Callirrhoë.
+Canterbury bell (up to 3 ft.).
+Celosia, large kinds (up to 30 in.).
+Chrysanthemum, annual.
+Cosmos, smaller kinds.
+Euphorbia marginata.
+Four o’clock (up to 30 in.)
+Hop, Japanese. (to 30 in.)
+Kochia, or summer cypress
+Marigold, tall kinds.
+Nasturtium, tall, if allowed to
+  spread on the ground.
+Nicotiana (up to 30 in.).
+Œnothera, tall kinds.
+Salvia coccinea (_splendens
+  grandiflora_), about 2 ft.
+Zinnia, tall kinds (up to 3 ft).
+
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 250. A modern peony.]
+
+About 3 feet or more
+
+
+Caladium.
+Cosmos, tall kinds (2 to 3 ft.).
+Dahlia.
+Datura.
+Martynia.
+Ricinus or castor bean.
+Solanums.
+Sunflower, tall kinds.
+Wigandia.
+
+
+3. HARDY HERBACEOUS PERENNIALS
+
+There is a rapidly growing appreciation of perennial herbs, not only as
+flower-garden and lawn subjects, but as parts of native landscapes.
+Every locality yields its wild asters, golden-rods, columbines, iris,
+trilliums, lilies, anemones, pentstemons, mints, sunflowers, or other
+plants; and many of these also make good subjects for the home grounds.
+
+It is important to remember that some perennial herbs begin to fail
+after one to three seasons of full bloom. It is a good plan to have new
+plants coming on to take their place; or the old roots may be taken up
+in the fall and divided, only the fresh and strong parts being planted
+again.
+
+Perennial herbs are propagated in various ways,—by seeds, and by
+cuttings of the stems and roots, but mostly by the easy method of
+division. On the raising of these plants from seeds, William Falconer
+writes as follows in Dreer’s “Garden Book” for 1909:—
+
+“Hardy perennials are easily grown from seed. In many cases they are a
+little slower than annuals, but with intelligent care they are
+successfully raised, and from seed is an excellent way to get up a big
+stock of perennials. Many sorts, if sown in spring, bloom the first
+year from seeds as early as annuals; for instance: gaillardia, Iceland
+poppies, Chinese larkspur, platycodon, etc. Others do not bloom until
+the second year.
+
+“The amateur may have more success and less bother growing perennials
+from seed sown in the open ground than from any other way. Prepare a
+bed in a nice, warm, sheltered spot in the garden, preferably not very
+sunny. Let the surface of the bed be raised four or five inches above
+the general level, and the soil be a mellow fine earth on the surface.
+Draw shallow rows across the surface of the bed three or four inches
+apart, and here sow the seeds, keeping the varieties of one kind or
+nature as much together as practicable, covering the seeds thinly;
+press the whole surface gently, water moderately, then dust a little
+fine loose soil over all. If the weather is sunny or windy, shade with
+papers or a few branches, but remove these in the evening. When the
+seedlings come up, thin them out to stiffen those that are left, and
+when they are two or three inches high, they are fit for transplanting
+into permanent quarters. All this should be done in early spring, say
+March, April, or May. Again, in July or August perennials are very
+easily raised out of doors, and much in the same way as above. Or they
+may be sown in early spring indoors, in the window, the hotbed, the
+coldframe, or the greenhouse, preferably in boxes or pans, as for
+growing annuals. Some gardeners sow seed right in the coldframe. I have
+tried both ways, and find the boxes best, as the different varieties of
+seeds do not come up at the same time, and you can remove them from the
+close frame to more airy quarters as soon as the seed comes up,
+whereas, if sown in a frame, you would have to give them all the same
+treatment. When the seedlings are large enough, I transplant them into
+other boxes, and put them into a shady part of the garden, but not
+under the shade of trees, as there they will ‘draw’ too much. About the
+fifteenth of September plant them in the garden where they are to
+bloom, or if the garden is full of summer-flowering plants, put them in
+beds in the vegetable garden, to be planted out in the early spring,
+and give them a light covering of straw or manure to keep sudden
+changes of the weather away from them.”
+
+Hardy perennial herbs may be planted in September and October with
+excellent results; also in spring. See that they are protected with
+mulch in winter.
+
+_Perennial herbs suitable for lawn and “planting” effects._
+
+Some of the striking plants that are valuable for lawn planting in the
+North, chosen chiefly on account of their size, foliage, and habit, are
+mentioned in the following brief list. They may or may not be suitable
+for flower-gardens. It is impossible to give to this list any degree of
+completeness; but the names here printed will be suggestive of the
+kinds of things that may be used. The * denotes native plants.
+
+Yucca, _Yucca filamentosa._*
+
+Funkia, _Funkia_, of several species.
+
+Peltate saxifrage, _Saxifraga peltata._*
+
+Rose mallow, _Hibiscus Moscheutos._*
+
+Elecampane, _Inula Helenium_ (Fig. 251).
+
+Wild sunflowers, _Helianthus_* of different species, especially _H.
+orygalis, H. giganteus, H. grosse-serratus, H. strumosus_.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 251. Elecampane. Naturalized in old fields and
+along roadsides.]
+
+Compass-plants, _Silphium_* of several species, especially _S.
+terebinthinaceum, S. laciniatum, S. perfoliatum_.
+
+Sacaline, _Polygonum Sachalinense_.
+
+Japanese knotweed, _Polygonum cuspidatum_.
+
+Bocconia, _Bocconia cordata_.
+
+Wild wormwood, _Artemisia Stelleriana_* and others.
+
+Butterfly-weed, _Asclepias tuberosa_.*
+
+Wild asters, _Aster_* of many species, especially _A. Novæ-Anglæ_
+(best), _A. laevis, A. multiflorus, A. spectabilis_.
+
+Golden-rods, _Solidago_* of various species, especially _S. speciosa,
+S. nemoralis, S. juncea, S. gigantea_.
+
+Loose-strife, _Lythrum Salicaria_.
+
+Flags, _Iris_ of many species, some native.
+
+Japanese wind-flower, _Anemone Japonica_.
+
+Goat’s beard, _Aruncus sylvester (Spiræa Aruncus_).*
+
+Baptisia, _Baptisia tinctoria_.*
+
+Thermopsis, _Thermopsis mollis_.*
+
+Wild senna, _Cassia Marilandica_.*
+
+Wild trefoil, _Desmodium Canadense_* and others.
+
+Ribbon grass, _Phalaris arundinacea_* var. _picta_.
+
+Zebra grass, _Eulalia_ (or _Miscanthus_) species, and varieties.
+
+Wild panic grass, _Panicum virgatum_.*
+
+Bambusas (and related things) of several sorts.
+
+Ravenna grass, _Erianthus Ravennæ_.
+
+Arundo, _Arundo Donax_, and var. _variegata_.
+
+Reed, _Phragmites communis_.*
+
+This and the remaining plants of the list should be planted in the
+edges of water or in bogs (the list might be greatly extended).
+
+Wild rice, _Zizania aquatica_.*
+
+Cat-tail, _Typha angustifolia_* and _T. latifolia_.*
+
+Lizard’s-tail, _Saururus cernuus_.*
+
+Peltandra, _Peltandra undulata_.*
+
+Orontium, _Orontium aquaticum_.*
+
+Native calla, _Calla palustris_.*
+
+_A brief seasonal flower-garden or border list of herbaceous
+perennials._
+
+To facilitate making a selection of perennial herbs for bloom, the
+plants in the following list are arranged according to their flowering
+season, beginning with the earliest. The name of the month indicates
+when they usually begin to bloom. It should be understood that the
+blooming season of plants is not a fixed period, but varies more or
+less with localities and seasons. These dates are applicable to most of
+the middle and northern states. Natives to North America are marked
+with an asterisk *. This list is by Ernest Walker.
+
+MARCH
+
+Blue Wind-flower, _Anemone blanda_. 6 in. March-May. Sky-blue,
+star-like flowers. Foliage deeply cut. For border and rockwork.
+
+Bloodroot, _Sanguinaria Canadensis_.* 6 in. March-April. Pure white.
+Glaucous foliage. Partial shade. Border or rock-work.
+
+APRIL
+
+Mountain Rock-cress, _Arabis albida_. 6 in. April-June. Flowers pure
+white; close heads in profusion. Fragrant. For dry places and
+rock-work.
+
+Purple Rock-cress, _Aubrietia deltoidea_. 6 in. April-June. Small
+purple flowers in great profusion.
+
+Daisy, _Bellis perennis_, 4-6 in. April-July. Flowers white, pink, or
+red; single or double. The double varieties are the more desirable.
+Cover the plants in winter with leaves. May be raised from seed, like
+pansies.
+
+Spring Beauty, _Claytonia Virginica_.* 6 in. April-May. Clusters of
+light pink flowers. Partial shade. From six to a dozen should be set
+together.
+
+Shooting Star, _Dodecatheon Meadia_.* 1 ft. April-May. Reddish purple
+flowers, orange-yellow eye, in clusters. Cool, shady location. Plant
+several in a place.
+
+Dog’s-bane, _Doronicum plantagineum_ var_excelsum_. 20 in. April-June.
+Large, showy flowers; orange-yellow. Bushy plants.
+
+Liver-leaf, _Hepatica acutiloba_* and _triloba_.* 6 in. April-May.
+Flowers small but numerous, varying white and pink. Partial shade.
+
+Hardy Candytuft, _Iberis sempervirens_. 10 in. April-May. Small white
+flowers in clusters; profuse. Large, spreading, evergreen tufts.
+
+Alpine Lamp-flower, _Lychnis alpina_.* 6 in. April-May. Flowers
+star-like, in showy heads; pink. For border and rockery.
+
+Early Forget-me-not, _Myosotis dissitiflora_. 6 in. April-June. Small
+clusters of deep sky-blue flowers. Tufted habit.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 252. The wild Trillium grandiflorum.]
+
+Everblooming F., _M. palustris_ var. _semperflorens_. 10 in. Light
+blue; spreading habit.
+
+Blue-bells, _Mertensia Virginica_.* 1 ft. April-May. Flowers blue,
+changing to pink; pendent; tubular; not showy, but beautiful. Rich
+soil. Partial shade.
+
+Tree Peony, _Pæonia Moutan_. (See _May_, Pæonia.)
+
+Moss Pink, _Phlox subulata_.* 6 in. April-June. Numerous deep pink,
+small flowers; creeping habit; evergreen. Suitable for dry places as a
+covering plant.
+
+_Trilliums_.* Of several species; always attractive and useful in the
+border (Fig. 252). They are common in rich woods and copses. Dig the
+tubers in late summer and plant them directly in the border. The large
+ones will bloom the following spring. The same may be said of the
+erythronium, or dog’s-tooth violet or adder’s tongue, and of very many
+other early wild flowers.
+
+MAY
+
+_Ajuga reptans_. 6 in. May-June. Spikes of purple flowers. Grows well
+in shady places; spreading. A good cover plant.
+
+Madwort, _Alyssum saxatile_ var. _compactum_. 1 ft. May-June. Flowers
+fragrant, in clusters, clear golden-yellow. Foliage silvery.
+Well-drained soil. One of the best yellow flowers.
+
+Columbine, _Aquilegia glandulosa_ and others (Fig. 253). 1 ft.
+May-June. Deep blue sepals; white petals. Aquilegias are old favorites.
+(See _June_.) The wild _A. Canadensis_* is desirable.
+
+Lily-of-the-Valley, _Convallaria majalis_.* 8 in. May-June. Racemes of
+small white bells; fragrant. Well known. Partial shade. (See Chap.
+VIII.)
+
+Fumitory, _Corydalis nobilis_. 1 ft. May-June. Large clusters of fine
+yellow flowers. Bushy, upright habit. Does well in partial shade.
+
+Bleeding-Heart, _Dicentra spectabilis_. 2-1/2 ft. May-June. Well known.
+Racemes of heart-shaped, deep pink and white flowers. Will bear partial
+shade.
+
+Crested Iris, _Iris cristata_.* 6 in. May-June. Flowers blue, fringed
+with yellow. Leaves sword-shaped.
+
+German Iris, _I. Germanica_. 12-15 in. May-June. Numerous varieties and
+colors. Large flowers, 3-4 on a stem. Broad, glaucous, sword-shaped
+leaves.
+
+Peony, _Pæonia officinalis._ 2 ft. May-June. This is the well-known
+herbaceous peony. There are numerous varieties and hybrids.
+
+
+[Illustration: Figure 253. One of the columbines.]
+
+Large flowers, 4-6 in. across. Crimson, white, pink, yellowish, etc.
+Suitable for lawn or the border. Fig. 250.
+
+Tree Peony, _P. Moutan_. 4ft. April-May. Numerous named varieties.
+Flowers as above, excepting yellow. Branched, dense, shrubby habit.
+
+Meadow Sage, _Salvia pratensis_. 2-1/2 ft. May-June, August. Spikes of
+deep blue flowers. Branching from the ground.
+
+JUNE
+
+_Achillea Ptarmica, fl. pl._, var. “The Pearl.” 1/2 ft. June-August.
+Small double white flowers, in few-flowered clusters. Rich soil.
+
+Wind-flower, _Anemone Pennsylvanica_.* 18 in. June-September. White
+flowers on long stems. Erect habit. Does well in the shade.
+
+St. Bruno’s Lily, _Paradisea Liliastrum_. 18 in. June-July. Bell-like,
+white flowers in handsome spikes.
+
+Golden-spurred Columbine, _Aquilegia chrysantha_.* 3 ft. June-August.
+Golden flowers with slender spurs; fragrant.
+
+Rocky Mountain Columbine, _A. cœrulea_.* 1 ft. June-August. Flowers
+with white petals and deep blue sepals, 2-3 in. in diameter. (See
+_May_.)
+
+Woodruff, _Asperula odorata_. 6 in. June-July. Small white flowers.
+Herbage fragrant when wilted. Does well in shade; spreading habit. Used
+for flavoring drinks, scenting and protecting garments.
+
+_Astilbe Japonica_ (incorrectly called Spiræa). 2 ft. June-July. Small
+white flowers in a feathery inflorescence. Compact habit.
+
+Poppy Mallow, _Callirrhoë involucrata_.* 10 in. June-October. Large
+crimson flowers, with white centers. Trailing habit. For border and
+rockery.
+
+Carpathian Harebell, _Campanula Carpatica_ (Fig. 254). 8 in.
+June-September. Flowers deep blue. Tufted habit. For border or rockery.
+Good for cutting.
+
+_C. glomerata_ var. _Dahurica_. 2 ft. June-August. Deep purple flowers
+in terminal clusters. Branching from the ground. Erect habit.
+
+Canterbury Bell, _C. Medium_. An old favorite. It is biennial, but
+blooms the first season if sown early.
+
+_Corydalis lutea._ 1 ft. June-September. Flowers yellow, in terminal
+clusters. Loose branching habit. Glaucous foliage.
+
+Scotch Pink, _Dianthus plumarius_. 10 in. June-July. White and
+pink-ringed flowers on slender stems. Densely tufted habit.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 254. Campanula Carpatica.]
+
+Fringed Pink, _D. superbus_. 18 in. July-August. Fringed flowers. Lilac
+tint.
+
+Gas Plant, _Dictamnus Fraxinella_. 3 ft. June. Flowers purple, showy,
+fragrant; in long spikes. Regular habit. Var. _alba_. White.
+
+_Gaillardia aristata_.* 2 ft. June-October. Showy orange and maroon
+flowers on long stems. Good for cutting. Hybrid gaillardias offer quite
+a variety of brilliant colors.
+
+_Heuchera sanguinea_.* 18 in. June-September. Flowers in open panicles,
+scarlet, on clustered stems from a tufted mass of pretty foliage.
+
+Japan Iris, _Iris laevigata (I. Kaempferi)._ 2-3 ft. June-July. Large
+flowers of various colors, in variety. Green, sword-like leaves. Dense
+tufted habit. Prefers a moist situation.
+
+Blazing Star, _Liatris spicata_.* 2 ft. June-August. Spikes of fine,
+small purple flowers. Slender foliage. Unbranched, erect stems. Will
+grow in the poorest soil.
+
+Iceland Poppy, _Papaver nudicaule_.* 1 ft. June-October. Bright yellow
+flowers. A close, dense habit. Erect, naked stems. The varieties Album,
+white, and Miniatum, deep orange, are also desirable.
+
+Oriental Poppy, _P. orientale_. 2-4 ft. June. Flowers 6-8 in. across;
+deep scarlet, with a purple spot at the base of each petal. There are
+other varieties of pink, orange, and crimson shades.
+
+_Pentstemon barbatus_ var. _Torreyi_.* 3-4 ft. June-September. Crimson
+flowers in long spikes. Branching from the base. Erect habit.
+
+
+XII. The back yard, with heavy flower-garden planting. XII. The back
+yard, with heavy flower-garden planting.
+
+Perennial Phlox, _Phlox paniculata_* and hybrids with _P. maculata_.*
+2-3 ft. June. A great variety of colors in selfs and variegated forms.
+Flowers borne in large, flat panicles. (Figs. 246, 248.)
+
+_Rudbeckia maxima_* 5-6 ft. August. Large flowers; cone-like center and
+long, drooping, yellow petals.
+
+Dropwort, _Ulmaria Filipendula_. 3 ft. June-July. White flowers in
+compact clusters. Tufted foliage, dark green and handsomely cut. Erect
+stems. (Often referred to Spiræa.)
+
+Adam’s Needle, _Yucca filamentosa_.* 4-5 ft. June-July. Waxen white,
+pendulous, liliaceous flowers in a great thyrsus. Leaves long, narrow,
+dark green, with marginal filaments. For the lawn, and for massing in
+large grounds.
+
+JULY
+
+Hollyhock, _Althæa rosea_. 5-8 ft. Summer and fall. Flowers white,
+crimson, and yellow, lavender and purple. Stately plants of spire-like
+habit; useful for the back of the border, or beds and groups. The newer
+double varieties have flowers as fine as a camellia. The plant is
+nearly biennial, but in rich, well-drained soil and with winter
+protection it becomes perennial. Easily grown from seed, blooming the
+second year. Seeds may be sown in August in frames and carried over
+winter in the same place. The first year’s bloom is usually the best.
+
+Yellow Chamomile, _Anthemis tinctoria_. 12-38 in. July-November.
+Flowers bright yellow, 1-2 in. in diameter. Useful for cutting. Dense,
+bushy habit.
+
+_Delphinium Chinense_. 3 ft. July-September. Variable colors; from deep
+blue to lavender and white. Fine for the border.
+
+_D. formosum_. 4 ft. July-September. Fine spikes of rich blue flowers.
+One of the finest blue flowers cultivated.
+
+_Funkia lancifolia_. (See under _August_.)
+
+_Helianthus multiflorus_* var. _fl. pl_. 4 ft. July-September. Large
+double flowers, of a fine golden color. Erect habit. An excellent
+flower.
+
+_Lychnis Viscaria_ var. _flore pleno_. 12-15 in. July-August. Double,
+deep rose-red flowers in spikes. For groups and masses.
+
+_Monarda didyma_.* 2 ft. July-October. Showy scarlet flowers in
+terminal heads.
+
+_Pentstemon grandiflorus.* 2_ ft. July-August. Leafy spikes of showy
+purple flowers.
+
+_P. lœvigalus_ var. _Digitalis_.* 3 ft. July-August. Pure white flowers
+in spikes, with purple throats.
+
+_Platycodon grandiflorum (Campanula grandiflora)_. 3 ft.
+July-September. Deep blue, bell-shaped flowers. Dense, fine, erect
+habit.
+
+_P. Mariesi_. 1 ft. July-September. Flowers larger; deep violet-blue.
+Heavier foliage.
+
+AUGUST
+
+Day Lily, _Funkia subcordata_. 18 in. August-October. Trumpet,
+lily-like, pure-white flowers in clusters, borne upon a stalk from the
+midst of a group of heart-shaped green leaves.
+
+_F. lancifolia_ var. _albo-marginata_. July-August. Lavender flowers.
+Lance-like leaves margined with white.
+
+Flame Flower, _Kniphofia aloides (Tritoma Uvaria_). 3 ft.
+August-September. Bright orange-scarlet flowers, in close, dense
+spikes, at the summit of several scape-like stems. Leaves slender,
+forming a large tuft. For lawn and borders. Hardy only when covered
+with litter or straw in winter.
+
+Cardinal Flower, _Lobelia cardinalis_.* 2-1/4-4 ft. August-September.
+Flowers intense cardinal-red, of unrivaled brilliancy. Tall spikes.
+Stems clustered; erect.
+
+Giant Daisy, _Chrysanthemum_ (or _Pyrethrum) uliginosum_. 3-5 ft.
+July-October. Flowers white, with golden centers. About 2 in. across. A
+stout, upright, bushy plant. Useful for cutting.
+
+Golden Glow, _Rudbeckia laciniata_.* 6-7 ft. August-September. Large
+double golden-yellow flowers in great profusion. Bushy habit. Cut off
+when done flowering. Leaves appear at the base and a new crop of
+flowers, on stems about 1 ft. high, appear in October.
+
+Goldenrod, _Solidago rigida_.* 3-5 ft. August-October. Flowers large
+for this genus, in close, short racemes in a corymbose-paniculate
+cluster. Fine, deep yellow. Erect habit. One of the best of the
+goldenrods.
+
+SEPTEMBER
+
+Japanese Wind-flower, _Anemone Japonica_. 2 ft. August-October. Flowers
+large, bright red. One of the best autumn flowers.
+
+_A. Japonica_ var. _alba_. Flowers pure white, with yellow centers.
+Fine for cutting.
+
+OCTOBER
+
+_Hardy Chrysanthemums_. The Chinese and Japanese Chrysanthemums, so
+well known, are hardy in light, well-drained soils, if well protected
+with litter or leaves during the winter, and in such situations will
+stand without protection south of Indianapolis. Chrysanthemums are
+gross feeders, and should have a rich soil.
+
+But there is a race of hardier or border chrysanthemums that is again
+coming into favor, and it is sure to give much satisfaction to those
+who desire flowers in latest fall. These chrysanthemums are much like
+the “artemisias” of our mother’s gardens, although improved in size,
+form, and in range of color.
+
+_One hundred extra-hardy perennial herbs_.
+
+The following list of 100 “best hardy perennials” is adapted from a
+report of the Central Experimental Farm, Ottawa, Ontario. These plants
+are chosen from over 1000 species and varieties that have been on trial
+at that place. Those considered to be the best twenty-five for Canada
+are marked by a dagger †; and those native to North America by an
+asterisk *.
+
+_Achillea Ptarmica flore pleno_.—Height, 1 foot; in bloom fourth week
+of June; flowers, small, pure white, double, and borne in clusters;
+blooming freely throughout the summer. †
+
+_Aconitum autumnale_.—Height, 3 to 4 feet; September; flowers, bluish
+purple, borne in loose panicles.
+
+_Aconitum Napellus_.—Height, 3 to 4 feet; July; flowers, deep blue,
+borne on a large terminal spike; desirable for the rear of the border.
+
+_Adonis vernalis_.—Height, 6 to 9 inches; first week of May; flowers,
+large, lemon-yellow, borne singly from the ends of the stems.
+
+_Agrostemma (Lychnis) Coronaria_ var. _atropurpurea_.—Height, 1 to 2
+feet; fourth week of June; flowers, medium size, bright crimson, borne
+singly from the sides and ends of the stems; a very showy plant with
+silvery foliage, and continues to bloom throughout the summer.
+
+_Anemone patens_.*—Height 6 to 9 inches; fourth week of April; flowers,
+large, and deep purple.
+
+_Anthemis tinctoria_ var. _Kelwayi_.—Height, 1 to 2 feet; fourth week
+of June; flowers, large, deep yellow, borne singly on long stems; it
+continues to bloom profusely throughout the summer; is very showy and
+valuable for cutting. †
+
+_Aquilegia Canadensis_.*—Height, 1 to 1-1/2 feet; third week of May;
+flowers, medium size, red and yellow.
+
+_Aquilegia chrysantha_.*—Height, 3 to 4 feet; fourth week of June;
+flowers, large, bright lemon-yellow, with long slender spurs; much
+later than other columbines. †
+
+_Aquilegia cœrulea_.*—Height, 1 to 1-1/2 feet; fourth week of May;
+flowers, large, deep blue with white center and long spurs. †
+
+_Aquilegia glandulosa_.—Height, 1 foot; third week of May; flowers,
+large, deep blue with white center and short spurs.
+
+_Aquilegia oxysepala_.—Height, 1 foot; second week in May; flowers,
+large, deep purplish blue with blue and yellow centers; a very
+desirable early species.
+
+_Aquilegia Stuarti_.—Height 9 to 12 inches; third week of May; flowers,
+large, deep blue with white center; one of the best.
+
+_Arabis alpina_.—Height, 6 inches; first week in May; flowers, small,
+pure white, in clusters.
+
+_Arnebia echioides_.—Height, 9 inches; third week of May; flowers,
+yellow, borne in clusters with petals spotted with purple. One of the
+most charming of early flowering plants.
+
+_Asclepias tuberosa_.*—Height, 1-1/2 to 2 feet; third week of July.
+Flowers, bright orange, borne in clusters. Very showy.
+
+_Aster alpinus_.*—Height, 9 inches; first week of June; flowers, large,
+bright purple, borne on long stems from the base of the plant; the
+earliest flowering of all the asters.
+
+_Aster Amellus_ var. _Bessarabicus_.—Height, 1 to 1-1/2 feet; July to
+September; flowers, large, deep purple, singly on long stems; very
+fine. †
+
+_Aster Novæ-Anglæ_ var. _roseus_.*—Height, 5 to 7 feet; fourth week of
+August; flowers, bright pink, borne profusely in large terminal
+clusters; very showy.
+
+_Boltonia asteroides_*—Height, 4 to 5 feet; September; flowers, smaller
+than the next, pale pink, borne very profusely in large panicles; much
+later than the next species.
+
+_Boltonia latisquama_*—Height, 4 feet; first week of August; flowers,
+large, white, somewhat resembling asters, and borne very profusely in
+large panicles.
+
+_Campanula Carpatica_.—Height, 6 to 9 inches; first week of July;
+flowers, medium size, deep blue, borne profusely in loose panicles;
+continues in bloom throughout the summer. A white variety of this is
+also good.
+
+_Campanula Grossekii_.—Height, 3 feet; first week of July; flowers,
+large, deep blue, borne on a long spike.
+
+_Campanula persicifolia_.—Height, 3 feet; flowers, large, blue, borne
+in a raceme with long flower stems. There are also white and double
+varieties which are good.
+
+_Clematis recta_.—Height, 4 feet; fourth week of June; flowers, small,
+pure white, borne profusely in dense clusters. This is a very compact
+bushy species and desirable for the rear of the border. _Clematis
+Jackmani_ with large deep purple flowers and _Clematis Vitalba_ with
+small white flowers, are excellent climbing sorts.
+
+_Convallaria majalis_* (Lily-of-the-valley).—Height, 6 to 9 inches;
+latter part of May.
+
+_Coreopsis delphiniflora_.*—Height, 2 to 3 feet; first week of July;
+flowers, large, yellow, with dark centers and borne singly with long
+stems.
+
+_Coreopsis grandiflora_.*—Height, 2 to 3 feet; fourth week of June;
+flowers, large, deep yellow, borne singly on long stems, blooming
+profusely throughout the summer.
+
+_Coreopsis lanceolata_.*—Height, 2 feet; fourth week of June; flowers
+large though slightly smaller than the last, and borne on long stems,
+blooming throughout the season.†
+
+_Delphinium Cashmerianum_.—Height, 1-1/2 feet; first week of July;
+flowers, pale to bright blue, in large open heads.†
+
+_Dianthus plumarius flore pleno_.—Height, 9 inches; second week of
+June; flowers, large, white or pink, very sweet scented; and two or
+three borne on a stem. A variety called Mrs. Simkins is especially
+desirable, being very double, white and deliciously perfumed, almost
+equaling a carnation. It blooms the fourth week of June.
+
+_Dicentra spectabilis_ (Bleeding Heart).—Height, 3 feet; second week of
+May; flowers, heart-shaped, red and white in pendulous racemes.
+
+_Dictamnus albus_.—Height, 1-1/2 to 2 feet; second week of June;
+flowers, white with an aromatic fragrance, and borne in large terminal
+racemes. A well-known variety has purple flowers with darker markings.
+
+_Doronicum Caucasicum_.—Height, 1 foot; second week of May; flowers,
+large, yellow, and borne singly.
+
+_Doronicum plantagineum_ var. _excelsum_.—Height, 2 feet; third week of
+May; flowers, large and deep yellow.†
+
+_Epimedium rubrum_.—Height, 1 foot; second week of May; flowers, small,
+bright crimson and white, borne in a loose panicle. A very dainty and
+beautiful little plant.
+
+_Erigeron speciosus_.*—Height, 1-1/2 feet; second week of July;
+flowers, large, violet-blue, with yellow centers, and borne in large
+clusters on long stems.
+
+_Funkia subcordata (grandiflora)._—Height, 1-1/2 feet; August; flowers,
+large and white, borne in racemes. The best funkia grown at Ottawa;
+both leaves and flowers are handsome.
+
+_Gaillardia aristata_ var. _grandiflora_.*—Height, 1 1/2 feet; third
+week of June; flowers, large, yellow, with deep orange centers, and
+borne singly on long stems. The named varieties, Superba and
+Perfection, are more highly colored and are of great merit. These all
+continue blooming profusely until late in the autumn.†
+
+_Gypsophila paniculata_ (Infant’s breath).—Height, 2 feet; second week
+of July; flowers, small, white, borne profusely in large open panicles.
+
+_Helenium autumnale_*—Height, 6 to 7 feet; second week of July;
+flowers, large, deep yellow, borne in large heads; very ornamental in
+late summer.
+
+_Helianthus doronicoides_.*—Height, 6 to 7 feet; second week of August;
+flowers, large, bright yellow, and borne singly; continues blooming for
+several weeks.
+
+_Helianthus multiflorus_.*—Height, 4 feet; flowers, large, double,
+bright yellow, and borne singly; a very striking late-flowering
+perennial.
+
+_Heuchera sanguinea_*—Height, 1 to 1-1/2 feet; first week of June;
+flowers, small, bright, scarlet, borne in open panicles; continues
+blooming throughout the summer.
+
+_Hemerocallis Dumortierii_.—Height, 1-1/2 feet; second week of June;
+flowers, large, orange-yellow, with a brownish tinge on the outside,
+and three or four on a stem.†
+
+_Hemerocallis flava_.—Height, 2 to 3 feet; latter part of June;
+flowers, bright orange-yellow and fragrant.†
+
+_Hemerocallis minor_.—Height, 1 to 1-1/2 feet; second week of July;
+flowers, medium size and yellow; blooms later than the two preceding
+species and has a smaller flower and narrower foliage.
+
+_Hibiscus Moscheutos_.*—Height, 5 feet; third week of August; flowers,
+very large, varying in color from white to deep pink. A variety called
+“Crimson Eye” is very good. This plant makes a fine show in late
+summer.
+
+_Hypericum Ascyron_ (or _pyramidatum_).*—Height, 3 feet; fourth week of
+July; flowers, large, yellow, and borne singly.
+
+_Iberis sempervirens_.—Height, 6 to 12 inches; third week of May;
+flowers, pure white, fragrant, and borne in dense flat clusters.†
+
+_Iris Chamœiris_.—Height, 6 inches; fourth week of May; flowers, bright
+yellow with brown markings.
+
+_Iris flavescens_.—Height, 1-1/2 to 2 feet; first week of June;
+flowers, lemon-yellow with brown markings.
+
+_Iris Florentina_.—Height, 2 feet; first week of June; flowers, very
+large, pale blue or lavender, sweet scented.†
+
+_Iris Germanica_.—Height, 2 to 3 feet; first week of June; flowers,
+very large, of elegant form; color, deep lilac and bright purple, sweet
+scented. There is a large number of choice varieties of this iris.†
+
+_Iris lœvigata (Kœmpferi)._—Height, 1-1/2 to 2 feet; first week of
+July; flowers, purple and modified colors, very large and distinct in
+color and shape.†
+
+_Iris pumila_.—Height, 4 to 6 inches; third week of May; flowers, deep
+purple. There are several varieties.
+
+_Iris Sibirica_.—Height, 3 to 4 feet; fourth week of May; flowers, deep
+blue, borne on long stems in clusters of two or three. This species has
+many varieties.
+
+_Iris variegata_.—Height, 1 to 1 1/2 feet; first week of June; flowers,
+yellow and brown, veined with various shades of brown.
+
+_Lilium auratum_.—Height, 3 to 5 feet; July; flowers, very large,
+white, with a yellow central band on each petal, and thickly spotted
+with purple and red. The most showy of all lilies and a splendid
+flower. This has proved hardy at the Central Experimental Farm,
+although it has been reported tender in some localities.†
+
+_Lilium Canadense_.*—Height, 2 to 3 feet; latter part of May; flowers,
+yellow to pale red with reddish spots, pendulous.
+
+_Lilium elegans_.—Height, 6 inches; first week of July; flowers, pale
+red; several varieties are better than the type.
+
+_Lilium speciosum_.—Height, 2 to 3 feet; July; flowers, large, white,
+tinged and spotted with deep pink and red. Hardier than _Lilium_
+_auratum_ and almost as fine. There are several fine varieties.†
+
+_Lilium superbum_.*—Height, 4 to 6 feet; first week of July; flowers,
+very numerous, orange red, thickly spotted with dark brown. An
+admirable lily for the rear of the border. †
+
+_Lilium tenuifolium_.—Height, 1 1/2 to 2 feet; third week of June;
+flowers, pendulous and bright scarlet. One of the most graceful of all
+lilies.
+
+_Lilium tigrinum_.—Height, 2 to 4 feet; flowers, large, deep orange,
+spotted thickly with purplish black.
+
+_Linum perenne_.—Height, 1 1/2 feet; first week of June; flowers, large
+deep blue, borne in loose panicles, continuing throughout the summer.
+
+_Lobelia cardinalis_.*—Height, 2 to 3 feet; August; flowers, bright
+scarlet, borne in terminal racemes; very showy.
+
+_Lychnis Chalcedonica flore pleno_.—Height, 2 to 3 feet; first week of
+July; flowers, bright crimson, double, and borne in terminal racemes.
+
+_Lysimachia clethroides_.—Height, 3 feet; fourth week of July; flowers,
+white, borne in long spikes. A very striking late-flowering perennial.
+
+_Myosotis alpestris_.—Height, 6 inches; third week of May; flowers,
+small, bright blue with a yellowish eye. A very profuse bloomer.
+
+_Œnothera Missouriensis._*—Height, 1 foot; fourth week of June;
+flowers, very large, rich yellow, and borne singly, throughout the
+summer.
+
+_Pœonia officinalis_.—Height, 2 to 4 feet; early part of July. The
+double-flowered varieties are the best, and can be obtained in several
+colors and shades, †
+
+_Papaver nudicaule_*—Height, 1 foot; second week of May; flowers,
+medium size, orange, white, or yellow, almost continuously until late
+autumn. †
+
+_Papaver orientale_.—Height, 2 to 3 feet; first week of June; flowers,
+very large, scarlet, and variously marked, according to variety, there
+being many forms.
+
+_Pentstemon barbatus_ var. _Torreyi_.*—Height, 2 to 3 feet; first week
+of July; flowers, deep red, borne in long spikes, very ornamental.
+
+_Phlox amœna_.*—Height, 6 inches; second week of May; flowers, medium
+size, bright pink, in compact clusters.
+
+_Phlox decussata_* (the garden perennial hybrids).—Height, 1 to 3 feet;
+third week of July; flowers, of many beautiful shades and colors, are
+found in the large number of named varieties of this phlox, which
+continues to bloom until late in the autumn. †
+
+_Phlox reptans_.*—Height, 4 inches; fourth week of May; flowers, medium
+size, purple, and borne in small clusters.
+
+_Phlox subulata_* _(setacea)_.—Height, 6 inches; third week of May;
+flowers, medium size, deep pink, and borne in small clusters.
+
+_Platycodon grandiflorum_.—Height, 1-1/2 to 2 feet; second week of
+July; flowers, very large, deep blue, borne singly or in twos.†
+
+_Platycodon grandiflorum_ var. _album_.—A white-flowered variety of the
+above and makes a fine contrast to it when they are grown together. It
+blooms a few days earlier than the species.
+
+_Platycodon Mariesii_.—Height, 1 foot; second week of July; flowers,
+large and deep blue.
+
+_Polemonium cœruleum_.*—Height, 2 feet; second week of June; flowers,
+deep blue, borne in terminal spikes.
+
+_Polemonium reptans_.*—Height, 6 inches; third week of May; flowers,
+medium in size, blue, and borne profusely in loose clusters.
+
+_Polemonium Richardsoni_.*—Height, 6 inches; third week of May;
+flowers, medium in size, blue, borne profusely in pendulous panicles.
+
+_Potentilla hybrida_ var. _versicolor_.—Height, 1 foot; fourth week of
+June; flowers, large, deep orange and yellow, semi-double.
+
+_Primula cortusoides_.—Height, 9 inches; third week of May; flowers,
+small, deep rose, in compact heads.
+
+_Pyrethrum_ (or _Chrysanthemum_) _uliginosum_.—Height, 4 feet;
+September; flowers, large, white with yellow centers, and borne singly
+on long stems.
+
+_Rudbeckia laciniata_* (Golden Glow).—Height, 5 to 6 feet; August;
+flowers, large, lemon-yellow, double, and borne on long stems. One of
+the best of lately introduced perennials. †
+
+_Rudbeckia maxima_.*—Height, 5 to 6 feet; July and August; flowers,
+large, with a long cone-shaped center and bright yellow rays, and borne
+singly. The whole plant is very striking.
+
+_Scabiosa Caucascia_.—Height, 1-1/2 feet; first week of July; flowers,
+large, light blue, and borne singly on long stems, very freely
+throughout remainder of the summer.
+
+_Solidago Canadensis_* (Golden-rod).—Height, 3 to 5 feet; first week of
+August; flowers, small, golden yellow, and borne in dense panicles.
+
+_Spiræa_ (properly _Aruncus_)_ astilboides_.—Height, 2 feet; fourth
+week of June; flowers, small, white, very numerous, and borne in many
+branched panicles. Both foliage and flowers are ornamental.
+
+_Spiræa_ (or _Ulmaria_) _Filipendula_.—Height, 2 to 3 feet; third week
+of June; flowers, pure white, borne profusely in loose panicles. The
+foliage of this species is also very good. There is a double flowered
+variety which is very effective. †
+
+_Spiræa (Ulmaria) purpurea_ var. _elegans_.—Height, 2 to 3 feet; first
+week of July; flowers, whitish with crimson anthers, borne very
+profusely in panicles.
+
+_Spiræa Ulmaria (Ulmaria pentapetala_).—Height, 3 to 4 feet; second
+week of July; flowers, very numerous, dull white, borne in large
+compound heads, having a soft, feathery appearance.
+
+_Spiræa venusta (Ulmaria rubra_ var. _venusta_).—Height, 4 feet; second
+week of July; flowers, small, bright pink, borne profusely in large
+panicles. †
+
+_Statice latifolia_.—Height, 1-1/2 feet; first week of July; flowers,
+small, blue, borne very profusely in loose panicles. Very effective in
+the border.
+
+_Thalictrum aquilegifolium_.—Height, 4 to 5 feet; fourth week of June;
+flowers, small, white to purplish, very numerous and borne in large
+panicles.
+
+_Trollius Europæs_.—Height, 1-1/2 to 2 feet; fourth week of May;
+flowers, large, bright yellow, continuing a long time.
+
+4. BULBS AND TUBERS
+
+_(See the particular culture of the different kinds in Chapter VIII;
+and instructions for forcing on *p. 345.)_
+
+It is customary to write of bulbs and tubers together, because the tops
+and flowers of all the bulbous and tuberous plants spring from large
+reservoirs of stored food, giving rise to similar methods of culture
+and of storage.
+
+Structurally, the bulb is very different from the tuber, however. A
+bulb is practically a large dormant bud, the scales representing the
+leaves, and the embryo stem lying in the center. Bulbs are condensed
+plants in storage. The tuber, on the other hand, is a solid body, with
+buds arising from it. Some tubers represent thickened stems, as the
+Irish potato, and some thickened roots, as probably the sweet-potato,
+and some both stem and root, as the turnip, parsnip, and beet. Some
+tubers are very bulb-like in appearance, as the corms of crocus and
+gladiolus.
+
+Using the word “bulb” in the gardener’s sense to include all these
+plants as a cultural group, we may throw them into two classes: the
+hardy kinds, to be planted in fall; and the tender kinds, to be planted
+in spring.
+
+_Fall-planted bulbs_.
+
+The fall-planted bulbs are of two groups: the “Holland bulbs” or early
+spring bloomers, as crocus, tulip (Fig. 255), hyacinth (Fig. 262),
+narcissus (Fig. 260), squill (Fig. 256), snowdrop; the summer bloomers,
+as lilies (Figs. 258, 259). The treatments of the two groups are so
+similar that they may be discussed together.
+
+
+[Illustration Fig: 255. Tulips, the warmest of spring flowers.]
+
+All these bulbs may be planted as soon as they are mature; but in
+practice they are kept till late September or October before they are
+put into the ground, as nothing is gained by earlier planting, and,
+moreover, the ground is usually not ready to receive them until some
+other crop is removed.
+
+[Illustration: Fig 256. One of the squills.--_Scilla bifolia_.]
+
+These bulbs are planted in the fall (1) because they keep better in the
+ground than when stored; (2) because they will take root in fall and
+winter and be ready for the first warmth of spring; (3) and because it
+is usually impossible to get on the ground early enough in spring to
+plant them with much hope of success for that season.
+
+The bulbs lie dormant until spring, so far as outward appearances go;
+they are mulched to insure that they will not start in warm weather of
+fall or winter, and to protect the ground from heaving.
+
+To secure good bulbs and of the desired varieties, the order should be
+placed in spring or early summer. For flower-garden effects, the large
+and mature bulbs should be secured; for colonizing in shrubbery or on
+the lawn, the smaller sizes may be sufficient. Insist that your bulbs
+shall be first class, for there is wide difference in the quality; even
+with the best of treatment, good results cannot be secured from poor
+bulbs.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 257. A purple-flowered Amaryllis.--_Lycoris
+squamigera_, but known as _Amaryllis Hallii_.]
+
+It is not generally known that there are autumn-flowering bulbs.
+Several species of crocus bloom in the fall, _C. sativus_ (the saffron
+crocus) and _C. speciosus_ being the ones generally recommended. The
+colchicums are excellent autumn-blooming bulbs and should be more
+generally planted. _C. autumnale_, rosy purple, is the usual species.
+These autumn-blooming bulbs are planted in August or early September
+and treated in general the same as other similar bulbs. The colchicums
+usually remain in the ground several years in good condition.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 258. The Japanese gold-banded lily.--_Lilium
+auratum_]
+
+All kinds of bulbs are partial to a deep, rich, water-free soil. This
+is no small part of their successful culture. The spot should be well
+drained, either naturally or artificially. In flattish and rather moist
+lands the beds may be made above the surface, some 18 inches high, and
+bordered with grass. A layer of rough stones a foot deep is sometimes
+used in the bottom of ordinary beds for drainage, and with good
+results, when other methods are not convenient, and when there is fear
+that the bed may become too wet. If the place is likely to be rather
+wet, place a large handful of sand where the bulb is to go and set the
+bulb on it. This will keep the water from standing around the bulb.
+Very good results may be had in heavy soil by this method.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 259. One of the common wild lilies.--_Lilium
+Philadelphicum_.]
+
+The soil for bulbs should be well enriched with old manure. Fresh
+manure should never be allowed close about the bulb. The addition of
+leafmold and a little sand also improves the texture of heavy soils.
+For lilies the leafmold may be omitted. Let the spading be at least a
+foot deep. Eighteen inches will be none too deep for lilies. To make a
+bulb bed, throw out the top earth to the depth of 6 inches. Put into
+the bottom of the bed about 2 inches of well-rotted manure and spade it
+into the soil. Throw back half of the top soil, level it off nicely,
+set the bulbs firmly on this bed, and then cover them with the
+remainder of the earth; in this way one will have the bulbs from 3 to 4
+inches below the surface, and they will all be of uniform depth and
+will give uniform results if the bulbs themselves are well graded. The
+“design” bed may be worked out easily in this way, for all the bulbs
+are fully exposed after they are placed, and they are all covered at
+once.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 260. Common species of narcissus.--_a a. Narcissus
+Pseudo-Narcissus_ or daffodil; _b._ Jonquil; _c. N. Pœticus_.]
+
+Of course, it is not necessary that the home gardener go to the trouble
+of removing the earth and replacing it if he merely wants good blooms;
+but if he wants a good bed as a whole, or a mass effect, he should take
+this pains. In the shrubberies and on the lawn he may “stick them in”
+here and there, seeing that the top of the bulb is 3 to 6 inches
+beneath the surface, the depth depending on the size of the bulb (the
+bigger and stronger the bulb, the deeper it may go) and on the nature
+of the soil (they may go deeper in sand than in hard clay).
+
+As the time of severe winter freezing approaches, the bed should
+receive a mulch of leaves, manure or litter, to the depth of 4 inches
+or more, according to the latitude and the kind of material. If leaves
+are used, 3 inches will be enough, because the leaves lie close
+together and may smother out the frost that is in the ground and let
+the bulbs start. It will be well to let the mulch extend 1 foot or more
+beyond the margins of the bed. When cold weather is past, half of the
+mulch should be removed. The remainder may be left on till there is no
+longer danger of frost. On removing the last of the mulch, lightly work
+over the surface among the bulbs with a thrust-hoe.
+
+If the weather happens to be very bright during the blooming season,
+the duration of the flowers may be prolonged by light shading—as with
+muslin, or slats placed above the beds. If planted where they have
+partial shade from surrounding trees or shrubbery, the beds will not
+need attention of this kind.
+
+Lilies may remain undisturbed for years. Crocuses and tulips may stand
+two years, but hyacinths should be taken up each year and replanted;
+tulips also will be better for the same treatment. Narcissus may remain
+for some years, or until they show signs of running out.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 261. The Belladonna lily.--_Amaryllis Belladonna_.]
+
+Bulbs that are to be taken up should be left in the ground till the
+foliage turns yellow, or dies down naturally. This gives the bulbs a
+chance to ripen. Cutting off the foliage and digging too early is a not
+uncommon and serious mistake. Bulbs that have been planted in places
+that are wanted for summer bedding plants may be dug with the foliage
+on and heeled-in under a tree, or along a fence, to stand till ripened.
+The plant should be injured as little as possible, as the foliage of
+this year makes the flowers of the next. When the foliage has turned
+yellow or died down, the bulbs—after cleaning, and curing them for a
+few hours in the sun—may be stored in the cellar or other cool, dry
+place, to await fall planting. Bulbs that are lifted prematurely in
+this way should be planted permanently in the borders, for they will
+not make good flower-garden subjects the following year. In fact, it is
+usually best to buy fresh, strong bulbs each year of tulips, hyacinths,
+and crocuses if the best results are desired, using the old bulbs for
+shrubberies and mixed borders.
+
+Crocuses and squills are often planted in the lawn. It is not to be
+expected that they will last more than two to three years, however,
+even if care is taken not to cut the tops closely when the lawn is cut.
+The narcissus (including daffodils and jonquils) will remain in good
+condition for years in grassy parts of the place, if the tops are
+allowed to mature.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 262. The common Dutch hyacinth.]
+
+_List of outdoor fall-planted bulbs for the North_.
+
+Crocus.
+Hyacinth.
+Tulip.
+Narcissus (including daffodil and jonquil).
+Scilla, or squill.
+Snowdrop _(Galanthus)._
+Snowflake _(Leucoium)._
+Chionodoxa.
+Hardy alliums.
+Bulbocodium.
+Camassia.
+Lily-of-the-valley.
+Winter aconite (_Eranthis hycmalis_).
+Dog-tooth violets (_Erythronium_).
+Crown imperial (_Fritillaria Imperialis_).
+Fritillary (_Fritillaria Mekagris_).
+Trilliums.
+Lilies.
+
+Peonies, tuberous anemones, tuberous buttercups, iris, bleeding heart,
+and the like, may be planted in autumn and are often classed with
+fall-planted bulbs.
+
+_Winter bulbs_ (p. 345).
+
+Some of these bulbs may be made to bloom in the greenhouse,
+window-garden, or living room in winter. Hyacinths are particularly
+useful for this purpose, because the bloom is less affected by cloudy
+weather than that of tulips and crocuses. Some kinds of narcissus also
+“force” well, particularly the daffodil; and the Paper-white and
+“Chinese sacred lily” are practically the only common bulbs from which
+the home gardener may expect good bloom before Christmas. The method of
+handling bulbs for winter bloom is described under Window-gardening (on
+*p. 345).
+
+_Summer bulbs_.
+
+There is nothing special to be said of the culture of the so-called
+summer-blooming and spring-planted bulbs, as a class. They are tender,
+and are therefore planted after cold weather is past. For early bloom,
+they may be started indoors. Of course, any list of spring-planted
+bulbs is relative to the climate, for what may be planted in spring in
+New York perhaps may be planted in the fall in Georgia.
+
+The common “summer bulbs” are:—
+
+Gladiolus
+Tuberose
+Dahlia
+Canna
+Arum
+Calla
+Calochortus
+Alstremeria
+Amaryllis
+Colocasia
+
+
+5. THE SHRUBBERY
+
+(Exclusive of coniferous evergreens and climbing plants.)
+
+The common hardy shrubs or bushes may be planted in fall or spring. In
+the northernmost parts of the country and in Canada spring planting is
+usually safer, although on well-drained ground and when thoroughly
+mulched the plants may even there do well if planted as soon as the
+leaves drop in fall. If the shrubs are purchased in spring, they are
+likely to have come from “cellared stock”; that is, the nurserymen dig
+much of their stock in fall and store it in cellars built for the
+purpose. While stock that is properly cellared is perfectly reliable,
+that which has been allowed to get too dry or which has been otherwise
+improperly handled comes on very slowly in the spring, makes a poor
+growth the first year, and much of it may die.
+
+In the planting of any kind of trees or shrubs, it is well to remember
+that nursery-grown specimens generally transplant more readily and
+thrive better than trees taken from the wild; and this is particularly
+true if the stock was transplanted in the nursery. Trees that
+transplant with difficulty, as the papaw or asimina, and some nut
+trees, may be prepared for removal by cutting some of their roots—and
+especially the tap-root, if they have such—a year or two in advance.
+
+
+XIII. The pageant of summer. XIII. The pageant of summer. Gardens of C.
+W. Dowdeswell, England, from a painting by Miss Parsons. For permission
+to reproduce the above picture we are indebted to the kindness of
+Messrs. Sutton & Sons, Seed Merchants, Reading, England, the owners of
+the copyright, who published it in their Amateur’s Guide in
+Horticulture for 1909.
+
+It is ordinarily best to plow or spade the entire area in which the
+shrubs are to be set. For a year or two the ground should be tilled
+between the shrubs, either by horse tools or by hoes and rakes. If the
+place looks bare, seeds of quick-growing flowers may be scattered about
+the edges of the mass, or herbaceous perennials may be used.
+
+The larger shrubs, as lilacs and syringas, may be set about 4 feet
+apart; but the smaller ones should be set about 2 feet apart if it is
+desired to secure an immediate effect. If after a few years the mass
+becomes too crowded, some of the specimens may be removed (*p. 76).
+
+Throw the shrubs into an irregular plantation, not in rows, and make
+the inner edge of the mass more or less undulating and broken.
+
+It is a good practice to mulch the plantation each fall with light
+manure, leaf mold, or other material. Even though the shrubs are
+perfectly hardy, this mulch greatly improves the land and promotes
+growth. After the shrub borders have become two or three years old, the
+drifting leaves of fall will be caught therein and will be held as a
+mulch (p. 82).
+
+When the shrubs are first planted, they are headed back one half or
+more (Fig. 45); but after they are established they are not to be
+sheared, but allowed to take their own way, and after a few years the
+outermost ones will droop and meet the green*-sward (*pp. 25, 26).
+
+Many rapid-growing trees may be utilized as shrubs by cutting them off
+near the ground every year, or every other year, and allowing young
+shoots to grow. Basswood, black ash, some of the maples, tulip tree,
+mulberry, ailanthus, paulownia, magnolias, _Acer campestre_, and others
+may be treated in this way (Fig. 50).
+
+Nearly all shrubs bloom in spring or early summer. If kinds blooming
+late in summer or in fall are desired, they maybe looked for in
+baccharis, caryopteris, cephalanthus, clethra, hamamelis, hibiscus,
+hydrangea, hypericum, lespedeza, rhus _(R. Cotinus), Sambucus
+Canadensis_ in midsummer, tamarisk.
+
+Plants that bloom in very early spring (not mentioning such as birches,
+alders, and hazels) may be found in amelanchier, cydonia, daphne,
+dirca, forsythia, cercis (in tree list), benzoin, lonicera _(L.
+fragrantissima_), salix (_S. discolor_ and other pussy willows),
+shepherdia.
+
+Shrubs bearing conspicuous berries, pods, and the like, that persist in
+fall or winter may be found in the genera berberis (particularly _B.
+Thunbergii_), colutea, corylus, cratægus, euonymus, ilex, physocarpus,
+ostrya, ptelea, pyracantha (Plate XIX) pyrus, rhodotypos, rosa (_R.
+rugosa_), staphylea, symphoricarpus, viburnum, xanthoceras.
+
+_List of shrubbery plants for the North_.
+
+The following list of shrubs (of course not complete) comprises a
+selection with particular reference to southern Michigan and central
+New York, where the mercury sometimes falls to fifteen degrees below
+zero. Application is also made to Canada by designating species that
+have been found to be hardy at Ottawa.
+
+The list is arranged alphabetically by the names of the genera.
+
+The * denotes that the plant is native to North America.
+
+The ‡ indicates species that are recommended by the Central
+Experimental Farms, Ottawa, Ontario.
+
+It is often difficult to determine whether a group should be listed
+among shrubs or trees. Sometimes the plant is not quite a tree and is
+yet something more than a shrub or bush; sometimes the plant may be
+distinctly a tree in its southern range and a shrub in its northern
+range; sometimes the same genus or group contains both shrubs and
+trees. In the following genera there are doubtful cases: æsculus,
+alnus, amelanchier, betula, caragana, castanea, cornus (_C. florida_),
+cratægus, elæagnus, prunus, robinia.
+
+Dwarf buckeye, _Æsculus parviflora (Pavia macrostachya_).* Attractive
+in habit, foliage, and flower; produces a large foliage mass.
+
+Alder. Several bushy species of alder are good lawn or border subjects,
+particularly in wet places or along streams, as _A. viridis,* A.
+rugosa,* A. incana_,* and others.
+
+June-berry, _Amelanchier Canadensis_* and others. Flowers profusely in
+spring before the leaves appear; some of them become small trees.
+
+Azalea, _Azalea viscosa_* and _A. nudiflora_.* Require partial shade,
+and a woodsy soil.
+
+Japanese azalea, _A. mollis_ (or _A. Sinensis_). Showy red and yellow
+or orange flowers; hardy north.
+
+Groundsel tree, “white myrtle,” _Baccharis halimifolia_.* Native on the
+Atlantic seashore, but grows well when planted inland; valuable for its
+white fluffy “bloom” (pappus) in latest fall; 4-10 ft.
+
+Spice-bush, _Benzoin odoriferum (Lindera Benzoin_*). Very
+early-blooming bush of wet places, the yellow, clustered, small flowers
+preceding the leaves; 6–10 ft.
+
+Barberry, _Berberis vulgaris_. Common barberry; 4-6 ft. The
+purple-leaved form (var. _purpurea_‡) is popular.
+
+Thunberg’s barberry, _B. Thunbergii_.‡ One of the best of lawn and
+border shrubs, with compact and attractive habit, deep red autumn
+foliage and bright scarlet berries in profusion in fall and winter;
+excellent for low hedges; 2-4 ft.
+
+Mahonia, _Berberis Aquifolium_.*‡ Evergreen; needs some protection in
+exposed places; 1-3 ft.
+
+Dwarf birch, _Betula pumila_.* Desirable for low places; 3-10 ft.
+
+Box, _Buxus sempervirens_. An evergreen shrub, useful for hedges and
+edgings in cities; several varieties, some of them very dwarf. See page
+220.
+
+Carolina allspice, sweet-scented shrub, _Calycanthus floridus_.* Dull
+purple, very fragrant flowers; 3-8 ft.
+
+Siberian pea-tree, _Caragana arborescens_.‡ Flowers pea-like, yellow,
+in May; very hardy; 10-15 feet.
+
+Small pea-tree, _C. pygmœa_. Very small, 1-3 ft, but sometimes grafted
+on _C. arborescens_.
+
+Shrubby pea-tree, _C. frutescens_.‡ Flowers larger than those of _C.
+arborescens_; 3–10 ft.
+
+Large-flowered pea-tree, _C. grandiflora_.‡ Larger-flowered than the
+last, which it resembles; 4 ft.
+
+Blue spirea, _Caryopteris Mastacanthus_. Flowers bright blue, in late
+summer and fall; 2-4 ft., but is likely to die to ground in winter.
+
+Chinquapin or dwarf chestnut, _Castanea pumila_.* Becomes a small tree,
+but usually bushy.
+
+Ceanothus, _Ceanothus Americanus_.* A very small native shrub,
+desirable for dry places under trees; 2-3 ft. There are many good
+European garden forms of ceanothus, but not hardy in the northern
+states.
+
+Button-bush, _Cephalanthus occidentalis_.* Blossoms in July and August;
+desirable for water-courses and other low places; 4-10 ft.
+
+Fringe tree, _Chionanthus Virginica_.* Shrub as large as lilac, or
+becoming tree-like, with fringe-like white flowers in spring.
+
+White alder, _Clethra alnifolia_.* A very fine, hardy shrub, producing
+very fragrant flowers in July and August; should be better known; 4-10
+ft.
+
+Bladder senna, _Colutea arborescens_. Pea-like yellowish flowers in
+June, and big inflated pods; 8-12 ft.
+
+European osier, _Cornus alba_ (known also as _C. Sibirica_ and _C.
+Tatarica_). Branches deep red; 4-8 ft.; the variegated form ‡ has
+leaves edged white.
+
+Bailey’s osier, _Cornus Baileyi_.* Probably the finest of the native
+osiers for color of twigs and foliage; 5-8 ft.
+
+Red-twigged osier, _Cornus stolonifera_.* The red twigs are very showy
+in winter; 5 to 8 ft.; some bushes are brighter in color than others.
+
+Flowering dogwood, _C. florida_.* Very showy tree or big shrub,
+desirable for borders of groups and belts. A red-flowered variety is on
+the market.
+
+Cornelian Cherry, _Cornus Mas_. Becoming a small tree, 15-20 ft.;
+flowers numerous in bunches, yellow, before the leaves; fruit,
+cherry-like, edible, red.
+
+Hazel or filbert, _Corylus maxima_ var. _purpurea_. A well-known
+purple-leaved shrub, usually catalogued as _C. Avellana purpurea_. The
+eastern American species (_C. Americana_* and _C. rostrata_*) are also
+interesting.
+
+Cotoneaster. Several species of cotoneaster are suitable for
+cultivation in the middle and southern latitudes. They are allied to
+cratægus. Some are evergreen. Some kinds bear handsome persistent
+fruits.
+
+Wild thorns, _Cratœgus punctata_,* _C. coccinea_,*‡ _C. Crus-galli_,*‡
+and others. The native thorn apples or hawthorns, of numerous species,
+are amongst our best large shrubs for planting and should be much
+better known; 6-20 ft.
+
+Japanese quince, _Cydonia_ (or _Pyrus_) _Japonica_. An old favorite
+blooming in earliest spring, in advance of the leaves; not hardy at
+Lansing, Mich.; 4-5 ft.
+
+Maule’s Japanese quince, _C. Maulei_.‡ Bright red; fruit handsome;
+hardier than _C. Japonica_; 1-3 ft.
+
+Daphne, _Daphne Mezereum_. Produces rose-purple or white flowers in
+abundance in earliest spring before the leaves appear. Should be
+planted on the edges of groups; leaves deciduous; 1-4 ft.
+
+Garland flower, _D. Cneorum_.‡ Pink flowers in very early spring and
+again in autumn; leaves evergreen; 1-1/2 ft.
+
+Deutzia, _Deutzia scabra_ (or _crenata_) and varieties. Standard
+shrubs; the variety “Pride of Rochester,” with pinkish flowers, is
+perhaps the best form for the North; 4-6 ft. Of this and the next there
+are forms with ornamental foliage.
+
+Small deutzia, _D. gracilis_. Very close little bush, with pure white
+flowers; 2-3 ft.
+
+Lemoine’s deutzia, _D. Lemoinei_. A hybrid, very desirable; 1-3 ft.
+
+Weigela, _Diervilla Japonica_ and other species. Free bloomers, very
+fine, in many colors, 4-6 ft.; the forms known as _Candida,‡ rosea_,‡
+_Sieboldii variegata_,‡ are hardy and good.
+
+Leatherwood, _Dirca palustris_.* If well grown, the leatherwood makes a
+very neat plant; blossoms appear before the leaves, but not showy; 4-6
+ft.
+
+Russian olive, oleaster, _Elœagnus angustifolia_.‡ Foliage silvery
+white; very hardy; becoming a small tree, 15-20 ft.
+
+Wolf-willow, _E. argentea_.*‡ Large and silvery leaves; suckers badly;
+8-12 ft.
+
+Goumi, _E. longipes_ (sometimes called _E. edulis_). Attractive
+spreading bush, with handsome edible cranberry-like berries; 5-6 ft.
+
+Burning-bush, _Euonymus atropurpureus_.* Very attractive in fruit; 8-12
+ft., or even becoming tree-like.
+
+Several other species are in cultivation, some of them evergreen. In
+the North, success may be expected with _E. Europœus_ (sometimes a
+small tree), _E. alatus, E. Bungeanus, E. latifolius_, and perhaps
+others.
+
+Exochorda, _Exochorda grandiflora_. A large and very showy shrub,
+producing a profusion of apple-like white flowers in early spring; 6-12
+ft; allied to the spireas.
+
+Forsythia, _Forsythia viridissima_. Blossoms yellow, appearing before
+the leaves; requires protection in many places North; 6-10 ft.
+
+Drooping forsythia, _F. suspensa_. Makes an attractive mass on a bank
+or border; 6-12 ft.
+
+Dyer’s weed, _Genista tinctoria_.‡
+
+Yellow pea-like flowers in June; 1-3 ft.
+
+Silver-bell tree, _Halesia tetraptera_.*
+
+Bell-shaped white flowers in May; 8-10 ft.
+
+Witch hazel, _Hamamelis Virginiana_.*
+
+Blossoms in October and November; unique and desirable if well grown;
+8-12 ft.
+
+Althea, Rose of Sharon, _Hibiscus Syriacus_ (_Althœa frutex_).
+
+In many forms, purple, red, and white, and perhaps the best of late
+summer-blooming shrubs; 8-12 ft.
+
+Hydrangea, _Hydrangea paniculata_, var. _grandiflora_.‡
+
+One of the best and most showy small flowering shrubs; 4-10 ft.
+
+Downy hydrangea, _H. radiata_.*
+
+Attractive in both foliage and flower.
+
+Oak-leaved hydrangea, _H. quercifolia_.*
+
+This is especially valuable for its luxuriant foliage; even if killed
+to the ground in winter, it is still worth cultivating for its strong
+shoots.
+
+The greenhouse hydrangea (_H. hortensis_ in many forms) may be used as
+an outdoor subject in the South.
+
+St. John’s wort, _Hypericum Kalmianum,*‡ H. prolificum,_* and _H.
+Moserianum._
+
+Small undershrubs, producing bright yellow flowers in profusion in July
+and August; 2-4 ft.
+
+Winter-berry, _Ilex verticillata_.*‡
+
+Produces showy red berries, that persist through the winter; should be
+massed in rather low ground; flowers imperfect; 6-8 ft.
