224 



THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST 



Floral Edition 



The Canadian Horticulturist 



Published briThc Horticultural 

 PublUhioE Compaof. Limited. 



Official Orgaa of OtOAdJao Horticultural Cooncll 



Tba Canadian Horticulturist is published the &rst of 

 each month in two editions, as follows; 



FLORAL EDITION 



Devoted to the interests of amateur horticulture- 

 landscape gardeninK, floriculture, fruit and vegetable 

 cardeninK — and to the work and prosress of Horticultural 

 Societie*. 



SubacrJptloo Ratca. — 60 cents a year, $1.00 for two 

 years. 



FRUIT EDITION. 



Devoted entirely to the interests of commercial fruit 

 and vegetable Krowers — ofKcial orean of Ontario Fruit 

 Growers* Association and of Niagara Peninsula Fruit 

 Growers' Association. 



Subscriptfoo Rates. — $1 .00 a year; $2.00 for three years 

 POSTAGE— FOREIGN AND PETERBORO 



For foreign subscriptions to cither edition, add 50 cents 

 a year extra for postage. For subscriptions to the United 

 States and in the City of Peterboro add 25 cents a year. 



Advertising rate«, circulation statements and sample 

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Communications should be addressed 



THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST, 

 Peterboro, Ontario. 



Drummond*s Phlox 



THE orignal species of the present day 

 cliarming annual phloxes — Phlox Drum- 

 mondii — is a native of Texas and was dis- 

 covered by Thomas Drummond almost a century 

 ago. The many beautiful varieties now in 

 general cultivation are great improvements on 

 the original form, which was of a dark purple 

 color with a darker eye. Numerous varieties 

 have appeared in colors which range through 

 various shades of pink, scarlet, lilac, rose, white, 

 blue and yellow. There are also striped and 

 variegated forms. 



The best of the modern strain is the large- 

 flowered or grandillora section, having very 

 large and perfectly round flowers with distinct 

 eyes, and growing about twelve inches high. 



This beautiful and easily grown annual is 

 admirably adapted for summer bedding, and as 

 seed can be purchased in separate colors, any 

 desired effect to harmonize with other near-by 

 plantings can thus be satisfactorily carried out. 

 Seed may be sown thinly in the open when the 

 weather becomes settled, or if an early garden 

 display is wanted we may make a start under 

 glass. Whatever method is followed, a profusion 

 of bloom will be the result, lasting from June 

 or July until October, provided that due atten- 

 tion be given the plants. 



Drummond's Phlox does best when grown on 

 a well-drained and fairly rich soil. Heavy soils 

 should be liberally dressed with leaf mold and 

 well-rotted manure, while grit of some sort such 

 as sifted co^l ashes may be used with much ad- 

 vantage on very heavy and retentive ground. 

 Light soils can best be improved by the free use 

 of old cow manure, failing which, plenty of leaf 

 mold and old stable manure will be the next 

 best substitutes. They should be planted in 

 full sun and given plenty of room to develop; 

 so the plants should stand at least nine inches 

 apart. During dry weather see that the soil is 

 kept moist, and when the plants are well estab- 

 lished a weekly application of a good fertilizer 

 in liquid form will encourage growth and an 

 abundance of flowers. The liquid manure must 

 be applied direct to the soil between the plants. 

 The soil should be moist when manure water is 

 given; if the weather be dry, soak the ground 

 before applying the fertilizer. 



To maintain four months of continuous bloom 

 the plants must not be allowed to go to seed; 

 each flower head must therefore be cut out as 

 the blooms fade. 



In the vicinity of Philadelphia the a:nnual 

 Phlox is usually sown directly in the open in late 

 April or early May where the plants are to 

 bloom. — Country Gentleman. 



Polyantha Roses 



THESE pretty littk- plants have been much 

 in evidence of late years at all the spring 

 show.s, and they never fail to attract at- 

 tention. Plants may be obtained at a reasonable 

 price in full flower from any florist. There are, 

 however, many amateurs who would find much 

 pleasure in growing their own specimens. They 

 would find, too, that home-raised plants are 

 generally much more permanent, for many of 

 those sold are raised especially for immediate 

 effect, being fed up for the purpose, and after 

 the first show of flower they sicken and are of 

 little further value. 



To obtain the best results, the plants should 

 be potted up during October or November, al- 

 though I have had quite a nice show of blossoms 

 from plants potted as late as March. Plants on 

 their own roots are the best for the purpose, but 

 if these are not procurable, plants budded on 

 brier should be asked for. Grafted plants are of 

 little use for pots, and should be avoided. Five- 

 inch or si.vinch pots should be used, according 

 to the size of the plants, it being always remem- 

 bered that flowering is induced if the plants are 

 a little cramped at the roots. 



The soil used should be good turfy loam mixed 

 with about half as much old manure, a little 

 gritty soil or silver sand, and a sprinkling of 

 bone-flour. The whole, when well mixed to- 

 gether, should be of a silky texture, and if 

 pressed in the hand should bind together, crumb- 

 ling again on being rubbed. Soil which will not 

 readily separate after being pressed together is 

 of no use for potting, and should be discarded. 

