Eight-foot Bed
A large clump of Setaria magna in the centre. First row, Coix lachryma, eighteen inches apart; second row, twenty inches out, Pennisetum Ruppellianum, eighteen inches apart.
I cannot too highly recommend the planting of ornamental grasses on the lawn. They are extensively used in parks and in other public grounds, but not nearly so extensively as they should be on private grounds. Many of them are perfectly hardy, and once established grow in beauty from year to year; others in the Northern States may be easily wintered in the cellar, while still others may be cheaply and easily raised from seed each year.
Chapter TWO
Soils
In every garden the matter of soil is of first importance. In case of an outdoor garden the existing conditions will largely determine the class of plants to be grown.
A good loam—that is a non-coherent mixture of clay and sand with a proportion of such decayed vegetable matter as leaves and the fibrous roots of grasses—is the best garden soil, being what is termed warm and early. Soil containing a good proportion of sand is warm, while a preponderance of clay makes what is known as cold or wet soil.
If there is good drainage, cold soil can be rendered lighter, sandier and more friable by the liberal application of manure, which in two or three years will quite change its character. But this is a long time to wait, and to get quick results it will be necessary, after laying out the garden and outlining the beds, to remove the earth to a depth of twenty inches or more, filling in with soil suitable for the class of plants to be grown in each bed. In the beds intended for Roses, however, the clay may be left, as Roses require this soil. Where it is not present it should be supplied and added to each year, as the heavy manuring which Roses require constantly reduces the relative proportion of clay. For the Pansy bed nothing better than leaf-mould from the woods can be procured. For this bed remove six or eight inches of earth, spade in a good supply of old, well-rotted manure from the cow-stable, top-dress with several inches of leaf-mould. You will have a bed that will give magnificent Pansies and few weeds. For the Salvia, Canna, Ricinus, Caladium and other strong-growing plants no soil is better than the muck or peat of swamps—soil composed of partly carbonised vegetable matter decomposed by the action of water. Leaf-mould consists of vegetable matter which has decayed without being submerged, and it usually contains a liberal quantity of sharp, white sand, to which it owes its friable, non-adhesive character. Leaf-mould is commonly found around decayed stumps and in hollow places in the woods, where the leaves have drifted and decayed. It is ready for immediate use. Muck or peat, however, which is found in bogs and swamps, is unfit for garden use when freshly dug—except for aquatic plants—being tough and fibrous. It should therefore be dug during the summer, thrown in a heap and left for the winter frost to rot and render tractable. For immediate use the best method is to place it in a deep hole in the bed and cover with several inches of loam, or old muck. If this is kept worked or mulched to exclude air and retain the moisture in the muck, excellent results may be secured. The bed may also be partly filled with muck and covered with loam, the whole object being to prevent the muck drying out into hard lumps, as it will, when green, on exposure to sun and air. The following spring the loam may be spaded into the muck, giving a warm, mellow, exceedingly rich soil that will grow anything. The importance of starting out with good soil cannot be too strongly urged. It seems at first sight to call for a considerable expenditure of time and money—especially where the earth must be purchased and the labour paid for—but in the long run it is a decided saving.
With unsuitable soil there must be many failures, resulting in loss of both plants and seeds, and this in itself is no small expense. The labour of caring for such a garden is many times greater, for the top-dressing of manure required produces an incessant crop of weeds, which must be removed, not once, but many times during the summer, while beds filled with leaf-mould or muck need but one or two weedings. The weeds which grow naturally in these soils do not flourish in the open ground. A few Smartweeds and Nettles may be expected in the one case, and Violets and Spring-beauties in the other. In the manured garden soil an endless procession of Purslane, Malice, Ragweed and the like must be constantly watched for. The presence of clay and gravel in the soil always renders it hard and given to caking, necessitating frequent cultivation; while muck-beds, after the preliminary spading in the spring, remain free and mellow throughout the season.
Replacing soil presents more difficulties to city dwellers than to those living in the country, or in small towns, but, as there are in the vicinity of most of our cities rich peat lands, it ought not to be difficult to obtain one or two loads of this useful material. Near the small towns are always to be found farmers who own or live near marsh-land, and can supply muck, especially where they have been ditching. A good waggon-load may be had at prices ranging from fifty cents to two dollars, according to the distance to be hauled. The cost in the city would, of course, be much greater.
It is well for the amateur gardener to learn early in her experience to keep her eyes open to all things pertaining to the success of the garden. When driving, note the marsh-lands easily accessible from the highway, especially where they have been ditched or partially reclaimed, and interview the owner or tenant. In the dull season on the farm the owner of such soil may be glad to earn an extra dollar or two, and it may also be suggested to the farmers’ boys, who have marsh-and wood-lands, that they may earn pocket-money by calling on people known to be cultivating flowers or building new homes, to solicit their orders. Many people who grow flowers do not know where to apply for earth, and an advertisement in a local paper would, doubtless, prove advantageous to customer and purveyor. On hillsides along the road, and places which the rain has washed, one may gather quantities of pure white or grey sand for potting. Yellow sand is not suitable for such use, as it contains much clay and cakes badly after watering, while the white or grey sand remains line and loose.
Leaf-mould is not so readily procurable, as it must be gathered from suitable patches through the woods, and the farmers do not like to bother with it. Besides, they are likely to dig up much undesirable under-soil. It is better to go one’s self for this. A still better way is to make your own leaf-mould. Thus: when sod is removed from the ground for any purpose, shake out the fine soil that adheres to it for future use; or slice off the fine roots with a sharp knife just below the crown of the grass. This is known as fibrous loam, and, in combination with leaf-mould, old manure and fine, sharp sand, makes the very finest potting soil. Throw the tops of the sods in a heap in some out-of-the-way corner and add the rakings of the yard in fall and spring, all weeds pulled during the summer, all vegetable refuse, potato-parings, apple-peelings, corn-husks, and berry-hulls—anything that has vegetable matter and will decay. All dish-water and slops that are not needed on the garden may be thrown on the pile, which should be turned over occasionally during the winter. By the following spring you will have the finest kind of leaf-mould. Not all of the pile will have decayed, but along the sides and underneath it will be found ready for use. Add to it every bit of available vegetable matter during the year, including the annual flowers pulled up after their season of bloom, the tops of such root-plants as Cannas, Caladiums, Gladioli, etc., and you will soon have a supply quite adequate to the needs of an ordinary garden. Where there are water-works the hose may be turned on frequently to hasten decomposition. If it is impossible to replace all poor soil in the garden with better, by the addition of leaf-mould and manure, much may be accomplished in the way of building up the old and rendering it suitable.
If the plot to be used can be ploughed up, well manured, and sown to clover, the clover turned under in the fall, a good top-dressing of manure given, and the whole turned again in the spring, the soil should be in good garden condition.
Where the soil is a good, warm loam the addition of fertilisers will always give excellent results, though there is the disadvantage of weeds and extra cultivation to consider. The first cost of suitable earth is great, but it pays in the end in the saving of fertilisers, labour, expensive seeds and flowers.
Chapter THREE
Fertilisers
Fertilisers in the form of animal manures, chemicals or vegetable matter come next in importance to a good soil. Horse, cow, sheep, and poultry droppings are the cheapest and most direct in results. Of the four, cow manure is probably the best for the majority of plants, especially Pansies, Iris, Violets, Ferns and others which love a cool soil. Cow manure is known as a cool manure, and is suitable for a warm or sandy soil. Horse manure, which is more heating, especially when from young stock, is better on cold or clayey soil, as it has the effect of breaking up the adhesiveness of the clay and promoting the formation of sand. Hen manure is very warm and is therefore most suitable for cold soils. Sheep manure is especially desirable for Roses and house-plants, about one part manure to six of earth being the proportion.
Good results may be obtained by the use of any or all of these, if in the proper condition and judiciously applied. Manure is in proper condition when it has passed completely through the heating or fermenting stage. Fresh manure should never be placed where it, or the water that leaches from it, can possibly come in contact with the plants; manure should be six months or, better still, a year old before being used. Old and well-rotted manure has much the appearance of rich, black earth, and is readily assimilated by the plants. It should be fine and free from such rough litter as corn-stalks, cobs, and long straws, and should be thoroughly mixed with the soil. As manure is full of the seeds of weeds and grasses, it is better, when applying it in the spring, to remove a portion of the top-soil and work the manure into the subsoil by spading, and then to return the top-soil. This will prevent their germination and save a great deal of weeding during the summer.
