408 



lines? A principle is one thing, and the 

 details of carrying it out another. At all 

 events any worth while gardening that has 

 been done in this country has liccn liy 

 European gardeners. 



The excuse that the X. -A.. G. is n>it 

 financially capable of carrying out these ex- 

 aminations is equally poor. Had the prin- 

 ciple been adopted the initiation of these 

 examinations would be naturally confined 

 to an advertisement to the etTect that those 

 wishing to sit for them should send in 

 their names ; this would cost a few dol- 

 lars. Further expense would depend upon 

 the number of names sent in, and would 

 be covered by the nominal fee suggested. 

 If no names were sent in the onus of re- 

 fusing to consider examinations would be 

 shifted from the N. A. G., upon whose 

 shoulders it now rests, to the rank and 

 file of the gardeners. 



The turning down of this question by 

 the St. Louis convention of gardeners will 

 cause outsiders to think that gardeners have 

 no desire to uplift their profession and 

 bring it into line with other professions, 

 the members of which have to undergo 

 examinations before being accepted as 

 members of their professional organization. 

 People will be inclined to think that gar- 

 deners cannot stand a professional exami- 

 nation. Many gardeners are complaining 

 that employers do not treat them as pro- 

 fessional men but as servants, and yet take 

 no steps themselves to advance their pro- 

 fessional standing. The X. A. G. is receiv- 

 ing support and co-operation from estate 

 owners, who have a right to expect that 

 gardeners will at least meet them halfway 

 ni their desire to uplift the profession. 



.\rthur Smith. 



It is unfortunate that all those deeply in- 

 terested in the foregoing subject were not 

 able to attend the convention and take part 

 in the discussion wdiich occupied nearly all 

 of one of the forenoon sessions. There 

 were many arguments advanced in favor of 

 examinations and classifications of garden- 

 ers, but space did not permit publishing the 

 discussion verbatim. In the January num- 

 ber of the Chronicle we will have Mr. 

 Smith's recommendations on the subject — 

 [Ed. Note.] 



THE QUESTIONNAIRE 



Subscribers arc intited to wake free use 

 of this department to solve problems that 

 may arise in their garden work. Questions 

 on the ordinary pursuits of gardening, that 

 can be readily answered by applying to the 

 usual reference books should not be re- 

 ferred to the Questionnaire. 



GARDENERS' CHRONICLE 



For the first time I have white mold in 

 my root cellar. The tubers being in 

 pretty bad shape. I would be pleased to 

 have you make suggestions as to the best 

 way to fumigate or save my stock of 

 bulbs.— A. E. McK.— R. I. 



We would recommend that you take your 

 dahlia roots out of your cellar immediately 

 and set them in a dry, cool place, as tlie 

 white mold is caused by dampness and lack 

 of ventilation. I We do not believe fumiga- 

 tion will aid. lUthough vou might burn sul- 

 phur.— D. M. I 



I HB^;^ and There | 



PLANTING EVERGREENS. 



.'\s far as practi-able, the largest subjects 

 should be taken in hand first, and the longer 



Then I went and sat under 

 Robinson Crusoe's Palm. 



I picked up the childrens' copy 

 of that heautiful new Wyeth 

 edition of Robinson Crusoe, the 

 other night, and before I knew 

 it, I was having the time of my 

 life, reading about the tight that 

 Robinson and Friday had with 

 cannibals. 



Remember how they fought up 

 and down the beach, ducking in 

 and out among the palms, be- 

 laboring the cannibals with 

 -■word and pistols and chas.ng 

 them into the sea? 



Whew — I got so excited thai 

 when I got to where old Rob 

 sat down under the palms to 

 rest, I felt like resting too. 



And I got to thinking how his 

 palms compared with ours. 



We've hundreds of 'em, you 



know, from fine little chaps just 

 big enough for fern dishes, all 

 the way up to splendid 15 and 

 IS-foot ones that anybody could 

 rest under. 



Then I thought that there are a 

 lot of you fellows who'd be glad 

 to know about these palms of 

 ours. For our houses are full 

 of them. 



For my part. I like to keep them 

 that way. They're good to look 

 at, but, as Julius says, we're in 

 business to sell palms, not to 

 keep them as souvenirs. And 

 I guess he's right. 



^ Ai Tho Si^f Thg Trge 



i Box 20 Rut 



Box 20 Rutker/ord N.J. 



tl o liave remained undisturbed the more 

 care siiould be taken in moving them. Se- 

 cure all tlie roots possi1)le, whether large or 

 small, as the less they are cut about tlie 

 lietter : the greater the number of roots 

 that are severed, the greater the shock to 

 the plant or tree. I do not set so high a 

 value on securing a big ball of soil with the 

 roots as some people do, because 1 have 

 found in practice that to get the liall of 

 earth of a size to be conveniently moved a 

 good many roots must be cut asunder. My 

 experience shows me that it is better to 

 search further for the roots, so as to secure 

 as large a liody of them as possible without 

 mutilating them. It is also unwise to move 



any shrub or tree when the soil about the 

 roots is dry, and notwithstanding that the 

 rainfall of late has been considerable, it will 

 be found that when large plants have to be 

 dealt with the ground will probably be dry. 

 If such is the case it is very necessary to 

 success that it should be well watered the 

 day before the moving is to take place, and 

 it is equally necessary to well water the 

 roots after the plant is put into its place, 

 and if the weather is dry to syringe the 

 plants in the early afternoon. A mulch of 

 leaf-mould goes a long way toward the re- 

 establishing" of the plants that have been 

 moved, in that it helps to retain the 

 moisture. — Gardening Illustrated. 



