OCTOBER PLANT NOTES 



WM. HUNT, ONT. AGRI. COLl^EGE, GUELPH. 



OCTOBER usually gives us ideal ripen- 

 ing weather for plant life. Too 

 often this matter of plant ripening is lost 

 sight of by plant lovers, in their anxiety to 

 protect their favorites from the first sharp 

 frosts of Autumn ; and place them in sec- 

 urity for the winter months. 



Plants such as pot hydrangeas, olean- 

 ders, fuchsias, tender roses in pots, 

 dahlia and canna roots, etc., are frequently 

 hurried off on the first sign of frost into 

 the unsuitable and unnatural conditions 

 they often have to endure during the winter, 

 without being properly ripened or hardened 

 off before being stowed away. This ripen- 

 ing, or hardening, is very necessary for the 

 successful wintering over of plants that 

 have to be kept in a dormant or semi-dor- 

 mant condition during the long winter 

 months. 



The half-hardy hydrangeas grown in 

 pots and tubs, that make such con- 

 spicuous and showy decorative plants dur- 

 ing the summer, are often killed out or 

 severely injured by being hurried into 

 their winter quarters — oftentimes in the 

 cellar or basement — without the growth be- 

 ing first properly hardened off or ripened. 

 It is quite possible, if the season is at all 

 favorable, to keep hydrangeas underneath 

 a veranda, or in a shed or out building, 

 until November, if temporary protection be 

 given them on extra cold nights. Five or 

 six degrees of frost at this season of the 

 year, after the plants have done flowering, 

 will not hurt, but rather benefit them, as 

 they are of a decidely semi-hardy nature. 

 Less water should also be given at this 

 season than during the summer. By with- 

 holding gradually the am.ount of water, 



Two Popular Varieties of Plants as Grown in a London, Ont., Greenhouse. 



Beds of Begonia Glorie D'Lorraine on the left hand side and Cyclamen on the right hand side, are here shown as photo- 

 graphed in the greenhouse of Messrs. J. Gammage & Sons, of London, Ont. These plants are among the most satisfactory 

 that can be grown in the house during the winter. They begin flowering early in November and continue to bloom until late 

 in the spring. No more attention need be given them than any other house plant. Care should be taken to see that they are 

 not allowed to become too dry as otherwise the flowering season is retarded and the flowers become small and of poor texture, 

 both in color and substance. Attention is also required to see that they are not over watered, as such treatment tends to sour 

 the soil, causing the Cyclamen to take a fungous disease which usually affects the plants in the form of the bulb decaying and 

 becoming soft at the top. The leaves and flower's finally drop off. In the case of the Gloire D'Lorraine, the foliage turns 

 yellow and the leaves drop off. The Cyclamen comes in many colors, principally red, pink and white. The Begonia has 

 only two colors, a deep red and a light pink. 



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