i8g5- 



' GARDENING. 



227 



The soil needs to be frequently stirred 

 during summer to attract and retain 

 moisture. 



BED OF CANNAS ON 



JONOMOWOC. WIS. 



new kinds we want to tr\% and these are 

 planted about March 10 to 15, at which 

 time the top layer of manure is removed 

 from the peas planted in November. At 

 present writing, March ,30, every seed 

 seemingly is peeping through. There is 

 no question in my mind as to the superi- 

 ority in bloom of these autumn sown 

 peas, and picking begins frequently the 

 last week in May. This pl^n has suc- 

 ceeded equally well in Connecticut, but I 

 have always covered the rows with tarred 

 paper to exclude rains. Throwing sur- 

 I)lus earth on the ridge between the 

 double rows one sheet in width, covers two 

 rows, making a peaked roof. 



H. E. Gates M. D. 

 Colorado Springs, Colo. 



For your part of the country your way 

 of treating the autumn sown sweet peas 

 is the best one. We advised against the 

 trench system for fall sowings because of 

 the probability of thetrench getting filled 

 with water and ice in winter thereby and 

 injuring the peas. The covering of tar 

 paper is an excellent suggestion, not only 

 in the case of sweet peas, but also for 

 some delicate perennials, and precariously 

 hardy bulbous plants. 



Ans. About the middle of July. 



-t. Did they behave well and look well? 



Ans. Splendidly, from the start. 



5. Did you give thejn any special treat- 

 ment in summer? 



Ans. Plenty of water every day when 

 the sun is off, and a spraying overhead 

 every second day. 



6. Have you any suggestions to make 

 regarding planting a cannabed as gained 

 from past experience? 



Ans. My bed was made as follows: 

 One-third fresh horse manure without 

 straw, and one-sixteenth of sand thor- 

 oughly mixed with the top soil to the 

 depth of eighteen or twenty inches. 



7. How were the plants arranged as 

 regards size and color? 



Ans. The three outer rows were of 

 Florence Vaughan, and the entire center 

 of Alphonse Bouvier. 



fl BED OF CflNNflS. 



Our illustration, engraved from a pho- 

 tograph sent to us, shows abedof canuas 

 as grown last year by Mr. C. L. Crooke. 

 Vou will observe what an open place the 

 Ijcd is in, and how well it is filled and 

 nicely the plants are in bloom. .\nd it is 

 a ven,- easy matter for anyone to have 

 a bed like this. Apropos of this bed wq 

 submitted the following queries to Mr. 

 Crooke, and he kindly furnishes the replies. 



1. Were the plants started or dormant 

 when set out? 



.4ns. Started in ."i-inch pots. They 

 were IS inches high when set out. 



2. How far apart were they i)lantcd? 

 -Ins. Sixteen to eighteen inches. 



.'t. When did they begin to bloom:-' 



GLADIOLI. 



W. J. S., Maniuette, Mich., writes: "I 

 am an enthusiast in regard to gladioli, as 

 it is one of the few flowers that seem to 

 do well in this cold climate. I have pur- 

 chased fine stock, from time to time, but 

 I find they never keep up their excellence 

 afti-r the first year. Is there any way of 

 cultivating them which will stop this ten- 

 dency to deteriorate?" 



Mr. E. S. Miller of Floral Park, N. Y. 

 answers: If you mean that the colors 

 deteriorate ( as some ask me why their 

 gladioli all turn red after a few j-ears) it 

 is because for one bulblet that the light 

 colors produced the red sorts produce a 

 dozen or more, hence the reds must pre- 

 vail. But if the deterioration is in the size 

 of the spikes or bulbs then the fault is in 

 the planting and cultivation. The bulbs 

 should be planted at least three inches 

 below the surface of the ground, in mel- 

 low soil, and not nearer than six inches 

 apart each way if in a bed, if in a field in 

 rows two and one-half feet apart, then 

 make each drill a double row three inches 

 apart, alternating the bulbs in the rows. 



SWEET FEflS. 



Referring to the sweet peas of the Rev. 

 Mr. W. T. Hutchins, I must agree with 

 that gentleman's expression of wonder in 

 thinkmg of the six best colors out of 

 seventy-five. Ah! you have no idea what 

 a superb collection of his favorite flower 

 was shown in our city. Of course I had 

 to see them and undertook to select the 

 handsomest of them for special reference. 

 But individual tastes diftier. As seen in 

 the garden row the Senator, a shaded 

 chocolate with stripes of white and pur- 

 plish, we think it handsome, but as a 

 l)unch of cut flowers they lose favrr 

 al(Higside of clear, marked colors. Of tue 

 whites in my garden Emily Henderson 

 was the best. You will get into ecstacy 

 over the beauty of Countess of Radnor. 

 Other varieties that gave me pleasure 

 were Butterfly, Boreatton, Cardinal, 

 Stanley, Captain of the Blues, Lady Bea- 

 consfield. Firefly, Lady Penzance, Venus 

 and Dorothy Tennant. W. S. 



Hartford, Conn. 



CLEMATIS NEAT VINE. 



H. M. H., Hooversville, I'a., asks: 1. 

 "Willany kind of clematis, say pan/cu/a fa, 

 bloom well on a verandafacingthenorth? 

 If not what will? The ground is good. 

 2. Also a neat vine that will quickly 

 cover a summer house?" 



1. If not shaded overhead, asby neigh- 

 boring trees, C. paniculata will grow and 

 bloom there, so too will C. viticella, and 

 some of the large flowering sorts. Neat 

 vines that will also grow well there are 

 Akebia quinata and Hall's Japanese 

 honeysuckle. 2. Actinidia arguta is neat 

 and fast growing, but without much 

 beauty. The akebia is good and neat. 

 Japanese honeysuckles are indispensable. 

 And both the Chinese and Japanese wis- 

 tarias make pretty vines for a summer 

 house. We should prefer using two or 

 more together, than one only. 



FERTILIZER-HEN MANURE. 



The following questions are by "D": 

 1. In a bed for flowering plants I wish 

 to try a commercial fertihzer. The bed is 

 40 feet long by 6 feet wide. What kind 

 should I get, and amount use? 



Ans. Get Bowker's or Bradley's Com- 

 plete fertilizer. About 700 pounds per 

 acre is a fair dressing. As an acre con- 

 tains 43,560 square feet and your bed 

 240 feet, about 4 pounds would be a good 

 dressing for it. An overdose is injurious. 



2. To fertilize potting sod, how much 

 hen manure should one use? 



.4ns. If mixed dry a pint to the bushel 

 of earth. Much depends upon its strength, 

 that is how it has been saved. Far bet- 

 ter have too little than too much. It is 

 something we shouldn't care to use for 

 potted plants except lightly in topdress- 

 ing or as a liquid manure. 



AMARYLLIS BELLADONNA. 



F. N. B.. asks: "If planted out of doors 

 won't the bulbs have to be buried under 

 ground? You know this isn't the custom 

 with amaryllis generally." 



In growing hyacinths in flower beds in 

 the open garden we burj- the bulbs three 

 or four inches under ground, but if we 

 cultivate them in pots in the house or 

 conservatory we never bury the bulbs un- 

 der ground, one-third of the bulb is kept 

 above ground; and in the case of hya- 