Manure that retains its original form is too fresh to use and should be thrown in a heap and frequently forked over to hasten decomposition. It will be fit by another season, but older stuff must be procured for present use. Where there is room it is a wise provision to keep a pile of manure from year to year, in order to avoid the inconvenience of looking for it when you need it. No better expenditure can be made by the gardener than in purchasing several loads of old manure, when it is discovered in some neighbouring barn-yard. If one has no supply and must purchase, the matter should be attended to in the fall at latest, to allow ample time for saving it. Farmers usually draw the manure on the land as it accumulates, so that it is difficult to obtain in the spring.
Ashes contain a certain amount of phosphates, which tend to sweeten the soil. They are also beneficial in increasing the strength or stiffness of the stalks, and for this reason are valuable for Aster and Gladiolus beds; they should never be mixed with manure, as is frequently done, but should be strewn over the surface of the soil after the other fertilisers are worked in. Ashes mixed with manure release the ammonia of the latter, depriving it of one of its most valuable properties. Ammonia itself is not a fertiliser but a stimulant, creating in the plant a desire for the food stored up in the manure—in other words, an appetiser. Plants, like people, will not eat unless they have an appetite, and manure mixed with ashes is poorer and much less valuable in every way to the farmer and gardener. Soot is another excellent chemical fertiliser, adding much to the richness of colour in both flower and foliage. Apply either dry or mixed with the surface-soil, or in the form of a tea made by pouring water over the soot in a vessel. Draw off the liquid after the mixture has settled and apply it around the roots of the plants, taking care that it does not touch the foliage. It is especially good for Pansies and Roses.
Manure-water is a good way to apply animal fertiliser, as it is fairly free from the seeds of weeds, which constitute the chief drawback to the solid form. To prepare it take a water-tight barrel or half-barrel and put a spigot in the side near the bottom. Place three or four inches of clean straw in the barrel, letting it come well up above the spigot, then fill half full of manure. It is not necessary that the manure should be so very old; it needs only to have passed the fermentation period. Fill the barrel with water. Fit a tight cover over it and it is soon ready to use. As long as the liquid runs the colour of coffee or a strong tea the manure will not need renewing, and more water may be added from time to time, but when it shows signs of exhaustion empty the barrel, put the refuse on the compost heap and fill the barrel as before. If the liquid is to be used on pot-plants it will be better to use boiling water in the barrel to destroy the eggs and chrysalis of the white-worms and other larvæ that infest the manure; or add a half teaspoonful of Paris green to the water. The first drawings from the barrel should be well diluted before using, especially when applied to dry soil. If hen manure is used, it should be made much weaker than other manures, as it is very heating and likely to burn the roots of plants. A convenient way to handle the manure barrel is to carry a watering-pot of water to the barrel each time, emptying it in at the top and drawing off a corresponding amount at the spigot—in this way the barrel is kept constantly full and extra steps saved. Liquid manure may also be prepared by filling a pail half full of manure, adding boiling water, and dipping off the liquid when the sediment is settled.
MANURE WATER IS A GOOD WAY TO APPLY ANIMAL FERTILISER
After a heavy rain there will often be a pool in some corner of the barn-yard where sufficient liquid manure may be dipped up to fill a barrel or hogshead. Where the barn-yard is paved with cobble-stones—as all barnyards should be, for health and cleanliness—a catch-basin may be easily arranged which the natural slope of the land will fill when it rains. This will more than pay for the trifling outlay for its construction, as it need only be a depression in the soil, covered with cement. Even stiff clay will answer. It is surprising how carelessly farmers let such valuable property go to waste while they buy load after load of manure at the stables in town and haul it long distances. The yield of the strawberry-and asparagus-beds alone would be sufficiently increased to pay for such a catch-basin many times over.
Soapsuds furnish another excellent fertiliser, and every drop of water from the wash-room, bed-room and kitchen should be saved and applied around the roots of plants—especially Roses, Dahlias, and vines, which never seem to get enough of either moisture or nourishment. Slop-water should not be put on the foliage of plants, as it leaves a scum that is difficult to get rid of.
A very good substitute for commercial bone-meal may be manufactured at home by saving all the bones from the kitchen, throwing them into a stone jar, covering them with strong lye, and allowing them to remain until soft enough to be pulverised and dug into the soil. The lye that remains may also be applied to the soil after being diluted with water. Blood obtained at the slaughter-house is an excellent fertiliser, containing much easily assimilated plant food in a soluble form. Feathers contain much valuable material in the way of phosphates, but are not suitable for the annual beds. They may be applied to shrubs and hardy perennials by digging them into the ground at a little distance from the plants, where the roots will reach out and find them. Hoof-parings from the blacksmith shop are also valuable for the perennial bed. Indeed, with all the forms of plant food available there is no excuse for starving plants. There are, of course, many commercial plant foods and fertilisers on the market, bone-meal and guano being the most reliable among them, but many of them are expensive and uncertain in their action. Being highly concentrated they are likely to do harm in the hands of the inexperienced. The natural manures are the safest.
In using liquid manures either on the open ground or on potted plants, they should only be applied when the soil has been well watered the day before, never when it is dry. The plant, being supplied with all it needs to drink, absorbs only what it requires for nourishment and is less likely to be injured by an overdose. The moisture in the soil serves also to reduce the strength of the manure.
In applying old cow or horse manure to new beds a wheel-barrow load to every nine square feet is not too much for strong growing plants such as Ricinus, Cannas, and Salvias. Half that quantity of hen manure will be sufficient.
Chapter FOUR
The Hotbed, Cold-Frame and Sand-box
The hotbed is an enclosure, affording bottom heat and protection from cold, for the propagation of tender plants unsuited to sowing in the open ground, and for starting plants too early in the season for open-air operations. The hotbed is usually started in February or March in the latitude of Philadelphia, while April is early enough in the latitude of Detroit and Chicago. Plants are transferred to the open ground when all danger of frost is past. With the exception of a few plants like Poppies, which do not bear disturbance, all seeds yield better results if planted where they have protection in their early stages from drying wind, burning sun and nipping cold. This protection the cold-frame gives, while the hotbed affords the additional advantage of artificial heat. Plants thus started will be ready to transplant about the time seeds could be started in the open ground—an important gain in northern latitudes, where, between the early and late frosts there is hardly time for the maturing of annuals.
The hotbed should be situated on the south side of a building, wall or fence, where it will have the full benefit of the sun and be protected from cold winds. It is also desirable that the land should slope toward the south, that all surface water may drain away, and that the bed may receive the greatest amount of sunshine during the day. In constructing a hotbed dig a pit two feet deep. This may be lined with planks or bricks, or left with its earthen walls. Over this build a frame of rough lumber around four posts of three-or four-inch stuff, three feet two inches high in the back, and two feet eight inches high in the front. If the pit is not lined, this will bring the frame below the surface and allow a sufficient slant for the free shedding of water and the concentration of the greatest amount of sunshine on the bed. Regular hotbed sash are three feet by six, and cost about two dollars and seventy-five cents each, glazed and painted. These are usually arranged to rest on the frame, simply sliding up and down, the size of the bed determining the number of sash. A bed three by six, however, is more easily handled than a larger one; and two or more beds, set end to end, or one long, narrow one divided by partitions into three-by-six beds, will be more satisfactory in every way than a wider one. The partitions are necessary, not alone to strengthen the frame and support the sash, but to insure to each section the special treatment it requires. Not all seeds germinate in the same temperature, or require the same degree of moisture. There is, also, a great difference in the period of germination; some seeds sprout in from three to five days; others require as many weeks. With separate sections seeds of similar habits and requirements may be planted together.
Florists’ sash makes an expensive hotbed, and quite as satisfactory results may be obtained by using such old window-sash as may be picked up for about twenty-five cents apiece where buildings are being torn down or from junk or hardware dealers. Old sash will probably need some glazing and painting, and these are among the things the amateur gardener should learn to do for herself, as sash must be water-tight and in order at all times. A sudden hail-storm, a mischievous cat or careless handling may leave one with broken glass that must be replaced at once. When old sash is used the back of the frame should be higher than the sides by the thickness of the sash, so that the sash may be fastened to it with hinges if desired. A cross-piece from the back to the front for the sash to rest on will give greater stability and prevent draughts of cold air on a sudden fall of temperature.