+
+The evergreen hollies are not suitable for cultivation in the North;
+but in the warmer latitudes, the American holly (_Ilex opaca_), English
+holly (_I. Aquifolium_), and Japanese holly (_I. crenata_) may be
+grown. There are several native species.
+
+Mountain laurel, _Kalmia latifolia_.*
+
+One of the best shrubs in cultivation, evergreen, 5-10 ft., or even
+becoming a small tree south; usually profits by partial shade; thrives
+in a peaty or loamy rather loose soil, and said to be averse to
+limestone and clay; extensively transferred from the wild for landscape
+effects in large private places; should thrive as far north as it grows
+wild.
+
+Kerria, corchorus, _Kerria Japonica_. A bramble-like shrub, producing
+attractive yellow single or double flowers from July until September;
+twigs very green in winter. There is a variegated-leaved form. Good for
+banks and borders; 2-3 ft.
+
+Sand myrtle, _Leiophyllum buxifolium_.* Evergreen, more or less
+procumbent; 2-3 ft.
+
+Lespedeza, _Lespedeza bicolor_.‡ Reddish or purple small flowers in
+late summer and fall; 4-8 ft.
+
+Lespedeza, _L. Sieboldii_ (_Desmodium penduliflorum_).‡ Rose-purple
+large flowers in fall; killed to the ground in winter, but it blooms
+the following year; 4-5 ft.
+
+Lespedeza, _L. Japonica_ (_Desmodium Japonicum_). Flowers white, later
+than those of _L. Sieboldii_; springs up from the root.
+
+Privet, _Ligustrum vulgare, L. ovalifolium_ (_L. Californicum_), and
+_L. Amurense._‡ Much used for low hedges and borders; 4-12 ft.; several
+other species.
+
+Tartarian honeysuckle, _Lonicera Tatarica_.‡ One of the most chaste and
+comely of shrubs; 6-10 ft.; pink-flowered; several varieties.
+
+Regel’s honeysuckle, _L. spinosa_ (_L. Alberti_).‡ Blooms a little
+later than above, pink; 2-4 ft.
+
+Fragrant honeysuckle, _L. fragrantissima_. Flowers exceedingly
+fragrant, preceding leaves; 2-6 ft.; one of the earliest things to
+bloom in spring. There are other upright honeysuckles, all interesting.
+
+Mock-orange (Syringa incorrectly), _Philadelphus coronarius_.‡ In many
+forms and much prized; 6-12 ft. Other species are in cultivation, but
+the garden nomenclature is confused. The forms known as _P. speciosus,
+P. grandiflorus_, and var. _speciosissimus_‡ are good; also the species
+_P. pubescens_,* _P. Gordonianus_,* and _P. microphyllus,_* the last
+being dwarf, with small white very fragrant flowers.
+
+Nine-bark, _Physocarpus opulifolius_ (_Spiræa opulifolia_).* A good
+vigorous hardy bush, with clusters of interesting pods following the
+flowers; the var. _aurea_ ‡ is one of the best yellow-leaved shrubs;
+6-10 ft.
+
+Andromeda, _Pieris floribunda_.*
+
+A small ericaceous evergreen; should have some protection from the
+winter sun; for this purpose, it may be planted on the north side of a
+clump of trees; 2-6ft.
+
+Shrubby cinquefoil, _Potentilla fruticosa_.*‡
+
+Foliage ashy; flowers yellow, in June; 2-4 ft.
+
+Sand cherry, _Prunus pumila_* and _P. Besseyi_.*
+
+The sand cherry of sandy shores grows 5-8 ft.; the western sand cherry
+(_P. Besseyi_) is more spreading and is grown for its fruit. The
+European dwarf cherry (_P. fruticosa_) is 2-4 ft., with white flowers
+in umbels.
+
+Flowering almond, _Prunus Japonica_.
+
+In its double-flowered form, familiar for its early bloom; 3-5 ft;
+often grafted on other stocks, which are liable to sprout and become
+troublesome.
+
+Hop-tree, _Ptelea trifoliata_.*
+
+Very interesting when bearing its roundish winged fruits; 8-10 ft., but
+becoming larger and tree-like.
+
+Buckthorn, _Rhamnus cathartica_.
+
+Much used for hedges; 8-12 ft.
+
+Alpine buckthorn, _R. alpina_.
+
+Foliage attractive; 5-6 ft.
+
+Rhododendron, _Rhododendron Catawbiense_* and garden varieties.
+
+Hardy in well-adapted locations, 3-8 ft., and higher in its native
+regions.
+
+Great laurel, _R. maximum_*
+
+A fine species for mass planting, native as far north as southern
+Canada. Extensively transplanted from the wild.
+
+White kerria, _Rhodotypos kerrioides_.
+
+White flowers in May and blackish fruit; 3-5 ft.
+
+Smoke-tree (Fringe-tree erroneously), _Rhus Cotinus_.
+
+One of the best shrubs for massing; two colors are grown; the billowy
+“bloom,” holding late in the season, is composed of flower stems rather
+than flowers; size of large lilac bushes.
+
+Dwarf sumac, _R. copallina_.*
+
+Attractive in foliage, and especially conspicuous in autumn from the
+brilliant red of its leaves; 3-5 ft., sometimes much taller.
+
+Sumac, smooth and hairy, _R. glabra_* and _R. typhina_.*
+
+Useful for the borders of large groups and belts. They may be cut down
+every year and allowed to sprout (as in Fig. 50). The young tops are
+handsomest. _R. glabra_ is the finer species for this purpose. They
+usually grow 10-15 ft. tall.
+
+Osbeck’s sumac, _R. semialata_ var. _Osbeckii_.
+
+Strong bush, 10-20 ft., with leaf-rachis strongly winged, the foliage
+pinnately compound.
+
+Flowering, or fragrant currant, _Ribes aureum_.*‡
+
+Well known and popular, for its sweet-scented yellow flowers in May;
+5-8 ft.
+
+Red-flowering currant, _R. sanguineum_.*
+
+Flowers red and attractive; 5-6 ft. _R. Gordonianum_, recommendable, is
+a hybrid between _R. sanguineum_ and _R. aureum_.
+
+Rose acacia, _Robinia hispida_.*‡
+
+Very showy in bloom; 8-10ft.
+
+Roses, _Rosa_, various species.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 263. Rosa rugosa.]
+
+Hardy roses are not always desirable for the lawn. For general lawn
+purposes the older sorts, single or semi-double, and which do not
+require high culture, are to be preferred. It is not intended to
+include here the common garden roses; see Chapter VIII for these. It is
+much to be desired that the wild roses receive more attention from
+planters. Attention has been too exclusively taken by the highly
+improved garden roses.
+
+Japanese rose, _Rosa rugosa_.‡
+
+Most excellent for lawn planting, as the foliage is thick and not
+attacked by insects (Fig. 263); white and pink flowered forms; 4-6 ft.
+
+Wild swamp rose, _R. Carolina_.* 5-8 ft.
+
+Wild dwarf rose, _R. humilis_* (_R. lucida_ of Michigan). This and
+other wild dwarf roses, 3-6 ft., may be useful in landscape work.
+
+Say’s Rose, _R. acicularis_ var. _Sayi_.* Excellent for lawns; 4-5 ft.
+
+Red-leaved rose, _R. ferruginea (R. rubrifolia_).‡ Excellent foliage;
+flowers single, pink; 5-6 ft.
+
+Japanese bramble, _Rubus cratægifolius_. Valuable for holding banks;
+spreads rapidly; very red in winter; 3-4 ft.
+
+Flowering raspberry, mulberry (erroneously), _R. odoratus_* Attractive
+when well grown and divided frequently to keep it fresh; there is a
+whitish form; 3-4 ft.
+
+Japanese wineberry, _R. phaenicolasius_. Attractive foliage and red
+hairy canes; fruit edible; 3-5 ft.
+
+Kilmarnock willow, _Salix Capraea_, var. _pendula_. A small weeping
+plant grafted on a tall trunk; usually more curious than ornamental.
+
+Rosemary willow, _S. rosmarinifolia_‡ of nurserymen _(R. incana_
+properly). 6-10 ft.
+
+Shining willow, _S. lucida_.* Very desirable for the edges of water;
+6-12 ft.
+
+Long-leaved willow, _S. interior_.* Our narrowest-leaved native willow;
+useful for banks; liable to spread too rapidly; 8-12ft.
+
+Fountain willow, _S. purpurea_. Attractive foliage and appearance,
+particularly if cut back now and then to secure new wood; excellent for
+holding springy banks; 10-20 ft.
+
+Pussy willow, _S. discolor_* Attractive when massed at some distance
+from the residence; 10-15 ft.
+
+Laurel-leaved willow, _S. pentandra (S. laurifolia_ of cultivators)‡
+See under Trees, p. 329. Many of the native willows might well be
+cultivated.
+
+Elders, _Sambucus pubens_* and _S. Canadensis_.* The former, the common
+“red elder,” is ornamental both in flower and fruit. _S. Canadensis_ is
+desirable for its profusion of fragrant flowers appearing in July; the
+former is 6–7 ft. high and the latter 8-10 ft. Golden-leaved elder, _S.
+nigra_ var. _foliis aureis_,‡ and also the cut-leaved elder, are
+desirable forms of the European species; 5-15 ft.
+
+Buffalo-berry, _Shepherdia argentea_* Silvery foliage; attractive and
+edible berries; 10-15 ft., often tree-like.
+
+Shepherdia, _S. Canadensis_.* Spreading bush, 3–8 ft., with attractive
+foliage and fruit.
+
+Early spirea, _Spiræa arguta_.‡ One of the earliest bloomers among the
+spireas; 2-4 ft.
+
+Three-lobed spirea, bridal wreath, _S. Van Houttei_.‡ One of the most
+showy early-flowering shrubs; excellent for massing; blooms a little
+later than the above; 3-6 ft.
+
+Sorbus-leaved spirea, _S. sorbifolia (Sorbaria sorbifolid_).‡ Desirable
+for its late blooming,—late June and early July; 4-5 ft.
+
+Plum-leaved spirea, _S. prunifolia_.
+
+Fortune’s spirea, _S. Japonica (S. callosa_),‡ 2 to 4 ft.
+
+Thunberg’s spirea, _S. Thunbergii_. Neat and attractive in habit;
+useful for border-hedges; 3-5 ft.
+
+St. Peter’s Wreath, _S. hypericifolia_; 4-5 ft.
+
+Round-leaved spirea, _S. bracteata_.‡ Follows Van Houttei; 3-6 ft.
+
+Douglas’ spirea, _S. Douglasii_.* Blossoms late,—in July; 4-8 ft.
+
+Hard-hack, _S. tomentosa_.* Much like the last, but less showy; 3-4 ft.
+
+Willow-leaved spirea, _S. salicifolia_.*‡ Blooms late; 4-5 ft.
+
+Bladder-nut, _Staphylea trifolia_* Well-known rather coarse native
+shrub; 6-12 ft.
+
+Colchican bladder-nut, _S. Colchica_. Good early flowering shrub; 6-12
+ft.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 264. A spirea, one of he most servicable flowering
+shrubs.]
+
+Styrax, _Styrax Japonica_. One of the most graceful of flowering
+shrubs, producing fragrant flowers in early summer; 8-10 ft. or more.
+
+Snow-berry, _Symphoricarpos racemosus_.*‡ Cultivated for its snow-white
+berries, that hang in autumn and early winter; 3-5 ft.
+
+Indian currant, _S. vulgaris_.‡ Foliage delicate; berries red; valuable
+for shady places and against walls; 4-5 ft.
+
+Common lilac, _Syringa vulgaris_.‡ (The name syringa is commonly
+misapplied to the species of _Philadelphus_.) The standard
+spring-blooming shrub in the North; 8-15 ft.; many forms.
+
+Josika lilac, _S. Josikaeca_.‡ Blooming about a week later than S.
+_vulgaris_; 8-10 ft.
+
+Persian lilac, _S. Persica_. More spreading and open bush than _S.
+vulgaris_; 6-10 ft.
+
+Japanese lilac, _S. Japonica_.‡ Blooms about one month later than
+common lilac; 15-20 ft.
+
+Rouen lilac, _S. Chinensis_ (or _Rothomagensis_)‡ Blooms with the
+common lilac; flowers more highly colored than those of _S. Persica_;
+5-12 ft.
+
+Chinese lilacs, _S. oblata_‡ and _villosa_.‡ The former 10-15 ft. and
+blooming with common lilac; the latter 4-6 ft., and blooming few days
+later.
+
+Tamarisk, _Tamarix_ of several species, particularly (for the North)
+_T. Chinensis, T. Africana_ (probably the garden forms under this name
+are all _T. parviflora_), and _T. hispida (T. Kashgarica_).
+
+All odd shrubs or small trees with very fine foliage, and minute pink
+flowers in profusion.
+
+Common snowball, _Viburnum Opulus_.*‡ The cultivated snowball ‡ is a
+native of the Old World; but the species grows wild in this country
+(known as High-bush Cranberry),‡ and is worthy of cultivation; 6-10 ft.
+
+Japanese snowball, _V. tomentosum_ (catalogued as _V. plicatum_). 6-10
+ft.
+
+Wayfaring tree, _V. Lantana_.‡ Fruit ornamental; 8-12 ft., or more.
+
+Plum-leaved haw, _V. prunifolium_.*‡ Leaves smooth and glossy; 8-15 ft.
+
+Sweet viburnum or sheep-berry, _Viburnum Lentago_.* Tall coarse bush,
+or becoming a small tree.
+
+Arrow-wood, _V. dentatum_.* Usually 5-8 ft., but becoming taller.
+
+Dockmackie, _V. acerifolium_.* Maple-like foliage; 4-5 ft.
+
+Withe-rod, lilac viburnum, _V. cassinoides.* 2-5_ ft. Other native and
+exotic viburnums are desirable.
+
+Xanthoceras, _Xanthoceras sorbifolia_. Allied to the buckeyes; hardy in
+parts of New England; 8–10ft.; handsome.
+
+Prickly ash, _Zanthoxylum Americanum_.*
+
+_Shrubs for the South_.
+
+Many of the shrubs in the preceding catalogue are also well adapted to
+the southeastern states. The following brief list includes some of the
+most recommendable kinds for the region south of Washington, although
+some of them are hardy farther North. The asterisk * denotes that the
+plant is native to this country.
+
+The crape myrtle _(Lagerstrœmia Indica_) is to the South what the lilac
+is to the North, a standard dooryard shrub; produces handsome red (or
+blush or white) flowers all summer; 8-12 feet.
+
+Reliable deciduous shrubs for the South are: althea, _Hibiscus
+Syriacus,_ in many forms; _Hibiscus Rosa-Sinensis; Azalea
+calendulacea,* mollis_, and the Ghent azalea _(A. Pontica)_; blue
+spirea, _Caryopteris Mastacanihus_; European forms of ceanothus; French
+mulberry, _Callicarpa Americana_*; calycanthus*; flowering willow,
+_Chilopsis linearis_*; fringe, _Chionanthus Virginica_*; white alder,
+_Clethra alnifolia_*; corchorus, _Kerria Japonica;_ deutzias, of
+several kinds; goumi, _Elœagnus longipes_; pearl bush, _Exochorda
+grandiflora_; Japan quince, _Cydonia Japonica;_ golden-bell, _Forsythia
+viridissima_; broom, _Spartium junceum;_ hydrangeas, including _H.
+Otaksa_, grown under cover in the North; _Jasminum nudiflorum_; bush
+honey suckles; mock orange, _Philadelphus coronarius_ and
+_grandiflorus_*; pomegranate; white kerria, _Rhodotypos kerrioides_;
+smoke tree, _Rhus Cotinus;_ rose locust, _Robinia hispida_*; spireas of
+several kinds; _Stuartia pentagyna_*; snowberry, _Symphoricarpos
+racemosus_*; lilacs of many kinds; viburnums of several species,
+including the European and Japanese snowballs; weigelas of the various
+kinds; chaste-tree, _Vitex Agnus-Castus;_ Thunberg’s barberry; red
+pepper, _Capsicum frutescens; Plumbago Capensis_; poinsettia.
+
+A large number of broad-leaved evergreen shrubs thrive in the South,
+such as: fetter bush, _Andromeda floribunda_*; some of the palms, as
+palmettoes* and chamærops; cycas and zamia* far South; _Abelia
+grandiflora_; strawberry tree, _Arbutus Unedo;_ ardisias and aucubas,
+both grown under glass in the North; azaleas and rhododendrons (not
+only _R. Catawbiense_* but _R. maximum* R, Ponticum_, and the garden
+forms); _Kalmia latifolia*; Berberis Japonica_ and mahonia*; box;
+_Cleyera Japonica_; cotoneasters and pyracantha; eleagnus of the types
+grown under glass in the North; gardenias; euonymus*; hollies*;
+anise-tree, _Illicium anisatum_; cherry laurels, _Prunus_ or
+_Laurocerasus_ of several species; mock orange (of the South), _Prunus
+Caroliniana_* useful for hedges; true laurel or bay-tree, _Laurus
+nobilis_; privets of several species; _Citrus trifoliata_, specially
+desirable for hedges; oleanders; magnolias*; myrtle, _Myrtus communis;
+Osmanthus (Olea) fragrans_, a greenhouse shrub North; _Osmanthus
+Aquifolium_*; butcher’s broom, _Ruscus aculeatus_; phillyreas*;
+_Pittosporum Tobira_; shrubby yuccas*; _Viburnum Tinus_ and others; and
+the camellia in many forms.
+
+
+XIV: Virginia creeper screen, on an old fence, with wall-flowers and
+hollyhocks in front. XIV: Virginia creeper screen, on an old fence,
+with wall-flowers and hollyhocks in front.
+
+
+6. CLIMBING PLANTS
+
+Vines do not differ particularly in their culture from other herbs and
+shrubs, except as they require that supports be provided; and, as they
+overtop other plants, they demand little room on the ground, and they
+may therefore be grown in narrow or unused spaces along fences and
+walls.
+
+In respect to the modes of climbing, vines may be thrown into three
+groups,—those that twine about the support; those that climb by means
+of special organs, as tendrils, roots, leaf*stalks; those that neither
+twine nor have special organs but that scramble over the support, as
+the climbing roses and the brambles. One must recognize the mode of
+climbing before undertaking the cultivation of any vine.
+
+Vines may also be grouped into annuals, both tender (as morning-glory)
+and hardy (as sweet pea); biennials, as adlumia, which are treated
+practically as annuals, being sown each year for bloom the next year;
+herbaceous perennials, the tops dying each fall down to a persisting
+root, as cinnamon vine and madeira vine; woody perennials (shrubs), the
+tops remaining alive, as Virginia creeper, grape, and wistaria.
+
+There is scarcely a garden in which climbing plants may not be used to
+advantage. Sometimes it may be to conceal obtrusive objects, again to
+relieve the monotony of rigid lines. They may also be used to run over
+the ground and to conceal its nakedness where other plants could not
+succeed. The shrubby kinds are often useful about the borders of clumps
+of trees and shrubbery, to slope the foliage down to the grass, and to
+soften or erase lines in the landscape.
+
+In the South and in California, great use is made of vines, not only on
+fences but on houses and arbors. In warm countries, vines give
+character to bungalows, pergolas, and other individual forms of
+architecture.
+
+If it is desired that the vines climb high, the soil should be fertile;
+but high climbing in annual plants (as in sweet peas) may be at the
+expense of bloom.
+
+The use of vines for screens and pillar decorations has increased in
+recent years until now they may be seen in nearly all grounds. The
+tendency has been towards using the hardy vines, of which the
+ampelopsis, or Virginia creeper, is one of the most common. This is a
+very rapid grower, and lends itself to training more readily than many
+others. The Japan ampelopsis (_A. tricuspidata_ or _Veitchii_) is a
+good clinging vine, growing very rapidly when once established, and
+brilliantly colored after the first fall frosts. It clings closer than
+the other, but is not so hardy. Either of these may be grown from
+cuttings or division of the plants.
+
+Two recommendable woody twiners of recent distribution are the
+actinidia and the akebia, both from Japan. They are perfectly hardy,
+and are rapid growers. The former has large thick glossy leaves, not
+affected by insects or disease, growing thickly along the stem and
+branches, making a perfect thatch. It blooms in June. The flowers,
+which are white with a purple center, are borne in clusters, followed
+by round or longish edible fruits. The akebia has very neat-cut
+foliage, quaint purple flowers, and often bears ornamental fruit.
+
+Of the tender vines, the nasturtiums and ipomeas and morning-glories
+are the most common in the North, while the adlumia, balloon vine,
+passion vine, gourds, and others, are frequently used. One of the best
+of recent introduction is the annual hop, especially the variegated
+variety. This is a very rapid-growing vine, seeding itself each year,
+and needing little care. The climbing geraniums (_Pelargonium peltatum_
+and its derivatives) are much used in California. All the tender vines
+should be planted after danger of frost is past.
+
+So many good vines are now on the market that one may grow a wide
+variety for many uses. The home gardener should keep his eyes open for
+the wild vines of his neighborhood and add the best of them to his
+collection. Most of these natives are worthy of cultivation. Even the
+poison ivy makes a very satisfactory cover for rough and inaccessible
+places in the wild, and its autumn color is very attractive; but of
+course its cultivation cannot be recommended.
+
+Vines that cling closely to walls of buildings are Virginia creeper
+(one form does not cling well), Boston or Japanese ivy _(Ampelopsis
+tricuspidata_; also _A. Lowii_, with smaller foliage), English ivy,
+euonymus _(E. radicans_ and the var. _variegata_), and _Ficus repens_
+far south; others that cling less closely are trumpet creeper, and
+climbing hydrangea _(Schizophragma hydrangeoides)._
+
+Vines for trailing, or covering the ground, are periwinkle _(Vinca),_
+herniaria, moneywort _(Lysimachia nummularia_), ground-ivy _(Nepeta
+Glechoma), Rosa Wichuraiana_, species of native greenbrier or smilax
+(not the so-called smilax of florists), _Rubus laciniatus_, dewberries,
+and also others that usually are not classed as vines. In the South,
+Japanese honeysuckle and Cherokee rose perform this function
+extensively. In California, species of mesembryanthemum (herbaceous)
+are extensively used as ground covers on banks. Page 86.
+
+For quickly covering brush and rough places, the many kinds of gourds
+may be used; also pumpkins and squashes, watermelons, _Cucumis
+fœtidissima_, wild cucumbers _(Echinocystis lobata_ and _Sicyos
+angulata_), nasturtiums, and other vigorous annuals. Many of the woody
+perennials may be used for such purposes, but usually these places are
+only temporary.
+
+For arbors, strong woody vines are desired. Grapes are excellent; in
+the South the muscadine and scuppernong grapes are adaptable to this
+purpose (Plate XV). Actinidia and wistaria are also used. Akebia,
+dutchman’s pipe, trumpet creeper, clematis, honeysuckles, may be
+suggested. Roses are much used in warm climates.
+
+For covering porches, the standard vine in the North is Virginia
+creeper. Grapes are admirable, particularly some of the wild ones.
+Japan honeysuckle is much used; and it has the advantage of holding its
+foliage well into the winter, or even all winter southward. Actinidia,
+akebia, wistaria, roses, dutch-man’s pipe, and clematis are to be
+recommended; the large-flowered clematises, however, are more valuable
+for their bloom than for their foliage (_C. paniculata_, and the native
+species are better for covering porches).
+
+The annual vines are mostly used as flower-garden subjects, as the
+sweet pea, morning-glories, mina, moonflowers, cypress vine,
+nasturtiums, cobea, scarlet runner. Several species of convolvulus,
+closely allied to the common morning-glory, have now enriched our
+lists. For baskets and vases the maurandia and the different kinds of
+thunbergias are excellent.
+
+The moonflowers are very popular in the South, where the seasons are
+long enough to allow them to develop to perfection. In the North they
+must be started early (it is a good plan to soak or notch the seeds)
+and be given a warm exposure and good soil (see in Chap. VIII).
+
+In the following lists, the plants native to the United States or
+Canada are marked by an asterisk *.
+
+_Annual herbaceous climbers_.
+(Grown each year from seed.)
+
+_a. Tendril-climbers_
+
+Adlumia (biennial).*
+
+Balloon Vine _(Cardiospermum)_.*
+
+Cobea.
+
+Gourds.
+
+Nasturtiums _(Tropaeolum)._
+
+Canary-bird Flower _(Tropaeolum peregrinum_).
+
+Sweet pea (Fig. 265).
+
+Wild cucumber.*
+
+Maurandia.
+
+Gourds or gourd-like plants, as, _Coccinia Indica_; Cucumis of several
+interesting species, as _C. erinaceus, grossulariœformis,
+odoratissimus_; dipper or bottle gourd _(Lagenaria)_;
+
+vegetable sponge, dish-cloth gourd, rag gourd _(Luffa);_ balsam apple,
+balsam pear _(Momordica)_; snake gourd _(Trichosanthes)_; bryonopsis;
+
+_Abobra viridiflora_.
+
+All the above except sweet pea are quickly cut down by frost.
+
+_b. Twiners_
+
+Beans, Flowering.
+
+Cypress vine.
+
+Dolichos Lablab, and others.
+
+Hop, Japanese.
+
+Ipomcea Quamoclit (cypress vine) and others.
+
+Moonflower, several species.
+
+Morning-glory.
+
+Mina lobata.
+
+Thunbergia.
+
+Mikania scandens.*
+
+Butterfly pea, _Centrosema Virginiana_.*
+
+Scarlet runner, _Phaseolus multiflorus_ (perennial South).
+
+Velvet or banana bean, _Mucuna pruriens_ var. _utilis_ (for the South).
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 265. Sweet pea.]
+
+_Perennial herbaceous climbers_.
+
+(The tops dying down in fall, but the root living over winter and
+sending up a new top.)
+
+_a. Tendril-climbers or root-climbers_
+
+Everlasting pea, _Lathyrus latifolius_. Clematis of various species, as
+_C. aromatica, Davidiana, heracleaefolia (C. tubulosa_), are more or
+less climbing. Most of the clematises
+  are shrubs.
+
+May-pop, _Passiflora incarnata_.* Not reliable north of Virginia.
+
+Wild Gourd, _Cucurbita fœtidissima (Cucumis perennius_).* Excellent
+strong rugged vine for covering piles on the ground.
+
+Mexican rose, mountain rose, _Antigonon leptopus_.
+
+Root tuberous; a rampant grower, with pink bloom; outdoors South, and a
+conservatory plant North.
+
+Kenilworth ivy, _Linaria Cymbalaria_.
+
+A very graceful little perennial vine, re-sowing itself even where not
+hardy; favorite for baskets.
+
+_b. Herbaceous twiners_
+
+Hop, _Humulus Lupulus_.*
+
+Produces the hops of commerce, but should be in common use as an
+ornamental plant.
+
+Chinese yam, cinnamon vine, _Dioscorea divaricata (D. Batatas_).
+
+Climbs high, but does not produce as much foliage as some other vines.
+
+Wild yam, _D. villosa_.*
+
+Smaller than the preceding; otherwise fully as good.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 266. Clematis Henryi. One-third natural size.]
+
+Ground-nut, _Apios tuberosa_.*
+
+A bean-like vine, producing many chocolate-brown flowers in August and
+September.
+
+Scarlet runner and White Dutch runner beans, _Phaseolus multiflorus_.
+
+Perennial in warm countries; annual in the North.
+
+Moonflowers, _Ipomcea_, various species.
+
+Some are perennials far South, but annual North.
+
+Hardy moonflower, _Ipomœa pandurata_.*
+
+A weed where it grows wild, but an excellent vine for some purposes.
+
+Wild morning-glory, Rutland beauty, _Convolvulus Sepium_* and
+California rose, _C. Japonicus_.
+
+The former, white and pink, is common in swales. The latter, in double
+or semi-double form, is often run wild.
+
+Madeira vine, mignonette vine, _Boussingaultia baselloides_.
+
+Root a large, tough, irregular tuber.
+
+Mikania, climbing hempweed, _Mikania scandens_.*
+
+A good compositous twiner, inhabiting moist lands.
+
+_Woody perennial climbers_.
+
+(Climbing shrubs, the tops not dying down in fall except in climates in
+which they are not hardy.)
+
+_a. Tendril-climbers, root-climbers, scramblers, and trailers_
+
+Virginia creeper, _Ampelopsis quinquefolia_,*
+
+The best vine for covering buildings in the colder climates. Plants
+should be selected from vines of known habit, as some individuals cling
+much better than others. Var. _hirsuta_,* strongly clinging, is
+recommended by the experimental station at Ottawa, Canada. Var.
+_Engelmanni_* has small and neat foliage.
+
+Japanese ivy, Boston ivy, _A. tricuspidata (A. Veitchii_).
+
+Handsomer than the Virginia creeper, and clings closer, but is often
+injured by winter in exposed places, especially when young; in northern
+regions, tops should be protected for first year or two.
+
+Variegated ivy, _Ampelopsis heterophylla_ var. _elegans_ (_Cissus
+variegata_).
+
+Handsome delicate hardy grape-like vines with mostly three-lobed
+blotched leaves and bluish berries.
+
+Garden clematis, _Clematis_ of various species and varieties.
+
+Plants of robust and attractive habit, and gorgeous blooms; many garden
+forms. _C. Jackmani_, and its varieties, is one of the best. _C.
+Henryi_ (Fig. 266) is excellent for white flowers. Clematises bloom in
+July and August.
+
+Wild clematis, _C. Virginiana_*
+
+Very attractive for arbors and for covering rude objects. The
+pistillate plants bear curious woolly balls of fruit.
+
+Wild clematis, _C. verticillaris_.*
+
+Less vigorous grower than the last, but excellent.
+
+Japanese clematis, _C. paniculata_.
+
+The best late-blooming woody vine, producing enormous masses of white
+flowers in late summer and early fall.
+
+Trumpet creeper, _Tecoma radicans_.*
+
+One of the best of all free-flowering shrubs; climbs by means of roots;
+flowers very large, orange-scarlet.
+
+Chinese trumpet creeper, _T. grandiflora (Bignonia grandiflora_).
+Flowers orange-red; sometimes scarcely climbing.
+
+Bignonia, _Bignonia capreolata_.*
+
+A good strong evergreen vine, but often a nuisance in fields in the
+South.
+
+Frost grape, _Vitis cordifolia_.*
+
+One of the finest of all vines. It is a very tall grower, producing
+thick, heavy, dark leaves. Its foliage often reminds one of that of the
+moon-seed. Does not grow readily from cuttings.
+
+Summer and river-bank grapes, _V. bicolor_* and _V. vulpina
+(riparia)_.*
+
+The common wild grapes of the Northern states.
+
+Muscadine, scuppernong, _Vitis rotundifolia_.*
+
+Much used for arbors in the Southern states (Plate XV).
+
+Ivy, _Hedera Helix_.
+
+The European ivy does not endure the bright sun of our winter; on the
+north side of a building it often does well; the best of vines for
+covering buildings, where it succeeds; hardy in favorable localities as
+far north as southern Ontario; many forms.
+
+Greenbrier, _Smilax rotundifolia_* and _S. hispida_.*
+
+Unique for the covering of small arbors and summer-houses.
+
+Euonymus, _E. radicans_.
+
+A very close-clinging root-climber, excellent for low walls; evergreen;
+the variegated variety is good.
+
+Climbing fig, _Ficus repens_.
+
+Used in greenhouses North, but is hardy far South.
+
+Matrimony vine, boxthorn, _Lycium Chinense_.
+
+Flowering all summer; flowers rose-pink and buff, axillary, star-like,
+succeeded by scarlet berries in the fall; stems prostrate, or
+scrambling; an old-fashioned vine on porches.
+
+Bitter-sweet, _Solanum Dulcamara_.
+
+A common scrambling or semi-twining vine along roadsides, with
+brilliant red poisonous berries; top dies down or nearly so.
+
+Periwinkles, _Vinca minor_ and _V. major_.
+
+The former is the familiar trailing evergreen myrtle, with blue flowers
+in early spring; in its variegated form the latter is much used for
+hanging baskets and vases.
+
+Climbing hydrangea, _Schizophragma hydrangeoides_.
+
+Clings to walls by rootlets, producing white flowers in midsummer.
+
+Passion-flower, species of _Passiflora_ and _Tacsonia_.
+
+Used in the South and in California.
+
+_b. Woody twiners_
+
+Actinidia, _A. arguta_.
+
+Very strong grower, with beautiful thick foliage that is not attacked
+by insects or fungi; one of the best vines for arbors.
+
+Akebia, _A. quinata_. Very handsome and odd Japanese vine; a strong
+grower, and worthy general planting.
+
+Honeysuckles, woodbine, _Lonicera_ of many kinds.
+
+Japanese honeysuckle, _L. Halliana_ (a form of _L. Japonica_).
+
+10-20 ft.; flowers, white and buff, fragrant mainly in spring and fall;
+leaves small, evergreen; stems prostrate and rooting, or twining and
+climbing. Trellises, or for covering rocks and bare places; extensively
+run wild in the South. Var. _aurea reticidata_ is similar to the type,
+but with handsome golden appearance.
+
+Belgian Honeysuckle, L. _Periclymenum_ var. _Belgica_.
+
+6-10 ft.; monthly; flowers in clusters, rosy red, buff within; makes a
+large, rounded bush.
+
+Coral or trumpet honeysuckle, _L. sempervirens_.*
+
+6-15 ft.; June; scattering scarlet flowers through the summer; with no
+support makes a large rounded bush; for trellises, fences, or a hedge;
+it is one of the list of hardy trees and shrubs recommended for Canada
+by the Experiment Station at Ottawa.
+
+Honeysuckle, _L. Caprifolium_, with cup-like connate leaves.
+
+Good native climbing honeysuckles are _L. flava_,* _Sullivanti_,*
+_hirsuta_,* _dioica_,* and _Douglasi_.*
+
+Wistaria, _Wistaria Sinensis_ and _W. speciosa_.*
+
+The Chinese species, _Sinensis_, is a superb plant; flowers
+blue-purple; there is a white-flowered variety.
+
+Japanese wistaria, _W. multijuga_.
+
+Flowers smaller and later than the Chinese, in looser racemes.
+
+Dutchman’s pipe, _Aristolochia macrophytta (A. Sipho_).* A robust
+grower, possessing enormous leaves. Useful for covering verandas and
+arbors.
+
+Wax-work or false bitter-sweet, _Celastrus scandens_.* Very ornamental
+in fruit; flowers imperfect.
+
+Japanese celastrus, _C. orbiculatus (C. articulatus_ of the trade). _C.
+articulatus_ and _C. scandens_ are in the list of 100 trees and shrubs
+recommended by the Experiment Station at Ottawa for Canada.
+
+Moonseed, _Menispermum Canadense_.* A small but very attractive twiner,
+useful for thickets and small arbors.
+
+Bokhara climbing polygonum, _Polygonum Baldschuanicum_. Hardy North,
+although the young growth may be killed; flowers numerous, minute,
+whitish; interesting, but does not make a heavy cover.
+
+Kudzu vine, _Pueraria Thunbergiana (Dolichos Japonicus_). Makes very
+long growths from a tuberous root; shrubby South, but dies to the
+ground in the North.
+
+Silk vine, _Periploca Græca_. Purplish flowers in axillary clusters;
+long, narrow, shining leaves; rapid growing.
+
+Potato vine, _Solanum jasminoides_. A good evergreen vine South,
+particularly the var. _grandiflorum_.
+
+Yellow jasmine, _Gelsemium sempervirens_.* A good native evergreen vine
+for the South, with fragrant yellow flowers.
+
+Malayan jasmine, _Trachelospermum_ (or _Rhynchospermum) jasminoides_. A
+good evergreen vine for the South and in California.
+
+Climbing asparagus, _Asparagus plumosus_. Popular as an outdoor vine
+far South and in California.
+
+Jasmines, _Jasminum_ of several species. The best known in gardens are
+_J. nudiflorum_, yellow in earliest spring, _J. officinale_, the
+jessamine of poetry, with white flowers, and _J. Sambac_, the Arabian
+jasmine (and related species) with white flowers and unbranched leaves;
+these are not hardy without much protection north of Washington or
+Philadelphia, and _J. Sambac_ only far South.
+
+Bougainvillea, _Bougainvillaea glabra_ and _B. spectabilis_.
+
+The magenta-flowered variety, sometimes seen in conservatories in the
+North, is a popular outdoor vine in the South and is profusely used in
+southern California. The red-flowered form is less seen, but is
+preferable in color.
+
+Wire-vine (polygonum of florists), _Muehlenbeckia complexa_.
+
+Abundantly used on buildings and chimneys in southern California.
+
+
+XV: Scuppernong grape, the arbor vine of the South. This plate shows
+the noted scuppernongs on Roanoke Island, of which the origin is
+unknown, but which were of great size more than one hundred years ago.
+XV: Scuppernong grape, the arbor vine of the South. This plate shows
+the noted scuppernongs on Roanoke Island, of which the origin is
+unknown, but which were of great size more than one hundred years ago.
+
+
+_Climbing roses_.
+
+[Illustration: 267. Climbing rose, Jules Margottin.]
+
+The roses do not climb nor possess any special climbing organs;
+therefore they must be provided with a trellis or woven-wire fence.
+Some of the roses classed as climbing are such as only need good
+support, Fig. 267. For culture of roses, see Chapter VIII.
+
+The most popular climbing or pillar rose at present is Crimson Rambler,
+but while it makes a great display of flowers, it is not the best
+climbing rose. Probably the best of the real climbing roses for this
+country, bloom, foliage, and habit all considered, are the derivatives
+of the native prairie rose, _Rosa setigera_ (native as far north as
+Ontario and Wisconsin). Baltimore Belle and Queen of the Prairie belong
+to this class.
+
+The climbing polyantha roses (hybrids of _Rosa multiflora_ and other
+species) include the class of “rambler” roses that has now come to be
+large, including not only the Crimson Rambler, but forms of other
+colors, single and semi-double, and various climbing habits; a very
+valuable and hardy class of roses, particularly for trellises.
+
+The Memorial rose _(R. Wichuraiana_) is a trailing, half-evergreen,
+white-flowered species, very useful for covering banks and rocks.
+Derivatives of this species of many kinds are now available, and are
+valuable.
+
+The Ayrshire roses _(R. arvensis_ var. _capreolata_) are profuse but
+rather slender growers, hardy North, bearing double white or pink
+flowers.
+
+The Cherokee rose _(R. Icevigata_ or _R. Sinica_) is extensively
+naturalized in the South, and much prized for its large white bloom and
+shining foliage; not hardy in the North.
+
+The Banksia rose _(R. Banksice_) is a strong climbing rose for the
+South and California with yellow or white flowers in clusters. A
+larger-flowered form _(R. Fortuneana_) is a hybrid of this and the
+Cherokee rose.
+
+The climbing tea and noisette roses, forms of _R. Chinensis_ and _R.
+Noisettiana_, are useful in the open in the South.
+
+7. TREES FOR LAWNS AND STREETS
+
+A single tree may give character to an entire home property; and a
+place of any size that does not have at least one good tree usually
+lacks any dominating landscape note.
+
+Likewise, a street that is devoid of good trees cannot be the best
+residential section; and a park that lacks well-grown trees is either
+immature or barren.
+
+Although the list of good and hardy lawn and street trees is rather
+extensive, the number of kinds generally planted and recognized is
+small. Since most home places can have but few trees, and since they
+require so many years to mature, it is natural that the home-maker
+should hesitate about experimenting, or trying kinds that he does not
+himself know. So the home-maker in the North plants maples, elms, and a
+white birch, and in the South a magnolia and China-berry. Yet there are
+numbers of trees as useful as these, the planting of which might give
+our premises and streets a much richer expression.
+
+It is much to be desired that some of the trees with “strong” and
+rugged characters be introduced into the larger grounds; such, for
+example, as the hickories and oaks. These may often transplant with
+difficulty, but the effort to secure them is worth the expenditure.
+Good trees of oaks, and others supposed to be difficult to transplant,
+may now be had of the leading nurserymen. The pin oak _(Quercus
+palustris_) is one of the best street trees and is now largely planted.
+
+It is at least possible to introduce a variety of trees into a city or
+village, by devoting one street or a series of blocks to a single kind
+of tree,—one street being known by its lindens, one by its plane-trees,
+one by its oaks, one by its hickories, one by its native birches,
+beech, coffee-tree, sassafras, gum or liquidambar, tulip tree, and the
+like. There is every reason why a city, particularly a small city or a
+village, should become to some extent an artistic expression of its
+natural region.
+
+The home-maker is fortunate if his area already possesses well-grown
+large trees. It may even be desirable to place the residence with
+reference to such trees (Plate VI); and the planning of the grounds
+should accept them as fixed points to which to work. The operator will
+take every care to preserve and safeguard sufficient of the standing
+trees to give the place singularity and character.
+
+The care of the tree should include not only the protecting of it from
+enemies and accidents, but also the maintaining of its characteristic
+features. For example, the natural rough bark should be maintained
+against the raids of tree-scrapers; and the grading should not be
+allowed to disguise the natural bulge of the tree at the base, for a
+tree that is covered a foot or two above the natural line is not only
+in danger of being killed, but it looks like a post.
+
+The best shade trees are usually those that are native to the
+particular region, since they are hardy and adapted to the soil and
+other conditions. Elms, maples, basswoods, and the like are nearly
+always reliable. In regions in which there are serious insect enemies
+or fungous diseases, the trees that are most likely to be attacked may
+be omitted. For instance, in parts of the East the chestnut
+bark-disease is a very great menace; and it is a good plan in such
+places to plant other trees than chestnuts.
+
+A good shade tree is one that has a heavy foliage and dense head, and
+that is not commonly attacked by repelling insects and diseases. Trees
+for shade should ordinarily be given sufficient room that they may
+develop into full size and symmetrical heads. Trees may be planted as
+close as 10 or 15 feet apart for temporary effect; but as soon as they
+begin to crowd they should be thinned, so that they develop their full
+characteristics as trees.
+
+Trees may be planted in fall or spring. Fall is desirable, except for
+the extreme North, if the land is well drained and prepared and if the
+trees may be got in early; but under usual conditions, spring planting
+is safer, if the stock has been wintered well (see discussion under
+Shrubs, p. 290). Planting and pruning are discussed on pp. 124 and 139.
+
+If one desires trees with conspicuous bloom, they should be found among
+the magnolias, tulip trees, kœlreuteria, catalpas, chestnuts,
+horse-chestnut and buckeyes, cladrastis, black or yellow locust, wild
+black cherry, and less conspicuously in the lindens; and also in such
+half-trees or big shrubs as cercis, cytisus, flowering dogwood,
+double-flowered and other forms of apples, crab-apples, cherries,
+plums, peaches, hawthorn or cratægus, amelanchier, mountain ash.
+
+Among drooping or weeping trees the best may be found in the willows
+_(Salix Babylonica_ and others), maples (Wier’s), birch, mulberry,
+beech, ash, elm, cherry, poplar, mountain ash.
+
+Purple-leaved varieties occur in the beech, maple, elm, oak, birch, and
+others.
+
+Yellow-leaved and tricolors occur in the maple, oak, poplar, elm,
+beech, and other species.
+
+Cut-leaved forms are found in birch, beech, maple, alder, oak,
+basswood, and others.
+
+_List of hardy deciduous trees for the North_.
+
+(The genera are arranged alphabetically. Natives are marked by *; good
+species for shade trees by †; those recommended by the Experiment
+Station at Ottawa, Ontario, by DD)
+
+In a number of the genera, the plants may be shrubby rather than
+arboreus in some regions (see the Shrub list), as in acer _(A. Ginnala,
+A. spicatum_), æsculus, betula _(B. pumila_), carpinus, castanea (_C.
+pumila_), catalpa _(C. ovata_), cercis, magnolia (_M. glauca_
+particularly), ostrya, prunus, pyrus, salix, sorbus.
+
+Norway maple, _Acer platanoides_.(D, DD) One of the finest medium-sized
+trees for single lawn specimens; there are several horticultural
+varieties. Var. _Schwedleri_‡ is one of the best of purple-leaved
+trees. The Norway maple droops too much and is too low-headed for
+roadside planting.
+
+Black sugar maple, _A. nigrum_.(A, DD) Darker and softer in aspect than
+the ordinary sugar maple.
+
+Sugar maple, _A. saccharum_.(A, DD) This and the last are among the
+very best roadside trees.
+
+Silver maple, _A. saccharinum (A. dasycarpum_).(A, DD) Desirable for
+water-courses and for grouping; succeeds on both wet and dry lands.
+
+Wier’s cut-leaved silver maple, _A. saccharinum_ var. _Wieri_.(D, DD)
+
+Light and graceful; especially desirable for pleasure grounds.
+
+Red, soft, or swamp maple, _A. rubrum_.* Valuable for its spring and
+autumn colors, and for variety in grouping.
+
+Sycamore maple, _A. Pseudo-platanus._ A slow grower, to be used mostly
+as single specimens. Several horticultural varieties.
+
+English maple, _A. campestre_. A good medium-sized tree of slow growth,
+not hardy on our northern borders; see under Shrubs (p. 291).
+
+Japan maple, _A. palmatum (A. polymorphum)_. In many forms, useful for
+small lawn specimens; does not grow above 10-20 ft.
+
+Siberian maple, _A. Ginnala_.‡ Attractive as a lawn specimen when grown
+as a bush; the autumn color is very bright; small tree or big shrub.
+
+Mountain maple, _A. spicatum_.* Very bright in autumn.
+
+Box-elder, _Acer Negundo (Negundo aceroides_ or _fraxinifolium_).*†
+Very hardy and rapid growing; much used in the West as a windbreak, but
+not strong in ornamental features.
+
+Horse chestnut, _Æsculus Hippocastanum_.†‡ Useful for single specimens
+and roadsides; many forms.
+
+Buckeye, _Æ. octandra (Æ. flava)_*‡
+
+Ohio buckeye, _Æ. glabra_*
+
+Red buckeye, _Æ. cornea (Æ. rubicunda)_.
+
+Ailanthus, _Ailanthus glandulosa_. A rapid grower, with large pinnate
+leaves; the staminate plant possesses a disagreeable odor when it
+flowers; suckers badly; most useful as a shrub; see the same under
+Shrubs (also Fig. 50).
+
+Alder, _Alnus glutinosa_. The var. _imperialis_‡ is one of the best
+cut-leaved small trees.
+
+European birch, _Betula alba_.
+
+Cut-leaved weeping birch, _B. alba_ var. _laciniata pendula_.‡
+
+American white birch, _B. populifolia_.*
+
+Paper, or canoe birch, _B. papyrifera_.*
+
+Cherry birch, _B. lenta_. *
+
+Well-grown specimens resemble the sweet cherry; both this and the
+yellow birch (_B. lutea_*) make attractive light-leaved trees; they are
+not appreciated.
+
+Hornbeam or blue beech, _Carpinus Americana_.* Chestnut, _Castanea
+saliva_† and _C. Americana_.*†
+
+Showy catalpa, _Catalpa speciosa_.†‡ Very dark, soft-foliaged tree of
+small to medium size; showy in flower; for northern regions should be
+raised from northern-grown seed.
+
+Smaller catalpa, _C. bignonioides_.† Less showy than the last, blooming
+a week or two later; less hardy.
+
+Japanese catalpa, _C. ovata_ (_C. Kœmpferi_).‡ In northern sections
+often remains practically a bush.
+
+Nettle-tree, _Celtis occidentalis_.*
+
+Katsura-tree, _Cercidiphyllum Japonicum_.‡ A small or medium-sized tree
+of very attractive foliage and habit.
+
+Red-bud, or Judas-tree, _Cercis Canadensis_.* Produces a profusion of
+rose-purple pea-like flowers before the leaves appear; foliage also
+attractive.
+
+Yellow-wood, or virgilia, _Cladrastis tinctoria_.* One of the finest
+hardy flowering trees.
+
+Beech, _Fagus ferruginea_.*† Specimens which are symmetrically
+developed are among our best lawn trees; picturesque in winter.
+
+European beech, _F. sylvatica_.† Many cultural forms, the purple-leaved
+being everywhere known. There are excellent tricolored varieties and
+weeping forms.
+
+Black ash, _Fraxinus nigra_ (_F. sambucifolia_).*† One of the best of
+the light-leaved trees; does well on dry soils, although native to
+swamps; not appreciated.
+
+White ash, _F. Americana_.*†
+
+European ash, _F. excelsior_.† There is a good weeping form of this.
+
+Maiden-hair tree, _Ginkgo biloba_ (_Salisburia adiantifolia_).‡ Very
+odd and striking; to be used for single specimens or avenues.
+
+Honey locust, _Gleditschia triacanthos_.*† Tree of striking habit, with
+big branching thorns and very large pods; there is also a thornless
+form.
+
+Kentucky coffee-tree, _Gymnocladus Canadensis_.* Light and graceful;
+unique in winter.
+
+Bitternut, _Hicoria minima_ (or _Carya amara_).* Much like black ash in
+aspect; not appreciated.
+
+Hickory, _Hicoria ovata_ (or _Carya_) *†‡ and others.
+
+Pecan, _H. Pecan_.*† Hardy in places as far north as New Jersey, and
+reported still farther.
+
+Butternut, _Juglans cinerea_.*
+
+Walnut, _J. nigra_.*
+
+Varnish-tree, _Kœlreuteria paniculata_. A medium-sized tree of good
+character, producing a profusion of golden-yellow flowers in July;
+should be better known.
+
+European larch, _Larix decidua (L. Europœa_).‡
+
+American larch or tamarack, _L. Americana_.*
+
+Gum-tree, sweet gum, _Liquidambar styraciflua_.*† A good tree, reaching
+as far north as Connecticut, and hardy in parts of western New York
+although not growing large; foliage maple-like; a characteristic tree
+of the South.
+
+Tulip tree or whitewood, _Liriodendron Tulipifera_.*† Unique in foliage
+and flower and deserving to be more planted.
+
+Cucumber tree, _Magnolia acuminata_.*† Native in the Northern states;
+excellent.
+
+White bay-tree, _M. glauca_.*† Very attractive small tree, native along
+the coast to Massachusetts; where not hardy, the young growth each year
+is good.
+
+Of the foreign magnolias hardy in the North, two species and one group
+of hybrids are prominent: _M. stellata_ (or _M. Halleana_) and _M.
+Yulan_ or _(M. conspicua),_ both white-flowered, the former very early
+and having 9-18 petals and the latter (which is a larger tree) having
+6-9 petals; _M. Soulangeana,_ a hybrid group including the forms known
+as _Lennei, nigra, Norbertiana, speciosa, grandis_. All these magnolias
+are deciduous and bloom before the leaves appear.
+
+Mulberry, _Morus rubra_.*
+
+White mulberry, _M. alba_.
+
+Russian mulberry, _M. alba_ var. _Tatarica_. Teas’ weeping mulberry is
+a form of the Russian.
+
+Pepperidge or gum-tree, _Nyssa sylvatica_* One of the oddest and most
+picturesque of our native trees; especially attractive in winter;
+foliage brilliant red in autumn; most suitable for low lands.
+
+Iron-wood, hop hornbeam, _Ostrya Virginica_.* A good small tree, with
+hop-like fruits.
+
+Sourwood, sorrel-tree, _Oxydendrum arboreum_.* Interesting small tree
+native from Pennsylvania in the high land south, and should be reliable
+where it grows wild.
+
+Plane or buttonwood, _Platanus occidentalis_*†‡ Young or middle-aged
+trees are soft and pleasant in aspect, but they soon become thin and
+ragged below; unique in winter.
+
+European plane-tree, _P. orientalis_.† Much used for street planting,
+but less picturesque than the American; several forms.
+
+Aspen, _Populus tremuloides_,* Very valuable when well grown; too much
+neglected (Fig. 33). Most of the poplars are suitable for pleasure
+grounds, and as nurses for slower growing and more emphatic trees.
+
+Large-toothed aspen, _P. grandidentata_.* Unique in summer color;
+heavier in aspect than the above; old trees become ragged.
+
+Weeping poplar, _P. grandidentata_, var. _pendula_. An odd, small tree,
+suitable for small places, but, like all weeping trees, likely to be
+planted too freely.
+
+Cottonwood, _P. deltoides_ (_P. monilifera_).* The staminate specimens,
+only, should be planted if possible, as the cotton of the seed-pods is
+disagreeable when carried by winds; var. _aurea_‡ is one of the good
+golden-leaved trees.
+
+Balm of Gilead, _P. balsamifera_* and var. _candicans_.* Desirable for
+remote groups or belts. Foliage not pleasant in color.
+
+Lombardy poplar, _P. nigra_, var. _Italica_.
+
+Desirable for certain purposes, but used too indiscriminately, it is
+likely to be short-lived in northern climates.
+
+White poplar, abele, _P. alba_.
+
+Sprouts badly; several forms.
+
+Bolle’s poplar, _P. alba_, var. _Bolleana_.
+
+Habit much like the Lombardy; leaves curiously lobed, very white
+beneath, making a pleasant contrast.
+
+Certinensis poplar, _P. laurifolia_ (_P. Certinensis_).
+
+A very hardy Siberian species, much like _P. deltoides_, useful for
+severe climates.
+
+Wild black cherry, _Prunus serotina_.*
+
+European bird cherry, _Prunus Padus_.
+
+A small tree much like the choke cherry, but a freer grower, with
+larger flowers, and racemes which appear about a week later.
+
+Choke cherry, _P. Virginiana_.*
+
+Very showy while in flower.
+
+Purple plum, _Prunus cerasifera_, var. _atropurpurea_ (var.
+_Pissardi_).
+
+One of our most reliable purple-leaved trees.
+
+Rose-bud cherry, _P. pendula_ (_P. subhirtella_).
+
+A tree of drooping habit and beautiful rose-pink flowers preceding the
+leaves.
+
+Japanese flowering cherry, _P. Pseudo-Cerasus._
+
+In many forms, the famous flowering cherries of Japan, but not reliable
+North.
+
+There are ornamental-flowered peaches and cherries, more curious and
+interesting than useful.
+
+Wild crab, _Pyrus coronaria_* and _P. Iœnsis_.*
+
+Very showy while in flower, blooming after apple blossoms have fallen;
+old specimens become picturesque in form. _P. Iœnsis flore pleno_‡
+(Bechtel’s Crab) is a handsome double form.
+
+Siberian crab, _P. baccata_.‡ Excellent small tree, both in flower and
+fruit.
+
+Flowering crab, _Pyrus floribunda_. Pretty both in flower and fruit; a
+large shrub or small tree; various forms.
+
+Hall’s crab, _P. Halliana_ (_P. Parkmani_). One of the best of the
+flowering crabs, particularly the double form. Various forms of
+double-flowering apple are on the market.
+
+Swamp white oak, _Quercus bicolor_.*† A desirable tree, usually
+neglected; very picturesque in winter.
+
+Bur oak, _Q. macrocarpa_.*†
+
+Chestnut oak, _Q. Prinus_,*† and especially the closely related _Q.
+Muhlenbergii_ (or _Q. acuminata_).*†
+
+White oak, _Q. alba_*†
+
+Shingle oak, _Q. imbricaria_.*†
+
+Scarlet oak, _Q. coccinea_.*† This and the next two are glossy-leaved,
+and are desirable for bright planting.
+
+Black oak, _Q. velutina_ (_Q. tinctoria_).*†
+
+Red oak, _Q. rubra_.*†‡
+
+Pin oak, _Q. palustris_.*† Excellent for avenues; transplants well.
+
+Willow oak, _Q. Phellos_*
+
+English oak, _Q. Robur_. Many forms represented by two types, probably
+good species, _Q. pedunculata_ (with stalked acorns) and _Q.
+sessiliflora_ (with stalkless acorns). Some of the forms are reliable
+in the Northern states.
+
+The oaks are slow growers and usually transplant with difficulty.
+Natural specimens are most valuable. A large well-grown oak is one of
+the grandest of trees.
+
+Locust, _Robinia Pseudacacia_.*† Attractive in flower; handsome as
+single specimens when young; many forms; used also for hedges.
+
+Peach-leaved willow, _Salix amygdaloides_.* Very handsome small tree,
+deserving more attention. This and the next valuable in low places or
+along water-courses.
+
+Black willow, _S. nigra_.*
+
+Weeping willow, _S. Babylonica_.
+
+To be planted sparingly, preferably near water; the sort known as the
+Wisconsin weeping willow appears to be much hardier than the common
+type; many forms.
+
+White willow, _S. alba_, and various varieties, one of which is the
+Golden willow.
+
+Tree willows are most valuable, as a rule, when used for temporary
+plantations or as nurses for better trees.
+
+Laurel-leaved willow, _S. laurifolia_‡
+
+A small tree used in cold regions for shelter-belts; also a good
+ornamental tree. See also under Shrubs.
+
+Sassafras, _Sassafras officinalis_.*†
+
+Suitable in the borders of groups or for single specimens; peculiar in
+winter; too much neglected.
+
+Rowan or European mountain ash, _Sorbus Aucuparia_ (_Pyrus
+Aucuparia_).‡
+
+Service-tree, _S. domestica_.
+
+Fruit handsomer than that of the mountain ash and more persistent;
+small tree.
+
+Oak-leaved mountain ash, _S. hybrida_ (_S. quercifolia_).
+
+Small tree, deserving to be better known.
+
+Bald cypress, _Taxodium distichum_.*
+
+Not entirely hardy at Lansing, Mich.; often becomes scraggly after
+fifteen or twenty years, but a good tree; many cultural forms.
+
+American linden or basswood, _Tilia Americana_.*†
+
+Very valuable for single trees on large lawns, or for roadsides.
+
+European linden, _T. vulgaris_ and _T. platyphyllos_ (_T. Europaea_ of
+nurserymen is probably usually the latter).†
+
+Has the general character of the American basswood.
+
+European silver linden, _T. tomentosa_ and varieties.†
+
+Very handsome; leaves silvery white beneath; among others is a weeping
+variety.
+
+American elm, _Ulmus Americana_.*†
+
+One of the most graceful and variable of trees; useful for many
+purposes and a standard street tree.
+
+Cork elm, _U. racemosa_.* Softer in aspect than the last, and more
+picturesque in winter, having prominent ridges of bark on its branches;
+slow grower.
+
+Red or slippery elm, _U. fulva_.* Occasionally useful in a group or
+shelter-belt; a stiff grower.
+
+English elm, _U. campestris_, and Scotch or wych elm, _U. scabra_ (_U.
+mantana_). Often planted, but are inferior to _U. Americana_ for street
+planting, although useful in collections. These have many horticultural
+forms.
+
+_Non-coniferous trees for the South_.
+
+Among deciduous trees for the region of Washington and south may be
+mentioned: Acer, the American and European species as for the North;
+_Catalpa bignonioides_ and especially _C. speciosa_; celtis; cercis,
+both American and Japanese; flowering dogwood, profusely native; white
+ash; ginkgo; kœlreuteria; sweet gum (liquidambar); American linden;
+tulip tree; magnolias much as for the North; China-berry (_Melia
+Azedarach_); Texas umbrella-tree (var. _umbraculiformis_ of the
+preceding); mulberries; oxydendrum; paulownia; oriental plane-tree;
+native oaks of the regions; _Robinia Pseudacacia_; weeping willow;
+_Sophora Japonica; Sterculia platanifolia_; American elm.
+
+Broad-leaved evergreens of real tree size useful for the South may be
+found among the cherry laurels, magnolias, and oaks. Among the cherry
+laurels are: Portugal laurel (_Prunus Lusitanica_), English cherry
+laurel in several forms (_P. Laurocerasus_), and the “mock-orange” or
+“wild orange” (_P. Caroliniana_). In magnolia, the splendid _M.
+grandiflora_ is everywhere used. In oaks, the live-oak (_Quercus
+Virginiana_, known also as _Q. virens_ and _Q. sempervirens_) is the
+universal species. The cork oak (_Q. Suber_) is also recommended.
+
+
+XVI: The flower-garden of China asters with border, one of the dusty
+millers (_Centaurea_). XVI: The flower-garden of China asters with
+border, one of the dusty millers (_Centaurea_).
+
+
+8. CONIFEROUS EVERGREEN SHRUBS AND TREES
+
+In this country the word “evergreen” is understood to mean coniferous
+trees with persistent leaves, as pines, spruces, firs, cedars,
+junipers, arborvitæ, retinosporas, and the like. These trees have
+always been favorites with plant lovers, as they have very distinctive
+forms and other characteristics. Many of them are of the easiest
+culture.
+
+It is a common notion that, since spruces and other conifers grow so
+symmetrically, they will not stand pruning; but this is an error. They
+may be pruned with as good effect as other trees, and if they tend to
+grow too tall, the leader may be stopped without fear. A new leader
+will arise, but in the meantime the upward growth of the tree will be
+somewhat checked, and the effect will be to make the tree dense. The
+tips of the branches may also be headed in with the same effect. The
+beauty of an evergreen lies in its natural form; therefore, it should
+not be sheared into unusual shapes, but a gentle trimming back, as I
+suggested, will tend to prevent the Norway spruce and others from
+growing open and ragged. After the tree attains some age, 4 or 5 in.
+may be taken off the ends of the main branches every year or two (in
+spring before growth begins) with good results. This slight trimming is
+ordinarily done with Waters’s long-handled pruning shears.
+
+There is much difference of opinion as to the proper time for the
+transplanting of evergreens, which means that there is more than one
+season in which they may be moved. It is ordinarily unsafe to
+transplant them in the fall in northern climates or bleak situations,
+since the evaporation from the foliage during the winter is likely to
+injure the plant. The best results are usually secured in spring or
+summer planting. In spring they may be moved rather late, just as new
+growth is beginning. Some persons also plant them in August or early
+September, as the roots secure a hold on the soil before winter. In the
+Southern states transplanting may be done at most times of the year,
+but late fall and early spring are usually advised.
+
+In transplanting conifers, it is very important that the roots be not
+exposed to the sun. They should be moistened and covered with burlaps
+or other material. The holes should be ready to receive them. If the
+trees are large, or if it has been necessary to trim in the roots, the
+top should be cut when the tree is set.
+
+Large evergreens (those 10 ft. and more high) are usually best
+transplanted late in winter, at a time when a large ball of earth may
+be moved with them. A trench is dug around the tree, it being deepened
+a little day by day so that the frost can work into the earth and hold
+it in shape. When the ball is thoroughly frozen, it is hoisted on to a
+stone-boat or truck (Fig. 148) and moved to its new position.
+
+Perhaps the handsomest of all the native conifers of the northeastern
+United States is the ordinary hemlock, or hemlock spruce (the one so
+much used for lumber); but it is usually difficult to move.
+Transplanted trees from nurseries are usually safest. If the trees are
+taken from the wild, they should be selected from open and sunny
+places.
+
+For neat and compact effects near porches and along walks, the dwarf
+retinosporas are very useful.
+
+Most of the pines and spruces are too coarse for planting very close to
+the residence. They are better at some distance removed, where they
+serve as a background to other planting. If they are wanted for
+individual specimens, they should be given plenty of room, so that the
+limbs will not be crowded and the tree become misshapen. Whatever else
+is done to the spruces and firs, the lower limbs should not be trimmed
+up, at least not until the tree has become so old that the lowest
+branches die. Some species hold their branches much longer than others.
+The oriental spruce (_Picea orientalis_) is one of the best in this
+respect. The occasional slight heading-in, that has been mentioned,
+will tend to preserve the lower limbs, and it will not be marked enough
+to alter the form of the tree.
+
+The number of excellent coniferous evergreens now offered in the
+American trade is large. They are slow of growth and require much room
+if good specimens are to be obtained; but if the space can be had and
+the proper exposure secured, no trees add greater dignity and
+distinction to an estate. Reliable comments on the rarer conifers may
+be found in the catalogues of the best nurserymen.
+
+_List of shrubby conifers_.
+
+The following list contains the most usual of the shrub-like coniferous
+evergreens, with * to mark those native to this country. The ‡ in this
+and the succeeding list marks those species that are found to be hardy
+at Ottawa, Ontario, and are recommended by the Central Experimental
+Farm of Canada.
+
+Dwarf arborvitæ, _Thuja occidentalis_.*
+
+There are many dwarf and compact varieties of arborvitæ, most of which
+are excellent for small places. The most desirable for general
+purposes, and also the largest, is the so-called Siberian. Other very
+desirable forms are those sold as _globosa, ericoides, compacta,‡
+Hovey,‡ Ellwangeriana,‡ pyramidalis,‡ Wareana_ (or _Sibirica_),‡ and
+_aurea Douglasii_.‡
+
+Japanese arborvitæ or retinospora, _Chamœcyparis_ of various species.
