October 4, 1913 



HORTICULTURE 



465 



OUTDOOR FRUIT AND VEGETABLES 



Preparing for Next Season's Work 



October is a ureal month fur preparing for next sea- 

 son's work. Tile ground is usually fairly dry and in 

 far better condition for working than in early spring. 

 If your garden has any spots which you remember were 

 a little too wet last spring now is the time to get in a 

 tile drain to the nearest convenient outlet. Three inch 

 tile W'ill be large enough as well as small enough, and 

 don't forget to put it down at least four feet below the 

 surface. 



Potash Manuring 



Because there is great danger from burning if high- 

 grade sulphate or muriate of potash is used in spring 

 it is far better to "do it now," so as fast as the ground 

 is cleared of crops sow 200 pounds per acre of either of 

 the above forms of potash and its burning qualities will 

 be all washed away by the time of next growing sea- 

 son's advent. 



Lime 



Where quantities of farm-yard manure has been used 

 on the garden year after year an annual application of 

 about a half-ton per acre of fine ground or air-slaked 

 lime will be very beneficial, in fact a necessity. It is a 

 good plan to apply this dressing as evenly as possible 

 over the surface and then rake or harrow it in. 



Basic Slag (Phosphatic Manure) 



If basic slag is used as a source of phosphoric acid 

 (and it is at once one of the cheapest and best sources) 

 it should always be applied in autumn if results are to 

 Ije expected during the following growing season. Insist 

 upon a finely ground sample, otherwise it will be very 



blow in producing results. From 10 to 20 hundred 

 pounds to the acre is about the right amount. 



The foregoing recommendations for the garden 

 proper are especially applicable to the orchard and all 

 the small bush fruit trees such as currants, raspberries, 



'■*' ■ Transplanting and Pruning 



The snuiU fruit buslies such as currants and goose- 

 Ijerries are very apt to grow on until their condition is 

 like unto the slums of the great cities — "overcrowded." 

 Look them over carefully and if they are approaching 

 this condition, get busy ! And either lift some of the 

 plants and replant where conditions are better or else 

 go in with the pruning knife and cut away all of the 

 old wood which has fruited and even some of the 

 younger wood if necessary so as to give the remaining 

 branches abundance of sun and air. Raspberries should 

 have had all their old fruiting canes cut away ere this, 

 but if this has not been done certainly no time should 

 be lost in carrying it out as the young canes which are 

 to fruit next year will be sure to stand the winter better 

 for the ripening they will get from the increased ex- 

 posure to the sun. 



Globe Artichokes 



Select those plants which gave the finest samples of 

 product and mark them to be lifted later for next year's 

 stock, as this is the only way to get the finer types as 

 amongst nearly every lot of seedlings there are a lot of 

 woi'thless kinds. 



Lenox, Mass. 



PLANT LABORATORY AT THE COLLEGE OF PHARMACY, UNIVERSITYOF MINNESOTA, ST. PAUL, MINN. 



(Soe Cover lUustration.) 



In order to pass upon the identity 

 and quality of vegetable drugs and 

 their preparations, the pharmacist 

 must have a thorough understanding 

 of the plants from which the drugs 

 are obtained. The Medicinal Plant 

 Garden is maintained by the College 

 of Pharmacy primarily to increase the 

 facilities of the college in giving in- 

 struction of this character. Over 70 

 per cent of the plants yielding official 

 drugs are under cultivation and sev- 

 eral hundred species yielding un- 

 official drugs are also grown. 



The value of the drug garden as an 

 educational factor has been so clearly 

 demonstrated during the past two 

 years that a medicinal plant labora- 

 tory has just been completed wherein 

 the work of studying medicinal plants 

 will be continued through the winter 

 months and where tropical medicinal 

 plants will be grown. This laboratory, 

 which has the outward appearance of 

 a greenhouse or palm house, is 38 .\ 61 

 feet in size, with two floors. The 

 superstructure represents the latest 

 type of the Lord & Burnham steel 

 frame, curved-eave greenhouse con- 

 struction, with the ridge 26 feet above 

 the floor, allowing ample room for 

 growing tropical niediciflal trees. 



The upper or main floor will be 

 used exclusively for the culture and 

 study of the growing plants. The ar- 

 rangement of the plant benches and 

 students' work tables is unique in that 

 over 2500 square feet of space is avail- 

 able. This large amount of space was 

 secured by placing the students' work 

 tables, which are of concrete, around 



the sides and by constructing a large 

 open pyramid in the center of the 

 house for the plants. Under the pyra- 

 mid provision has been made for 

 shade-loving plants and for starting 

 roots from the cold storage room, etc. 

 A large concrete aquarium, convenient- 

 ly located, gives ample room for aqua- 

 tic plants. In the fall of the year the 

 pyramid will be packed with medicinal 

 plants potted in the garden by stud- 

 ents and these will be used for study 

 during the winter. The potted plants 



liaving been used up by early spring, 

 the space is then devoted to the propa- 

 gation of new plants for the garden, 

 over 20,000 of which were produced 

 during the past spring. Steam coils 

 are located under the various plant 

 benches, each on separate valves, hot 

 and cold water faucets, and electricity 

 for light and power are provided, giv- 

 ing complete facilities for the deter- 

 mination of the effects of physiological 

 factors upon the medicinal value of 

 plants. 



