Sow the seeds of Annuals early in the Spring. The roots of Annuals do not live over Winter, and seeds must be sowed every Spring.
Annuals for Little Folks Garden
No. on Map.
Name and Number of Plants.
Remarks.
Average Price.
(14)
Cos´-mos.
Easily grown in poor soil. Grow over 4 feet tall. Flowers: pink,white, garnet, with yellow centers.
Buy mixed seed, “Summer or Early Flowering” Cosmos which will bloom early and continue until frost.
10c a package.
(15)
Sweet A-lys´-sum.
A charming edging plant. Order “Little Gem,” which grows 4 inches tall, and blooms like a snow carpet.
5c a package.
Vegetables for Little Folks Garden
Name.
Remarks.
Average Price per Package Seed.
Nasturtiums. Buy “Tom Thumb” or Dwarf.
In the early Spring, sow seeds of dwarf nasturtiums for narrow border along the walk of the vegetable garden.
5c.
Lettuce. Buy “Early All-heart;” Early Cos; Late Lettuce.
Plant a small quantity of Early Lettuce seeds in the early Spring; when plants are two inches high, plant more seeds; thin plants out,
that the ones left standing may grow
large. Plant a few seeds every week
until weather grows very warm.
Lettuce does not grow well in very
warm weather.
Plant late variety in early Fall.
Cos or Romaine lettuce is easily
grown, and stands the heat better
than the other varieties. It has a
very crisp fleshy rib in the leaf,
but the leaf part is not so delicate
as of the other varieties.
All lettuce needs very rich soil.
5c.
Parsley. Buy “Dwarf Curly.”
Plant in early Spring.
Soak seed overnight in warm water,
mix sand in the water, and fling
sand and seed over the prepared
ground. Sometimes it takes six weeks
for parsley seed to “come up.”
Except far north, it lives over
winter if well covered with leaves.
Plant some parsley every year, as
what has “wintered over” goes to
seed very easily.
5c.
Onions. Buy yellow “Onion sets.”
“Onion sets” are tiny little onions
which are set out in early Spring,
about 2 inches apart in rows.
Usually when they are partially
grown, they are pulled, and green
tops and bulbs are used for salads
and in soup.
10c a pint.
Thyme.
A very pretty low-growing herb, used
to flavor soup, and “stuffing” for
meat. Grows easily from seed if
sowed early. Lives over winter
—except far north—if covered with
leaves. Is, therefore, a
“perennial.”
Plant in the Spring in the northern
states.
Plant in the Fall in the southern
states.
5c.
Radishes. Buy Little Red Globe-shaped.
Sow a few radish seeds every week
for four weeks, to have new young
tender radishes ready for pulling
each week.
Radishes do not do well in very hot
weather.
The late or “winter” radish is
planted in the early Fall.
5c.
Tomatoes. Buy 2 plants early and 2 of of late varieties.
Tomato seeds may be sowed in a
box placed in a sunny window or
under glass in the hot bed in very
early Spring, but unless a large
number of plants is needed, it is
better to buy the young plants.
A very interesting variety is
“cherry tomatoes,” which grow in
little clusters of red fruit
resembling cherries in appearance.
Buy 1 plant.
2 for 5c.
The approximate cost of this garden for little folks is three dollars.
Seeds of all these vegetables may be started in the house. See [Chapter XIV], [page 81], “To Plant Seeds in Boxes.” The young plants may be put out in the garden when they are of some size, about which you will read later.
“OH, Billy,” cried Mary Frances, as her brother laid down the paper, “that doesn’t sound a bit babyish to me! If I could just have a garden like that——”
“That’s an all-right garden,” interrupted Billy, “but, Mary Frances, it isn’t much compared with my plan for your wonderful play house garden, as you’ll soon see when I give you the—
