156 



POPULAR GARDENING. 



April, 



683. Marechal Niel Rose-bud Decaying. The buds 

 on my Marechal Nell In the greenhouse looked healthy 

 for a time and then decayed. What Is the trouble t— 

 A. D., Rochester, X. Y. 



684. Acacia Culture. Any information on treating 

 these after Ijloomlug and al.so on raising thenj from 

 seed wouM be appreciated by AMiTEUB, Colnvibus, O. 



6S5. Sweet Potatoes at the North. Can these be 

 grown prolltablv at the North as a market crop, and 

 how ?— .\. P. F.. Worcestt'f, Mass. 



6,S6. Oleo Fragrans. My plant of this bloomed very 

 freely in the fall, and since has done nothing. It be- 

 came covered with white scale; leaves turned brown 

 in patches and dropped off. I cut It back a little, 

 washed thoroughly, etc., but very few new leaves form. 

 What is the matter?— J. G. M. 



687. August Giant Grape. Has the August Giant 

 Grape-vine been fruited to any extent, and with what 

 success? What is its character? Also Lady Washington 

 Grape-vine?— A., Cincinnati, O. 



REPLIES TO INQUIRIES. 



5711. Palms for Room Culture. Palms do not 

 require any special preiiaration to fit them for 

 room culture; they can lie grown in any room 

 that is kept safe from frost, but if possible give 

 them a temperate of from 55 to 60 degrees. As 

 usually grown they are generally starved and 

 given no opportunity t(j develop their tropical 

 leafage, so I would strictly insist on their being 

 given a more liberal treatment and every oppor- 

 tunity to properly de^■elop themselves. They 

 should be repotted annually and given a compost 

 composed of two thirds fibrous loam and one 

 third well decayed manure. In potting always 

 use porous or soft baked pots, and let them be 

 proportionate to the size of the plants, and see 

 to it that they are well drained; if the pots are 

 one-third filled with drainage it is none too much. 

 Repot d uring the month of May, very carefully 

 removing one-third of the old soil and replace in 

 pots a size or two larger. In the summer they 

 require partial shade and plenty of water, both 

 overhead and at the roots. It is best to plunge 

 them in a bed of coal ashes or cinders in order 

 to pre\'ent the woriU'^ from entering the pots. 

 Turn the pots occasionally. In winter the water 

 supply should be more moderate, but when re- 

 quired water thoroughly, as they should never 

 be permitted to become dust dry. At all seasons 

 give liquid manvire once a week, and this will 

 cause them to acciiiire brightness of leafage, and 

 frequently sponge ofi' the leaves very carefully 

 with soap.v water, to remove dust dirt, etc., as 

 well as to keep down all insect pests. They can 

 be placed outside about the middle of Ma.v and 

 brought inside about the middle of September, 

 or as soon as the nights become cool and frost is 

 expected. Palms rank among the most valuable 

 of plants for the window garden, for if properly 

 grown and cared for they will increase in size 

 and value every year, and when they have be- 

 come too large for the window garden they can 

 be readily sold or exchanged for smaller speci- 

 mens. The following are the most desirable va- 

 rieties for the window garden. The.v are not 

 expensixe sorts, but can be procured at a cost of 

 from seventy-five cents to one dollar and a half 

 each, according to the vaiiety and size of the 

 plant. Areca lutescens, rubra and Verschaffeltii, 

 Carludovica palmata, t'aryota urens, Chamicdora 

 latifolia, Corypha Australis, Chaina^rops humibs 

 and excelsa, Oycas revoluta, Jubea spectabilis, 

 Kentia australis, Latania Bourbonica, Oreodoxa 

 regia, Pandanus utilis, Phoenix dactylifera and 

 reclinuta, Ptyohosperma Alexandriie, Seaforthia 

 elegans. Sal»al Adansonii, Thrinax argentea and 

 elegans, and Washingtonia filifera.— r. E. P. 



