Law^n and Garden Hints for May 



THE enthusiastic amateur will find 

 lots to do in May. Many kinds of 

 seeds and plants may be started in 

 the open. Have the ground well prepared 

 and enriched. Dig- deeply, remove all 

 stones and rubbish and pulverize the soil 

 thoroughly. Before starting to plant or 

 sow, have the plot or beds raked level. Be 

 neat in all that you do. Owing to the 

 earliness of the season this year, much of 

 this work has been done already. 



THE KITCHEN GARDEN 



The soil for vegetables should be brok- 

 en finely and to the depth of the spade. 

 Work in a liberal application of barn- 

 yard manure, and wood ashes also, if 

 they are available. 



Onions, peas, spinach and other hardy 

 vegetables may be planted as soon as the 

 ground is fit. Leave cucumber, corn, 

 squash and the tender kinds until all dan- 

 ger of frost is passed. Sow the seeds in 

 moist or freshly stirred soil. Do not 

 plant too deeply. 



Sow radishes in good rich soil in order 

 to have quick growth. For a succession, 

 sow some seed every ten days or two 

 weeks. 



An excellent vegetable and one that is 

 not much grown is salsify. Sow the seed 

 early, and handle the same as parsnips. 



Do not over-water plants in the hotbed 

 and give plenty of ventilation. 

 THE FRUIT GARDEN 



When the strawberries commence to 

 grow, remove the mulch and place it be- 

 tween the rows. Should frost threaten at 

 blossoming time, the mulch may be re- 

 placed over the plants until danger is 

 past. 



If your strawberry patch is more than 

 two years old or if you have not yet grown 

 this fruit, plant this month. Take strong 

 plants from the old patch or purchase 

 from the nurseryman. Have the rows at 

 least three feet apart and place the plants 

 about eighteen inches apart in the rows. 



Plant currant, gooseberry, raspberry 

 and blackberry bushes if there is room for 

 them. Plant them about five feet apart. 



THE FLOWER GARDEN 



Flowers that have been started in the 

 house should not Ije transplanted to the 

 open ground without first being hardened- 

 off. Gradually introduce the plants to the 

 changed conditions by placing them out- 

 doors each day for a few hours. .Seed- 

 lings that are crowded in the boxes or in 

 hotlx?ds should be transplanted to other 

 boxes or to cold frames. Cannas, coleus, 

 crotons, alternantheras and plants of sim- 

 ilar nature should not be planted out un- 

 til after the first of June. 



When the ground is ready, sow .seeds 

 of nasturtiums, b;ilsam and portulaca, 

 sweet peas and other hardy annual.s. Do 

 not sow the seed thickly. Hardy annuals 



should be thinned before they get 

 ('rowd('(i. 



(;'ladioli may Ije planted towards the 

 end of the month. Place the bulbs three 

 or four inches deep and about six or eight 

 inches apart in rows or clumps. Hahlias 

 also may be planted late in May, but it is 

 better to leave them until June. 



Plant out perennials and biennials that 

 were wintered in cold frames. Divide old 

 clumps of perennials and when trans- 

 planting remove all weeds in order to save 

 further trouble. Old perennial borders 

 that are renovated in this manner will lose 

 little in effect if the spaces are filled with 

 annuals this year and until the permanent 

 plants once more require the room. 



Plan to cover with climbing plants, bare 

 places on house, verandah, fences and 

 out-buildings. Alorning glories, sweet 

 peas, nasturtiums, wild cucumbers and 



work of making new lawns should be 

 done thoroughly. Success depends large- 

 ly upon the preparation and character of 

 the soil. 



The Best Dahlias 



At the last convention of the Ontario 

 Horticultural Association, the nomen- 

 clature committee presented lists of the 

 best perennial phloxes, irises, gladioli 

 and dahlias. For the benefit of lovers 

 of the last named, the list of dahlias is 

 herewith published : 



SHOW DAHLIAS 



A. D. Livonia. — (Juilled clear pink. 



Arabella. — Light sulphur shading to 

 peach. 



Emily. — Solforine with white mark- 

 ings. 



John Walker. — Pure white, like a 

 large snowball. 



Front View of Retidecce and Grounndi of iuift Klein, Walkerten, Ontario 



many other things are useful. One of 

 the best vines is Cobea scandens. This 

 may be started in the hou.se from seed or 

 the plants may be purchased from florists. 

 When the spring bulbs are done flower- 

 ing, it is best if possible to allow the tops 

 to wither and die before taking up the 

 bulbs. If it is necessary to take them 

 earlier, however, the bulbs should be 

 lifted and heeled-in just below the ground 

 in some place out of the way and left there 

 until July. 



ON THE LAWN 



Repair bare spots on the lawn, either 

 by seeding or sodding. Lawns that have 

 become thin in the turf, should be well 

 raked and sown with some good lawn 

 mixture. A little nitrate of soda sprink- 

 led on the lawn will stimulate the grass 

 where the growth is weak. 



As the lawn is a permanent fixture, the 



Frank Smith. — Purplish maroon, 

 topped white. 



Glory de Lyon. — Creamy white, very 

 large. 



Leader. — Best dark rich purple. 



Joseph White.— Rich velvety maroon, 

 shaded to jet black. 



Duchess of Cambridge. — White suf- 

 fused pink edged and tipped purple. 



Queen of Yellows. — Primrose yellow. 



Mrs. Gladstone. — Delicate soft blush, 

 grand form. 



Prince Bismark. — Puce, short with 

 purple, large. 



Mrs. Browning. — Buttercup yellow, 

 tipped snow white. 



Mrs. Dexter. — Rich salmon, very 

 large. 



Red Hussar. — Intense scarlet crimson, 

 very good. 



CACTUS DAHLIAS 



Dreadnought. — Dark ' crimson ma- 



