1 888. 



POPULAR GARDENING. 



253 



»SS. Peaches and Grapes Together, It is gen- 

 erally (icoraod ad\isable to let fruit trees have 

 the beiU'lH of the whole ground after they attain 

 well developed maturity. While young and get- 

 ting established cultivated crops are admirable 

 and to be commended to ensure proper culture 

 and fertility to the young trees. Vineyards are 

 usually planted with thesame view of ultimately 

 occupying the whole ground. Exception being 

 made in favor of Strawberries and Currants. A 

 few years ago I grew a row of young Peaches 

 between ray Grape canes which are nine feet 

 apart, intending to set the trees when large 

 enough on a new piece of ground I contemplated 

 clearing. The ground was not ready when the 

 trees were. I headed them back for another 

 year's growth and still the ground was not in con- 

 dition. It was a stony, stumpy piece, and was 

 not sufficiently subdued till last year. Mean- 

 while the trees gave promise of fruiting and 

 were allowed to stand, and they still stand and 

 are loaded with the third crop of fruit which 

 was so tempting that my annual resolution to 

 grow them out has been postponed, and the 

 Grapes have suffered too little to cause any 

 regrets; of course I have given extra feed that 

 neither need starve. Have thinned them out 

 annually but still they stand close together; have 

 grown tall, far above the \nnes, and the protec- 

 tion afforded to each other has, I think, given 

 me fruit. I should have had none had they been 

 exposed in orchard. This experience leads me 

 to think that your correspondent's plan is both 

 feasible and commendable, care being taken to 

 have abundant food supplied for all their nee<is. 

 Potjish should be a pn )minent element as it enters 

 largely into the compositif)n of the Peach stones 

 and Grape seeds.— E. Williams. 



848. Bagpberries Dying. As both plats referred 

 to are in about the same condition it does not 

 seem as though the trouble could really be 

 attributed to treatment, manure or soil. I cer- 

 tainly would not venture an opinion from above 

 date. The Gregg is not hardy here and I should 

 not expect it to be in Pennsylvania.— E.Williams. 



8:9). Currants and Qooseberries. Cuttings arc 

 taken from strong shoots of the present year's 

 growth, as soon as the leaves are ripe. Cut about 

 six inches and set them in the open ground in 

 rows I."* inches apart, two inches in the row; 

 leaving two inches above the surface, and at the 

 beginning of winter cover with loose manure, 

 removing in the spring. Cultivate well the fol- 

 lowing season, and in the fall they may be 

 planted out permanently.— E. E. S. 



838. Seed Grown Flowers for Ribbon Lines. 

 The following will doubtless prove satisfactory: 

 Pansy, Aster, Candytuft, Petunia, Portulaca, 

 Canna, Verbena, Stocks, Mignonette, Sweet 

 Peas, Phlox Druramondi, Ageratum, Perilla, 

 Centaurea and Golden Feather. Notes on the 

 use and arrangement will be given in future 

 issues.- E. E. S. 



8.53. Smilaz, Turning yellow is probably due 

 U) its natural habit of resting after a season of 

 growth. Assuming such to be the case I would 

 advise watering sparingly for five or six weeks, 

 then give a t«p dressing of rich soil, cut off all 

 old vines and increasing the water. Give a winter 

 temperature of liO° to 60°.— Elmer. 



85.5. Ants in Lawn, Obtain pieces of coarse 

 sponge; dip them in sweetened water and place 

 on old dishes where the ants abound When the 

 pieces are covered with ants throw them in boil- 

 ing water, afterward washing them out and 

 renewing the process till the colony is destroyed. 

 —Our Inxccl Fncs. 



8tJ7. Asparagns. The average length that 

 Asparagus is cut is about si.x or seven inches, the 

 size of the bunches depending upon the market 

 —ordinarily a good guide is the quantity that 

 can be held in the hand. The bunches shipped 

 from the South are larger and weighing fre- 

 quently about two and a half pounds. The pre- 

 ferable method of shipping is by the use of a flat 

 ventilated box an.v size, high enough for one 

 layer of bunches standing on the butt ends, any 

 interstices being filled with moss or similar soft 

 material.- E. E. S. 



W>8. Verbenas Betting, (a) The cause of Rot- 

 ting probably is that the ground contains an 

 excess of rank, that is to say, not sufficiently 

 rotted stable manure. If on such soU the Ver- 

 iienas were planted in a twf) inch toii dressing of 

 common soil the trouble likely would cease, tb) 

 For a few plants hand picking and destroying 

 would lie ]>raeticable. For a large number of 

 plants London purple and Paris green mixed 

 with water, at the rate of one ounce to six or 

 eight gallons, would probably prove effective.— 

 E. E. S. 



828. Black Cnrrants not Fruiting. The Black 

 Naples is not noted as a heavy cropper in our 

 experience. Perhaps the luxuriant growth Is 

 the trouble. Possibly the rich prairie loam c()n- 

 tained too much nitrogenous matter and too little 

 potash, or other fruiting elements. Pruning 

 close to the ground would seem to invite a rep- 

 etition of the trouble— a more luxuriant growth 

 -which does not seem desirable. Root pruning 

 might be beneficial, but lacking experience in 

 sucn soil cannot prescribe definitely.— W. 



