108 



THE GARDENER'S MONTHLY 



[Apeil, 



Eranthemum pulchellum. No. 2, variegated 

 Vinca major. 



Machines for Flower Pots. — F. G., Memphis, 

 Tenn. : " You will confer a favor upon a con- 

 stant reader of your Gardener's Monthly by letting 

 me know where I can get a machine to make 

 flower pots." 



[Tliese are made in Baltimore, we believe, but 

 are unable to give more precise directions. — Ed. 

 G. M.] 



FlO'WEKING of CoMBRETUM GRANDIFLORl'M. — J. 



B., Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio : " Could you give me 

 some information, please, how to make blooming 

 Combretum grandiflorum. We have one plant 

 of it; been about 15 years on the place; never 

 did anything but grow." 



[This plant and its allies often take these con- 

 trary humors, but when they do bloom usually 

 make up for it. The best advice that we can 

 give is to keep it under potted, and let it have 

 all the light and sun it can get. — Ed. G. M.] 



Variegated L.antana. — Mr. Harkett writes : 



" I send you to-day a plant of my new Lan- 

 tana, which I think you will find a valuable 

 plant for bedding, especially where exposed to 

 the sun, where few variegated plants can suc- 

 ceed. I also enclose a few remarks in regard to 

 training trees and fruit bushes to walls for late 

 crops, Avhich may be both valuable and interest- 

 ing to some of your readers in the large Eastern 

 cities, where walls abound that can be made 

 to do service. 



' ' In regard to the Lantana, the leaves get a little 

 green when they are shaded too much or get old, 

 but while growing, exposed to the sun, it is ex- 

 cellent, and I think will prove the most valuable 

 addition to the class yet obtained. I have also a 

 very fine scarlet Geranium of dwarf habitand very 

 free bloomer that holds its petals well and pro- 

 duces large flowers and trusses which is fully 

 equal in quality to the latest imported varieties, 

 although flowers are not as large as Eienzie or 

 quite as perfect, but better bloomer and has 

 larger trusses." 



[The Lantana did not come to hand. — Ed. 

 G. M.l 



plRUIT AND VEGETABLE GARDENING. 



SEASONABLE HINTS. 



The Apple is our standard fruit, and may al- 

 ways be relied on with reasonable care. The 

 first care is good food. Some talk about too 

 rich soil. We never saw the soil too rich for the 

 apple. Where any trouble arises in apple cul- 

 ture, it will be safe to attribute it to other causes 

 than rich soil. Kitchen ashes, in which table 

 refuse is thrown, is an excellent top-dressing for 

 apples. We like top-dressing better than any 

 other system of manuring a]jple trees. Even 

 nice ditch scrapings are good to top-dress with, 

 where nothing else offers. Apple trees are often 

 starved in other ways than by neglect to ma- 

 nure. The apple borer leads to starvation of- 

 tener than poor soil. The supply of food is cut 

 off by every move the borer makes. They work 

 at the surface of the groiuid. Look for them 

 now. If you have no time, set the boys and 

 girls to work. Say they shall have no apples for 



Christmas or birthdfiy presents if they do not. 

 HoAvever, get the borers out somehow, even if by 

 wire and jack-knife. If not soon done they will 

 soon get out themselves, and give you more 

 trouble in the future. After they have left, 

 whether by your invitation or otherwise, keep 

 them out; even though you have to lock the 

 door after the horse is stolen. There is nothing 

 like tarred paper to keep them out. The paper 

 must be put an inch or more below the ground, 

 and two or three above. We have used gas-tar 

 for years ; but find that if the tar contains creo- 

 sote, as it sometimes does, and the newspaper be 

 verj' thin, it will once in awhile injure the bark. 

 Pine tar will therefore be better. 



In grape raising people seem to go to extremes 

 in management. A few years ago the poor plant 

 was in leading strings. It dared not make one 

 free growth, but it was pinched and twisted into 

 all sorts of ways. Now the "prune not at all" 

 maxims are getting headway, and this is as bad, 

 if not worse. First, grape growing was such a 