WHEN PLANTS APPEAR TOO THICKLY IN THE ROWS, TRANSPLANT
A WELL-CONSTRUCTED HOTBED
Having constructed the pit, fill it with fresh manure from the horse-stable—that from young, grain-fed stock being best. It must be perfectly fresh, gathered from the stalls in the morning, and should be mixed with a quantity of litter—long straw or leaves. This serves as fuel, insuring a continuous heat. Without it the heat germinated by the manure would quickly die out and the bed become cold. Throw the manure loosely into the frame, close the sash and wait for fermentation or heating. This should take place in from twelve to twenty-four hours; if longer than that it will be as well to throw out the manure and begin again, making sure this time that the manure is absolutely fresh. When the thermometer by rising to 100 or more degrees shows that fermentation is well under way, the manure should be well tramped down, as level and smooth as possible. Over this place a couple of inches of fine, old, well-rotted manure. This will afford nourishment for the young plants should they make sufficient growth to need it, or on account of stress of weather be detained in the hotbed longer than expected. If this is not supplied the tender roots of the plants are apt to go in search of the crude manure in the bottom of the hotbed, and be injured by contact with it. When plants that have come up thrifty suddenly turn yellow and look as if they had been scalded, though sufficiently protected from the sun, it is probable that their roots have been burned by the manure. This may be determined by digging down to the roots. If they have reached the manure the cause is evident; other plants in the same beds, with shallower roots, it will be observed, are not affected in the same way. As this is not likely to happen until the plants have made considerable growth the season will probably be enough advanced to permit of planting out, especially with protection at night, or they may be transplanted into the cold-frame until the weather is warm. Such mishaps seldom occur, but when they do, they must be met promptly. Few plants will make over four inches of roots before transplanting, and when they reach the old manure they usually spread out without going deeper.
To return to the construction of the hotbed: Cover the manure with four inches of rich, fine loam, free from rough lumps and stone; it would better be put through a sand-or coal-sieve if not mellow and fine. Make as level as possible, and place a thermometer in the soil to register the temperature. When it has risen to 90 degrees or above, and then fallen to 75 or 70 degrees, the seed may be sown.
In planting seed it is best to use narrow strips of wood to separate the different varieties. This prevents mixing and running together when watered. It is impossible to distinguish between different varieties of Asters, Ageratums and Pansies once they have become mixed. Where one lives within reach of a box factory narrow strips of wood—admirable for this purpose—of uniform width and very thin, may be readily obtained. It is best to begin at the upper right-hand corner with seeds that require the most time to germinate, labelling each section plainly with name, date and the period of germination.
Flowers that make the tallest growth may be placed against the back with advantage—as Cobæa scandens, Ricinus, the Dolichos, Cosmos, and the like; giving them the advantage of the extra light and keeping them from withholding the light from the plants in front of them.
Coarse seeds should be planted in drills and covered to twice their depth. A furrow may be scratched with a sharp stick from an eighth to a half-inch deep, and the seed sown thinly in it, the earth being replaced and pressed firmly down with a piece of wood. This is important, as it brings the seed in close contact with the earth, and the tiny sprout can lay hold of it at once when germination takes place. Many seeds of weak germinating power are lost when sown in loose, coarse soil by failure to obtain immediate contact with the nourishment contained in it.
Fine seeds like Petunias, Nicotianas and Ageratums must be sown broadcast in little squares reserved for them. Sow on the surface, press into the soil with a piece of board and merely sift fine sand over.
A piece of thin wood eight or ten inches long and four or five inches wide, with a handle on one side, will be found very useful to press the soil down quickly and firmly. This should be an adjunct to every well-regulated hotbed. So should a thermometer, hung on the back wall of the hotbed, the bulb level with the soil. After the seeds are all sown, if the soil is at all dry, sprinkle carefully with a rubber sprinkler, or a whisk-broom dipped in water and shaken over the bed. Do not use the watering-pot, as it will wash the seed out of the ground. When the plants are up and of some size the watering-pot may be resorted to, but not before. When all the seeds are sown as directed cover with newspapers and close the sash.
The most careful attention must now be given the hotbed. If the temperature rises above 75 degrees in the warmest part of the day the sash must be raised an inch or two. In doing this, if the wind is cold, it will be best to slip a strip of wood between the sash and frame on the windward side, or protect the opening on the windward side with a bit of carpet.
When the seeds in any particular plot show a single pair of leaves, remove the paper over that much of the bed, still shading from the sun during the hottest part of the day by a bit of paper on the glass directly over the plants. When the plants appear too thickly in the row, transplant them as soon as they have their second leaves into other rows between the first, or into another hotbed or cold-frame. Encourage vigorous growth by giving room to develop and as much air and light as possible.
As soon as the plants are of sufficient size and the weather is warm enough, remove the sash during the day, replacing it with screens made of lath. These screens are easily made by nailing strips of lath, the width of the hotbed, to strips of wood the length of the bed. The lath should be set its own width apart, and the nails, of which there should be two in each end, clinched on the under side. Such screens are a necessary part of the hotbed, and will last for years.
Before transplanting to the open ground these screens should be removed entirely and the plants left exposed to the weather for a few days to harden. Screens of chicken netting may be substituted, if protection from cats, dogs or chickens is needed. If, in the early stages of the hotbed, drops of moisture gather on the glass, the soil is too wet and the sash must be raised to allow the surplus moisture to pass off, avoiding always a cold draught across the bed.
The cold-frame is simply a frame of boards fitted with sash and placed over a prepared bed of earth. As the bed will be raised slightly above the surface of the soil, the frame should be set over it, shutting out the cold from the sides as well as the top. A covered bed, prepared without heating material, is a cold-frame; and one in which the heating material is spent is often used as a cold-frame after it has served its purpose as a hotbed earlier in the season, for growing Gloxinias and rooting cuttings during the summer, and in August for sowing Pansy seed for the next summer’s blooming. Cold-frames are useful to protect beds of such tender perennials as Tea-roses, Pansies, Canterbury-bells, Foxgloves and Violets. Violets may, by this means, be kept in bloom during the winter. They are also useful for bringing forward, early in spring, beds of Hyacinths and Narcissi. They should be protected by carpets or mattings at night and during the colder days, and exposed to the heat of the sun on bright days when the soil is not frozen. When it is, they must remain covered and thaw out in the dark, to be aired when the weather is above freezing, but draughts across the bed must be avoided, as they will certainly blast any buds there may be.
The cold-frame in winter must have good drainage, or much damage will ensue from water standing around the roots of plants. The surface of the bed must be above the level of the land outside and a trifle lower at one corner. From this corner a trench should be dug having an outlet, or a deep hole may be dug and filled with broken crockery and stones to carry off all surplus water.
The sand-box is a receptacle for the summer storage of plants which are not to be bedded out. It is also used to prepare plants for winter blooming, and for experiments with novelties in house-plants. It is, finally, the ideal place for rooting cuttings. I have never known a plant capable of being started from cuttings that would not take root in the sand-box. Any shallow box that may be reached across easily is suitable for this purpose; or a deep box may be cut down to six or eight inches and rendered available, the length depending on the plants to be accommodated and the room at disposal. The sand-box should be placed, if possible, in a convenient place on the east side of the house. Elevate on saw-horses, blocks, posts or a regular frame to a height easy to reach when sitting in a chair. Fill nearly full with clean white sand; in this bury the pots nearly to the brims and keep the sand constantly wet.
Plants that can stand full sunshine—as Geraniums, Crotons, Heliotropes, etc.—should be placed in front; those requiring more shade may be in the second row, and those needing the most against the wall. Vines, also, may be trained against the wall, and over the sides of the box, if it is desired to make it beautiful as well as useful. A wooden chair should be placed conveniently near, and the space underneath may be utilised for ferns, or the storage of tools and pots.
Once established, the sand-box will be found one of the most fascinating of spots. Cuttings of all kinds may be thrust into the sand between the pots—Geraniums, Carnations and Roses in front. Gloxinias and Begonias—with the leaves laid flat on the sand in the rear—will quickly take root in it. No one who cultivates a garden, or house-plants, should try to get along without a work table or bench, and this should be situated in some cool, shady spot out of doors. It may be either a large kitchen table or a large packing box, the latter being preferable, perhaps, as affording shelter for the various tools used in working. It should be high enough to work at conveniently when standing up, and a tall stool should be provided for sitting on when desired, to be pushed under the top of table when not in use. There should be a shelf underneath, sufficiently roomy to hold a supply of pots and flats, and, below it, a box of potting soil and one of fine white sand should be kept ready for use. If the potting soil lies on the ground it will keep moist in the dryest weather. A tin pail of pebbles, broken crockery and charcoal for drainage, and a supply of sphagnum moss should also be kept handy. A trowel, knife, shears, pencils and a stick—or, better still, a piece of a broken carving-steel—for pushing a plant out of the pot by inserting it in the drainage hole when, for any reason, it is not readily removed by tapping, will greatly lessen the labour of repotting and shifting house-plants in summer.