.5**4. Unhealthy Geraniums, If your jilantsare 

 all of one variety, or ha\'e all been propagated 

 from one plant, throw all away, and start with a 

 fresh stock. Or you may be giving them unsuit- 

 able treatment. Geraniums require for their 

 well doing, a light, suimy situation, a tempera- 

 ture of from 45° to 50', and plenty of air. Don't 

 over-pot them, as they will not bloom well until 

 the pots are well filled with roots, then liquid 

 manure at times will be of decided beneflt,--C.E.P. 



599. Fertilizers for Strawberries. A heavy 

 dressing of wood ashes could be applied at once 

 on the top of the mulch with decided benefit to 

 the crop. Or remove the mulch and spread 

 Blood and Bone Fertilizer between the plants and 

 work it in as thoroughly as possible. Apply at 

 the rate of one hundred pounds per acre. If this 



is the first crop and the ground was properly 

 ]>repared there should be no occasion for ajjply- 

 ing manure at this time of the year.— C. E. P. 



liOl. Pears and Plums for Iowa, Three early 

 Pears, Mainiing's Elizabeth, Osband's .Summer, 

 and liarflett. Tlucc early Plums, Golden Gage, 

 Jetlerson, aii<l Washington.— C. E. P. 



(i:w. Kniffen System and Laying Down, The 



oi).iection to the KnilTen s.\'stem for la.ving down 

 is that the body of the vine scionbeionu's too stiff 

 to lay down. It is better suited to hardy vines or 

 to such localities a.s do not need this protection. 

 -H. P. Van Dusen. 



1144. Ashes for Peach Borer. Fresh ashes to 

 the butts of Peach trees sliould be used very spar- 

 ingly, but if leached it will nt)t injure the trees, 

 and will keep the borers out. A small mound of 

 leached a.shes put around in May, and scattered 

 around in August,will answer two good purposes. 



677. Manure for Flowers, certainly there is no 

 danger from using manure on Geraniums and 

 Carnations, provided it is of the right kind, in- 

 deed no success could be expected with them 

 without free manuring. The manure for flowers 

 should be two years old at least, and so decayed 

 as to appear like mold almost. The danger lies 

 in the employment of crude dung, which is 

 almost sure to cause the roots of Oarnations to 

 perish in hot weather, and which is much disliked 

 by Geraniums. In soil already fairly rich much 

 niay be done in the way of providing food ele- 

 ments by using concentrated bone or other com- 

 mercial manures. Clear soot water is a fine 

 manure for Carnations. 



678. French Daisies from Seed. Plants may 

 easily be raised in this way, by sowing the seed in 

 April in a hot-bed or greenhouse, or even in a 

 cold frame. Then when the seedlings are large 

 enough to handle pot them singly into small pots 

 and later on shift them up into larger sizes. 

 Grow in the summer in full sun, and if the plants 

 are wanted for winter bloom keep all flower buds 

 pinched out until September. Seed may be pro- 

 cured from leading seedsmen under the name of 

 Chrysanthemum frutescens. 



684. Acacia Culture. After flowering straggly- 

 growing plants should be pruned into shape, and 

 those plants that require it should be repotted. 

 About equal parts of turfy loam and peat, with 

 a liberal addition of silver sand, will be found a 

 suitable compost for them; they should be pot- 

 ted firmly and the pots well drained. After pot- 

 ting the plants should have a light position in a 

 frame or greenhouse, till they get established in 

 the new soil. Through the summer they may be 

 placed out-of-doors in a sunny position; stand 

 the pots on coal ashes or slates to prevent worms 

 from getting into the soil. Acacias may be 

 readily raised from seed. For this purpose the 

 seeds should be raised in pots, in a soil somewhat 

 lighter than that used tor estaljlishcd iilants. 

 The pots should be well drained and tlie si lil made 

 moderately firm; the seed should be sown thinly 

 and lightly covered with soil. It will germinate 

 in a greenhouse, but will do so more quickly if . 

 the pots are placed in a warm house, or plunged 

 in a gentle bottom-heat. As soon as the young 

 plants are fairly up they should be placed in a 

 light airy position in a greenhouse or frame, 

 keeping the soil moderately moist. When the 

 seedling plants are large enough to handle they 

 should be potted singly into small pots, care be- 

 ing taken not to in.iure the roots during this 

 operation.— A. H. E. 



