April, iqi2 



THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST 



89 



German investigations show that vege- 

 tables make better use of the constitu- 

 ents of farmyard manure than fruit 

 crops. Experiments carried out at the 

 Diemitz Experiment Station, and at 

 Strassfurt in Germany, seem to clearly 

 indicate that in the case of fruits, and es- 

 pecially with apples, fertilizers contain- 

 ing nitrogen, potash and phosphoric 

 acid can be used with profit, and thai 

 potash affects the results more than any 

 other one constituent. On the other 

 hand, stone fruits were more influenced 

 by phosphoric acid and nitrogen. 



Recently considerable prominence has 

 been given to the fact that apples may 

 be successfully grown without the use 

 of any manure. Some form of cover 

 crop is essential to the proper cultiva- 

 tion of orchards, and obviously it is to 

 the advantage of the owner to grow a 

 crop that will gather nitrogen from the 

 practically limitless supply in the atmos- 

 phere. It is possible that under many 

 soil conditions enough of this expensive 

 element may be gathered in this way. 

 And, further, as the roots of the apple 

 tree extend deeply and over a wide area 

 and the tree has nearly the full season 

 to mature its fruit, it may be able 1 ■ 

 gather all the food required. However, 

 soil conditions vary so widely that it 's 

 impossible to draw definite conclusions 

 frorh one experiment. Many fruit grow- 

 ers will bear out the statement that man- 

 ures have increased their crop. Last year 

 we placed a number of fertilizer experi- 

 ments on apple and peach orchards, 

 which we hope to continue for some 

 years in order that we may procure re- 

 liable results. 



In 1908 the writer visited a German 

 Provincial Fruit Experiment Station at 

 Diemitz, near Halle, Germany, where an 

 apple orchard had been under experi- 

 ment for sixteen years. The orchard re- 

 ceived a small amount of stable man- 

 ure and good cultivation. The illustra- 

 tions in the March number, pages 59 and 

 60, indicate fairly well the marked effect 

 of the fertilizers. 



Many of the small fruits respond read- 

 ily to an increased supply of plant food 

 applied in the form of fertilizers and they 

 are comp^iratively easily experimented 

 with. 



In closing let me urge those who are 

 inclined to use fertilizers to experiment 

 in a small way before applying these 

 materials freely. Further, do not expect 

 them to take the place of cultivation ; 

 nothing can do that, for it is only when 

 the good . cultivation is given that the 

 soil is in a condition to allow the plant 

 to make the best use of the plant food 

 available. 



The ideal location for geraniums is a 

 light sunny house with a temperature of 

 forty-five to fifty degrees at night. 



Spring Planting 



Wm. Hunt, O.A. C, Guelph, Ont. 



The months of April and May and the 

 early part of June are busy times in the 

 flower garden. The pruning, trimming, 

 and the clearing up of all garden rub- 

 bish should be all finished and the ground 

 dug and prepared for planting opera- 

 tions by the middle of April, if at all 

 possible. 



The earlier rose bushes, shrubs, and 

 trees are planted now the better. Most 

 of the hardier kinds are best planted as 

 early in April as possible. Where the 

 plants have been lifted earlier, and heel- 

 ed in temporarily, it is not too late to 

 plant them during May. Always try 

 and plant just before a showery time if 

 possible. Never plant trees in heavy soil 

 when the ground is very muddy and 

 sticky. It is better to wait a day or two 

 for the soil to dry a little. In sandy or 

 very light, well drained loamy soil, this 

 matter is not of so much importance. 



PREPARATIONS FOR PLANTING 



Dig the ground well first. If barnyard 

 manure is dug in now it should be well 

 rotted. A spading or digging fork is 

 the best implement for digging the 

 ground whether in the spring or fall. 

 The ground is easier worked and pul- 

 verized than with a spade, unless the 

 ground is of a very sandy nature. If 

 manure is dug into the ground now, dig 

 it in so that it does not come into direct 

 contact with the roots of the tree or 

 plant. After digging, the surface of the 

 ground should be roughly graded so as 

 to get it of the proper contour or shape, 

 whether quite level or rounding on the 

 surface. Raking the surface very fine is 

 not necessary or desirable when plant- 

 ing trees, shrubs, or bushes. 



When the ground is properly prepar- 



ed put a stake where each plant is to be 

 set. In placing the stakes make sure 

 that you are giving each plant the 

 amount of room it will require when it 

 reaches maturity. Try and picture to 

 yourself what the plant or plants will 

 look like when they have reached ma- 

 turity, then set the stakes accordingly. 

 For roses and shrubs, the extreme 

 height the plant will grow to is a fairly 

 good guide for the distance apart they 

 are to be set. Take, for instance, the 

 average height of a well cared for rose 

 bush as being from two to three feet : 

 About three feet is the proper dis- 

 tance apart to set these. Climbing roses 

 will grow sometimes fifteen or twenty 

 feet in length from the roots. Ten to 

 fifteen feet apart is a very good distance 

 for these, as they can be pruned in often- 

 times to suit the space they are to oc- 

 cupy. Give the bush type of rose an 

 open, sunny position. In planting climb- 

 ing roses, do not plant them close to a 

 building or fence, especially on the south 

 side. This is the position often selected 

 for climbing roses and tender climbers 

 generally, but it is a huge mistake. One 

 has only to stop and think of the condi- 

 tions that exist during the winter and 

 early spring on a building or fence fac- 

 ing directly south. In the day time, on 

 sunny days, the thermometer will regis- 

 ter away up into the eighties on the wall 

 of a building. At night possibly the 

 temperature will fall to ten or twelve 

 degrees above zero, thus roasting the 

 plant in the day time and freezing it at 

 night. The conditions mentioned are the 

 most trying out of door conditions it is 

 possible to give plants. There is also 

 another objection to a direct southerly 



Early Tulip Bed in Major Hill Park, Ottawa 