+
+Retinosporas‡ under names as follows: _Cupressus ericoides_, 2 ft.,
+with fine soft delicate green foliage that assumes a purplish tinge in
+winter; _C. pisifera,_ one of the best, with a pendulous habit and
+bright green foliage; _C. pisifera_ var. _filifera_, with drooping
+branches and thread-like pendulous branches; _C. pisifera_ var.
+_plumosa_, more compact than _P. pisifera_ and feathery; var. _aurea_
+of the last, “one of the most beautiful golden-leaved evergreen shrubs
+in cultivation.”
+
+Juniper, _Juniperus communis_* and garden varieties.
+
+The juniper is a partially trailing plant, of loose habit, suitable for
+banks and rocky places. There are upright and very formal varieties of
+it, the best being those sold as var. _Hibernica (fastigiata)_,‡ “Irish
+juniper,” and var. _Suecica_, “Swedish juniper.”
+
+Northern juniper, _J. Sabina_, var. _prostrata_* One of the best of the
+low, diffuse conifers; var. _tamariscifolia_,‡ 1-2 ft.
+
+Chinese and Japanese junipers in many forms, _J. Chinensis_.
+
+Dwarf Norway spruce, _Picea excelsa_, dwarf forms. Several very dwarf
+sorts of the Norway spruce are in cultivation, some of which are to be
+recommended.
+
+Dwarf pine, _Pinus montana_, var. _pumilio_.
+
+Mugho pine, _Pinus montana_, var. _Mughus_.‡ There are other desirable
+dwarf pines.
+
+Wild yew, _Taxus Canadensis_.* Common in woods; a wide-spreading plant
+known as “ground hemlock”; 3-4 ft.
+
+_Arboreous conifers_.
+
+The evergreen conifers that one is likely to plant may be roughly
+classed as pines; spruces and firs; cedars and junipers; arborvitæ;
+yews.
+
+White Pine, _Pinus Strobus_.*‡ The best native species for general
+planting; retains its bright green color in winter.
+
+Austrian pine, _P. Austriaca_.‡ Hardy, coarse, and rugged; suitable
+only for large areas; foliage very dark.
+
+Scotch pine, _P. sylvestris_.‡ Not so coarse as Austrian pine, with a
+lighter and bluer foliage.
+
+Red pine, P. _resinosa_*‡ Valuable in groups and belts; usually called
+“Norway pine”; rather heavy in expression.
+
+Bull pine, P. _ponderosa_.*‡ A strong majestic tree, deserving to be
+better known in large grounds; native westward.
+
+Cembrian pine, _Pinus Cembra_. A very fine slow-growing tree; one of
+the few standard pines suitable for small places.
+
+Scrub pine, _P. divaricata_ (_P. Banksiana_).*
+
+A small tree, more odd and picturesque than beautiful, but desirable in
+certain places.
+
+Mugho pine, _P. montana_ var. _Mughus_.‡
+
+Usually more a bush than a tree (2 to 12 ft.), although it may attain a
+height of 20-30 ft.; mentioned under Shrubs.
+
+Norway spruce, _Picea excelsa_.‡
+
+The most commonly planted spruce; loses much of its peculiar beauty
+when thirty to fifty years of age; several dwarf and weeping forms.
+
+White spruce, _P. alba_.*‡
+
+One of the finest of the spruces; a more compact grower than the last,
+and not so coarse; grows slowly.
+
+Oriental spruce, _P. orientalis_.
+
+Especially valuable from its habit of holding its lowest limbs; grows
+slowly; needs some shelter.
+
+Colorado blue spruce, _P. pungens_.*‡
+
+In color the finest of the conifers; grows slowly; seedlings vary much
+in blueness.
+
+Alcock’s spruce, _P. Alcockiana_.‡
+
+Excellent; foliage has silvery under surfaces.
+
+Hemlock spruce, _Tsuga Canadensis_.*
+
+The common lumber hemlock, but excellent for hedges and as a lawn tree;
+young trees may need partial protection from sun.
+
+White fir, _Abies concolor_.*‡
+
+Probably the best of the native firs for the northeastern region;
+leaves broad, glaucous.
+
+Nordmann’s fir, _A. Nordmanniana_.
+
+Excellent in every way; leaves shining above and lighter beneath.
+
+Balsam fir, _A. balsamea_.*
+
+Loses most of its beauty in fifteen or twenty years.
+
+Douglas fir, _Pseudotsuga Douglasii_.*‡
+
+Majestic tree of the northern Pacific slope, hardy in the east when
+grown from seeds from far north or high mountains.
+
+Red cedar, _Juniperus Virginiana_*
+
+A common tree, North and South; several horticultural varieties.
+
+Arborvitae (white cedar, erroneously), _Thuja occidentalis_.*
+
+Becomes unattractive after ten or fifteen years on poor soils; the
+horticultural varieties are excellent; see p. 333, and Hedges, p. 220.
+
+Japanese yew, _Taxus cuspidata_.
+
+Hardy small tree.
+
+_Conifers for the South_.
+
+Evergreen conifers, trees and bushes, for regions south of Washington:
+_Abies Fraseri_ and _A. Picea_ (_A. pectinata_); Norway spruce; true
+cedars, _Cedrus Atlantica_ and _Deodara_; cypress, _Cupressus
+Goveniana, majestica, sempervirens; Chamœcyparis Lawsoniana;_
+practically all junipers, including the native cedar (_Juniperus
+Virginiana_); practically all arborvitæ, including the oriental or
+biota group; retinosporas (forms of chamæcyparis and thuja of several
+kinds); Carolina hemlock, _Tsuga Caroliniana_; English yew, _Taxus
+baccata; Libocedrus decurrens_; cephalotaxus and podocarpus;
+cryptomeria; Bhotan pine, _Pinus excelsa_; and the native pines of the
+regions.
+
+9. WINDOW-GARDENS
+
+Although the making of window-gardens may not be properly a part of the
+planting and ornamenting of the home grounds, yet the appearance of the
+residence has a marked effect on the attractiveness or unattractiveness
+of the premises; and there is no better place than this in which to
+discuss the subject. Furthermore, window-gardening is closely
+associated with various forms of temporary plant protection about the
+residence (Fig. 268).
+
+Window-gardens are of two types: the window-box and porch-box type, in
+which the plants are grown outside the window and which is a summer or
+warm-weather effort; the interior or true window-garden, made for the
+enjoyment of the family in its internal relations, and which is chiefly
+a winter or cold-weather effort.
+
+_The window-box for outside effect_.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 268. A protection for chrysanthemums. Very good
+plants can be grown under a temporary shed cover. The roof may be of
+glass, oiled paper, or even of wood. Such a shed cover will afford a
+very effective and handy protection for many plants.]
+
+Handsomely finished boxes, ornamental tiling, and bracket work of wood
+and iron suitable for fitting out windows for the growing of plants,
+are on the market; but such, while desirable, are by no means
+necessary. A stout pine box of a length corresponding to the width of
+the window, about 10 inches wide and 6 deep, answers quite as well as a
+finer box, since it will likely be some distance above the street, and
+its sides, moreover, are soon covered by the vines. A zinc tray of a
+size to fit into the wooden box may be ordered of the tinsmith. It will
+tend to keep the soil from drying out so rapidly, but it is not a
+necessity. A few small holes in the bottom will provide for drainage;
+but with carefulness in watering these are not necessary, since the box
+by its exposed position will dry out readily during summer weather,
+unless the position is a shaded one. In the latter case provision for
+good drainage is always advisable.
+
+Since there is more or less cramping of roots, it will be necessary to
+make the soil richer than would be required were the plants to grow in
+the garden. The most desirable soil is one that does not pack hard like
+clay, nor contract much when dry, but remains porous and springy. Such
+a soil is found in the potting earth used by florists, and it may be
+obtained from them at 50 cents to $1 a barrel. Often the nature of the
+soil will be such as to make it desirable to have at hand a barrel of
+sharp sand for mixing with it, to make it more porous and prevent
+baking. A good filling for a deep box is a layer of clinkers or other
+drainage in the bottom, a layer of pasture sod, a layer of old cow
+manure, and fill with fertile garden earth.
+
+Some window-gardeners pot the plants and then set them in the
+window-box, filling the spaces between the pots with moist moss. Others
+plant them directly in the earth. The former method, as a general rule,
+is to be preferred in the winter window-garden; the latter in the
+summer.
+
+The plants most valuable for outside boxes are those of drooping habit,
+such as lobelias, tropeolums, othonna, Kenilworth ivy, verbena (Fig.
+269), sweet alyssum, and petunia. Such plants may occupy the front row,
+while back of them may be the erect-growing plants, as geraniums,
+heliotropes, begonias (Plate XX).
+
+For shady situations the main dependence is on plants of graceful form
+or handsome foliage; while for the sunny window the selection may be of
+blooming plants. Of the plants mentioned below for these two positions,
+those marked with an asterisk * are of climbing habit, and may be
+trained up about the sides of the window.
+
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 269. Bouquet of verbenas.]
+
+Just what plants will be most suitable depends on the exposure. For the
+shady side of the street, the more delicate kinds of plants may be
+used. For full exposure to the sun, it will be necessary to choose the
+more vigorous-growing kinds. In the latter position, suitable plants
+for drooping would be: tropeolums,* passifloras,* the single petunias,
+sweet alyssum, lobelias, verbenas, mesembryanthemums. For erect-growing
+plants: geraniums, heliotropes, phlox. If the position is a shaded one,
+the drooping plants might be of the following: tradescantia, Kenilworth
+ivy, senecio* or parlor ivy, sedums, moneywort,* vinca, smilax,*
+lygodium* or climbing fern. Erect-growing plants would be dracenas,
+palms, ferns, coleus, centaurea, spotted calla, and others.
+
+After the plants have filled the earth with roots, it will be desirable
+to give the surface among them a very light sprinkling of bone-dust or
+a thicker coating of rotted manure from time to time during the summer;
+or instead of this, a watering with weak liquid manure about once a
+week. This is not necessary, however, until the growth shows that the
+roots have about exhausted the soil.
+
+In the fall the box may be placed on the inside of the window. In this
+case it will be desirable to thin out the foliage somewhat, shorten in
+some of the vines, and perhaps remove some of the plants. It will also
+be desirable to give a fresh coating of rich soil. Increased care will
+be necessary, also, in watering, since the plants will have less light
+than previously, and, moreover, there may be no provision for drainage.
+
+Porch-boxes may be made in the same general plan. Since the plants are
+likely to be injured in porch-boxes, and since these boxes should have
+some architectural effect, it is well to use abundantly of rather heavy
+greenery, such as swordfern (the common form of _Nephrolepis exaltata_)
+or the Boston fern, _Asparagus Sprengeri_, wandering jew, the large
+drooping vinca (perhaps the variegated form), aspidistra. With these or
+similar things constituting the body of the box planting, the flowering
+plants may be added to heighten the effect.
+
+_The inside window-garden, or “house plants_.”
+
+The winter window-garden may consist simply of a jardinière, or a few
+choice pot-plants on a stand at the window, or of a considerable
+collection with more or less elaborate arrangements for their
+accommodation in the way of box, brackets, shelves, and stands.
+Expensive arrangements are by no means necessary, nor is a large
+collection. The plants and flowers themselves are the main
+consideration, and a small collection well cared for is better than a
+large one unless it can be easily accommodated and kept in good
+condition.
+
+The box will be seen near at hand, and so it may be more or less
+ornamental in character. The sides may be covered with ornamental tile
+held in place by molding; or a light latticework of wood surrounding
+the box is pretty. But a neatly made and strong box of about the
+dimensions mentioned on page 337, with a strip of molding at the top
+and bottom, answers just as well; and if painted green, or some neutral
+shade, only the plants will be seen or thought of. Brackets,
+jardinières, and stands may be purchased of any of the larger florists.
+
+The box may consist of merely the wooden receptacle; but a preferable
+arrangement is to make it about eight inches deep instead of six, then
+have the tinsmith make a zinc tray to fit the box. This is provided
+with a false wooden bottom, with cracks for drainage, two inches above
+the real bottom of the tray. The plants will then have a vacant space
+below them into which drainage water may pass. Such a box may be
+thoroughly watered as the plants require without danger of the water
+running on the carpet. Of course, a faucet should be provided at some
+suitable point on a level with the bottom of the tray, to permit of its
+being drained every day or so if the water tends to accumulate. It
+would not do to allow the water to remain long; especially should it
+never rise to the false bottom, as then the soil would be kept too wet.
+
+The window for plants should have a southern, southeastern, or eastern
+exposure. Plants need all the light they can get in the winter,
+especially those that are expected to bloom. The window should be
+tight-fitting. Shutters and a curtain will be an advantage in cold
+weather.
+
+Plants like a certain uniformity in conditions. It is very trying on
+them, and often fatal to success, to have them snug and warm one night
+and pinched in a temperature only a few degrees above freezing the
+next. Some plants will live in spite of it, but they cannot be expected
+to prosper. Those whose rooms are heated with steam, hot water, or hot
+air will have to guard against keeping rooms too warm fully as much as
+keeping them too cool. Rooms in brick dwellings that have been warm all
+day, if shut up and made snug in the evening, will often keep warm over
+night without heat except in the coldest weather. Rooms in frame
+dwellings exposed on all sides soon cool down.
+
+It is difficult to grow plants in rooms lighted by gas. Most
+living-rooms have air too dry for plants. In such cases the bow-window
+may be set off from the room by glass doors; one then has a miniature
+conservatory. A pan of water on the stove or on the register and damp
+moss among the pots, will help to afford plants the necessary humidity.
+
+The foliage will need cleansing from time to time to free it from dust.
+A bath tub provided with a ready outlet for the water is an excellent
+place for this purpose. The plants may be turned on their sides and
+supported on a small box above the bottom of the tub. Then they may be
+freely syringed without danger of making the soil too wet. It is
+usually advisable not to wet the flowers, however, especially the white
+waxen kinds, like hyacinths. The foliage of rex begonias should be
+cleansed with a piece of dry or only slightly moist cotton. But if the
+leaves can be quickly dried off by placing them in the open air on mild
+days, or moderately near the stove, the foliage may be syringed.
+
+Some persons attach the box to the window, or support it on brackets
+attached below the window-sill; but a preferable arrangement is to
+support the box on a low and light stand of suitable height provided
+with rollers. It may then be drawn back from the window, turned around
+from time to time to give the plants light on all sides, or turned with
+the attractive side in as may be desired.
+
+Often the plants are set directly in the soil; but if they are kept in
+pots they may be rearranged, and changed about to give those which need
+it more light. Larger plants that are to stand on shelves or brackets
+may be in porous earthenware pots; but the smaller ones that are to
+fill the window-box may be placed in heavy paper pots. The sides of
+these are flexible, and the plants in them therefore may be crowded
+close together with great economy in space. When pots are spaced, damp
+sphagnum or other moss among them will hold them in place, keep the
+soil from drying out too rapidly, and at the same time give off
+moisture, so grateful to the foliage.
+
+In addition to the stand, or box, a bracket for one or more pots on
+either side of the window, about one-third or half-way up, will be
+desirable. The bracket should turn on a basal hinge or pivot, to admit
+of swinging it forward or backward. These bracket plants usually suffer
+for moisture, and are rather difficult to manage.
+
+Florists now usually grow plants suitable for window-gardens and winter
+flowering, and any intelligent florist, if asked, will take pleasure in
+making out a suitable collection. The plants should be ordered early in
+the fall; the florist will then not be so crowded for time and can give
+the matter better attention.
+
+Most of the plants suitable for the winter window-garden belong to the
+groups that florists grow in their medium and cool houses. The former
+are given a night temperature of about 60°, the latter about 50°. In
+each case the temperature is 10 to 15° higher for the daytime. Five
+degrees of variation below these temperatures will be allowable without
+any injurious effects; even more may be borne, but not without more or
+less check to the plants. In bright, sunny weather the day temperature
+may be higher than in cloudy and dark weather.
+
+Plants for an average night temperature of 60° (trade names).
+
+_Upright flowering plants_,—Abutilons, browallias, calceolaria “Lincoln
+Park,” begonias, bouvardias, euphorbias, scarlet sage, richardia or
+calla, heliotropes, fuchsias, Chinese hibiscus, jasmines, single
+petunias, swainsona, billbergia, freesias, geraniums, eupheas.
+
+_Upright foliage plants_.—Muehlenbeckia, _Cycas revoluta, Dracœna
+fragans_ and others, palms, cannas, _Farfugium grande_, achyranthes,
+ferns, araucarias, epiphyllums, pandanus or “screw pine,” _Pilea
+arborea, Ficus elastica, Grevillea robusta_.
+
+_Climbing plants_.—_Asparagus tenuissimus, A. plumosus, Cobœa
+scandens,_ smilax, Japanese hop, Madeira vine (Boussingaultia),
+_Senecio mikanioides_ and _S. macroglossus_ (parlor ivies). See also
+list below.
+
+_Low-growing, trailing, or drooping plants_.—These may be used for
+baskets and edgings. Flowering kinds are: Sweet alyssum, lobelia,
+_Fuchsia procumbens_, mesembryanthemum, _Oxalis pendula, 0. floribunda_
+and others, _Russelia juncea, Mahernia odorata_ or honey-bell.
+
+_Foliage plants of drooping habit_.—Vincas, _Saxifraga sarmentosa_,
+Kenilworth ivy, tradescantia or wandering jew, _Festuca glauca_*
+othonna, _Isolepsis gracilis_,* English ivy, _Selaginella denticulata_,
+and others. Some of these plants flower quite freely, but the flowers
+are small and of secondary consideration. Those with an asterisk *
+droop but slightly.
+
+Plants for an average night temperature of 50°.
+
+_Upright flowering plants_.—Azaleas, cyclamens, carnations,
+chrysanthemums, geraniums, Chinese primroses, stevias, marguerite or
+Paris daisy, single petunias, _Anthemis coronaria_, camellias, ardisia
+(berries), cinerarias, violets, hyacinths, narcissus, tulips, the
+Easter lily when in bloom, and others.
+
+_Upright foliage plants_.—Pittosporums, palms, aucuba, euonymus (golden
+and silvery variegated), araucarias, pandanus, dusty millers.
+
+_Climbing plants_.—English ivy, maurandia, senecio or parlor ivy,
+lygodium (climbing fern).
+
+_Drooping or trailing plants_.—Flowering kinds are: Sweet alyssum,
+_Mahernia odorata_, Russelia and ivy geranium.
+
+_Bulbs in the window-garden._
+
+Bulbs flowering through the winter add to the list of house plants a
+charming variety. The labor, time, and skill required is much less than
+for growing many of the larger plants more commonly used for winter
+decorations (for instructions on growing bulbs out-of-doors, see p.
+281; also the entries in Chapter VIII).
+
+Hyacinths, narcissus, tulips, and crocus, and others can be made to
+flower in the winter without difficulty. Secure the bulbs so as to be
+able to pot them by the middle or last of October, or if earlier all
+the better. The soil should be rich sandy loam, if possible; if not,
+the best that can be got, to which about one-fourth the bulk of sand is
+added and mixed thoroughly.
+
+If ordinary flower-pots are to be used, place in the bottom a few
+pieces of broken pots, charcoal, or small stones for drainage, then
+fill the pot with dirt so that when the bulbs are set on the dirt the
+top of the bulb is even with the rim of the pot. Fill around it with
+soil, leaving just the tip of the bulb showing above the earth. If the
+soil is heavy, a good plan is to sprinkle a small handful of sand under
+the bulb to carry off the water, as is done in the beds outdoors. If
+one does not have pots, he may use boxes. Starch boxes are a good size
+to use, as they are not heavy to handle; and excellent flowers are
+sometimes secured from bulbs planted in old tomato-cans. If boxes or
+cans are used, care must be taken to have holes in the bottoms to let
+the water run out. A large hyacinth bulb will do well in a 5-inch pot.
+The same size pot will do for three or four narcissuses or eight to
+twelve crocuses.
+
+After the bulbs are planted in the pots or other receptacles, they
+should be placed in a cool place, either in a cold pit or cellar, or on
+the shady side of a building, or, better yet, plunged or buried up to
+the rim of the pot in a shady border. This is done to force the roots
+to grow while the top stands still, as only the bulbs with good roots
+will give good flowers. When the weather gets so cold that a crust is
+frozen on the soil, the pots should be covered with a little straw, and
+as the weather gets colder more straw must be used. In six to eight
+weeks after planting the bulbs, they should have made roots enough to
+grow the plant, and they may be taken up and placed in a cool room for
+a week or so, after which, if they have started into growth, they may
+be taken into a warmer room where they can have plenty of light. They
+will grow very rapidly now and will want much water, and after the
+flowers begin to show, the pots may stand in a saucer of water all the
+time. When just coming into bloom the plants may have full sunlight
+part of the time to help bring out the color of the flowers.
+
+Hyacinths, tulips, and narcissus all require similar treatment. When
+well rooted, which will be in six or eight weeks, they are brought out
+and given a temperature of some 55° to 60° till the flowers appear,
+when they should be kept in a cooler temperature, say 50°. The single
+Roman hyacinth is an excellent house plant. The flowers are small, but
+they are graceful and are well adapted to cutting. It is early.
+
+The Easter lily is managed the same way, except to hasten its flowers
+it should be kept at not lower than 60° at night. Warmer will be
+better. Lily bulbs may be covered an inch or more deep in the pots.
+
+Freesias may be potted six or more in a pot of mellow soil, and then
+started into growth at once. At first they may be given a night
+temperature of 50°; and 55° to 60° when they have begun to grow.
+
+Small bulbs, as snowdrop and crocus, are planted several or a dozen in
+a pot and buried, or treated like hyacinths; but they are very
+sensitive to heat, and require to be given the light only when they
+have started to grow, without any forcing. Forty to 45° will be as warm
+as they ever need be kept.
+
+_Watering house plants_.
+
+It is impossible to give rules for the watering of plants. Conditions
+that hold with one grower are different from those of another. Advice
+must be general. Give one good watering at the time of potting, after
+which no water should be given until the plants really need it. If, on
+tapping the pot, it gives out a clear ring, it is an indication that
+water is needed. In the case of a soft-wooded plant, just before the
+leaves begin to show signs of wilt is the time for watering. When
+plants are taken up from the ground, or have their roots cut back in
+repotting, gardeners rely, after the first copious watering, on
+syringing the tops two or three times each day, until a new root-growth
+has started, watering at the roots only when absolutely necessary.
+Plants that have been potted into larger pots will grow without the
+extra attention of syringing, but those from the borders that have had
+their roots mutilated or shortened, should be placed in a cool, shady
+spot and be syringed often. One soon becomes familiar with the wants of
+individual plants, and can judge closely as to need of water. All
+soft-wooded plants with a large leaf-surface need more water than
+hard-wooded plants, and a plant in luxuriant growth of any kind more
+than one that has been cut back or become defoliated. When plants are
+grown in living-rooms, moisture must be supplied from some source, and
+if no arrangement has been made for securing moist air, the plants
+should be syringed often.
+
+All plant-growers should learn to withhold water when plants are
+“resting” or not in active growth. Thus camellias, azaleas, rex
+begonias, palms, and many other things are usually not in their growing
+period in fall and midwinter, and they should then have only sufficient
+water to keep them in condition. When growth begins, apply water; and
+increase the water as the growth becomes more rapid.
+
+_Hanging baskets_.
+
+To have a good hanging basket, it is necessary that some careful
+provision be made to prevent too rapid drying out of the earth. It is
+customary, therefore, to line the pot or basket with moss. Open wire
+baskets, like a horse muzzle, are often lined with moss and used for
+the growing of plants. Prepare the earth by mixing some well-decayed
+leafmold with rich garden loam, thereby making an earth that will
+retain moisture. Hang the basket in a light place, but still not in
+direct sunlight; and, if possible, avoid putting it where it will be
+exposed to drying wind. In order to water the basket, it is often
+advisable to sink it into a pail or tub of water.
+
+Various plants are well adapted to hanging baskets. Among the drooping
+or vine-like kinds are the strawberry geranium, Kenilworth ivy,
+maurandia, German ivy, canary-bird flower, _Asparagus Sprengeri_, ivy
+geranium, trailing fuchsia, wandering jew, and othonna. Among the
+erect-growing plants that produce flowers, _Lobelia Erinus_, sweet
+alyssum, petunias, oxalis, and various geraniums are to be recommended.
+Among foliage plants such things as coleus, dusty miller, begonia, and
+some geraniums are adaptable.
+
+_Aquarium_.
+
+A pleasant adjunct to a window-garden, living room, or conservatory, is
+a large glass globe or glass box containing water, in which plants and
+animals are living and growing. A solid glass tank or globe is better
+than a box with glass sides, because it does not leak, but the box must
+be used if one wants a large aquarium. For most persons it is better to
+buy the aquarium box than to attempt to make it. Five points are
+important in making and keeping an aquarium:
+
+(1) The equilibrium between plant and animal life must be secured and
+maintained;
+
+(2) the aquarium must be open on top to the air or well ventilated;
+
+(3) the temperature should be kept between 40° and 50° for ordinary
+animals and plants (do not place in full sun in a hot window);
+
+(4) it is well to choose such animals for the aquarium as are adapted
+to life in still water;
+
+(5) the water must be kept fresh, either by the proper balance of plant
+and animal life or by changing the water frequently, or by both.
+
+The aquatic plants of the neighborhood may be kept in the
+aquarium,—such things as myriophyllums, charas, eel-grass, duckmeats or
+lemnas, cabomba or fish grass, arrow-leafs or sagittaria, and the like;
+also the parrot’s feather, to be bought of florists (a species of
+myriophyllum). Of animals, there are fishes (particularly minnows),
+water insects, tadpoles, clams, snails. If the proper balance is
+maintained between plant and animal life, it will not be necessary to
+change the water so frequently.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VIII
+THE GROWING OF THE ORNAMENTAL PLANTS—INSTRUCTIONS ON PARTICULAR KINDS
+
+In the preceding chapter advice is given that applies to groups or
+classes of plants, and many lists are inserted to guide the grower in
+his choice or at least to suggest to him the kinds of things that may
+be grown for certain purposes or conditions. It now remains to give
+instructions on the growing of particular kinds or species of plants.
+
+It is impossible to include instructions on any great number of plants
+in a book like this. It is assumed that the user of this book already
+knows how to grow the familiar or easily handled plants; if he does
+not, a book is not likely to help him very much. In this chapter all
+such things as the common annuals and perennials and shrubs and trees
+are omitted. If the reader is in doubt about any of these, or desires
+information concerning them, he will have to consult the catalogues of
+responsible seedsmen and nurserymen or cyclopedic works, or go to some
+competent person for advice.
+
+In this chapter are brought together instructions on the growing of
+such plants commonly found about home grounds and in window-gardens as
+seem to demand somewhat special or particular treatment or about which
+the novice is likely to ask; and of course these instructions must be
+brief.
+
+
+XVII. The peony. One of the most steadfast of garden flowers. XVII. The
+peony. One of the most steadfast of garden flowers.
+
+It may be repeated here that a person cannot expect to grow a plant
+satisfactorily until he learns the natural time of the plant to grow
+and to bloom. Many persons handle their begonias, cacti, and azaleas as
+if they should be active the whole year round. The key to the situation
+is water: at what part of the year to withhold and at what part to
+apply is one of the very first things to learn.
+
+Abutilons, or flowering maples as they are often called, make good
+house plants and bedding plants. Nearly all house gardeners have at
+least one plant.
+
+Common abutilons may be grown from seed or from cuttings of young wood.
+If the former, the seed should be sown in February or March in a
+temperature of not less than 60°. The seedlings should be potted when
+about four to six leaves have grown, in a rich sandy soil. Frequent
+pottings should be made to insure a rapid growth, making plants large
+enough to flower by fall. Or the seedlings may be planted out in the
+border when danger of frost is over, and taken up in the fall before
+frost; these plants will bloom all winter. About one half of the newer
+growth should be cut off when they are taken up, as they are very
+liable to spindle up when grown in the house. When grown from cuttings,
+young wood should be used, which, after being well rooted, may be
+treated in the same way as the seedlings.
+
+The varieties with variegated leaves have been improved until the
+foliage effects are equal to the flowers of some varieties; and these
+are a great addition to the conservatory or window garden. The staple
+spotted-leaved type is _A. Thompsoni_. A compact form, now much used
+for bedding and other outdoor work, is _Savitzii_, which is a
+horticultural variety, not a distinct species. The old-fashioned
+green-leaved _A. striatum_, from which _A. Thompsoni_ has probably
+sprung, is one of the best. _A. megapotamicum_ or _vexillarium_ is a
+trailing or drooping red-and-yellow-flowered species that is excellent
+for baskets, although not now much seen. It propagates readily from
+seed. There is a form with spotted leaves.
+
+Abutilons are most satisfactory for house plants when they are not much
+more than a year old. They need no special treatment.
+
+Agapanthus, or African lily _(Agapanthus umbellatus_ and several
+varieties).—A tuberous-rooted, well-known conservatory or window plant,
+blooming in summer. Excellent for porch and yard decoration.
+
+It lends itself to many conditions and proves satisfactory a large part
+of the year, the leaves forming a green arch over the pot, covering it
+entirely in a well-grown specimen. The flowers are borne in a large
+cluster on stems growing 2-3 ft. high, as many as two or three hundred
+bright blue flowers often forming on a single plant. A large,
+well-grown plant throws up a number of flower-stalks through the early
+season.
+
+The one essential to free growth is an abundance of water and an
+occasional application of manure water. Propagation is effected by
+division of the offsets, which may be broken from the main plant in
+early spring. After flowering, gradually lessen the quantity of water
+until they are placed in winter quarters, which should be a position
+free from frost and moderately dry. The agapanthus, being a heavy
+feeder, should be grown in strong loam to which is added well-rotted
+manure and a little sand. When dormant, the roots will withstand a
+little frost.
+
+Alstremeria.—The alstremerias (of several species) belong to the
+amaryllis family, being tuberous-rooted plants, having leafy stems
+terminating in a cluster of ten to fifty small lily-shaped flowers of
+rich colors in summer.
+
+Most of the alstremerias should be given pot culture, as they are
+easily grown and are not hardy in the open in the North. The culture is
+nearly that of the amaryllis,—a good, fibrous loam with a little sand,
+potting the tubers in early spring or late fall. Start the plants
+slowly, giving only enough water to cause root growth; but after growth
+has become established, a quantity of water may be given. After
+flowering they may be treated as are amaryllis or agapanthus. The roots
+may be divided, and the old and weak parts shaken out. The plants grow
+1-3 ft. high. The flowers often have odd colors.
+
+Amaryllis.—The popular name of a variety of house or conservatory
+tender bulbs, but properly applied only to the Belladonna lily. Most of
+them are hippeastrums, but the culture of all is similar. They are
+satisfactory house plants for spring and summer bloom. One difficulty
+with their culture is the habit of the flower-stalk starting into
+growth before the leaves grow. This is caused in most cases by
+stimulating root growth before the bulb has had sufficient rest.
+
+The bulbs should be dormant four or five months in a dry place with a
+temperature of about 50°. When wanted to be brought into flower, the
+bulbs, if to be repotted, should have all the dirt shaken off and
+potted in soil composed of fibrous loam and leafmold, to which should
+be added a little sand. If the loam is heavy, place the pot in a warm
+situation; a spent hotbed is a good place. Water as needed, and as the
+flowers develop liquid manure may be given. If large clumps are well
+established in 8-or 10-inch pots, they may be top-dressed with new soil
+containing rotted manure, and as growth increases liquid manure may be
+given twice a week until the flowers open. After flowering, gradually
+withhold water until the leaves die, or plunge the pots in the open, in
+a sunny place. The most popular species for window-gardens is _A.
+Johnsoni_ (properly a hippeastrum), with red flowers. Figs. 257, 261.
+
+Bulbs received from dealers should be placed in pots not much broader
+than the bulb, and the neck of the bulb should not be covered. Keep
+rather dry until active growth begins. The ripened bulbs, in fall, may
+be stored as potatoes, and then brought out in spring as rapidly as any
+of them show signs of growth.
+
+Anemone.—The wind-flowers are hardy perennials, of easy culture, one
+group (the _Anemone coronaria, fulgens_, and _hortensis_ forms) being
+treated as bulbs. These tuberous-rooted plants should be planted late
+in September or early in October, in a well-enriched sheltered border,
+setting the tubers 3 in. deep and 4-6 in. apart. The surface of the
+border should be mulched with leaves or strawy manure through the
+severe winter weather, uncovering the soil in March. The flowers will
+appear in April or May, and in June or July the tubers should be taken
+up and placed in dry sand until the following fall. These plants are
+not as well known as they should be. The range of color is very wide.
+The flowers are often 2 in. across, and are lasting. The tubers may be
+planted in pots, bringing them into the conservatory or house at
+intervals through the winter, where they make an excellent showing when
+in bloom.
+
+The Japanese anemone is a wholly different plant from the above. There
+are white-flowered and red-flowered varieties. The best known is _A.
+Japonica_ var. _alba_, or Honorine Jobert. This species blooms from
+August to November, and is at that season the finest of border plants.
+The pure white flowers, with lemon-colored stamens, are held well up on
+stalks 2-3 ft. high. The flower-stems are long and excellent for
+cutting. This species may be propagated by division of the plants or by
+seed. The former method should be employed in the spring; the latter,
+as soon as the seeds are ripe in the fall. Sow the seed in boxes in a
+warm, sheltered situation in the border or under glass. The seed should
+be covered lightly with soil containing a quantity of sand and not
+allowed to become dry. A well-enriched, sheltered position in a border
+should be given.
+
+The little wild wind-flowers are easily colonized in a hardy border.
+
+Aralia, _A. Sieboldii_ (properly _Fatsia Japonica_ and _F.
+papyrifera),_ as it is sometimes called, and the variety _variegata_,
+with large, palmlike leaves, are grown for their tropical appearance.
+
+Sow in February, in shallow trays and light soil, in a temperature of
+65°. Continue the temperature. When two or three leaves have formed,
+transplant into other trays 1 in. apart. Sprinkle them with a fine rose
+or spray; and do not allow them to suffer for water. Later transfer
+them to small pots and repot them as they grow. Plant out in beds after
+the weather has become warm and settled. Half-hardy perennials in the
+North, becoming 3 ft. or more high; a shrub in the South and in
+California. Used often in subtropical work.
+
+Araucaria, or Norfolk Island pine, is now sold in pots by florists as a
+window plant. There are several species. The greenhouse specimens are
+the juvenile state of plants that become large trees in their native
+regions; therefore, it is not to be expected that they will keep
+shapely and within bounds indefinitely.
+
+The common species _(A. excelsa_) makes a symmetrical evergreen
+subject. It keeps well in a cool window, or on the veranda in the
+summer. Protect it from direct sunlight, and give plenty of room. If
+the plant begins to fail, return it to the florist for recuperation, or
+procure a new plant.
+
+Auricula.—A half-hardy perennial of the primrose tribe _(Primula
+Auricula),_ very popular in Europe, but little grown in America on
+account of the hot, dry summers.
+
+In this country auriculas are usually propagated by seed, as for
+cineraria; but special varieties are perpetuated by offsets. Seeds sown
+in February or March should give blooming plants for the next February
+or March. Keep the plants cool and moist, and away from the direct sun
+during the summer. Gardeners usually grow them in frames. In the fall,
+they are potted into 3-in. or 4-in. pots, and made to bloom either in
+frames as for violets or in a cool conservatory or greenhouse. In
+April, after blooming has ceased, repot the plants and treat as the
+previous year. As with most annual-blooming perennials, best results
+are to be expected with year-old or two-year-old plants. Auriculas grow
+6-8 in. high. Colors white and many shades of red and blue.
+
+Azaleas are excellent outdoor and greenhouse shrubs, and are sometimes
+seen in windows. They are less grown in this country than in Europe,
+largely because of our hot, dry summers and severe winters.
+
+There are two common types or classes of azaleas: the hardy or Ghent
+azaleas, and the Indian azaleas. The latter are the familiar
+large-flowered azaleas of conservatories and window-gardens.
+
+Ghent azaleas thrive in the open along the seacoast as far north as
+southern New England. They require a sandy peaty soil, but are treated
+as other shrubs are. The large flower-buds are liable to injury from
+the warm suns of late winter and early spring, and to avoid this injury
+the plants are often protected by covers or shades of brush. In the
+interior country, little attempt is made to flower azaleas permanently
+in the open, although they may be grown if carefully tended and well
+protected.
+
+Both Ghent and Indian azaleas are excellent pot-plants for bloom in
+late winter and spring. The plants are imported in great numbers from
+Europe in fall, and it is better to buy these plants than to attempt to
+propagate them. Pot them up in large-sized pots, keep them cool and
+backward for a time until they are established, then take them into a
+conservatory temperature in which carnations and roses thrive. They
+should be potted in a soil of half peat or well-decayed mold and half
+rich loam; add a little sand. Pot firmly, and be sure to provide
+sufficient drainage. Keep off red spider by syringing.
+
+After blooming, the plants may be thinned by pruning out the straggling
+growths, and repotted. Set them in a frame or in a semi-shaded place
+during summer, and see that they make a good growth. The wood should be
+well ripened in the fall. After cold weather sets in, keep the Indian
+or evergreen kinds half dormant by setting them in a cool, dull-lighted
+cellar or pit, bringing them in when wanted for bloom. The Ghent or
+deciduous kinds may be touched with frost without injury; and they may
+be kept in a cellar until wanted.
+
+Begonias are familiar tender bedding and house plants. Next to the
+geranium, begonias are probably the most popular for house culture of
+the entire plant list. The ease of culture, great variety of kinds,
+profusion of bloom or richness of foliage, together with their
+adaptability to shade, make them very desirable.
+
+Begonias may be divided into three sections: the fibrous-rooted class,
+which contains the winter-flowering, branching kinds; the rex forms, or
+beefsteak geraniums, having large ornamental leaves; the
+tuberous-rooted, those that bloom through the summer, the tuber resting
+in the winter.
+
+_The fibrous-rooted kinds_ may be propagated by seed or cuttings, the
+latter being the usual method. Cuttings of half-ripened wood root
+easily, making a rapid growth, the plants flowering in a few months.
+
+_The rex type_, having no branches, is propagated from the leaves. The
+large mature leaves are used. The leaf may be cut into sections, having
+at the base a union of two ribs. These pieces of leaves may be inserted
+in the sand as any other cutting. Or a whole leaf may be used, cutting
+through the ribs at intervals and laying the leaf flat on the
+propagating bench or other warm, moist place. In a short time young
+plants having roots of their own will form. These may be potted when
+large enough to handle, and will soon make good plants (Fig 125).
+
+Rex begonias usually grow little during winter, and they should
+therefore be kept fairly dry and no effort made to push them. Be sure
+that the pots are well drained, so that the soil does not become sour.
+New plants—those a year or so old—are usually most satisfactory. Keep
+them away from direct sunlight. An insidious disease of rex begonia
+leaves has recently made its appearance. The best treatment yet known
+is to propagate fresh plants, throwing away the old stock and the dirt
+in which it is grown.
+
+_The tuberous-rooted begonias_ make excellent bedding plants for those
+who learn their simple but imperative requirements. They are also good
+pot subjects for summer.
+
+The amateur would better not attempt to grow the tuberous begonias from
+seed. He should purchase good two-year tubers. These should be able to
+run for two or three years before they are so old or so much spent that
+they give unsatisfactory results.
+
+In the North, the tubers are started indoors, for bedding, in February
+or early March in a rather warm temperature. They will fill a five-inch
+pot before they are ready to be turned out into the ground. They should
+not be planted out till the weather is thoroughly settled, for they
+will not stand frost or unfavorable climatic conditions.
+
+The plants should be given a soil that holds moisture, but is yet well
+drained. They will not do well in water-logged ground. They should have
+partial shade; near the north side of a building is a good place for
+them. Too much watering makes them soft and they tend to break down.
+Keep the foliage dry, particularly in sunny weather; the watering
+should be done from underneath.
+
+After blooming, lift the bulbs, dry them off, and keep over winter in a
+cool place. They may be packed in shallow boxes in dry earth or sand.
+
+Florists sometimes divide the tubers just after growth starts in the
+spring, so that a good eye may be got with each plant; but the amateur
+would better use the entire tuber, unless he desires to increase or
+multiply some particular plant.
+
+If the house gardener desires to raise tuberous begonias from seed, he
+must be prepared to exercise much patience. The seeds, like those of
+all begonias, are very small, and should be sown with great care. Start
+the seeds in late winter. Simply sprinkle them on the surface of the
+soil, which should be a mixture of leafmold and sand, with the addition
+of a small quantity of fibrous loam. Watering should be done by setting
+the pot or box in which the seeds are sown in water, allowing the
+moisture to ascend through the soil. When the soil has become
+completely saturated, set the box in a shady situation, covering it
+with glass or some other object until the tiny seedlings appear. Never
+allow the soil to become dry. The seedlings should be transplanted, as
+soon as they can be handled, into boxes or pots containing the same
+mixture of soil, setting each plant down to the seed-leaf. They will
+need three or four transplantings before they reach the blooming stage,
+and at each one after the first, the proportion of fibrous loam may be
+increased until the soil is composed of one-third each of loam, sand,
+and leafmold. The addition of a little well-rotted manure may be made
+at the last transplanting.
+
+Cactus.—Various kinds of cactus are often seen in small collections of
+house plants, to which they add interest and oddity, being different
+from other plants.
+
+Most cacti are easy to grow, requiring little care and enduring the
+heat and dryness of a living room much better than most other plants.
+Their requirements are ample drainage and open soil. Cactus growers
+usually make a soil by mixing pulverized plaster or lime refuse with
+garden loam, using about two-thirds of the loam. The very fine parts,
+or dust, of the plaster, are blown out, else the soil is likely to
+cement. They may be rested at any season by simply setting them away in
+a dry place for two or three months, and bringing them into heat and
+light when they are wanted. As new growth advances they should have
+water occasionally, and when in bloom, they should be watered freely.
+Withhold water gradually after blooming until they are to be rested.
+
+Some of the most common species in cultivation are the phyllocactus
+species, often called the night-blooming cereus. These are not the true
+night-blooming cereuses, which have angular or cylindrical stems,
+covered with bristles, while these have flat, leaf-like branches; the
+flowers of these, however, are very much like the cereus, opening at
+evening and closing before morning, and as the phyllocacti may be grown
+with greater ease, blooming on smaller and younger plants, they are to
+be recommended.
+
+The true night-blooming cereuses are species of the genus Cereus. The
+commonest one is _C. nycticalus_, but _C. grandiflorus, C.
+triangularis_ and others are occasionally seen. These plants all have
+long rod-like stems which are cylindrical or angular. These stems often
+reach a height of 10 to 30 ft., and they need support. They should be
+trained along a pillar or tied to a stake. They are uninteresting
+leafless things during a large part of the year; but in midsummer,
+after they are three or more years old, they throw out their great
+tubular flowers, which open at nightfall and wither and die when the
+light strikes them next morning. They are very easily grown, either in
+pots or planted in the natural soil in the conservatory. The only
+special care they need is good drainage at the roots, so that the soil
+will not become soggy.
+
+The epiphyllum, or lobster cactus, or crab cactus, is one of the best
+of the family, easy of culture. It bears bright-colored blossoms at the
+end of each joint. When in flower, which will be in the winter months,
+it requires a richer soil than the other cacti. A suitable soil is made
+of two-thirds fibrous loam and one third leafmold; usually it is best
+to add sand or pulverized brick. In fall and early winter, keep rather
+dry, giving more water as the plant comes into bloom.
+
+Opuntias, or prickly pears, are often grown as border plants through
+the summer. In fact, all the family may be planted out, and if a number
+of kinds are set in a bed together, they make a striking addition to
+the garden. Be very careful not to bruise the plants. It is better to
+plunge them in the pots than to turn them out of the pots.
+
+Caladium.—Tuberous-rooted, tender perennial plants used for
+conservatory decoration, and also for subtropical and bold effects in
+the lawn (Plate IV). The plants commonly known under this name are
+really colocasias.
+
+The roots should be dormant in the winter, being kept in a warm cellar
+or under a greenhouse bench, where they are not liable to frost or
+dampness. The roots are usually covered with earth, but they are kept
+dry. Early in spring the roots are put into boxes or pots and are
+started into growth, so that by the time settled weather comes they
+will be 1 or 2 feet high and ready to set directly into soil.
+
+When set out of doors, they should be protected from strong winds, and
+from the full glare of direct sunlight. The soil should be rich and
+deep, and the plants should have an abundance of water. They do well
+about ponds (see Plate X).
+
+Caladiums are most excellent plants for striking effects, especially
+against a house, high shrubbery, or other background. If they are
+planted by themselves, they should be in clumps rather than scattered
+as single specimens, as the effect is better. See that they get a good
+start before they are planted in the open ground. As soon as killed
+down by frost, dig them, dry the roots of superfluous moisture, and
+store till wanted in late winter or spring.
+
+Calceolaria.—The calceolarias are small greenhouse herbs sometimes used
+in the window-garden. They are not very satisfactory plants for window
+treatment, however, since they suffer from dry atmosphere and from
+sudden changes of temperature.
+
+The calceolarias are grown from seeds. If the seeds are sown in early
+summer and the young plants are transplanted as they need, flowering
+specimens may be had for the late fall and early winter. In the growing
+of the young plants, always avoid exposing them to direct sunlight; but
+they should be given a place that has an abundance of screened or
+tempered light. A new crop of plants should be raised each year.
+
+There is a race of shrubby calceolarias, but it is little known in this
+country. One or two species are annuals adaptable to cultivation in the
+open garden, and their little ladyslipper-like flowers are attractive.
+However, they are of secondary importance as annual garden flowers.
+
+Calla (properly _Richardia_), Egyptian lily.—The calla is one of the
+most satisfactory of winter house-plants, lending itself to various
+conditions.
+
+The requirements of the calla are rich soil and an abundance of water,
+with the roots confined in as small a space as possible. If a too large
+pot is used, the growth of foliage will be very rank, at the expense of
+the flowers; but by using a smaller-sized pot and applying liquid
+manure, the flowers will be produced freely. A 6-inch pot will be large
+enough for all but an exceptionally large bulb or tuber. If desired, a
+number of tubers may be grown together in a larger pot. The soil should
+be very rich but fibrous—at least one third well-rotted manure will be
+none too much, mixed with equal parts of fibrous loam and sharp sand.
+The tubers should be planted firmly and the pots set in a cool place to
+make roots. After the roots have partially filled the pot, the plant
+may be brought into heat and given a sunny position and an abundance of
+water. An occasional sponging or washing of the leaves will free them
+from dust. No other treatment will be required until the flowers
+appear, when liquid manure may be given.The plant will thrive all the
+better at this time if the pot is placed in a saucer of water. In fact,
+the calla will grow well in an aquarium.
+
+The calla may be grown through the entire year, but it will prove more
+satisfactory, both in leaf and flower, if rested through part of the
+summer. This may be done by laying the pots on their sides in a dry
+shady place under shrubbery, or if in the open slightly covered with
+straw or other litter to keep the roots from becoming extremely dry. In
+September or October they may be shaken out, cleaning off all the old
+soil, and repotted, as already mentioned. The offsets may be taken off
+and set in small pots and given a year’s growth, resting them the
+second year and having them in flower that winter.
+
+The spotted calla has variegated foliage and is a good plant for mixed
+collections. This blooms in the spring, which will lengthen the season
+of calla bloom. The treatment of this is similar to that of the common
+calla.
+
+Camellias are half-hardy woody plants, blooming in late winter and
+spring. Years ago camellias were very popular, but they have been
+crowded out by the informal flowers of recent times. Their time will
+come again.
+
+During the blooming season keep them cool—say not over 50° at night and
+a little higher by day. When blooming is done they begin to grow; then
+give them more heat and plenty of water. See that they are well ripened
+by winter with large plump flower-buds. If they are neglected or kept
+too dry during their growing season (in summer) they will drop their
+buds in fall. The soil for camellias should be fibrous and fertile,
+compounded of rotted sod, leafmold, old cow manure, and sufficient sand
+for good drainage. Always screen them from direct sunlight. Do not try
+to force them in early winter, after the growth has ceased. Their
+summer quarters may be in a protected place in the open air.
+
+Camellias are propagated by cuttings in winter, which should give
+blooming plants in two years.
+
+Cannas are among the most ornamental and important plants used in
+decorative gardening. They make fine herbaceous hedges, groups, masses,
+and—when desirable—good center plants for beds. They are much used for
+subtropical effects (see Plate V).
+
+Cannas grow 3 to 10 feet or more high. Formerly they were valued
+chiefly for their foliage, but since the introduction, in 1884, of the
+Crozy Dwarf French type with its showy flowers, cannas are grown as
+much for their bloom as for their foliage effects. The flowers of these
+new kinds are as large as those of gladioli, and are of various shades
+of yellow and red, with banded and spotted forms. These flowering kinds
+grow about 3 feet high. The older forms are taller. In both sections
+there are green-leaved and dark coppery-red-leaved varieties.
+
+The canna may be grown from seed and had in bloom the first year by
+sowing in February or March, in boxes or pots placed in hotbeds or a
+warm house, first soaking the seeds in warm water for a short time or
+filing a small notch through the coat of each seed (avoiding the round
+germinating point). It requires two years to raise strong plants of the
+old-fashioned tall cannas from seed. Sow in light, sandy soil, where
+the earth may be kept at 70° till after germination. After the plants
+have got well up, transplant them to about 3 or 4 inches apart, or
+place in pots 3 inches wide, in good rich soil. They may now be kept at
+60°.
+
+The majority of cannas, however, are grown from pieces of the roots
+(rhizomes), each piece having a bud. The roots may be divided at any
+time in the winter, and if early flowers and foliage are wanted, the
+pieces may be planted in a hotbed or warmhouse in early April, started
+into growth, and planted out where wanted as soon as the ground has
+warmed and all danger of frost is over. A hardening of the plants, by
+leaving the sash off the hotbeds, or setting the plants in shallow
+boxes and placing the boxes in a sheltered position through May, not
+forgetting a liberal supply of water, will fit the plants to take
+kindly to the final planting out.
+
+Plant out roots or started plants when there is no longer danger of
+frost. For mass effects, the plants may stand twelve to eighteen inches
+apart; for individual bloom twenty to twenty-four inches or more. Some
+gardeners plant them not closer than twenty to twenty-four inches for
+mass beds, if the soil is good and the plants strong. Give them a warm
+sunny place.
+
+The old (foliage) sorts may be left out late to ripen up the fleshy
+root-stocks. Cut the tops off immediately after frost. The roots are
+safe in the ground as long as it does not freeze. Dig, and dry or
+“cure” for a few days, then winter them like potatoes in the cellar. It
+is a common mistake to dig canna roots too early.
+
+The French sorts are commonly thought to keep best if kept growing
+somewhat during the winter; but if managed right, they may be carried
+over like the others. Immediately after frost, cut off the tops next
+the ground. Cover the stumps with a little soil and leave the roots in
+the ground till well ripened. Clean them after digging, and cure or dry
+them for a week or more in the open air and sun, taking them indoors at
+night. Then place them away from frost in a cool, dry place.
+
+Carnations are now among the most popular florists’ flowers; but it is
+not generally known that they be easily grown in the outdoor garden.
+They are of two types, the outdoor or garden varieties, and the indoor
+or forcing kinds. Normally, the carnation is a hardy perennial, but the
+garden kinds, or marguerites, are usually treated as annuals. The
+forcing kinds are flowered but once, new plants being grown each year
+from cuttings.
+
+Marguerite carnations bloom the year the seed is sown, and with a
+slight protection will bloom freely the second year. They make
+attractive house plants if potted in the fall. The seeds of these
+carnations should be sown in boxes in March and the young plants set
+out as early as possible, pinching out the center of the plant to make
+them branch freely. Give the same space as for garden pinks.
+
+The winter-flowering carnations have become prime favorites with all
+flower lovers, and a collection of winter house-plants seems incomplete
+without them.
+
+Carnations grow readily from cuttings made of the suckers that form
+around the base of the stem, the side shoots of the flowering stem, or
+the main shoots before they show flower-buds. The cuttings from the
+base make the best plants in most cases. These cuttings may be taken
+from a plant at any time through the fall or winter, rooted in sand and
+potted up, to be held in pots until the planting out time in the
+spring, usually in April, or any time when the ground is ready to
+handle. Care should be taken to pinch out the tops of the young plants
+while growing in the pot, and later while in the ground, causing them
+to grow stocky and send out new growths along the stem. The young
+plants should be grown cool, a temperature of 45° suiting them well.
+Attention should be given to spraying the cuttings each day while in
+the house to keep down the red spider, which is very partial to the
+carnation.
+
+In the summer, the plants are grown in the field, and not in pots,
+being transplanted from the cutting-box. The soil in which they are to
+be planted should be moderately rich and loose. Clean cultivation
+should be given throughout the summer. Frequently pinch out the tops.
+
+The plants are taken up in September and potted firmly, and well
+watered; then set in a cool, partially shaded situation until root
+growth has started, and watering the plant as it shows need of water.
+
+The usual living-room conditions as to moisture and heat are not such
+as the carnation demands, and care must be taken to overcome the
+dryness by spraying the foliage and setting the plant in a position not
+exposed to the direct heat of a stove or the sun. In commercial houses,
+it is not often necessary to spray established plants. Pick off most or
+all of the side buds, in order to add to the size of the leading
+flowers. After all is said, it is probably advisable in most cases to
+purchase the plants when in bloom from a florist, and after blooming
+either throw them away or store them for planting out in the spring,
+when they will bloom throughout the summer.
+
+If conditions are right, the rust should not be very troublesome, if
+the start was made with clean stock. Keep all rusted leaves picked off.
+
+Century plants or agaves are popular plants for the window-garden or
+conservatory, requiring little care and growing slowly, thus needing
+repotting only at long intervals. When the plants have outgrown their
+usefulness as house-plants, they are still valuable as porch
+decorations, for plunging in rock-work, or about rustic nooks. The
+striped-leaved variety is the most desirable, but the normal type, with
+its blue-gray leaves, is highly ornamental.
+
+There are a number of dwarf species of agave that are not so common,
+although they may be grown with ease. Such plants add novelty to a
+collection, and may be used through the summer as noted above or
+plunged with cactus in a bed of tropical plants. All succeed well in
+loam and sand in equal parts, with a little leafmold in the case of the
+small varieties.
+
+The more common species are propagated by suckers from around the base
+of the established plants. A few kinds having no suckers must be grown
+from seed.
+
+As to watering, they demand no special care. Agaves will not stand
+frost to any extent.
+
+When the head throws up its great stem and blooms, it may exhaust
+itself and die; but this may be far short of a century. Some species
+bloom more than once.
+
+Chrysanthemums are of many kinds, some being annual flower-garden
+plants, some perennial border subjects, and one form is the universal
+florists’ plant. In chrysanthemums are now included the pyrethrums.
+
+The annual chrysanthemums must not be confounded with the well-known
+fall-flowering kinds, as they will prove a disappointment if one
+expects large flowers of all colors and shapes. The annuals are mostly
+coarse-growing plants, with an abundance of bloom and a rank smell. The
+flowers are single in most cases, and not very lasting. They are useful
+for massing and also for cut-flowers. They are among the easiest of
+hardy annuals to grow. The stoniest part of the garden will usually
+suit them. Colors white and shades of yellow, the flowers daisy-like;
+1-3 ft.
+
+Amongst perennial kinds, _Chrysanthemum frutescens_ is the well-known
+Paris daisy or marguerite, one of the most popular of the genus. This
+makes a good pot-plant for the window-garden, blooming throughout the
+winter and spring months. It is usually propagated by cuttings, which,
+if taken in spring, will give large blooming plants for the next
+winter. Gradually transfer to larger pots or boxes, until the plants
+finally stand in 6-inch or 8-inch pots or in small soap boxes. There is
+a fine yellow-flowered variety. The marguerite daisy is much grown
+out-of-doors in California.
+
+The hardy perennial kinds are small-flowered, late-blooming plants,
+known to many old people as “artemisias.” They have been improved of
+late years, and they are very satisfactory plants of easy culture. The
+plants should be renewed from seed every year or two.
+
+In variety of form and color, and in size of bloom, the florists’
+chrysanthemum is one of the most wonderful of plants. It is a late
+autumn flower, and it needs little artificial heat to bring it to
+perfection. The great blooms of the exhibitions are produced by growing
+only one flower to a plant and by feeding the plant heavily. It is
+hardly possible for the amateur to grow such specimen flowers as the
+professional florist or gardener does; neither is it necessary. A
+well-grown plant with fourteen to twenty flowers is far more
+satisfactory as a window-plant than a long, stiff stem with only one
+immense flower at the apex. The culture is simple, much more so than
+that of many of the plants commonly grown for house decoration.
+Although the season of bloom is short, the satisfaction of having a
+fall display of flowers before the geraniums, begonias, and other
+house-plants have recovered from their removal from out of doors,
+repays all efforts. Very good plants can be grown under a temporary
+shed cover, as shown in Fig. 268. The roof need not necessarily be of
+glass. Under such a cover, also, potted plants, in bloom, may be set
+for protection when the weather becomes too cold.
+
+Cuttings taken in March or April, planted out in the border in May,
+well tended through the summer and lifted before frost in September,
+will bloom in October or November. The ground in which the plants are
+to bloom should be moderately rich and moist. The plants may be tied to
+stakes. When the buds show, all but the center one of each cluster on
+the leading shoots should be picked off, as also the small lateral
+branches. A thrifty bushy plant thus treated will usually have flowers
+large enough to show the character of the variety, also numbers enough
+to make a fine display.
+
+After blooming, the plants are lifted from the border. As to the
+receptacle into which to put them, it need not be a flower-pot. A pail
+or soap-box, with holes bored for drainage, will suit the plant just as
+well, and by covering the box with cloth or paper the difference will
+not be noticed.
+
+If cuttings are not to be had, young plants may be bought of the
+florists and treated in the manner described. Buy them in midsummer or
+earlier.
+
+It is best not to attempt to flower the same plant two seasons. After
+the plant has bloomed, the top may be cut down, and the box set in a
+cellar and kept moderately dry. In February or March, bring the plant
+to the sitting-room window and let the shoots start from the root.
+These shoots are taken for cuttings to grow plants for the fall bloom.
+
+Cineraria is a tender greenhouse subject, but it may be grown as a
+house-plant, although the conditions necessary to the best results are
+difficult to secure outside a glasshouse.
+
+The conditions for cinerarias are a cool temperature, frequent
+repotting, and guarding against the attacks of the greenfly. Perhaps
+the last is the most difficult, and with one having no facilities for
+fumigating, it will be almost impossible to prevent the difficulty. A
+living room usually has too dry air for cinerarias.
+
+The seed, which is very minute, should be sown in August or September
+to have plants in bloom in January or February. Sow the seed on the
+surface of fine soil and water very lightly to settle the seeds into
+the soil. A piece of glass or a damp cloth may be spread over the pot
+or box in which the seeds are sown, to remain until the seeds are up.
+Always keep the soil damp, but not wet. When the seedlings are large
+enough to repot, they should be potted singly in 2-or 3-inch pots.
+Before the plants have become pot-bound, they should again be repotted
+into larger pots, until they are in at least 6-inch pots in which to
+bloom.
+
+In all this time, they should be grown cool and, if not possible to
+fumigate them with tobacco, the pots should stand on tobacco stems,
+which should be moist at all times. The general practice, in order to
+have bushy plants, is to pinch out the center when the flower-buds
+show, causing the lateral branches to start, which they are slow to do
+if the central stem is allowed to grow. Plants bloom but once.
+
+Clematis.—One of the best of woody climbing vines, the common _C.
+Flammula, Virginiana, paniculata_ and others being used frequently to
+cover division walls or fences, growing year after year without any
+care and producing quantities of flowers. _C. paniculata_ is now
+planted very extensively. The panicles of star-shaped flowers entirely
+cover the vine and have a pleasant fragrance. It is one of the best of
+all fall-flowering vines, and hardy north; clings well to a
+chicken-wire trellis.
+
+The large-flowered section, of which Jackmani is perhaps the best
+known, is very popular for pillar or porch climbers. The flowers of
+this section are large and showy, running from pure white, through
+blue, to scarlet. Of this class, a serviceable purple is Jackmani;
+white, Henryi (Fig. 266); blue, Ramona; crimson, Madame E. André.
+
+A deep, mellow, fertile soil, naturally moist, will suit the
+requirements of clematis. In dry times apply water freely, particularly
+for the large-flowered kinds. Also provide trellis or other support as
+soon as they begin to run. Clematis usually blooms on the wood of the
+season: therefore prune in winter or early spring, in order to secure
+strong new flowering shoots. The large-flowered kinds should be cut
+back to the ground each year; some other kinds may be similarly treated
+unless they are wanted for permanent bowers.
+
+The clematis root disease is the depredation of a nematode or eel-worm.
+It is seldom troublesome in ground that thoroughly freezes, and this
+may be the reason why it so often fails when planted against buildings.
+
+Coleus.—The commonest “foliage plant” in window-gardens. It was used
+very extensively at one time in ornamental bedding and ribbon borders,
+but owing to its being tender has lost in favor, and its place is
+largely taken by other plants.
+
+Coleus is grown with the greatest ease from cuttings or slips. Take
+cuttings only from vigorous and healthy plants. It may also be grown
+from seed, although the types have not become fixed, and a large number
+of differently marked plants may be had from the same packet. This
+would not be a drawback in the window-garden, unless a uniform effect
+is desired; in fact, the best results are often secured from seeds. Sow
+the seed in gentle heat in March.
+
+Grow new plants each year, and throw the old ones away.
+
+Crocus (see _Bulbs_).—Crocus is one of the best of spring bulbs, easily
+grown and giving good satisfaction either in the border or scattered
+through the lawn. They are also forced for winter (see p. 345). They
+are so cheap and lasting that they may be used in quantity. A border of
+crocuses along the edges of walks, little clumps of them in the lawn,
+or masses in a bed, give the first touch of color as the spring opens.
+
+A sandy soil suits the crocus admirably. Plant in the fall, in the
+open, 3 to 4 inches deep. When they show signs of failing, take up the
+bulbs and reset them. They tend to rise out of the ground, because the
+new bulb or corm forms on the top of the old one. They run out on lawns
+in two or three years. If best results are desired, it is well to renew
+the bed occasionally by buying new bulbs. Crocus beds may be filled
+later in the season with quick-growing annuals. It is important that
+only the best flowering bulbs be secured.
+
+They may be forced with ease, planted in pots or shallow boxes, put
+away in a cool place and brought into the house at any time through the
+winter. A low temperature will bring them into bloom in perfection in
+about four weeks from the time they are brought in. They can be had in
+the window-garden in this way, opening in the sunshine.
+
+Croton.—Under this name many varieties and so-called species of Codiæum
+are grown for conservatory decoration, and latterly for foliage bedding
+in the open. The colors and shapes of the leaves are very various and
+attractive. The crotons make good window-garden subjects, although they
+are very liable to the attack of the mealy bug.
+
+The plants should be given an abundance of light in order to bring out
+their fine colors; but it is usually advisable to screen them from the
+direct rays of the sun when they are grown under glass. If the red
+spider or the mealy bug attack them, they may be syringed with tobacco
+water. Plants that are propagated indoors in winter may be massed in
+beds out of doors in summer, where they make very striking effects.
+Give them strong deep soil, and be sure that they are syringed
+frequently enough on the underside of the leaves to keep down the red
+spider. If the plants have been gradually subjected to strong light
+before they are taken out of doors, they will stand the full sunlight
+and will develop their rich colors to perfection. In the fall they may
+be taken up, cut back, and used for window-garden or conservatory
+subjects.
+
+Crotons are shrubs or small trees, and they may be transferred into
+large pots or tubs and grown into large tree-like specimens. Old and
+scraggly specimens should be thrown away.
+
+Crotons are propagated readily by cuttings of half-ripened wood any
+time in winter or spring.
