THE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE OF AMERICA. 



VERBENAS. 



By William H. ^Iackexzie. 



The accompanying illustration depicts verbenas encir- 

 cling a pond in the center of the formal garden. They 

 were planted in double rows about 9 inches apart, in in- 

 terchangeable cement receptacles about the size of 

 ordinary window boxes. 



The soil used is ordinary potting soil put up the pre- 

 vious autumn. The bedding (or sand verbena) is native 

 to a light sandy loam and in consequence should not be 

 planted in a heavy over-rich soil. 



The seed used is catalogued as "Mammoth Hybrids," 

 and should be sown in March and grown on the same as 

 any other bedding plant, until danger from frost is past. 



When the plants have made some growth and the roots 

 are running freely in the soil we give them a little weak 

 cow-manure water once a week, increasing the strength 

 and quantity given as conditions warrant. 



Once a month we give them an application of soot 

 water, using a 6-inch pot of Scotch soot in a 50-gallon 

 barrel of clear soft water. The soot water seems to give 

 additional lustre to flowers and foliage. 



Every morning a careful man goes over the plants with 

 basket and scissors and cuts oS the faded blossoms. If 

 this is not done the flowering season will be nuich cur- 

 tailed. 



Sometimes red spider and green fly attack the plants 

 in their early stages if the season happens to be dry like 

 that of 1912. A good syringing from the hose late in the 

 evening for a few evenings will eftectively clean out the 

 fonuer pest, while Aphine will immediately exterminate 

 the latter. 



A CITIZEN'S PRIZE FOR VEGETABLES. 



Following the suggestion ap|)earing in the Gardeners' 

 Notes of the Chromcle in the December issue, the Mad- 

 ison (N. J.) Eagle has undertaken to raise a special fund 

 for the purpose of offering a Madison prize in the shape 

 of a silver cup for competition in the vegetable classes to 

 be awarded for the best arranged group of vegetables at 

 the i\Iorris County Show next fall. 



The Morris County Gardeners' and Florists' Society 

 is taking an active interest, and proposes to make vege- 

 tables and fruits a feature of its next show. 



It is hoped that the prize offered by the citizens of 

 Madison will bring out competitors from many states 

 and bring together the vegetable growers who made such 

 fine exhibits at the various local shows last year. In 

 addition to the Madison cup, many other valuable prizes 

 will be offered for different classes of vegetables and 

 fruits, it being the intention to have special classes for 

 amateurs and farmers. The citizens' fund, which has 

 only just been started, has already reached a substantial 

 figure, and Madison will make it worth while for com- 

 petitors to come a distance to try and lift its cup. 



In announcing its plan to raise a fund, the Madison 

 Eagle said: "It is the desire to make the chief prize 

 a Madison one, a silver cup of such quality and so in- 

 scribed that it will be a trophy to work hard for, and 

 which will attract as exhibitors the gardeners of not 

 only this vicinity, but from points as remote as Tux- 

 edo Park, Lenox, Long Island, the suburbs of Phila- 

 delphia, and many other places. Competitive groups 

 arranged by some of last year's winners in the vege- 

 table classes would produce interest. 



VERHENAS GROWN AT "nELEIIEX." BRISTOL, CONN. WM. H. MACKENZIE, GARDENER. 