870. Tomatoes, (a) The most likely reason for 

 their non-bearing is too rich a soil, the growth 

 ruining the plants. It Cabbage or Caulillowcr 

 were grown upon thcgrounii(me year, it is prob- 

 able that Tomatoes would succeed all right, (h) 

 For the general crop about March 20th the seed 

 is sown, and several weeks later the plants arc 

 ready to prick into another fresh hot-bed, at the 

 rate of two hundred to a sash. When ready for 

 thesecimd transplanting, an old Lettuce IhmI is 

 suitable, or they may be grown singly in pots or 

 Ixixes with good results as to earliness, all the 

 air pi«ssible Ix'ing now essential till planting out 

 tunc iK'tween the middle of May and .lone first 

 Tomatoes like a good soil, but not freshly 

 manured. In the field they are planted about 

 four feet apart, in rows six feet apart. Much of 

 the success and profit depends on skillful grow- 

 ing of the plants, the earliest usualh bringing 

 the most money. Livingston's Beautv and Fav- 

 orite are good market sorts.— E. E. S. " 



871. Pepper for Cabbage Worms. Cayenne 

 Pepper should certainly be as effective as the 

 Red Popper for the purpose spoken of.— E. R. S. 



831. Mulberry Propagation. While in Illinois 

 we tried every known form of budding and 

 grafting the Mulberry, saw others try them on 

 different species and varieties with but very little 

 success, and we conclude that the only sure way 

 of propagating a variety is by cuttings in a pro- 

 pagating house under glass. They are grown 

 to some extent by the well known mode of root 

 grafting. The grafts after being made are 

 planted in a proijagating bed in pots, with some 

 bottom heat until they have made some growth 

 and then transplanted. They all grow readily 

 from seed, but of course vary like other seed lings. 

 — D. B. W., San Prancwm, Cat. 



8:«. Evergreen Seedlings Failing. The grow- 

 ing of the Evergreen from seeds is an art that one 

 must learn to make it a success. The trouble 

 with this correspondent was that his seedlings 

 "dami)ed off," i. e., they were attacked at the 

 surface of the ground with a fungus disease or 

 ferment (a parasitic fungus) that destroyed the 

 tissues of the plant at that point. Or, if the 

 young seedlings were exposed to the direct rays 

 of the sun they may have burned off at the sur- 

 face of the soil. To grow Evergreens from seed 

 with certainty, the seed should be sown in care- 

 fully prepared beds four feet in width, and then 

 covered over head with proper lath or muslin 

 shades, easily removableimmed lately after a rain, 

 or after watering these should be removed for a 

 short time, but not for long, so that the damp- 

 ness can e\'aporate; and if damp, and rain should 

 be continuous for sometime, the grower should 

 have at hand fine dry soil to sprinkle freel.i- 

 among the young plants. Without, one should 

 thoroughly post himself in the art of growing 

 them, fie had best let them alone, for there are 

 many kinks in their successful management, too 

 many to give in detail. And it will, as a rule, tie 

 found much cheaper to buy such seedlings from 

 Roliert DoughLssA- Sons, Waukegon, lll.,orother 

 large grf>wei-s. They cost but little and their 

 management after the first year is very simple. 

 — D. B. W., San Francisco, Cal. 



8.31. Plum Bot. Plum rot is a parasitic fungus 

 disease or ferment, i)re.>nng on the pulp of the 

 Plum, and perhaps all other stone fruits, and 

 probably on the pulp of many other fruits. It 

 does not seem to attack fruits unless the skin is 

 broken, and generally in seasons favorable to 

 to the fungus it layers its att^ick, or finds entrance 

 to the pulp when punctured by the Plum cur- 

 culio. Plum g(niger, plant bugs and leaf lice, and 

 often through lesions in the skins of the fruit, 

 caused by sudden wettings and dryings. There 

 is no cure for it. Its prevention may lie possible 

 from spraying the growing fruit with a weak 

 solution of sulphate of cf)pper (blue \itrol) or 

 otiier fuiigirifie, or dusting the fruit directly 

 aflcrciii-h sh()\vcr with sulphide of lime. Another 

 prevention is to drstr-tiy the abcne named insects 

 with the arseuical poisons hyspra.ving with them 

 as iK'fore mentioned in this .journal. Then sul- 

 phate of c(»p]ier would be a good addition to the 

 last spraying. This rot in growing fruits is com- 

 pletely under the control of the weather, the 

 nuniidity and weight of the atnins|, here, tem- 

 perature, etc., as we cannot ctuitrol (hem, we 

 cannot control the spararlic fungus disejuses that 

 ruin our fruits. Therefore, to ai>pl.\' pre\i'titi\ es, 

 and oi' these we know but little, is the best we 

 can do. I have seen Cherries rotting in Illinois 

 so fast on the trees that one could alinnst see it 

 spread through the fruit. Thisata time of nun, 

 with a ver.v htw barometer; and seen it stopped 

 almost instantly by the wind changing to the 

 northwest with a high baroniet<'r, with no more 

 rot that season. I ha\-e seen the sjone thing hap- 

 pen with Peacht« and IMiiiiis, tlioiigli not so 

 marked. Were not these fungus parasites con- 

 fined to very narrow and peculiar conditicms 

 and environment, in which only they can pro- 

 pagate and spreacl, they would soon lay cmt most 

 other forms of life.— D. B.W.,.S'nn FranciKco,ral. 