 About February the growths should be pruned 

 hard back. A very gentle heat should be given 

 at first, starting with about 50 degs. by day and 

 45 degs. by night. This temperature could be 

 increased gradually as the new growth appears, 

 care being taken to give plentv of moisture. 



Like all roses, the polyanthas are liable to 

 attacks of various pests, which can only be com- 

 bated by using the syringe frequently. Give 

 weak liquid-manure as the flower-sprays begin 

 to appear, increasing the strength as the color 

 develops. Do not allow the heat to run up on 

 sunny days, and at all times give a little air to 

 keep a sweet atmosphere. Directly the first 

 flower opens the plant should be removed to a 

 cooler house, and there the beautiful sprays will 

 mature more gradually until the plant is fit to 

 be taken into the house. The polyanthas, being 

 of a perpetual-flowering habit, should, with 

 proper attention, flower freely throughout the 

 summer. — ^Gardening Illustrated. 



Keeping Pumipkins 



Pumpkins and squashes may be kept in good 

 condition all winter if carefully placed in warm, 

 dry storage, say horticulturists of the Ohio 

 Experiment Statipn. 



The proper conditions for their storage diff'er 

 as to moisture and temperature from those found 

 best for ordinary vegetables and fruits, such as 

 potatoes, roots, and apples which require cool, 

 moist storage. 



The furnace room or a warm, dry closet where 

 there is no danger of freezing in extremely cold 

 weather is usually satisfactory. The best tem- 

 perature is from 50 to 55 degrees Fahrenheit. 



Grow Clean Apples 



IT is possible for the owner of one or two apple 

 trees to produce fruit as clean as that found 



in good commercial orchards if a simple spray- 

 ing program is followed closely. 



Experiments conducted in different parts of 

 the State the past season prove that good fruit 

 may be grown in spite of the abundance of scab 

 and other fungous troubles. 



Both Bordeaux mixture and lime-sulphur were 

 effective treatments, but the former caused con- 

 siderable damage to foliage late in the season, 

 and a russeting of certain varieties. 



The most effective lime-sulphur treatment 



was a spray of one gallon lime-sulphur to 25 

 gallons of water applied after the leaves ap- 

 peared but before the blossoms opened. The 

 next application was after the blossoms had 

 fallen, a weaker solution being used, or 1 part to 

 40 parts of water. This weaker solution was 

 used again two weeks and ten weeks after the 

 blossoms had fallen. 



A 3-9-50 Bordeaux solution proved effective, 

 but caused some damage to the fruit. 



A secret of the success in this work was the 

 thoroughness with which it was done. j\n 

 average of 15 gallons of spray material was used 

 to each tree at each spraying.— Ohio Experiment 

 Station 



Tree Diseases in Leaves 



Leaf diseases of shade and ornamental trees 

 and shrubs will be much reduced if all the dis- 

 eased leaves are raked up and burned each year. 



The fungi which cause such diseases as maple 

 anthracnose, horse chestnut blotch, elm leaf 

 spot, sycamore blight, rose and lilac mildew re- 

 main alive in fallen leaves, the botanists state, 

 and if not destroyed become a chief source of 

 infection the following year. 



Protect Trees from Injury 



YOUNG fruit trees growing in sod should be 

 gone over carefully in early fall and pro- 

 tected from mice." 



Ordinary newspapers wrapped and tied around 

 the trunks of the trees in the fall and removed 

 in the spring make a good protection. Hardware 

 cloth or fine wire screens are also used with a 

 fair degree of success. 



Mounding the crowns of the" trees with coal 

 ashes will protect the bases but in a few cases 

 injury has been reported from this practice. 



It is a question as to effectiveness of a wash 

 against mice, but the following formula is used 

 by some growers: 1 quart concentrated lime- 

 sulphur, 2 pounds of soap, and 1 pound cement 

 all mi-xed with three quarts of water, and applied 

 to the trunks of the trees with a brush."— Ohio 

 Experimental Station. 



Dust Mulch 



PEOPLE who grow plants successfully will 

 find it just as necessary to produce a dust 

 mulch about them as does the farmer who 

 grows corn. Very oftfen trees, shrubs or peren- 

 nial flowers are purchased, planted and begin a 

 very lively career, only to die because the dust 

 mulch has not been produced about them. A 

 dust mulch does not mean to dig the ground 

 deep. To dig deep disturbs and breaks the roots 

 causing the plant to do poorly and sometimes 

 even to die. Only this morning we saw a very 

 beautiful hedge of Japanese Barberry all brown 

 and dying. On investigation it was found that 

 a so-called gardener had spaded all along this 

 hedge, on botfi sides. His intentions were good, 

 but for lack of knowledge regarding plants he 

 practically killed the hedge by digging up and 

 disturbing the roots. A dust-mulch can best 

 be produced by breaking up the surface of the 

 ground. 



It has already been conceded that a good dust 

 mulch around plants is better than all the water 

 that can be used. Referring to the subject of 

 watering plants, it is much better to thoroughly 

 soak the ground around the plants once each 

 two weeks than it is to slightly sprinkle them 

 each evening. It would seem that folks would 

 soon realize that plants cost a lot of money and 

 that whenever one plant is saved it is not only 

 saving the money but at the same time adding 

 to the joy and comfort of the individual as well 

 as making the community more beautiful. A 

 dust mulch around the plants is urged as a 

 horticultural necessity. 



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