A shallow tray, with a bail of wood, large enough to hold a number of pots, will be useful to carry plants from the potting table to the sand-box, and will save many steps. With a well-equipped table to depend on and no litter around the house, one is much more likely to give plants necessary attention promptly. The work then becomes a pleasure instead of a labour to be dreaded. There, too, may be kept the supply for staking plants. The nicest stakes for house-plants are made of Cat-tail stems, any quantity of which may be gathered in the fall and stored away for future use, each stalk furnishing two or three stakes. Being round and smooth they are sightly and just what is needed for Carnations, Freesias and the like.
Chapter FIVE
Purchasing of Seeds
Buying seeds is largely a matter of experience. So glowing are the descriptions in the numerous catalogues sent out that one may easily be led into ordering many worthless novelties, and many desirable ones for which there is neither room nor sufficient knowledge of their wants to grow them successfully. Cheap collections, where one is requested to send ten cents for a catalogue and twelve packages of seeds, are worst of all.
In buying flower-seeds, as in everything else, one never gets “something for nothing”—not even experience, and cheap seeds usually prove a very poor investment; the only safeguard is to buy of trustworthy dealers whose seeds are offered at fair prices. Take, for instance, Pansy seed: one ought not to expect to buy a fine mixture in a full-size packet—two hundred and fifty seeds—for less than twenty-five cents, while such varieties as Giant Trimardeau and Giant Cassier should be fifteen cents or more, according to the place of purchase. A few of the old favourites—like the Snow Queen—may be bought in packets costing from three to five cents and prove good value. But generally speaking, packets selling for less than five cents are to be looked upon with suspicion. Seeds bought at the grocer’s or other local dealer’s are likely to be old or inferior stock—the better class of seedsmen selling direct to the consumer only. At the end of every season seedsmen have a large stock left over. The best concerns destroy these, but the less scrupulous put them up as prizes for advertising purposes, or sell them to the local dealers.
Some varieties of seeds retain vitality for years, like the Morning-glory, while others lose vitality in a few months or weeks, like the perennial Phlox, which must be sown as soon as ripe. From this it can be readily seen how worthless some of the seed carried over from year to year must be. As an experiment, I planted under glass in the house, with more than usual care, a part of one of these trial packages of twelve for a quarter. From five of the packages I got just one plant—a Lantana, while from the sixth I grew a number of inferior Petunias. In striking contrast to this I planted, under the same conditions, a packet of Bush Hill Pioneer Cyclamen containing twelve seeds, for which I paid fifty cents, and secured eleven plants, every one of which lived, making four and a half cents apiece for a very choice variety of Cyclamen, while the one little common Lantana cost me ten cents.
The prices of one firm will frequently be much higher than those of another equally trustworthy, the difference being caused, in most cases, by the number of seeds in the packets. A few firms now state the number of seeds in their price-lists. This should become the general practice. There is manifest injustice in selling packets containing a quantity which is entirely problematical, and often much below what the purchaser has a right to expect. To advertise seeds much under the usual price and reduce the number accordingly is a common practice.
It is better to buy a few good seeds, and by careful cultivation bring the plants as near perfection as possible, than to buy a quantity of cheap seeds. One can join with a friend or neighbour and thus secure a larger variety at less cost than would otherwise be possible. Generally speaking I think it a great mistake to save one’s own seed. Few choice varieties are fixed and so tend to run out in two or three seasons. From fine strains of Asters you may save seed that will give good results the first year, but flowers grown from seed saved from these will show more or less centre, so that fresh seed should be purchased every other year at least. As the bees do not visit the Asters so assiduously as other flowers, they are less given to hybridisation and come quite true from seed; the trouble with them being deterioration. The first flower on the plant is usually the best, and should be reserved for seed by tying a string around it and labelling it, if it is desired to keep the varieties separate. Remove all other blooms on the plant, as they fade, allowing only the one selected to ripen.
Pansy seed should never be saved, as the ripening of it weakens the plant and checks its blooming. Pansies growing in a mixed bed never come true from seed and deteriorate rapidly. Growing Pansy seed is work for the Pansy specialist, but if it must be saved a few plants should be grown in a bed by themselves and covered with a netting to keep off the bees, which work incessantly over the Pansy bed. Not more than two or three of the finest flowers on a plant should be allowed to seed, all other buds being removed as they form, and the plants kept in a high state of cultivation and supplied with liquid manure at least once a week during the season of seeding.
Seed may be saved freely from Poppies, as they do not deteriorate appreciably, and the hybridisation constantly going on results in a wonderful variety of form and colouring. The ripening of one or two capsules of seed does not materially affect the period of bloom; but it is well to mark one blossom on each plant, giving a preference to the terminal blossom on the main stalk, as being usually the finest. Remove all other blossoms as they fade. Perennial Poppies will do better, however, if no seeds are allowed to form. Morning-glories, Cosmos and Verbenas sow themselves better than the gardener can, the plants being much more vigorous than from the hand-sown seeds. Verbenas mix badly, and are apt to hark back to the original purple strain, or come striped. The seeds of the pink variety come true, I find, and some of the finest pinks I have seen were from self-sown seed. They range in colour through all the shades from pink to deep rose. A fair proportion of white may also be expected, but scarlet and red with a white eye are shy and rarely appear.
Nasturtiums rarely come true from seed, and if one desires a particular colour or shade, she must either buy fresh seed or grow that particular variety alone. If, however, one simply desires an abundance of bright flowers with a preponderance of yellow, orange and scarlet, it is worth while to save seed, as its vitality is remarkable and every seed may be expected to germinate.
No variety of Petunia can be depended upon when grown in a mixed bed. A particularly fine variety may be lifted and planted on the opposite side of the house, either in the ground or in a window-box, or in a pot in the house. From one exceedingly fine specimen of the large ruffled variety, lifted and grown in a window-box on the opposite side of the house from the Petunia bed, I saved a single pod of seed from which I grew, the following year, sufficient plants for a large bed. No two of these were alike in colour, but they retained the immense size, ruffled edges, velvety texture and beautifully marked throats of the parent strain; some were a velvety crimson, nearly black, some white with crimson blotches, and some showed rare shades of grey.
Sweet Alyssum sows itself, and the trouble is usually not to save but to get rid of it. Candytuft may be saved, but the fewer flowers allowed to seed the better for the continuation of bloom. Where one does not actually need the seed all flowers should be removed as fast as they fade. No one thing will add so much to the appearance of the garden as this, as nothing is more untidy than flowers gone to seed.
Perennials are greatly benefited by having the withered flowers removed; indeed so noticeable is the advantage that some, like the Monkshood, will give a second crop of flowers, and those that will not respond in this way will be more robust and bloom more freely the next year.
Vincas, too, and Hibiscus bloom more freely if not allowed to seed, while Coleus should not even be allowed to bloom. Sweet-peas must on no account be permitted to seed unless grown for the purpose. Seed may be gathered from the Thunbergia, Maurandya, Adlumia, common Morning-glory and Hollyhock without risk of deterioration or harm to the vine. Antirrhinums suffer severely from seed-bearing, while the Ricinus, Lantanas and Salvias may be allowed to seed freely. Ageratums look rusty when ripening seed, and it pays to go over them frequently with the shears; this will keep them fresh and full of bloom until frost. One flower-head will furnish all the seed one is likely to want.
All seeds should be gathered when ripe and the foliage dry. They should be exposed to the air in any convenient receptacle, except in the case of the Thunbergias, Balsams, and others having pods which snap open and expel the seeds to a distance. These should be saved in paper bags until perfectly dry, when they may be freed from their husks by sifting or winnowing, and stored in paper bags, envelopes, or boxes. It pays to save the florists’ envelopes for this purpose, as they are already labelled. Never put seeds away unlabelled, and it is a good idea to add to the label the date, period of germination, with the colour of the bloom, height, and other data of interest. It is still better to keep a book of such information to which one may refer from year to year. There are frequent doubts concerning some operation—the season of starting the hotbed, the time it took a certain class of bulbs to bloom after potting, and the like. In all such cases the note-book offers unimpeachable evidence.
