184 MINNESOTA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY, 



WHAT FLOWERS SHALL WE PLANT ABOUT THE HOME? 



MRS. L. A. DANFORTH, RED WING. 



There are few, if any, who would say that flowers for the home 

 were not necessary, and that there was no profit in them. They 

 bring cheer and gladness to the heart as well as being pleasing to 

 the eye. The time and labor given in growing them brings its 

 reward in many ways. The home is made more attractive, while 

 the exercise in the outdoor air gives health and strength. 



There are many we would like but cannot have; therefore, we think 

 first of those which are indispensible. First of all, then, we must 

 have sweet peas; so we do not wait for warm weather, but as soon 

 as the frost is out of the ground, in some suitable place we plant 

 them, I once planted them in the fall and was rewarded by having 

 them in bloom a few days earlier than usual, but the next year, 

 putting them where the soil was not sufficiently drained, they were 

 a failure. 



The pansy will come next as a general favorite. These, and the 

 nasturtiums are useful for bouquets. The petunia, too, is not to be 

 despised as a flower for the vase, especially the white petunia. 



For fragrance we sow mignonette and sweet alyssum. The latter 

 makes a nice border for a flower bed. Lavatera is pretty in 

 bouquets as well as in the garden. Phlox Drummondii, verbenas 

 and dianthus Chinensis make showy beds all summer if started 

 early. The hotbed is very useful for starting these and some of the 

 other annuals. The asters are among the most beautiful flowers 

 for late blooming. 



We want poppies, for there are many beautiful varieties, but their 

 period of bloom is not long, and they have unsightly stalks to be 

 pulled up. Ten weeks stock is very satisfactory. Its spikes of 

 double, sweet-scented flowers are very enduring. The snapdragon, 

 too, is a pretty flower which lasts a long time. 



For an annual climber nothing that I know of is so beautiful as 

 the morning glory, 



I would plant many bulbs of the gladioli, because of their mag- 

 nificent spikes for cutting. 



Of perennials we will have hollyhocks, Canterbury bells, delphin- 

 ium formosum, perennial poppies, aquilegia and perennial phlox of 

 different colors. 



The aquilegia, or columbine, scatters its seeds, which germinate 

 more readily than those you buy. The Rocky mountain columbines, 

 with large flowers and long spurs, are interesting, but none are 

 more graceful than the wild columbine of Minnesota, (Aquilegia 

 canadensis), which we may transplant from the woods. 



We must have peonies of different colors. Iris is desirable if 

 there is plenty of moisture. 



Tulips, jonquils and narcissus make a fine display in the early 

 spring. 



Some of the best of the flowering shrubs are the lilac, snowball, 

 spirea Van Houtii, flowering almond and weigela. 



The flowers named are but a few of the many which are desirable 

 to plant about the home. We may choose those we like best. 



