2l6 



GARDENING. 



April /, 



«EDENIN6 



William Falconer. Editor. 



THE GARDENING COMPANY. 



Monon Building, CHICAGO. 



BubscrlptloD Price, f2.( 



ubBcrlptlons. ad' 

 other business ms 

 addressed to The Gardening Compa 

 In^i. Chlca»io. and all matters pertainl 



unlcatlona relating t 



-^ "--- "■--* — ^ niniu^rs eriouia De 



. Monon Bulld- 



pertainlnt; to the editorial 



the paper should 1 



Glen Cove, N. T. 



* readers and I 



flowers, fruits, \ 



It Is on 



. __ please about plants, 



other practical gardening; 



lure In answering them. 



Send ps Notes of your experlence-ln gardening In 



any line: tell us of your successes that others may be 



enlightened and encouraged, and of your failures, 



perhaps we can help you. 



SEND US PHOTO0HAPH8 OR SKETCHES Of yOUr 



flowers, gardens, greenhouses, fruits, vegetables, or 



appliances that we may have them en- 



\Hl>ENlNO. 



CONTENTS. 



THE FRUIT GARDEN. 



Swet I chestnuts (illus.) 209 



Some fruit notes alO 



Fertilizer for Iruit trees 210 



Some good pears for New Jersey 210 



A few good pears for Ontario 210 



Diseased grape vines 210 



When to prune an apple orchard 210 



L.\NDSCAPE GARDENING. 



210 



rquarter acre lot (illus.) 211 



A few trees for different soils , . . '. 212 



The Colorado blue spruce (lllus.) 212 



Shrubs for a northeast corner .;]2 



Planting a flower and shrub border 212 



Austrian pines for windbreak 212 



Elm leaf beetles. . 212 



THE LAWN. 



The lawn 212 



Fertilizer for lawn . 213 



To make a lawn smooth 213 



Raising hardy perennials from seed 213 



Vines tor veranda— Azaleas 214 



Hibiscus— Erythrina 214 



Dwarf plants for north border 214 



Balsams— Stocks— Vines . . . 214 



Variegated live-forever 214 



"Tongue lily" 214 



THE GREENHOUSE, 



Questions about greenhouse plants 214 



Propagating for cuttings 215 



Plants for Easter . 215 



To prevent fern fronds, etc., from wilting . . . 215 



Amaryllis— Asparagus . 215 



Treatment of Rex begonias 215 



Crinum ornatum 215 



Gloxinia leaves curling 215 



Dinsmore roses won't open .... 



THE VEGETABLE GARDEN. 



Good potatoes for amateurs 



Sweet potatoes . . 



Exhibition celery . . 



Early corn that is sweet 



215 



The garden plan presented in this 

 issue shows a three-quarter acre corner 

 lot such as thousands of people may have 

 in the suburbs of cities, towns or villages 

 throughout the country. Examine the 

 plan carefully; for there is something to 

 learn from it. It is a common sense plan. 

 The little home grounds seem to be com- 

 plete, everything is conveniently situated; 

 the most is made of the space, and the 

 grounds are not defaced by unnecessary 

 walks or cut out flower beds. The 

 whole garden has a tasteful refined ap- 

 pearance, and it is as simple as it can be, 

 and in this, to a great extent, lies its 

 strength. Of course a plan like this can 

 be modified to suit the situation and the 

 owner's taste and requirements. 



Datura Sanguinea.— Of course it is a 

 nice thing, and it would be nicer still if it 

 only bloomed more. Unless it blooms it 

 won't amount to much. No, no, it can 

 never rival D. arhorea. 



The EFFECT OF THE WINTER IN N. J.— 



Mr. A. S. Fuller writes us: "Buds are all 

 right thus far (March 23) and if the 

 weather keeps cool a few days more we 

 will have an abundance of flowers and 

 fruits, and escape late spring frosts." 



A Good Gardener.— John Dallas of 

 Fairfield, Conn., who is advertising for a 

 situation in this issue is an Al all round 

 gardener. He is leaving his present place 

 because of the decease ot the late owner 

 (Mrs. Sturgis). It is seldom that so good 

 a gardener in every department — green- 

 house, flowers, trees, fruits and vegeta- 

 bles, and a man of such excellent moral 

 character, is looking for a situation. We 

 vouch for his practical ability and per- 

 sonal character. 



Fine Fern Fronds. -ATepiro/ep/s daval- 

 lioides furcans is one of the most beauti- 

 ful of all ferns when used as a pot or vase 

 plant, having broad, furcated, glossy 

 leaves and a massive, full, arching head. 

 And its fronds when cut last well, look 

 well and are much appreciated for table 

 and vase decoration when large fronds 

 are required; for small vases, hand bou- 

 quets and the like of course they are far 

 too big. When we cut them we immerse 

 them in a tub or tank of water fortwoor 

 three hours before usirg them. 



