250 



HORTICULTURE 



August 24, 1907 I 



us the popularity and universal love 

 for becldiug plants. 



There is such a large variety of these 

 plants from the smallest annual up, 

 like portulaca, to the stately subtropi- 

 cal plants, and also the perennials must 

 not be forgotten, for they figure greatly 

 in various effective displays. Then 

 we have tulips, hyacinths, daffodils, 

 etc. for early spring flowering. No 

 garden need be without flowers from 

 the time the dainty little crocuses 

 peep out of the snow until late in the 

 fall. No matter how small the purse, 

 enough seed can be purchased to ob- 

 tain a vei-y hai-monious and artistic 

 effect, as well as a continuous season 

 of flowers. It is not the means of 

 being able to procure a large amount 

 of choice plants, hut it is the good 

 taste and skill of the designer, who un- 

 derstands how to make an arrangement 

 to harmoniously and discriminately 

 combine the various colors with im- 

 mediate surroundings, no matter hrtw 

 inexpensive, that appeals to the lovei- 

 of nature with all its art and beauty, 

 and this is what we are striving for 

 more and more every day. 



The average florist who deals in bed- 

 ding plants, should oy all means, give 

 this particular subject thorough study, 

 in order to be able to assist and edu- 

 cate his customers, who in most cases 

 appreciate such advice and instruction 

 in regard to arranging and planting 

 their gardens so as to present a beau- 

 tiful picture. It requires just as mucli 

 artistic judgment and al)ility to ac- 

 complish this, as the painting of a 

 picture on canvas. The designer must 

 show individuality and know exactly 

 what proportion the plants will attain, 

 how soon they will be fully developed, 

 also how the colors will blend logether, 

 in fact, he must see the finished pic- 

 ture before him when he designs his 

 plans. The sooner we commence to 

 understand how to arrange these 

 beautiful gifts of nature belter, the 

 sooner we make a large majority of 

 the people of our grand nation hap- 

 plei'. We have everything to do it 

 wUh, now let us understand how to 

 do it. 



To cover the subject best I have 

 divided it Into two chapters, as the 

 title of this article indicates; "wheie 

 to use them and how to use them." 



The proper selection of the place 

 for the floral display is first to be 

 considered. A place where it will be 

 properly effective is just as impor- 

 tant as the execution of the planting, 

 as this takes a definite part in the en- 

 tire scheme. Locality, building and 

 size of grounds must be taken into 

 consideration, the smaller the place, 

 the simpler should be the display; it 

 is so easy to overcrowd a small front 

 lawn whereby the proper effect is en- 

 tirely lost. ■ Large places in proixir- 

 tion will have more elaborate plant- 

 ings, and the artist will have occa- 

 sion to plan special features, such as 

 courtyards, parterres, sunken gardens, 

 Italian gardens, etc. 



The front of a building is most al- 

 ways selected for the display, which 

 is generally formal, and, if the space 

 Is limited, a narrow border of plants 

 adjoining the building will be suffi- 

 cient, with perhaps one or two beds 

 on the lawn, proportional to the latter. 

 There should always be plenty of 

 green grass to offset the beds. The 



backyard as a rule is very much ne- 

 glected and in many instances un- 

 sightly; here I would advocate to 

 have a grass plot with a border plan- 

 tation. How much more cheerful one 

 would feel, looking into a well kept 

 yard than at a lot of rubbish. Places 

 of larger dimensions with their beauti- 

 ful landscape effects must be treated 

 more in detail. Here we have an op- 

 portunity to lay out in connection with 

 residences, conservatories and public 

 buildings, courtyards, parterres, rose 

 gardens, etc., which as a general rule 

 are part of the architectural scheme 

 and in harmony with the style of the 

 building. In the last few years Italian 

 gardens have again become quite 

 popular, and these especially set apart 

 from the rest of the landscape, must 

 be treated by themselves. They are 

 very set and usually contain consider- 

 able color well blended together. 



Besides these forms of special treat- 

 ment already mentioned we also have 

 other gardens, which give an oppor- 

 tunity for a larger variety of flower- 

 ing plants, in the line of annuals, 

 roses, perennials, etc., which properly 

 arranged make a brilliant effect with- 

 out interfering with the more salidued 

 and restful landscape. Public parks 

 especially are a great field for floral 

 displays and, althougii some author- 

 ities on landscape gardening do not 

 favor them, I believe the public fully 

 appreciate flowers; though the utmost 

 care must be taken not to let them 

 run wild all over the park, but keep 

 them in the vicinity of buildings or 

 entirely away and screened off from 

 the quiet landscape. Boulevards also 

 and small squares can be most ad- 

 mirably brightened with the ornamen- 

 tation of flower beds. 