+
+Cyclamen.—A tender greenhouse tuberous plant, sometimes seen in the
+window-garden. The Persian cyclamen is best for the house-gardener to
+grow.
+
+Cyclamens may be grown from seed sown in April or September in soil
+containing a large proportion of sand and leafmold. If sown in
+September, they should be wintered in a coolhouse. In May they should
+be potted into larger pots and placed in a shaded frame, and by July
+will have become large enough for their flowering pot, which should be
+either 5-inch or 6-inch. They should be brought into the house before
+danger of frost, and grown cool until through flowering. A temperature
+of 55° suits them while in flower. After flowering, they will need a
+rest for a short time, but should not become very dry, or the bulb will
+be injured. When they start into growth, they should have the old soil
+shaken off and be potted into smaller pots. At no time should more than
+half the tuber be under the soil.
+
+April-sown plants should be similarly treated. Cyclamens should bloom
+in about fifteen months from seed. The seed germinates very slowly.
+
+Tubers large enough to flower the first year may be purchased from the
+seedsmen at moderate prices; and unless one has facilities for growing
+the seedlings for a year, purchase of the tubers will give the best
+satisfaction. Secure new tubers, for old ones are not so good.
+
+The soil best suited to the cyclamen is one containing two parts
+leafmold, one part each of sand and loam.
+
+Dahlia is an old favorite which, on account of its formal flowers, has
+been in disfavor for a few years, although it has always held a place
+in the rural districts. Now, however, with the advent of the cactus and
+semi-cactus types (or loose-flowered forms), and the improvement of the
+singles, it again has taken a front rank among late summer flowers,
+coming in just in advance of the chrysanthemum.
+
+
+XVIII. Cornflower or bachelor’s button. _Centaurea Cyanus_. XVIII.
+Cornflower or bachelor’s button. _Centaurea Cyanus_.
+
+The single varieties may be grown from seed, but the double sorts
+should be grown from cuttings of young stems or from division of the
+roots. If cuttings are to be made, it will be necessary to start the
+roots early, either in a hotbed or house. When the growths have reached
+4 or 5 inches, they may be cut from the plant and rooted in sand. Care
+should be taken to cut just below a joint, as a cutting made between
+two joints will not form tubers. The most rapid method of propagation
+of named varieties is to grow from cuttings in this way.
+
+In growing the plants from roots, the best plan is to place the whole
+root in gentle heat, covering slightly. When the young growth has
+started, the roots may be taken up, divided, and planted out 3 to 4
+feet apart. This plan will insure a plant from each piece of root,
+whereas if the roots are divided while dormant, there is danger of not
+having a bud at the end of each piece, in which case no growth will
+start; the roots are sometimes cut into pieces while dormant, however,
+but one should be sure that a piece of old stem with bud is on each
+piece.
+
+One objection to the old dahlia was its lateness of bloom. But by
+starting the roots early in a frame, or in boxes that are covered at
+night, the plants may be had in flower several weeks earlier than
+usual. They may be started in April, or at least three weeks in advance
+of planting time. Little water will be required till they start. When
+they begin shooting up, the plants should have the full sun, and air,
+on all mild days. They will then make a slow, sturdy growth. All
+forcing should be avoided. These plants, set out when there is no
+longer danger of frost, and well watered before completely covering the
+roots, will grow right on, and often begin blooming in July.
+
+Dormant roots may be set out in May. The roots, unless small, should be
+divided before planting, as a single strong root is usually better than
+a whole clump. The roots of all but the Dwarf should be set about 3
+feet apart, in rows. In poor soils none but the first class will need
+stakes.
+
+The dahlia flourishes best in a deep, loose, moist soil; very good
+results can be had on sandy soil, provided plant-food and moisture are
+furnished. Clay should be avoided. If the ground is too strong, they
+will probably bloom too late for the northern latitudes.
+
+If the plants are to be grown without stakes, the center of each plant
+should be pinched out after making two or three joints. By doing this
+the lateral branches will start near the ground and be stiff enough to
+withstand the winds. In most home gardens the plants are allowed to
+reach their full height, and are tied to stakes if necessary. The tall
+kinds reach a height of 5 to 8 ft.
+
+Dahlias are very susceptible to frost. After the first frost, lift the
+roots, let them dry in the sun, shake off the dirt, trim off tops and
+broken parts, and store them in a cellar, as for potatoes. They may be
+placed in barrels of sand, if the open cellar is not usable. Cannas may
+be stored in the same place.
+
+The tree dahlia (_D. excelsa_, but cultivated as _D. arborea_) is grown
+more or less far South and in California. It has not been much
+improved.
+
+Ferns.—The native ferns transplant easily to the garden, and they make
+an attractive addition to the side of a house, or as an admixture in a
+hardy border. The ostrich, cinnamon, and royal ferns are the best
+subjects. Give all outdoor ferns a place that is protected from winds,
+otherwise they will shrivel and perhaps die. Screen them from the hot
+sun, or give them the shady side of the building. See that the soil is
+uniformly moist, and that it does not get too hot. Mulch with leafmold
+in the fall. It is not difficult to colonize many of the native ferns
+in shady and protected places where trees do not sap all the strength
+from the ground.
+
+Probably the one fern grown most extensively as a house-plant is the
+small-leaved maidenhair fern (or _Adiantum gracillimum_). This and
+other species are among the finest of house plants, when sufficient
+moisture can be given. They make fine specimens as well as serving the
+purpose of greenery for cut flowers. Other species often grown for
+house plants are _A. cuneatum_ and _A. Capillus-Veneris._ All these do
+well in a mixture of fibrous sod, loam, and sand, with ample drainage
+material. They may be divided if an increase is wanted.
+
+Another fern for house culture is _Nephrolepsis exaltata_. This is no
+doubt the most easily grown of the list, flourishing in a sitting-room.
+A variety of _N. exaltata_, called the Boston fern, is a decided
+addition to this group, having a drooping habit, covering the pot and
+making a fine stand or bracket plant; and there are now several other
+forms of it suitable for the best window-gardens.
+
+Several species of pteris, especially _P. serrulata_, are valuable
+house ferns but require a warmer place than those mentioned above. They
+will also thrive better in a shady or ill-lighted corner.
+
+Perfect drainage and care in watering have more to do with the
+successful growing of ferns than any special mixture of soils. If the
+drainage material in the bottom of the pot or box is sufficient, there
+is little danger of overwatering; but water-logged soil is always to be
+avoided. Do not use clay soils. Ferns need protection from the direct
+sunshine, and also a moist atmosphere. They thrive well in a close
+glass box, or window-garden, if the conditions can be kept equable.
+
+Freesia.—One of the best and most easily handled tender
+winter-flowering bulbs; height 12 or 15 inches. The white form
+_(Freesia refracta alba_) is the best.
+
+The white or yellowish bell-shaped flowers of freesia are produced on
+slender stalks just above the foliage, to the number of six to eight in
+a cluster. They are very fragrant, and last for a considerable time
+when picked. The bulbs are small, and look as though they could not
+produce a growth of foliage and flowers, but even the smallest mature
+bulb will prove satisfactory. Several bulbs should be planted together
+in a pot, box, or pan, in October, if wanted for the holidays, or later
+if wanted at Easter. The plants bloom from ten to twelve weeks from
+planting, under ordinary care.
+
+No special treatment is required; keep the plants cool and moist
+through the growing season. The soil should contain a little sand mixed
+with fibrous loam, and the pot should be well drained. After flowering,
+gradually withhold water and the tops will die down, after which the
+roots may be shaken out and rested until time to plant in fall. Care
+should be taken to keep them perfectly dry.
+
+The bulbs increase rapidly from offsets. Plants may also be grown from
+seed, which should be sown as soon as ripe, giving blooming plants the
+second or third year.
+
+Fuchsia.—Well-known window or greenhouse shrub, treated as an
+herbaceous subject; many interesting forms; late winter, spring and
+summer.
+
+Fuchsia is readily grown from cuttings. Soft green wood should be used
+for cuttings, and it will root in about three weeks, when the cuttings
+should be potted. Take care not to have them pot-bound while in growth,
+but do not overpot when bloom is wanted. Given warmth and good soil,
+they will make fine plants in three months or less. In well-protected,
+partially shady places they may be planted out, growing into miniature
+bushes by fall.
+
+Plants may be kept on from year to year; and if the branches are well
+cut back after blooming, abundant new bloom will come. But it is
+usually best to make new plants each year from cuttings, since young
+plants commonly bloom most profusely and demand less care. Fuchsias are
+amongst the best of window subjects.
+
+Geranium.—What are commonly known as geraniums are, strictly speaking,
+pelargoniums. (See _Pelargonium_.)
+
+The true geraniums are mostly hardy perennials, and therefore should
+not be confounded with the tender pelargoniums. Geraniums are worthy a
+place in a border. They may be transplanted early in the spring,
+setting them 2 ft. apart. Height 10 to 12 in. The common wild
+cranesbill _(Geranium maculatum_) improves under cultivation, and is an
+attractive plant when it stands in front of taller foliage.
+
+Gladiolus.—Of summer and fall-blooming bulbous plants, gladiolus is
+probably the most widely popular. The colors range from scarlet and
+purple, to white, rose, and pure yellow. The plants are of slender,
+erect habit, growing from 2 to 3 feet high.
+
+Gladioli dislike a heavy clay soil. A light loam or sandy soil suits
+them best. No fresh manure should be added to the soil the year in
+which they are grown. They should have a new place every year, if
+possible, and always an open sunny situation.
+
+The corms may be covered 2 inches deep in heavy soils, and 4 to 6 in
+light soils. They may stand 8 to 10 inches apart, or half this distance
+for mass effects. For a succession, they may be planted at short
+intervals, the earliest planting being of smaller corms in the early
+spring as soon as the soil is dry enough to work; later the larger are
+to be planted—the last setting being not later than the Fourth of July.
+This last planting will afford fine late flowers. The plants should be
+supported by inconspicuous stakes.
+
+The successive plantings may be in the same bed among those set
+earlier, or they may be grouped in unoccupied nooks, or portions of the
+border. The plants may stand as close as 6 inches from each other. The
+earlier planting may be a foot apart to admit of later settings
+between.
+
+Late in the fall, after frosts and before freezing, the corms are to be
+dug, cleaned, and dried in the sun and air for a few hours and then
+stored away in boxes about 2-1/2 inches deep in a cool, dark, and dry
+place. The tops should be left on, at least till completely shriveled.
+The varieties are perpetuated and multiplied by the little corms that
+appear about the base of the large new corm which is formed each year.
+These small corms may be taken off in the spring and sown thickly in
+drills. Many of them will make flowering plants by the second season.
+They are treated like the large corms, in the fall.
+
+Gladioli are easily grown from seed also, but this method cannot be
+depended on to perpetuate desirable varieties, which can be reproduced
+only by the cormels. Some of the best flowers may be cross-pollinated,
+or allowed to form seed in the usual manner; the seed sown thickly in
+drills, and shaded till the plantlets appear, then carefully
+cultivated, will afford a crop of small corms in the fall. These may be
+stored for the winter, like the other young corms, and, like them, many
+will flower the second season, affording a great variety and quite
+likely some new and striking kinds. Those that do not flower should be
+reserved for further trial. They often prove finer than those first to
+flower.
+
+Early-flowering varieties of gladioli may be forced for late winter or
+spring bloom.
+
+For bouquets, cut the spike when the lower flowers open; keep in fresh
+water, cut off the end of the stem frequently, and the other flowers
+will expand.
+
+Gloxinia.—Choice greenhouse tuberous-rooted, spring and summer-blooming
+perennials, sometimes seen in window-gardens, but really not adapted to
+them, although some skillful house-gardeners grow them successfully.
+
+Gloxinias must have a uniform moist and warm atmosphere and protection
+from the sun. They will not stand abuse or varying conditions.
+Propagated often by leaf-cuttings, which should give flowering plants
+in one year. From the leaf, inserted half its length in the soil (or
+sometimes only the petiole inserted) a tuber arises. This tuber, after
+resting until midwinter or later, is planted, and flowering plants soon
+arise.
+
+Gloxinias also grow readily from seeds, which may be germinated in a
+temperature of about 70°. Flowering plants may be had in August if
+seeds are sown in late winter, say in early February. This is the usual
+method. After the bloom is past, the tuber is partially dried off and
+kept dormant till the following season. It will usually show signs of
+activity in February or March, when it may be shaken out of the old
+earth and a little water may then be applied and the amount increased
+till the plant is in bloom. The same tubers may be bloomed several
+times.
+
+Success in the growing of gloxinias is largely a matter of proper
+watering. Keep the dormant tuber just dry enough to prevent shriveling,
+never trying to force it ahead of its time. Avoid wetting the leaves.
+Protect from direct sunlight. Protect from draughts on the plants.
+
+Grevillea.—The “she oak,” very graceful greenhouse plant, suitable also
+for house culture. The plants grow freely from seed, and until they
+become too large are as decorative as ferns. Grevilleas are really
+trees, and are valuable in greenhouses and rooms only in their young
+state. They withstand much abuse. They are now very popular as
+jardinière subjects. Seeds sown in spring will give handsome plants by
+the next winter. Discard the plants as soon as they become ragged.
+
+Hollyhocks.—These old garden favorites have been neglected of late
+years, primarily because the hollyhock rust has been so prevalent,
+destroying the plants or making them unsightly.
+
+Their culture is very simple. The seed is usually sown in July or
+August, and the plants set where wanted the following spring. They will
+bloom the same year in which they are transplanted—the year following
+the seed-sowing. New plants should be set every two years, as the old
+crowns are likely to rot or die after the first flowering, or at least
+to become weak.
+
+Hyacinths (see _Bulbs_) are popular spring-flowering bulbs. Hyacinths
+are hardy, but they are often used as window or greenhouse plants. They
+are easy to grow and very satisfactory (Fig. 262).
+
+For winter flowering, the bulbs should be procured early in the fall,
+potted in October in soil composed of loam, leafmold, and sand. If
+ordinary flower-pots are used, put in the bottom a few pieces of broken
+pots, charcoal, or small stones for drainage; then fill the pot with
+dirt, so that when the bulb is planted, the top will be on a level with
+the rim of the pot. Fill in around the bulb with soil, leaving just the
+tip showing. These pots of bulbs should be placed in a cold pit, cellar
+or on the shady side of a building. In all cases, plunge the pot in
+some cool material (as cinders). Before the weather becomes cold enough
+to freeze a crust on the ground, the pots should have a protection of
+straw or leaves to keep the bulbs from severe freezing. In about six to
+eight weeks the bulbs should have made roots enough to grow the plant,
+and the pots may be placed in a cool room for a short time. When the
+plants have started into growth, they may be placed in a warmer
+situation. Watering should be carefully attended to from this time, and
+when the plant is in bloom, the pot may be set in a saucer or other
+shallow dish containing water. After flowering, the bulbs may be
+ripened by gradually withholding water until the leaves die. They may
+then be planted out in the border, where they will bloom each spring
+for a number of years, but will never prove satisfactory for forcing
+again.
+
+The open-ground culture of hyacinths is the same as for tulips and
+other Holland bulbs.
+
+The hyacinth is the most popular of the Dutch bulbs for growing in
+vases of water. The narcissus may be grown in water, and do just as
+well, but it is not as attractive in glasses as the hyacinth. Glasses
+for hyacinths may be had of florists who deal in supplies, and in
+various shapes and colors. The usual form is tall and narrow, with a
+cup-like mouth to receive the bulb. They are filled with water, so that
+it will just reach the base of the bulb when placed in position in the
+cup or shoulder above. The vessels of dark-colored glass are preferable
+to those of clear glass, as roots prefer darkness. When the glasses
+have been filled, they are set away in a cool, dark place, where roots
+will form, as in potted bulbs. Results are usually secured earlier in
+water than in soil. To keep the water sweet, a few lumps of charcoal
+may be put in the glass. As the water evaporates, add fresh; add enough
+so that it runs over, and thereby renews that in the glass. Do not
+disturb the roots by taking out the bulb.
+
+Iris includes many handsome perennials, of which the blue flag is
+familiar to every old-fashioned garden. They are favorites everywhere,
+for their brilliant spring and summer bloom; and they are easy to grow.
+
+Most irises thrive best in a rather moist soil, and some of them may be
+colonized in the water in margins of ponds.
+
+Gardeners usually divide them into two sections—the tuberous-rooted or
+rhizomatous, and the bulbous. A third division—the fibrous-rooted—is
+sometimes made.
+
+The common and most serviceable species belong to the tuberous-rooted
+section. Here is the beautiful and varied Japanese iris, _Iris
+lœvigata_ (or _I. Kœmpferi_), which is among the most deserving of all
+hardy perennials. Most of these irises need no special care. They are
+propagated by division of the rootstocks. Plant the pieces one foot
+apart if a mass effect is desired. When the plants begin to fail, dig
+them up, divide the roots, discard the old parts, and grow a new stock,
+as before. The Japanese iris needs much water and a very rich soil.
+Readily grown from seeds, giving bloom the second year. _I Susiana_, of
+this section, is one of the oddest of irises, but it is not quite hardy
+in the North.
+
+Of the bulbous section, most species are not hardy far North. The bulbs
+should be taken up and replanted every two or three years. The Persian
+and Spanish irises belong here. The bulbs give rise to but a single
+stem.
+
+Lily.—Under this name are included bulbous plants of many kinds, not
+all of them being true lilies. It has been said of this family of
+plants that it has no “poor relations,” each of them being perfect in
+itself. Many of the choicest kinds are comparatively unknown, although
+easy to cultivate. In fact, all of the lilies may be grown with
+comparative ease in regions where the given species are hardy.
+
+A light, fertile, well-drained soil, mellow to the depth of at least
+one foot, a handful of sand under each bulb if the soil is inclined to
+be stiff, and planting so that the crown of the bulb will be at least 4
+inches below the surface, are the general requirements. One exception
+to the depth of planting is _Lilium auratum_, or golden-banded lily.
+This should be planted deeper—from 8 to 12 inches below the surface—as
+the new bulbs form over the old one and soon bring the bulbs to the
+surface if they are not planted deep. Deep working of the ground is
+always desirable; 18 inches, or even 2 feet, will be none too deep. _L.
+candidum_ and _L. testaceum_ should be planted in August or September,
+if possible; but usually lilies are planted in October and November.
+
+For all lilies it is safer to provide good winter protection in the
+form of a mulch of leaves or manure, and extending beyond the borders
+of the planting. This should be 5 inches to a foot deep, according to
+the latitude or locality.
+
+While most lilies profit by partial shade (except _L. candidum_), they
+should never be planted near or under trees. The shade or protection of
+tall-growing herbaceous plants is sufficient. In fact, the best
+results, both as to growth and effect, may be secured by planting
+amongst low shrubbery or border plants.
+
+Most kinds are the better for remaining undisturbed for a number of
+years; but if they are to be taken up and divided, or moved to other
+quarters, they should not be allowed to become dry. The small bulbs, or
+offsets, may be planted in the border, and if protected, will grow to
+flowering size in two or three years. In taking up bulbs for division
+it is best to do so soon after the tops die after blooming. At least
+this should be done early in the fall, not later than October, giving
+the plants a chance to become established before freezing weather.
+
+As pot-plants some kinds of lilies are very satisfactory, especially
+those that may be forced into bloom through the winter. The best kinds
+for this purpose are _L. Harrisii_ (Easter lily), _L. longiflorum_, and
+_L. candidum_. Others may be forced with success, but these are the
+ones most generally used. The winter culture for forcing is practically
+the same as for hyacinths in pots.
+
+Some of the best kinds of lilies are mentioned below:—
+
+_L. candidum_ (Annunciation lily). White; 3 to 4 feet high; it makes an
+autumn growth, and should, therefore, be planted in August; set the
+bulbs from 4 to 6 inches deep.
+
+_L. speciosum_ (_L. lancifolium_), var. _prœcox_. White, tinged with
+pink; bears several flowers on a stem about 3 feet high.
+
+_L. speciosum_, var. _rubrum_. Rose color, spotted with red.
+
+_L. Brownii_. Flowers white inside, chocolate-colored outside; the
+stems grow about 3 feet high, bearing from 2 to 4 tubular flowers; not
+difficult to manage with good protection and drainage; the bulbs are
+impatient of being kept long out of the ground; after planting, they
+should not be disturbed as long as they flower well.
+
+_L. maculatum (L. Hansoni)_. Dark yellow; stems 3-4 feet high, each
+producing 6 to 12 flowers.
+
+_L. testaceum (L. excelsum, L. Isabellinum)_. Rich buff color, with
+delicate spots; plants about 3 to 5 feet high, with 3 to a dozen
+flowers on a stem; plant the bulbs in September.
+
+_L. longiflorum_. White; large tubular flowers, 2 to 8 on a stem;
+height, about 2-1/2 feet.
+
+_L. Batemanniae_ (a form of _L. elegans_). Apricot yellow; 6 to 12
+flowers on stems 3 to 4 feet high.
+
+_L. auratum_ (Japanese gold-banded lily). Immense white flowers banded
+with yellow and dotted with red or purple, from 3 to 12 on a stem;
+height, 3 to 4 feet; the bulbs need thorough protection, good drainage,
+and should be planted 10 or 12 inches deep (Fig. 258).
+
+_L. tigrinum_ (Tiger lily). An old favorite, with many drooping bright
+red spotted flowers; var. _splendens_ is specially good; 3 to 5 ft.
+
+_L. tenuifolium_. Rich scarlet flowers nodding in a raceme or panicle;
+1-1/2 to 2 ft.
+
+_L. Maximowiczii (L. Leichtlinii)_. Flowers clear yellow, with small,
+dark spots, 10 to 12 on a stem; height, 4 feet.
+
+_L. monadelphum_. Yellow tubular-shaped flowers in clusters of 6 to a
+dozen or more; stems 2-1/2 feet tall.
+
+_L. elegans (L. Thunbergianum_), var. _Alice Wilson_. Lemon-yellow;
+stems 2 feet high, bearing 2 to 8 flowers.
+
+_L. elegans_, var. _fulgens atrosanguineum_. Dark crimson; height, 1
+foot.
+
+Lily-of-the-valley.—A perfectly hardy little perennial, bearing racemes
+of small, white, bell-shaped flowers in early spring; and also much
+forced by florists.
+
+For ordinary cultivation, sods or mats of roots may be dug from any
+place in which the plant is colonized. Usually it thrives best in
+partial shade; and the leaves make an attractive mat on the north side
+of a building, or other shady place, in which grass will not grow. The
+plants will take care of themselves year after year. Better results may
+be expected from good commercial roots. The “pips” may be planted any
+time from November on, from 3 to 6 inches apart.
+
+For forcing indoors, imported roots or “pips” are used, as the plants
+are grown for this particular purpose in parts of Europe. These roots
+may be planted in pots, and treated as recommended for winter-flowering
+bulbs. Florists force them in greater heat, however, often giving them
+a bottom heat of 80° or 90°; but skill and experience are required in
+order to attain uniformly good results in this case.
+
+Mignonette.—Probably no flower is more generally grown for its
+fragrance than the mignonette. It is a half-hardy annual, thriving
+either in the open or under glass.
+
+The mignonette needs a cool soil, only moderately rich, shade part of
+the day, and careful attention to cutting the flower-stalks before the
+seeds are ripe. If a sowing be made in late April, followed by a second
+sowing in early July, the season may be extended until severe frosts.
+There are few flowers that will prove as disappointing if the simple
+treatment it needs is omitted. Height, 1 to 2 feet.
+
+It may be sown in pots late in summer and be had in the house in
+winter.
+
+Moon-flowers are species of the morning-glory family that open their
+flowers at night. A well-grown plant trained over a porch trellis, or
+allowed to grow at random over a low tree or shrub, is a striking
+object when in full flower at dusk or through a moonlit evening. In the
+Southern states (where it is much grown) the moon-flower is a
+perennial, but even when well protected does not survive the winters in
+the North.
+
+Cuttings usually give best results in the Northern states, as the
+seasons are not long enough for seed plants to give good bloom.
+Cuttings may be made before danger of frost and wintered in the house,
+or the plants may be grown from seed sown in January or February. Seeds
+should be scalded or filed just before sowing.
+
+The true moon-flower is _Ipomœa Bona-Nox_ white-flowered; but there are
+other kinds that go under this name. This grows 20 to 30 feet where the
+seasons are long enough.
+
+Narcissus (see _Bulbs_).—Daffodils, jonquils, and the poet’s narcissus
+all belong to this group, and many of them are perfectly hardy. The
+polyanthus section, which includes the Paper-white narcissus and sacred
+lily or Chinese joss-flower, are not hardy except with unusually good
+protection, and are, therefore, most suitable for growing indoors.
+
+It is common to allow the hardy sorts to take care of themselves when
+once planted. This they will do, but much more satisfactory results
+will be had by lifting and dividing the clumps every three or four
+years. A single bulb in a few years forms a large clump. In this
+condition the bulbs are not properly nourished, and consequently do not
+flower well. Lifting is preferably done in August or September, when
+the foliage has died down and the bulbs are ripe.
+
+The narcissi are well suited to partially shaded places, and will grow
+and please wherever good taste may place them. They should be freely
+used, as they are fragrant, bright of color, and easily managed—growing
+among shrubbery, trees, and in places where other flowers would refuse
+to grow. They should be planted in clumps or masses, in September or
+October, setting the bulbs 5 to 8 inches apart, according to size, and
+3 or 4 inches deep.
+
+Several species and numberless varieties, both double and single, are
+grown. A few good types only can be mentioned (Fig. 260):—
+
+_Daffodils, or Trumpet narcissus (Narcissus Pseudo-Narcissus_ and
+derivatives).
+
+_Single-flowered, Yellow_.—Golden Spur, Trumpet Major, Van Sion.
+
+_White_.—Albicans.
+
+_White and Yellow_.—Empress, Horsefieldi.
+
+_Double-flowering, Yellow_.—Incomparable fl. pl., Van Sion.
+
+_White_.—Alba plena odorata.
+
+_Poet’s narcissus (N. poeticus_). Flowers white, with yellow cups edged
+crimson. Very fragrant.
+
+_Jonquils (N. Jonquilla_). These have very fragrant yellow flowers,
+both double and single, and are old garden favorites.
+
+_Polyanthus narcissus (N. Tazetta_). These include paper-white, Chinese
+sacred lily (var. _orientalis_), and others.
+
+_Primrose Peerless (N. biflorus_).
+
+Narcissi may be forced into flower through the winter, as described on
+p. 345. A popular kind for winter bloom is the so-called Chinese sacred
+lily. This grows in water without any soil whatever. Secure a bowl or
+glass dish, about three times the size of the bulb; put some pretty
+stones in the bottom; set in the bulb and build up around it with
+stones so as to hold it stiff when the leaves have grown; tuck two or
+three small pieces of charcoal among the stones to keep the water
+sweet, then fill up the dish with water and add a little every few
+days, as it evaporates. Set the dish in a warm, light place. In about
+six weeks the fragrant, fine white flowers will fill the room with
+perfume. The Paper-white, closely allied to this, is also forced, and
+is one of the few good bulbs that may be bloomed before Christmas. The
+Van Sions, single and double (a form of daffodil), are also much
+forced.
+
+Oleander.—An old favorite shrub for the window-garden, and much planted
+in the open far South.
+
+While there are many named varieties of the oleander, but two are often
+seen in general cultivation. These are the common red and white
+varieties. Both these, as well as the named varieties, are of easy
+management and well adapted to home culture, growing in pots or tubs
+for several years without special care. Well-grown specimens are very
+effective as porch or lawn plants, or may be used to good advantage in
+mixed beds of tall-growing plants, plunging the pot or tub to the rim
+in the soil. The plants should be cut back after flowering. They should
+be rested in any out-of-the-way place through the winter. When brought
+out in the spring, they should be given sun and air in order to make a
+sturdy growth.
+
+Propagation is effected by using well-ripened wood for cuttings, placed
+in a close frame; or the slips may be rooted in a bottle or can of
+water, care being taken to supply water as evaporation takes place.
+After being rooted, they may be potted, using soil with a large
+proportion of sand. Well-established plants may be repotted in good
+loam and well-rotted manure. They should bloom the second year.
+
+Oxalis.—A number of hardy species of oxalis are excellent plants for
+rock-work and edging. The greenhouse species are very showy, growing
+without extra care, and blooming freely through the late winter and
+spring months and some of them make excellent window-gardening
+subjects.
+
+The house species are mostly increased by bulbs, a few by division of
+the root. _O. violacea_ is, one of the commonest of house-plants. Give
+a sunny window, for the flowers open only in sun or very bright light.
+The bulbous (tuberous) kinds are treated much as recommended for
+_Bulbs_, except that the bulbs must not freeze. The tubers are started
+in August or September for winter bloom. It is best to use deep pots,
+or the tubers will throw themselves out. The crown should be near the
+surface. After flowering, the bulbs are dried off and kept until new
+bloom is wanted.
+
+The “Bermuda buttercup” is _O. lutea_ and _O. flava_ of gardens
+(properly _O. cernua_); it is a Cape of Good Hope species. Its culture
+is not peculiar.
+
+Palms.—No more graceful plants for room decoration can be found than
+well-grown specimens of some species of palms. Most florists’ palms are
+well adapted for this purpose when small, and as the growth is usually
+very slow, a plant may be used for many years.
+
+Palm plants thrive best in partial shade. One of the frequent causes of
+failure in the culture of the palm is the overpotting and subsequent
+overwatering. A palm should not be repotted until the mass of roots
+fills the soil and preferably when it is active; then a pot only a size
+larger should be used. Use ample drainage in the bottom to carry off
+excess of water. Although the plants need a moist soil, water standing
+at the roots proves injurious. Withhold free use of water when the
+plants are partially dormant.
+
+A soil composed of well-rotted sod, leafmold, and a little sand will
+meet the requirements.
+
+Under ordinary living-room conditions, palms are subject to much abuse.
+Water is allowed to stand in the jardinière, the plant is kept in dark
+corners and hallways, the air is dry, and scale is allowed to infest
+the leaves. If the plant begins to fail, the housewife is likely to
+repot it or to give it more water, both of which may be wrong. The
+addition of bone-meal or other fertilizer may be better than repotting.
+Keep the plant in good light (but not in direct sunlight) as much as
+possible. Sponge the leaves to remove dust and scale, using soapsuds.
+When a new leaf begins to appear, add bone-meal to make it grow
+vigorously.
+
+Among the best palms for house culture are arecas, _Cocos Weddelliana,_
+latania, kentia, howea, caryota, chamærops, and phœnix. Cycas may also
+be regarded as a palm.
+
+The date palm may be grown from seed of the common commercial date.
+Seed of the other varieties may be purchased from leading seedsmen;
+but, as the seed germinates only under favorable conditions, and the
+palm is a very slow-growing plant while young, the best plan is to
+purchase the plants from a dealer when wanted. When the plants become
+weak or diseased, take them to a florist for treatment and
+recuperation, or purchase new ones. Sometimes the florist places two or
+three small palms in one pot, making a very satisfactory table piece
+for two or three years.
+
+It is well to set the palms out of doors in the summer, plunging the
+pots nearly or quite to the rim. Turn or lift the pots occasionally so
+that the roots will not strike through into the earth. Choose a
+partially shaded place, where the hot sun will not strike them directly
+and where the wind will not injure them.
+
+Pandanus, or screw pine.—The screw pines are stiff-leaved saw-edged
+plants often grown in window-gardens and used for porch decoration.
+
+The _Pandanus utilis_ and _P. Veitchii_ (the latter striped-leaved or
+white-leaved) are exceedingly ornamental, and are well adapted to house
+culture. The singular habit of growth, bright glossy leaves, and the
+ability to withstand the dust and shade of a dwelling room, make them a
+desirable addition to the house collection.
+
+They are propagated by the offsets or young plants that grow around the
+base of the trunk; or they may be increased by seed. If by the former
+method, the offsets should be cut off and set in sand, at a temperature
+of 65° or 70°. The cuttings root slowly and the plants for a time make
+very slow growth. The general cultural treatment is that of palms. Give
+abundance of water in summer.
+
+
+Pansy (Fig. 244) is without doubt the most popular hardy spring flower
+in cultivation. The strains of seed are many, each containing great
+possibilities.
+
+The culture is simple and the results are sure. Seed sown in August or
+September, in boxes or a frame, will make plants large enough to reset
+in November (three or four inches apart) and bloom the following March;
+or they may be left until March in open seed-beds before setting out.
+Also, if they are sown very thinly in the frames, they may remain
+undisturbed through the winter, blooming very early the following
+spring. The frames should be protected by mats, boards, or other
+covering through the severe cold, and as the sun gains strength, care
+should be taken to keep them from heaving by alternate thawing and
+freezing. Seed sown in boxes in January or February will make fine
+blooming plants by April, taking the place of those blooming earlier.
+
+The pansy is generally mentioned with plants suitable for partial
+shade, but it also thrives in other localities, especially where the
+sun is not very hot nor the weather very dry. The requisites for
+satisfactory pansy culture are fertile, moist, cool soil, protection
+from the noonday sun, and attention to keeping plants from going to
+seed. As the ground becomes warm, a mulch of leafmold or other light
+material should be spread over the bed to retain moisture and exclude
+heat. Spring and fall give the best bloom. In hot summer weather the
+flowers become small.
+
+
+Pelargonium.—To this genus belong the plants known as geraniums—the
+most satisfactory of house-plants, and extensively used as bedding
+plants. No plants will give better returns in leaf and flower; and
+these features, added to the ease of propagation, make them general
+favorites. The common geranium is one of the few plants that can be
+bloomed at any time of the year.
+
+There are several main groups of pelargoniums, as the common “fish
+geraniums” (from the odor of the foliage), the “show” or Lady
+Washington pelargoniums, the ivy geraniums, the thin-leaved bedders (as
+Madame Salleroi), and the “rose” geraniums.
+
+Cuttings of partially ripened wood of all pelargoniums root very
+easily, grow to blooming size in a short time, and, either planted out
+or grown in a pot, make fine decorations. The common or fish geraniums
+are much more satisfactory when not more than a year old. Take cuttings
+from the old plants at least once a year. In four or five months the
+young plants begin to bloom. Plants may be taken up from the garden and
+potted, but they rarely give as much satisfaction as young, vigorous
+subjects; new plants should be grown every year. Repot frequently until
+they are in 4-to 5-inch pots; then let them bloom.
+
+The show pelargoniums have but one period of bloom, usually in April,
+but they make up in size and coloring. This section is more difficult
+to manage as house-plants than the common geranium, needing more direct
+light to keep it stocky, and being troubled by insects. Still, all the
+trouble taken to grow the plants will be well repaid by the handsome
+blossoms. Take cuttings in late spring, after flowering, and blooming
+plants may be had the following year. Good results are sometimes
+secured by keeping these plants two or three years. Cut back after each
+blooming season.
+
+For house culture the geraniums need a fertile, fibrous loam, with the
+addition of a little sand; good drainage is also an essential.
+
+Peony.—The herbaceous peony has long had a place in the garden; it has
+now been much improved and constitutes one of the very best plants
+known to cultivation. It is perfectly hardy, and free from the many
+diseases and insects that attack so many plants. It continues to bloom
+year after year without renewal, if the soil is well prepared and
+fertile. Fig. 250.
+
+Inasmuch as the peony is such a strong grower and produces so many
+enormous flowers, it must have a soil that can supply abundant
+plant-food and moisture. The old-fashioned single and semi-double
+comparatively small-flowered kinds will give good results in any
+ordinary ground, but the newer highly improved sorts must be given
+better treatment. This is one of the plants that profit by a very rich
+soil. The place should be very deeply plowed or else trenched; and if
+the land is in sod or is not in good heart, the preparation should
+begin the season before the peonies are planted. A deep moist loam
+suits them best; and as the plants grow and bloom, add bone meal and
+top-dress with manure. When making their growth and when in bloom, they
+should not be allowed to want for water.
+
+In purchasing peony roots, be careful to secure only well-grown and
+selected stock. Cheap stock, job lots, and odds and ends are likely to
+be very disappointing.
+
+The plants may be set in fall or spring, the latter being preferable in
+the North. Cover the crown bud 2 or 3 inches, being careful not to
+injure it. If the best blooms are desired, give plenty of room, as much
+as 3 x 4 feet. Peonies grow 2 to 3 feet or even more in height. Strong
+roots of some varieties will give bloom the first year; considerable
+bloom will come the second year; but the full bloom on most varieties
+should not be expected before the third year. The flowers may be
+brightened and their duration prolonged by partial shade while in
+bloom.
+
+If old plants become weak, or if they drop their buds, dig them up and
+see whether the roots are not more or less dead and decayed; divide to
+fresh parts and replant in well-enriched ground; or purchase new
+plants.
+
+Peonies are propagated by division of the roots in early fall, one good
+strong eye being left to each piece.
+
+The peony has merit for its foliage as well as for its bloom,
+particularly when the soil is rich and the growth luxuriant. This value
+of the plant is commonly overlooked. The peony deserves its popularity.
+
+Phlox.—Garden phloxes are of two kinds, the annual and perennial. Both
+are most valuable.
+
+Excepting the petunia, no plant will give the profusion of bloom with
+as little care as the annual phlox _(Phlox Drummondii_). For clear and
+brilliant colors, the many varieties of this are certainly unrivaled.
+The dwarf kinds are the more desirable for ribbon-beds, as they are not
+so “leggy.” There are whites, pinks, reds, and variegated of the most
+dazzling brilliancy. The dwarfs grow ten inches high, and bloom
+continuously. Set them 8 inches apart in good soil. Seed may be sown in
+the open ground in May, or for early plants, in the hotbed in March.
+They may be sown close in the fall if sown very late, so that the seeds
+will not start till spring.
+
+The perennial phlox of the gardens has been developed from the native
+species, _Phlox paniculata_ and P. _maculata_. The garden forms are
+often collectively known under the name of _P. decussata_. In recent
+years the perennial phlox has been much improved, and it now
+constitutes one of the best of all flower-garden subjects. It grows
+three feet tall, and bears a profusion of fine flowers in heavy trusses
+in mid-summer to fall. Figs. 246, 248.
+
+Perennial phlox is of easy culture. The important point is that the
+plants begin to fail of best bloom about the third year, and they are
+likely to become diseased; and new plantings should be made if the
+strongest flowers are desired. The plants may be taken up in fall, the
+roots divided and cleaned of dead and weak parts, and the pieces
+replanted. Usually, however, the beginner will secure more satisfaction
+in purchasing new cutting-grown plants. This phlox propagates readily
+by seed, and if one does not care to perpetuate the particular variety,
+he will find much satisfaction in raising seedlings. Some varieties
+“come true” from seed with fair regularity. Seedlings should bloom the
+second year.
+
+Fertile garden soil of any kind should raise good perennial phlox. See
+that the plants do not want for water or plant-food at blooming time.
+Liquid manure will often help to keep them going. If they are likely to
+suffer for water when in bloom, wet the ground well every evening.
+
+If the leading shoots are pinched off early in the season, and again in
+midsummer, the bloom will be later, perhaps in September rather than in
+July.
+
+Primulas, or primroses, are of various kinds, some being border plants,
+but mostly known in this country as greenhouse and window-garden
+subjects. One of them is the auricula. The true or English cowslip is
+one of the hardy border plants; also the plants commonly known as
+polyanthus.
+
+Common hardy primulas (or polyanthus and related forms) grow 6 to 10
+inches high, sending up trusses of yellow and red flowers in early
+spring. Propagated by division, or by seed sown a year before the
+plants are wanted. Give them rather moist soil.
+
+The primula of the winter-garden is mostly the _P. Sinensis_ (Chinese
+Primrose), grown very extensively by florists as a Christmas plant.
+With the exception of the full double varieties, it is usually grown
+from seed. There is a popular single form known as _P. stellata_. The
+seed of Chinese primulas sown in March or April will make large
+flowering plants by November or December, if the young plants are
+shifted to larger pots as needed. The seed should be sown on the flat
+surface of the soil, composed of equal parts loam, leafmold, and sand.
+The seed should be pressed down lightly and the soil watered carefully
+to prevent the seed from being washed into the soil. Very fine sphagnum
+moss may be sifted over the seed, or the box set in a moist place,
+where the soil will remain wet until the seeds germinate. When the
+plants are large enough, they should be potted separately or pricked
+out into shallow boxes. Frequent pottings or transplantings should be
+given until September, when they should be in the pots in which they
+are to bloom. The two essentials to successful growth through the hot
+summer are shade and moisture. Height, 6 to 8 inches. Bloom in winter
+and spring.
+
+At present the “baby Primrose” (_Primula Forbesi_) is popular. It is
+treated in essentially the same way as the Sinensis. The obconica (_P.
+obconica_) in several forms is a popular florist’s plant, but is not
+much used in window-gardens. The hairs poison the hands of some
+persons. Culture practically as for _P. Sinensis_.
+
+All primulas are impatient of a dry atmosphere and fluctuating
+conditions.
+
+Rhododendrons are broad-leaved evergreen shrubs that are admirably
+adapted to producing strong planting effects. Some of them are hardy in
+the Northern states.
+
+Rhododendrons require a fibrous or peaty soil and protection from bleak
+winds and bright suns in summer and winter. A northern or somewhat
+shady exposure, to break the force of the midday sun, is advisable; but
+they should not be planted where large trees will sap the fertility and
+moisture from the ground. They protect each other if grown in masses,
+and also produce better planting effects.
+
+
+XIX. Pyracantha in fruit. One of the best ornamental-fruited plants for
+the middle and milder latitudes. XIX. Pyracantha in fruit. One of the
+best ornamental-fruited plants for the middle and milder latitudes.
+
+
+They require a deep, fibrous earth, and it is supposed that they do not
+thrive in limestone soils or where wood ashes are freely used. While
+rhododendrons will sometimes succeed without any special preparation of
+the ground, it is advisable to take particular pains in this regard. It
+is well to dig a hole 2 or 3 feet deep, and fill it with earth
+compounded of leafmold, well-rotted sod, and peat. The moisture supply
+should be never failing, for they suffer from drought. They should be
+mulched summer and winter. Plant in spring.
+
+The hardy garden forms are derivatives of _Rhododendron Catawbiense_,
+of the southern Appalachian Mountains. The Pontica and other forms are
+not hardy in the North.
+
+The “great laurel” of the northern United States is _Rhododendron
+maximum_. This has been extensively colonized in large grounds by being
+removed from the wild in carload lots. When the native conditions are
+imitated, it makes unusually good mass planting. Like all rhododendrons
+it is impatient of drought, hard soil, and full exposure to midday sun.
+This species is valued for its foliage and habit more than for its
+bloom. The wild form of _R. Catawbiense_ is also transferred to grounds
+in large quantities.
+
+Rose.—No home property is complete without roses. There are so many
+kinds and classes that varieties may be found for almost any purpose,
+from climbing or pillar subjects to highly fragrant teas, great hybrid
+perpetuals, free-blooming bedders, and good foliage subjects for the
+shrubbery. There is no flower in the growing of which one so quickly
+develops the temper and taste of the connoisseur.
+
+Roses are essentially flower-garden subjects rather than lawn subjects,
+since flowers are their chief beauty. Yet the foliage of many of the
+highly developed roses is good and attractive when the plants are well
+grown. To secure the best results with roses, they should be placed in
+a bed by themselves, where they can be tilled and pruned and well taken
+care of, as other flower-garden plants are. The ordinary garden roses
+should rarely be grown in mixed borders of shrubbery. It is usually
+most satisfactory also to make beds of one variety rather than to mix
+them with several varieties.
+
+If it is desired to have roses in mixed shrubbery borders, then the
+single and informal types should be chosen. The best of all these is
+_Rosa rugosa_. This has not only attractive flowers through the greater
+part of the season, but it also has very interesting foliage and a
+striking habit. The great profusion of bristles and spines gives it an
+individual and strong character. Even without the flowers, it is
+valuable to add character and cast to a foliage mass. The foliage is
+not attacked by insects or fungi, but remains green and glossy
+throughout the year. The fruit is also very large and showy, and
+persists on bushes well through the winter. Some of the wild roses are
+also very excellent for mixing into foliage masses, but, as a rule,
+their foliage characteristics are rather weak, and they are liable to
+be attacked by thrips.
+
+There are so many classes of roses that the intending planter is likely
+to be confused unless he knows what they are. Different classes require
+different treatment. Some of them, as the teas and hybrid perpetuals
+(the latter also known as remontants), bloom from new canes; while the
+rugosa, the Austrian, Harrison’s yellow, sweet briers, and some others
+are bushes and do not renew themselves each year from the crown or
+bases of the canes.
+
+The outdoor roses may be divided into two great groups so far as their
+blooming habit is involved:
+
+(1) The continuous or intermittent bloomers, as the hybrid perpetuals
+(blooming chiefly in June), bourbons, tea, rugosa, the teas and hybrid
+teas being the most continuous in bloom;
+
+(2)those that bloom once only, in summer, as Austrian, Ayrshire, sweet
+briers, prairie, Cherokee, Banksian, provence, most moss roses, damask,
+multiflora, polyantha, and memorial _(Wichuraiana)._ “Perpetual” or
+recurrent-blooming races have been developed in the Ayrshire, moss,
+polyantha, and others.
+
+While roses delight in a sunny exposure, nevertheless our dry
+atmosphere and hot summers are sometimes trying on the flowers, as are
+severe wintry winds on the plants. While, therefore, it is never
+advisable to plant roses near large trees, or where they will be
+overshadowed by buildings or surrounding shrubbery, some shade during
+the heat of the day will be a benefit. The best position is an eastern
+or northern slope, and where fences or other objects will break the
+force of strong winds, in those sections where such prevail.
+
+Roses should be carefully taken up every four or five years, tops and
+roots cut in, and then reset, either in a new place or in the old,
+after enriching the soil with a fresh supply of manure, and deeply
+spading it over. In Holland, roses are allowed to stand about eight
+years. They are then taken out and their places filled with young
+plants.
+
+_Soil and planting for roses_.
+
+The best soil for roses is a deep and rich clay loam. If it is more or
+less of a fibrous character from the presence of grass roots, as is the
+case with newly plowed sod ground, so much the better. While such is
+desirable, any ordinary soil will answer, provided it is well manured.
+Cow manure is strong and lasting, and has no heating effect. It will
+cause no damage, even if not rotted. Horse manure, however, should be
+well rotted before mixing it with the soil. The manure may be mixed in
+the soil at the rate of one part in four. If well rotted, however, more
+will not do any damage, as the soil can scarcely be made too rich,
+especially for the everblooming (hybrid tea) roses. Care should be
+taken to mix the manure thoroughly with the earth, and not to plant the
+roses against the manure.
+
+In planting, care must be taken to avoid exposing the roots to the
+drying of sun and air. If dormant field-grown plants have been
+purchased, all broken and bruised roots will need to be cut off
+smoothly and squarely. The tops also will need cutting back. The cut
+should always be made just above a bud, preferably on the outer side of
+the cane. Strong-growing sorts may be cut back one-fourth or one-half,
+according as they have good or bad roots. Weaker-growing kinds, as most
+of the everblooming roses, should be cut back-most severely. In both
+cases it is well to remove the weak growth first. Plants set out from
+pots will usually not need cutting back.
+
+Hardy roses, especially the strong field-grown plants, should be set in
+the early fall if practicable. It is desirable to get them out just as
+soon as they have shed their foliage. If not then, they may be planted
+in the early spring. At that season it is advisable to plant them as
+early as the ground is dry enough, and before the buds have started to
+grow. Dormant pot-plants may also be set out early, but they should be
+perfectly inactive. Setting them out early in this condition is
+preferable to waiting till they are in foliage and full bloom, as is so
+often required by buyers. Growing pot-plants may be planted any time in
+spring after danger of frost is past, or even during the summer, if
+they are watered and shaded for a few days.
+
+Open-ground plants should be set about as deep as they stood
+previously, excepting budded or grafted plants, which should be set so
+that the union of the stock and graft will be 2 to 4 inches below the
+surface of the ground. Plants from pots may also be set an inch deeper
+than they stood in the pots. The soil should be in a friable condition.
+Roses should have the soil compact immediately about their roots; but
+we should distinguish between planting roses and setting fence posts.
+The dryer the soil the more firmly it may be pressed.
+
+As a general statement, it may be said that roses on their own roots
+will prove more satisfactory for the general run of planters than
+budded stock. On own-rooted stock, the suckers or shoots from below the
+surface of the soil will be of the same kind, whereas with budded roses
+there is danger of the stock (usually Manetti or dog rose) starting
+into growth and, not being discovered, outgrowing the bud, taking
+possession, and finally killing out the weaker growth. Still, if the
+plants are set deep enough to prevent adventitious buds of the stock
+from starting and the grower is alert, this difficulty is reduced to a
+minimum. There is no question but that finer roses may be grown than
+from plants on their own roots, withstanding the heat of the American
+summer, if the grower takes the proper precautions.
+
+_Pruning roses_.
+
+In pruning roses, determine whether they bloom on canes arising each
+year from the ground or near the ground, or whether they make perennial
+tops; also form a clear idea whether an abundance of flowers is wanted
+for garden effects, or whether large specimen blooms are desired.
+
+If one is pruning the hybrid perpetual or remontant roses (which are
+now the common garden roses), he cuts back all very vigorous canes
+perhaps one-half their length immediately after the June bloom is past
+in order to produce new, strong shoots for fall flowering, and also to
+make good bottoms for the next year’s bloom. Very severe summer
+pruning, however, is likely to produce too much leafy growth. In the
+fall, all canes may be shortened to 3 feet, four or five of the best
+canes being left to each plant. In spring, these canes are again cut
+back to fresh wood, leaving perhaps four or five good buds on each
+cane; from these buds the flowering canes of the year are to come. If
+it is desired to secure fewer blooms, but of the best size and quality,
+fewer canes may be left and only two or three new shoots be allowed to
+spring from each one the next spring.
+
+The rule in trimming all cane-bearing roses is, _cut back weak growing
+kinds severely; strong growers moderately_.
+
+Climbing and pillar roses need only the weak branches and the tips
+shortened in. Other hardy kinds will usually need cutting back about
+one-fourth or one-third, according to the vigor of the branches, either
+in the spring or fall.
+
+The everblooming or hybrid tea roses will need to have all dead wood
+removed at the time of uncovering them in spring. Some pruning during
+the summer is also useful in encouraging growth and flowers. The
+stronger branches that have flowered may be cut back one-half or more.
+
+The sweet briers, Austrian and rugosas may be kept in bush form; but
+the trunks may be cut out at the ground every two or three years, new
+shoots having been allowed to come up in the meantime. All rampant
+growths should be cut back or taken out.
+
+_Insects and diseases of roses_.
+
+Most of the summer insects that trouble the rose are best treated by a
+forceful spray of clear water. This should be done early in the day and
+again at evening. Those having city water or good spray pumps will find
+this an easy method of keeping rose pests in check. Those without these
+facilities may use whale-oil soap, fir-tree oil, good soap suds, the
+tobacco preparations, or Persian insect powder.
+
+The rose-bug or chafer should be hand-picked or knocked off early in
+the morning into a pan of coal oil. The leaf-roller must be crushed.
+
+The mildews are controlled by the various sulfur sprays.
+
+_Winter protection of roses_.
+
+All garden roses should be well mulched with leaves or coarse manure in
+the fall. Mounding earth about the root also affords excellent
+protection. Bending over the tops and covering with grass or evergreen
+boughs is also to be recommended for such kinds as are suspected to be
+injured by winter; the boughs are preferable because they do not
+attract mice.
+
+North of the Ohio River all the everblooming roses, even if they will
+endure the winter unprotected, will be better for protection. This may
+be slight southward, but should be thorough northward. The soil,
+location, and surroundings often determine the extent of protection. If
+the situation is not so favorable, more protection will be necessary.
+Along the Ohio, a heap of stable manure, or light soil that does not
+become packed and water-logged, placed about the base of the plants,
+will carry over many of the tea roses. The tops are killed back; but
+the plants sprout from the base of the old branches in the spring. Bon
+Silene, Etoile de Lyon, Perle des Jardins, Mme. Camille, and others are
+readily wintered there in this way.
+
+About Chicago (_American Florist_, x., No. 358, p. 929, 1895) beds have
+been successfully protected by bending down the tops, fastening them,
+and then placing over and among the plants a layer of dead leaves to
+the depth of a foot. The leaves must be dry, and the soil also, before
+applying them; this is very essential. After the leaves, a layer of
+lawn-clippings, highest at the middle, and 4 or 5 inches thick, placed
+over the leaves, holds them in place and sheds water. This protection
+carries over the hardiest sorts of everblooming roses, including the
+teas. The tops are killed back when not bent down, but this protection
+saves the roots and crowns; when bent down, the tops went through
+without damage. Even the climbing rose Gloire de Dijon was carried
+through the winter of 1894-1895 at Chicago without the slightest injury
+to the branches.
+
+Strong plants of the everblooming or hybrid tea roses can now be had at
+very reasonable rates, and rather than go to the trouble of protecting
+them in the fall, many persons buy such as they need for bedding
+purposes each spring. If the soil of the beds is well enriched, the
+plants make a rapid and luxuriant growth, blooming freely throughout
+the summer.
+
+If one desires to go to the trouble, he may protect these and also the
+tea roses even in the northern states by mounding earth about the
+plants and then building a little shed or house about them (or
+inverting a large box over them) and packing about the plants with
+leaves or straw. Some persons make boxes that can be knocked down in
+the spring and stored. The roof should shed water. This method is
+better than tying the plants up in straw and burlaps. Some of the
+hybrid teas do not need so much protection as this, even in central New
+York.
+
+_Varieties of roses_.
+
+The selection of kinds should be made in reference to the locality and
+purpose for which the roses are wanted. For bedding roses, those that
+are of free-blooming habit, even though the individual flowers are not
+large, are the ones that should be chosen. For permanent beds, the
+so-called hybrid perpetual or remontant roses, blooming principally in
+June, will be found to be hardy at the North.—But if one can give them
+proper protection during the winter, then the Bengal, tea, bourbon, and
+hybrid teas or everblooming roses, may be selected.
+
+In sections where the temperature does not fall below 20° above zero,
+any of the monthly roses will live without protection. At the South the
+remontants and other deciduous roses do not do as well as farther
+North. The tender climbers—Noisettes, climbing teas, bengals, and
+others—are excellent for pillars, arbors, and verandas at the South,
+but are fit only for the conservatory in those parts of the country
+where there is severe freezing. For the open air at the North we have
+to depend for climbing roses mainly on the prairie climbers, and the
+ramblers (polyanthas), with their recent pink and white varieties. The
+trailing _Rosa Wichuraiana_ is also a useful addition as an excellent
+hardy rose for banks.
+
+For the northern states a choice small list is as follows: hybrid
+perpetuals, Mrs. John Laing, Wilder, Ulrich Brunner, Frau Karl
+Druschki, Paul Neyron; dwarf polyanthas, Clothilde Soupert, Madame
+Norbert Levavasseur (Baby Rambler), Mlle. Cecile Brunner; hybrid teas,
+Grus an Teplitz, La France, Caroline Testout, Kaiserin Victoria,
+Killarney; teas, Pink Maman Cochet, White Maman Cochet.
+
+The following classified lists embrace some of the varieties of
+recognized merit for various purposes. There are many others, but it is
+desirable to limit the list to a few good kinds. The intending planter
+should consult recent catalogues.
+
+_Free-blooming monthly roses for bedding_.—These are recommended not
+for the individual beauty of the flower—although some are very fine—but
+because of their suitability for the purpose indicated. If to be
+carried over winter in the open ground, they need to be protected north
+of Washington. In beds, pegging down the branches will be found
+desirable. Those marked (A) have proved hardy in southern Indiana
+without protection, although they are more satisfactory with it. (The
+name of the class to which the variety belongs is indicated by the
+initial letter or letters of the class name: C., China; T., Tea; H.T.,
+Hybrid Tea; B., Bourbon; Pol., Polyantha; N., Noisette; H.P., Hybrid
+Perpetual; Pr., Prairie Climber):—
+
+              _Red_—Sanguinea, C.
+                          Agrippina, C.
+                          Marion Dingee, T.
+                          (A)Meteor, H.T.
+
+             _Pink_—(A)Hermosa, B.
+                          Souvenir d’un Ami, T.
+                          Pink Soupert, Pol.
+                          (A)Gen. Tartas, T.
+
+            _Blush_—(A)Cels, C.
+                          Mme. Joseph Schwartz, T.
+                          (A)Souvenir de la Malmaison, B.
+                          Mignonette, Pol.
+
+            _White_—(A)Clothilde Soupert, Pol.
+                          (A)Sombreuil, B.
+                          Snowflake, T.
+                          Pacquerette, Pol.
+
+           _Yellow_—(A)Isabella Sprunt, T.
+                          Mosella (Yellow Soupert), Pol.
+                          La Pactole, T.
+                          Marie van Houtte, T.
+
+_Free-blooming monthly roses for summer cutting and beds_.—These are
+somewhat less desirable for purely bedding purposes than the preceding;
+but they afford finer flowers and are useful for their fine buds. Those
+marked (A) are hardy in southern Indiana without protection:—
+
+              _Red_—(A)Meteor.
+                          (A)Dinsmore, H.P.
+                          (A)Pierre Guillot, H.T.
+                          Papa Gontier, T.
+
+       _Light Pink_—(A)La France, H.T.
+                          Countess de Labarthe, T.
+                          (A)Appoline, B.
+
+            _White_—The Bride, T.
+                          Senator McNaughton, T.
+                          (A)Marie Guillot, T.
+                          (A)Mme. Bavay, T.
+                          Kaiserin Augusta Victoria, H.T.
+
+        _Dark Pink_—(A)American Beauty, H.T.
+                          (A)Duchess of Albany, H.T.
+                          Mme. C. Testout, H.T.
+                          Adam, T.
+                          (A)Marie Ducher, T.
+
+           _Yellow_—Perle des Jardins, T.
+                          Mme. Welch, T.
+                          Sunset, T.
+                          Marie van Houtte, T.
+
+_Hybrid perpetual, or remontant, roses_,—These do not flower as freely
+as the groups previously mentioned; but the individual flowers are very
+large and unequaled by any other roses. They flower chiefly in June.
+Those named are among the finest sorts, and some of them flower more or
+less continuously:—
+
+              _Red_—Alfred Colomb.
+                          Earl of Dufferin.
+                          Glorie de Margottin.
+                          Anna de Diesbach.
+                          Ulrich Brunner.
+
+             _Pink_—Mrs. John Laing.
+                          Paul Neyron.
+                          Queen of Queens.
+                          Magna Charta.
+                          Baroness Rothschild.
+
+            _White_—Margaret Dickson.
+                          Merveille de Lyon.
+
+_Hardy climbing, or pillar roses_.—These bloom but once during the
+season. They come after the June roses, however,—a good season—and at
+that time are masses of flowers. They require only slight pruning.
+
+            _White_—Baltimore Belle, Pr.
+                          Washington, N.
+                          Rosa Wichuraiana (trailing).
+
+             _Pink_—Queen of the Prairies, Pr.
+                          Tennessee Belle, Pr.
+                          Climbing Jules Margotten, H.P.
+
+          _Crimson_—Crimson Rambler, Pol.
+
+           _Yellow_—Yellow Rambler, Pol.
+
+_Tender climbing, or pillar roses. For conservatories, and the South as
+far north as Tennessee_.—Those marked with (A)are half-hardy north of
+the Ohio River, or about as hardy as the hybrid teas. These need no
+pruning except a slight shortening-in of the shoots and a thinning out
+of the weak growth.
+
+           _Yellow_—Maréchal Niel, N.
+                          Solfaterre, N.
+                          (A)Gloire de Dijon, T.
+                          Yellow Banksia (Banksiana).
+
+            _White_—(A)Aimée Vibert, N.
+                          Bennett’s Seedling (Ayrshire). White
+                          Banksia (Banksiana).
+
+              _Red_—(A)Reine Marie Henriette, T.
+                           James Sprunt, C.
+
+_Roses in winter_ (by C.E. Hunn).
+
+Although the growing of roses under glass must be left chiefly to
+florists, advice may be useful to those who have conservatories:—
+
+When growing forcing roses for winter flowers, florists usually provide
+raised beds, in the best-lighted houses they have. The bottom of the
+bed or bench is left with cracks between the boards for drainage; the
+cracks are covered with inverted strips of sod, and the bench is then
+covered with 4 or 5 inches of fresh, fibrous loam. This is made from
+rotted sods, with decayed manure incorporated at the rate of about one
+part in four. Sod from any drained pasture-land makes good soil. The
+plants are set on the bed in the spring or early summer, from 12 to 18
+inches apart, and are grown there all summer.
+
+During the winter they are kept at a temperature of 58° to 60° at
+night, and from 5° to 10° warmer during the day. The heating pipes are
+often run under the benches, not because the rose likes bottom heat,
+but to economize space and to assist in drying out the beds in case of
+their becoming too wet. The greatest care is required in watering, in
+guarding the temperature, and in ventilation. Draughts result in checks
+to the growth and in mildewed foliage.
+
+Dryness of the air, especially from fire heat, is followed by the
+appearance of the minute red spider on the leaves. The aphis, or green
+plant louse, appears under all conditions, and must be kept down by the
+use of some of the tobacco preparations (several of which are on the
+market).
+
+For the red spider, the chief means of control is syringing with either
+clear or soapy water. If the plants are intelligently ventilated and
+given, at all times, as much fresh air as possible, the red spider is
+less likely to appear. For mildew, which is easily recognized by its
+white, powdery appearance on the foliage, accompanied with more or less
+distortion of the leaves, the remedy is sulfur in some form or other.
+The flowers of sulfur may be dusted thinly over the foliage; enough
+merely slightly to whiten the foliage is sufficient. It may be dusted
+on from the hand in a broadcast way, or applied with a powder-bellows,
+which is a better and less wasteful method. Again, a paint composed of
+sulfur and linseed oil may be applied to a part of one of the steam or
+hot-water heating pipes. The fumes arising from this are not agreeable
+to breathe, but fatal to mildew. Again, a little sulfur may be
+sprinkled here and there on the cooler parts of the greenhouse flue.
+Under no circumstances, however, ignite any sulfur in a greenhouse. The
+vapor of burning sulfur is death to plants.
+
+_Propagation of house roses_.—The writer has known women who could root
+roses with the greatest ease. They would simply break off a branch of
+the rose, insert it in the flower-bed, cover it with a bell-jar, and in
+a few weeks they would have a strong plant. Again they would resort to
+layering; in which case a branch, notched halfway through on the lower
+side, was bent to the ground and pegged down so that the notched part
+was covered with a few inches of soil. The layered spot was watered
+from time to time. After three or four weeks roots were sent forth from
+the notch and the branch or buds began to grow, when it was known that
+the layer had formed roots.
+
+Several years ago a friend took a cheese-box, filled it with sharp sand
+to the brim, supported it in a tub of water so that the lower half-inch
+of the box was immersed. The sand was packed down, sprinkled, and
+single-joint rose cuttings, with a bud and a leaf near the top, were
+inserted almost their whole length in the sand. This was in July, a hot
+month, when it is usually difficult to root any kind of cutting;
+moreover, the box stood on a southern slope, facing the hot sun,
+without a particle of shade. The only attention given the box was to
+keep the water high enough in the tub to touch the bottom of the
+cheese-box. In about three weeks he took out three or four dozen of as
+nicely rooted cuttings as could have been grown in a greenhouse.
+
+The “saucer system,” in which cuttings are inserted in wet sand
+contained in a saucer an inch or two deep, to be exposed at all times
+to the full sunshine, is of a similar nature. The essentials are, to
+give the cuttings the “full sun” and to keep the sand saturated with
+water.
+
+Whatever method is used, if cuttings are to be transplanted after
+rooting, it is important to pot them off in small pots as soon as they
+have a cluster of roots one-half inch or an inch long. Leaving them too
+long in the sand weakens the cutting.
+
+
+Smilax of the florists is closely allied to asparagus (it is _Asparagus
+medeoloides_ of the botanists). While it cannot be recommended for
+house culture, the ease with which it may be grown and the uses to
+which the festoons of leaves may be put entitle it to a place in the
+conservatory or greenhouse.