Chapter SIX
Starting Seeds in Flats
There are many choice seeds, especially in the greenhouse varieties, that cannot be handled successfully in the hotbed—Begonias, Gloxinias, Cinerarias, and Primulas among them. All seeds too fine to be covered do better with house treatment. For starting these the shallow boxes or flats, as they are called, are used. Shallow cigar-boxes, or the larger ones sawed in two and the lid nailed on for the extra bottom, make convenient sizes for the finest seeds. They may be used from year to year if care is taken to store them away, at the end of the season, where they will keep dry and ready for use.
Holes for drainage should be bored in the bottom and covered with bits of glass or broken crockery. Fill with finely sifted leaf-mould to within an inch of the top and shake the earth smooth and even. A smooth piece of board, three inches wide and as long as the inside width of the flat, with a handle that can be easily grasped, is indispensable for pressing down the soil, both before and after sowing the seeds. It should be stored away with the flats at the end of the season.
Sow very fine seed broadcast, scattering it thinly and evenly over the surface and pressing it into the soil with the wood. It will be better to sow only part of a packet at a time. This will usually give all the plants of a kind wanted at one time, and if success does not follow this first trial there will be seed left for another sowing. Label plainly with the name and date of sowing, and, when known, the date of germination. Give the soil a thorough watering by setting the flat in lukewarm water until the water rises to the surface, but not above it. When the entire surface is wet, remove the box, draining off all surplus water by tipping on one corner, until the water ceases to run off. Cover the flat with a glass and sheet of white paper and place in a warm place—a shelf above a coal-stove or radiator is an excellent location, as it affords the bottom heat so essential in starting tender seeds. Seeds while germinating need but little light, and a box on a shelf in a living-room may be so screened as not to be unsightly. A shelf under another, having a light valance, is an ideal place, as the heat strikes more on the bottom of the box, leaving the top cool. Coarse seeds may be sown in rows and lightly covered, or enough fine white sand to merely cover may be sifted over them. Large seed, like the Asparagus Sprengeri may be pressed into the soil to twice their depth. Or the soil may first be covered with a thin layer of fine white sand, and the seeds sown on this and covered according to need. Sand counteracts the troublesome tendency to damping off caused by the presence of a minute fungus in the form of a fine moss or thread-like filaments covering the ground. Since this is the result of too much moisture, the remedy is to remove the glass, allowing the surplus moisture to pass off and the dry air to strike the soil for a short time. Care must be taken that the dryness does not extend below the surface. Drops of water on the glass indicate too much humidity. The glass should be removed, wiped, and aired. Where the plants are not too close together a crochet-hook or hat-pin may be used to scrape the moss or filament from the earth. This slight disturbance of the soil often serves to destroy the fungus. If the soil threatens to become dry, water carefully with a rubber sprinkler. If the dryness begins in the bottom, water as before by setting the flat in a pan of water.
When the plants have their second leaves give more air and remove the paper; in a day or two set in a light, warm window, screening from the hot sun by placing a piece of white paper between the box and the window glass. Leave the glass partly off the flat to admit air, and when the plants have their first true leaves remove it entirely for a part of the time.
STARTING SEEDS IN FLATS
When large enough to handle, transplant the seedlings into other flats, setting them one or two inches apart according to their growth. When the leaves again touch prick them out in two-inch pots of leaf-mould, placing a piece of crockery over the drainage hole and filling with earth to within half an inch of the top. Plunge the pots into a box of sand in a sunny window until large enough to go out of doors. As soon as the roots fill the pots shift to a size larger, using compost of two parts fibrous loam, four parts leaf-mould, one part old, well-rotted manure, and one part sharp white sand, all thoroughly sifted together. This is called fine compost, while soils that have not been sifted are known as rough compost. To remove sticks, stones, or hard bits of root put through a sand or coal-ash screen. A piece of wire netting slightly gathered up in the hand makes a convenient screen for a small quantity and a box with a netting bottom for larger quantities of earth.
By the time the plants again need shifting it should be warm enough to bed out all those that are to grow in the open ground, while those intended for the house must be shifted from pot to pot as they outgrow their quarters and be given such special treatment as the individual plants may require, always aiming at as thrifty a growth as possible. Plants intended for winter blooming must have all their buds removed and their branches pinched back according to their summer development.
Weak liquid manure may be given once a week during summer. Keep the sand in the sand-box wet at all times, but do not over-water. Water thoroughly and then allow the earth to become nearly dry before watering again; this alternate moisture and dryness allows the wood to ripen and make a stockier growth and one that will stand frequent changes of temperature better than the tender growth induced by over-watering.
Chapter SEVEN
Transplanting and Repotting
Tender annuals should not be planted out of doors until all danger of frost is past—usually about the twentieth of May in the latitude of Detroit and Chicago, and correspondingly earlier in the latitude of Philadelphia. Corn-planting time is safe in all latitudes. Even hardy annuals, if not too crowded, do better in hotbeds and boxes until the nights are warm. Vines especially suffer from cold nights and cold ground, and often receive a set-back from which they may not recover all summer.
It is best to prepare the beds a few days in advance that they may settle, as freshly dug soil is too loose for the roots of tender seedlings.
For solid beds of one flower make straight, parallel rows about nine inches apart for plants like Pansies, and from twelve to eighteen for Asters and their kind. A most convenient method is to use a board the length of the bed, or as long as convenient, with the distance between the plants marked on it. By using a board wide enough to stand or kneel on, stepping on the bed is avoided. On a round bed the lines may run straight across or they may radiate from the centre, in which case it will be necessary to skip a part of every other row, as the rows run together at the top.
It is better to transplant on a bright, warm day when the soil is dry than on a damp or wet one. Never transplant when the soil is wet. Many people take advantage of an approaching rain to set out plants, but this is a doubtful practice. If the rain is followed by several days of cloudy weather, it may do, but if followed by hot sunshine the plants will suffer more than if first planted in sunshine in hot, dry weather.
Only as many plants should be lifted from the hotbed at one time as may be transplanted before they wilt badly. The plants should be well watered the night before, that they may have a good supply of moisture stored, and that the soil may be moist and cling closely to their roots.
With the trowel make a hole deep enough to receive the roots without crowding, place the plant, fill the hole with water, and when that has partly disappeared press the earth firmly about the roots. Work the surface earth fine and smooth about the plant, taking care that it is perfectly dry. If, after setting the bed, wet spots appear, go over them carefully with dry earth. Do not cover or protect in any way; far more plants are lost by so-called protection than by any other form of mismanagement. If the planting has been done properly the roots will keep cool and damp—the mulch of earth preventing evaporation. This being the case, the tops will take care of themselves if sun and air have free access and the wind can sweep across them. Planting, as it is usually done—with the surface left wet, and the air shut away from the top—causes the water to evaporate rapidly in the hot air, and the plant is literally cooked to death. The water applied to the roots at planting will usually last for several days. The condition of the soil may be ascertained by removing a portion of the surface. If the earth underneath is found to be drying out too much make a hole on one side of the plant and fill it with water as before, carefully replacing the mulch of dry earth. Should it rain before the plants have become established the earth must be worked over as soon as it begins to dry that the moisture may be retained. If these directions are carefully carried out the tenderest plants may be transplanted in the hottest sun without injury. Occasionally a plant will wilt from exposure before planting, but it will be all right the next day—unless it was really injured before being placed in the ground. I repeat the caution to lift no more plants at one time than may be set in the ground before they wilt; to form a fine mulch of dry earth over the soil; to cover plants in no way, and to use no water on the surface for a few days until they have become established, which they will indicate by spreading out their leaves and making ready to grow. This method of planting should be followed in moving plants from one part of the garden to another, in resetting clumps of perennials, in bedding out house-plants and those received by mail. Where these last have had part or all of the soil removed it will greatly benefit them to set them in pots until these are filled with roots.
It is desirable that young plants should be kept growing vigorously all the time, and frequent shifting is necessary. Whenever the earth becomes full of roots, or the ball of earth is covered with a network of roots, the plant should be shifted into a pot a size larger.