The EARLIEST BLOOMING SHRUB at 



Dosorisis the Japanese witch hazel(Ham- 

 amelisja/jonica). It began to bloom the 

 middle of March, and its naked branches 

 are covered with conspicuous fantastic 

 yellow flowers. Planted in the foreground 

 of evergreens they are shown to great ad- 

 vantage. Had the winter been mild 

 instead of continuously severe this witch 

 hazel would have been in bloom in Janu- 

 ary. It is a native of the mountain for- 

 ests of northern Japan, where it often 

 forms stout, broadheaded trees thirty feet 

 high. It seems to be perfectly hardy here, 

 and grows well, and little plants only a 

 foot high will bloom. .\s an ornametital 

 flowering shrub it is immensely superior 

 to our American species. 



The PLANTING SEASON is now upon us. 

 Ground that is dry enough to plow is dry 

 enough to plant; neverplant in wet soapy 

 land, wait till it gets dry and mellow. 

 Plant deciduous trees and shrubs first, 

 evergreens next. Prepare for planting by 

 digging out wide deep holes, removing 

 all the poor subsoil and replacing it with 

 fresh good earth. Firm the soil in the 

 bottom of the hole by tamping it with 

 the feet before planting the tree, and in- 

 stead of a basin shaped hole for the roots 

 have it just the other way— a hillock in 

 the middle and lower to the outsides. 

 Set the butt of the tree on the top of the 

 hillock, about the same depth as it had 

 been grown before, and spread the roots 

 outward and downward, filling in with 

 fine dryish soil between them. Then fill 

 up the hole full, treading the soil firmly 

 as it is filled in. In light well drained 

 ground a pail full or two of water to each 

 tree at planting time will do good, in 

 heavy soil it isn't necessary. Before 

 planting cut off' the broken and torn roots 

 clean with a sharp knife, and in the case 

 of deciduous plants don't spare their 

 tops, but cut back the branches pretty 

 hard, the life of plants will be more cer- 

 tain and their growth stronger for it. 

 Set a stout neat stake to every young 

 tree having a tall weak stem, or that is 

 topheavy. 



Money in the Greenhouse.— Many 

 people are imbued with the idea that there 

 is big money in the greenhouse business, 

 and amateurs sometimes plunge into it 

 for profit. The florist business has 

 increased immensely during the last ten 

 years, more flowers than ever before are 

 grown, and more sold. There is an im- 

 pression that it is a nice, clean, easy busi- 

 ness, and a safe and profitable invest- 

 ment. American Beauty roses bring $50 

 a hundred, Helen Kellar carnations $8 a 

 hundred, and violets $2, and all that we 

 have got to do is to build some green- 

 houses, s t out the plants, give them 

 some water and keep them warm; then 

 cut the flowers, ship them to the city and 

 get the money for them, and in a little 

 while our pocket book will become as big 

 as our hat. But, alas, the facts are differ- 

 ent. They are these: With a fair knowl- 

 edge of the business, the strictest economy 

 and the closest application to the work, 

 it will take an outlay of $20,000 to 

 realize a profit of $2,000 a year. In fact 

 as business now is we are placing the 

 profits too high. There is considerable 

 difference between gross receipts and net 

 profits. The high prices received for 

 flowers are mostly imaginary. Amateurs 

 who have gone into the business know 

 all about this; those who are contemplat- 

 ing entering should consider well before 

 sinking their money in it. 



A Book of Trees with Colored Pict- 

 ures.— A subscriber at Oconomowoc is 

 astonished to find that we do not know 

 of a book containing colored illustrations 

 of trees and shrubs. He writes: "I have 

 been buying plants, trees and shrubs out 

 of beautifully illustrated picture books 

 that have been presented for my consider- 

 ation by the gentlemanly nursery agents 

 that swarm through the country and 

 make life a burden. * * I have bought 

 all kinds of truck from them and given 

 them good cigars and good treat, but the 

 only happiness derived from the operation 

 has been the pleasant anticipation that 

 has existed in my imagination between 

 the time of purchase and arrival of 'the 

 goods.' When I see your beautiful Dosoris 

 illustrations, and read about what Mr. 

 Egan has accomplished I begin to think 

 that I have been buyingout of the wrong 

 books." No, you have done what was 

 right. The agent's glib tongue and his 

 vivid book of impossibilities had the same 

 effect upon you that the thrilling circus 

 posters have on the small boy with a 

 quarter in his pocket. If it hadn't been 

 for those pictures j'ou might not have 

 bought anything and never have known 

 the difterence between the fictitious and 

 the real article, or between the exorbi- 

 tant and the fair price. But after having 

 bought your experience you know and 

 appreciate the difference between the im- 

 possible and the truth, and you prefer the 

 truth. Now that you have found light 

 let the agents alone, pictures or no pict- 

 ures; Gardening will give you the truth 

 about any plants you want to know of, 

 so far as it knows, and the nurserymen 

 who advertise in it will be glad to supply 

 you and deal squarely with you. 



Name of Plants —Asparagus. — In 

 answer to P. J. V., Ste. Marie, 111.: The 

 leaves are of zonal geraniums. Among 

 the thousands of varieties it is impossible 

 to name them by their leaves alone. For 

 asparagus. Dig the groimd very deep, 

 say 1 S to 24- inches, to let the roots get 

 down to ihe moisture in summer. Mark 

 off two rows to the bed, the rows three 

 feet apart, the plants two feet asunder; 

 let the rows be thrown out in the form of 

 trenches for celery and four or five inches 



