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GARDE^ERS■ CHRONICLE 



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The Month's Work in the Garden 



lOHM TOHNSON 



THE work of another season now demands our at- 

 tention. Although just what and how much can 

 be undertaken must be governed by local condi- 

 tions and the resources at the command of the individual. 

 Ambitious gardeners, particularly those having restricted 

 glass areas, always find this a month of impatience and 

 restraint. While seed sowing may certainly be done 

 more lavishly than was either possible or advisable a 

 month ago, we feel bound to offer a word of caution — 

 everything sown now will soon require more room, 

 therefore make ample provision for carrying all safely 

 through till planting time. 



The wide-awake gardener will not be surprised by the 

 weather, but will provide for an emergency. He will 

 sow only the kinds most in demand and those which 

 can be brought through without loss. The man with a 

 greenhouse has indeed much in his favor with regard to 

 early sowings, and yet we have no hesitation in saying 

 that even without this facility much can be accomplished 

 with the aid of hot beds alone. The writer has cut fine 

 head lettuce from the hot bed the first week of March 

 in the latitude of New York. This crop, perhaps, is not 

 quite so exacting in its requirements as many which 

 might be sown now, yet it will be borne in mind that 

 hot bed culture becomes less hazardous as the season 

 advances, for the sun is fast gaining power and there 

 are few days from now on when the sash must remain 

 covered. However, it is not superfluous to assert that 

 with the limitations which hot beds alone impose, the pa- 

 tience and skill of experienced gardeners are sometimes 

 tested to the utmost during the usually severe weather 

 of the next six weeks, and as these notes are addressed 

 particularly for guidance to the less experienced, we ex- 

 plicitly caution the grower against attempting more than 

 he feels can be brought to a successful issue. On the 

 -other hand, the earliest possible production should be 

 aimed at, and it is the duty of the cultivator to devise 

 w'ays and means to thai end as far as may be in his 

 power. 



Hotbeds. — After the preparation of the spring seed 

 order the making of hotbeds is perhaps more interesting 

 and certainly quite as important as anything else to be 

 done during the month. We have from time to time 

 outlined instructions for making a lasting hotbed and 

 cannot depart from the advice already offered. A mix- 

 ture of fresh, or reasonably fresh, horse droppings and 

 litter is probably the best material for this purpose. 

 Forest leaves are to be recommended where a very mild 

 bottom heat is looked for, but it cannot be claimed that 

 leaves are capable of generating heat to the same extent 

 as manure. At this early date horse manure must be 

 regarded as indispensable in the formation of hotbeds, 

 while the best w-e can say of leaves is that they are good 

 com])onent material. Used in conjunction with manure, 

 leaves are very satisfactory. The most important con- 

 sideration will be to have the material in a perfectly fit 

 condition beforehand. Tt should be neither too wet nor 

 yet too dry, a condition best determined by occasionally 

 turning the mass prior to making up the bed. When 

 violent heating has subsided and the material appears 

 evenly moist throughout but not soggy, make up the 

 bed. The depth to which the bed .should be made will 

 varv with local conditions of weather and, of course. 



must vary to meet certain requirements. If an atmos- 

 [iheric temperature of 55 to 60 degrees is required dur- 

 ing zero weather the bed should be about 20 inches deep 

 when well trodden, Beds, however, of less depth are less 

 difficult to control, and our advice would be to make a 

 bed from 12 to 16 inches deep and use ample covering 

 on the sash. \\^ith beds of great depth there is always 

 a danger of over-heating when outside conditions are 

 such as to render ventilation almost out of the question. 

 If crops like carrots, string beans, lettuce, radish, etc., 

 are to be grown, it will be necessary to cover the bed 

 six inches deep yith a fairly rich, porous compost, and 

 sow the seeds in drills. On the other hand, if the pur- 

 ])ose of the bed is for raising stock to later transplant 

 in the garden, use seed flats or pans. In the latter in- 

 stance it will be unnecessary to cover the bed to any 

 great depth with soil. Cauliflower, cabbage, leek, 

 onion, celery, tomato, egg plant and pepper are among' 

 the vegetable seeds to be sown now. Annuals, and oth- 

 ers so called, used for bedding purposes and for cut 

 flowers, may be sown during this month and next. 



Among the kinds which should be sown as early as 

 |M)ssible are: Begonia (both fibrous rooted and tuberous 

 rooted varieties), Vinca rosea, Pentstemon. Carnation, 

 Canna. Pansy, Abutilon, Grevillea, \'erbena and Lobelia. 

 I-"ibrous rooted begonias are used more extensively for 

 liedding purposes than the tuberous rooted variety. The 

 j.arent of this bedding group, Begonia seiitpeiHoycns. is 

 a native of Brazil. The plant is perennial in habit, but 

 may be successfully treated as an annual, as may its 

 many hybrid forms. The seeds germinate freely in a 

 temperature of 65 degrees and should be sown in pans 

 of finely sifted loain, peat, and sand. Press the soil very 

 evenly in the seed vessel and sprinkle with water before 

 sowing the seed. 



The seed of Cannas is extremely hard and germinates 

 very slowly unless assisted. The best method is to first 

 soak the seed in hot water for a few minutes before 

 sowing. Cover the seed one-half inch deep and plunge 

 the pan in the hotbed. 



.\butilons and Grevilleas. although not strictly liedding 

 plants, make handsome specimens for dropping in flower 

 beds. The seeds of both kinds germinate unevenly, but 

 when the seedlings do appear they are easy to manage. 

 It should hardly be necessary to say that all seeds should 

 be sowni thinly and yet there are so many gardeners who 

 do insist on emptying the contents of a seed package 

 on a given space under any and all circumstances, that 

 fresh warning is given. This wanton practice often re- 

 ^tilts in wholesale loss as the seeds germinate, since it is 

 almost impossible to escape "damping." Even is the 

 seedlings do not entirely succumb in this way they be- 

 come weak and attenuated. Unduly elongated at the 

 start, subsequent growth always proves more or less dis- 

 a]"/pointing. Better by far grow a few plants uncom- 

 monly well than court failure by overcrowding. 



.'""now may be allowed to accumulate on and around 

 cold frames in which plants are in a frozen condition, 

 but plants in hotbeds and heated pits must have light 

 and air. 



Push forward the propagation of bedding stock as ad- 

 vised in last month's notes. Plants of Fuchsia. Geranium, 

 .\lnUilon, or Heliotrope raised from cuttings last autumn 