“Shifting” means changing the plant to a pot a size larger without disturbing the ball of earth, while “repotting” properly means an entire renewal of the soil, the same sized crock being sometimes used. Shifting may be done at any time, even though the plant be in full bloom, while repotting should be done when the plant is dormant, as it is likely to cause the buds to blast and the foliage to droop. Plants less than a year old are better shifted than repotted—especially such as have neither bloomed nor shown any decided tendency to rest. After blooming and resting, if they are in as large a pot as you care to handle, they may be repotted in fresh soil, care being taken not to injure the roots, while dead roots should be removed with the shears. When a plant has outgrown its pot and it is inexpedient to give it a larger one—especially if it is not making a very vigorous top growth, part of the roots may be removed by running a knife down on two sides of the plant, which should not be disturbed afterward until the roots begin to grow anew, say, in three or four weeks, when it may be repotted with good rich soil.
SIFTING LOAM THROUGH A SIEVE
In shifting plants turn them out of the pot without disturbing the ball of earth. This may be done by placing the hand over the pot, reversing it and giving it a sharp tap on the edge of the table, which will loosen it. Sometimes, when a plant has become pot bound, it will stick to the sides of the pot, when a stick inserted in the drainage hole against the stone in the bottom will usually loosen it. Having removed the plant from the pot, take out the old drainage material carefully, place in a pot a size or two larger an inch or two of broken charcoal covered with a little sphagnum moss to prevent the earth working into the drainage and clogging it. Fill in as much earth as the difference in the size of pot seems to require, working it well up around the sides with the trowel; press the old pot into this to make a hole the proper size and shape; place the plant, press the earth around it, and add more if needed. Water well and return to its place on the shelf or in the sand-box.
In potting some plants will require to have the soil pressed much more firmly around the roots than others. Those which make a soft growth, such as Impatiens sultana, various Primulas, Cinerarias, and most tuberous plants, like Begonias and Gloxinias, may be potted rather loosely, that is, with the earth pressed down lightly. Geraniums should be potted much more firmly, while such hard-wooded plants as Roses, Hibiscus, Otaheite Orange and Fuchsias, should be potted very hard indeed. Many failures in plant growing may be traced to neglect of this rule.
Cuttings of common house-plants are so easily rooted that it seems almost superfluous to give directions for handling them. Geraniums, Petunias, Coleus, and the like will rarely fail to root if stuck in the ground by the side of the plant; they will do still better if placed in the sand-box. On the whole I prefer to set them in small pots of earth plunged in the sand-box and kept moist, as by this method they do not suffer the shock of disturbance when ready to pot off.
A word about the selection of cuttings will not be amiss, as failure to choose wisely often results in the loss of the cutting, or in a poor or straggly plant. Quick, tender growths are not suitable for cuttings, except in the case of the Chinese Hibiscus, where the extreme tips are used for rooting; hard or woody growths are equally undesirable. The part where the new wood begins to harden and will break with a snap is best. No cutting should be over two or three inches long. The little, stubby side branches on Geraniums are best, and as soon as growth begins these should be pinched back to within an inch of the ground, or to the lowest buds on the stalks; this insures a stocky plant, branching close to the ground. Heliotropes do not root readily and should be started in wet sand in full sunshine and covered with a glass, which should be lifted occasionally to allow the surplus moisture to pass off, or in a bottle of water hung in a sunny window. Rose cuttings are so easily and so quickly rooted in the sand-box that it seems a waste of time to try any other way. In cutting Roses for bouquets, during summer, one should be generous with stems, cutting down to a robust leaf-bud in the axil of a leaf. After the Roses have faded the stems may be used for cuttings, dividing them into as many lengths as the buds allow, leaving two or three buds to a cutting. By this method one may have a large number of young Rose plants with little trouble and no expense. Coleus cuttings are quickly rooted by putting them in a glass dish filled with water and set in a warm place. If in the fall it is desired to save choice varieties growing on the lawn, large cuttings may be taken of the finest plants. Grouped together in a bowl, they are sightly and root readily. As the plants begin to grow they are likely to lose their large leaves—the new growths starting at the axils of these push them off—injuring the appearance of the plant. They should be potted off as soon as possible, the tops pinched out, and the plant encouraged to grow vigorously. To this end a warm, even temperature is necessary, sudden chills being fatal.
Gloxinias may be started in the sand-box by laying a leaf flat on the sand, in partial shade, covering the stem end with the sand. A callus will soon form, followed presently by a bulb. This may be as large as a hazel-nut before top growth begins. When tiny leaves appear the plant may be lifted and potted and grown until it blooms. It is not necessary to rest Gloxinias—either from seeds or cuttings—before they have bloomed. Begonias and Achimenes are rooted in the same way. Umbrella-plants are started by placing face down in a dish of water in the sun. Rubber and any other hard-wooded plants may be rooted by making an incision in the under side of a branch near a leaf, at a point where the wood has begun to harden, and wrapping the wound in a quantity of sphagnum moss, kept constantly wet. A thread should be tied to the branch on the side farthest from the main stalk and attached to a limb above to hold the cut slightly open that it may quickly become calloused. After a time roots will make their appearance through the moss, when the branch may be removed and potted. A method sometimes employed, when it is desired to save the crown of a plant which has a leggy or unshapely undergrowth, is to partly sever the stem at the point at which it is desired to root the plant, cutting out a wedge-shaped piece and packing with sphagnum moss. Or a small flower-pot, divided in halves, may be fitted around the cut, the bottom of the pot resting on a lower limb or other support, and filled with earth or sand kept constantly moist.
REPOTTING
Cuttings liable to decay, as are some of the Cacti, may often be saved by tying them to a bit of wood and inserting that in the ground so that the end of the cutting just rests on the surface. In this way the air will reach and harden it so that a callus can form. Without the formation of the callus the sap escapes and the branch withers or decays. When the callus forms the imprisoned sap goes to the formation of roots. Some plants form more pronounced calluses than others—particularly the Gloxinia and Rose.
Layering is another form of rooting cuttings, and is especially valuable for Carnations, Honeysuckles, and plants whose branches grow near the ground or are supple enough to be bent down below its level. A cut should be made in the under side of a branch just below a joint, the cut portion brought down below the ground to insure moisture, and bent sufficiently to spread the cut somewhat, or it may be laid on the surface and a stone placed at the point of the cut. From a long branch like the Honeysuckle a number of cuttings may be started at once by notching the branch in several places and pegging it down, making the ground higher between each notch that there may be sufficient bend to the branch to keep the cut open.
Chapter EIGHT
House-plants From Seeds
Raising house-plants from seed is a most fascinating work, and it is also the most economical way of obtaining a number of choice plants, as a packet of seeds may be purchased for the price of a single plant. A package of Geranium seed may give a dozen plants, while a packet of Gloxinias or Cinerarias may give a hundred or more—the fine seed germinating more freely than the large.
Mixed seeds also give a variety, no two plants being identical in bloom, and, what is most important, seedlings always bloom—while plants from cuttings are often stubborn in this respect and sometimes refuse to bloom at all, owing probably to the check received at propagation. A cutting taken from a vigorous plant, rooting quickly, and continuing to grow, is quite certain to bloom—while the reverse is the case with one slow to root and slow to start into growth after rooting. The seedling, meeting with no check, blossoms in the natural course, and it has the advantage of growing from the start in the same atmospheric conditions, and does not suffer the violent change from the moist, warm air of the greenhouse into the dryer, more uneven temperature of the living-room.
By sowing seed one obtains a number of plants with the same season of bloom, making a finer appearance than mixed plants blooming at different times. A half dozen Cinerarias or Calceolarias in full bloom is a sight to gladden the heart of the gardener.
In giving the following cultural details I have selected those seeds which are always carried in stock and may be depended upon to give good results in the hands of the amateur. Unless some one particular colour or marking is desired it is better to purchase the mixed seed—selecting always the finest, or “extra choice mixed,” which will also be the highest priced. Never buy cheap seed for house-plants. Exception may, perhaps, be made in the case of Primroses, which are more inclined to come true, and it is, for this reason, better to purchase any particular colours one may wish in separate packets. Some seedsmen now put up expensive seeds in whole and half-sized packets, and the half packets will usually give all the plants needed of one kind. The mystery of tint and colour, only to be revealed at blossom time, is one of the greatest charms of growing mixed seedlings.