.593. Moss on Trees. Scrape off all as carefully 

 as possible, then dissolve two pounds of potash 

 in two gallons of water, and apply with a paint 

 brush to the trunk and lower limbs as thoroughly 

 as possible. After this gi\e the trees a good 

 dressing of well deca.\-ed niaiuire and work it in 

 as deep as possible. When fruit trees are covered 

 with moss it shows th;it the.X' have been sadly 

 neglected.— C. E. P. 



667. Forcing Lily of the Valley. Seedsmen 

 and wholesale florists import the pips in fall in 

 immense quantities. Pips are more used than 

 are clumps. As soon as received the pips are 

 boxed thickly and planted out-of-doors, as we do 

 with "Dutch" bulbs. This rests them. For 

 forcing, a north-facing house with a strong bot- 

 tom-heat enclosed under the benches, or ordinary 

 greenhouses, whose benches have provision for 

 bottom heat, and are also cased over to afford 

 shade and uniform temperature, are used. Into 

 these, in a bed of sand or light earth, and about 

 2 inches apart each way, the pips are planted in 

 successional batches, and kept well moistened 

 overhead till the flowers begin to open. We can 

 grow excellent Lily of the Valley here if we want 

 to. Plant it out in rich, moist, but well drained 

 land, and an open sunny exposure; mulch with 

 cow manure in fall and let the mulching stay on 

 in summer.— W. A. 



.572. Pruning the Quince. CalUng the atten- 

 tion of a very successful amateur friend to this 

 reply, he said that according to his experience 

 his advice would be directly the opposite of that 

 given in the February issue. He prunes severely; 

 gets strong shoots, which produce ample and 

 needful foliage to shade the inside of the tree, 

 removes half to two-thirds of the fruit, and his 

 trees are annually loaded with the finest speci- 

 mens without spot or blemish. My own observa- 

 tion con\'inces me that the best and most satis- 

 factory crops grown hereabouts are the result of 

 severe pruning.— W. 



634. Fruit Growing in Pennsylvania, (n) So 

 many conciitious enter into the problem of profit- 

 able fruit culture, that this can only be answered 

 in a general way. If advised as to character of 

 soil, size of plot and facilities for marketing, a 

 much more satisfactory answer could be gi>'en. 

 If only a small piece of land, say 1 to 3 acres, and 

 ha\ing a near and convenient market, small 

 fruits, such as Strawberries, Raspberries, Grapes 

 and Blackberries would pay best. If a larger 

 tract, 5 to 10 acres, and a distant market. Apples 

 and Peaches (assuming that Peaches succeed in 

 Wayne Co.) would be recommended. Peaches 

 could be planted between the Apples and pro- 

 duce 5 to 10 annual crops before the growing 



Apple trees would necessitate their removal. In 

 order to reap immediate returns it might be ad- 

 visable to cultivate Strawberries and Raspberries 

 among the orchard trees for 2 or 3 years. As to 

 varieties, plant such as have proven best suited 

 to your climate and locality, ih) Champion is 

 among the earliest if not the earliest of Grapes, 

 and though of poor (piality is profitable on ac- 

 count of its earliness. Among the earl.v Grapes 

 of good q^mlit.^•, Hartford Prolific, Moore's Early, 

 Worden and Early Victor are probably the lead- 

 ing varieties.— E. B. Engle. 



638. Hen Manure for Grapes. It is not safe to 

 use bam yard manure under Grape-vines when 

 setting. A commercial fertilizer containing es- 

 pecially potash and phosi)hate, etc., or wood 

 ashes, or both, will pa.v well. One-half to a pint 

 sprinkled over bottom of hole and covered well 

 with 3 or 4 inches of surface soil before putting 

 in the vine.— H. P. Van Dusen. 



