TO KEEP PLANTS WITHOUT A FIRE AT NIGHT.
Have made, of wood or zinc, a tray about four inches deep with a handle on either end, water-tight. Paint it outside and in, put in each corner a post as high as the tallest of your plants, and it is ready for use. Arrange your flowerpots in it and fill between them with sawdust. This absorbs the moisture falling from the plants when you water them and retains the warmth acquired during the day, keeping the temperature of the roots even. When you retire at night spread over the posts a blanket or shawl, and there is no danger of freezing.
SURE SHOT FOR ROSE-SLUGS.
Make a tea of tobacco stems and a soapsuds of whale oil or carbolic soap; mix and apply to the bush with a sprinkler, turning the bush so as to wet the under as well as the upper part of the leaves. Apply, before the sun is up, three or four times.
TO PREPARE AUTUMN LEAVES AND FERNS.
Immediately after gathering take a moderately warm iron, smear it well with white wax, rub over each surface of the leaf once, applying more wax for each leaf. This process causes leaves to roll about as when hanging on the trees. If pressed more they become brittle and remain perfectly flat. Maple and oak are among the most desirable, and may be gathered any time after the severe frosts; but the sumac and ivy must be secured as soon after the first slight frost as they become tinted or the leaflets will fall from the stem. Ferns may be selected any time during the season. A large book must be used in gathering them, as they will be spoiled for pressing if carried in the hand. A weight should be placed on them until they are perfectly dry; then, excepting the most delicate ones, it will be well to press them like the leaves, as they are liable to curl when placed in a warm atmosphere. These will form beautiful combinations with the sumac and ivy.
TO PREPARE SKELETON LEAVES.
When properly prepared, skeleton leaves form a companion to the scrapbook or collection of pressed ferns, fronds, etc. This is a tedious operation and requires skill and great patience to obtain satisfactory results. Some leaves are easier to dissect and make better specimens than others, and, as a rule, a hard, thin leaf should be chosen; that is, when a special variety is not required.
Among those which are skeletonized most successfully are the English ivy, box elder, willow, grape, pear, rose, etc. They should be gathered during the month of June, or as soon as the leaf is fully developed. The leaves should be immersed in a vessel of rain water and allowed to remain till decomposed. When this takes place, press the leaf between pieces of soft flannel, and the film will adhere to the flannel, leaving a perfect network. Dry off gradually and clean the specimen with a soft hair pencil. Place between folds of soft blotting paper, and when perfectly dry place in your collection.