+
+Seed sown in pots or boxes in January or February, the plants shifted
+as needed until planted on the bench in August, will grow fine strings
+of green by the holidays. The temperature should be rather high. The
+plants should be set on low benches, giving as much room as possible
+overhead. Green-colored strings should be used for the vines to climb
+on, the vines frequently syringed to keep down the red spider, which is
+very destructive to this plant, and liquid manure given as the vines
+grow. The soil should contain a good proportion of sand and be enriched
+with well-rotted manure.
+
+After the first strings are cut, a second growth fully as good as the
+first may be had by cleaning up the plants and top-dressing the soil
+with rotted manure. Sometimes the old roots are kept three or four
+years. Slightly shading the house through August will add to the color
+of the leaves. The odor from a vine of smilax thickly covered with the
+small flowers is very agreeable.
+
+Stocks.—The Ten-weeks and the biennial or Brompton stocks (species of
+_Matthiola_) are found in nearly all old-fashioned gardens. Most
+gardens are thought to be incomplete without them, and the use of the
+biennial flowering species as house-plants is increasing.
+
+The Ten-weeks stock is usually grown from seed sown in hotbeds or boxes
+in March. The seedlings are transplanted several times previous to
+being planted out in early May. At each transplanting the soil should
+be made a little richer. The double flowers will be more numerous when
+the soil is rich.
+
+The biennial species (or Brompton stocks) should be sown the season
+previous to that in which flowers are wanted, the plants wintered over
+in a cool house, and grown in the following spring. They may be planted
+out through the summer and lifted into pots in August or September for
+winter flowering. These may be increased by cuttings taken from the
+side shoots; but the sowing of seed is a surer method, and unless an
+extra fine variety is to be saved, it would be the best one to pursue.
+Height, 10 to 15 inches.
+
+Sweet pea.—A hardy, tendril-climbing annual, universally prized as an
+outdoor garden plant; also forced to some extent by florists. On any
+occasion the sweet pea is in place. A bouquet of shaded colors, with a
+few sprays of galium or the perennial gypsophila, makes one of the
+choicest of table decorations.
+
+Deep, mellow soil, early planting, and heavy mulching suit them
+admirably. It is easy to make soils too rich in nitrogen for sweet
+peas; in such case, they will run to vine at the expense of flowers.
+
+Sow the seeds as soon as the ground is fit to work in the spring,
+making a drill 5 inches deep. Sow thickly and cover with 2 inches of
+earth. When the plants have made 2 or 3 inches’ growth above the earth,
+fill the drill nearly full, leaving a slight depression in which water
+may be caught. After the soil is thoroughly soaked with water, a good
+mulch will hold the moisture. To have the ground ready in early spring,
+it is a good plan to trench the ground in the fall. The top of the soil
+then dries out very quickly in spring and is left in good physical
+condition.
+
+In the middle and southern states the seed may be planted in fall,
+particularly in lighter soils.
+
+Frequent syringing with clear water will keep off the red spider that
+often destroys the foliage, and attention to picking the seed pods will
+lengthen the season of bloom. If the finest flowers are wanted, do not
+let the plants stand less than 8 to 12 inches apart.
+
+A succession of sowings may be made at intervals through May and June,
+and a fair fall crop secured if care is taken to water and mulch; but
+the best results will be secured with the very early planting. When the
+plants are watered, apply enough to soak the soil, and do not water
+frequently.
+
+Swainsona.—This plant has been called the winter sweet pea, but the
+flowers are not fragrant. It makes a very desirable house plant,
+blooming through the late winter and early spring months. The blossoms,
+which resemble those of the pea, are borne in long racemes. The foliage
+is finely cut, resembling small locust leaves, and adds to the beauty
+of the plant, the whole effect being exceedingly graceful. Swainsona
+may be grown from seed or cuttings. Cuttings taken in late winter
+should make blooming plants in summer; these plants may be used for
+winter bloom, but it is better to raise new plants. Some gardeners cut
+back old plants to secure new blooming wood; this is desirable if the
+plants grow more or less permanently in the greenhouse border, but for
+pots new plants should be grown.
+
+The common swainsona is white-flowered; but there is a good
+rose-colored variety.
+
+Tuberose (properly _tuber-ose,_ not _tube-rose,_ from its specific
+name, _Polianthes tuberosa_).—This plant, with its tall spikes of waxen
+and fragrant white flowers, is well known in the middle latitudes, but
+usually requires more heat and a longer season than are commonly
+present in the most northern states.
+
+The tuberose is a strong feeder, and loves warmth, plenty of water
+while growing, and a deep, rich, and well-drained soil. The bulbs may
+be set in the garden or border the last of May or in June, covering
+them about 1 inch deep. Preparatory to planting, the old dead roots at
+the base of the bulb should be cut away and the pips or young bulbs
+about the sides removed. After keeping them till their scars are dried
+over, these pips may be planted 5 or 6 inches apart in drills, and with
+good soil and cultivation they will make blooming bulbs for the
+following year.
+
+Before planting the large bulbs, it may be well to examine the points,
+to determine whether they are likely to bloom. The tuberose blooms but
+once. If there is a hard, woody piece of old stem in the midst of the
+dry scales at the apex of the bulb, it has bloomed, and is of no value
+except for producing pips. Likewise if, instead of a solid core, there
+is a brownish, dry cavity extending from the tip down into the middle
+of the bulb, the heart has rotted or dried up, and the bulb is
+worthless as far as blooming is concerned.
+
+Bulbs of blooming size set in the border in June flower toward the
+close of September. They may be made to flower three or four weeks
+sooner by starting them early in some warm place, where they may be
+given a temperature of about 60° to 70°. Prepare the bulbs as above,
+and place them with their tips just above the surface in about 3-or
+4-inch pots, in light sandy soil. Water them thoroughly, afterwards
+sparingly, till the leaves have made considerable growth. These plants
+may be turned out into the open ground the last of May or in June, and
+will probably flower in early September.
+
+
+XX. A simple but effective window-box, containing geraniums, petunias,
+verbenas, heliotrope, and vines. XX. A simple but effective window-box,
+containing geraniums, petunias, verbenas, heliotrope, and vines.
+
+In the northern states, if planted in the border they will not start
+into growth until the ground has become thoroughly warm,—usually after
+the middle of June,—making the season before frost too short for their
+perfect growth and flower. If any danger of fall frost is feared, they
+may be lifted into pots or boxes and taken into the house, when they
+will bloom without a check. As with other bulbs, a sandy soil will
+suit.
+
+Just before frost dig up the bulbs, cut off the tops to within 2 inches
+of the apex of the bulb. They may then be placed in shallow boxes and
+left out in the sun and air for a week or more, to cure. Each evening,
+if the nights are cold, they should be removed to some room where the
+temperature will not fall below 40°. When the outer scales have become
+dry, the remaining soil may be shaken off and the bulbs stored away in
+shallow boxes for the winter. They keep best in a temperature of 45° to
+50°. It should never fall below 40°.
+
+The Dwarf Pearl, originating in 1870, has long been popular, and is
+still so with many. But others have come to prefer the old, tall kind,
+the flowers of which, even if not so large, are perfect in form and
+seem to open better.
+
+Tulips are undoubtedly the most prized of all early spring bulbs. They
+are hardy and easy to grow. They also bloom well in winter in a sunny
+climate. The garden bed will last several years if well cared for, but
+most satisfactory bloom is secured if the old bulbs are taken up every
+two or three years and replanted, all the inferior ones being cast
+aside. When the stock begins to run out, buy anew. The old stock, if
+not entirely spent, may be planted in the shrubbery or perennial
+borders.
+
+September is the best time for planting tulips, but as the beds are
+usually occupied at this time, planting is commonly postponed till
+October of November. For garden culture the single early tulips are the
+best. There are excellent early double-flowered varieties. Some prefer
+the double, as their flowers last longer. Late tulips are gorgeous, but
+occupy the beds too long in the spring. While tulips are hardy, they
+are benefited by a winter mulch.
+
+In working out design patterns, the utmost care should be used to have
+the lines and curves uniform, which is only to be secured by marking
+out the design, and careful planting. Formal planting is, however, by
+no means necessary for pleasing effects. Borders, lines, and masses of
+single colors, or groups of mixed colors which harmonize, are always in
+order and pleasing. Clear colors are preferable to neutral tints. As
+varieties vary in height and season of blooming, only named varieties
+should be ordered if uniform bedding effects are desired. See pp. 286
+and 345; Fig. 255.
+
+Violet.—While the culture of violets as house-plants rarely proves
+successful, there is no reason why a good supply may not be had
+elsewhere through the greater part of the winter and the spring months.
+
+A sheltered location being selected, young plants from runners may be
+set in August or September. Have the ground fertile and well drained.
+These plants will make fine crowns by December, and often will bloom
+before weather sufficiently cold to freeze them.
+
+To have flowers through the winter, it will be necessary to afford some
+protection. This may best be accomplished by building a frame of boards
+large enough to cover the plants, making the frame in the same way as
+for a hotbed, 4 to 6 inches higher at the back than the front. Cover
+the frame with sash or boards, and as the weather becomes severe, mats
+or straw should be placed over and around the frame to protect the
+plants from freezing. Whenever the weather will permit, the covering
+should be removed and air admitted, but no harm will come if the frames
+are not disturbed for several weeks. Much sunlight and a high
+temperature through the middle of winter are to be avoided, for if the
+plants are stimulated, a shorter period of bloom will result. In April
+the frame may be removed, the plants yielding the later part of the
+crop without protection.
+
+Violets belong with the “cool” plants of florists. When well hardened
+off, considerable frost does not harm them. They should always be kept
+stocky. Start a new lot from runner-plants each year. They thrive in a
+temperature of 55° to 65°. Pages 190, 206.
+
+Wax-plant.—The wax-plant, or hoya, is one of the commonest of
+window-garden plants, and yet it is one that house-gardeners usually
+have difficulty in flowering. However, it is one of the easiest plants
+to manage if a person understands its nature.
+
+It is naturally a summer-blooming plant, and should rest in winter. In
+the winter, keep it just alive in a cool and rather dry place. If the
+temperature does not go above 50° Fahr., so much the better; neither
+should it go much lower. In late winter or spring, the plant is brought
+out to warm temperature, given water, and started into growth. The old
+flower-stems should not be cut off, since new flowers come from them as
+well as from the new wood. When it is brought out to be started into
+growth, it may be repotted, sometimes into a size larger pot, but
+always with more or less fresh earth. The plant should increase in
+value each year. In conservatories, it is sometimes planted out in the
+ground and allowed to run over a wall, in which case it will reach a
+height of many feet.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IX
+THE GROWING OF THE FRUIT PLANTS
+
+Fruits should be counted a regular part of the home premises. There are
+few residence plots so small that fruits of some kind cannot be grown.
+If there is no opportunity for planting the orchard fruits by
+themselves at regular intervals, there are still boundaries to the
+place, and along these boundaries and scattered in the border masses,
+apples, pears, and other fruits may be planted.
+
+It is not to be expected that fruits will thrive as well in these
+places as in well-tilled orchards, but something can be done, and the
+results are often very satisfactory. Along a back fence or walk, one
+may plant a row or two of currants, gooseberries, or blackberries, or
+he may make a trellis of grapes. If there are no trees near the front
+or back of the border, the fruit plants may be placed close together in
+the row and the greatest development of the tops may be allowed to take
+place laterally. If one has a back yard fifty feet on a side, there
+will be opportunity, in three borders, for six to eight fruit trees,
+and bush-fruits between, without encroaching greatly on the lawn. In
+such cases, the trees are planted just inside the boundary line.
+
+A suggestion for the arrangement of a fruit garden of one acre is given
+in Fig. 270. Such a plan allows of continuous cultivation in one
+direction and facilitates spraying, pruning, and harvesting; and the
+intermediate spaces may be used for the growing of annual crops, at
+least for a few years.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 270. Plan for a fruit-garden of one acre. From
+“Principles of Fruit-growing.”]
+
+_Dwarf fruit-trees._
+
+For very small areas, and for the growing of the finest dessert fruits,
+dwarf trees may be grown of apples and pears. The apple is dwarfed when
+it is worked on certain small and slow-growing types of apple trees, as
+the paradise and doucin stocks. The paradise is the better, if one
+desires a very small and productive tree or bush. The doucin makes only
+a half-dwarf. The pear is dwarfed when it is grown on the root of
+quince. Dwarf pears may be planted as close as ten feet apart each way,
+although more room should be given them if possible. Paradise dwarfs
+(apples) may be planted eight or ten feet each way, and doucin twice
+that distance. All dwarfs should be kept small by vigorous annual
+heading-in. If the tree is making good growth, say one to three feet, a
+half to two-thirds of the growth may be taken off in winter. A dwarf
+apple or pear tree should be kept within a height of twelve or fifteen
+feet, and it should not attain this stature in less than ten or twelve
+years. A dwarf apple tree, in full bearing, should average from two
+pecks to a bushel of first quality apples, and a dwarf pear should do
+somewhat more than this.
+
+If one grows dwarf fruit trees, he should expect to give them extra
+attention in pruning and cultivating. Only in very exceptional
+instances can the dwarf fruits be expected to equal the free-growing
+standards in commercial results. This is particularly true of dwarf
+apples, which are practically home-garden plants in this country. This
+being the case, only the choice dessert fruits should be attempted on
+paradise and doucin roots. For home gardens the paradise will probably
+give more satisfaction than the doucin.
+
+If the tree is taken young, it may be trained along a wall or on an
+espalier trellis; and in such conditions the fruits should be of extra
+quality if the varieties are choice. Plate XXII shows the training of a
+dwarf pear on a wall. This tree has been many years in good bearing. In
+most parts of the country a southern wall exposure is likely to force
+the bloom so early as to invite danger from spring frosts.
+
+_Age and size of trees_.
+
+For ordinary planting, it is desirable to choose trees two years from
+bud or graft, except in case of the peach, which should be one year
+old. Many growers find strong one-year trees preferable. A good size is
+about five-eighths of an inch in diameter just above the collar, and
+five feet in height, and if they have been well grown, trees of this
+size will give as good results as those seven-eighths of an inch, or
+more, in diameter, and six or seven feet high. Buy first-class trees of
+reliable dealers. It rarely pays to try to save a few cents on a tree,
+for quality is likely to be sacrificed.
+
+If properly packed, trees can be shipped long distances and may do as
+well as those grown in a home nursery, but it will generally be best to
+secure the trees as near home as possible, provided the quality of the
+trees and the price are satisfactory. When a large number is to be
+purchased, it will be better to send the order direct to some reliable
+nursery, or to select the trees in person, than to rely on tree
+peddlers.
+
+_Pruning_.
+
+Having planted the trees, they should be carefully pruned. As a rule,
+trees with low heads are desirable. Peaches and dwarf pears should have
+the lower branches from 12 to 24 inches above ground, and sweet
+cherries and standard pears generally not over 30 inches; plums, sour
+cherries, and apples may be somewhat higher, but if properly handled,
+when started 3 feet from the ground, the tops will not be in the way of
+the cultivation of the orchard.
+
+For all except the peach in the northern states, a pyramidal form will
+be desirable. To secure this, four or five side branches with three or
+four buds each, should be allowed to grow and the center shoot should
+be cut off at a height of 10 to 12 inches. After growth has started,
+the trees should be occasionally examined and all surplus shoots
+removed, thus throwing the full vigor of the plant into those that
+remain. As a rule three or four shoots on each branch may be left to
+advantage. The following spring the shoots should be cut back one-half
+and about half of the branches removed. Care should be taken to avoid
+crotches, and if any of the branches cross, so that they are likely to
+rub, one or the other should be cut out. This cutting-back and
+trimming-out should be continued for two or three years, and in the
+case of dwarf pear trees regular heading-back each year should be
+continued. Although an occasional heading-back will be of advantage to
+the trees, apple, plum, and cherry trees that have been properly pruned
+while young will not require so much attention after they come into
+bearing.
+
+Heavy pruning of the top tends to the production of wood; therefore the
+severe pruning of orchard trees, following three or four years of
+neglect, sets the trees into heavy wood-bearing, and makes them more
+vigorous. Such treatment generally tends away from fruit-bearing. This
+heavy pruning is usually necessary in neglected orchards, however, to
+bring trees back into shape and to revitalize them; but the best
+pruning-treatment of an orchard is to prune it a little every year. It
+should be so pruned that the tops of the trees will be open, that no
+two limbs will interfere with each other, and so that the fruit itself
+will not be so abundant as to overload the tree.
+
+In general, it is best to prune orchard trees late in winter or early
+in spring. It is sometimes better, however, to leave peaches and other
+tender fruits until after the buds have swollen, or even after the
+flowers have fallen, in order that one may determine how much they have
+been injured by the winter. Grape vines should be pruned in winter or
+not later (in New York) than the first of March. If pruned later than
+this, they may bleed. The above remarks will apply to other trees as
+well as to fruits.
+
+_Thinning the fruit_.
+
+If the best size and quality of fruit are desired, care must be taken
+to see that the plant does not overbear.
+
+Thinning of fruit has four general uses: to cause the remaining fruit
+to grow larger; to increase the chances of annual crops; to save the
+vitality of the tree; to enable one to combat insects and diseases by
+destroying the injured fruit.
+
+The thinning is nearly always performed soon after the fruit is
+thoroughly set. It is then possible to determine which of the fruits
+are likely to persist. Peaches are usually thinned when they are the
+size of one’s thumb. If thinned before this time, they are so small
+that it is difficult to pick them off; and it is not so easy to see the
+work of the curculio and thereby to select the injured fruits. Similar
+remarks apply to other fruits. The general tendency is, even with those
+who thin their fruits, not to thin enough. It is usually safer to take
+off what would seem to be too many than not to take off enough. The
+remaining specimens are better. Varieties that tend to overbear profit
+very greatly by thinning. This is notably the case with many Japanese
+plums, which, if not thinned, are very inferior.
+
+Thinning may also be accomplished by pruning. Cutting off the
+fruit-buds will have the effect of removing the fruit. In the case of
+tender fruits, as peaches, however, it may not be advisable to thin
+very heavily by means of pruning, since the fruit may be still further
+thinned by the remaining days of winter, by late spring frost, or by
+the leaf-curl or other disease. However, the proper pruning of a peach
+tree in winter is, in part, a thinning of the fruit. The peach is borne
+on the wood of the previous season’s growth. The best fruits are to be
+expected the strongest and heaviest growth. It is the practice of
+peach-growers to remove all the weak and immature wood from the inside
+of the tree. This has the effect of thinning out the inferior fruit and
+allowing the energy of the tree to be expended on the remainder.
+
+Apples are rarely thinned; but, in many cases, thinning can be done
+with profit.
+
+_Washing and scrubbing the trees_.
+
+The washing of orchard trees is an old practice. It usually results in
+making a tree more vigorous. One reason is that it destroys insects and
+fungi that lodge underneath the bark; but probably the chief reason is
+that it softens the bark and allows the trunk to expand. It is
+possible, also, that the potash from the soap or lye eventually passes
+into the ground and affords some plant-food. Trees are ordinarily
+washed with soap suds or with a lye solution. The material is usually
+applied with an old broom or a stiff brush. The scrubbing of the tree
+is perhaps nearly or quite as beneficial as the application of the wash
+itself.
+
+It is customary to wash trees late in spring or early in summer, and
+again in the fall, with the idea that such washing destroys the eggs
+and the young of borers. It no doubt will destroy borers if they are
+just getting a start, but it will not keep away the insects that lay
+the eggs, and will not destroy the borers that have found their way
+beneath the bark. It is perhaps quite as well to wash the trees very
+early in the spring, when they are starting into growth.
+
+It is an old practice to wash trees with strong lye when they are
+affected with the oyster-shell bark louse. The modern method of
+treating these pests, however, is to spray with some kerosene or oil
+compound when the young growth is starting, for at that time the young
+insects are migrating to the new wood and they are very easily
+destroyed.
+
+The whitewashing of the trunks of trees tends also to relieve them of
+insects and fungi; and it is probable that in hot and dry regions the
+white covering affords protection from climate.
+
+_Gathering and keeping fruit_.
+
+Nearly all fruits should be gathered as soon as they will readily part
+from the stems on which they are borne. With many perishable fruits the
+proper time for gathering will be determined largely by the distance
+they are to be shipped. With the exception of winter varieties of
+apples and pears and a few kinds of grapes, it is best to dispose of
+fruit soon after it is gathered, unless it is kept for family use.
+
+If for winter use, the fruit should at once be placed in the cellar or
+fruit house in which it is to be stored, and there kept as near the
+freezing point as possible. There will be less danger of shriveling if
+the fruit is placed at once in closed barrels or other tight packages,
+but if proper ventilation is provided, it may be kept in bins with
+little loss. Even though no ice is used, it will be possible to
+maintain a fairly low temperature by opening the windows at night when
+the outside atmosphere is colder than that inside the building, and
+closing them during the day as the outer air becomes warmer.
+
+Fruit should be handled with great care at all times, for if the cells
+become broken by rough handling, the keeping qualities will be greatly
+injured. The illustrations (Figs. 187-189) show three types of fruit
+storage houses.
+
+Apples and winter pears may be packed in sand or leaves in the cellar
+(in boxes) and thereby be kept from shriveling.
+
+Almond.—The almond tree is seldom seen in the eastern states, but now
+and then one will be found in a yard and not bearing. The failure to
+bear may be due to frost injury or lack of pollination.
+
+The almond is about as hardy as the peach, but it blooms so early in
+the spring that it is little grown east of the Pacific slope. It is an
+interesting ornamental tree, and its early bloom is a merit when the
+fruit is not desired. The almonds commonly sold by nurserymen in the
+east are hard-shell varieties, and the nuts are not good enough for
+commerce. The almond fruit is a drupe, like the peach, but the flesh is
+thin and hard and the pit is the “almond” of commerce. Culture as for
+peach.
+
+The “flowering almonds” are bushes of different species from the
+fruit-bearing tree. They are usually grafted on plum, and the stock is
+likely to throw up suckers and cause trouble.
+
+Apples thrive over a wider range of territory and under more varied
+conditions than any other tree fruit. This means that they are easy to
+grow. In fact they are so easy to grow that they are usually neglected.
+
+Apples do best on a strong, sandy loam soil, or a light clay loam.
+While a soil very rich in organic matter is not desirable, good results
+cannot be secured unless it contains a fair amount of vegetable matter.
+A clover sod is particularly desirable for this as well as for other
+fruits.
+
+For a commercial orchard, most varieties should be from 35 to 40 feet
+apart; but the slow-growing and long-lived sorts may be at 40 feet,
+and, halfway between in both directions, some of the short-lived,
+early-bearing varieties may be placed, to be removed after they begin
+to crowd. In home grounds the trees may be placed somewhat closer than
+35 to 40 feet, especially if they are planted on the boundaries, so
+that the limbs may project freely in one direction.
+
+It is ordinarily advisable, especially in the humid climates east of
+the Great Lakes, to have the body of the tree 3-1/2 to 4-1/2 feet long.
+The limbs should be trimmed up to this point when the tree is set. From
+three to five main branches may be left to form the framework of the
+top. These should be shortened back one-fourth or one-half when the
+tree is set. (Figs. 142-145) Subsequent pruning should keep the top of
+the tree open and maintain it in more or less symmetrical form. West of
+the Great Lakes, particularly on the plains and in the semi-arid
+regions, the top may be started much nearer the ground.
+
+In orchard conditions, the trees should be kept in clean culture,
+especially for the first few years; but this is not always possible in
+home yards. In lieu of tillage, the sward may be mulched each fall with
+stable manure, and commercial fertilizer may be applied each fall or
+spring. If fruit is wanted rather than foliage and shade, care should
+be taken not to make ground too rich, but to keep it in such condition
+that the tree is making a fairly vigorous growth, with good strong
+foliage, but is not overgrowing. An apple tree in full bearing is
+usually in good condition if the twigs grow 10 to 18 inches each
+season.
+
+Apple trees should begin to bear when three to five years planted, and
+at ten years should be bearing good crops. With good treatment, they
+should continue to bear for thirty or more years in the northeastern
+states.
+
+
+XXI. The king of fruits. Newtown as grown in the Pacific country. XXI.
+The king of fruits. Newtown as grown in the Pacific country.
+
+
+_Insects and diseases of the apple_.
+
+Among the insects most commonly found on the apple tree are the
+codlin-moth, canker-worm, and tent-caterpillar. The codlin-moth lays
+its egg on the fruit soon after the blossoms fall, and the larvae, on
+hatching, eat their way inside. A thorough spraying of the trees with
+arsenites within a week after the blossoms fall will do much toward
+destroying them; and a second application, in about three weeks, will
+be essential. The canker-worm (Fig. 217) and tent-caterpillars feed on
+the leaves, and can also be destroyed by means of arsenites. To be
+effective against the former, however, the applications must be made
+soon after they hatch, and very thoroughly.
+
+A close watch should be kept for borers. Whenever the bark appears to
+be dead or sunken in patches, remove it and search for the cause. A
+borer will usually be found underneath the bark. About the base of the
+tree the most serious injury occurs from borers, since the insect which
+enters there bores into the hard wood. His presence can be determined
+by the chips that are cast from his burrows. If the trees are well
+cultivated and in a thrifty growing condition, the injury will be
+greatly reduced. It will be well to wash the trunks and larger branches
+with soft soap, thinned with water so that it can be applied with a
+brush or broom, during the spring. The addition of an ounce of Paris
+green in each five gallons of the wash will be of value. The only real
+remedy, however, is to dig the borers out.
+
+The most troublesome disease of the apple is the apple-scab, which
+disfigures the fruit as well as lessens its size. It also often does
+much harm to the foliage, and thus checks the growth of the trees (Fig.
+214). The Baldwin, Fameuse, Northern Spy and Red Canada are
+particularly subject to this disease, and it is much more troublesome
+in moist seasons than when the weather is dry. The use of fungicides
+will do much to lessen the injury from this disease.
+
+_Varieties of apple_.
+
+The selection of varieties of apples for home use is, to a large
+extent, a personal matter; and no one may say what to plant. A variety
+that is successfully grown in one section may prove disappointing in
+another. One should study the locality in which he wishes to plant and
+choose those varieties which are the most successfully grown
+there,—choosing from amongst the successful kinds those which he likes
+best and which seem best to meet the purposes for which he is to grow
+them.
+
+For the northern and eastern states, the following varieties will
+generally be found valuable:—
+
+[The varieties marked with * are particularly valuable for market
+purposes as well as for home use; the others are chiefly desirable for
+home use.]
+_Early_.—Yellow Transparent, Early Harvest, Early Strawberry, Primate,
+Dyer, Summer Rose, Early Joe, Red Astrachan, Golden Sweet, Oldenburg,*
+Summer Pearmain, Williams (Favorite), Chenango, Bough (Sweet), Summer
+Queen, Gravenstein,* Jefferis, Porter, Maiden Blush.
+
+_Autumn_.—Bailey (Sweet), Fameuse,* Jersey Sweet, Fall Pippin,
+Wealthy,* Mother, Twenty Ounce, Magnate.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 271. The Jonathan.]
+
+_Winter_.—Jonathan* (Fig. 271), Hubbardston,* Grimes,* Tompkins King,*
+Wagener* (Fig. 272), Baldwin,* Yellow Bellflower, Tolman (Sweet),
+Northern Spy,* Red Canada,* Roxbury, McIntosh,* Yellow Newtown (Plate
+XXI), Golden Russet, Belmont, Melon, Lady, Rambo, York Imperial, Pomme
+Gris, Esopus (Spitzenburgh), Swaar, Peck (Pleasant), Rhode Island
+Greening, Sutton, Delicious, Stayman Winesap, Westfield
+(Seek-no-further).
+
+For the South and Southwest the varieties named in the following list
+are of value:—
+
+_Early_.—Red June, Yellow Transparent, Red Astrachan, Summer Queen,
+Benoni, Oldenburg, Gravenstein, Maiden Blush, Earlyripe,* Williams,*
+Early Cooper,* Horse.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 272. The Wagener.]
+
+_Autumn_.—Haas, Late Strawberry, Oconee, Rambo, Peck (Peck Pleasant),
+Carter Blue, Bonum,* Smokehouse,* Hoover.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 273. Pewaukee Apple.]
+
+_Winter_.—Shockley, Rome Beauty,* Smith Cider, Grimes, Buckingham,
+Jonathan,* Winesap, Kinnard, York Imperial, Gilpiri (Romanite), Ralls
+(Genet), Limbertwig, Royal Lumbertwig, Stayman Winesap,* Milam,
+Virginia Beauty,* Terry,* Ingram.*
+
+In the Northwest only such varieties as are extremely hardy will be
+satisfactory, and among those likely to succeed we may mention:—
+
+_Early_.—Yellow Transparent, Tetofski, Oldenburg.*
+
+_Autumn_.—Fameuse, Longfield, Wealthy, McMahan,* McIntosh,* Shiawassee.
+
+_Winter_.—Wolf River,* Hibernal, Northwestern (Greening), Pewaukee
+(Fig. 273), Switzer, Golden Russet, Patten (Greening).*
+
+Apricot.—This fruit is not often seen in home gardens in the East,
+although it deserves to be better known. When grown at all, it is
+likely to be trained on walls, after the English custom.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 274. Roman Apricot.]
+
+In the latitude of New York, the apricot has proved as hardy as the
+peach. Given the right conditions as to soil and exposure, it will
+yield abundant crops, ripening its fruits about three weeks in advance
+of early peaches.
+
+The apricot usually thrives best on strong land; but otherwise the
+treatment given the peach suits it very well. The soil should be rather
+dry; especially should the subsoil be such that no water may stand
+around the roots. The exposure should be to the north or west to retard
+the blooming period, as the one great drawback to the successful
+fruiting is the early blooming and subsequent freezing of the flowers
+or the small fruits.
+
+The two serious difficulties in the growing of apricots are the ravages
+of the curculio, and the danger to the flowers from the spring frosts.
+It is usually almost impossible to secure fruits from one or two
+isolated apricot trees, because the curculios will take them all. It is
+possible, also, that some of the varieties need cross-pollination.
+
+Among the best kinds of apricots are Montgamet, Jackson, Royal, St.
+Ambroise, Early Golden, Harris, Roman (Fig. 274) and Moorpark. In the
+East, apricots are commonly worked on plums, but they also thrive on
+the peach.
+
+The introduction of the Russian varieties, a few years ago, added to
+the list several desirable kinds that have proved hardier and a little
+later in blooming than the old kinds. The fruits of the Russian
+varieties, while not as large as the other varieties, fully equal many
+of them in flavor, and they are very productive. They bear more
+profusely and with less care than the old-fashioned and larger kinds.
+
+Blackberry.—In a general way, the planting and care of a blackberry
+plantation is the same as required by raspberries. From the fact that
+they ripen later in the season, when droughts are most common, even
+greater attention should be given to placing them in land that is
+retentive of moisture, and to providing an efficient mulch, which can
+generally best be secured with a cultivator. The smaller-growing kinds
+(as Early Harvest and Wilson) may be planted 4 x 7 ft., the
+rank-growing varieties (as Snyder) 6 x 8 ft. Thorough cultivation
+through-out the season will help in a material degree to hold the
+moisture necessary to perfect a good crop. The soil should be
+cultivated very shallow, however, so as not to disturb the roots, as
+the breaking of the roots starts a large number of suckers that have to
+be cut out and destroyed. While hill culture (as recommended above) is
+desirable for the garden, commercial growers generally use continuous
+rows.
+
+Blackberries, like dewberries and raspberries, bear but one crop on the
+cane. That is, canes which spring up this year bear next year. From 3
+to 6 canes are sufficient to be left in each hill. The superfluous ones
+are thinned out soon after they start from the ground. The old canes
+should be cut out soon after fruiting, and burned. The new shoots
+should be pinched back at the height of 2 or 3 ft. if the plants are to
+support themselves. If to be fastened to wires, they may be allowed to
+grow throughout the season and be cut back when tied to the wires in
+winter or early spring.
+
+Blackberry plants are sometimes laid down in cold climates,—the tops
+being bent over and held to the ground by earth or sods thrown on their
+tips (Fig. 155).
+
+The most troublesome disease of the blackberry is orange rust
+(conspicuous on the under sides of the leaves), which often proves very
+destructive, particularly to Kittatinny and a few other sorts. There is
+no remedy, and on the first appearance of the disease the infected
+plants should be dug up and burned.
+
+_Varieties of blackberries_.
+
+Many of the better varieties of blackberries are lacking in hardiness,
+and cannot be grown except in the more favorable localities. Snyder and
+Taylor are most generally successful, although Wilson and Early Harvest
+are often grown on a large scale for market, and do well with winter
+protection. Eldorado is much like Snyder, that seems hardy and
+productive. Erie, Minnewaski, Kittatinny, and Early King are in many
+sections large and valuable sorts.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 275. Sour or pie cherries.]
+
+Cherry.—Of cherries there are two common types, the sweet cherries and
+the sour cherries. The sweet cherries are larger and taller-growing
+trees. They comprise the varieties known as the hearts, bigarreaus, and
+dukes. The sour cherries (Fig. 275) include the various kinds of
+morellos and pie cherries, and these usually ripen after the sweet
+cherries.
+
+The sour cherries make low, round-headed trees. The fruits are
+extensively used for canning. Sour cherries thrive well on clay loams.
+The sour cherry should be planted 18 by 18 ft. apart, in well-prepared,
+under-drained soil. The trees may be slightly trimmed back each year,
+keeping the head low and bushy.
+
+The sweet cherries have proved disappointing in many instances from the
+rotting of the fruit. This may never be entirely avoided, but good
+cultivation, soil not too rich in nitrogen, attention to spraying, and
+picking the fruit when dry, will lessen the loss very much. In years of
+severe rotting the fruit should be picked before it becomes fully ripe,
+placed in a cool, airy room and allowed to color. It will be nearly as
+well flavored as if left on the tree; and, as the fungus usually
+attacks only the ripe fruit, a considerable part of the crop may be
+saved. Set the trees 25 or 30 ft. apart. Only very well-drained land
+should be devoted to sweet cherries, preferably one of a somewhat
+gravelly nature.
+
+Leaf-blight is readily controlled by timely spraying with bordeaux
+mixture. The curculio or fruit worm may be controlled by jarring, as
+for plums, or by spraying. The jarring process is seldom employed with
+cherries for the curculio, inasmuch as the poison spray seems, for some
+reason, to be particularly effective on these fruits.
+
+_Varieties of cherry_.
+
+Of the sour varieties, May Duke (Fig. 36), Richmond, Dyehouse,
+Montmorency, Ostheim, Hortense (Fig. 34), Late Kentish, Suda, and
+Morello (English Morello) (Fig. 35) are the most valuable. The
+following sweet varieties are of value where they succeed: Rockport,
+(Yellow) Spanish, Elton, (Governor) Wood, Coe, Windsor, (Black)
+Tartarian, and Downer.
+
+Cranberry.—The growing of cranberries in artificial bogs is an American
+industry. The common large cranberry of markets is also a peculiarly
+American fruit, since it is unknown in other countries except as the
+fruit is shipped there.
+
+Cranberries are grown in bogs, which may be flooded. The whole area is
+kept under water during the winter time, largely to prevent the plants
+from winter injury by the heaving and freezing and thawing of the bogs.
+Flooding is also employed at intervals for the purpose of drowning out
+insects, mitigating drought, and protecting against frost and fires.
+The ordinary practice is to choose a bog which has a creek running
+through it, or through which some creek or ditch may be diverted. At
+the lower side of the bog flood-gates are provided, so that when the
+gates are shut, the water backs up and floods the area. It is best that
+the bog be comparatively flat, so that the water will be of
+approximately equal depth over the whole area. At the shallowest places
+the water should stand about a foot above the plants. The water is
+usually let on the bog early in December and kept on until April or
+early May. No flooding is done during the rest of the year unless there
+is some particular occasion therefor.
+
+All the wild and turfy growth should be taken off the bog before the
+vines are set. This is done either by digging it off and removing it
+bodily, or by drowning it out by means of a year’s flooding. The former
+method is generally considered to be the better. After the turfy growth
+is removed, the bog is smoothed, and covered 2 or 3 in. deep with clean
+sand. The vines are now set, the lower ends of them being shoved
+through the sand into the richer earth. In order to prevent a too rapid
+and tangled growth of vine, it is customary to resand the bog every
+three or four years to a depth of one-fourth or one-half inch. When
+sanding is not practicable, the vines may be mown off when they become
+too luxuriant.
+
+The plants for setting are merely cuttings or branches of the vines.
+These cuttings may be 5 to 10 inches long. They are inserted into the
+ground in a hole made by a crowbar or stick. They are usually planted
+at distances of 12 to 18 inches each way, and the vines are allowed to
+cover the entire ground as with a mat. In three years a good crop
+should be secured, if the weeds and wild growth are kept down. A crop
+ranges between 50 to 100 barrels per acre.
+
+Currant.—As the currant is one of the hardiest and most productive of
+fruits in the North, so is it often neglected, the patch allowed to
+become foul with grass, never thinned or trimmed, the worms eating the
+leaves until, in the course of time, the plants weaken and die. Along
+the fence is no place to plant currants, or, indeed, any other fruit;
+plant out in the open, at least 5 feet from anything that will
+interfere with cultivation.
+
+No fruit crop will respond more readily to good care than the currant.
+Clean cultivation and a liberal use of manure or fertilizers will
+certainly be followed by well-paying crops. One-or two-year-old plants
+may be set, 4 by 6 feet. Trim the bush by cutting off most of the
+suckers below the surface of the ground. The currant should have cool
+moist soil. If the season is dry, a mulch of straw or leaves will
+assist the plants to establish themselves.
+
+Currants are easily propagated by mature cuttings of the new or
+previous year’s canes.
+
+The red and white currants bear mostly on two-year-old or older wood. A
+succession of young shoots should be allowed to grow to take the place
+of the old bearing wood. Cut out the canes as they grow older. The
+partial shade afforded by a young orchard suits the currant well, and
+if the ground is in good condition, no bad results will follow to the
+orchard, provided the currants are removed before the trees need the
+entire feeding space.
+
+A currant patch should continue in good bearing for 10 to 20 years, if
+properly handled. One very important point is to keep the old, weak
+canes cut out, and a succession of two to four new ones coming from the
+root each year.
+
+To combat the currant worm, spray thoroughly with Paris green to kill
+the first brood, just as soon as holes can be seen in the lower
+leaves—usually before the plants are in bloom. For the second brood, if
+it appear, spray with white hellebore (p. 203). For borers, cut out and
+burn the affected canes.
+
+_Varieties of currants_.
+
+In most sections the Red Dutch will be found to be the most
+satisfactory variety, as the plants are much less injured by borers
+than are Cherry (Plate XXIII), Fay, and Versailles, which are larger
+and better varieties, and are to be preferred in sections where the
+borers are not troublesome. Victoria is a valuable market sort where
+borers are numerous, as it is little injured by them. The same is also
+true of (Prince) Albert, which is little attacked by currant worms and
+is particularly valuable as a late sort. White Dutch and White Grape
+are valuable light-colored varieties, and (Black) Naples as a variety
+for jelly. London (London Market) is also proving to be satisfactory in
+some sections.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 276. Lucretia dewberry.]
+
+Dewberry.—The dewberry may be called an early trailing blackberry. The
+culture is very simple. Support should be given to the canes, as they
+are very slender and rank growers. A wire trellis or large-meshed
+fence-wire answers admirably; or (and this is the better general
+method) they may be tied to stakes. The fruits are large and showy,
+which, combined with their earliness, makes them desirable; but they
+are usually deficient in flavor. The Lucretia (Fig. 276) is the leading
+variety.
+
+Lay the canes on the ground in winter. In the spring tie all the canes
+from each plant to a stake. After fruiting, cut the old canes and burn
+them (as for blackberries). In the meantime, the young canes (for next
+year’s fruiting) are growing. These may be tied up as they grow, to be
+out of the way of the cultivator. Dewberries are one to two weeks
+earlier than blackberries.
+
+Fig.—The fig is little grown in the East except as a curiosity, but on
+the Pacific coast it has gained considerable prominence as an orchard
+fruit. Figs will stand considerable frost, and seedling or inferior
+varieties grow out-of-doors without protection as far north as
+Virginia. Many of the varieties fruit on young sprouts, and, inasmuch
+as the roots will stand considerable cold, these varieties will often
+give a few figs in the northern states. Figs have been fruited in the
+open ground in Michigan. In regions having ten degrees of frost, the
+fig should be laid down in winter. For this purpose the plants are
+pruned to branch from the ground, and the soft tops are bent to the
+surface and covered with earth. In commercial cultivation, fig trees
+grow large, and they stand 18 to 25 feet apart; but in gardens where
+they are to be bent over, they are to be kept as bushes.
+
+Adriatic is the most commonly grown white fig. Among the other
+varieties are California Black or Mission Fig, Brown Ischia, Brown
+Turkey, White Ischia, and Celeste (Celestial).
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 277. One of the English-American gooseberries.]
+
+Gooseberry.—The gooseberry differs little from the currant in its
+requirements as to soil, pruning, and general care. The plants should
+be set 3 to 4 feet apart; rows 5 to 7 feet apart. Select a rich, rather
+moist soil. The tops need no winter protection. If mildew and worms are
+to be kept in check, spraying must be begun with the very first sign of
+trouble and be thoroughly done.
+
+The propagation of the gooseberry is similar to that of the currant,
+although the practice of earthing up a whole plant, causing every
+branch thus covered to throw out roots, is practiced with the European
+varieties. The rooted branches are cut off the following spring and
+planted in nursery rows or sometimes directly in the field. In order to
+succeed with this method, the plant should have been cut back to the
+ground so that all the shoots are yearling.
+
+Since the advent of the practice of spraying with fungicides to prevent
+mildew, the culture of the gooseberry has increased. There is now no
+reason why, with a little care, good crops of many of the best English
+varieties may not be grown.
+
+A large part of the gooseberry crop is picked green for culinary
+purposes. Several of the English varieties and their derivatives have
+proved of value, having larger fruits than the natives (Fig. 277).
+
+_Varieties of gooseberries_.
+
+For ordinary use the Downing can generally be recommended. It is hardy,
+productive, of fair size, and greenish white in color. Houghton is even
+more hardy and productive, but the fruit is rather small and of a dark
+red color. Among the varieties of European origin that can be
+successfully grown, if the mildew can be prevented, are Industry,
+Triumph, Keepsake, Lancashire Lad, and Golden Prolific. Among other
+varieties that are promising are Champion, Columbus, Chautauqua, and
+Josselyn (Red Jacket).
+
+Grape.—One of the surest of fruit crops is the grape, a crop each year
+being reasonably certain after the third year from the time of setting
+the vines; and the good amateur kinds are numerous.
+
+The grape does well on any soil that is under good cultivation and well
+drained. A soil with considerable clay is better under these
+circumstances than a light, sandy loam. The exposure should be to the
+sun; and the place should admit of cultivation on all sides.
+
+For planting, 1-or 2-year-old vines should be used, being set either in
+the fall or early spring. At planting, the vine is cut back to 3 or 4
+eyes, and the roots are well shortened in. The hole in which the plant
+is to be set should be large enough to allow a full spreading of the
+roots. If the season should be dry, a mulch of coarse litter may be
+spread around the vine. If all the buds start, the strongest one or two
+may be allowed to grow. The canes arising from these buds should be
+staked and allowed to grow through the season; or in large plantations
+the first-year canes may be allowed to lie on the ground.
+
+The second year one cane should be cut back to the same number of eyes
+as the first year. After growth begins in the spring, two of the
+strongest buds should be allowed to remain. These two canes now arising
+may be grown to a single stake through the second summer, or they may
+be spread horizontally on a trellis. These are the canes that form the
+permanent arms or parts of the vine. From them start the upright shoots
+which, in succeeding years, are to bear the fruits.
+
+In order to understand the pruning of grapes, the operator must fully
+grasp this principle: _Fruit is borne on wood of the present season,
+which arises from wood of the previous season_. To illustrate: A
+growing shoot, or cane, of 1909 makes buds. In 1910 a shoot arises from
+each bud; and near the base of these shoots the grapes are borne (1 to
+4 clusters on each). While every bud on the 1909 shoot may produce
+shoots or canes in 1910, only the strongest of these new canes will
+bear fruit. The skilled grape-grower can tell by the looks of his cane
+(as he prunes it in winter) which buds will give rise to the
+grape-producing wood the following season. The larger and stronger buds
+usually give best results; but if the cane itself is very big and
+stout, or if it is very weak and slender, he does not expect good
+results from any of its buds. A hard, well-ripened cane the diameter of
+a man’s little finger is the ideal size.
+
+Another principle to be mastered is this: _A vine should bear only a
+limited number of clusters_,—say from 30 to 80. A shoot bears clusters
+near its base; beyond these clusters the shoot grows on into a long,
+leafy cane. An average of two clusters may be reckoned to a shoot. If
+the vine is strong enough to bear 60 clusters, 30 good buds must be
+left at the pruning (which is done from December to late February).
+
+The essential operation of pruning a grape vine, therefore, is each
+year to cut back a limited number of good canes to a few buds, and to
+cut off entirely all the remaining canes or wood of the previous
+season’s growth. If a cane is cut back to 2 or 3 buds, the stub-like
+part which remains is called a spur. Present systems, however, cut each
+cane back to 8 or 10 buds (on strong varieties), and 3 or 4 canes are
+left,—all radiating from near the head or trunk of the vine. The top of
+the vine does not grow bigger from year to year, after it has once
+covered the trellis, but is cut back to practically the same number of
+buds each year. Since these buds are on new wood, it is evident that
+they are each year farther and farther removed from the head of the
+vine. In order to obviate this difficulty, new canes are taken out each
+year or two from near the head of the vine, and the 2-year-or
+3-year-old wood is cut away.
+
+The training of grapes is a different matter. A dozen different systems
+of training may be practiced on the same trellis and from the same
+style of pruning,—for training is only the disposition or arrangement
+of the parts.
+
+On arbors, it is best to carry one permanent arm or trunk from each
+root over the framework to the peak. Each year the canes are cut back
+to short spurs (of 2 or 3 buds) along the sides of this trunk.
+
+Grapes are set from 6 to 8 feet apart in rows which are 8 to 10 feet
+apart. A trellis made of 2 or 3 wires is the best support. Slat
+trellises catch too much wind and blow down. Avoid stimulating manures.
+In very cold climates, the vines may be taken off the trellis in early
+winter and laid on the ground and lightly covered with earth. Along the
+boundaries of home lots, where grapes are often planted, little is to
+be expected in the way of fruit because the ground is not well tilled.
+
+The grape is subject to many insects and diseases, some of which are
+very destructive. The black-rot is the most usual trouble. See p. 209.
+
+To produce bunches of high quality and free from rot and frost injury,
+grapes are sometimes bagged. When the grapes are about half grown, the
+bunch is covered with a grocer’s manila bag. The bags remain until the
+fruit is ripe. The grapes usually mature earlier in the bags. The top
+of the bag is split, and the flaps are secured over the branch with a
+pin; Figs. 278, 279, 280 explain the operation.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 278 Bag ready to be applied.]
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 279 The second stage in adjusting the bag.]
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 280 The bagging complete.]
+
+In all the above discussion, the so-called native grapes alone are
+considered. In California, the European or vinifera types are grown,
+the requirements of which are radically different from those of the
+eastern kinds.
+
+
+XXII. Wall-training of a pear tree. XXII. Wall-training of a pear tree.
+
+
+_Varieties of grapes_.
+
+Under nearly all conditions, the Concord will be a valuable black
+variety, although Worden, which is a few days earlier, may be preferred
+by many. Moore (Moore Early) has been our best very early black
+variety, but is likely to be superseded by Campbell, which is a
+stronger vine, more productive, bunches larger, fruit of better
+quality, and of superior keeping qualities, making it valuable for
+shipping purposes. Catawba, Delaware, and Brighton are among the best
+red varieties, although Agawam and Salem are much used. Winchell (Green
+Mountain) is the best early white variety, and in most sections
+Niagara, a late white sort, does well. Diamond (Moore Diamond) is a
+white grape of better quality than Niagara.
+
+_Grapes under glass_ (S.W. Fletcher).
+
+The European grapes rarely thrive out of doors in eastern America.
+Grape houses are necessary, with or without artificial heat. Fruit for
+home use may be grown very satisfactorily in a cold grapery (without
+artificial heat). A simple lean-to against the south side of a building
+or wall is cheap and serviceable. When a separate building is desired,
+an even-span house running north and south is preferable. There is no
+advantage in having a curved roof, except as a matter of looks. A
+compost of four parts rotted turf to one of manure is laid on a sloping
+cement bottom outside the house, making a border 12 feet wide and 2
+feet deep. The cement may be replaced with rubble on well-drained
+soils, but it is a poor makeshift. Every three years the upper 6 inches
+of the border should be renewed with manure. The border inside the
+house is prepared likewise. Two-year-old potted vines are planted about
+4 feet apart in a single row. Part of the roots go through a crevice in
+the wall to the outer border and part remain inside; or all may go
+outside if the house is desired for other purposes. One strong cane is
+trained to a wire trellis hanging at least 18 inches from the glass,
+and is cut back to 3 feet the first year, 6 the second, and 9 the
+third. Do not be in a hurry to get a long cane. Pruning is on the spur
+system, as recommended for arbors on p. 430. The vines are usually laid
+on the ground for winter and covered with leaves or wrapped with cloth.
+
+As soon as the buds swell in early spring, tie the vines to the trellis
+and start out one shoot from each spur, rubbing off all others. After
+the berries begin to color, however, it is better to leave all further
+growth to shade the fruit. Pinch back each of these laterals two joints
+beyond the second bunch. To keep down red spider and thrips, the
+foliage should be sprayed with water every bright morning except during
+the blooming season. At least one-third of the berries should be
+thinned from each bunch; do not be afraid of taking out too many. Water
+the inside border frequently all through the summer, and the outside
+occasionally if the season is dry. Mildew may appear in July. The best
+preventives are to syringe faithfully, admit air freely, and sprinkle
+sulfur on the ground.
+
+Fruit may be kept fresh on the vines in a warm (or artificially heated)
+grapery until late December; in a coldhouse it must be picked before
+frost. After the fruit is off, ventilate from top and bottom and
+withhold water, so as thoroughly to ripen the wood. Along in November
+the canes are pruned, covered with straw or wrapped with mats and laid
+down till spring. Black Hamburg is superior to all other varieties for
+a cold grapery; Bowood Muscat, Muscat of Alexandria, and Chasselas
+Musque may be added in the warmhouse. Good vines will live and bear
+almost indefinitely.
+
+Mulberry.—Both for fruit and ornament the mulberry should be more
+generally planted. Even if the fruit is not to the taste, the tree is
+naturally open-centered and round-headed, and is an interesting
+subject; some of the varieties have finely cut leaves. The fruits are
+in great demand by the birds, and after they begin to ripen the
+strawberry beds and cherry trees are freer from robins and other
+fruit-eating birds. For this reason alone they are a valuable tree for
+the fruit-grower. Trees may be purchased cheaper than one can propagate
+them.
+
+If planted in orchard form, place them 25 to 30 feet apart. About the
+borders of a place they can go closer. The Russian varieties are often
+planted for windbreaks, for they are very hardy and thrive under the
+greatest neglect; and for this purpose they may be planted 8 to 20 feet
+apart. The Russians make excellent screens. They stand clipping well.
+The fruit of the Russians varies in quality, as the trees are usually
+directly from seed; but now and then a tree bears excellent fruit.
+
+New American, Trowbridge, and Thorburn are leading kinds of
+fruit-bearing mulberries for the North. The true Downing is not hardy
+in the northern states; but New American is often sold under this name.
+Mulberries thrive in any good soil, and need no special treatment.
+
+Nuts.—The nut trees demand too much room for most home-ground fruit
+plantations, although they are also useful for windbreaks and shade.
+The hickories, all American, make excellent lawn trees, and should be
+better known. The filberts and cobnuts, small trees or bushes, are not
+successfully grown in this country except in very special cases.
+
+The commercial nut-growing in the United States and Canada is chiefly
+of almonds, walnuts, and pecans, with some attempt at chestnuts. Of
+these the chestnut is the most adaptable for home places in the
+northeastern section.
+
+Of chestnuts there are three types in cultivation: the European, the
+Japanese, and the American. The American, or native chestnuts, of which
+there are several improved varieties, are the hardiest and most
+reliable, and the nuts are the sweetest, but they are also the
+smallest. The Japanese varieties are usually injured by the winter in
+central New York. The European varieties are somewhat hardier, and some
+of the varieties will thrive in the northern states. Chestnuts are very
+easily grown, although the bark disease now threatens them. They
+usually bear better when two or more trees are planted near each other.
+Sprouts in old chestnut clearings are often allowed to remain, and
+sometimes they are grafted to the improved varieties. The young trees
+may be grafted in the spring by the whip-graft or cleft-graft method;
+but the cions should be perfectly dormant, and the operation should be
+very carefully done. Even with the best workmanship, a considerable
+percentage of the grafts are likely to fail or to break off after two
+or three years. The most popular single variety of chestnut is the
+Paragon, which bears large and excellent nuts when the tree is very
+young. When the home ground is large enough, two or three of these
+trees should be planted near the borders.
+
+Orange.—Oranges are grown extensively in Florida, in places along the
+Gulf, and in many parts of California, but in the most favored sections
+there is occasionally some injury from cold or frost to the trees or
+fruit.
+
+The soil preferred for oranges in California is a rich, deep alluvium,
+avoiding hard-pan or adobe subsoils. Stagnant water in the subsoil is a
+fatal defect. Although they can be grown near the ocean at a lower
+level, an elevation of 600 to 1200 feet is generally desirable. While
+southern California is particularly adapted to orange culture, the
+fruit is successfully raised along the foot-hills of the San Joaquin
+and Sacramento valleys and in other parts of the state.
+
+In Florida, pine lands with a clay subsoil are generally preferred for
+oranges, but if properly handled, good results can be obtained from
+hammock land. As elevated spots cannot be secured, a timber belt
+surrounding the orchard or along the north and west sides is desirable.
+
+The distance for the large-growing kinds of orange in the orchard is
+from 25 to 30 feet each way, but the half-dwarf kinds, such as Bahia or
+Washington Navel, may be as close as 20 feet each way, although 25 feet
+will be desirable. If the roots are sacked, the trees should be placed
+in the hole without removing the covering, and the soil should then be
+packed about them; but if they are puddled, a mound should be made in
+the bottom of the hole. In the center an opening should be made into
+which the tap-root can be inserted. After the soil has been firmly
+packed about it, the other roots should be spread out and the hole
+filled with good soil, packing it carefully. Care should be taken that
+the roots are not exposed in handling the trees, and if the weather is
+hot and dry, the tops should be shaded. Water may often be used with
+good results in settling the soil about the roots.
+
+When transplanted, the tops should be cut back in proportion to the
+amount of roots lost in digging the trees. The head is usually started
+with the branches about 2 feet from the ground. Each year while the
+trees are small, the strong shoots should be cut back to preserve a
+symmetrical form and the weak and surplus shoots should be removed.
+
+The cultivation of orange orchards should be the same as recommended
+for other fruits, except that as they grow in hot, dry climates, it
+should be even more thorough, that the evaporation of moisture from the
+soil may be reduced to a minimum. California growers have found that by
+frequent shallow cultivation they can reduce the amount of water that
+must be applied by irrigation, and that frequent tillage and a little
+water will give better results than little or no cultivation and a
+large amount of water. The amount of water required will also depend on
+the season and the character of the soil. Thus on strong soils and
+after a heavy rainfall no irrigation will be required, while sandy
+soils will need irrigating as often as once in three or four weeks from
+May to October. As a general rule, two or three irrigations in a season
+will be ample. When used at all, water should be applied in sufficient
+quantities to wet down to the roots of the trees. Frequent scanty
+waterings may do much harm. The water is usually applied in furrows,
+and for young trees there should be one on either side of each row, but
+as the roots extend the number should be increased, until when five or
+six years old the entire orchard should be irrigated from furrows 4 or
+5 feet apart. In Florida, irrigation is not practiced.
+
+Cover-cropping in winter is now common in Florida and California, some
+of the leguminous crops being used.
+
+_Varieties of the orange_.
+
+Among the best varieties are: Bahia, commonly known as Washington
+Navel, Thompson Improved, Maltese Blood, Mediterranean Sweet, Paper
+Rind St. Michael, and Valencia. Homosassa, Magnum Bonum, Nonpareil,
+Boone, Parson Brown, Pineapple, and Hart are favorites in Florida. The
+tangerines and mandarins, or the “kid-glove” oranges, have a thin rind
+that is easily detached from the rather dry pulp. Orange trees are
+frequently injured by various scale insects, but for several of the
+most troublesome kinds, insect parasites have been found that keep them
+partially or wholly in check, and for others the trees are sprayed, or
+fumigated with hydrocyanic acid gas.
+
+Peach.—Given the proper exposure, peaches may be fruited in many
+sections where now it is thought impossible to have a crop. It is
+usually the practice of the amateur to set peach trees in the shelter
+of some building, exposed on the south or east to the sun, and “in a
+pocket” as regards winds. This should be reversed, except in the close
+vicinity of large bodies of water. The fruit-buds of peaches will stand
+very cold weather when perfectly dormant, often as low as 12° or 18°
+below zero in New York; but if the buds once become swollen,
+comparatively light freezing will destroy the crop. Therefore, if the
+trees be set on elevations where a constant air drainage may be
+obtained, sheltered, if at all, on the south and east from the warming
+influence of the sun, the buds will remain dormant until the ground
+becomes warm, and the chances of a failure will be lessened. This
+advice applies mostly to interior sections.
+
+A well-drained, sandy loam or gravelly soil suits the peach better than
+a heavy soil; but if the heavier soil is well drained, good crops may
+be secured.
+
+Peaches are short-lived at best, and one should be satisfied with three
+or four crops from each tree. They bear young, usually a partial crop
+the third year. If a crop may be had every other year until the trees
+are eight or ten years old, they will have well repaid the effort of
+cultivation. But they often bear twice this long. Young trees may be
+set every four or five years to replace older ones, thus having trees
+at a bearing age at all times on a small place. Trees should be set 14
+to 18 feet apart each way.
+
+Peach trees are always bought when they are one year old, that is, one
+year from the bud. For example, the bud is inserted in the fall of
+1909. It remains dormant until the spring of 1910, when it pushes into
+vigorous growth; and in the fall of 1910 the tree is ready for sale.
+Peach trees that are more than a year old are scarcely worth the
+buying. It is a common practice, when setting peach trees, to prune
+them back to a whip, leaving a stub bearing not more than one bud where
+each branch is cut off.
+
+The three great enemies of the peach are the borer, the yellows, and
+the curculio.
+
+The borer is best handled by digging it out every spring and fall.
+Trees attacked by the borer have an exudation of gum about the crown.
+If the borers are dug out twice a year, they will not get sufficient
+start to make the operation very laborious. It is the only sure way.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 281. Seckel pear.]
+
+The yellows is a communicable disease, the cause of which is not
+definitely known. It shows itself in the fruit ripening prematurely,
+with distinct red spots which extend through the flesh, and later by
+the throwing out of fine, branching, twiggy tufts along the main
+branches (Fig. 215). The only treatment is to pull out the trees and
+burn them. Other trees may be set in the same places.
+
+The curculio must be captured by jarring on sheets (see _Plum_).
+
+_Varieties of the peach_.
+
+For home use it is advisable to provide varieties that will ripen in
+succession, but for market purposes, in most sections, the medium and
+late kinds should be most extensively planted. Although there are many
+varieties that have a local reputation, but are not commonly found in
+the nurseries, the following kinds are well known, and can be generally
+grown with success: Alexander, Hale Early, Rivers, St. John, Bishop,
+Connett (Southern Early), Carman, Crawford (Early and Late), Oldmixon,
+Lewis, Champion, Sneed, Greensboro, Kalamazoo, Stump, Elberta, Ede
+(Capt. Ede), Stevens (Stevens’ Rareripe), Crosby, Gold Drop, Reeves,
+Chairs, Smock, Salway, and Levy (Henrietta).
+
+Pear.—No fruit plantation should be considered complete without trees
+of various kinds of pears, ripening fruits from early in August till
+winter. The late varieties are generally good keepers, and extend the
+season into February, thus supplying fruit for six or seven months.
+
+As the pear grows to perfection on quince, the dwarf tree is peculiarly
+adapted to planting on small home grounds, and is often used as a
+boundary plant, or to serve the purpose of a screen. These dwarf trees
+should be set deep—4 to 6 inches below the union—to prevent the stock
+from growing. Dwarf trees may be set as near together as 10 to 16 feet,
+while the standard or tall-growing pears should be set 18 to 25 feet
+apart. Trees are planted when two or three years old.
+
+[Illustration Fig. 282. Duchesse d’Angoulême pear.]
+
+[Illustration Fig. 283. The Kieffer pear.]
+
+The pear thrives on clay soil, if well under-drained, and for this
+reason may succeed in places where other fruits might fail. A good,
+steady growth should be maintained, but the use of nitrogenous manures
+should be avoided, as they tend to make a rank growth and invite
+attacks of pear blight, which is the worst enemy of the pear (p. 211).
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 284. Kieffer pear.]
+
+_Varieties of the pear_.
+
+As a selection to supply a succession of varieties throughout the
+season, the following list is recommended:—
+
+_Early_.—Summer Doyenne, Bloodgood, Clapp, Osband, Elizabeth (Manning’s
+Elizabeth).
+
+_Autumn_.—Bartlett, Boussock, Flemish (Flemish Beauty), Buffum, Howell,
+Seckel (Fig. 281), Louise Bonne, Angoulême (Duchesse d’Angoulême) (Fig.
+282), Sheldon.
+
+_Winter_.—Anjou, Clairgeau, Lawrence, Kieffer (Figs. 283, 284), Winter
+Nelis, and Easter Beurre.
+
+For ordinary market purposes the following have been proved valuable:
+Bartlett, Howell, Anjou, Clairgeau, and Lawrence. In the central and
+southern states, Kieffer is grown successfully. For home use this
+variety is not to be recommended in the North, because of its poor
+quality and smaller size.
+
+For growing as dwarfs, Angoulême (Duchesse d’Angoulême), Louise Bonne,
+Anjou, Clairgeau, and Lawrence are most popular, but many other
+varieties thrive on the quince.
+
+Plum.—Of plums there are three general or common types: first, the
+common Domestica or European plum, which gives rise to all the older
+varieties, like Lombard, Bradshaw, Green Gage, the Prunes, the Egg
+plums, the Damsons, and the like; second, the Japanese plums, which
+have become popular within the last twenty years, and which are adapted
+to a wider range of country than the Domesticas; third, the native
+plums of several species or types, which are adapted to the plains, the
+middle and southern states, and some kinds to the cold North.
+
+Wherever the Domestica and Japanese plums can be grown, the native
+plums are not destined to become popular; but many of the natives are
+much hardier than others, and are therefore adapted to regions in which
+the Domestica and Japanese are not safe. Others of them are well
+adapted to the middle and southern states. The Domestica and Japanese
+plums are considerably hardier than peaches, but not so hardy as the
+apple. The northern limit of their general cultivation is the southern
+peninsula of Michigan, central and southern Ontario, central New York,
+and central New England.
+
+Plums thrive on a great variety of soils, but they do better, as a
+rule, on those that are rather heavy and have a considerable content of
+clay. In fact, many of the varieties will thrive on clay as hard as
+that in which pears will grow. On the other hand, they often thrive
+well in light, and even almost sandy soils.
+
+The trees are set when they are two and three years from the bud. It is
+preferable to have plum trees on stocks of the same species, but it is
+not always possible to secure them at the nurseries. In the South,
+plums are worked mostly on peach roots, and these make excellent trees
+where the climate is not too severe, and especially on the lighter
+lands on which they are planted in the South. In the North the larger
+part of the plum stocks are grown on the Myrobalan plum roots. This
+Myrobalan is an Old World species of plum, of smaller growth than the
+Domestica. This stock, therefore, tends to dwarf the tree, and it is
+also likely to throw up sprouts from the roots.
+
+Plum trees are set 12 to 18 feet apart. Many growers like to set them 8
+feet apart in rows, and have the rows from 16 to 20 feet apart.
