i8g6. 



GARDENING. 



59 



also how it should be grown; we are told 

 how to propagate and prune it, and pro- 

 mote its Iruitfulness, likewise how to 

 gather, keep and market the fruit. The 

 diseases of the plant areminutcly handled 

 and its irsect and other pests get consid- 

 erable attention. It is the best and most 

 complete literature on the subject that we 

 have got. Its price is $1. 



Chinese primroses. — At Dosoris we 

 used to buy the very finest strains of seed 

 that money could purchase and better 

 flowers than we used to have there [See 

 illustration in GARDENING, page 91, De- 

 cember 1, '93.] were not to be found on 

 this continent. At Sehcnley we have 

 some 3,000 plants now coming into 

 bloom and the best o r them are not equal 

 to the worst we used to have at Dosoris. 

 Why? Because the strains of seed were 

 inferior. Their vitality was all right. 

 The American trade rejects expensive 

 seeds, and European seed dealers have a 

 text "Anything is good enough for Amer- 

 ica." Our seedsmen know this just as 

 well as we do. Now let us get beyond 

 this sort of thing. Charge what you 

 please, but get for us the very finest 

 strains of flower seed the world produces; 

 far better have one superb blossom than 

 a wheelbarrow load of rubbish. 



Vegetables under glass is a book of 

 95 pages published by Henry A. Dreer. 

 Philadelphia; price in paper covers 25 

 cents, in cloth 30 cents. Here is a plain 

 matter-of-tact book telling us how let- 

 tuces, radishes and othercrops are grown 

 in cold frames, hotbeds and greenhouses, 

 and it is freely illustrated with pictures of 

 vegetables, greenhouses and methods of 

 cultivation. This book is a straightfor- 

 ward statement of fact and gives us the 

 how and why of vegetablegrowing under 

 glass by the market gardeners of Arling- 

 ton, near Boston, and other gardening 

 centres. Now this little book takes pains 

 to give one the inside and exact facts in 

 the line of gardening on which it treats, 

 and in this it differs most mightily from 

 a not-manv-years-ago published preten- 

 tious book on market gardening whose 

 sole aim seemed to be to jumble words and 

 say a lot, but tell one mighty little. In fact 

 this is the best little book of its kind that 

 we bave seen since Peter Henderson wrote 

 his "Gardeningfor Profit." And onemost 

 refreshing thing about it is that Dreer's 

 name isn't hauled into the book on every 

 page, or, in fact, at all. This greatly 

 strengthens our confidence in it. 



Prizes for Carnations. — Mr. C. W. 

 Ward of Queens, N. Y., offers four special 

 premiums of silver cups, each valued at 

 $25, for the best new pink carnation, and 

 best new white one for commercial pur- 

 poses, for the best new carnation of any 

 color, open to amateurs only; and for the 

 best of any color open to private garden- 

 ers only. The vase of each must contain 

 24 open flowers, 6 buds showing color, 

 and 6 buds half opened. Commercial 

 flowers must be at least 2'o inches in 

 diameter, and exhibition flowers 3 inches. 

 The calyx in all cases must be perfect, and 

 the stems must be quite stiff and at least 

 15 inches long. These prizes are to be 

 competed for at the annual exhibitions of 

 the American Carnation Society, and Mr. 

 Ward offers to keep up these premiums 

 every years. We are delighted to know 

 this, for goo 1 must come of it. Mr. Ward 

 is one the largest growers of carnations 

 in the country and no one grows them 

 better than he does and he is a specialist 

 not only in their cultivation, but in 

 hybridizing and raising new varieties of 

 them, and he is in such a position that he 



can afford the indulgence and to be pretty 

 exacting too. The carnation that will be 

 perfectly satisfactory to him must be a 

 prettv good flower. 



The Nursery Book —We have received 

 from MacMillan & Co , publishers. New 

 York, a copy of the third edition of Prof. 

 L. H. Bailey's book entitled "The Nur- 

 sery Book." It is 7x5 inches, contains 365 

 pages, and costs $1. The object of the 

 book is to teach one how to propagate 

 plants, and with this end in view it tells 

 us how to increase plants from seeds, lay- 

 ers, cuttings, budding, grafting and so 

 on, and in words and by illustrations it 

 endeavors to make this very plain to us. 

 The whole detail is given, and in addition 

 to propagation directly, a deal of infor- 

 mation incident to the preparation of 

 plants before propagating from them and 

 caring for them after they are propagated 

 is furnished us. Then in alphabetical 

 order a long list of plants is given with 

 notes on their separate propagation. 

 There is also a glossary of eleven pages 

 iu which the meaning of the term cion, 

 pseudo-bulb, knaur, bulbel and the like is 

 given. But this glossary is needed, for 

 without it how on earth could we tell 

 what "cuttage," "graftage," and "seed- 

 age" mean? There is a full and excellent 

 index to the work. It is a good and use- 

 ful book and we heartily recommend it. 