The Abutilons, or Flowering Maples, if set going any time before April will flower the same season. Start in the house in flats, and when large enough to handle transplant into tiny pots in a hotbed or sunny window and grow on until time to plant in the open ground, shifting as required. They may also be started in the hotbed, or in a protected bed in the open ground when the trees are in bloom. Set from one to two feet apart, according as a close hedge or fine specimen plants are required. The new California Abutilons present a great diversity of form and colour—there are beautiful drooping bells, gay little parachutes, flowers crinkled like crape or shining like satin, some so full as to appear double. They should be cultivated frequently if grown in the open ground and potted before the nights become cold, as a chill is often as harmful as frost, and plants so exposed are likely to lose their foliage. Plants intended for winter blooming should be lifted while the days and nights are still warm.
Asparagus plumosus nanus and A. Sprengeri (emerald feather) may be started any time in the late winter or early spring. The seeds are large and should be planted in rows an inch apart each way, pressing them into the soil a quarter of an inch and covering them over. They germinate in about twenty-one days, and require no especial care other than to be kept moist and fairly warm. When an inch high transplant to thumb-pots, using the fine compost. Shift as often as necessary; all Asparagus—especially the Sprengeri—are greatly benefited by frequent repotting. Spray frequently, keep moist always, and give liquid manure once a week while growing.
A. Sprengeri grows rapidly and is the most easily managed of all varieties. It needs, however, abundant root room, and where that is restricted must be given some kind of plant-food. It is the plant most used for hanging-baskets. A basket of three two-year-old seedlings is a thing of beauty, throwing off wonderful fronds—even in the dry air of a sitting-room heated with a coal-stove. They should be given a chance to rest during the summer by setting in a cool, shady place, watering sparingly. When the plant shows signs of renewed growth repot, giving a larger pot if necessary, or, if two or three plants have been growing in one basket they may be separated and given more room. An elongated tuber is formed on the roots, which stores nourishment—like the nodules on the Clematis and Clover roots. It is useless for propagating purposes, and should not be disturbed. A basket or a pot on a bracket or pedestal is the only way in which to grow A. Sprengeri successfully, while A. plumosus nanus succeeds best in deep pots, as it sends its roots far down, often pushing its crown well above the soil in this way. A. plumosus sends out fronds several feet long, and is best adapted for growing on strings. A deep pot on a north or east window-sill suits it well, provided it is not too cool, and fine spool-wire makes a neat support and is almost invisible.
The seeds of Rex and other Begonias are so fine as to look like dust. They should be sown on the surface of the soil, in flats in the house, in February or March, and an even temperature maintained. They germinate in eight or ten days, and the greatest care is required to keep the tender seedlings from damping off or drying out. The tiny plants appear first as a vague green bloom on the face of the soil, and a magnifying glass is necessary to show that each infinitesimal green point is possessed of a pair of leaves. From this time on it is a delight to watch the development of character in the leaf—quite tiny plants showing different markings. I have never raised two Rex Begonias exactly alike. When the little plants are large enough to handle prick them out into other flats, setting them an inch apart each way. When an inch high put into two-inch pots of leaf-mould, and plunge the pots in a pan of wet sand in a cool, north window where bulbs are growing, if possible, as the constant evaporation from these keeps the air moist. This is an important consideration in the culture of Begonias, and in winter water should be kept on stove, radiator or register to supply moisture. Among the fine bedding, fibrous-rooted Begonias the new Vulcan, a fiery scarlet; Vernon, a deep red; Erfordii, a soft pink, and the dwarf Bijou are the best. By starting these during January and February in flats in the house they may be bedded out in early summer. If planted in the house in January, transplanted to flats, and thence to the hotbed when it is emptied after the 20th of May, and partly shaded, they will be fine, robust plants by August, and may be used to replace the Pansies when it is not desired to carry these through the summer. If one has a sufficient number of pots, pot and plunge in the hotbed and they will not be set back by transplanting, but they must be plunged to the rim. They should be shifted when necessary, duly mulched, and not allowed to dry out.
Nothing finer than the tuberous Begonias can be desired either for bedding or for pot culture. The single are perhaps showier for bedding, but the double are handsomer for pot culture. They do admirably bedded out in a shady corner, or in pots in the sandbox. Peat, or a compost of two parts loam, two parts leaf-mould, and one part each of sand and old, well-rotted manure suits all varieties of Begonias. In setting out the tuberous Begonia it is well to mulch the bed with lawn clippings. Water thoroughly once a day, and, if very dry, or at all exposed to the sun, twice a day. So really wonderful are their blossoms, and so long and freely do they bloom, that they well repay a little extra care and protection. When frosty nights come the tuberous Begonias must be lifted, potted and kept indoors until they have completed their season of growth. Then water should be gradually cut off and the pots stored away in a dark, warm closet until spring, or if there are too many Begonias to pot they may be ripened off at once by putting on a tray of damp earth with the roots covered, and allowing them to dry gradually. When dry the tubers may be removed, wrapped separately in tissue-paper and stored in a dry, fairly warm place—a shelf in a closet or a drawer.
Probably no greenhouse flower is as little known or repays acquaintance as royally as the Calceolaria. Of infinite variety, its showy purse-shaped flowers range from a rare pure white through all the shades of pale lemon, orange, and scarlet to a deep, rich, velvety cardinal. It is one of the most easily cultivated of house-plants. The seed is fine like the Begonia, is handled in the same way, and germinates in eight or ten days. Shift as often as the pot fills with roots, using a size larger each time and disturbing the roots as little as possible. Rather more loam than leaf-mould is used in potting them. Keep in an east window in winter, where there is good morning sunlight and a temperature of at least 60 degrees. The air should be kept moist, either from blossoming bulbs or dishes of water on the stove. In a dry atmosphere it is liable to attacks of red spider, which greatly mar the foliage. The remedy or preventive measure is fresh air and moisture. Keep the soil moist but not wet. When the flower-buds appear slightly increase the supply of water and give a little manure once a week. The large felty leaves grow so thick and close that when the buds appear, to prevent injury from lack of light it may be necessary to remove a few leaves. If kept growing vigorously and shifted frequently, plants should be in five-inch pots by February and coming into bloom. When in full bloom it is well to remove to a cool room, where the blossoms will last for weeks. Cuttings may be taken when they are through blooming, but I think it best to begin afresh each year with seed.
Cinerarias make fine, large plants, as broad as they are high, their rich, velvety leaves showing on the under side wonderful colourings of green and lavender, purple and plum. The large heads of single daisy-like flowers show many shades of white, lavender, crimson, purple, and maroon. Most of the varieties have a dark eye and are sharply margined with some contrasting color. The seed is fine and is simply pressed into the soil. It germinates in from five to seven days, and requires little heat. As the plants are rather difficult to carry through the hot weather it is better to defer sowing until August. Their growth is rapid if given a cool, moist atmosphere, but a draught is most injurious and care must be taken never to over-water them. They like a moist, but never wet, soil, frequently stirred when there is any sign of damping off. They may be carried through an unusually hot spell in a cool north or east cellar window, always avoiding draughts. In winter an east window suits them best, with abundant room to develop their leaves. They are an exceedingly ornamental plant even without the flowers. The shady side of the sand-box is the best place for them in summer. They need frequent shifting, and by winter should be in five-inch pots. After the buds appear give liquid manure once a week. The utmost care must be taken to guard against aphides or green plant-lice, which are absolutely fatal if allowed to gain any foothold. The prevention is plenty of fresh air and tobacco-dust sprinkled on the leaves, which mars their beauty. The remedy—dipping in water heated to about 135 degrees, or brushing off the lice and killing them.
Carnations are the most easily grown of all desirable house-plants. If planted in drills in the hotbed in April, or in the open ground when the trees are in leaf, they will bloom in about four months. For outdoor blooming the Marguerite Carnations are usually selected, and the Giant of California is a new and choice variety of this popular strain. The seed is sown an eighth of an inch deep, the plants appearing in from five to seven days. When large enough to handle transplant into fresh rows in hotbed or flats, setting them an inch or two apart each way. When they are two or three inches high prick off into pots filled with three parts good loam and one of leaf-mould and plunge back into the hotbed. When the weather is warm enough set them in well-prepared beds of loam, enriched with a liberal quantity of well-rotted manure, planting them a foot apart each way. Cultivate frequently during summer to keep them free from weeds. A little soot and ashes added to the soil between the rows will heighten the colour of flowers and foliage and add stiffness to the flower-stems. The ashes will also counteract the tendency to burst the calyx, so troublesome in the Carnation. Plants intended for winter blooming should have all the buds removed during the summer, up to the first of September.