+
+Plums are pruned much the same as apples and pears. That is, the top is
+thinned out from year to year, and all superfluous branches and broken
+or diseased wood are removed. If the soil is very strong and the trees
+are close together, it may be well to head them in a little each year,
+especially those varieties which grow very strong and robust.
+
+_Pests and diseases_.
+
+There are four leading difficulties in the growing of
+plums—leaf-blight, fruit-rot, black-knot, and curculio.
+
+The leaf-blight usually appears about midsummer, the leaves becoming
+spotted and dropping off. The remedy is to spray thoroughly with
+bordeaux mixture, beginning soon after the fruits have set, and before
+the trouble begins to show.
+
+The fruit-rot may be prevented by the same means—that is, by spraying
+with bordeaux mixture. It is usually best to begin just after the
+fruits are well set. A very important consideration in the checking of
+this disease is to thin the fruit so that it does not hang in clusters.
+If one fruit touches another, the rot spreads from fruit to fruit in
+spite of the spraying. Some varieties, as Lombard and Abundance, are
+specially susceptible to this injury.
+
+The black-knot is best kept in check by cutting out the knots whenever
+they can be seen, and burning them. As soon as the leaves drop, the
+orchard should be gone over and all knots taken out. Orchards that are
+thoroughly sprayed with bordeaux mixture for the leaf-blight and
+fruit-rot fungus are less liable to attacks of black-knot.
+
+The curculio, or the insect which is the parent of the worms in the
+fruit, is the inveterate enemy of the plum and other stone fruits. The
+mature beetle lays the eggs in the fruits when they are very small,
+usually beginning its work about as soon as the flowers fall. These
+eggs soon hatch, and the little maggot bores into the fruit. Those
+fruits that are attacked whilst very young ordinarily fall from the
+tree, but those attacked when they are half or more grown, may adhere
+to the tree, but remain wormy and gummy at the picking time. The mature
+beetles are sluggish in the mornings, and are easily jarred from the
+trees. Taking advantage of this fact, the fruit-grower may jar them on
+sheets; or, in large orchards, into a large canvas hopper, which is
+wheeled from tree to tree upon a wheelbarrow-like frame, and under the
+apex of which is a tin can into which the insects roll. There is a slit
+or opening in one side of the hopper, which allows the tree to stand
+nearly in the middle of the canvas. The operator then gives the tree
+two or three sharp jars with a padded pole or mallet. The edges of the
+hopper are then quickly shaken with the hands and the insects roll down
+into the tin receptacle. In this receptacle there is kerosene oil, or
+it may be emptied from time to time. Just how long this machine is to
+be run in the orchard will depend entirely on circumstances. It is
+advisable to use the catcher soon after the blossoms fall, for the
+purpose of finding out how abundant the insects are. If a few insects
+are caught from each tree, there is indication that there are enough of
+the pests to make serious trouble. If after a few days the insects seem
+to have disappeared, it will not be necessary to continue the hunt. In
+some years, especially in those succeeding a very heavy crop, it may be
+necessary to run the curculio-catcher every morning for four or five
+weeks; but, as a rule, it will not be necessary to use it oftener than
+two or three times a week during that season; and sometimes the season
+may be shortened by one half. The insects fall most readily when the
+weather is cool, and it is best, therefore, to get through the whole
+orchard, if possible, before noon. On cloudy days, however, the insects
+may be caught all day. A smart man can attend to 300 or 400
+full-bearing trees in six hours if the ground has been well rolled or
+firmed, as it should be before the bugging operation begins. The same
+treatment applies to the saving of peaches and rarely, also, of sour
+cherries.
+
+_Varieties of the plum_.
+
+The following varieties of European origin will be found desirable for
+growing in the northern and eastern states: Bradshaw, Imperial Gage,
+Lombard, McLaughlin, Pond, Quackenbos, Copper, Jefferson, Italian Prune
+(Fellenberg), Shropshire, Golden Drop (Coe Golden Drop), Bavay or Reine
+Claude, Grand Duke, Monarch.
+
+Several of the Japanese varieties are also well adapted to growing in
+these sections, as well as in the states farther south. The trees are
+generally hardy, but they bloom early, and are likely to be injured by
+late frosts in some localities. Among the better kinds are the Red
+June, Abundance, Chabot, Burbank, and Satsuma.
+
+Few of the above sorts are hardy in the Northwest, and growers there
+have to rely on varieties of native species. Among these are: Forest
+Garden, Wyant, De Soto, Rollingstone, Weaver, Quaker, and Hawkeye.
+Farther south still other classes of plums have been introduced, among
+them being Wildgoose, Clinton, Moreman, Miner, and Golden Beauty. And
+still farther south, Transparent, Texas Belle (Paris Belle), Newman,
+Lone Star, and El Paso are grown.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 285. Meech Quince (Meech’s Prolific).]
+
+Quince.—Although not largely grown, quinces generally find a ready
+sale, and they are desirable for home use. The trees are usually
+planted about 12 feet each way, and may be trained either in a shrub or
+tree form, but it will generally be best to grow them with a short
+trunk. They succeed best on a deep, moist, and fertile soil. They
+require much the same care as the pear. The insects and diseases by
+which they are attacked are also the same as for that fruit. Blight is
+particularly bad. The fruit is borne on short shoots of the same
+season, and strong heading-in of the growth in winter removes a good
+part of the buds from which the shoots arise. The Orange is the most
+common variety, but Champion, Meech (Fig. 285), and Rea are sometimes
+grown.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 286. A rooting tip of the black raspberry.]
+
+Raspberry.—Both the red and black raspberries are essentials of a good
+garden. A few plants of each will produce a supply of berries for a
+family through six or eight weeks, provided both early and late
+varieties are planted.
+
+A cool situation, soil that will hold moisture without being wet, and
+thorough preparation of the ground, are the conditions necessary to
+success. The blackcap raspberries should be set 3 to 4 feet apart, the
+rows 6 or 7 feet; the red varieties 3 feet apart, the rows 5 feet
+apart. Spring setting is usually preferable.
+
+The shoots of raspberries sent up one season fruit and die the
+following year, as in blackberries and dewberries.
+
+Most of the blackcap varieties naturally throw out side branches the
+first season, and with such it is a good plan to pinch back the new
+canes as soon as they have reached a height of 2 to 3 feet, according
+to the full height of the variety. This will hasten the throwing out of
+side shoots, upon which fruit will be borne the following year. As soon
+as severe freezing weather is over in the spring, these side shoots
+should be cut back 9 to 12 inches, according to the strength of the
+canes and the number of side branches upon them.
+
+The same method of pruning is advisable with red varieties like
+Cuthbert, which naturally branch freely. Other sorts, like King,
+Hansell, Marlboro, Turner, and Thwack, that seldom branch, should not
+be pinched back in summer, as, even though this might induce them to
+send out shoots, the branches will be weak, and if they survive the
+winter, will produce less fruit than would the strong buds upon the
+main canes had they not been forced into growth.
+
+As soon as the crop has been gathered, and the old canes are dead, they
+should be removed, and at the same time all of the surplus new shoots
+should be cut away. From four to five good canes will be sufficient for
+each hill, while in rows the number may be from two to three in each
+foot.
+
+Pruned in this way, nearly all varieties will have stems sufficiently
+large to support themselves, but as there will be more or less breaking
+down and injury to the fruit from the bending over of the canes, many
+growers prefer to support them by means of stakes or trellises. Stakes
+may be set in each hill, or for matted rows stout stakes 3 feet high
+are driven at intervals of 40 feet and a No. 10 galvanized wire is
+stretched along the row, to which the canes are tied. It would be a
+saving of labor if a wire is stretched either side of the row, as then
+no tying will be required.
+
+
+XXIII. Cherry currant. XXIII. Cherry currant.
+
+
+If it is desired to secure new plants, the ends of the branches of the
+black varieties should be covered with soil about the middle of August,
+when the tips are seen to divide into several slender shoots, and to
+take root (Fig. 286); these can be taken up and planted the following
+spring. While the suckers that spring from the roots of red varieties
+(Fig. 287) may be used in propagating them, it will be better to use
+plants grown from root-cuttings, as they will have much better roots.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 287. Sprouting habit of red raspberry.]
+
+Raspberries may be bent over to the ground so that the snow will
+protect them, in severe climates.
+
+For red rust, pull out the plant, root and branch, and burn it. Short
+rotations—fruiting the plants only two or three years—and burning the
+old canes and trimmings, will do much to keep raspberry plantations
+healthy. Spraying will have some effect in combating anthracnose.
+
+_Varieties of raspberries_.
+
+Of the black sorts the following will be found desirable: Palmer,
+Conrath, Kansas, and Eureka, which ripen in the order named. In some
+sections the Gregg is still valuable, but it is somewhat lacking in
+hardiness. Ohio is a favorite variety for evaporating. Of the
+purple-cap varieties, Shaffer and Columbian generally succeed. Among
+the red varieties none are more universally successful than Cuthbert.
+King is a promising early variety, and Loudon is a valuable late kind.
+Many growers find Marlboro and Turner well worthy of cultivation,
+although rather local in their adaptations; while for home use, Golden
+Queen, a yellow Cuthbert, is much liked.
+
+Strawberry.—Every one may grow strawberries, yet the saying that
+strawberries will grow on any soil is misleading, although true. Some
+varieties of strawberries will grow on certain soils better than other
+varieties. What these varieties are can be determined only by an actual
+test, but it is a safe rule to choose such varieties as prove good in
+many localities.
+
+As to the methods of culture, so much depends on the size of the plot,
+the purpose for which the fruit is wanted, and the extent of care one
+is willing to give, that no set rule can be given for a garden in which
+but few plants are grown and extra care can be given. The grower must
+always be sure that his varieties will “fertilize”; that is, that he
+has sufficient pollen-bearing kinds to insure a crop.
+
+With the highest culture, good results can be obtained from the hill
+system of growing strawberries. For this the plants may be set in rows
+3 feet apart and 1 foot in the row, or if it be worked both ways, they
+may be from 2 to 2-1/2 feet each way. In the small garden, where a
+horse cannot be used, the plants are frequently set 1 foot each way,
+arranging them in beds of three to five rows, with walks 2 feet wide
+between them. As fast as runners form, they should be removed, so that
+the entire vigor of the plant will be exerted in strengthening the
+crown. When extra fine specimen berries are desired, the plant may be
+held above the ground by a wire frame, as shown in Fig. 288.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 288. Strawberry plant supported by a wire rack.]
+
+Or strawberries may be grown by the narrow matted-row system, in which
+the runners, before rooting, should be turned along the rows at a
+distance of 4 to 6 inches from the parent plant. These runners should
+be the first ones made by the plant and should not be allowed to root
+themselves, but “set in.” This is not a difficult operation; and if the
+runners are separated from the parent plant as soon as they become well
+established, the drain on that plant is not great. All other runners
+should be cut off as they start. The row should be about 12 inches wide
+at fruiting time (Fig. 289). Each plant should have sufficient feeding
+ground, full sunlight, and a firm hold in the soil. This matted-row
+system is perhaps as good a method, either in a private garden or field
+culture, as could be practiced. With a little care in hoeing, weeding,
+and cutting off runners, the beds seem to produce as large crops the
+second year as the first.
+
+The old way of growing a crop was to set the plants 10 to 12 inches
+apart, in rows 3 feet apart, and allow them to run and root at will,
+the results being a mass of small, crowded plants, each striving to
+obtain plant-food and none of them succeeding in getting enough. The
+last, or outside runners, having but the tips of their roots in the
+ground, are moved by the wind, heaved by the frost, or have the exposed
+roots dried out by the wind and sun.
+
+Ground rich in potash produces the firmest and best flavored berries.
+Excessive use of stable manure, usually rich in nitrogen, should be
+avoided, as tending to make too rank growth of foliage and berries of a
+soft texture.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 289. A narrow matted row of strawberries.]
+
+For most purposes, strawberries should be set as early in the spring as
+the ground can be worked. The planting can be done with a trowel,
+spade, or dibble, taking care to spread the roots out as much as
+possible and to press the soil firmly about them, holding the plant so
+that the bud will be just above the surface. If the season is late and
+the weather is hot and dry, some or all of the older leaves should be
+removed. If water is used, it should be poured about the roots before
+the hole is filled and as soon as it has soaked away the remaining soil
+should be packed about the plants. During the first season the blossom
+stalks should be removed as soon as they appear, and the runners should
+be restricted to a space about 1 foot wide. Some persons prefer still
+further to reduce the number of plants, and after layering from three
+to four plants between those originally set, to remove all others.
+
+Strawberries are often set in August or September, but this is
+advisable only for small patches or when the soil is in the best
+possible condition and the highest culture is given. For garden
+culture, it may pay to secure potted plants (Fig. 290). These are sold
+by many nurserymen, and they may be obtained by plunging pots beneath
+the runners as soon as the fruiting season is passed. In August, the
+plant should fill the pot (which should be 3-inch or 4-inch) and the
+plant is ready for setting in the plantation. Such plants should bear a
+good crop the following spring.
+
+During the first season strawberries should be frequently worked,
+rather deep at first, but as the weather becomes warm and the roots
+fill the ground, tillage should be restricted to a depth of not more
+than 2 inches. The weeds should never be allowed to get a start, and if
+the season is dry, cultivation should be so frequent that the surface
+soil should at all times be loose and open, forming a dust mulch to
+conserve the moisture. If the fall is moist and the plantation free
+from weeds, there will be little occasion for cultivation after the
+first of September, until just before the ground freezes up, when a
+thorough cultivation should be given. In addition to the horse
+cultivation, the hoe should be used whenever necessary to loosen the
+soil about the plants and to destroy weeds that may start in the row.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 290. A potted strawberry plant.]
+
+After the ground has frozen, it will be advisable to mulch the plants
+by covering the space between the rows with some waste material to the
+depth of about 2 inches. Directly over the plants a covering of 1 inch
+will generally suffice. The material used should be free from the seeds
+of grass and weeds, and should be such as will remain upon the beds
+without blowing off and that will not pack down too closely upon the
+plants. Marsh hay makes an ideal mulch, but where it cannot be secured,
+straw will answer. Corn fodder makes a clean but rather coarse mulch,
+and where they can be held in place by some other material, forest
+leaves do well as a mulch between the rows. In the spring the straw
+should be removed from over the plants and allowed to remain between
+the rows as a mulch, or all of it may be removed and the soil worked
+with a cultivator.
+
+A large crop should be produced the second season; many persons think
+it best to renew the plantation each year, but if the plants are
+healthy and the ground free from grass and weeds, the plantation can
+often be retained for a second crop. It will be well to plow the soil
+away from the rows so as to leave but a narrow strip, and along this
+the old plants should be cut out so as to leave the new plants about 1
+foot apart. If this is done in July, the rows should fill up by winter,
+so as to be in about the same condition as a new bed.
+
+_Insects and diseases of the strawberry_.
+
+The insect most commonly troublesome to the strawberry grower is the
+common June-bug, or May-beetle, the larvae of which are often very
+common in land that has been in sod. Two years should elapse before sod
+land is used for this crop.
+
+Cut-worms are often troublesome, but plowing the land the fall previous
+to setting the plants will destroy many of them. They can be poisoned
+by sprinkling about the field clover or other green plants that have
+been soaked in Paris green water (p. 203).
+
+The most common fungous disease of the strawberry is leaf-blight or
+“rust,” which frequently causes much injury to the foliage, and may
+result in the loss of the crop. Varieties least subject to the disease
+should be chosen for planting, and on suitable soils and well cared
+for, there need be little loss from this disease if the plantation is
+frequently renewed. The rust and mildew may be held in check by
+bordeaux mixture. It is usually sufficient to spray after the blooming
+season (or at any time the first year the plants are set), in order to
+secure healthy foliage for the next year (p. 213).
+
+_Varieties of strawberries_.
+
+For most parts of the country, Haverland, Warfield, Bubach, and Gandy
+afford a succession and are all hardy and productive varieties. The
+first three are imperfect-flowered varieties, and some such
+perfect-flowering kinds as Lowett or Bederwood should be provided to
+fertilize them. Among other varieties that do well in most sections are
+Brandywine, Greenville, Clyde, and Woolverton. Parker Earle is very
+late, and is valuable for either home use or market, upon strong, moist
+soils, where it can have the best of care. Belt (William Belt) and
+Marshall have large, showy fruits, and do well on strong soil.
+
+Excelsior or Michel might be added as very early; Aroma is grown very
+extensively in some sections; also Tennessee (Tennessee Prolific) is a
+very promising new sort from Tennessee.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER X
+THE GROWING OF THE VEGETABLE PLANTS
+
+A vegetable garden is admittedly a part of any home place that has a
+good rear area. A purchased vegetable is never the same as one taken
+from a man’s own soil and representing his own effort and solicitude.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 291. Cultivating the backache.]
+
+It is essential to any satisfaction in vegetable-growing that the soil
+be rich and thoroughly subdued and fined. The plantation should also be
+so arranged that the tilling can be done with wheel tools, and, where
+the space will allow it, with horse tools. The old-time garden bed
+(Fig. 291) consumes time and labor, wastes moisture, and is more
+trouble and expense than it is worth.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 292. Tracy’s plan for a kitchen-garden.]
+
+The rows of vegetables should be as long and continuous as possible, to
+allow of tillage with wheel tools. If it is not desired to grow a full
+row of any one vegetable, the line may be made up of several species,
+one following the other, care being taken to place together such kinds
+as have similar requirements; one long row, for example, might contain
+all the parsnips, carrots, and salsify. One or two long rows containing
+a dozen kinds of vegetables are usually preferable to a dozen short
+rows, each with one kind of vegetable.
+
+It is well to place the permanent vegetables, as rhubarb and asparagus,
+at one side, where they will not interfere with the plowing or tilling.
+The annual vegetables should be grown on different parts of the area in
+succeeding years, thus practicing something like a rotation of crops.
+If radish or cabbage maggots or club-root become thoroughly established
+in the plantation, omit for a year or more the vegetables on which they
+live.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 293. A garden fence arranged to allow of horse
+work.]
+
+A suggestive arrangement for a kitchen-garden is given in Fig. 292. In
+Fig. 293 is a plan of a fenced garden, in which gates are provided at
+the ends to allow the turning of a horse and cultivator (Webb Donnell,
+in _American Gardening_). Figure 294 shows a garden with continuous
+rows, but with two breaks running across the area, dividing the
+plantation into blocks. The area is surrounded with a windbreak, and
+the frames and permanent plants are at one side.
+
+It is by no means necessary that the vegetable-garden contain only
+kitchen-garden products. Flowers may be dropped in here and there
+wherever a vacant corner occurs or a plant dies. Such informal and
+mixed gardens usually have a personal character that adds greatly to
+their interest, and, therefore, to their value. One is generally
+impressed with this informal character of the home-gardens in many
+European countries, a type of planting that arises from the necessity
+of making the most of every inch of land. It was the writer’s pleasure
+to look over the fence of a Bavarian peasant’s garden and to see, on a
+space about 40 feet by 100 feet in area, a delightful medley of onions,
+pole beans, peonies, celery, balsams, gooseberries, coleus, cabbages,
+sunflowers, beets, poppies, cucumbers, morning-glories, kohl-rabi,
+verbenas, bush beans, pinks, stocks, currants, wormwood, parsley,
+carrots, kale, perennial phlox, nasturtiums, feverfew, lettuce, lilies!
+
+_Vegetables for six_ (by C.E. Hunn).
+
+A home vegetable-garden for a family of six would require, exclusive of
+potatoes, a space not over 100 by 150 feet. Beginning at one side of
+the garden and running the rows the short way (having each row 100 feet
+long) sowings may be made, as soon as the ground is in condition to
+work, of the following:
+
+Fifty feet each of parsnips and salsify.
+
+One hundred feet of onions, 25 feet of which may be potato or set
+onions, the remainder black-seed for summer and fall use.
+
+Fifty feet of early beets; 50 feet of lettuce, with which radish may be
+sown to break the soil and be harvested before the lettuce needs the
+room.
+
+One hundred feet of early cabbage, the plants for which should be from
+a frame or purchased. Set the plants 18 inches to 2 feet apart.
+
+One hundred feet of early cauliflower; culture same as for cabbage.
+
+Four hundred and fifty feet of peas, sown as follows:—
+
+[Illustration: 294. A family kitchen-garden.]
+
+100 feet of extra early.
+100 feet of extra early, sown late.
+100 feet of intermediate.
+100 feet of late.
+50 feet of dwarf varieties.
+
+If trellis or brush is not to be used, frequent sowings of the dwarfs
+will maintain a supply.
+
+After the soil has become warm and all danger of frost has passed, the
+tender vegetables be planted as follows:
+
+Corn in five rows 3 feet apart, three rows to be early and intermediate
+and two rows late.
+
+One hundred feet of string beans, early to late varieties.
+
+Vines as follows:—
+
+10 hills of cucumbers, 6x6 feet.
+6 hills of early squash, 6x6 feet.
+20 hills of muskmelon, 6x6 feet.
+10 hills of Hubbard, 6x6 feet.
+
+One hundred feet of okra.
+
+Twenty eggplants. One hundred feet (25 plants) tomatoes.
+
+Six large clumps of rhubarb.
+
+An asparagus bed 25 feet long and 3 feet wide.
+
+Late cabbage, cauliflower, and celery are to occupy the space made
+Vacant by removing early crops of early and intermediate peas and
+string beans.
+
+A border on one side or end will hold all herbs, such as parsley,
+thyme, sage, hyssop, mints.
+
+_The classes of vegetables_.
+
+Before attempting to grow particular vegetables, it will help the
+beginner to an understanding of the subject if he recognizes certain
+cultural groups or classes, and what their main requirements are.
+
+Root-crops—Beet, carrot, parsnip, salsify.
+
+The root-crops are cool-weather plants; that is, they may be sown very
+early, even before light frosts disappear; and the winter kinds grow
+very late in the fall, or may be left in the ground till most other
+crops are harvested. They are not often transplanted.
+
+Loose and deep soil, free from clods, is required to grow straight and
+well-developed roots. The land must also be perfectly drained, not only
+to remove superfluous moisture, but to provide a deep and friable soil.
+Subsoiling is useful in hard lands. A large admixture of sand is
+generally desirable, provided the soil is not likely to overheat in
+sunny weather.
+
+To keep roots fresh in the cellar, pack them in barrels, boxes, or bins
+of sand which is just naturally moist, allowing each root to come
+wholly or partly in contact with the sand. The best material in which
+to pack them is sphagnum moss, the same that nurserymen use in packing
+trees for shipment, and which may be obtained in bogs in many parts of
+the country. In either sand or sphagnum, the roots will not shrivel;
+but if the cellar is warm, they may start to grow. Roots can also be
+buried, after the manner of potatoes.
+
+Alliaceous group—Onion, leek, garlic.
+
+A group of very hardy cool-weather plants, demanding unusually careful
+preparation of the surface soil to receive the seeds and to set the
+young plants going. They withstand frost and cool weather, and may be
+sown very early. Seeds are sown directly where the plants are to stand.
+For early onions, however, the special practice has recently arisen of
+transplanting from seedbeds.
+
+Brassicaceous group—Cabbage, kale, cauliflower.
+
+These are cool-weather crops, all of them withstanding considerable
+frost. The cabbages and kales are often started in fall in the middle
+and southern latitudes, and are harvested before hot weather arrives.
+
+In the northern states, these plants will all do best when started
+early in hotbed, frame, or greenhouse,—from the last of February to
+April—and transplanted to the open ground May first to June first,
+partly because their season of growth may be long and partly to enable
+them to escape the heat of midsummer. Still, some persons are
+successful in growing late cabbage, kale, and cauliflower, by sowing
+the seeds in hills and in the open ground where the plants are to
+mature. It is best to transplant the young plantlets twice, first from
+the seed-bed to boxes, or frames, about the time the second set of true
+leaves appears, placing the plants 24 inches apart each way, and
+transplanting again to the open ground in rows 4 to 5 feet apart, with
+plants 2 to 4 feet apart in the row. If the plants are started under
+cover, they should be hardened off by exposure to light and air during
+the warmer hours of several days preceding the final transplanting.
+
+The most serious enemy of cabbage-like plants is the root-maggot. See
+discussion of this insect on pp. 187, 201.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 295. The white butterfly that lays the eggs for the
+cabbage-worm.]
+
+The cabbage-worm (larva of the white butterfly shown in Fig. 295) can
+be dispatched with pyrethrum or kerosene emulsion. It must be treated
+very early, before the worm gets far into the head (p. 200).
+
+The club-root or stump-root is a fungous disease for which there is no
+good remedy. Use new land if the disease is present (p. 208).
+
+Solanaceous group—Tomato, egg-plant, red pepper.
+
+These are warm-weather plants, very impatient of frost. They are all
+natives of southern zones, and have not yet become so far acclimatized
+in the North as not to need the benefit of our longest seasons.
+
+Plants should be started early, under glass. They should be “pricked
+off,” when the second leaves appear, 3 or 4 inches apart, into flats or
+boxes. These boxes should be kept in a coldframe, to which an abundance
+of light and air is admitted on warm, sunny days, in order to harden
+them off. After all danger of frost is past, and the garden soil is
+well warmed, the plants may be finally transplanted.
+
+If the ground is too rich, these plants are likely to grow too late in
+the northern seasons.
+
+Cucurbitaceous group—Cucumber, melon, squash, pumpkin.
+
+All the members of this group are very tender to frost, and they must
+not be planted till the season is thoroughly open and settled. The
+plants are not transplanted, unless they are transferred from boxes or
+pots.
+
+Seeds must be planted somewhat shallow from early spring to midsummer.
+For the earliest cucumbers and melons, seeds are planted in frames.
+That is, each hill is inclosed by a portable box frame about 3 feet
+square and usually having a movable sash cover. The cover is raised or
+removed in warm days, and the frame bodily taken away when all danger
+of frost is past. In field culture, seeds are planted an inch deep,
+four to six in a hill, with hills 4 by 6 feet apart, these distances
+being varied slightly, according to location and variety. Good
+cucumbers are sometimes grown in hills surrounding a barrel in which
+manure is placed to be leached out by successive waterings.
+
+The omnipresent enemies of all the cucurbitaceous crops are the little
+cucumber beetle and the large black “stink bug.” Ashes, lime, or
+tobacco dust occasionally seem to show some efficiency in preventing
+the ravages of these insects, but the only reasonably sure immunity is
+in the use of covers over the hills (Fig. 229) and in hand-picking (p.
+202). Covers may also be made by stretching mosquito netting over arcs
+of barrel hoops or bent wires. If by some such means the plants are
+kept insect-free till they outgrow the protection, they will usually
+escape serious damage from insects thereafter. It is well to plant trap
+or decoy hills of cucumbers, squashes, or melons in advance of the
+regular planting, on which the bugs may be harvested.
+
+Leguminous crops—Peas and beans.
+
+Two cultural groups are included in the legumes,—the bean group
+(including all field, garden, and kidney beans, and the cowpea)
+comprising warm-weather plants; the pea group (including field and
+garden pea, the Windsor or Broad bean) comprising cool-weather plants.
+The former are quickly susceptible to frost and should be planted only
+after the weather is settled. The latter are among the earliest
+vegetables to be planted. The leguminous crops are not transplanted,
+the seed being placed where the plants are to grow.
+
+Salad plants and pot-herbs (“greens”).
+
+These plants are all grown for their, tender, fresh, succulent leaves,
+and therefore every reasonable effort should be made to secure quick
+and continuous foliage growth. It is manifestly expedient that they be
+grown in warm, mellow ground, well cultivated and copiously watered.
+Such small plants as cress, corn salad, and parsley may be grown in
+small beds, or even in boxes or pots; but in a garden where space is
+not too scant, they may be more conveniently managed in rows, like peas
+or beets. Nearly all the salad plants may be sown in the spring, and
+from time to time throughout the summer for succession. The group is
+culturally not homogeneous, inasmuch as some of the plants need special
+treatment; but most of them are cool-weather subjects.
+
+Sweet-herbs.
+
+The herb garden should find a place on all amateurs’ grounds.
+Sweet-herbs may sometimes be made profitable by disposing of the
+surplus to the green grocer and the druggist. The latter will often buy
+all that the housewife wishes to dispose of, as the general supply of
+medicinal herbs is grown by specialists, and goes into the hands of the
+wholesaler and is often old when received by the local dealer.
+
+The seedsmen’s catalogues mention upwards of forty different herbs,
+medicinal and culinary. The majority of them are perennial, and will
+grow for many years if well taken care of. However, it is better to
+resow them every three or four years. Beds 4 feet square of each of the
+herbs will supply an ordinary family.
+
+The perennial sweet-herbs may be propagated by division, although they
+are usually grown from seeds. The second year—and sometimes even the
+first year—the plants are strong enough for cutting. The common
+perennial sweet-herbs are: Sage, lavender, peppermint, spearmint,
+hyssop, thyme, marjoram, balm, catnip, rosemary, horehound, fennel,
+lovage, winter savory, tansy, wormwood, costmary.
+
+The commoner annual species (or those that are treated as annuals) are:
+Anise, sweet basil, summer savory, coriander, pennyroyal, caraway
+(biennial), clary (biennial), dill (biennial), sweet marjoram
+(biennial).
+
+_The culture of the leading vegetables_.
+
+Having now obtained a view of the layout of the vegetable-garden and a
+good conception of the leading cultural groups, we may proceed with a
+discussion of the different kinds of vegetables themselves. Good
+experience is better than book advice; but the person who consults a
+book is the one who lacks experience. Any printed directions are
+necessarily imperfect, and they may not be adaptable to the particular
+conditions under which the amateur works; but they ought to set him in
+the right direction so that he may more easily find his way. Seedsmen’s
+catalogues often contain much useful and reliable advice of this kind.
+
+Asparagus.—The best of all early spring vegetables; a hardy herbaceous
+perennial, grown for the soft edible shoots that spring from the crown.
+
+The culture of asparagus has been simplified in the past few years, and
+at present the knowledge required successfully to plant and grow a good
+supply need not be that of a professional. The old method of excavating
+to the depth of 3 feet or more, throwing in from 4 to 6 inches of
+broken stone or bricks for drainage, then filling to within 16 to 18
+inches of the surface with well-rotted manure, with 6 inches of soil
+upon which to set the roots, has given place to the simple practice of
+plowing or digging a trench from 14 to 16 inches deep, spreading
+well-rotted manure in the bottom to the depth of 3 or 4 inches; when
+well trodden down covering the manure with 3 or 4 inches of good garden
+soil, then setting the plants, with the roots well spread out, covering
+carefully with soil to the level of the garden, and firming the soil
+with the feet. This will leave the crowns of the plants from 4 to 5
+inches below the surface.
+
+In stubborn, heavy soil the best method to pursue in making a permanent
+bed is to throw out all the dirt from the trench and replace with good,
+fibrous loam.
+
+In setting, 1-year-old plants will prove more satisfactory than older
+ones, being less liable to suffer from injury to the root system than
+those that have made a larger growth. Two years after setting the crop
+may be cut somewhat, but not sooner if a lasting bed is desired, as the
+effort to replace the stalks has a tendency to weaken the plant unless
+the roots are well established. The cutting should cease in June or
+early July, or the roots may be much weakened. In cutting, care should
+be taken to insert the knife vertically, so that adjoining crowns will
+not be injured (Fig. 296).
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 296. Good _A_ and poor _B_ modes of inserting the
+knife to cut asparagus. Some careful growers pull or break the shoots
+rather than cut them.]
+
+The yearly treatment of an asparagus bed consists of cleaning off tops
+and weeds in the fall and adding a dressing of well-rotted manure to
+the depth of 3 or 4 inches, this manure to be lightly forked into the
+bed the following spring; or the tops may be allowed to stand for
+winter protection and the mulch left off. A top-dressing of nitrate of
+soda, at the rate of 200 pounds per acre, is often beneficial as a
+spring stimulant, particularly in the case of an old bed. Good results
+will also follow an application of bone meal or superphosphate at the
+rate of some 300 to 500 pounds per acre. The practice of sowing salt on
+an asparagus bed is almost universal; yet beds that have never received
+a pound of salt are found to be as productive as those having received
+an annual dressing. Nevertheless, a salt dressing is recommended. Two
+rows of asparagus 25 feet long and 3 feet apart should supply a large
+family with an abundance throughout the season, and if well taken care
+of, will last a number of years.
+
+Conover Colossal is the variety most generally grown, and is perhaps
+the most satisfactory sort. Palmetto, a variety originating at the
+South, is also very popular.
+
+Artichoke.—The artichoke of literature is a tall, coarse perennial of
+the thistle tribe, producing edible flower-heads. Cardoon is a related
+plant.
+
+The fleshy scales of the head and the soft “bottom” of the head are the
+parts used. The young suckers or shoots may also be tied together and
+blanched, using them like asparagus or Swiss chard. But few of these
+plants would be needed for a family, as they produce a number of
+flower-heads to a plant and a quantity of suckers. The plants should be
+set from 2 to 3 feet apart in the row, the rows being 3 feet apart.
+This vegetable is not quite hardy in the North, but a covering of
+leaves or barnyard litter to the depth of a foot will protect it well.
+The plant is perennial, but the best yield comes from young plants. If
+the heads are allowed to ripen, they reduce the vitality of the plant.
+
+Artichokes have never become so popular in this country as to have
+produced a long list of varieties. Large Green Globe is most commonly
+offered by seedsmen. Edible heads should be secured the second year
+from seed. Seedlings are likely to vary greatly, and if one is fond of
+artichokes, he would do better to propagate by suckers from the best
+plants.
+
+These plants make no mean decorative subjects, either massed or in a
+mixed border, and from the rarity of their culture are always objects
+of interest.
+
+Artichoke, Jerusalem, is a wholly different plant from the above,
+although it is commonly known as “artichoke” in this country. It is a
+species of sunflower that produces potato-like tubers. These tubers may
+be used in lieu of potatoes. They are very palatable to hogs; and when
+the plant becomes a weed,—as it often does,—it may be exterminated by
+turning the hogs into the field. Hardy, and will grow anywhere.
+
+Bean.—Every garden grows beans of one kind or another. Under this
+general name, many kinds of plants are cultivated. They are all tender,
+and the seeds, therefore, should not be planted until the weather is
+thoroughly settled; and the soil should be warm and loose. They are all
+annuals in northern countries, or treated as such.
+
+The bean plants may be classified in various ways. In respect to
+stature, they may be thrown into three general categories; viz. the
+pole or climbing beans, the bush beans, and the strict-growing or
+upright beans (as the Broad or Windsor bean).
+
+In respect to their uses, beans again may be divided into three
+categories; viz. those used as string or snap beans, the entire pod
+being eaten; those that are used as shell beans, the full-size but
+immature beans being shelled from the pod and cooked; dry beans, or
+those eaten in their dry or winter condition. The same variety of bean
+may be used for all of these three purposes at different stages of its
+development; but as a matter of fact, there are varieties better for
+one purpose than the other.
+
+Again, beans may be classified in respect to their species. Those
+species that are best known are as follows:
+
+(1) Common bean, or _Phaseolus vulgaris_, of which there are both tall
+and bush forms. All the common snap and string beans belong here, as
+also the Speckled Cranberry types of pole beans, and the common field
+beans.
+
+(2) The Lima beans, or _Phaseolus lunatus_. The larger part of these
+are pole beans, but lately dwarf or bush varieties have appeared.
+
+(3) The Scarlet Runner, _Phaseolus multiflorus_, of which the Scarlet
+Runner and White Dutch Runner are familiar examples. The Scarlet Runner
+is usually grown as an ornamental vine, and it is perennial in warm
+countries, but the seeds are edible as shelled beans. The White Dutch
+Runner is oftener cultivated for food.
+
+(4) The Yard-Long, or Asparagus bean, _Dolichos sesquipedalis_, which
+produces long and weak vines and very long, slender pods. The green
+pods are eaten, and also the shelled beans. The French Yard-Long is the
+only variety of this type that is commonly known in this country. This
+type of bean is popular in the Orient.
+
+(5) The Broad beans, of which the Windsor is the common type. These are
+much grown in the Old World for stock feed, and they are sometimes used
+for human food. They grow to one strict, central, stiff stalk, to a
+height of 2 to 4 or 5 feet, and they are very unlike other kinds of
+beans in appearance. In this country, they are very little grown on
+account of our hot and dry summers. In Canada they are somewhat raised,
+and are sometimes used in the making of silage.
+
+(6) The cowpea, which is really a bean (species of _Vigna_), much grown
+in the South for hay and green-manuring, is also a very good table
+vegetable and one that is destined to increase in popularity for
+domestic use.
+
+The culture of the bean, while of the easiest, often proves a failure
+as far as the first crop is concerned, from planting the seed before
+the ground has become warm and dry. No vegetable seed will decay
+quicker than beans, and the delay caused by waiting for the soil to
+become warm and free from excessive moisture will be more than made up
+by the rapidity of growth when finally they are planted. Beans will
+grow on most any land, but the best results may be secured by having
+the soil well enriched and in good physical condition.
+
+From the 5th to the 10th of May in the latitude of central New York, it
+will be safe to plant beans for an early crop. The beans may be dropped
+2 inches deep in shallow drills, the seeds to lie 3 inches apart. Cover
+to the surface of the soil, and if the ground be dry, firm it with the
+foot or the back of the hoe. For the bush varieties, allow 2 feet
+between the drill-rows, but for the dwarf Limas 2-1/2 feet is better.
+Pole Limas are usually planted in hills 2 to 3 feet apart in the rows.
+Dwarf Limas may be sown thinly in drills.
+
+A large number of the varieties of both the green-podded and the
+wax-podded beans are used almost exclusively as snap beans, to be eaten
+with the pod while tender. The various strains of the Black Wax are the
+most popular string beans. The pole or running beans are used either
+green or dried, and the Limas, both tall and dwarf, are well known for
+their superior flavor either as shelled or dry beans. The old-fashioned
+Cranberry or Horticultural Lima type (a pole form of _Phaseolus
+vulgaris_) is probably the best shell bean, but the trouble of poling
+makes it unpopular. Dwarf Limas are much more desirable for small
+gardens than the pole varieties, as they may be planted much closer,
+the bother of procuring poles or twine is avoided, and the garden will
+have a more sightly appearance. Both the dwarf Limas and pole Limas
+require a longer season in which to mature than the bush beans, and
+only one planting is usually made.
+
+The ordinary bush beans may be planted at intervals of two weeks from
+the first planting until the 10th of August. Each planting may be made
+on ground previously occupied by some early-maturing crop. Thus, the
+first to third plantings may be on ground from which has been harvested
+a crop of spinach, early radish, or lettuce; after that, on ground
+where early peas have been grown; and the later sowings where beets or
+early potatoes have grown. String beans for canning are usually taken
+from the last crop.
+
+One quart of seed will plant 100 feet of drill of the bush beans; or 1
+quart of Limas will plant 100 hills.
+
+Limas are the richest of beans, but they often fail to mature in the
+northern states. The land should not be very strong in nitrogen (or
+stable manure), else the plants will run too much to vine and be too
+late. Choose a fertile sandy or gravelly soil with warm exposure, use
+some soluble commercial fertilizer to start them off, and give them the
+best of culture. Aim to have the pods set before the droughts of
+midsummer come. Good trellises for beans are made by wool twine
+stretched between two horizontal wires, one of which is drawn a foot
+above the ground and the other 6 or 7 feet high.
+
+Bean plants are not troubled by insects to any extent, but they are
+sometimes attacked by blight. When this occurs, do not plant the same
+ground to beans again for a year or two.
+
+Beet.—This vegetable is grown for its thick root, and for its herbage
+(used as “greens”); and ornamental-leaved varieties are sometimes
+planted in flower-gardens.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 297. Bastian turnip beet.]
+
+Being one of the hardiest of spring vegetables, the seed may be sown as
+early in the spring as the ground can be worked. A light, sandy soil is
+the best on which to grow beets to perfection, but any well-tilled
+garden land will raise satisfactory crops. On heavy ground the turnip
+beet gives the best results, as the growth is nearly all at or above
+the surface. The long varieties, having tapering roots running deep
+into the soil, are liable to be misshapen unless the physical condition
+of the soil is such that the roots meet with little obstruction. A
+succession of sowings should be made, at intervals of two to three
+weeks, until late summer, as the beets are much more desirable in their
+young stage than when they have become old and woody. The mangel-wurzel
+and the sugar-beet are usually grown as a field crop, and will not
+enter into the calculations of the home garden.
+
+In order to hasten the season of the extra-early crop of beets, the
+seeds may be sown in boxes or in the soil of a hotbed in February or
+March, transplanting the small plants to the open ground at the time
+the first sowing of seed is made. As the flat or turnip-rooted
+varieties grow at the surface of the ground, the seed may be sown
+thickly, and as the more advanced roots are large enough to use they
+may be pulled, leaving room for the later ones to develop, thus growing
+a large quantity in a small area and having a long season of small
+beets from one sowing.
+
+For winter use the late July-sown seed will give the best roots,
+growing through the cool months of the fall to a medium size and
+remaining firm without being tough or stringy. These may be dug after
+light frosts and before any severe cold weather, and stored in barrels
+or boxes in the cellar, using enough dry dirt to fill spaces between
+the roots and cover them to the depth of 6 inches. These roots, thus
+packed in a cool cellar, will be fit to use through the entire winter
+months. When it can be had, florists’ or sphagnum moss is an excellent
+medium in which to pack roots for winter.
+
+The early round or turnip varieties (Fig. 297) are best for early and
+summer use. The long blood beets may be used for storing, but these
+require a longer season of growth.
+
+Broccoli—is almost identical with the cauliflower, except that it
+usually requires a longer season and matures in the fall. It is grown
+more generally in Europe than in this country. The special merit of
+broccoli is its adaptability for late summer planting and its rapid
+growth in the late season. It is said that a large proportion of
+broccoli is used in the manufacture of pickles. The culture is the same
+as for cauliflower,—deep, moist soil well enriched, cool weather, and
+the destruction of the cabbage worm.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 298. Brussels sprouts.]
+
+Brussels sprouts.—The plant is grown for the buttons or sprouts
+(miniature cabbage heads) that grow thickly along the stem (Fig. 298).
+It should be more generally known, as it is one of the choicest of the
+cabbage family, and may be had at its best after the season for
+cauliflower has passed. It is the better for being touched by the fall
+frosts. The buttons should be cut off rather than broken. The very
+small hard “sprouts” or buttons are the best. The culture is
+essentially the same as for late cabbage or broccoli. One ounce will
+sow 100 feet of drill, or make upward of 2000 plants. Set plants in
+field 2 to 3 feet apart, or dwarf varieties closer. They require the
+entire season in which to grow.
+
+Cabbage.—The cabbage is now so extensively grown as a field crop, from
+which the market is supplied, and the plants require so much room that
+many home-gardeners incline to give up its culture; but the early
+varieties, at least, should be grown at home.
+
+For an early crop in the North, the plants must be started either in
+February or early March, or the previous September and wintered over in
+coldframes. This latter method was once a common practice by gardeners
+near large cities, but the building of greenhouses to replace the many
+hotbeds of the market-gardener has changed the practice in many
+localities, and now most of the early cabbages in the North are grown
+from seed sown in January, February, or March. The plants are hardened
+off in March and early April and planted out as early as possible. The
+private grower, or one with a small garden, may often procure his early
+plants from the market-gardener much cheaper than he can grow them, as
+usually only a limited number of early cabbage plants are wanted; but
+for the midseason and main crop, the seed may be sown in May or June in
+a seed-bed, setting the plants in July.
+
+The seed-bed should be made mellow and rich. A good border will do. The
+seed is sown preferably in rows, thus allowing thinning of the plants
+and the pulling of any weeds that germinate. The young plants will well
+repay attention to watering and thinning. The rows should be 3 or 4
+inches apart. When the plants are large enough to transplant, they may
+be planted where early vegetables have been grown. Set the plants from
+18 to 24 inches apart in the row, the rows being 3 feet apart for the
+medium-growing kinds. One ounce of seed will furnish about 2000 plants.
+
+All cabbages require deep and rich soil, and one that holds moisture
+well. Regular cultivation should be given so that moisture may be saved
+and the growth be continuous.
+
+For early planting, the number of varieties is limited to three or
+four. For an intermediate crop the list is more extended, and the late
+varieties are very numerous. The early list is headed by the Jersey
+Wakefield, a variety that heads very quickly, and, although not one of
+the solid kinds, is generally grown. The Early York and Winnigstadt are
+good varieties to follow it. The latter especially is solid and of very
+good quality. For the midseason, the Succession and All Season are of
+the best, and for the winter supply the Drumhead, Danish Ball, and Flat
+Dutch types are leaders. One of the best of the cabbages for table use
+is seldom seen in the garden—the Savoy cabbage. It is a type with
+netted leaves, making a large, low-growing head, the center of which is
+very solid and of excellent flavor, especially late in the fall, when
+the heads have had a slight touch of frost. Savoy should be grown in
+every private garden.
+
+The best remedy for the cabbage worm is to kill the first brood on the
+very young plants with Paris green. After the plants begin to head,
+pyrethrum, kerosene emulsion, or salt water may be used. On a small
+area, hand-picking may be recommended (p. 200).
+
+The maggot is the most serious cabbage pest. After studying the seventy
+odd remedies proposed, Slingerland concludes that six are efficient and
+practicable: growing the young plants in closely covered frames; tarred
+paper cards placed snugly about the base of the plants to keep the fly
+away; rubbing the eggs from the base of the plant; hand-picking of the
+maggots; treating the plants with emulsion of carbolic acid; treating
+them with carbon bisulfide. The insecticidal materials are injected or
+poured into the soil about the base of the plant (pp. 187, 201).
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 299. A method of storing cabbages.]
+
+The club-root, which causes the roots to become greatly thickened and
+distorted, is difficult to manage if cabbages or allied plants are
+grown continuously on land in which diseased plants have been raised.
+Changing the location of the cabbage or cauliflower patch is the best
+procedure. If very different crops, as corn, potatoes, peas, tomatoes,
+are grown on the land, the disease will be starved out in two or three
+years (p. 208).
+
+There are many ways of storing cabbages for winter and spring use, none
+of which are uniformly successful. The general subject is discussed on
+p. 158. On this point T. Greiner writes as follows: “I have heretofore
+piled a lot of cabbages cut from the stump in a conical heap in the
+field, and covered them with clusters of the outer leaves cut off with
+a piece of the stump. The leaves are carefully placed over the heap in
+shingle fashion, so as to shed water. Cabbages thus piled and covered
+may be left out until real winter weather sets in. But I find that
+slugs and earthworms frequently infest the cabbages thus stored, and do
+a good deal of damage. It might be well to place a solid floor of lime
+or salt upon the ground, and then pack the cabbages upon this. If to be
+left out after severe freezing has set in, one should put additional
+covering, such as straw, corn-stalks or marsh hay, over the whole
+heap.” Mr. Burpee’s little book, ‘Cabbage and Cauliflower for Profit,’
+written by J.M. Lupton, a prominent cabbage-grower, suggests the
+following plan for early winter sales: “Take the cabbages up with the
+roots on, and store in well-ventilated cellars, where they will keep
+till mid-winter. Or stack them in some sheltered position about the
+barn, placing one above the other in tiers, with the roots inside, and
+covering deeply with seaweed; or if this cannot be obtained, something
+like cornstalks may be used to keep them from the weather as much as
+possible (Fig. 299). When thus stored, they may be obtained any time
+during the winter when prices are favorable.”
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 300. A half-long carrot.]
+
+
+Carrot.—While essentially a farm crop in this country, the carrot is
+nevertheless a most acceptable garden vegetable. It is hardy and easily
+grown. The extra-early varieties may be forced in a hotbed, or seed may
+be sown as soon as the ground is fit to work in the spring. The
+stump-rooted, or half-long varieties (Fig. 300), are sown for the
+general garden crop.
+
+Well-enriched, mellow loam, deeply dug or plowed, is best suited to the
+requirements of carrots. The seed for the main crop may be sown as late
+as July 1. Sow thickly, thinning to 3 to 4 inches in the row. The rows,
+if in a garden that is hand-worked, may be 12 inches apart. If the
+cultivation is performed with a horse, the rows should be from 2 to 3
+feet apart. One ounce will sow 100 feet of drill.
+
+Cauliflower.—This is the choicest of all vegetables of the cabbage
+group, and its culture is much the most difficult. While the special
+requirements are few, they must be fully met if good results are to be
+expected.
+
+The general culture of cauliflower is much like that of cabbage, except
+that the cauliflower, being more tender, should be more thoroughly
+hardened off before setting out, the heads must be protected from hot
+suns, the plants must never suffer for moisture, and the greatest care
+must be taken to secure only highly bred seeds.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 301. Cauliflower head with leaves trimmed off.]
+
+It is essential that the plants be set out as early as possible, as the
+warm weather of June causes them to make imperfect heads unless the
+soil is filled with moisture. No garden crop will so well repay the
+cost and time of thorough irrigation, either by running the water
+between the rows or applying it directly to the plants. When it is
+impossible to furnish water and there is danger of losing the soil
+moisture, it is a good plan to mulch heavily with straw or some other
+substance. This mulch, if put on just after a heavy rain, will hold the
+moisture for a long time. Cauliflower prospers best in a cool climate.
+
+When the heads begin to form, the outside leaves may be brought
+together and tied above the head, excluding the direct sunshine and
+keeping the head white and tender. Fig. 301 shows a good head.
+
+No vegetable will respond more quickly to good culture and well-manured
+soil than the cauliflower, and none will prove such an utter failure
+when neglected. It is imperative that care be taken to destroy all the
+cabbage worms before the leaves are tied in, as after that it will be
+impossible to see or reach them. From 1000 to 1500 plants may be grown
+from 1 ounce of seed. Good cauliflower seed is very expensive.
+
+For winter crop, seeds may be started in June or July, as for late
+cabbage.
+
+Erfurt, Snowball, and Paris are popular early varieties. Nonpareil and
+Algiers are good late kinds.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 302. Celeriac or turnip-rooted celery.] Celeriac.—A
+form of the celery plant in which the tuberous root is the edible part
+(Fig. 302). The tuber has the celery flavor in a pronounced degree, and
+is used for flavoring soups and for celery salad. It may be served raw,
+sliced in vinegar and oil, or boiled.
+
+The culture is the same as given for celery, except that no earthing or
+blanching is required. About an equal number of plants are obtained
+from the same weight of seed as from celery seed. Celeriac is
+extensively used abroad, but, unfortunately, little known in America.
+
+Celery.—Although celery has now become a staple vegetable with all
+classes of people, the home-gardener is likely not to attempt its
+culture; yet it is not difficult to raise in small quantities in most
+any good garden land. While the commercial celery is largely grown on
+reclaimed swamp lands, such areas are not at all essential to its
+cultivation.
+
+The self-blanching varieties have simplified the culture of celery so
+that the amateur, as well as the expert, may have a good supply at
+least six months of the year. The so-called new culture, which consists
+of setting the plants close together and causing them to shade each
+other, can be recommended for the garden when a supply of well-rotted
+manure is to had, and when any amount of water is available. This
+method is as follows: Fork or spade into the soil a large quantity of
+manure to the depth of 10 to 12 inches; pulverize the soil until the
+ground for the depth of 4 to 6 inches is in very fine condition. Then
+set the plants in rows 10 inches apart and the plants but 5 or 6 inches
+apart in the rows. It will be seen that plants set as close as this
+will soon fill the soil with a mass of roots and must have large
+amounts of plant-food, as well as a large quantity of water; and the
+making of such a bed can be recommended only to those who can supply
+these needs.
+
+The common practice in home gardens is to plow or dig a shallow trench,
+setting the plants in the bottom and hoeing in the soil as the plants
+grow. The distance apart of the rows and plants will depend on the
+varieties. For the dwarf varieties, such as White Plume, Golden
+Self-blanching, and others of this type, the rows may be as close as 3
+feet and the plants 6 inches in the rows. For the large-growing
+varieties, as Kalamazoo, Giant Pascal, and, in fact, most of the late
+varieties, the rows may be 4 1/2 to 5 feet apart and the plants 7 or 8
+inches in the row.
+
+The seed for an early crop should be sown in February or early in March
+in shallow boxes, which may be placed in a hotbed or sunny window, or
+sown directly in the soil of a hotbed. Cover the seeds thinly and press
+the soil firmly over them. When the seedling plants are about 1 inch
+high, they should be transplanted to other boxes or hotbeds, setting
+the plants 1 inch apart in rows 3 inches apart. At this transplanting,
+as with the following ones, the tall leaves should be cut or pinched
+off, leaving only the upright growth, as with the utmost care it is
+almost impossible to prevent the outside leafstalks from wilting down
+and dying. The roots should also be trimmed back at each transplanting
+in order to increase the feeding roots. The plants should be set as
+deep as possible, care being taken, however, not to allow the heart of
+the plant to be covered up. The varieties usually grown for an early
+crop are the so-called self-blanching varieties. They may be made fit
+for the table with much less labor than the late crop, the shade
+required to blanch the stalks being much less. When only a few short
+rows are grown in a private garden, screens of lath may be made by
+driving stakes on each side of the row and tacking lath on, leaving
+spaces of an inch or more for the light to enter; or each head may be
+wrapped in paper, or a tile drain pipe may be set over the plant. In
+fact, any material that will exclude the light will render the stalks
+white and brittle.
+
+The seed for the main or fall crop should be sown in April or early May
+in a seed-bed prepared by forking short well-rotted manure into a fine
+soil, sowing the seed thinly in rows 8 or 10 inches apart, covering the
+seed lightly and firming over the seed with the feet, hoe, or back of a
+spade. This seed-bed should be kept moist at all times until the seed
+germinates, either by close attention to watering or by a lath screen.
+The use of a piece of cloth laid directly on the soil, and the bed wet
+through the cloth, is often recommended, and if the cloth is always wet
+and taken off the bed as soon as the seed sprouts, it may be used.
+After the young plants have grown to the height of 1 or 2 inches they
+must be thinned out, leaving the plants so that they do not touch each
+other, and transplanting those thinned—if wanted—to other ground
+prepared in the same manner as the seed-bed. All these plants may be
+sheared or cut back to induce stockiness.
+
+An ounce of seed will furnish about three thousand plants.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 303. Storing celery in a trench in the field.]
+[Illustration: Fig. 304. A celery pit.]
+
+If in a private garden, the ground on which the fall crop is usually
+set will likely be that from which a crop of some early vegetable has
+been taken. This land should be again well enriched with fine,
+well-rotted manure, to which may be added a liberal quantity of wood
+ashes. If the manure or ashes is not easily obtained, a small amount
+may be used by plowing or digging out a furrow 8 or 12 inches deep,
+scattering the manure and ashes in the bottom of the trench and filling
+it up almost level with the surface. The plants should be set about the
+middle of July, preferably just before a rain. The plant bed should
+have a thorough soaking shortly before the plants are lifted, and each
+plant be trimmed, both top and root, before setting. The plants should
+be set from 5 to 6 inches apart in the rows and the earth well firmed
+around each one.
+
+The after-cultivation consists in thorough tillage until the time of
+“handling” or earthing up the plants. This process of handling is
+accomplished by drawing up the earth with one hand while holding the
+plant with the other, packing the soil well around the stalks. This
+process may be continued until only the leaves are to be seen. For the
+private grower, it is much easier to blanch the celery with boards or
+paper, or if the celery is not wanted until winter, the plants may be
+dug up, packed closely in boxes, covering the roots with soil, and
+placed in a dark, cool cellar, where the stalks will blanch themselves.
+In this way celery may be stored in boxes in the house cellar. Put
+earth in the bottom of a deep box, and plant the celery in it.
+
+Celery is sometimes stored in trenches in the open (Fig. 303), the
+roots being transplanted to such places in late fall. The plants are
+set close together and the trenches are covered with boards. A wider
+trench or pit may be made (Fig. 304) and covered with a shed roof.
+
+Chard, or Swiss chard,—is a development of the beet species
+characterized by large succulent leafstalks instead of enlarged roots.
+(Fig. 305). The leaves are very tender and make “greens” much like
+young beets. They are cultivated exactly like beets. Only one variety
+is offered by most seedsmen in this country, though in France and
+Germany several varieties are grown.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 305. Swiss chard.]
+
+Chicory is grown for two purposes,—for the roots and for the herbage.
+“Barbe de capucin” is a salad made from young shoots of chicory.
+
+The Magdeburg chicory is the variety usually spoken of, it being the
+one most extensively grown. The roots of this, after being ground and
+roasted, are used either as a substitute or an adulterant for coffee.
+
+The Witloof, a form of chicory, is used as a salad, or boiled and
+served in the same manner as cauliflower. The plants should be thinned
+to 6 inches. In the latter part of summer they should be banked up like
+celery, and the leaves used after becoming white and tender. This and
+the common wild chicory are often dug in the fall, the leaves cut off,
+the roots packed in sand in a cellar and watered until a new growth of
+leaves starts. These leaves grow rapidly and are very tender, making a
+fine salad vegetable. One packet of seed of the Witloof will furnish
+plants enough for a large family.
+
+Chervil.—The chervil is grown in two forms,—for the leaves, and for the
+tuberous roots.
+
+The curled chervil is a good addition to the list of garnishing and
+seasoning vegetables. Sow seeds and cultivate the same as parsley.
+
+The tuberous chervil resembles a short carrot or parnsip. It is much
+esteemed in France and Germany. The tubers have somewhat the flavor of
+a sweet potato, perhaps a little sweeter. They are perfectly hardy,
+and, like the parsnip, the better for frosts. The seed may be sown in
+September or October, as it does not keep well; or as soon as the
+ground is fit to work in the spring, it being slow to germinate after
+the weather becomes hot and dry. One packet of seed will give all the
+plants necessary for a family.
+
+
+XXIV. Golden bantam sweet corn. XXIV. Golden bantam sweet corn.
+
+Collards.—This is a name given to a kind of kale, used when young as
+greens; also to young cabbages used in the same way.
+
+The seed of any early cabbage may be sown thickly in rows 18 inches
+apart, from early spring to late fall. The plants are cut off when 6 or
+8 inches high and boiled as are other greens.
+
+The kale, or Georgia collards, is grown in the South, where cabbages
+fail to head. It grows to the height of 2 to 6 feet, furnishing a large
+quantity of leaves. The young leaves and tufts that arise as the old
+leaves are pulled off make excellent greens.
+
+Cives.—A small perennial of the onion family, used for flavoring.
+
+It is propagated by division of the root. It may be planted in a
+permanent place in the border, and, being completely hardy, will remain
+for years. The leaves are the parts used, as the roots are very rank in
+flavor. The leaves may be cut frequently, as they readily grow again.
+
+Corn salad.—This is one of the earliest spring salad vegetables, coming
+into condition with spinach, and needing the same culture.
+
+Sown in the fall, and covered with straw or hay when cold weather sets
+in, it will start into rapid growth when the covering is removed in
+March or April. Or the seed may be sown in early spring, and plants
+will be fit to use in six or eight weeks. One packet of seed will
+suffice for a small family.
+
+Corn, sweet or sugar.—This is the characteristic American table
+vegetable, and one that every home-gardener expects to grow. Too often,
+however, only one planting of one kind is made. The ears come to edible
+maturity almost simultaneously, and a short season is the result.
+
+The first planting of sweet corn should be made from May 1 to 10,
+planting early, intermediate, and late varieties at the same time, then
+at intervals of two weeks until the middle of July, when the late
+varieties should be planted, thus having a succession from the first
+crop until October.
+
+The soil for corn should be fertile and “quick.” The coarser manure
+left from the preparation of the ground for small crops may be used to
+good advantage. Corn for the garden is better planted in drills, the
+drills 3 feet apart, dropping the seed from 10 to 12 inches apart in
+the drills. One quart of seed will plant 200 hills.
+
+For extra early, Marblehead, Adams, Vermont, Minnesota, and Early Corey
+are favorites. A most excellent extra early yellow sweet corn, with
+kernels looking like small field corn, is Golden Bantam; the ears are
+small and would probably not attract the market buyer, but for home use
+the variety is unexcelled (Plate XXIV). For later crop, Crosby, Hickox,
+Shoe Peg, and Stowell Evergreen are now popular.
+
+Cress.—Two very unlike species of plants are grown under the name of
+cress,—the upland-cress and the water-cress. There are still other
+species, but not much known in this country.
+
+The upland cress, or the true pepper grass, may be grown on any garden
+soil. Sow early in the spring. It makes a rapid growth and can be cut
+in from four to five weeks. Succession of sowings must be made, as it
+runs quickly to seed. The curled variety is the one usually grown, as
+the leaves may be used for garnishing as well as for salads. One packet
+of seed will be sufficient for each sowing. Any good soil will do. Sow
+thickly in drills 12 to 18 inches apart. In summer it runs to seed
+quickly, so that it is usually grown in spring and fall.
+
+The water-cress is more exacting in its culture, and can be
+successfully grown only in moist places, such as edges of shallow
+slow-running creeks, open drains, or beds excavated near such streams.
+A few plants for private use may be grown in a frame, provided a
+retentive soil is used and attention given to watering the bed often.
+Watercress may be propagated from pieces of the stem, used as cuttings.
+If one is fond of water-cress, it is well to colonize it in some clean
+creek or pool. It will take care of itself year by year. Seeds may also
+be used for propagating it.
+
+Cucumber.—The custom of putting down cucumber pickles in the home
+kitchen is probably passing out; but both the pickling and the slicing
+cucumbers, especially the latter, are still an essential part of a good
+home garden. A stale or wilted cucumber is a very poor article of food.
+
+For early use, the cucumber is usually started in a hotbed or coldframe
+by sowing the seed on pieces of sod 4 to 6 inches square, turned grass
+side down. Three or four seeds are placed on or pushed into each piece
+of sod and covered with 1 to 2 inches of fine soil. The soil should be
+well watered and the glass or cloth placed over the frame. The roots
+will run through the sod. When the plants are large enough to set out,
+a flat trowel or a shingle may be slipped under the sod and the plants
+moved to the hill without check. In place of sod, old quart berry-boxes
+are good; after setting in the hill the roots may force their way
+through the cracks in the baskets. The baskets also decay rapidly.
+Flower-pots may be used. These plants from the frames may be set out
+when danger of frost is over, usually by the 10th of May, and should
+make a very rapid growth, yielding good-sized fruits in two months. The
+hills should be made rich by forking in a quantity of well-rotted
+manure, and given a slight elevation above the garden—not high enough
+to allow the wind to dry the soil, but slightly raised so that water
+will not stand around the roots.
+
+The main crop is grown from seed planted directly in the open, and the
+plants are grown under level culture.
+
+One ounce of seed will plant fifty hills of cucumbers. The hills may be
+4 to 5 feet apart each way.
+
+The White Spine is the leading general-purpose variety. For very early
+or pickling sorts, the Chicago, Russian, and other picklings are good.
+
+The striped beetle is an inveterate pest on cucumbers and squashes (see
+page 201).
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 306. West Indian gherkin (_Cucumis Anguria_).]
+
+The name gherkin is applied to small pickling cucumbers. The West India
+gherkin is a wholly distinct species, but is grown like cucumbers.
+(Fig. 306.)
+
+Dandelion.—Under domestication the dandelion has been developed until
+quite unrecognizable to the casual observer. The plants attain a large
+size and the leaves are much more tender.
+
+Sow in spring in well-manured soil, either in drills or in hills 1 foot
+apart. A cutting of leaves may be had in September or October, and some
+of the stools may stand until spring. The delicacy of the leaves may be
+improved by blanching them, either by the use of boards or earth. One
+trade packet of seed will supply a sufficient number for a family. The
+whole plant is destroyed when the crop of leaves is taken.
+
+The seed may be selected from the best field-grown plants, but it is
+better to buy the French seed of the seedsmen.
+
+Egg-plant.—The egg-plant or guinea squash has never become a popular
+home-garden product in the North. In the South it is better known.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 307. Black Pekin egg-plant.]
+
+Unless one has a greenhouse or a very warm hotbed, the growing of
+egg-plants in the North should be left to the professional gardener, as
+the young plants are very tender, and should be grown without a check.
+The seed should be sown in the hotbed or the greenhouse about April 10,
+keeping a temperature of 65° to 70°. When the seedlings have made three
+rough leaves, they may be pricked out into shallow boxes, or, still
+better, into 3-inch pots. The pots or boxes should be plunged to the
+rim in soil in a hotbed or coldframe so situated that protection may be
+given on chilly nights. The 10th of June is early enough to plant them
+out in central New York.