Bulbs for the Flower Garden.— The 

 earlier in October we get our hyacinths, 

 tulips, narcissus, crocuses, snowdrops, 

 and the like planted out in the garden the 

 better; this is not so much because early- 

 planting is imperative as that the earth 

 is likely to be drier and in better working 

 order then than later. All of the very- 

 early blooming bulbs should be planted 

 early as it is natural for them t root well 

 before winter sets in, and the better they 

 are rooted the less likely they are to get 

 heaved out of the ground by frost in win- 

 ter. So far as common bulbs as hya- 

 cinths, tulips, narcissus and the like are 

 concerned they can be planted with per- 

 fect safety just as late in the season as 

 the ground remains free from frost. It 

 you have not already planted any you 

 should set out a few for their blossoms 

 are exceedingly cheerful in spring. In 

 parks and pretentious gardens big beds 

 are filled solid with certain kinds of hya- 

 cinths and tulips so as to make a great 

 display of color, well that's in their line, 

 you needn't imitate it. If youdon't wish 

 to go to the expense of filling up a whole 

 bed, plant the bulbs in little bunches here 

 and there in your perennial borders or in 

 the front of your shrubbery clumps. And 

 when it comes to lilies, narcissus, bulbous 

 irises and most anything aside from hya- 

 cinths and tulips they look better in 

 mixed borders than in solid beds, besides, 

 while we can lift and remove the two last 

 named about the end of May to make 

 room for bedding plants, the foliage of 

 the narcissus, irises, and many of the 

 other kinds is too green to be cut over so 

 soon without injuring the bulbs for 

 good work next season. 



Chrysanthemums. 



EARLY CHRYSANTHEMUMS. 



The following chrysanthemums were in 

 bloom October 15 at Mr. T. H. Spauld- 

 ings, Orange, N.J. ; Lillian Russell, silvery 

 pink; Robt. B. Laird, crimsom, reverse 

 bronze; Marion Henderson, yellow; Au- 



tumn Bride, incurved white; Daydawn, 

 color of Daybreak carnation, faint pink; 

 ('.lory of the Pacific, pink; M.M.Johnson, 

 incurved, golden yellow; Rose Owen, of 

 English origin, creamy white suffused and 

 dashed with pink; J. H. Ruchman, a 

 bright golden reflexed variety', synony- 

 mous with H. Hurrell; Pink Ivory, simi- 

 lar in all respects to that excellent variety 

 except in color. 



Mr. Spaulding's chrysanthemums with 

 a few exceptions are ail planted in benches 

 with three inches deep of soil. They are 

 grown to single stems chiefly. Tbev use 

 ground tobacco stems on thi* place for 

 fumigating purposes and claim that thev 

 are less injurious and equally if not more 

 efficacious for the destruction of insect 

 pests. Wm. Fitzwilliam. 



Orange, X. 1. 



Roses. 



ROSE HOUSES, PROPER TEMPERATURE FOR. 



Kindly tell me what you consider to be 

 the proper temperature for rose houses at 

 this time of the year, considering that the 

 plants are in fairly good condition, sav 

 for American Beauty and tea roses. 



Allegheny, Pa. A. H.F. 



Referring to inquiry as to the proper 

 temperature to run rose houses at this 

 season of the year, would say that very- 

 much depends upon the varieties grown, 

 but assuming that your inquirer is an 

 amateur and therefore growinga number 

 of varieties of roses in the same house, 

 and that the plants are in good health, a 

 day temperature of from 75° to 80° on 

 clear days and 65 : to 70 on cloudv days 

 with a night temperature of 60° is about 

 right. In a general way it is safe to ad- 

 vise a temperature approaching the high- 

 est limit given above when plenty of ven- 

 tilation is given, nearing the lowest limit 

 as ventilation is reduced. Great care 

 should be taken to avoid sudden changes 

 at any time as rose plants are verv like a 

 delicate child, in their sensitiveness to 

 draughts, chills, etc., and will as readily 

 "catch cold" as evidenced bv mildew 

 (always traceable to carelessness I and 

 various other ills. The fall and early 

 winter are the most trying time of the 

 year and constant and unremitting at- 

 tention must be given to the little details 

 or failure is certain to follow. The above 

 temperature is suitable alike for such 

 sorts as Beauty, Bride, Bridesmaid, Perle, 

 Mme. Cusin, Wootton, Niphetos, Test- 

 out, etc. Paul M Pierson. 



Scarborough, N. Y., October 9, '96. 



MONTHLY ROSES, WINTERING THEM. 

 J. W. T., Pittsburg, Pa., writes: "I 

 have some nice specimens of these that I 

 wish to keep for next year. How shall I 

 take care of them during the winter- 

 leave them outside or put them in my 

 cellar?" 



Ans. By cutting them back consider- 

 ably, and lifting them with good roots 

 "and planting them thickly in one or two 

 boxes six or eight inches" deep and keep- 

 ing these in a cool but frost proof cellar- 

 such as you would keep potatoesir— they 

 should winter nicely. Lift them up to 

 more light and air in earlv spring, and 

 pot them singly or box them off a little 

 further apart than they were in the win- 

 ter boxes, and about 'the end of April 

 plant them out of doors again. Or you 

 may winter them outside in this way. 