668. Forcing Asparagus. If you wish to get 

 rid of the Asparagus roots any wa.v. lift and force 

 them and get out of them what you can ; but if 

 you wish to make money by growing Asparagus 

 with the view of lifting and forcing it in winter, 

 we fear you cannot do it. Asparagus roots 

 under at least four years old are useless for 

 forcing, and in order to lift these in good condi- 

 tion and without seriously in.iuring the roots 

 much labor is involved. Asparagus when forced 

 does not respond as generously as when grown 

 out-of-doors; after three or four cuttings the 

 plants won't pay for keeping any longer, for 

 they have little or no recuperati\e power. They 

 are sensitive to heat, especiall.v bottom heat, and 

 are therefore easily forced in the greenhouse or 

 hot-bed, and as they don't need any light they are 

 as well off under as on top of the stages. As- 

 paragus may be forced from Xovember till Ajiril. 

 Before lifting for forcing let the plants have at 

 least two months' rest, that is, cut over the stems 

 two months before you lift the roots. In lifting, 

 plow away a deep furrow from each side of the 

 rows, then prop — never cut— out the crowns. 

 Bring these at once into the greenhouse and on a 

 flat surface pack them together as closely as 

 possible, working some fine dry soil between the 

 roots and plants, and finish off with an inch deep 

 of soil over the crowns. Water thoroughly. A 

 brisk bottom heat gives " grass " in 5 to 6 weeks 

 before Christmas, and in 3 or 4 weeks towards 

 spring.— W. F. 



675. Bark Lice. A strong solution of soft soap 

 is the old and reliable remedy. Professor Cook 

 has improved on this by the addition of crude 

 carbolic acid, making the mixture as follows: 

 One quart of soft soap to two gallons of water 

 heated to the boiling point, when one pint of 

 crude carbolic acid is added, stirring the solution 

 well at the same time. This should be applied 

 early in June, and again some months later, \vith 

 a cloth or scrubbing brvish, to all afl'ected parts. 

 Fir-tree oil is one of the most recent and highly 

 praised remedies for aU species of Coccus. The 

 oil is mixed with water at the rate of one fourth 

 pint of the former to two and a half gallons of 

 water and syringed over the plants about once a 

 week. For strong-growing Dracenas, Crotons, 

 etc., a somewhat larger proportion of the oil 

 might be used. An application of fish brine has 

 also proved effective, the oil with which it is 

 charged doubtless penetrating the scale and kill- 

 ing the eggs beneath. 



679. Managing Pot Hydrangeas. These will 

 flower well every year if they are well fed, liber- 

 ally watered when growing, and if they get 

 plenty of air and sunshine. At the close of au- 

 tumn, when they cast their foliage, by no means 

 allow them to remain dry at the roots, but water 

 them when they need it. Early in January prune 

 them back to within two eyes of the base of the 

 shoots made the previous season, thinning out 

 all weakly shoots which do not yield bloom, and 

 'lyhich deprive the stronger ones of light and 

 nourishment. At that time they may be shifted, 

 if so desiii'd, into larger pots, using good loam 

 and some decayed manure. Give them a light 

 position and plenty of air in fine weather, and 

 remove to the open air when all danger of frost 

 is over. Plants may be kept in the same pots for 

 years, but they must have liquid manure when 

 growing, and abunance of water in hot weather. 

 —A. H. E. 



614. Wasps and Bees. You will certainly need 

 no protection against bees, as bees nerer inhire 

 sound fruit. Wasps will puncture Grapes, etc., 

 but with bees it is a physical impossibility. Their 

 mandibles are not so constructed nor are they 

 strong enough to be used in puncturing fruit. 

 Numerous experiments have been tried, among 

 the rest, one of putting the hives in an apart- 

 ment and taking the bees' food away and making 

 them fast for a few days at a time, and all the 

 time exposing Grapes, etc,, but thr bees would 

 not do any injury even imder thiw conditions. 

 If fruit bursts or is Injured by the birds or wasps 

 orsonirtliinn' else, the bee will soon suck all the 

 juice, but that is an advantage rather than an 

 injiu".\' to the grower as the sound fruit is apt to 

 rot bv coming in contact with.such injured or by 

 the jiiicc Mowing over the sound fruit. Investi- 

 gate this matter carefully and you will find bees 

 are friends, not enemies.— L. W. Ligty. 