Lest year at the convention in Day- 

 ton, Ohio, all our members had the 

 rare opportunity of seeing how the 

 surroundings of a factory can be laid 

 out in a most praiseworthy manner. 

 Here our bedding plants brighten 

 daily the minds of thousands of 

 people. 



How many people are not fortunate 

 enough to possess a home with a lawn 

 and flower beds. There is no neces- 

 sity to deprive themselves of nature's 

 gifts, but they can enjoy them in a 

 more modest way, by keeping flower 

 boxes, which, no matter how obscure 

 and unassuming the dwelling, give it 

 a homelike air and enliven the aspect 

 of many an otherwise somber home. 

 On the other hand, many beautiful 

 residences rely solely upon piazza 

 boxes for their floral display, and ex- 

 quisite results can be obtained in this 

 manner. 



Finally a few words should be de- 

 voted to the homes of our loved dead. 

 There is nothing more soothing to 

 the grief-stricken heart than the sight 

 of well kept cemeteries, bedded with 

 appropriate flowers, speaking the lan- 

 guage of peace and rest. 



There are many and varied ways 

 that the bedding plants lend them- 

 selves to; there still remains another 

 problem to solve, namely, "How to 

 use them." Here skill in artistic ar- 

 rangement and harmony of colors is 

 put to a severe test. 



Startin.s; with the beginning of the 

 season, the various Dutch bulbs are 

 the first ones to attract our attention. 

 They are easily cultivated, and there- 

 fore most appropriate for the amateur. 



Eixquisite effects and color schemes 

 can be carried out, although their du- 

 ration of bloom barely reaches more 

 than four weeks. I think they make 

 the most striking display of the sea- 

 son. Only the purest and clearest col- 

 ors should be selected. Off colors and 

 the peculiar magenta shades are hard 

 to match with pure colors and aie best 

 planted by themselves or tar enough 

 distant so as not to detract from them. 

 Mixed beds containing a number of 

 varieties look very well, but beds of 

 all one color show by far better taste. 

 Where a number of beds are planned 

 greater attention must be given to 

 work out a harmonious color scheme. 

 Pink, white and light blue blend ad- 

 mirably together; next comes yellow, 

 then red and yellow and the various 

 reds. It is a great deal more pleasing 

 to the eye to let the colors run into 

 each other by degrees than to create 

 too big a contrast. Colonies of cro- 

 cuses, snowdrops and scillas, singly 

 and several together, irregularly scat- 

 tered on the lawn, look very charming. 

 Pansies, bellis and myosotis are 

 also extensively used. As the pansies 

 come in a multitude of colors, they 

 are mostly used mixed and often with 

 Bellis perennis as a border. Little ad- 

 vantage has been taken of working 

 out color schemes with pansies, and 

 yet. if we stop to study their rich 

 tints, tints which I think cannot be 

 found in any other plant, the possi- 

 bilities are wonderful. 



Following these come the summer 

 plantings, with cannas, geraniums, 

 heliotropes, begonias, petunias, coleus. 

 acalyphas, abutilons, salvias, verbenas 

 and a great number of other plants 

 too numerous to be mentioned. 



Most all bedding plants thrive and 

 flourish best in full sunlight, except 

 tuberous begonias and fuchsias, which ■ 

 do best in half shade, where there is 

 plenty of indirect light; other plants 

 like some of our hardy palms, phoe- 

 nixes, latanias, chamserops, the vari- 

 ous fibrous rooted begonias, like 

 Semperflorens. Vernon, Schmitti and 

 fancy leaved caladiuns do well under 

 both conditions. 



The soil for cannas, musas, ricinus 

 and caladium esculentum, should be 

 very rich, their growth will be so 

 much more luxuriant, while the rest 

 of the plants like geraniums, begonias, 

 verbenas, salvias, cupheas, ageratums, 

 etc.. also need enriched soil; care 

 must be taken not to use too much 

 fertilizer, this will result disastrously; 

 the plants will show an abundance of 

 foliage in place of flowers. 



Bedding plants before set out in 

 their summer quarters should be prop- 

 erly hardened off: they should be ex- 

 posed freely to the air and sunlight 

 at least two weeks before the planting 

 season commences. Nothing serves ' 

 this purpose better than the hot-bed. 

 no matter how much some of the 

 growers are opposed to this sort of 

 cultivation. It is true the cost of j 

 labor is somewhat higher, but the su- f 

 perior results obtained fully justify ' 

 the expenditure made, and plants 

 hardened off in this manner suffer but 

 very little in transplanting. We have 

 plants of every desirable height, from 

 two inches up to eight feet, some with 

 a wealth of flowers, others again with 

 richly colored foliage, some with 

 coarser, others with more graceful 

 features. 



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