Only a few flowers will be obtained in the open ground the first year, but if the plants are protected during the winter they will bloom freely the second season. While blooming no seed should be allowed to form, and if size and quality are desired more than profusion of bloom, all but the terminal buds on each stalk should be removed. This is the method employed by florists to produce their long-stemmed beauties. Dig in the second summer a little old manure between the rows and sprinkle ashes there. A mulch of two or three inches of lawn clippings between the plants will hold the moisture so that cultivation will not be necessary. Fresh Carnation seed should be sown each spring, that there may always be blossoming plants and the bed made perpetual. Carnations will not stand the second winter, hence the need of young plants to renew the bed.
If it is desired to perpetuate any variety cuttings may be taken, or the plants may be increased by layering. Branches from each plant may be pegged down between the rows, equal distances apart, severed from the old plants when sufficiently established, and allowed to remain when the old plants are removed in the fall or following spring. The bed will, in this way, perpetuate itself; but cuttings from the same plants deteriorate in two or three years, and fresh seed should be sown every two years at least.
In growing winter Carnations for the house shift them as often as the growth of the plant requires, using three parts loam, one part leaf-mould, and one part each of sharp sand and old manure. When ready to bloom they should be in five-or six-inch pots. They require an atmosphere cooler than that of the ordinary living-room. A south window away from direct fire, where the temperature stands at 50 or 55 degrees, is best. Water thoroughly, but allow the soil to nearly dry out before watering again. If possible sprinkle the foliage every day and watch carefully for green fly and red spider; though there is less danger of their appearance in a cool room than in the hot, dry air of the living-room. When the flower-stalks appear they will need support, which may be supplied by placing three or four sticks or cat-tails at the side of the pot and twisting strings around them, back and forth, forming a frame around the plant. There is an excellent Carnation frame on the market, costing a few cents, which is similar but much neater. Stakes thrust into the ground near the crown of a plant are apt to injure it, and must be used carefully if at all; the finer the point on the stake the less damage done. Should green lice or flies appear syringe the plants with tobacco tea, or fumigate with tobacco, leaving them in the smoke long enough to insure success. Or the plant may be dipped in hot water at about 130 degrees; this will kill all insects or eggs.
WHEN TWO OR THREE INCHES HIGH, TRANSPLANT CARNATIONS INTO POTS
AN EASILY MADE CARNATION SUPPORT
Cyperus, or Umbrella-plant, may be easily raised from cuttings, but it is sometimes desirable to have a number of plants for aquatic gardening, and growing from seed is an economy. The seeds should be sown in flats and kept warm; they germinate in about ten days, coming up very freely. As many as three hundred plants have been secured from one packet. Prick the seedlings out into larger flats as soon as they are big enough to handle, and when two or three inches high pot them off into two-or three-inch pots of muck, plunging into wet sand and keeping constantly moist. Shift them as the pots fill with roots, and by the time the plants are in four-inch pots the water should be kept standing in the saucer all the time. When they attain proper size they should be grown in a jardinière or other vessel holding water, or else the pot in which they grow should be plunged in water. The Cyperus, being a semi-aquatic plant, cannot have too much water; the lack is quickly shown by the leaf-tips turning brown. Two plants kept fairly wet in pots, but plainly suffering, so were plunged into a lily-tank; in a few days the roots had pressed to the surface in search of water, and hung, a perfect fringe, over the edge of the pots. The effect on the tops was as pronounced—the crown quickly sending up lush green umbrellas in striking contrast to the discolouration of the original plants. There are two varieties of the Umbrella-plant—a dwarf, growing not more than eighteen inches high, and a tall variety growing three or four feet; the former is prettier for table decorations, while the latter is more effective for pedestals in halls and drawing-rooms. Remove all weak or spindly umbrellas and all discoloured ones; it is also well to remove the flowers, as seeding injures the plant.
Cyclamen may be started in flats or in a cool hotbed from January to March, pressing the seed into the soil about twice their depth. They must be kept moist, not wet, all the time. They do not require as much heat as the Calceolaria, but the temperature must be kept as even as possible. The seed germinates in from two to four weeks, according to its vitality. It is best to start them in large flats and let them grow on undisturbed. About the last of May remove them to a cold-frame on the east side of the house, disturbing the roots as little as possible, and setting the plants about eight inches apart each way. Keep the soil moist and mellow by frequent cultivation, or by mulching it with sphagnum moss or lawn clippings. When the plants have attained some size give weak liquid manure once a week, pouring it in a shallow trench between the rows, that it may not touch the bulbs or foliage. Treated in this way they should be ready to bloom by winter; if grown in pots they will not bloom until the second season. When cold weather comes lift the plants and put in four-or five-inch pots, according to size, using good garden loam and one-fourth the quantity of old, well-rotted manure. They should be grown in a cool east room and syringed daily.
In the spring after blooming withhold water gradually, giving no more than will keep the roots from drying out, and set them in a cool, shady place during the summer—the rear of the sand-box is best, where other growths will protect them from the sun. In continuous wet weather they should be turned on their sides or otherwise protected from extreme moisture. When they show an inclination to grow again, if they are in large enough pots, remove as much of the top-soil as possible without disturbing the roots, and replace it with fresh, rich earth and old manure. If the plants are crowded with roots remove them into pots one or two sizes larger. Give them a good watering and set in a somewhat lighter and warmer position. Cyclamen bulbs, like the Amaryllis, should not be allowed to dry out entirely, as this destroys the roots, and when the top growth starts in advance of the root growth, as is usual, the plant will die from insufficient nourishment. Florists frequently send out dry bulbs with flower-buds half an inch long and no sign of roots; such bulbs rarely amount to anything. When obliged to start a dry bulb, it is better to sink it half way in the soil and cover with sphagnum moss. Set it in a dry, cool place, and examine it from time to time that it may not be kept back longer than necessary. The starting of leaves is a fair indication of root growth, as the premature growth is usually of buds.
Geraniums are as easily raised as Carnations—indeed, it seems only necessary to put them in the ground and await results. In the spring sow the seed in drills in hotbeds or flats, covering with an eighth of an inch of soil. The plants should appear in from ten to fifteen days, and if they do not stand too closely may be allowed to grow on until they have two or three leaves. If mixed seeds are sown of the fancy-leaved, the scented, the zonale and the Lady Washington, the development of the several kinds will afford a fascinating study.
Care should be taken to save the more delicate-looking seedlings, as these will give the choicest varieties; the more robust plants among the zonales indicate a retrogression toward the original type, which has scarlet blooms. All choice new Geraniums are produced by seeds from hybridised flowers. Pot off the last of May in three-inch pots, using good garden loam and well-rotted manure. Pot them rather firmly and plunge into the sand-box in full sunshine. Water thoroughly and allow the soil to become dry before watering again; this tends to harden the new growth and makes the plants stocky. Nip out the top of the plants, forcing them to break or make new branches near the ground. The nearer the ground a Geranium branches the better plant it will make. Pinch off the shoots as they appear, allowing them to grow only three or four inches long. Remove all buds that appear before fall and shift to larger pots if needed, though Geraniums do not need as much pot room when blooming as many other flowers. Give liquid manure once a week after the buds appear—before that time the use of fertilisers encourages the production of foliage rather than of flowers.
Zonales should bloom by February and Pelargoniums by March or April the first year. They should be watered more freely when in bloom. Geraniums should be grown close to the glass to give best results. In prolonged cloudy weather the buds will blast and the new growth look sickly in spite of all care. Pelargoniums are very satisfactory when raised from seed, showing great diversity of colour and markings. When they have finished blooming in the spring cut them back freely, using the cuttings for new plants. The old plants should be set in the shade to rest and watered sparingly. At the end of that time they may be brought into the sunlight or plunged into open ground and encouraged to grow freely. Removing a portion of the leaves at this time—every other one, for instance—will cause new shoots to break at the axils of the leaves, and every new shoot means new blossom points. By the middle of September the plants should be lifted, cut back to the point where the wood begins to harden, and given a warm, sunny window. Cuttings started in spring, if shifted, kept growing and pinched back occasionally, should be in splendid condition for early spring blooming. In growing Geraniums never lose sight of the fact that stocky, many-branched plants give flowers in abundance; tall, spindly plants the reverse. A Geranium should always be as broad as it is high to be at its best. Ivy Geraniums need extra care to keep them low and stocky. Water sparingly and give abundant sunshine if you wish these to bloom.
Geranium seeds come up very irregularly, so that it is well not to disturb the ground for some time after the proper season of germination has passed. In this way many extra plants are secured.