1887. 



POPULAR GARDENING. 



33 



fertility the leaves and other refuse growth 

 of the summer must be returned to the earth 

 again as plant food. The rich black earth and 

 peat of our woods afford an illustration of her 

 hand at "compost " making-. A compost heap, 

 or even more than one, should be found in every 

 garden. There is rubbish eno\igh alxmt the 

 premises, with the leaves of trees and vogetaliles, 

 weeds, walk sci-apings, screenings from the pot- 

 ting shed, fruit parings, etc., to make a large pile 

 of valuable plant food. With this may be incor- 

 porated some stable and hen manure, offal and 

 sods from fence cornel's, muck from ponds and 

 ditches, mold from the woods, a little slaked 

 lime, all built up layer by layer into an oblong 

 square and left over winter. The addition of 

 house slops, by pouring such into a depression in 

 the toft of the pile and allowing it to filter 

 through the compost, will add ipiality to its ma- 

 nurial value. If the heap be made in ( >ctober and 

 then is cut down from the end finely with a sharp 

 spade, and thrown over just at the opening of 

 winter, it will have altogether gone through 

 such a change, by fermentation and freezing, 

 that by spring it will be quite fit for applying to 

 the soil. In this way one can get up a valuable 

 supply of manure at a smiUl cost. It would be a 

 pity indeed if all our enterprising gardeners 

 would not avail themselves at this time of the 

 opportunity to get up a rich compost heap for 

 next season's use. 



A Visit to Old yet New Scenes. Quite recently 

 the writer found great pleasure in Wsiting the 

 scenes of some of his earliest labors in the branch 

 of gardening, plant raising, et^. It was to the 

 seed, plant, and marketing establishment of 

 Messrs. Peter Henderson & Co., of New York 

 and Jersey City, N. J., and where as a younger 

 man the now conductor of this journal served a 

 special term of apprenticeship in the branches 

 named. But what a change has marked the place 

 in sixteen years ! Extensive as we then realized 

 that the establishment was, associated as we were 

 in its care, it has so outgrown all foi-mer limits 

 as quite to obliterate many of the earlier familiar 

 landmarks. This is true of all departments. In 

 the greenhouse range what constituted the block 

 of narrow single-walk houses, numbering " 1 " to 

 " 19 " of that day, has now given place to larger, 

 wider, and in every way finer houses in the same 

 space. But beyond the two older Rose houses, 

 20 X 300 feet each, the change has been still more 

 marked. Here on land that sixteen years ago 

 was devoted to gardening purposes, there have 

 sprung up block after block of new structures, 

 until to-day an area of fully four acres has been 

 converted into a veritable city of glass. And this 

 work of extension still goes on; at the time of 

 our visit a large addition of cool houses was in 

 building and nearing completion. To enter into 

 anything like a detailed account of the contents 

 of these houses is not the purpose of this article. 

 Suffice to say that the same conspicuous signs of 

 large assortment, of supenor culture, systematic 

 management and orderliness which we have al- 

 ways recognized as a peculiar mark of this model 

 commercial establishment were present through- 

 out. But this, the plant and gardening department 

 of the establishment, is after all but ane branch 

 of a stupendous business that takes pride in 

 furnishing "everything for the garden." To 

 show the close relation between the garden and 

 seed departments, which latter in New York, 

 were visited the same day, it becomes only neces- 

 sary to refer to the seed testing features of the 

 former branch. Here under glass on the day of 

 our call we found tests as to the germinating 

 quality of seeds going on on a large scale, includ- 

 ing more than 2,000 lots of seed, while in the 

 garden outside an area was devoted to a test for 

 purity of 600 varieties by actual field culture. 

 For the seed branch thus to bo able to fortify its 

 customers on the one hand against impurity of 

 the variety and on the other against any possible 

 inferiority of \itality, is an advantage which 

 multitudes of good cultivators have long since 

 shown their appreciation of. In the seed house 

 proi>er in New York the same signs of expansion 

 since our personal connection here were visible 



r' 



i:?-j 



How a Subscriber Winters his Lettuce. 

 (See opposite page.) 



but even in greater degree than in the branch 

 referred to. Then a moderate sized store, occu- 

 pying a few floors, now a store of double the 

 former width (being 52 feet wide throughout), 



with a grealAir depth than formerly (being l^W feet 

 in length) and embracing seven flooi-s that are 

 devoted to the seed and implement trade. These 

 floors are connected by two steam elevators 

 that extend from sub-ba.sement to loft, besides 

 ample stairways. To enter into a. detailed ac- 

 count of what we here saw recalling old times 

 would also be (juite impossible within the Umits 

 of one article. It may answer to say that from 

 top to bottom of the establishment there were 

 met the old time signs of activity 

 now greatly extended. At the 

 time of our visit the new crop of 

 seeds were arriving and being 

 handled and stored, and the fall 

 bulb and grass seed trade was 

 in full swing, both in the whole- 

 sale and retail departments. In 

 one storage room we could not but 

 note a solid and convincing illus- 

 tration of the recent advance in the 

 seed trade in a single lot of New 

 Jersey Wakefield Cabbage seed, 

 which amounted to three tons, and 

 another of Early Summer Cabbage 

 seed of four tons. The extent of 

 the grass seed stock was another 

 surprise. Altogether in this brief 

 call upon old friends and a former 

 esteemed employer we were more 

 forcibly impressed than ever be- 

 fore with the gi'eat work it is in 

 the power of one man by intelli- 

 gent energy and perseverance (in 

 late years aided by his sons) to 

 build up from a small beginning, 

 and all within the bounds of con- 

 siderable less than a life time. 

