.•?6 



THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST 



February, ig 



I'o be fashionable many dresses arc called 

 for. Graf)e vines for the rafters, roses 

 for the pillars. Clematis, Dutchman's 

 Pipe, Honeysuckle, Wistaria, Begonia, 

 Radicans, Nasturtiums, Canary Creepers 

 and Bittersweet, all find a place. Any 

 shade trees overhanging the structure 

 shut out light, rain, and another valuable 

 item, the refreshing dew. 



A good perennial border is the best 

 possible set-off to the sunny front side 

 of the pergola . The primary object is 

 to have the tall five and six feet peren- 

 nial planted at the back, right between 

 the pillars, say one section between 

 two pillars, first helenium, second peren- 

 nial asters, third hollyhocks, fourth heli- 

 anthus, and so on. Nothing can surpass 

 this arrangement of the flowering heads 

 as they nod in the leafy promenade. 



A strong arrangement of flowers on 

 either side must be an accepted part of 

 the plant. Extra trenching of the soil 

 and manuring is imperative if the 

 climbers are to grow luxuriantly. On the 

 sunny side we have tried Tausendschon 

 Rose on the pillars, also Clematis, Aris- 

 tilochia, Wistaria, and grape vines. The 

 idea is to establish permanently the wild 

 grape vine to cover the overhead rafters 

 and to allow them to remain all winter 

 without pulling them down for winter 

 protection as has to be done with most 

 other climbers. The fruiting grape vines 

 could be introduced and if successful 

 they might replace parts of the wild 

 vine. The vine leaf provides a pleasant 

 canopy of foliage. A water tap and 

 hose is convenient. 



For several years, before the climbers 

 and suitable material have attained their 

 full growth, the wide and spacious walk 

 can be fittingly decorated with large 

 tubs of hydrangeas, bay trees, palms, 

 coleus, and small groups of geraniums in 

 pots, begonias, abutilons, and several 

 baskets and boxes of summer flowering 

 plants. Chairs, tables, and other acces- 

 sories of the "five o'clock" period, fur- 

 ther enhance the utility of pergolas and 

 igive an acceptable environment to well 

 kept gardens. 



As this pergola was not finished till 

 June ist, 1912, annuals were resorted to 

 for a summer display. Nasturtiums, co- 

 bea, and canary creepers were rapidly 

 reaching the rafters by August. Annuals 

 were braced up on each side. Sunflowers, 

 seven feet cosmos, marigolds, and zin- 

 nias made a fair show. Patience we 

 must have, for the first year's growth of 

 the permanent plants can not possibly 

 produce complete results. 



The Care of Cuttings 



Henry Gibson, 



The plants of bedding stock which 

 were started into growth as suggested 

 last month, will soon furnish you with 

 a good supply of cuttings. These should 

 be put into sand and rooted at once in 

 order to have fair-sized plants by bed- 

 ding-out time. 



The rooting of cuttings seems to have 

 lost favor with many amateurs, owing 

 possibly to many past failures. Do not, 

 however, be discouraged by failures. 

 They should only be an incentive to 

 greater effort. The majority of cuttings 

 can be rooted under precisely the same 

 conditions as you raise your seedlings 

 under, save that a little higher tempera- 

 ture is required. For the novice, sand is 

 perhaps the most satisfactory rooting 

 medium. If only a few dozen cuttings 

 are required, make use of shallow pans 

 such as are suggested for use when sow- 

 ing begonia seeds. Fill the pan to within 

 half an inch of the top with sand and 

 press it down firmly. Cuttings that are 

 in right condition and inserted an inch 

 in the sand, watered freely, and shaded 

 from say nine or ten a.m. until four p.m., 

 will root in from ten to twenty days, ac- 

 cording to the kind of plants that are 

 being rooted and the temperature of the 

 sand. 



The right condition of a cutting is 

 quite a problem to the uninitiated, yet it 

 is easy of solution. Take a shoot of 

 any plant you intend to take cuttings 



I Staatsburg 



from, and liend it over. If it snaps 1 

 you have a cutting in right condition i 

 rooting. If, on the other hand, the she 

 simply bends and does not break, it 

 too hard and is not suitable for prop 

 gating purposes. Cuttings of this nj 

 ure will throw out roots, yet it will 

 slower in doing so, and the roots emitt 

 will be weaker and more wiry than the 

 from a cutting that breaks. Hence t 

 resultant plant will not be so healthy a 

 vigorous. 



Every care should be taken to mai 

 tain a somewhat close and moist ; 

 mosphere during the rooting pverio 

 Draughts should be avoided at all tim« 

 .^mong the many plants that can be ro< 

 ed in this way are geraniums, pansi< 

 verbenas, petunias, lobelias, ageratunr 

 and fuschias. 



While the plants named may be ro< 

 ed under practically cool conditior 

 there are many others which require 

 much higher temperature, especially b< 

 torn heat, in order to get them to ro 

 readily. Of these, crotons, ficus (ru 

 ber plant), begonias, Lorraine, and Ci 

 cinnata, duaseneas and bouvardias a 

 the most popular with amateurs. T 

 tops of ficus may be rooted in sand, b 

 a better way is to root them on the plar 

 This is done by making an incision 

 the stem half way between two joint 

 then turn the knife upwards and c 

 through the first joint. Place a piece 



Barnyard manure not only furnishes 

 plant food for growing the crop, but 

 greatly improves the texture of the soil 

 by adding: the necessary humus. — F. F. 

 Reeves, Hiimber Bay. 



A Modern Greenhouse A iVlodel ot Its Kind 



Mr. Jobn H. Dunlop, Toronto's leading retail and wholeeale florist, has recently erected at 

 Riohmond Hill, Ont., a range of greenhouse.'! tiat are the most modem and complete on the 

 continent. An interior view of one of these hotiaes is here shown. 