+
+The soil in which egg-plants are to grow cannot well be made too
+“quick,” as they have only a short season in which to develop their
+fruits. The plants are usually set 3 feet apart each way. A dozen
+plants are sufficient for the needs of a large family, as each plant
+should yield from two to six large fruits. The fruits are fit to eat at
+all stages of growth, from those the size of a large egg to their
+largest development. One ounce of seed will furnish 600 to 800 plants.
+
+The New York Improved Purple is the standard variety. Black Pekin (Fig.
+307) is good. For early, or for a short-season climate, the Early Dwarf
+Purple is excellent.
+
+Endive.—One of the best fall salad vegetables, being far superior to
+lettuce at that time and as easily grown.
+
+For fall use, the seed may be sown from June to August, and as the
+plants become fit to eat about the same time from sowing as lettuce
+does, a succession may be had until cold weather. The plants will need
+protection from the severe fall frosts, and this may be given by
+carefully lifting the plants and transplanting to a frame, where sash
+or cloth may be used to cover them in freezing weather.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 308. Endive tied up.]
+
+The leaves, which constitute practically the whole plant, are blanched
+before being used, either by tying together with some soft material
+(Fig. 308) or by standing boards on each side of the row, allowing the
+top of the boards to meet over the center of the row. Tie the leaves
+only when they are dry.
+
+The rows should be 1-1/2 or 2 feet apart, the plants 1 foot apart in
+the rows. One ounce of seed will sow 150 feet of drill.
+
+Garlic.—An onion-like plant, the bulbs of which are used for flavoring.
+
+Garlic is little known in this country except amongst those of foreign
+birth. It is multiplied the same as multiplier onions—the bulb is
+broken apart and each bulbule or “clove” makes a new compound bulb in a
+few weeks. Hardy; plant in early spring, or in the South in the fall.
+Plant 2 to 3 inches apart in the row.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 309. A good horseradish root.]
+
+Horseradish.—Widely used as an appetizer, and now grown commercially.
+As a kitchen-garden vegetable, this is usually planted in some
+out-of-the-way spot and a piece of the root dug as often as needed, the
+fragments of roots being left in the soil to grow for further use. This
+method results in having nothing but tough, stringy roots, very unlike
+the product of a properly planted and well-cared-for bed. A good
+horseradish root should be straight and shapely (Fig. 309).
+
+The best horseradish is secured from sets planted in the spring at the
+time of setting early cabbage, and dug as late the same fall as the
+weather will permit. It becomes, therefore, an annual crop. The roots
+for planting are small pieces, from 4 to 6 inches long, obtained when
+trimming the roots dug in the fall. These pieces may be packed in sand
+and stored until wanted the following spring.
+
+In planting, the roots should be set with the upper end 3 inches below
+the surface of the ground, using a dibber or sharp-pointed stick in
+making the holes. The crop may be planted between rows of early-sown
+beets, lettuce, or other crop, and given full possession of the ground
+when these crops are harvested. When the ground is inclined to be stiff
+or the subsoil is near the surface, the roots may be set in a slanting
+position. In fact, many gardeners practice this method of planting,
+thinking that the roots make a better growth and are more uniform in
+size.
+
+Kale.—Under this name, a great variety of cabbage-tribe plants is
+grown, some of them reaching a height of several feet. Usually,
+however, the name is applied to a low-growing, spreading plant,
+extensively used for winter and spring greens.
+
+The culture given to late cabbage is suitable. At the approach of
+severe freezing weather a slight protection is given in the North. The
+leaves remain green through the winter and may be gathered from under
+the snow at a time when material for greens is scarce. Some of the
+kales are very ornamental because of their blue and purple curled
+foliage. The Scotch Curled is the most popular variety. Let the plants
+stand 18 to 30 inches apart. Young cabbage plants are sometimes used as
+kale. Collards and borecole are kinds of kale. Sea-kale is a wholly
+different vegetable (which see).
+
+Kales are extensively grown at Norfolk, Va., and southward, and shipped
+North in winter, the plants being started in late summer or in fall.
+
+Kohlrabi is little known in the United States. It looks like a leafy
+turnip growing above ground.
+
+If used when small (2 to 3 inches in diameter), and not allowed to
+become hard and tough, it is of superior quality. It should be more
+generally grown. The culture is very simple. A succession of sowings
+should be made from early spring until the middle of summer, in drills
+18 inches to 2 feet apart, thinning the young plants to 6 or 8 inches
+in the rows. It matures as quickly as turnips. One ounce of seed to 100
+feet of drill.
+
+Leek.—The leek is little grown in this country except by persons of
+foreign extraction. The plant is one of the onion family, and is used
+mostly as flavoring for soups. Well-grown leeks have a very agreeable
+and not very strong onion flavor.
+
+Leek is of the easiest culture, and is usually grown as a second crop,
+to follow beets, early peas, and other early stuff. The seed should be
+sown in a seed-bed in April or early May and the seedlings planted out
+in the garden in July, in rows 2 feet apart, the plants being 6 inches
+apart in the rows. The plants should be set deep if the neck or lower
+part of the leaves is to be used in a blanched condition. The soil may
+be drawn towards the plants in hoeing, to further the blanching. Being
+very hardy, the plants may be dug in late fall, and stored the same as
+celery, in trenches or in a cool root-cellar. One ounce of seed to 100
+feet of drill.
+
+Lettuce is the most extensively grown salad vegetable. It is now in
+demand, and is procurable, every month in the year. The winter and
+early spring crops are grown in forcing-houses and coldframes, but a
+supply from the garden may be had from April to November, by the use of
+a cheap frame in which to grow the first and last crops, relying on a
+succession of sowings for the intermediate supply.
+
+Seed for the first crop may be sown in a coldframe in March, growing
+the crop thick and having many plants which are small and tender; or,
+by thinning out to the distance of 3 inches and allowing the plants to
+make a larger growth, the plants pulled up may be set in the open
+ground for the next crop.
+
+Sowings should be made in the garden from April to October, at short
+intervals. A moist location should be chosen for the July and August
+sowings. The early and late sowings should be of some loose-growing
+variety, as they are in edible condition sooner than the cabbage or
+heading varieties.
+
+The cabbage varieties are far superior to the loose-growing kinds for
+salads. To be grown to perfection, they should have very rich soil,
+frequent cultivation, and an occasional stimulant, such as liquid
+manure or nitrate of soda.
+
+The cos lettuce is an upright-growing type much esteemed in Europe, but
+less grown here. The leaves of the full-grown plants are tied together,
+thus blanching the center, making it a desirable salad or garnishing
+variety. It thrives best in summer.
+
+One ounce of seed will grow 3000 plants or sow 100 feet of drill. In
+the garden, plants may stand 6 inches apart in the rows, and the rows
+may be as close together as the system of tillage will allow.
+
+Mushroom.—Sooner or later, the novice wants to grow mushrooms. While it
+is easy to describe the conditions under which they may be grown, it
+does not follow that a crop may be predicted with any certainty.
+
+Latterly, careful studies have been made of the growing of mushrooms
+from spores and of the principles involved in the making of spawn, with
+the hope of reducing the whole subject of mushroom growing to a
+rational basis. A good idea of this work may be had by reading Duggar’s
+contribution on the subject in Bulletin 85 of the Bureau of Plant
+Industry, United States Department of Agriculture. In this place,
+however, we may confine ourselves to the customary horticultural
+practice.
+
+The following paragraphs are from “Farmers’ Bulletin,” No. 53 (by
+William Falconer), of the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture (March, 1897):—
+
+Mushrooms are a winter crop, coming in from September till April or
+May—that is, the work of preparing the manure begins in September and
+ends in February, and the packing of the crop begins in October or
+November and ends in May. Under extraordinary conditions the season may
+begin earlier and last longer, and, in fact, it may continue all
+summer.
+
+Mushrooms can be grown almost anywhere out of doors, and also indoors
+where there is a dry bottom in which to set the beds, where a uniform
+and moderate temperature can be maintained, and where the beds can be
+protected from wet overhead, and from winds, drought, and direct
+sunshine. Among the most desirable places in which to grow mushrooms
+are barns, cellars, closed tunnels, sheds, pits, greenhouses, and
+regular mushroom houses. Total darkness is not imperative, for
+mushrooms grow well in open light if shaded from sunshine. The
+temperature and moisture are more apt to be equable in dark places than
+in open, light ones, and it is largely for this reason that mushroom
+houses are kept dark.
+
+The best fertilizer for mushrooms, so far as the writer’s experience
+goes, is fresh horse manure. Get together a lot of this material (short
+and strawy) that has been well trampled and wetted in the stable. Throw
+it into a heap, wet it well if it is at all dry, and let it heat. When
+it begins to steam, turn it over, shake it well so as to mix thoroughly
+and evenly, and then tramp it down solid. After this let it stand till
+it again gets quite warm; then turn, shake, trample as before, and add
+water freely if it is getting dry. Repeat this turning, moistening, and
+trampling as often as it is needful to keep the manure from “burning.”
+If it gets intensely hot, spread it out to cool, after which again
+throw it together. After being turned in this way several times, and
+the heat in it is not apt to rise above 130° F., it should be ready to
+make up in the beds. By adding to the manure at the second or third
+turning one-fourth or one-fifth of its bulk of loam, the tendency to
+intense heating is lessened and its usefulness not at all impaired.
+Some growers prefer short manure exclusively, that is, the horse
+droppings, while others like a good deal of straw mixed in with this.
+The writer’s experience, however, is that, if properly prepared, it
+matters little which is used.
+
+Ordinarily the beds are only 8 to 10 inches deep; that is, they are
+faced with 10-inch-wide hemlock boards, and are only the depth of this
+board. In such beds put a layer of fresh, moist, hot manure, and
+trample it down firm until it constitutes half the depth of the bed;
+then fill up with the prepared manure, which should be rather cool
+(100° to 115°F.) when used, and pack all firmly. If desired, the beds
+can be made up entirely of the prepared manure. Shelf beds are usually
+9 inches deep; that is, the shelf is bottomed with 1-inch boards and
+faced with 10-inch wide boards. This allows about 8 inches for manure,
+and 1 inch rising to 2 inches of loam on top. In filling the shelf beds
+the bottom half may be of fresh, moist or wettish, hot manure, packed
+down solid, and the top half of rather cool prepared manure, or it may
+be made up of all prepared manure. As the shelf beds cannot be trodden
+and cannot be beaten very firm with the back of the fork, a brick is
+used in addition to the fork.
+
+The beds should be spawned after the heat in them has fallen below 100°
+F. The writer considers 90° F. about the best temperature for spawning.
+If the beds have been covered with hay, straw, litter, or mats, these
+should be removed. Break each brick into twelve or fifteen pieces. The
+rows should be, say, 1 foot apart, the first one being 6 inches from
+the edge, and the pieces should be 9 inches apart in the row.
+Commencing with the first row, lift up each piece, raise 2 to 3 inches
+of the manure with the hand, and into this hole place the piece,
+covering over tightly with the manure. When the entire bed is spawned,
+pack the surface all over. It is well to cover the beds again with
+straw, hay, or mats, to keep the surface equally moist. The flake spawn
+is planted in the same way as the brick spawn, only not quite so deep.
+
+At the end of eight or nine days the mulching should be removed and the
+beds covered with a layer of good loam 2 inches thick, so that the
+mushrooms can come up in and through it. This gives them a firm hold,
+and to a large extent improves their quality and texture. Any fair loam
+will do. That from an ordinary field, wayside, or garden is generally
+used, and it answers admirably. There exists an idea that garden soil
+surfeited with old manure is unfit for mushroom beds because it is apt
+to produce spurious fungi. This, however, is not the case. In fact, it
+is the earth most commonly used. For molding the beds the loam should
+be rather fine, free, and mellow, so that it can be easily and evenly
+spread and compacted firmly into the manure.
+
+If an even atmospheric temperature of from 55° to 60° F. can be
+maintained, and the house or cellar containing the mushroom beds is
+kept close and free from drafts, the beds may be left uncovered, and
+should be watered if they become dry. But no matter where the beds are
+situated, it is well to lay some loose hay or straw or some old matting
+or carpet over them to keep them moist. The covering, however, should
+be removed just as soon as the young mushrooms begin to appear above
+ground. If the atmosphere is dry, the pathways and walls should be
+sprinkled with water. The mulching should also be sprinkled, but not
+enough to cause the water to soak into the bed. However, if the bed
+should get dry, do not hesitate to water it.
+
+Mustard.—Almost all the mustards are good for greens, though white
+mustard is usually best. Chinese mustard is also valuable.
+
+Seed should be sown in drills, 3 to 3-1/2 feet apart, and covered with
+a half inch of soil. The ease with which they may be grown, and the
+abundance of herbage which they yield, mark their special utility. Sow
+very early for spring greens, and in late summer or early September for
+fall greens.
+
+Muskmelon.—The most delicious of all garden vegetables eaten from the
+hand, and of simple cultivation; but like many another plant that is
+easy to grow it often fails completely. The season and soil must be
+warm and the growth continuous.
+
+The natural soil for melons is a light, sandy loam, well enriched with
+rotted manure, although good crops may be grown on land naturally heavy
+if the hills are specially prepared. When only heavy soil is available,
+the earth where the seeds are to be planted should be thoroughly
+pulverized and mixed with fine, well-rotted manure. A sprinkling of
+leafmold or chip-dirt will help to lighten it. On this hill from ten to
+fifteen seeds may be sown, thinning to four or five vines when danger
+of insects is over.
+
+The season may be advanced and the damage from insects lessened by
+starting the plants in hotbeds. This may be done by using fresh sod,
+cut into 6-inch pieces, placing them grass-side down in the hotbed,
+sowing eight to ten seeds on each piece, and covering with 2 inches of
+light soil. When all danger of frost is over, and the ground has become
+warm, these sods may be carefully lifted and set in the prepared hills.
+The plants usually grow without check, and fruit from two to four weeks
+ahead of those from seed planted directly in the hill. Old quart
+berry-boxes are excellent to plant seeds in, as, when they are set in
+the ground, they very quickly decay, causing no restriction to the
+roots.
+
+Netted Gem, Hackensack, Emerald Gem, Montreal, Osage, and the Nutmeg
+melon are popular varieties. One ounce of seed will plant about fifty
+hills.
+
+Okra.—A plant of the cotton family, from the green pods of which is
+made the well-known gumbo soup of the South, where the plant is more
+extensively grown than in the North. The pods are also used in their
+green state for stews, and are dried and used in winter, when they are
+nutritious, and form no little part of the diet in certain sections of
+the country.
+
+The seeds are very sensitive to cold and moisture, and should not be
+sown until the ground has become warm—the last week in May or the first
+of June being early enough in New York. The seed should be sown in a
+drill 1 inch deep, the plants thinned to stand 12 inches in the row.
+Give the same culture as for corn. One ounce will sow 40 feet of drill.
+Dwarf varieties are best for the North. Green Density and Velvet are
+leading varieties.
+
+Onion.—A few onions, of one kind or another, give character to every
+good kitchen-garden. They are grown from seeds (“black seed”) for the
+main crop. They are also grown from sets (which are very small onions,
+arrested in their development); from “tops” (which are bulblets
+produced in the place of flowers); and from multipliers or potato
+onions, which are compound bulbs.
+
+The extremely early crop of onions is grown from sets, and the late or
+fall crop is grown from seed sown in April or early May. The sets may
+be saved from the crop harvested the previous fall, saving no bulbs
+measuring over three-fourths of an inch in diameter, or, better, they
+may be purchased from the seedsman. These sets should be planted as
+early as possible in the spring, preferably on land that has been
+manured and trenched in the fall. Plant in rows 12 inches apart, the
+sets being 2 or 3 inches in the row. Push the sets well down into the
+ground and cover with soil, firming them with the feet or a roller. In
+cultivating, the soil should be thrown towards the tops, as the white
+stems are usually sought as an indication of mildness. The crop will be
+in condition to use in three to four weeks, and may be made to last
+until small seed onions are to be had. Tops or multipliers may also be
+used for the early crop.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 310. Bunch onions, grown from seed.]
+
+
+In growing onions from seed, it is only necessary to say that the seed
+should be in the ground very early in order that the bulbs make their
+growth before the extreme hot weather of August, when, for want of
+moisture and because of the heat, the bulbs will ripen up while small.
+Early in April, in New York, if the ground is in condition, the seed
+should be sown thickly in drills from 12 to 16 inches apart, and the
+ground above the seeds well firmed. Good cultivation and constant
+weeding is the price of a good crop of onions. In cultivating and
+hoeing, the soil should be kept away from the rows, not covering the
+growing bulbs, but allowing them to spread over the surface of the
+ground. When the crop is ready to be harvested, the bulbs may be pulled
+or cultivated up, left to dry in double rows for several days, the tops
+and roots taken off, and the bulbs stored in a dry place. Later in the
+season they may be allowed to freeze, covering with chaff or straw to
+hold them frozen, and kept until early spring; but this method is
+usually unsafe with beginners, and always so in a changeable climate.
+Onion seed should always be fresh when sown—preferably of the last
+year’s crop. One ounce of onion seed will sow 100 feet of drill.
+
+One of the recent methods of securing extra large and also early bulbs
+from seed is to sow the seed in a hotbed in February or early March,
+and transplant to the open ground in April. A bunch of onions, for
+eating from hand, is shown in Fig. 310.
+
+The Danvers, Prizetaker, Globe, and Wethersfield are favorite
+varieties, with the addition of White Queen or Barletta for pickling.
+
+Parsley.—This is the most universal of garnishes. It is used also as a
+flavoring in soups.
+
+The seed is slow to germinate, and often the second or third sowing is
+made, thinking the first is a failure; but usually after what would
+seem a long time the young plants will be seen. When sown in the open
+ground, it should be thinned to stand 3 or 4 inches in the row, the
+rows being 10 to 12 inches apart. A few plants in a border will give a
+supply for a large family, and with a little protection will live over
+winter.
+
+Roots may be lifted in the fall, put into boxes or old cans, and grown
+in a sunny window for winter use. The Curled parsley is the form
+commonly used.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 311. The Student parsnip, a leading variety]
+
+Parsnip.—A standard winter and spring vegetable, of the easiest culture
+in deep soil (Fig. 311).
+
+Parsnips are the better for the winter’s freeze, although they are of
+good quality if taken up after the fall frosts and packed in soil,
+sand, or moss in the cellar.
+
+The seed, which must be not over one year old, should be sown as early
+as possible in well-prepared soil, firmed with the feet or roller. As
+the seed germinates rather slowly, the ground often becomes crusted or
+baked over the seeds, in which case it should be broken and fined with
+a garden rake. This operation often means the success of the crop.
+Radish or cabbage seeds may be sown with the parsnip seed to mark the
+row and break the crust. One ounce of seed will sow 200 feet of drill.
+Thin to 6 inches apart in the row.
+
+Pea.—Perhaps no vegetable is planted in greater expectancy than the
+pea. It is one of the earliest seeds to go into the ground, and the
+planting fever is impatient.
+
+There is great difference in quality between the smooth and the
+wrinkled peas. The first are a little the earliest to be planted and to
+become fit for use, and on that account should be planted in a small
+way; but the wrinkled sorts are much superior in quality.
+
+The early crop of peas may be forwarded by sprouting the seeds indoors.
+Soil may be made too rich or strong for peas.
+
+For the kitchen-garden the dwarf and half-dwarf varieties are the best,
+as the tall kinds will need brush or wire to support them, causing
+considerable trouble and labor and not being as neat in appearance. The
+dwarf varieties should be planted four rows in a block, each row being
+only 6 or 8 inches apart. The peas on the two center rows may be picked
+from the outside. Leave a space of 2 feet and plant the same.
+
+The tall varieties yield a larger crop than the dwarfs, but as the rows
+must be made from 3 to 5 feet apart, the dwarf ones, which are planted
+only 6 to 8 inches apart, will give as large a yield on the same area.
+Always plant double rows of the tall varieties; that is, two rows from
+4 to 6 inches apart, with the brush or wire between, the double rows
+being from 3 to 5 feet apart, according to varieties.
+
+At the time of the first planting only the smooth varieties should be
+sown, but by the middle of April in New York the ground will be warm
+and dry enough for wrinkled sorts. Succession crops should be sown that
+will come to maturity one after the other, extending the season six or
+eight weeks. If a further supply is wanted, the early quick-maturing
+varieties may be sown in August, usually giving a fair crop of peas in
+September and early October. In the hot weather of midsummer they do
+not thrive so well. One quart of seed will plant about 100 feet of
+drill.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 312. One of the bell peppers.]
+
+Pepper.—The garden pepper is not the pepper of commerce; it is more
+properly known as red pepper (though the pods are not always red),
+chilli, and capsicum. The pods are much used in the South, and most
+Northern households now employ them to some extent.
+
+Peppers are tender while young, although they will endure a heavy frost
+in the fall. Their culture is that recommended for egg-plants. A small
+seedsman’s packet of seed will be sufficient for a large number of
+plants, say two hundred. The large bell peppers (Fig. 312) are the
+mildest, and are used for making “stuffed peppers” and other dishes.
+The small, hot peppers are used for seasoning and sauces.
+
+Potato.—The potato is rather more a field crop than a home-garden
+product; yet the home-gardener often desires to grow a small early lot.
+
+The common practice of growing potatoes on elevated ridges or hills is
+wrong, unless the soil is so wet that this practice is necessary to
+insure proper drainage (but in this case the land is not adapted to the
+growing of potatoes), or unless it is necessary, in a particular place,
+to secure a very early crop. If the land is elevated into ridges or
+hills, there is great loss of moisture by means of evaporation. During
+the last cultivating the potatoes may be hilled up slightly in order to
+cover the tubers; but the hills should not be made in the beginning for
+the main crop if land and conditions are right.
+
+Land for potatoes should be rather loamy in character, and ought to
+have a liberal supply of potash, either naturally or supplied in the
+drill, by means of an application of sulfate of potash. See that the
+land is deeply plowed or spaded, so that the roots can penetrate
+deeper. Plant the potatoes 3 or 4 inches below the natural surface of
+the ground. It is ordinarily best to drop the pieces in drills. A
+continuous drill or row may be made by dropping one piece every 6
+inches, but it is usually thought best to drop two pieces about every
+12 to 18 inches. The drills are far enough apart to allow good
+cultivation. If horse cultivation is used, the drills should be at
+least 3 feet apart.
+
+Small potatoes are considered not to be so good as large ones for
+planting. One reason is because too many sprouts arise from each one,
+and these sprouts are likely to crowd each other. The same is true of
+the tip end or seed end of the tuber. Even when the tip is cut off, the
+eyes are so numerous that one secures many weak shoots rather than two
+or three strong ones. It is ordinarily best to cut the potatoes to two
+or three eyes, leaving as much tuber as possible with each piece. From
+7 to 10 bushels of potatoes are required to plant an acre.
+
+
+XXV. The garden radish, grown in fall of the usual spring sorts. XXV.
+The garden radish, grown in fall of the usual spring sorts.
+
+For a very early crop in the garden, tubers are sometimes sprouted in
+the cellar. When the sprouts are 4 to 6 inches high, the tubers are
+carefully planted. It is essential that the sprouts are not broken in
+the handling. In this practice, also, the tubers are first cut into
+large pieces, so that they will not dry out too much.
+
+The staple remedy for the potato bug is Paris green, 2 pounds or more
+of poison to 150 to 200 gallons of water, with a little lime. For the
+blight, spray with bordeaux mixture, and spray thoroughly. Bordeaux
+mixture will also keep away the flea beetle to a large extent.
+
+Radish (Plate XXV).—In all parts of the country the radish is popular
+as a side-dish, being used as an appetizer and for its decorative
+character. It is a poor product, however, if misshapen, wormy, or
+tough.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 313. French Breakfast and olive-shaped radishes.]
+
+Radishes should be grown quickly in order to have them at their best.
+They become tough and woody if grown slowly or allowed to stay in the
+ground too long. A light soil, well enriched, will grow most of the
+early varieties to table size in three to five weeks. To have a supply
+through the early months, sowings should be made every two weeks. For
+spring use, the French Breakfast is still a standard variety (Fig.
+313).
+
+For summer, the large white or gray varieties are best. The winter
+varieties may be sown in September, harvested before severe frosts, and
+stored in sand in a cool cellar. When they are to be used, if thrown
+into cold water for a short time they will regain their crispness.
+
+Sow radishes thickly in drills, 12 to 18 inches apart. Thin as needed.
+
+Rhubarb, or Pie plant.—A strong perennial herb, to be grown in a bed or
+row by itself at one end or side of the garden. It is a heavy feeder.
+
+Rhubarb is usually propagated by division of the fleshy roots, small
+pieces of which will grow if separated from the old established roots
+and planted in rich mellow soil. Poor soil should be made rich by
+spading out at least 3 feet of the surface, filling with well-rotted
+manure to within 1 foot of the level, throwing in the top soil and
+setting the roots with the crowns 4 inches below the surface, firming
+them with the feet. The stalks should not be cut for use until the
+second year. See that the plant does not want for water when it is
+making its heavy leaf growth. In fall, coarse manure should be thrown
+over the crowns, to be forked or spaded in lightly when spring opens.
+
+In growing seedling rhubarb, the seed may be sown in a coldframe in
+March or April, protected from freezing, and in two months the plants
+will be ready to set in rows, 12 inches apart. Give the plants good
+cultivation, and the following spring they may be set in a permanent
+place. At this time the plants should be set in well-prepared ground,
+at a distance each way of 4 to 5 feet, and treated as those set with
+pieces of roots.
+
+If given good care and well manured, the plants will live for years and
+yield abundantly. Two dozen good roots will supply a large family.
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 314. Salsify, or oyster plant.]
+
+Salsify, or Vegetable oyster (Fig. 314).—Salsify is one of the best of
+winter and early spring vegetables, and should be grown in every
+garden. It may be cooked in several different ways, to bring out the
+oyster flavor.
+
+The seed should be sown as early in the spring as possible. Handle the
+same as parsnips in every way. The roots, like parsnips, are the better
+for the winter freeze, but part of the crop should be dug in the fall,
+and stored in soil or moss in a cellar for winter use.
+
+Sea-kale is a strong-rooted perennial, the shoots of which are very
+highly prized as a delicacy when blanched.
+
+Seed should be sown in a hotbed early in the spring, plants
+transplanted to the garden when from 2 to 3 inches high, and given good
+cultivation through the season, being covered with litter on the
+approach of winter. The young stalks are blanched early the following
+spring by covering with large pots or boxes, or by banking with sand or
+other clean material. The Dwarf Green Scotch, Dwarf Brown, and Siberian
+are among the leading varieties. Sea-kale is eaten much as asparagus
+is. It is highly prized by those who know it.
+
+Sea-kale is also propagated by cuttings of the roots 4 or 5 inches
+long, planted directly in the soil in spring. The plant being
+perennial, the early shoots may be bleached year after year.
+
+Sorrel of the European garden sorts may be sown in spring, in drills 16
+inches apart in beds, or 3 to 3-1/2 feet apart in rows. After the
+plants are well established they should be thinned to 10 to 12 inches
+apart in the rows. They are perennial, and may be kept growing in the
+same place for several years. Broad-leaved French is the most popular
+variety.
+
+Spearmint is prized by many persons as a seasoning, particularly for
+the Thanksgiving and holiday cookery.
+
+It is a perennial and perfectly hardy, and will live in the open garden
+year after year. If a supply of the fresh herbage is wanted in winter,
+remove sods of it to the house six weeks before wanted. Place the sods
+in boxes, and treat as for house plants. The plants should have been
+frosted and become perfectly dormant before removal.
+
+Spinach.—The most extensively grown of all “greens,” being in season in
+earliest spring, and in fall and winter.
+
+The earliest spinach that finds its way to market is produced from seed
+sown in September or October, often protected by frames or other means
+through the severe winter, and cut soon after growth starts in early
+spring. Even as far north as New York spinach may stand over winter
+without protection.
+
+Spinach is forced by placing sash over the frames in February and
+March, protecting the young leaves from severe freezing by mats or
+straw thrown over the frames.
+
+Seed may be sown in early spring for a succession; later in the season
+seed of the New Zealand summer spinach may be sown, and this will grow
+through the heat of the summer and yield a fine quality of leaves. The
+seed of this kind, being very hard, should be scalded and allowed to
+soak a few hours before sowing. This seed is usually sown in hills
+about 3 feet apart, sowing four to six seed in each hill.
+
+The spring and winter spinach should be sown in drills 12 to 14 inches
+apart, one ounce being sufficient for 100 feet of drill. Remember that
+common spinach is a cool-weather (fall and spring) crop.
+
+Squash.—The summer squashes rarely fail of a crop if they once escape
+the scourge of the striped beetle. The late varieties are not so
+certain; they must secure a strong start, and be on “quick” fertile
+warm land in order to make a crop before the cool nights of fall (Fig.
+315).
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 315. One of the so-called Japanese type of squash
+(_Cucurbita moschata_).]
+
+The time of planting, method of preparing the hills, and after-culture
+are the same as for cucumbers and melons, except that for the early
+bush varieties the hills should be 4 or 5 feet apart, and for the later
+running varieties from 6 to 8 feet apart. From eight to ten seeds
+should be planted in each hill, thinning to four plants after danger
+from bugs is over. Of the early squashes, one ounce of seed will plant
+fifty hills; of the later varieties, one ounce will plant but eighteen
+to twenty hills. For winter use, varieties of the Hubbard type are
+best. For summer use, the Crooknecks and Scallop squashes are popular.
+In growing winter squashes in a Northern climate, it is essential that
+the plants start off quickly and vigorously: a little chemical
+fertilizer will help.
+
+Pumpkins are grown the same as squashes.
+
+Sweet-potato is rarely grown north of Philadelphia; in the South it is
+a universal garden crop.
+
+Sweet-potatoes are grown from sprouts planted on ridges or hills, not
+by planting the tubers, as with the common or Irish potato. The method
+of obtaining these sprouts is as follows: In April, tubers of
+sweet-potatoes are planted in a partially spent hotbed by using the
+whole tuber (or if a large one, by cutting it in two through the long
+way), covering the tubers with 2 inches of light, well-firmed soil. The
+sash should be put on the frames and only enough ventilation given to
+keep the potatoes from decaying. In ten or twelve days the young
+sprouts should begin to appear, and the bed should be watered if dry.
+The sprouts when pulled from the tuber will be found to have rootlets
+at the lower end and along the stems. These sprouts should be about 3
+to 5 inches long by the time the ground is warm enough to plant them
+out on their ridges.
+
+The ridges or hills should be prepared by plowing out a furrow 4 to 6
+inches deep. Scatter manure in the furrow and plow back the soil so as
+to raise the center at least 6 inches above the level of the soil. On
+this ridge the plants are set, placing the plants well in to the leaves
+and about 12 to 18 inches apart in the rows, the rows being from 3 to 4
+feet apart.
+
+The after-cultivation consists in stirring the soil between the ridges;
+and as the vines begin to run they should be lifted frequently to
+prevent rooting at the joints. When the tips of the vines have been
+touched by frost the crop may be harvested, the tubers left to dry a
+few days, and stored in a dry, warm place.
+
+To keep sweet potatoes, store in layers in barrels or boxes in dry
+sand, and keep them in a dry room See that all bruised or chilled
+potatoes are thrown out.
+
+[Illustration: 316. A good form or type of tomato.]
+
+Tomato.—The tomato is an inhabitant of practically every home garden,
+and everybody understands its culture (Fig. 316).
+
+The early fruits are very easily grown by starting the plants in a
+greenhouse, hotbed, or in shallow boxes placed in windows. A pinch of
+seed sown in March will give all the early plants a large family can
+use. When the plants have reached the height of 2 or 3 inches, they
+should be transplanted into 3-inch flower-pots, old berry boxes, or
+other receptacles, and allowed to grow slowly and stocky until time to
+set them out, which is from May 15 on (in New York). They should be set
+in rows 4 or 5 feet apart, the plants being the same distance in the
+rows.
+
+[Illustration: 317. A tomato trellis.]
+
+Some support should be given to keep the fruits off the ground and to
+hasten the ripening. A trellis of chicken-wire makes an excellent
+support, as does the light lath fencing that may be bought or made at
+home. Stout stakes, with wire strung the length of the rows, afford an
+excellent support. A very showy method is that of a frame made like an
+inverted V, which allows the fruits to hang free; with a little
+attention to trimming, the light reaches the fruits and ripens them
+perfectly (Fig. 317). This support is made by leaning together two lath
+frames.
+
+The late fruits may be picked green and ripened on a shelf in the sun;
+or they will ripen if placed in a drawer.
+
+One ounce of seed will be enough for from twelve to fifteen hundred
+plants. A little fertilizer in the hill will start the plants off
+quickly. The rot is less serious when the vines are kept off the ground
+and the rampant suckers are cut out. Varieties pass out and new ones
+come into notice, so that a list is of small permanent value.
+
+Turnips and Rutabagas are little grown in home gardens; and yet a finer
+quality of vegetable than most persons know could be secured if these
+plants were raised on one’s own soil and brought fresh to the table.
+They are usually a fall crop, from seed sown in July and early August,
+although some kitchen-gardens have them from spring-sown The culture is
+easy.
+
+Turnips should be grown in drills, like beets, for the early crop. The
+young plants will stand light frosts. Choose a rainy day for planting,
+if practicable. Cover the seed very lightly. Thin the young plants to 5
+to 7 inches in the row. Sow every two weeks if a constant supply is
+desired, as turnips rapidly become hard and woody in warm summer
+weather. For the fall and winter crop in the North,
+
+“On the fourteenth day of July,
+Sow your turnips, wet or dry.”
+
+In many parts of the northern and middle states tradition fixes the
+25th of July as the proper time for sowing flat turnips for winter use.
+In the middle states, turnips are sometimes sown as late as the end of
+August. Prepare a piece of very mellow ground, and sow the seed thinly
+and evenly broadcast. In spite of the old rhyme, a gentle shower will
+then be acceptable. These turnips are pulled after frost, the tops
+removed, and the roots stored in cellars or pits.
+
+For the early crop, Purple-top Strap-leaf, Early White Flat Dutch, and
+Early Purple-top Milan are the favorite varieties. Yellow-fleshed sorts
+like Golden Ball are very fine for early table use, when well grown,
+but most eaters prefer white turnips in spring, although they
+occasionally patronize the yellow varieties in the fall. Yellow Globe
+is the favorite yellow fall turnip, though some persons grow yellow
+rutabagas and call them turnips. For late crop of white turnips, the
+same varieties chosen for spring sowing are also desirable.
+
+Rutabagas are distinguished from turnips by their smooth, bluish
+foliage, long root, and yellow flesh. They are richer than turnips;
+they require the same treatment, except that the season of growth is
+longer. Fall-sown or summer-sown bagas should have a month the start of
+flat turnips.
+
+Except the maggot (see cabbage maggot), there are no serious insects or
+diseases peculiar to turnips and bagas.
+
+Watermelon.—The watermelon is shipped everywhere in such enormous
+quantities, and it covers so much space in the garden, that
+home-gardeners in the North seldom grow it. When one has room, it
+should be added to the kitchen-garden.
+
+The culture is essentially that for muskmelons (which see), except that
+most varieties require a warmer place and longer period of growth. Give
+the hills a distance of 6 to 10 feet apart. Choose a warm, “quick” soil
+and sunny exposure. It is essential, in the North, that the plants grow
+rapidly and come into bloom early. One ounce of seed will plant thirty
+hills.
+
+There are several white or yellow-fleshed varieties, but aside from
+their oddity of appearance they have little value. A good watermelon
+has a solid, bright red flesh, preferably with black seeds, and a
+strong protecting rind. Kolb Gem, Jones, Boss, Cuban Queen, and Dixie
+are among the best varieties. There are early varieties that will ripen
+in the Northern season, and make a much better melon than those secured
+on the market.
+
+The so-called “citron,” with hard white flesh, used in making
+preserves, is a form of watermelon.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XI
+SEASONAL REMINDERS
+
+The author assumes that a person who is intelligent enough to make a
+garden, does not need an arbitrary calendar of operations. Too exact
+advice is misleading and unpractical. Most of the older gardening books
+were arranged wholly on the calendar method—giving specific directions
+for each month in the year. We have now accumulated sufficient fact and
+experience, however, to enable us to state principles; and these
+principles can be applied anywhere,—when supplemented by good
+judgment,—whereas mere rules are arbitrary and generally useless for
+any other condition than that for which they were specifically made.
+The regions of gardening experience have expanded enormously within the
+past fifty and seventy-five years. Seasons and conditions vary so much
+in different years and different places that no hard and fast advice
+can be given for the performing of gardening operations, yet brief
+hints for the proper work of the various months may be useful as
+suggestions and reminders.
+
+The Monthly Reminders are compiled from files of the “American Garden”
+of some years back, when the author had editorial charge of that
+magazine. The advice for the North (pages 504 to 516) was written by T.
+Greiner, La Salle, N.Y. well known as a gardener and author. That for
+the South (pages 516 to 526) was made by H.W. Smith, Baton Rouge, La.,
+for the first nine months, and it was extended for “Garden-Making” to
+the months of October, November, and December by F.H. Burnette,
+Horticulturist of the Louisiana Experiment Station.
+
+
+KITCHEN-GARDEN PLANTING TABLE
+
+
+A GUIDE TO THE PROPER TIMES FOR SOWING OF VARIOUS SEEDS IN ORDER TO
+OBTAIN CONTINUOUS SUCCESSION OF CROPS
+
+Explanation of Signs Used In the Table.
+
+(0)To be sown in open ground without transplanting. Plants have to be
+thinned out, given proper distance.
+
+(1) Sow in seed bed in the garden, and transplant thence to permanent
+place.
+
+(2) Make two sowings in open ground during the month.
+
+(3) Make three sowings in open ground during the month.
+
+(4) Start in greenhouse or hot-bed, and plant out so soon as the ground
+is in good shape, and weather permits.
+
+(5) Sow in open ground as soon as it can be worked.
+
+(6) To be grown only in hot-bed or greenhouse.
+
+(7) Sow in cold frame, keep plants there over winter with a little
+protection; plant out in spring as soon as the ground can be worked.
+
+(8) To be sown in open ground, and protected with litter over winter.
+
+(9) Plant in frame. When cold weather sets in, cover with sash and
+straw mats. Plants will be ready for use in December and January.
+
+(10) Plant in cellar, barn or under benches in greenhouse.
+
+(11) Plant outdoors on prepared beds.
+
+(12) Sow every week in greenhouse or frame, to have a good succession.
+
+
+VEGETABLES IN THE KITCHEN GARDEN
+Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	N
+ov	Dec Artichoke, American	 - 	 - 	 - 	(0)	(0)	 -
+	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - Artichoke,French	 -
+	(4)	 - 	(1)	(1)	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - 	 -
+	 - Beans,
+Bush	(6)	(6)	(6)	(0)	(2)	(2)	(2)	(0)	 - 	
+- 	 - 	 - Beans, Pole and Lima	 - 	 - 	 - 	 -
+	(0)	(0)	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - Beets	 -
+	 - 	(4)	(4)	(0)	(0)	(0)	(0)	 - 	 - 	 -
+	 - Borecole, Kale	 - 	 - 	 - 	 -
+	(1)	(1)	(1)	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - Broccoli	 -
+	(4)	(4)	(1)	(1)	(1)	 - 	 - 	(7)	(7)	 -
+	 - Brussels Sprouts	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - 	(1)	(1)	 -
+	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - Cabbage, all sorts	 -
+	(4)	(4)	(1)	(1)	(1)	 - 	 - 	(7)	(7)	 -
+	 - Cardoon	 - 	(4)	(4)	(1)	(1)	(1)	 - 	 -
+	 - 	 - 	 - 	 -
+Carrot	(6)	(6)	(5)	(0)	(0)	(0)	(0)	 - 	 -
+	 - 	 - 	 -
+Cauliflower	(6)	(4)	(4)	(1)	(1)	(1)	 - 	 - 	
+- 	 - 	 - 	 - Celeriac	 -
+	(4)	(4)	(1)	(1)	(1)	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - 	 -
+	 - Celery	 - 	(4)	(4)	(1)	(1)	(1)	 - 	 -
+	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - Chicory	 - 	 -
+	(5)	(0)	(0)	(0)	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - 	 -
+Collards	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - 	 -
+	(0)	(0)	(0)	 - 	 - 	 - Corn, field	 - 	 - 	
+- 	(0)	(0)	(0)	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - Corn,
+Sweet	 - 	 - 	 - 	(2)	(2)	(2)	(2)	(0)	 -
+	 - 	 - 	 - Corn, Pop	 - 	 - 	 -
+	(0)	(0)	(0)	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - Corn,
+Salad	 - 	 - 	(5)	(0)	(0)	(0)	 - 	 -
+	(8)	 - 	 - 	 -
+Cress	(12)	(12)	(12)	(12)	(0)	(0)	 - 	 -
+	(12)	(12)	(12)	(12)
+Cucumber	(6)	(6)	(6)	(4)	(0)	(0)	 -
+	(6)	(6)	 - 	 - 	 - Egg Plants	 -
+	(6)	(4)	(1)	(1)	(1)	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - 	 -
+	 - Endive	 - 	 - 	 - 	(1)	(1)	(1)	(1)	 -
+	 - 	 - 	 - 	 -
+Kohlrabi	(6)	(6)	(4)	(1)	(1)	(1)	(1)	 - 	 -
+	 - 	 - 	 - Leek	 - 	(4)	(4)	(1)	(1)	(1)	
+- 	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - 	 -
+Lettuce	(6)	(4)	(4)	(1)	(2)	(2)	(2)	(0)	(9)
+	(9)	(7)	 - Mangel	 - 	 -
+	(5)	(0)	(0)	(0)	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - 	 -
+Melon	(6)	(6)	(6)	(4)	(0)	(0)	(9)	(6)	 -
+	 - 	 - 	 - Mushroom	(10)	(10)	(11)	 - 	 - 	
+- 	 - 	(11)	(10)	(10)	(10)	(10)
+Mustard	(12)	(12)	(12)	(0)	(0)	(0)	 -
+	(0)	(0)	(12)	(12)	(12) Nasturtium	 - 	 - 	 -
+	(0)	(0)	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - Okra	
+- 	 - 	(4)	(4)	(2)	(2)	(2)	 - 	 - 	 - 	 -
+	 - Onion	 - 	(4)	(4)	(1)	(1)	 - 	 - 	 -
+	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - Parsnips	 - 	 -
+	(5)	(0)	(0)	(0)	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - 	 -
+Parsley	(6)	(6)	(4)	(0)	(0)	(0)	(0)	 - 	 -
+	 - 	 - 	 - Peas	 - 	 -
+	(5)	(2)	(2)	(2)	(2)	(0)	 - 	(0)	 - 	 -
+Pepper	 - 	(4)	(4)	(4)	(1)	 - 	 - 	 - 	 -
+	 - 	 - 	 - Potatoes	 - 	 - 	 - 	(0)	(0)	 -
+	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - Pumpkin	 - 	 - 	 -
+	(4)	(0)	(0)	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - 	 -
+Radish	(12)	(12)	(12)	(3)	(3)	(3)	 - 	 -
+	(9)	(9)	 - 	 - Rutabaga	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - 	 -
+	 - 	 - 	(0)	(0)	 - 	 - 	 - Salsify	 - 	 -
+	(5)	(0)	 - 	 - 	 - 	(0)	(0)	 - 	 - 	 -
+Seakale	 - 	 - 	(5)	(0)	(0)	(0)	 - 	 - 	 -
+	 - 	 - 	 - Spinach	 - 	 - 	(5)	(0)	(0)	 -
+	 - 	 - 	(2)	(8)	 - 	 - Squash	 - 	 -
+	(4)	(4)	(0)	(0)	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - 	 -
+Tomato	(6)	(6)	(4)	(1)	(1)	(1)	 -
+	(6)	(6)	(6)	 - 	 - Turnips	 - 	 - 	 - 	 -
+	 - 	 - 	 - 	(0)	(0)	 - 	 - 	 -
+
+N.B.—For last planting of Beans, Sweet Corn, Kohlrabi, Peas and
+Radishes, or even Tomatoes, take the earliest varieties, just the same
+as are used for first planting.
+
+—The late sowings of Salsify are intended to remain undisturbed over
+winter. Roots from these sowings will, the next year, attain a size
+double that usually seen.
+
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 318. Bird’s-eye view of the seasons in which the
+various garden products may be in their prime.]
+
+SUGGESTIONS AND REMINDERS.—I. FOR THE NORTH
+
+
+JANUARY
+
+_Cabbage plants_ in frames need free airing whenever the temperature is
+above the freezing point, or so long as the soil of the bed is not
+frozen. Snow, in that case, should be removed soon after its fall. As
+long as the soil is frozen the snow can safely be left on for a number
+of days. Cabbage, cauliflower, and lettuce seed should be sown at
+intervals to secure plants for extra-early sales or setting. A month
+later they will be ready to transfer to boxes, which should go to the
+coldframe and be given protection by mats or shutters.
+
+_Coldframes_ must be well ventilated on warm, sunny days; leave the
+sashes off as long as is possible without injury to the plants. Keep
+the soil in a friable condition, and look carefully to any possible
+places where water can stand and freeze. If the frames seem too cold,
+bank up around them with coarse manure.
+
+_Hotbeds_.—Look up and repair the sashes. Save the horse-manure from
+day to day, rejecting dry litter, and piling up the droppings and
+urine-soaked bedding in thin layers to prevent violent heating.
+
+_Lettuce_ in frames treat as advised for cabbage plants.
+
+_Pruning_ should now be considered. Perhaps it is best to prune
+fruit-trees in March or April, but grapes and currants and gooseberries
+may be pruned now. January and February are good months in which to
+prune peach trees. Thin out the peach trees well, taking care to remove
+all the dead wood. If you have much pruning to do in apple, pear, or
+plum orchards, you will save time by utilizing the warm days now. Study
+well the different methods of pruning. Never let an itinerant pruner
+touch your trees until you are satisfied that he understands his
+business.
+
+_Tools_ should now be inspected and repaired, and any new ones that are
+needed made or ordered.
+
+
+FEBRUARY
+
+_Cabbage_.—Sow seed of Jersey Wakefield in flats filled with light
+loamy soil, the last week of this month. Sow thinly, cover lightly, and
+place the boxes in a gentle hotbed or any warm, sunny situation. When
+the plants are strong, transplant them into flats 1-1/2 in. apart each
+way. As growth begins, gradually expose them to the open air on all
+favorable occasions. Late in March remove them to a coldframe, and
+properly harden them off before setting them in the open ground.
+
+_Celery_.—We urgently advise every one who has a garden, large or
+small, to make a trial of the new celery-culture. You need, first, good
+plants. Get some seed of White Plume or Golden Self-blanching, and sow
+it thickly in flats filled with fine loam. Cover by sifting a thin
+layer of sand or fine soil over it, and firm well. Keep in a moderately
+warm place, watering as needed, until plants appear. If you have a
+number of flats, they may be placed on top of one another. At the first
+sign of plant-growth, bring the flats gradually to the light. When the
+plants are 1-1/2 or 2 in. high, transplant them into other flats,
+setting them in rows 2-1/2 in. apart, the plants half an inch apart in
+the rows. Then set the flats in a coldframe until the plants are large
+enough to plant out in the open ground.
+
+_Hotbeds_ for raising early plants should be made this month. Always
+break the manure up fine and tread it down well. Be sure to put enough
+in the center of beds, so that there will be no sagging. Fresh manure
+of hard-worked and well-fed horses, free from dry litter, is best. An
+addition of leaves used for bedding will serve to produce a more
+moderate but more lasting heat. Sheep-manure may also be added to the
+horse-manure, should there be a scant supply of the latter on hand.
+
+_Onions_.—We urgently advise giving the new onion-culture a trial. For
+seed, buy a packet or an ounce of Prizetaker, Spanish King, White
+Victoria, or some other large kind of globe onion. Sow the seed in
+flats, in a hotbed, or in a greenhouse late in the month, and
+transplant the onions to the open ground as soon as the latter is in
+working condition. Set the plants in rows 1 ft. apart and about 3 in.
+apart in the row.
+
+_Plums_.—Make a thorough inspection of all plum and cherry trees, wild
+and cultivated, for plum-knot. Cut and burn all the knots found. Remove
+all “mummy” plums, for they spread the fruit-rot.
+
+_Rhubarb_.—Give the plants in the garden a heavy dressing of fine old
+compost. If you wish a few early stalks, place kegs or boxes over some
+of the plants, and heap over them some heating horse-manure.
+
+
+MARCH
+
+_Beets_.—A few seeds may be sown in the hotbed.
+
+_Cabbage, cauliflower, and celery_ seeds may be sown for the early
+crop.
+
+_Egg-plants._—Seeds should be sown. Take care that the young plants are
+never stunted.
+
+_Grafting_ may be done in favorable weather. Cherries and plums must be
+grafted early. Use liquid grafting-wax in cold weather.
+
+_Hotbeds_ may be made at any time, but do not grow impatient about the
+work, for there will be cold weather yet. Clean, fresh manure is
+necessary, and a layer 2 ft. thick should be tramped hard. When once
+started and the seeds sown, do not let the beds get too hot. Give them
+air on fine days and give the seedlings plenty of water. Use two
+thermometers—one to test the atmosphere and the other the heat of the
+soil.
+
+_Lettuce_ should be sown in the hotbed for an early crop.
+
+_Onion_ seed for the new onion-culture may be sown at the close of the
+month.
+
+_Peas_.—Sow now, if the ground can be worked.
+
+_Peppers_ may be sown late in the month.
+
+_Potatoes_ kept for seed must not be allowed to sprout. Keep them in a
+temperature near freezing point. Rub off the sprouts from potatoes kept
+for eating, and pick out all decayed specimens.
+
+_Spinach_.—Sow some seeds for an early crop.
+
+_Tomato_ seeds may be sown in the hotbeds.
+
+
+APRIL
+
+_Artichokes_.—Sow the seeds for next year’s crop. A deep, rich, sandy
+loam is best. Fork in a dressing of well-rotted manure around the old
+plants.
+
+_Asparagus_.—Spade in some good manure in the bed, and give the soil a
+thorough working before the crowns start. Sow seeds in the open ground
+for young plants for a new bed.
+
+_Beans_.—Limas may be started on sods in a hotbed or a coldframe
+towards the last of the month.
+
+_Beets_.—The ground should be prepared and the seed sown for beets for
+cattle as soon as the weather will permit. Put them in before planting
+corn. They will stand considerable cold weather, and should be planted
+early to get a start of the weeds.
+
+_Blackberries_ should be pruned, the brush drawn off, piled, and
+burned. If it is necessary, to stake them, try a wire trellis, the same
+as for grapes, putting on one wire 2-1/2 ft. high. The young plants
+should be dug before the buds start.
+
+_Cabbage_ seed may be sown in the open ground, in coldframes, or in
+pans or boxes in the house. Early varieties should be started at once.
+Cabbages like a rich and heavy loam, with good drainage. Give them all
+the manure you can get.
+
+_Cauliflower_ seeds may be sown toward the last of the month. They
+should never have a check from the time the seed is sown until
+harvested.
+
+_Carrot_.—Sow the seed of early sorts, like Early Forcing, as soon as
+the ground can be worked.
+
+_Celery_.—Plan to grow celery by the new method. Plenty of manure and
+moisture are required to do this. Sow the seed in light, rich soil in
+the house, hotbed, coldframe, or open ground. Transplant the plants
+once before setting them in the field. Page 505.
+
+_Cress_.—Sow early and every two or three weeks. Watercress should be
+sown in damp soil or in streams. The outer edges of a hotbed may also
+be utilized. Cress is often a profitable crop when rightly handled.
+
+_Cucumber_ seeds may be sown on sods in the hotbed.
+
+_Egg-plant._—Sow in the hotbed, and transplant when 2 in. high to other
+beds or pots. They must have good care, for a check in their growth
+means all the difference between profit and loss.
+
+_Lettuce_.—Sow the seeds in the hotbed, and in the open ground as soon
+as it can be worked. Plants sown a month ago should be transplanted.
+
+_Leek_.—Sow the seeds in the open ground in drills 6 in. apart and 1
+in. deep, and when large enough, thin to 1 in. in the row.
+
+_Muskmelon_.—Plant seeds in sods in the hotbed.
+
+_Parsnip_.—Dig the roots before they grow and become soft and pithy.
+Seeds may be sown as soon as the ground is dry enough to work.
+
+_Parsley_.—Soak the seeds in warm water for a few hours, and sow in the
+open ground.
+
+_Peas_.—Sow the seeds as soon as the ground can be worked. They will
+stand considerable cold and transplanting also. Time may be gained by
+sowing some seeds in moist sand in a box in the cellar and
+transplanting when well sprouted. Plant deep in light, dry soil; cover
+an inch at first, and draw in the earth as the vines grow.
+
+_Potatoes_.—Plant early on rich soil free from blight and scab. For a
+very early crop, the potatoes may be sprouted before planting.
+
+_Peppers_.—Sow the seeds in the hotbed or in the boxes in the house.
+
+_Radish_ seeds may be sown in the open ground or in the hotbed and the
+crop harvested from there. The small, round varieties are best for this
+purpose.
+
+_Strawberries_.—Give a good, thorough cultivation between the rows and
+then remove the mulch from the plants, placing it in the rows, where it
+will help to keep the weeds down.
+
+_Salsify_.—Sow the seeds as soon as the ground can be worked. Give the
+same care and cultivation as for carrots or parsnips.
+
+_Spinach_ seeds must be sown early, and then every two weeks for a
+succession. Thin out and use the plants before they send up
+flower-stalks.
+
+_Squashes_.—Hubbards and summer squashes may be started on sods in the
+hotbed.
+
+_Tomato_.—Sow in the hotbed or in shallow boxes in the house. Try some
+of the yellow varieties; they are the finest flavored of any.
+
+MAY
+
+_Beans_.—The bush sorts may be planted in the open ground, and limas in
+pots or sods in a coldframe or spent hotbed. Limas require a long
+season to mature, and should be started early.
+
+_Beets_.—Sow for a succession. Transplant those started under glass.
+
+_Cabbages_ always do best on a freshly turned sod, and should be set
+before the land has had time to dry after plowing. The secret of
+success in getting a large yield of cabbage is to start with rich land
+and put on all the manure obtainable. Clean out the hog yard for this
+purpose.
+
+_Cucumbers_.—Sow in the open ground toward the last of the month. A few
+may be started as advised for lima beans.
+
+_Lettuce_.—Sow for a succession, and thin to 4 in. in the rows.
+
+_Melons_.—Plant in the open ground toward the end of the month. It is
+useless to plant melons and other cucurbitaceous plants until settled
+weather has arrived.
+
+_Onions_.—Finish planting and transplanting, and keep all weeds down,
+both in the seed-bed and the open field.
+
+Peas.—Sow for a succession.
+
+_Squashes_.—Plant as advised for melons and cucumbers. They require a
+rich, well-manured soil.
+
+_Strawberries_.—Remove the blossoms from newly set plants. Mulch with
+salt hay or marsh hay or clean straw or leaves those that are to bear.
+Mulching conserves moisture, keeps the berries clean, and prevents
+weeds from growing.
+
+_Sweet corn_.—Plant early and late varieties, and by making two or
+three plantings of each, at intervals, a succession may be kept up all
+summer and fall. Sweet corn is delicious, and one can hardly have too
+much of it.
+
+_Tomatoes_.—Set some early plants by the middle of the month or earner,
+if the ground is warm, and the season early and fair. They may be
+protected from the cold by covering with hay, straw, cloth, or paper,
+or even with earth. The main crop should not be set until the 20th or
+25th, or until all danger of frost is over. However, tomatoes will
+stand more chilly weather than is ordinarily supposed.
+
+
+JUNE
+
+_Asparagus_.—Cease cutting and allow the shoots to grow. Keep the weeds
+down and the soil well stirred. An application of a quick commercial
+fertilizer or of liquid manure will be beneficial.
+
+_Beans_.—Sow the wax sorts for succession. As soon as a crop is off,
+pull out the vines and plant the ground to late cabbage, turnips, or
+sweet corn.
+
+_Beets_.—Transplant in rows 1 to 3 ft. apart and 6 in. in the row. Cut
+off most of the top, water thoroughly, and they will soon start.
+
+_Cabbage and cauliflower_.—Set plants for the late crop. Rich, newly
+turned sod and a heavy dressing of well-rotted manure go a long way
+toward assuring a good crop.
+
+_Celery_.—Set the main crop, and try the new method of setting the
+plants 7 in. apart each way, if you have rich land and can irrigate,
+but not unless these conditions are present. Page 505.
+
+_Cucumbers_ may yet be planted, if done early in the month.
+
+_Currants_.—Spray with Paris green for the currant worm until the fruit
+sets. Hellebore is good, but it is difficult to get it of good
+strength; use it for all late spraying.
+
+_Lettuce_.—Sow for succession in a moist, cool, and partially shaded
+spot. The seed does not germinate well in hot weather.
+
+_Lima beans_ should be hoed frequently, and started on the poles if
+they are contrary.
+
+_Melons_.—Cultivate often and watch for the bugs. A screen of closely
+woven wire or mosquito netting may be used to cover the vines, or
+tobacco dust sifted on thickly.
+
+_Onions_.—Keep free from weeds and stir the ground frequently and
+especially after every rain.
+
+_Squashes_.—Keep the ground well cultivated and look out for bugs. (See
+_Melons_.) Layer the vines and cover the joints with fresh soil, to
+prevent death of the vines from the attacks of the borer.
+
+_Strawberries_.—Plow up the old bed that has borne two crops, as it
+will usually not pay to keep it. Set the ground to late cabbage or some
+other crop. The young bed that has borne the first crop should have a
+thorough cultivation and the plow run close to the rows to narrow them
+to the required width. Pull up or hoe out all weeds and keep the ground
+clean the rest of the season. This applies with equal force to the
+newly set bed. A bed can be set late next month from young runners.
+Pinch off the end after the first joint, and allow it to root on a sod
+or in a small pot set level with the surface.
+
+_Tomatoes_.—For an early crop train to a trellis, pinch off all side
+shoots, and allow all the strength to go to the main stalk. They may
+also be trained to poles, the same as lima beans, and can be set closer
+if grown in this way. Spray with the bordeaux mixture for the blight,
+keep the foliage thinned and the vines off the ground.
+
+_Turnips_.—Sow for an early fall crop.
+
+
+JULY
+
+_Beans_.—Sow the wax sorts for a succession.
+
+_Beets_.—Sow Early Egyptian or Eclipse for young beets next fall.
+
+_Blackberries_.—Head back the young canes to 3 ft., and the laterals
+also when they get longer. They may be pinched with the thumbnail and
+finger in a small patch, but this soon makes the fingers sore, and when
+there are many bushes to go over, it is better to use a pair of shears
+or a sharp sickle.
+
+_Cabbage_.—Set plants for the late crop.
+
+_Corn_.—Plant sweet corn for succession and late use.
+
+_Cucumbers_.—It is late to plant, but they may be put in for pickles if
+done before the Fourth. Cultivate those which are up, and keep an eye
+open for bugs.
+
+_Currants_.—Cover a few bushes with muslin or burlap before the fruit
+ripens, and you can eat currants in August. Use hellebore, rather than
+Paris green, for the last brood of currant worms, and apply it as soon
+as the worms appear. There is little danger in using it, even if the
+currants are ripe.
+
+_Lettuce_ seed does not germinate well in hot weather. Sow in a moist,
+shaded position for a succession.
+
+_Lima beans_.—Hoe them frequently, and give assistance to get on the
+poles.
+
+_Melons_.—Watch for bugs, and apply tobacco dust freely around the
+plants. Keep them well cultivated. A light application of bone meal
+will pay.
+
+_Peaches, pears, and plums_ should be thinned to secure fine fruit and
+to help sustain the vigor of the tree. Ripening the seed is what draws
+on the tree’s vitality, and if the number of seeds can be reduced
+one-half or two-thirds, part of the strength required to ripen them
+will go into perfecting the fruit and seeds left, and add greatly to
+the fine appearance, flavor, and quality of the edible portion.
+
+_Radishes_.—Sow the early kinds for a succession, and toward the end of
+the month the winter sorts may be put in.
+
+_Raspberries_.—Pinch back the canes to 2-1/2 ft., the same way as given
+for blackberries.
+
+_Squashes_.—Keep the ground well stirred, and use tobacco dust freely
+for bugs and beetles. Cover the joints with fresh soil, to guard
+against injury by the vine-borer.
+
+
+AUGUST
+
+_Beets_.—A last sowing of the early table sorts may be made for a
+succession.
+
+_Cabbage_.—Harvest the early crop, and give good cultivation to the
+main crop. Keep down the bugs and worms.
+
+_Celery_.—The latest crop may yet be set. Earlier set plants should be
+handled as they attain sufficient size. Common drain tiles are
+excellent for blanching if one has them, and must be put on when the
+plants are about half grown. Hoe frequently to keep the plants growing.
+
+_Onions_.—Harvest as soon as the bulbs are well formed. Let them lie on
+the ground until cured, then draw to the barn floor or some other airy
+place and spread thinly. Market when you can get a good price, and the
+sooner the better.
+
+_Tomatoes_ may be hastened in coloring by being picked just as they
+begin to color and placed in single layers in a coldframe or hotbed,
+where they can be covered with sash.
+
+
+SEPTEMBER
+
+In many parts of the North it is not too late to sow rye, or peas, or
+corn, to afford winter protection for orchards. As a rule, very late
+fall plowing for orchards is not advisable. Now is a good time to trim
+up the fence-rows and to burn the brush piles, in order to destroy the
+breeding places of rabbits, insects, and weeds. Cuttings of
+gooseberries and currants may be taken. Use only the wood of the
+current year’s growth, making the cuttings about a foot long. Strip off
+the leaves, if they have not already fallen, tie the cuttings in large
+bundles, and bury them in a cold cellar, or in a sandy, well-drained
+knoll; or if the cutting-bed is well prepared and well drained, they
+may be planted immediately, the bed being well mulched upon the
+approach of winter. September and October are good months in which to
+set orchards, provided the ground is well prepared and well drained,
+and is not too much exposed to sweeping winds. Wet lands should never
+be set in the fall; and such lands, however, are not fit for orchards.
+Strawberries may still be set; also bush fruits.
+
+Seeds of various flowers may now be sown for winter bloom, if one has a
+conservatory or good window. Petunias, phloxes, and many annuals make
+good window plants. Quicker results are secured, however, if border
+plants of petunias and some other things are dug up just before frost
+and placed in pots or boxes. Keep them cool and shaded for a couple of
+weeks, cut down the tops, and they will send up a vigorous and
+floriferous growth. Winter roses should now be in place in the beds or
+in pots.
+
+There will be odd days when one can go to the woods and fields and
+collect roots of wild herbs and shrubs for planting in the yard or
+along the unused borders of the garden.
+
+
+OCTOBER
+
+_Asparagus_.—Old plantations should now be cleaned off, and the tops
+removed at once. This is a good time to apply manure to the beds. For
+young plantations, which may be started now as well as in spring,
+select a warm soil and sunny exposure, and give each plant plenty of
+room. We like to set them in rows 5 ft. apart and at least 2 ft. apart
+in the rows.
+
+_Cabbages_.—The heads that will winter best are those just fully
+formed, not the over-ripe ones. For family use, bury an empty barrel in
+a well-drained spot, and fill it with good heads. Place a lot of dry
+leaves on top, and cover the barrel so that it will shed rain. Or, pile
+some cabbages in a corner of the barn floor and cover them with enough
+straw to prevent solid freezing. Pages 159, 470.
+
+_Cabbage-plants,_ started from seed last month, should be pricked out
+in cold-frames, putting about 600 to the ordinary sash and setting them
+quite deep.
+
+_Chicory_.—Dig what is wanted for salad, and store it in sand in a dry
+cellar.
+
+_Endive_.—Blanch by gathering up the leaves and tying them lightly at
+the tips.
+
+_General garden management_.—The only planting that can be done in open
+ground at this time is restricted to rhubarb, asparagus, and perhaps
+onion-sets. Begin to think about next year’s planting, and to make
+arrangements for the manure that will be needed. Often you can purchase
+it now to good advantage, and haul it while the roads are yet good.