 But the work of Peter Hender- 

 son is not to be measured by his 

 acres of greenhouses and the 

 greater part he has had in building 

 up the most extensive seed trade by catalogue 

 in America to-day, for in addition to these he 

 has, by the writing of numerous well known 

 practical works, now standard, on American gar- 

 dening, as well as by his numberless articles on 

 the same subject in periodicals, made an impress 

 on the good fortunes of thousands throughout 

 the crmntry that is simply beyond compute. That 

 his influence for good on improWng the horticul- 

 ture of America to-day has been and is second to 

 that of no one other man, living or dead, is in the 

 writer's mind a matter admitting of no question. 



tober. It W!is not a very large one, being chiefly 

 taken up by amateurs, but there were some very 

 good designs by florists. It is always amusing, 

 at a show of this sort, to see the ideas expressed 

 by the different exhibitors in making an entirely 

 new and original design. One of the amateur 

 exhibitors displayed, in the line of novelty, a 

 miniature garden, built of mosses, ferns, and 

 evergreens, with a couple of swings, in which 

 were very waxy dolls wearing satin Mother Hub- 



Floral Notes by a New York Ob- 

 server. 



Autumn weather is bringing people back to 

 town, so there is some prospect of more work 

 for the florists. Taken all around this has been 

 the dullest, flattest season for years, as far as the 

 florists are concerned, and the natural result is 

 that there is very little in the way of novelties. 

 It is not only in town, either, that trade is poor; 

 the great florists at the watering places complain 

 equally with those in the city. 



There is, of course, a crop of autumn weddings 

 as usual. But for the most part they do not 

 take place in town; they are either at a country 

 residence or country church. The decorations, 

 to be in keeping with the place, are chiefly fleld 

 flowei-s and autum leaves. They are usually 

 very artistic when well arranged. Roses and 

 Lilies, with the stereotyped Orange blossoms, are 

 stUl the favorite bridal flowers, and at a good 

 many of these country weddings the bridesmaids 

 have carried golden rod, which makes a very 

 ipsthetic harmony with a white frock. Baskets 

 are more often carried than bouquets by the 

 bridesmaids. 



The attempt to be original has made fashion- 

 able women affect a good many novel flowers 

 for bouquets. One peculiar combination made 

 by Hodgson at Newport was blue Passion 

 Flowers and Mignonette. It was tied with 

 reseda-green ribbon, and made a perfect har- 

 mony in minor tones. 



Allamandas are used to a considerable extent 

 in table decorations. Their color shows up very 

 well by lamplight, which is not the case with all 

 yellows. The flowers are usually mixed with 

 Maiden-hair or Asparagus. 



As long us Hydrangeas were in bloom they 

 were used to a tremendous e-xtent, even in pla- 

 teaus f>n the table, though they are certainly 

 very coarse flowers for such a purpose, and 

 it was certainly impossible to mix any other 

 flowers with them. 



The first flower show of the season was at the 

 American Institute Fair the second week in Oc- 



A PLEA8INQ PARLOR NOVELTY; NATURAL LANDSCAPE PLAQUE 



bards. The effect was extremely painful, though 

 no doubt the maker's intentions were good, but 

 certainly no outside adornment save a bow of 

 ribbon— and not too much of that— is permiss- 

 ible in floral designs. 



One beautiful funeral design, though not es- 

 pecially new, displayed admirable taste and 

 workmanship. It was a standing cross with 

 slanting arm, made entirely of Ivy leaves. 

 Brought over the arm, and to trail spirally 

 about the standard, was a garland of Niphetos 

 Roses, White Bduvardia and Violets. At one 

 side of the base was a cluster of Mermets. An- 

 other straight standing cross, also of Ivy leaves, 

 had over the arms a crescent wreath of Perle 

 Roses and Yucca Filamentosa. Yucca flowers 

 come in very well in funei*al work; their waxy 

 pallor is very effective, and they stand well, 

 even when handled rather roughly. 



Another pretty design was a flat cushion of 

 Moss, on which was a cross of light flowers, with 

 a garland over the arms. One new funeral de- 

 sign was peculiar rather than beautiful; it was a 

 shield-like panel of Ivy leaves, resting on an 

 easel. At the top was a slanting anchor of Pan- 

 sies. Below this was an urn of Marigolds, band- 

 ed with Tuberoses. The urn was exactly the 

 shape of a druggist's mortar, minus the pestle. 

 If the pestle was added, it would do admirably 

 us a funeral design for a druggist; in any other 

 case it would be too suggestive. 



A pretty idea for a bridal bouquet was the use 

 of our little native Qrchid, Spiranthes cernua 

 (Ladle's Traces) in combination with Niphetos. 

 The Spii-anthes is a very dainty little thing, and 

 most fragrant withal. 



There are many very fine Dahlias grown now, 

 and they make fine effects for showy work. A 

 very handsome basket of these flowers was a 

 tall flaring trumpet of dull green, flUed with 

 bright red Dahlias of all sizes, with their own 

 leaves. Another showy thing was a dull yellow 

 Majolica vase filled with all sorts of Marigolds. 



A straight, upright basket witlicmt handles is 

 very handsome when filled in pyramidal form 

 with Roses and Heliotrope, but, like the French 

 fish baskets, much depends on the way the 

 flowers are arranged. 



Most women now affect a liking towards some 

 one special flower, a fancy prevalent with theat- 

 lical stars. The tigerish Bernhardt wants only 

 rare Orchids and night-bl<x)ming Cereus, while 

 plump, sousie Pauline Hall i)refers Mermets and 

 Violets. Clara Morris prefers wild flowers, and 

 the Langtry seems to be fond of Violets, judg- 

 ing from her corsage bouquets, though we often 

 hear of the presentation of Orchid blooms from 

 her admirers. 



Gjuly Louise Tapun, 