+Clean up and plow the ground when the crops are harvested.
+
+_Lettuce_.—Plants to be wintered over should be set in frames like
+cabbage-plants.
+
+_Onions_.—Plant sets of Extra Early Pearl, or some other hardy kind, in
+the same fashion as in early spring. They are likely to winter well,
+and will give an early crop of fine bunching onions. For the North,
+fall sowing of onion-seed cannot be recommended.
+
+_Parsley_.—Lift some plants and set them in a coldframe 4 or 5 in.
+apart, or in a box filled with good soil, and place in a light cellar
+or under a shed.
+
+_Pears_.—Pick the winter sorts just before there is danger from
+freezing. Put them in a cool, dark place, where they will neither mold
+nor shrivel. To hasten ripening, they may be brought into a warm room
+as wanted.
+
+_Rhubarb_.—If plants are to be set or replanted this fall, enrich the
+ground with a superabundance of fine old stable-manure, and give each
+plant a few feet of space each way. In order to have fresh pie-plant in
+winter, dig up some of the roots and plant them in good soil in a
+barrel placed in the cellar.
+
+_Sweet-potatoes._—Dig them when ripe after the first frost. Cut off the
+vines, and turn the potatoes out with a potato-fork or plow. Handle
+them carefully to prevent bruising. Only sound, well-ripened roots are
+in proper condition to be wintered over.
+
+
+NOVEMBER
+
+_Asparagus_.—Manure before winter sets in.
+
+_Beets_.—They keep best in pits. Some may be kept in the cellar for use
+during winter, but cover them with sand or sods to prevent shriveling.
+
+_Blackberries_.—Cut away the old wood and mulch the roots. Tender sorts
+should be laid down and lightly covered with soil at the tips.
+
+_Carrots_.—Treat as advised for beets.
+
+_Celery_.—Dig up the stalks, leaving the roots on, and stand them close
+together in a narrow trench, tops just even with the ground-level.
+Gradually cover them with boards, earth, and manure. Another way is to
+set them upright upon the floor of a damp cellar or root-house, keeping
+the roots moist and the tops dry. Celery can stand some frost, but not
+exposure to less than 22° F. The stalks intended for use before
+Christmas may in most localities be left outdoors, to be used as
+wanted. Should cold weather set in early, they will need covering in
+some way. Page 475.
+
+_Orchard management_.—Young trees should have a mound of earth raised
+around the stem as a support and protection against mice, etc. Small
+and lately planted trees may have stakes set beside them, and be tied
+to the stakes with a broad band. Apple and pear trees may yet be
+planted. Trim superfluous or unhealthy wood out of the old orchards.
+
+_Spinach_.—Cover the beds lightly with leaves or litter before winter
+sets in.
+
+_Strawberries_.—Soon it will be time to mulch the beds. Provide marsh
+hay, or other coarse litter, free from weed-seeds, and when the ground
+has frozen an inch or so, spread it all over the surface thinly and
+evenly.
+
+
+DECEMBER
+
+_Cabbages_.—Plants in coldframes should be aired freely and kept cool.
+Heads intended for winter and spring use, if not yet taken in or
+protected from severe freezing, must now be cared for. Do not cover
+them too deeply, nor store them in too warm a place.
+
+_Carrots_.—Store them in cellars or pits. If in cellars, keep the roots
+covered with sand or sod, to prevent wilting.
+
+_General garden management_.—Begin now to make your plans for next
+season’s work. Carefully study up the matter of rotation, also that of
+feeding your crops in the most effective and economical manner. Repair
+frames, sashes, and tools. Clear up the garden and premises. Underdrain
+where needed. Beds for early vegetables should be thrown up in high,
+narrow ridges, with deep furrows between. This will enable you to plant
+them several days or weeks earlier than otherwise.
+
+_Kale_.—In very exposed or northern locations cover it lightly with
+coarse litter.
+
+_Onions_.—For winter storage select only well-ripened, perfectly dry
+bulbs. Store them in a dry, airy place, not in the cellar. They may be
+spread out thinly on the floor, away from the walls, allowed to freeze
+solid, and then covered several feet deep with hay or straw.
+
+_Parsnips_.—Take up some roots for winter use and store them in sand in
+the cellar.
+
+_Strawberry-beds_ should be given their winter covering of marsh hay,
+etc., as soon as the ground is frozen solid.
+
+
+SUGGESTIONS AND REMINDERS.—II. FOR THE SOUTH
+
+
+
+JANUARY
+
+_Annuals_.—All kinds of hardy annuals and perennials, such as alyssum,
+snapdragon, foxglove, hollyhock, phlox, poppy, pansy, lobelia,
+candytuft, sweet pea, Chinese pink, sweet william, larkspur, foliage
+cinerarias, centaurea, mignonette, and many others of the same class
+may be sown. Most of them should be sown thinly and where they are
+intended to flower, as they transplant poorly in this latitude.
+
+_Cannas, caladiums, perennial phloxes, chrysanthemums, and verbenas_
+may be taken up, divided, and replanted.
+
+_Roses_ may be planted in quantities. Let the ground intended for them
+have a thorough dressing of manure. Occasionally a plant may be taken
+up and divided. The hybrid varieties may now be layered. This is done
+as follows: Select a shoot and bend it flat upon the ground; hold it in
+both hands, having a distance of about 6 in. between them; keep the
+left hand firm, and with the right give the shoot a sharp twist; now
+cover it with 4 in. of earth and tie the free end to an upright stake.
+
+_Asparagus beds_ should be liberally manured. New beds should now be
+made. Set the plants 6 in. deep. Sow seed now.
+
+_Beets and all hardy vegetables_ (carrots, parsnips, turnips,
+rutabagas, kohlrabi, spinach, lettuce, herbs, etc.) may now be sown,
+planted, or transplanted.
+
+_Cabbage plants_ should be set out on heavily manured ground. Sow seed
+of Early Summer for a later supply.
+
+_Fruits_.—If possible, all planting and transplanting of fruit-trees
+and grape-vines should be finished this month. Pruning should be
+completed as soon as possible, and preparation made to protect the
+blossoms of tender fruits next month. Set out strawberry-plants, and
+during dry weather run the cultivator through all old beds that are at
+all weedy. It is a good plan, where practicable, to mulch the beds.
+Here, pine-straw can be had plentifully for the purpose. Examine peach
+trees for borers. Raspberries and blackberries should be pruned now if
+the work is not already done. Cuttings of Le Conte pears, Marianna
+plums, grape-vines, and pomegranates should be put in at once if they
+have heretofore been forgotten. Root-grafting should be progressing
+rapidly; this is the best time for this important work.
+
+_Onion seeds_.—Sow at once, and plant sets as soon as possible.
+
+_Peas_.—Sow early and late varieties. The late varieties succeed best
+if sown at this season.
+
+_Seasonable work_.—This is a good month to obtain canes for staking
+peas, tomatoes, and beans, hauling manure, making repairs, and
+examining tools, etc. As the fall crop is harvested, the land should be
+prepared for another crop. Tile-draining is now is order. Prepare
+frames to cover with canvas for use next month.
+
+_Sweet-potatoes._—A few may be bedded in a frame from which to obtain
+“draws” for setting out about March 15.
+
+_Tomatoes, egg-plants, and peppers_.—Sow now on a slight hotbed. When
+the plants come up, all the air possible should be given during the
+day. They can be raised without heat, but at this season this plan
+would better be attempted only by the skillful.
+
+
+FEBRUARY
+
+_Asters, cannas, dahlias, heliotropes, lobelias, petunias, pyrethrums,
+ricinus, salvias, and verbenas_ are best sown in a coldframe, where
+they can have some protection from heavy rain.
+
+_Cannas_ should be transplanted now.
+
+_Chrysanthemums_ must be planted in well-manured ground in a position
+where water can be readily supplied to them.
+
+_Dahlias_ may be taken up and divided as soon as they begin growth.
+
+_Gladiolus and tuberose bulbs_ should be planted now. It is a good plan
+to extend the planting through March and April.
+
+_Pansies_.—Plant them out in the beds where they are to flower.
+
+_Routine work_.—Sodding should now proceed rapidly. If sods cannot be
+obtained, the ground may be planted with Bermuda grass. Plant small
+pieces of the grass a foot apart and water them if the weather is dry,
+and they will grow rapidly. Hedges should be cleared up and put in good
+shape. All planting of trees and shrubs should be finished this month.
+All pruning of trees must be done early in the month. Young roses
+cannot be set too early in February. They thrive best when planted in
+fall. Roll the drives and repair them when necessary. The lawn will now
+require constant care, and the mower should be used before the grass
+becomes 1-1/2 in. high.
+
+_Bush-beans_ may be planted February 14. On alluvial land it is best to
+plant them on slight rises as a protection against the rains which
+sometimes occur toward the end of the month. If frost should threaten
+just as the beans begin to peep out, cover them an inch deep with the
+plow or hand cultivator. Sow Early Mohawk first, and at the end of the
+month sow Early Valentine; a week later sow the wax varieties.
+
+_Cabbage_,—Sow early varieties, such as Early Summer, Early Drumhead,
+and Early Flat Dutch. Etampes, Extra Early Express, and Winnigstadt
+sown for small heads in the order named have done very well in southern
+Louisiana. The earlier sown plants should be transplanted as often as
+convenient. Should worms cause trouble, dust the plants with a mixture
+of one part of pyrethrum powder to six of fine dust.
+
+_Carrots, celery, beets, endive, kohlrabi, onion sets, parsley,
+parsnips, radishes and purple-top turnips_ must now be sown.
+
+_Corn_.—Plant Extra Early Adams, Yellow Canada, Stowell Evergreen, and
+White Flint toward the middle of the month. Sow again a week later, and
+again after another week. If the first two sowings fail, the last one
+will give the early crop.
+
+_Cucumbers_.—Sow and protect with small boxes during cold days and
+nights, or sow in pots or on sods. Protect the seedlings with sashes or
+canvas, and plant them out late.
+
+_Lettuce_.—Sow seeds and transplant the plants on hand. This crop
+requires a soil well supplied with plant-food.
+
+_Melons_.—Plant seeds in the same manner as advised for cucumbers.
+
+_Okra_.—Sow seeds on sods and set out the plants next month.
+
+_Peas_.—Sow seeds of a number of varieties.
+
+_Peppers and egg-plants_, if not sown last month, should be sown now.
+Sow them under glazed sashes and keep close. When the plants appear,
+give some air, and increase it according to the weather. If a large
+number of plants is required, the sowing may be delayed until next
+month. Should flea-beetles trouble you, use plenty of bordeaux on
+egg-plants.
+
+_Potatoes, Irish_.—The main crop should be planted as early as
+possible. Standard varieties are Early Rose, Peerless, and Burbank.
+
+_Strawberries_.—Run the cultivator through them at least once every
+three weeks; if they are to be mulched, collect the necessary material.
+Strawberries planted in February seldom yield much of a crop.
+
+_Sweet-potatoes_, can now be bedded and protected with canvas, or a row
+or two of whole tubers may be planted for “draws” and vines.
+
+_Tomatoes_ in frames should be given all the air and light possible and
+plenty of room if protected with canvas, do not allow the plants to
+crowd.
+
+
+MARCH
+
+_Beans_.—Sow all varieties for a fall crop. As soon as the plants
+appear, the cultivator must be run through the crop, and kept going as
+often as necessary.
+
+_Corn_.—Continue to plant; and we recommend harrowing the patch as soon
+as the young corn appears. It is generally planted in hills 3 or 4 ft.
+apart, but better results will be obtained-by planting in drills and
+leaving one stalk every 12 in.
+
+_Cucumbers_.—Sow in hills 4 ft. apart, using a liberal quantity of seed
+to each hill. When the plants come up, thin them to about six in the
+hill. When the plants begin to get rough leaves, pull out one or two
+more from each hill. Striped cucumber-beetles are sometimes very
+numerous, and in order to get a stand of plants it is necessary to go
+through the patch early every morning and sprinkle all the hills with
+air-slaked lime.
+
+_Egg-plants._—Toward the end of the month the plants growing in frames
+may be transplanted to their fruiting quarters. Seed may be sown
+outside after March 15; sooner if a warm and sheltered spot is
+selected.
+
+_Lettuce_.—Sow in drills, and when the plants are large enough, thin to
+a foot apart. If transplanted at this season, they often go to seed.
+
+_Okra_.—A sowing may be made now, but the main planting would best be
+deferred until after March 15. Sow in drills 3 ft. apart and thin the
+plants to 18 in. apart in the drills.
+
+_Peas_.—Early varieties may be sown; it is now too late to sow
+tall-growing kinds.
+
+_Peppers_.—Treat as advised for egg-plants.
+
+_Potatoes, Irish_.—It is not too late to plant them, but the sooner
+they are planted the better. The crop planted in February should be
+harrowed as soon as the shoots begin to come up, and when the rows can
+be fairly seen, the cultivator must be set to work to keep down weeds
+and grass.
+
+_Squashes_.—Plant seed in hills 6 ft. apart. The directions for
+planting melons may be followed. The same remarks apply to pumpkins and
+other vegetables of this kind.
+
+_Sweet-potatoes._—If slips or vines are at hand, they may be planted
+late in the month for the earliest tubers. The whole potatoes may be
+planted on a ridge to yield vines for later planting.
+
+_Strawberries_.—The mulching of beds or rows should be no longer
+delayed, if clean and plentiful fruit is wanted.
+
+_Tomatoes_.—About March 15 the frame plants may go to their fruiting
+quarters. It is necessary to use some judgment in this matter, as they
+may be killed or injured by an April frost. Seed may be sown in the
+open ground for plants for late fruiting. Set the plants 4 ft. apart
+each way.
+
+
+APRIL
+
+_Alternantheras_ should go out now.
+
+_Annuals_ of all kinds may still be sown where they are to flower, as
+they transplant with difficulty at this season.
+
+_Coleuses_.—Plant out in the beds now. Cuttings root readily, simply
+requiring to be stuck in.
+
+_Beans_ of all kinds can be planted, limas especially.
+
+_Beets_.—Make another sowing.
+
+_Cabbage plants_ obtained from spring sowings should be set out as soon
+as fit. The ground requires to be very rich to carry this crop.
+
+_Cucumbers_.—These can be sown anywhere now.
+
+_Corn_.—Make a sowing to yield roasting ears to come in after that sown
+last month.
+
+_Okra_.—Sow in drills 3 or 4 ft. apart.
+
+_Peas_.—Make a sowing of early varieties for the last time.
+
+_Squash (bush) and pumpkin_ may now be planted.
+
+_Tomatoes_ should be got out to their fruiting quarters as early in the
+month as possible. Let them be set at least 4 ft. apart each way.
+
+
+MAY
+
+_Beans_.—Plant a few more bush and pole beans.
+
+_Celery_ may now be started. The bed or box needs plenty of water, and
+should be shaded from sun.
+
+_Lettuce_ requires careful handling to encourage it to germinate. It is
+best sown in a box and kept shaded and moist.
+
+_Melons, cucumbers, squashes, and pumpkins_ may be sown.
+
+_Radishes_.—Sow the yellow and white summer varieties.
+
+_Remarks_.—It is a constant struggle with weeds throughout this month,
+and the cultivator and plow are ever going. As the land becomes vacant,
+sow corn or plant sweet-potatoes—draws or vines. Sow some late Italian
+cauliflower. Let the orchard have constant and thorough cultivation,
+and remove all unnecessary growth from the trees as soon as they
+appear. Be always on the lookout for borers. Keep the strawberries as
+free of grass and coco, or knob-grass, as possible.
+
+
+JUNE
+
+_Beans_.—All kinds may now be sown.
+
+_Cauliflower_.—Sow the Italian kinds.
+
+_Corn_.—Make a planting at the beginning of the month and again at the
+end.
+
+_Cucumbers_.—Plant a few more hills. The plants at this season must be
+given plenty of water.
+
+_Endive_.—Sow, and attend to the tying up of the plants that are of
+sufficient size.
+
+_Melons_.—Sow for a succession a few more water and muskmelons.
+
+_Okra_ may still be sown.
+
+_Radishes_.—Sow the summer varieties now.
+
+_Squashes and pumpkins_ may yet be sown.
+
+_Sweet-potato_ vines may now be set out in quantities.
+
+_Tomatoes_.—About the middle of the month sow for the fall crop.
+
+
+JULY
+
+_Beans_.—Bush and pole beans may be planted towards the end of the
+month.
+
+_Cabbage and cauliflower_ may now be sown, but the main sowing should
+be deferred until next month.
+
+_Carrots_.—A sowing should be made.
+
+_Celery_.—Sow and transplant what plants there may be on hand.
+
+_Cucumbers_.—These may be sown now for pickling.
+
+_Endive_.—Transplant and sow.
+
+_Grapes_ should be kept well tied to trellis, and unnecessary growth
+removed, so that the wood may have the chance of becoming thoroughly
+ripened. If the cultivator and plow are not used judiciously, a second
+growth will be started, which is not desirable.
+
+_Lettuce_.—The seed requires to be sprouted before being sown, and if
+the sowing is done on a dry day the drills should be watered.
+
+_Radishes_.—Sow the summer kinds.
+
+_Strawberries_.—Keep the beds clean of weeds and grass.
+
+_Tomatoes_.—Make a sowing early in the month, or, what is much better,
+take cuttings from plants still in bearing.
+
+_Turnips_.—Sow a few after a shower towards the end of the month.
+
+_Remarks_.—Much cannot be done this month, as the weather is hot and
+dry, but the opportunity should not be lost for killing weeds and
+preparing for the planting season, which is now rapidly drawing near.
+
+
+AUGUST
+
+_Artichokes_.—Seed of the Green Globe may be sown now and large plants
+obtained by spring. The seed-bed requires to be shaded.
+
+_Bush beans, beets, pole beans, carrots, celery, endive, kohlrabi,
+lettuce, mustard, Black Spanish and Rose China radishes, parsley,
+turnips, rutabagas, and salad plants_ of all kinds may now be sown. The
+seed should be sown on small ridges, adaptable to the kind of plants,
+for level culture is not successful in the vegetable garden in this
+section.
+
+_Broccoli_ should be more grown, for it is hardier than the
+cauliflower. Many cannot tell the difference between the two. Sow now.
+
+_Cabbages_ must be sown by the middle of the month. Make the ground
+very rich and shade the seed-bed, keeping it moist during the whole of
+the time.
+
+_Cauliflower_ should also be sown.
+
+_Potatoes, Irish_, should be planted by the middle of the month, if
+possible. Plant only those that have sprouted, and instead of planting
+on top of the ridge set in the furrow and cover 2 in. deep; as the
+potatoes grow, work more soil down to them.
+
+_Salsify_.—Sow now or early next month.
+
+_Shallots_.—Plant them now.
+
+_Squash_.—Bush kinds may be planted now at any time.
+
+_Sweet-potatoes._—Vines may still be set out, with prospects of
+harvesting a fair crop.
+
+_Tomatoes_.—If short of plants, cut off good-sized limbs from bearing
+plants and plant them deep. Keep them moist, and they will root in a
+few days. Do this just before it rains.
+
+
+SEPTEMBER
+
+_Annuals_ of the hardy class may be sown this month: the following list
+will assist in making a selection: Calliopsis, candytuft, calendulas,
+canterbury bells, columbine, corn-flower, daisies, forget-me-nots,
+gaillardia, godetia, larkspur, _Limnanthes Douglasii_, mignonette,
+pansies, _Phlox Drummondii_, primroses, poppies of all kinds,
+_Saponaria Calabrica, Silene pendula_, sweet williams, and sweet peas.
+
+_Bulbs_.—Study the catalogues and make out your wants, for it is
+nearing planting time.
+
+_Lilies_.—If success is required of the St. Joseph’s or Virgin lily
+(_L. candidum_), it must be planted right away.
+
+_Perennials and biennials_ should be sown early this month. They have
+two good growing months ahead of them yet to make considerable
+progress. The seed-bed will require shade during the middle of the day
+until the young plants come up; frequent weedings will be required, as
+coco has not yet quit growing, and winter weeds are now putting in an
+appearance.
+
+_Remarks_.—All plants used for salad purposes may be sown this month.
+The ground between the rows of growing crops should be kept in a fine,
+friable condition. Vegetable seeds of all kinds should always be sown
+on slight ridges on all but very sandy soils. If the seed is sown on a
+level bed, as practiced at the North, the ground will become as hard as
+a turnpike road should a heavy rain occur; and should this shower come
+along before the plants are up, a crust a quarter of an inch deep will
+be formed, and the plants will never see daylight. Sown on a ridge they
+come all right, as the water gradually drains away, leaving the top of
+the ridge loose and soft.
+
+
+OCTOBER
+
+_All spring flower seeds_ should be sown in boxes or trays in the
+conservatory, and all spring bulbs should be planted. The hyacinth,
+narcissus, tulip and anemone, ranunculus and various lily bulbs, will
+bloom in good season planted at this time. The bedding plants should be
+carefully watched, so that any attack of aphis may be treated
+immediately. Sweet peas may be planted the first of this month,
+although they are commonly sown in September. A rich spot should be
+selected for them. This is the time to make the new lawn. The soil
+should be thoroughly stirred and well pulverized, mixing in a good
+dressing of commercial fertilizer, or, if one prefers it, a mixture
+which may be made at home, consisting of cotton-seed meal, acid
+phosphate, and sulfate of potash, at the rate of 1000 lb., 300 lb., and
+100 lb. respectively, per acre. A rich, well-rotted compost, as a top
+dressing, would also be highly beneficial. Roses pruned late in
+September or early this month will produce fine winter blooms.
+
+_In the garden_ this is a busy month; some of the winter vegetables are
+growing, and others should be sown. The bud artichokes should be
+separated and set fully 3 ft. apart. Onions may still be sown in the
+early part of the month, and shallots should be divided and set. Some
+beans may be risked, and English peas sown for winter crop. A few
+cauliflowers may be tried and cucumbers planted in pots for the hotbeds
+next month. The following vegetables should be sown: Carrots, corn
+salad, chervil, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, beets, endive, kohlrabi,
+kale, lettuce, leeks, mustard, parsley, parsnip, radish, roquette,
+spinach, Swiss chard, salsify. Some cabbage and a few cauliflowers
+should be added to the list. Turnips should be sown for succession
+every two weeks until April or May. The celery should be kept growing
+and banking up commenced.
+
+This is an excellent time to plant the new strawberry bed. Make the bed
+rich with well-rotted manure and select good, healthy sets. The
+Michel’s Early and Cloud are probably the most popular varieties for
+general planting, and should be set in alternating rows.
+
+
+NOVEMBER
+
+_Flower seeds and bulbs_ may be planted this month of the same
+varieties as in October. Cuttings of all the herbaceous plants should
+be made and potted, for use in the house and for the borders next
+season. The coldframes should also be put in order. Some of the bulbs
+for winter forcing should be selected and potted. One of the best
+Louisiana gardeners recommends the following treatment: Select good,
+strong bulbs and plant them in rich, light soil, in 5-in. pots,
+covering them about half an inch. Water well and bury the pots 6 or 8
+in. deep in the ground, leaving them there about five weeks, when the
+bulbs will be found to be well rooted. From this time gradually expose
+to the light, and they will soon put forth blooms.
+
+_The same vegetables_ may be sown as for October, and the late cabbage
+seed planted. The Flat Dutch and Drumhead strains are prime favorites.
+New sowings of peas, turnips, mustard, and radishes should be made, and
+the hotbeds prepared and set out to cucumbers. Too much care cannot be
+taken that the manure should be in the best condition possible, so that
+a good supply of heat may be depended upon. The cucumbers planted last
+month will be ready now for setting in the hotbeds, and a winter crop
+forced.
+
+_Orchard and vineyard planting_.—This is the time to prepare land. That
+on which a late crop of cowpeas has grown is well suited for the
+purpose, and should be plowed deeply and well worked over. Towards the
+last of the month it should be cultivated again, in order to be ready
+for the trees next month.
+
+
+DECEMBER
+
+_Lawns and yards_ need watching this month, and attention should be
+paid to the old leaves and fall rubbish, which makes the yard look
+untidy. A good place for the leaves is the compost heap. Hedges should
+be put in shape and the surface drains kept open. Shrubs and roses
+should be pruned for an early supply of flowers. The Camellia Japonicas
+are now in bloom, and care should be taken that the small branches are
+not torn off, instead of being cut properly. Many of these most
+beautiful of southern ornamental trees have been ruined by careless
+plucking of flowers.
+
+_Garden and orchard_.—Many of the fall vegetables may be sown this
+month and others sown for a succession. Peas, spinach, roquette,
+radishes, lettuce, endive, and some Early York cabbage should also be
+sown. In the old spent hotbeds, tomatoes, peppers, and egg-plants may
+be started; there will not be enough heat to hurry them, and good,
+strong stocky plants will be secured if care is taken. Irish potatoes
+may be risked, should there be a favorable time for planting during the
+latter part of the month. Usually they are planted in January. The
+chances are about equal should they be planted late this month. Nuts of
+all kinds, both for budding and otherwise, should be planted. Some of
+the best Louisiana pecans are said to come true from seed, and may be
+sown where they are intended to grow.
+
+
+
+INDEX
+
+
+The flowering annuals, being mostly in alphabetical list, are not
+indexed here.
+
+
+Abelia grandiflora, 306.
+abies species,  335, 336.
+Abobra viridiflora, 311.
+abutilons, 351.
+acacia, rose, 300.
+acalypha, 230.
+acer, species, 322, 323, 330.
+Achillea Ptarmica, 269,  273.
+achyranthes, 236, 344.
+aconites, 273.
+actinidia, 216, 308, 316.
+adiantums, 372.
+adlumia, 310.
+Adonis vernalis, 273.
+æsculus species, 293, 323.
+African lily, 351.
+agapanthus, 351.
+agave, 364.
+Agrostemma Coronaria, 274.
+Agrostis nebulosa, 245.
+ailanthus, shoots of, 56.
+Ajuga reptans, 267.
+akebia, 216, 308, 316.
+alder, 293, 323.
+alliums, 289.
+almond, 415.
+alpine plants, 232.
+alstremeria, 352.
+alternanthera, 235, 237, 239.
+Althæa frutex, 297.
+Althæa rosea, 271.
+Alyssum saxatile, 267.
+amarantus, 230.
+amaryllis, 352.
+Amelanchier Canadensis, 293.
+ammoniacal carbonate of copper, 197.
+ampelopsis species, 308, 309, 314.
+andromeda, 299, 306.
+anemone, 264, 265, 269, 273, 274, 353.
+anise, 460.
+anise-tree, 306.
+annuals for bedding, 249.
+annuals that bloom after frost, 248.
+annuals by color, 246.
+annuals, cultivation of, 241.
+annuals listed by height, 251.
+annuals for ribbon-beds, 248.
+annuals, distances apart, 256.
+Anthemis coronaria, 344.
+Anthemis Kelwayi, 274.
+Anthemis tinctoria, 271.
+Antigonon leptopus, 313.
+aphis,  198, 200.
+Apios tuberosa, 313.
+apple, culture of, 416.
+apple-maggot, 199.
+apple-scab, 207, 417.
+apricot, culture of, 420.
+aquarium, 348.
+aquatic plants, 230.
+aquilegias, 267, 269, 274.
+Arabis albida, 265.
+Arabis alpina, 274.
+Aralia Sieboldii, 230, 354.
+araucaria, 344, 354.
+arborvitæ, 221, 333, 336.
+Arbutus Unedo, 306.
+architect’s garden, 12.
+ardisia, 306.
+aristolochia, 317.
+Arnebia echioides, 274.
+arsenate of lead formula, 193.
+artemisias, 273, 365.
+Artemisia Stelleriana, 263.
+artichoke, 462, 463.
+Aruncus Sylvester, 264.
+Arundo Donax, 46, 264.
+Asclepias tuberosa, 264, 274.
+ashes, 111.
+ash, mountain, 329.
+ash trees, 324, 330.
+asparagus, 461.
+asparagus beetle, 199.
+Asparagus medeoloides, 401.
+Asparagus plumosus and tenuissimus, 317, 344.
+asparagus rust, 208.
+Asparagus Sprengeri, 340.
+aspen, 326.
+asperula, 269.
+aspidistra, 340.
+asters, native, 264, 274, 275.
+Astilbe Japonica, 269.
+Aubrietia deltoidea, 265.
+aucuba, 344.
+auricula, 354.
+azalea, culture of, 355.
+azalea species, 293, 305, 306.
+
+Baccharis halimifolia, 291, 293.
+Bacterium tumefaciens, 180.
+balm, 460.
+bamboos, 230, 264.
+Baptisia tinctoria, 264.
+basil, 460.
+baskets, hanging, 348.
+basswood, 329.
+bay-tree, 306.
+bean, 459, 463.
+bedding, 228.
+beech, 324.
+beet, 456, 466.
+begonias, 356.
+belladonna lily, 287, 352.
+Bellis perennis, 265.
+Benzoin odoriferum, 293.
+Berberis Aquifolium, 293.
+Berberis Japonica, 306.
+Berberis Thunbergii, 52, 221, 292, 293, 306.
+Berberis vulgaris, 51, 293.
+Bermuda buttercup, 384.
+Bermuda-grass, 80.
+betula species, 293, 323, 324.
+bignonia species, 314, 315.
+billbergia, 344.
+biota, 336.
+birds, 16.
+bitternut, 325.
+bitter-sweet, 315.
+bitter-sweet, false, 317.
+blackberries, laying down 138.,
+blackberry, culture of, 420.
+blackberry, disease of, 212.
+blackberry insects, 205.
+black-rot, 209.
+bladder nut, 302, 303.
+bleeding-heart, 267, 276.
+blister-mite, 199.
+blood as fertilizer, 112.
+bloodroot, 265.
+blue beech, 324.
+blue-grass, 78.
+Bocconia cordata, 263.
+bog plants, 230.
+bolting trees, 149.
+boltonias, 275.
+boneblack, 113.
+bone, ground, 113.
+bordeaux mixture, 196.
+borders, making, 74, 222.
+borers, 199, 417.
+bougainvillea, 318.
+Boussingaultia baselloides, 313, 344.
+bouvardia, 344.
+box, 293, 306.
+box-elder, 323.
+boxthorn, 315.
+bridge-grafting, 148.
+Bridgeman, mentioned, 2.
+broccoli, 467.
+Bromus brizæformis, 245.
+brooks, treatment of,
+broom, 306.
+brussels sprouts,
+buckthorn, 221, 299.
+budding, 151.
+bud-moth, 200.
+buffalo berry, 302.
+Buist, mentioned, 2.
+bulbocodium, 289.
+bulbs, culture of, 281.
+bulbs in window-garden, 345.
+burdock, ornamental, 3.
+Burnette, F. H., quoted, 501.
+burning bush, 296.
+button-bush, 294.
+buttercups, tuberous, 289.
+butternut, 325.
+buttonwood, 326.
+Buxus sempervirens, 293.
+
+cabbage, culture, 457, 468.
+cabbage, storing, 159, 470, 513, 515.
+cabbage diseases, 208, 469.
+cabbage insects, 200, 457, 469.
+cabbage maggots, 187, 201 469.
+cactus, 358.
+caladium, 230, 359.
+calceolaria, 360.
+calendars, 501.
+calla, 360.
+Calla palustris, 264.
+Callicarpa Americana, 305.
+callirrhoë, 269.
+Calycanthus floridus, 293, 305.
+camassia, 289.
+camellias, 306, 361.
+campanulas, 269, 272, 275.
+candytuft, perennial, 265, 277.
+canker-worm, 201, 417.
+cannas, 361.
+capsicum, 491.
+Capsicum frutescens, 306.
+caragana species, 294.
+caraway, 460.
+carbolic acid emulsion, 194.
+carbonate of copper, 197.
+cardinal flower, 272.
+cardiospermum, 310.
+carex for ground cover, 86.
+carnation rust, 208.
+carnations, 363.
+carpet-bedding, mentioned, 7, 30, 227.
+carpet-beds described, 234.
+Carpinus Americana, 324.
+carrot, 456, 471.
+carya species, 325.
+Caryopteris Mastacanthus, 291, 294, 305.
+caryota, 385.
+case-bearers, 201.
+Cassia Marilandica, 264.
+castanea species, 294, 324.
+catalpa species, 324, 330.
+catnip, 460.
+cats, 16.
+cat-tail, 232, 264.
+cauliflower, 457, 471.
+cauliflower diseases, 208.
+cauliflower insects, 200.
+ceanothus, 294, 305.
+cedar, 336.
+cedrus species, 336.
+Celastrus scandens, 216.
+celastrus species, 317.
+celeriac, 472.
+celery, 473.
+cellared stock, 290.
+cellars, 158, 475.
+Celtis occidentalis, 324, 330.
+Centrosema Virginiana, 311.
+century plants, 38, 364.
+cephalanthus, 291, 294.
+cephalotaxus, 336.
+Cercidiphyllum Japonicum, 324.
+Cercis Canadensis, 324, 330.
+cereus, 358.
+chafer, rose, 206.
+chamæcyparis species, 333, 336.
+chamærops, 306, 385.
+chamomile, 271.
+chard, 475.
+cherry, culture, 422.
+cherry diseases, 211.
+cherry, ornamental, 327.
+cherry trees, shapes of, 43, 44.
+chervil, 476.
+chestnut, culture of, 433.
+chestnut disease, 208.
+chickens in gardens, 178.
+chickory, 476.
+Chilopsis linearis, 305.
+China-berry, 330.
+Chinese sacred lily, 289, 383.
+chinquapin, 294.
+Chionanthus Virginica, 294, 305.
+chionodoxa, 289.
+chrysanthemums, 365.
+chrysanthemums, hardy, 273.
+chrysanthemum disease, 209.
+Chrysanthemum frutescens, 365.
+chrysanthemum protection, 337.
+Chrysanthemum uliginosum, 272, 280.
+cineraria, 367.
+Cineraria maritima, 235.
+cinnamon vine, 313.
+cinquefoil, 299.
+Citrus trifoliata, 221, 306.
+cives, 477.
+Cladrastis tinctoria, 324.
+clary, 460.
+Claytonia Virginica, 265.
+clematis, 216, 275, 310, 311, 314, 367.
+Clethra alnifolia, 294, 306.
+Cleyera Japonica, 306.
+climbing plants, 307.
+clothes-post, 55.
+club-root, 208, 469.
+Cobbett, mentioned, 2.
+cobnuts, 433.
+Cobœa scandens, 344.
+Coccinea Indica, 311.
+Cocos Weddelliana, 385.
+Codiæum, 369.
+Codlin-moth, 201, 417.
+Coffee tree, 325.
+Coix Lachryma, 245.
+colchicum, 284.
+coldframes, 164.
+cold storage, 160.
+coleus, 368.
+collards, 476.
+colocasia, 230, 359.
+coltsfoot for banks, 216.
+columbines, 267, 269, 274.
+Colutea arborescens, 294.
+comfrey, 216.
+compass plant, 263.
+conifers, discussion on, 331.
+conservation of moisture, 97.
+Convallaria majalis, 267, 275.
+Convolvulus Japonicus and Sepium, 313.
+corchorus, 298, 306.
+coreopsis species, 275.
+coriander, 460/
+corn, sweet, 477.
+corn salad, 477.
+Cornus Baileyi, 46.
+Cornus Mas, 51.
+cornus species, 292, 294, 295.
+corrosive sublimate for scab, 190.
+Corydalis lutea, 269.
+Corydalis nobilis, 267.
+corylus species, 295.
+costmary, 460.
+cotoneaster, 222, 295, 306.
+cottonwood, 326.
+cowpea, 464.
+coxcomb for bedding, 230.
+crab cactus, 359.
+crab trees, 327.
+cranberry, 423.
+crape myrtle, 305.
+cratægus species, 295.
+cress, 478.
+crocus, 368.
+crocus, fall blooming, 284.
+Crosby, quoted, 198.
+croton, 369.
+crown-galls, 180.
+crown imperial, 289.
+cryptomeria, 336.
+cucumber, 458, 478.
+cucumber diseases, 209.
+cucumber insects, 201.
+Cucumis Anguria, 479.
+Cucumis fœtidissima (perennius), 309, 312.
+Cucumis species, 311.
+cucurbit insects, 201.
+cultivating, 92.
+cultivators, 95.
+Cuphea, 236, 344.
+cupressus species, 333, 336.
+curbing, 69.
+curculio, 202, 441.
+currant, 425.
+currant, flowering, 300.
+currant, Indian, 304.
+currant diseases, 209.
+currant-worm, 203.
+cuttings, 118.
+cut-worms, 186, 203, 449.
+cycas, 344, 385.
+cyclamen, 370.
+Cydonia Japonica, 52, 295, 306.
+Cydonia Maulei, 52, 295.
+Cypress, bald, 329.
+
+daffodil, 382.
+dahlia, 370.
+Dahlia arborea or excelsa, 372.
+daisy, 265.
+dandelion, 479.
+daphnes, 53, 295.
+day-lily, 38.
+delphiniums, 271, 275.
+Desmodium Canadense, 264.
+desmodium species, 298.
+Deutzia gracilis, 53.
+deutzia species, 296, 306.
+dewberry, culture of, 426.
+dewberry for banks, 216.
+dewberry insects, 205.
+dianthus, 270, 275.
+dibbers, 123, 124.
+Dicentra spectabilis, 267, 276.
+Dictamnus Fraxinella, 270.
+diervillas, 296.
+dill, 460.
+dioscorea species, 313.
+Dirca palustris, 296.
+diseases of plants, 207.
+ditching, 88.
+dockmackie, 305.
+Dodecatheon Meadia, 295.
+dogs and gardens, 178.
+dog-tooth violet, 289.
+dogwoods, 294, 295, 330.
+Dolichos Japonicus, 317.
+dolichos, species, 464.
+Donnell, Webb, quoted, 453.
+doronicum, 265, 276.
+doucin stocks, 409.
+Dracæna fragrans, 344.
+drainage of land, 88.
+drainage of walks, 60.
+drives and walks, 67.
+dry bouquets, 245.
+Duggar, on mushrooms, 484.
+dutchman’s pipe, 317.
+dwarf fruit-trees, 409.
+
+Easter lily, 346.
+echeveria, 235.
+Echinocystis lobata, 309.
+egg-plant, , 480.
+Egyptian lily, 360.
+elæagnus species, 51, 296, 306.
+elecampane, 263.
+elm, 329, 330.
+elm-leaf beetle, 204.
+emulsion, carbolic acid,  194; kerosene, 194.
+endive, 481.
+enemies of plants, 178.
+enriching the land, 110.
+Epimedium rubrum, 276.
+epiphyllum, 344, 359.
+Erianthus Ravennæ, 264.
+Erigeron speciosus, 276.
+Eulalia, 230, 264.
+Euonymus, climbing, 309, 315.
+Euonymus species, 296, 306.
+Euphorbia, 344.
+evergreens, discussion on, 331.
+everlastings, 245.
+exochorda, 296, 306.
+
+fagus species, 324.
+Falconer, Wm., quoted, 34, 261, 484.
+Farfugium grande, 344.
+Fatsia Japonica and F. papyrifera, 230, 354.
+fennel, 460.
+ferns, 372.
+fertilizing land, 110.
+Fessenden, mentioned, 2.
+Festuca glauca, 344.
+fetter bush, 306.
+Ficus elastica, 229, 344.
+Ficus repens, 315.
+fig, 426.
+filberts, 295, 433.
+fir, 335.
+flame flower, 272.
+Fletcher, S.W., quoted, 431.
+flower-garden in landscape, 27, 34, 225.
+foliage in landscapes, 37, 218.
+forcing-hill, 161.
+forcing plants, 161.
+forget-me-nots, 266.
+formal gardens, 12.
+formalin for scab, 190.
+formal trees, 40.
+formulas for fungicides, 196; insecticides, 193.
+Forsythia suspensa, 53, 216, 296; viridissima, 53, 216, 296, 306.
+frames, 164.
+fraxinus species, 324.
+freesia, 373.
+fringe tree, 294, 305.
+fritillary, 289.
+fruit-buds, 141.
+fruits, culture of, 408.
+fuchsia, 344, 373.
+fumigating, 188.
+fumitory, 267.
+fungi and insects, 178.
+fungicides, 196.
+funkia, 38, 262, 271, 272, 276.
+
+gaillardia, perennial, 270, 276.
+gardenia, 306.
+Gardiner Hepburn, mentioned, 2.
+garlic, 456, 481.
+gas plant, 270.
+gathering fruit, 414.
+Gelsemium sempervirens, 317.
+Genista tinctoria, 297.
+geranium, 374, 386.
+gherkin, 479.
+ginkgo, 324, 330.
+girdled trees, 144.
+gladiolus, 374.
+Gleditschia tricanthos, 325.
+gloxinia, 375.
+Goff device, 187.
+goldenglow, 272, 280.
+golden-rods, 264, 272, 280.
+gooseberry, 427.
+gooseberry disease, 209.
+goumi, 296, 306.
+gourds, ornamental, 310, 312.
+grading, 61.
+grafting, 151.
+grafting-wax, 145.
+grape, culture of, 428.
+grape diseases, 209.
+grapery, 431.
+grapes for ornament, 315.
+grasses, ornamental, 245.
+grass for lawns, 78.
+greenbrier, 315.
+greens, 459.
+Greiver, T. quoted, 501.
+Grevillea robusta, 344, 376.
+ground-ivy, 309.
+ground-nut, 313.
+grub, white, 207, 449.
+guards for trees, 143.
+gum tree, 325, 326.
+gunnera, 230.
+gutters, 69.
+Gymnocladus Canadensis, 325.
+Gypsophila paniculata, 276.
+
+Halesia tetraptera, 52, 297.
+Hamamelis Virginiana, 297.
+handling the land, 87.
+handling the plants, 115.
+hand-box, 163.
+hand tools, 101.
+hand-weeders, 106.
+hanging baskets, 348.
+harebells, 269.
+harrows, 94.
+hazels, 295.
+Hedera Helix, 315.
+hedges, 220.
+heeling-in, 135.
+Helenium autumnale, 276.
+helianthus species, 263, 271, 276.
+hellebore for insects, 193.
+hemerocallis species 277,
+hemlock, 221, 335, 336.
+Henderson, mentioned, 2.
+hepaticas, 265.
+herbaceous perennials, 260.
+Heuchera sanguinea, 270, 277.
+Hibiscus Moscheutos, 262, 277.
+Hibiscus Rosa-Sinensis, 305.
+Hibiscus Syriacus, 297, 305.
+hickories, 325, 433.
+Hicks, Edward, quoted, 132.
+hicoria species, 325.
+hippeastrum, 353.
+hitching to trees, 144.
+hoes, 101.
+hollies, 297, 306.
+hollyhock, 271, 376.
+hollyhock rust, 210.
+honey locust, 325.
+honeysuckles, 298, 306, 316.
+Hop, 311, 313.
+hop-tree, 299.
+horehound, 460.
+hornbeam, 324, 326.
+horseradish, 481.
+hotbeds, 168.
+house plants, 341.
+howea, 385.
+hoya, 406.
+Humulus Lupulus, 313.
+Hunn, C.E., quoted, 454.
+hyacinth, 377.
+hydrangea, 291, 297, 306.
+hydrocyanic acid gas, 189.
+hypericum species, 297.
+hyssop, 460.
+
+Iberis sempervirens, 265, 277.
+ilex species, 297.
+Illicium anisatum, 306.
+immediate effect, 215.
+immortelles, 245.
+inarching, 148.
+Indian currant, 304.
+insecticides, 193.
+insects, remedies for, 198.
+insects and fungi, 178.
+Inula Helenium, 263.
+Ipomœa pandurata, 313.
+Ipomœa Quamoclit, 311.
+iris, 264, 267, 270, 277, 278, 378.
+iron-wood, 326.
+Isolepis gracilis, 344.
+ivy, Boston, Japanese, 314.
+ivy, parlor, 340 (see Senecio)
+ivy, true, 315.
+
+jasmines, 317, 344.
+jasminum species, 306, 317.
+Jerusalem artichoke, 463.
+jessamine, 317.
+jonquil, 383.
+Judas tree, 324.
+juglans species, 325.
+June-grass, 78.
+juniper species, 333, 334.
+
+kainit, 163.
+kale, 457, 482.
+Kalmia latifolia, 297.
+katsura-tree, 324.
+keeping fruit, 158, 414.
+Kenilworth ivy, 313, 340, 344.
+kentia, 385.
+kerosene emulsion, 194.
+kerria, 298, 306.
+kitchen-garden, 454.
+Kniphofia aloides, 272.
+Kœlreuteria paniculata, 325, 330.
+kudzu vine, 317.
+
+labels, 154.
+lady-birds, 199.
+lagenaria, 311.
+Lagerstrœmia Indica, 305.
+land, handling, 87.
+larch, 325.
+larix species, 325.
+latania, 385.
+Lathyrus latifolius, 311.
+laurel, cherry, 306, 330.
+laurel, great, 299, 391.
+laurel, mountain, 297.
+laurel, true, 306.
+Laurus nobilis, 306.
+lavender, 460.
+lawn, making, 77.
+lawns, treatment, 82.
+leaf cuttings, 120.
+leatherwood, 296.
+leek, 456, 483.
+Leiophyllum buxifolium, 298.
+lespedeza species, 298.
+lettuce, 483.
+lettuce disease, 210.
+Liatris spicata, 270.
+Libocedrus decurrens, 336.
+ligustrum species, 298.
+lilac species, 304.
+liliums, 278, 284, 378, 285.
+lily-of-the-valley, 86, 267, 275, 381.
+lima beans, 464.
+lime and sulfur wash, 195.
+Linaria Cymbalaria, 313.
+linden, 329, 330.
+Lindera Benzoin, 293.
+Linum perenne, 278.
+Liquidambar styraciflua, 325, 330.
+Liriodendron Tulipifera, 325.
+live-oak, 330.
+liver of sulfur, 197.
+liver-leaf, 265.
+lizard’s tail, 264.
+Lobelia cardinalis, 272, 278.
+lobster cactus, 359.
+locust, 328.
+locust, honey, 221, 325.
+Lombardy poplar, 40.
+Long, E.A., quoted, 223.
+Lonicera Halliana, 53, 216.
+lonicera species, 298, 316.
+loose-strife, 264.
+lotus, 230.
+lovage, 360.
+luffa, 311.
+Lychnis alpina, 265.
+Lychnis Chalcedonica 278.,
+Lychnis Coronaria, 274.
+Lychnis Viscaria, 271.
+Lycium Chinense, 315.
+lycoris, 283.
+Lysimachia clethroides, 278.
+Lysimachia nummularia, 86, 309.
+Lythrum Salicaria, 264.
+
+madeira vine, 313, 344.
+maggots of cabbage, 187, 201.
+magnolias, 306, 325, 330.
+Mahernia odorata, 344, 345.
+mahonia, 293, 306.
+maidenhair tree, 324.
+maize, striped, 230.
+mallow, rose, 262.
+M’Mahon, mentioned, 2.
+manure for hotbeds, 169.
+maples, 322, 323, 330.
+marguerite carnations, 363.
+marguerite chrysanthemum, 365.
+marjoram, 460.
+markers, 108.
+marshplants, 230.
+Mathews, Schuyler, picture by, 31.
+matrimony vine, 315.
+mats, making, 176.
+matthiolas, 402.
+Melia Azederach, 330.
+melon, 458, 487, 499.
+melon disease, 210.
+melon insects, 201.
+Menispermum Canadense, 317.
+Mertensia Virginica, 266.
+Mesembryanthemum, 309, 344.
+mice injury, 144.
+mignonette, 381.
+mignonette vine, 313.
+mikania, 313.
+miscanthus, 264.
+miscible oils, 194.
+mock orange, 298, 306.
+mock orange of South, 221, 306, 330.
+moisture, saving, 97.
+moles, 178.
+Momordica, 311.
+Monarda didyma, 271.
+moneywort, 86, 309, 340 (see lysimachia).
+Monterey cypress, 220.
+monthly advice, 501.
+moon-flower, 313, 381.
+moonseed, 317.
+morning-glory, perennial, 313.
+morus species, 326.
+mounding-up trees, 136.
+mountain ash, 329.
+mountain laurel, 297.
+moving large trees, 130.
+muck, 111.
+Mucuna utilis, 311.
+Muehlenbeckia, 318, 344.
+mulberry, 326, 330, 432.
+mulberry, French, 305.
+mulching plants, 136.
+muriate of potash, 111, 113.
+Musa Ensete, 229.
+mushrooms, 484.
+muskmelon, 487.
+muskmelon disease, 210.
+mustard, 487.
+myosotis, 266, 278.
+myriophyllum, 231, 349.
+myrtle, running, 86, 315.
+myrtle, true, 306.
+Myrtus communis, 306.
+
+narcissus, 382.
+negundo, 323.
+Nepeta Glechoma, 309.
+Nephrolepis exaltata, 340, 372.
+Nettle tree, 324.
+Nicotiana, 38.
+night-blooming cereus, 358.
+nine-bark, 298.
+nitrate of soda, 112, 113.
+nitrogen, 112.
+nozzles, 192.
+nuts, 433.
+Nyssa sylvatica, 326.
+
+oaks, 328, 330.
+odd plants, 40.
+Œnothera Missouriensis, 278.
+oil insecticides, 194.
+okra, 488.
+old-fashioned gardens, 32, 34.
+Olea fragrans, 306.
+oleander, 306, 383.
+oleaster, 296.
+onion, 456, 488.
+opuntia, 359.
+orange, culture of, 433.
+Orontium aquaticum, 264.
+osage orange, 221.
+osiers, 294, 295.
+Osmanthus fragrans, 306.
+Ostrya Virginica, 326.
+oxalis, 384.
+oxalis for window-gardens, 344.
+Oxalis tropæoloides, 235.
+Oxydendrum arboreum, 326, 330.
+oyster plant, 494.
+oyster-shell scale, 204.
+
+pæonia: see peony.
+palmettoes, 306.
+palms, 306, 384.
+palms for South, 306.
+pampas-grass, 230.
+pandanus, 344, 385.
+Panicum virgatum, 264.
+pansy, culture of, 386.
+papavers, 270, 279.
+paper-white narcissus, 289, 383.
+papyrus, 232.
+Paradisea Liliastrum, 269.
+paradise stocks, 409.
+paris green formula, 193.
+parrot’s feather, 231, 349.
+parsley, 490.
+parsnip, 456, 490.
+Passiflora incarnata, 312.
+passiflora species, 316.
+paulownia, 330.
+pavia, 293.
+pea, 459, 490.
+peach, culture of, 435.
+peach diseases, 210.
+pear, culture of, 437.
+pear diseases, 211.
+pear insects, 205.
+pea-trees, 294.
+pecan, 325, 433.
+pelargonium, 386.
+Pelargonium peltatum, 308.
+Peltandra undulata, 264.
+pennisetum, 230, plate v.
+pennyroyal, 460.
+pentstemon, 270, 272, 279.
+peony, 267, 269, 279, 387.
+peppermint, 460.
+pepperidge, 326.
+pepper, red, 458,  490.
+perennials, cultivation of, 260.
+Periploca Græca, 216, 317.
+periwinkle, 86, 309, 315.
+Phalaris arundinacea, 264.
+Phaseolus multiflorus, 311, 313, 464.
+phaseolus species, 464.
+Philadelphus coronarius and grandiflorus, 51.
+philadelphus species, 298, 306.
+phillyreas, 306.
+phlox, culture of, 388.
+phlox, perennial, 271, 279.
+Phlox subulata, 267, 279.
+phœnix, 385.
+phosphoric acid, 112, 113.
+photographing landscapes, 12.
+Phragmites communis, 264.
+physocarpus, 298.
+picea species, 334, 335.
+picture in landscape, 12, 58.
+pie plant, 493.
+Pieris floribunda, 299, 306 (Andromeda).
+Pilea arborea, 344.
+pine, 334, 335, 336.
+pinks, 270.
+pinus species, 334, 335, 336.
+Pittosporum, 306, 344.
+plane-tree, 326, 330.
+plan of grounds, 8.
+plant diseases, 207.
+plant-lice, 198.
+platanus species, 326.
+platycodon grandiflorum, 272, 279.
+plows, 93.
+Plumbago Capensis, 306.
+plum, culture of, 439.
+plum, diseases, 211, 440.
+plum, ornamental, 327.
+Poa compressa,  78; pratensis, 78; trivialis, 79.
+podocarpus, 336.
+poinsettia, 306.
+polemoniums, 279.
+Polianthes tuberosa, 404.
+polyanthus, 389.
+polygonums, 263, 317.
+pomegranate, 306.
+poplar, 41, 218, 326, 327.
+poppy, Iceland, 270, 279.
+Populus Bolleana, 218, 327.
+populus species, 326, 327.
+Populus tremuloides, 42.
+potash salts, 111, 113.
+potassium sulfide, 197.
+potato, culture, 492.
+potato diseases, 212.
+potato insects, 205.
+potato scab, 190, 212.
+potato vine, 317.
+Potentilla fruticosa, 299.
+Potentilla hybrida, 279.
+pot-herbs, 459.
+prickly ash, 305.
+Primula Auricula, 354.
+Primula cortusoides, 280.
+primulas, 389.
+privets, 298, 306.
+propagating, 116, 118.
+protecting in winter, 135.
+Pruning, 139, 142, 149, 411.
+pruning at transplanting, 129.
+Prunus Caroliniana, 221, 306, 330.
+Prunus Laurocerasius, 306.
+prunus species, 299, 327.
+Pseudotsuga Douglasii, 335.
+psylla, 205.
+Ptelea trifoliata, 299.
+pteris, 373.
+Pueraria Thunbergiana, 317.
+pumpkin, 458, 496.
+pumps, 183, 185.
+pyracantha, 221, 292, 306.
+pyrethrum, 272, 280.
+pyrus, species, 327.
+
+quereus species, 320, 328, 330.
+quince, culture of, 442.
+
+rabbit injury, 144.
+radish, 493.
+railroad-worm, 199.
+rainfall, saving, 97.
+raspberry, culture of, 443.
+raspberry diseases, 212.
+raspberry insects, 205.
+ravenna grass, 264.
+records of plantation, 154.
+red-bud, 324.
+red pepper, 458, 490.
+red spider, 205.
+red-top, 79.
+removing large trees, 130.
+repairing trees, 145.
+retinosporas, 220, 221, 333, 336.
+rhamnus species, 299.
+rhododendron, 390.
+rhododendron species, 299, 306.
+Rhodotypos kerrioides, 299, 306.
+rhubarb, 493.
+rhubarb, forcing, 162.
+rhubarb for ornament, 39.
+Rhus Cotinus, 291, 299, 306.
+rhus species, 299, 300.
+Rhynchospermum jasminoides, 317.
+Ribes aureum, 53.
+Ribes sanguineum, 53.
+ribes species, 300.
+richardia, 360.
+ricinus, 230.
+rill “improved,” 24.
+Roberts, mentioned, 87, 93.
+robinia species, 300, 306, 328.
+rockeries, 232.
+rollers, 108.
+root-crops, 456.
+root cuttings, 118.
+root-galls, 180.
+Rosa rugosa, 37, 221, 292, 300.
+rosa species, 300, 301, 318.
+Rosa Wichuraiana, 216, 309.
+rose acacia, 300.
+rose, culture of, 391.
+rose diseases, 213.
+rose insects, 205.
+rosemary, 460.
+roses, climbing, 318.
+roses in landscapes, 37.
+rows, to make straight, 127.
+Rubus cratægifolius, 35, 206, 301.
+Rubus fruticosus, 53.
+Rubus laciniatus, 53, 309.
+Rubus odoratus, 45, 46, 301.
+Rubus phœnicolasius, 53, 301.
+Rudbeckia laciniata, 272, 280.
+Rudbeckia maxima, 271, 280.
+Ruscus aculeatus, 306.
+Russelia juncea, 344.
+rutabaga, 498.
+rye-grass, 80.
+
+sacaline, 216, 263.
+sage, 460.
+salad plants, 459.
+Salisburia adiantifolia, 324.
+Salix laurifolia, 219, 301, 329.
+salix species, 301, 328, 329.
+salsify, 456, 494.
+salvia, perennial, 37.
+Salvia pratensis, 269.
+Sambucus species, 291, 302.
+Sanguinaria Canadensis, 265.
+San José scale, 206.
+Santolina Chamæcyparissus, 236.
+sassafras, 329.
+Saururus cernuus, 264.
+saving of moisture, 97.
+savory, 460.
+Saxifraga peltata, 262.
+Saxifraga sarmentosa, 344.
+Sayers, mentioned, 2.
+Scabiosa Caucasica, 280.
+scab on potatoes, 190.
+scale, San José, 206.
+scarifiers, 105.
+Schenley park, 34.
+Schizophragma hydrangeoides, 309, 316.
+school-grounds, 11.
+scilla, 283, 289.
+screens for wind, 219.
+screen to protect against insects, 186.
+screw pine, 344, 385.
+scrubbing trees, 414.
+scuppernong, 315.
+sea-kale, 495.
+sedges for bogs, 232.
+sedum, 340.
+seed-beds, 117.
+seedlings, transplanting, 122.
+seed-sowing, 116.
+Selaginella denticulata, 344.
+sempervivum, 235.
+Senecio macroglossus and mikanioides, 340, 344.
+senna, wild, 264.
+service-tree, 329.
+shearing, 140.
+shelter-belts, 219.
+she-oak, 376.
+shepherdia species, 302.
+shrubs, list of, 292.
+shrubs, pruning, 140.
+shrubs for the South, 305.
+Sicyos angulata, 309.
+silk vine, 317.
+Simonds, O.C., quoted, 69.
+Slingerland, quoted, 198.
+smilax (florists’), 340, 401.
+smilax species, 315.
+Smith, H.W., quoted, 501.
+Smith and Townsend, quoted, 180.
+smoke-tree, 299, 306.
+snowball, 304, 306.
+snow-berry, 304, 306.
+snowdrop, 281, 288.
+snowflake, 289.
+soap insecticides, 194.
+Socrates, 2.
+sod-cutter, 73.
+sodding, 84.
+soil, handling, 87.
+soil mulch, 98.
+Solanum Dulcamara, 216, 315.
+Solanum jasminoides, 317.
+solidagos, 264, 272, 280.
+Sophora Japonica, 330.
+Sorbus species, 329.
+sorrel, 495.
+sorrel-tree, 326.
+sourwood, 326.
+South Carolina, rock, 112.
+sowing the seeds, 116.
+sparrows, poisoning, 18.
+Spartium junceum, 306.
+spearmint, 460, 495.
+spider, red, 205.
+spinach, 495.
+Spiræa Aruncus, 264, 280.
+spireas, 221, 264, 280, 298, 302, 306.
+spraying, 190.
+spring beauty, 265.
+spruce, 221, 334, 335.
+spuds, 107.
+squash, 458, 496.
+squash insects, 201, 459.
+squill, 283, 288.
+stake labels, 155.
+staphylea species, 302, 303.
+Statice latifolia, 280.
+stem cuttings, 118.
+Sterculia platanifolia, 330.
+stevia, 344.
+Stewart, quoted, 207.
+stink-bug, 202, 459.
+St. John’s wort, 297.
+stocks, 402.
+storing of fruits and vegetables, 158, 414, 475.
+strawberry, culture of, 445.
+strawberry disease, 213, 449.
+strawberry tree, 306.
+streams, treatment of, 24, 58, 65, 232.
+street trees, repairing, 145.
+strychnine for sparrows, 18.
+Stuartia pentagyna, 306.
+styrax, 303.
+subsoiling, 90.
+subtropical gardening, mentioned, 7, 229.
+sulfate of potash, 111, 113.
+sulfide of potassium, 197.
+sulfur as fungicide, 197.
+sumac, 299, 300.
+sunflowers, wild, 263, 271.
+sunken fence, 66.
+surgery, 142.
+swainsona, 344, 403.
+sweet-flag, 232.
+sweet gum, 325, 330.
+sweet-herbs, 460.
+sweet pea, culture of, 403.
+sweet potato, 496.
+Swiss chard, 475.
+symphoricarpos species, 304, 306.
+Symphoricarpus vulgaris, 53.
+syringa, 298, 304.
+syringe, 183.
+
+tacsonia, 316.
+tallies, 156.
+tamarack, 325.
+tamarisk (tamarix), 221, 291, 304.
+tankage, 112.
+tanks for aquatics, 230.
+tansy, 460.
+Tarryer, tools, 103.
+Taxodium distichum, 329.
+taxus species, 334, 336.
+Taylor, A.D., quoted, 145.
+tecoma species, 314.
+tennis-screen, 55.
+tent-caterpillar, 206, 417.
+terracas, 62.
+Thalictrum aquilegifolium, 280.
+Thermopsis, mollis, 264.
+thinning fruit, 412.
+three guardsmen, 25.
+Thuja occidentalis, 333, 336.
+thyme, 460.
+Thymus argenteus, 235.
+tilia species, 329.
+tilling, 92.
+tobacco insecticide, 194.
+tomato, 458, 497.
+tomato disease, 213.
+Townsend and Smith, quoted, 180.
+Trachelospermum jasminoides, 317.
+Tracy’s garden plan, 452.
+tradescantia, 340.
+transplanting young plants, 122; old plants, 124.
+tree guards, 143.
+Trees, lists and discussion, 319, 331.
+trees, moving large, 130.
+tree surgery, 142.
+trenching, 89, 90.
+trichosanthes, 311.
+trilliums, 267.
+trimming, 140.
+Tritoma Usaria, 272.
+Trollis Europæus, 281.
+Tropæolium peregrinum, 310.
+trowels, 106.
+trumpet creeper, 216, 314.
+tsuga species, 335, 336.
+tuberose, 404.
+tubers, culture of, 281.
+tub-plants, transplanting, 125.
+tulips, culture of, 405.
+tulip tree, 325, 330.
+turnip, 498.
+Tussilago Farfara, 216.
+typhas, 264.
+
+Ulmaria Filipendula, 271, 280.
+ulmus species, 329, 330.
+umbrella plant, 232.
+umbrella tree, 330.
+
+varnish-tree, 325.
+vegetables, culture of, 451.
+vegetable oyster, 494.
+viburnum species, 304, 305, 306.
+vigna, 464.
+vinca major, 315.
+Vinca minor, 86, 315, 340 (see periwinkle, myrtle).
+vines, 307.
+violet, culture of, 406.
+violet insect, 206.
+violets, fumigating, 190.
+virgilia, 324.
+Virginia creeper, 216, 308, 309, 314.
+Vitex Agnus-Castus, 306.
+vitis species, 315.
+
+Walker, E., quoted, 234, 265.
+walks and drives, 67.
+walnut, 325, 433.
+wandering jew, 340, 344.
+washing trees, 414.
+water cress, 478.
+watering hotbeds, 175.
+watering house plants, 347.
+watering land, 100.
+water-lilies, 230.
+watermelon, 499.
+wax for grafting, 145.
+wax-plant, 406.
+wax-work, 317.
+weeders, 95, 106.
+weed-spuds, 107.
+weeping trees, 40.
+weigela, kinds, 296, 306.
+well about a tree, 66.
+wheel-hoes, 96.
+Whetzel, quoted, 207.
+white-fly, 207.
+white grub, 207, 449.
+white hellebore, 193.
+wigandia, 230.
+willows, 41, 219.
+willow, species of, 301, 328, 329.
+windbreaks, 219.
+wind-flowers, 264, 265, 269, 273, 274, 353.
+window-boxes, 337.
+window-gardens, 336.
+winter aconite, 289.
+winter protection, 135.
+wires, injury by, 149.
+wire-vine, 318.
+wistaria, 316.
+witch hazel, 297.
+witloof, 476.
+wood ashes, 111.
+woodbine, 316.
+woodruff, 269.
+wormwood, 460.
+wormwood, wild, 263.
+
+Xanthoceras, 305.
+
+Yams, ornamental, 313.
+yellows, 211.
+yew, 334, 336.
+Yucca filamentosa, 262, 271.
+Yuccas, shrubby, 306.
+
+zamia, 306.
+Zanthoxylum Americanum, 305.
+zebra grass, 264.
+Zizania aquatica, 264.
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Manual of Gardening, by L. H. Bailey
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