801). Quantity of Paris Green and London 

 Purple. One pound of pure Paris green or 

 London purple to 200 gallons of water is suf- 

 ficient. More will cause the foliage to burn.— F. 

 L. Wright, Livinustojie County, Mich. 



8ti!i. London Purple for Cabbage Worms. 

 While it might perhaps be possible to so eai'efully 

 apply London purpU' to the Cabbage, conllning 

 It mainly to the outer leaves, that no bad results 

 will follow, still we could not ri'(^omiiuMid this 

 poi.son generally for the purpose be<:ause of the 

 danger that would attend its common u.se on the 

 Cabbage. If yon geta fresh article of pyrethrum 

 It is i|uite sure to be ell'eetivc. 



77!). Best Keeping Grapes. The Ixjst keeping 

 Grapes are V'ergeiuies, Mary, Isuliella, Uiana, 

 Agawani, Clinton, an<l .Salem, keeping in thv 

 order named. Have tested about .s»>venty 

 varieties for sc\(Mal years. Vcrgennes liust until 

 spring and Isabella unlil March.— F. L. W. 



788 Salt for Quince, etc. Have experimented 

 twelve years and eoiisiiier salt of no value to 

 Quince or Pear.- F. L. W. 



817. Black Ants. Lime scattered freely over 

 ant hills and around their haunts will drive them 

 away. Ashes sometimes are effective.— F. L. W. 



804. Setting Out Strawberries. Layered 

 Strawberry idaiits are as good, and will, if 

 properly planted, produce as good a crop next 

 season as pot-grown. We never pot plants for 

 our own use.- F. L. Wright, Mich. 



842. Chestnuts for Illinois Depends on 

 character of soil, they thrive well in Illinois, 

 prefers sides and neighborhood of hills, with 

 dry, sandy, or graveUy soil; will grow in almost 

 any soil except wet ones. Soils underlaid with 

 sand or gravel are most suitable, should not be 

 planted where subsoil is liable to be saturated 

 with water. Trees from ten eentseach,$1..50 per 

 100 for 1 yearseedling,s, to .50 cents each, $25.00 per 

 100 for five to seven foot trees.— J. J. Harrison, 

 Lake Oninty, Ohiri. 



xt'A. ITnfermented Grape Juice. The juice is 

 crushed by a wooden fruit press, strained 

 through flannel, and brought to boiling heat in 

 a iirocelain kettle, bottled immediately, and 

 sealed with corks and wax. It must be kept in a 

 cool, dark place, just above freezing, and 

 handled as little as possible.— S. D. Powkrs, 

 Norfolk County, Mass. 



774. Curled Leaf on the Peach. This injuious 

 deformity of the Peach leaves has been ascribed 

 to plant lice and other insects, but is now known 

 to be caused by a minute fungus known to 

 science as Exdoscus deformans. This minute pa- 

 rasitic plant makes its appearance in early spring 

 and causes the foliage to twist and curl out of 

 natural shape. The fun^^us is not distantly re- 

 lateil to tile one eilusing the lilaek knot mi Plum 

 and Cherry trees. It attacks healthy and diseased 

 trees alike and works chiefly within the tis- 

 sues of the leaf, hence no external applications 

 can avail. No better remedy is known than to 

 cut away one-half of the new growth each sea- 

 son and practice thorough cultivation during 

 the earlier part of the season, keeping the land 

 sufficiently manured.— p;. S. G. 



780. Summer Pruning for Baspberries. The 



tips of the black-cap \'arieties should be pinched 

 as soon as the young canes attain the height of 

 two to two and one-half feet. The canes will in- 

 crease consideratily in height after they are 

 pinched. It is best not to pinch back the tips of 

 the Red Kaspbeny.— E. S. ti. 



71)4. Gooseberries Mildewing, I am trying this 

 sea-son spra.T»'ing the bushes with a solution of 

 sulphide of potash (sometimes called "liver of 

 sulphur") at the rate of half an ounce to the 



gallon, with g 1 siieeess. The spraying should 



commence t^arl.\' in spring and be repeated after 

 e\'ery hard rain tititil toward the end of summer. 

 Bushes of the Industry Gooseberry thus treated 

 are free from mildew and are making a gooil 

 growth, while othei's chise by not treated, are 

 making a stunted growth and bringing no fruit 

 to maturity.- I''. S. (). 



815. Works on Botany and Greenhouse Plants 

 (iray's " .Manual," and llendei-sou's "Hand-book 

 of Plants" aiv good. 



80!i. Paris Green and London Purple. An 

 ounce to fi\c gallons is abundance.— E. .s. G. 



8:)!). Datura Propagation. Ves, it can be easily 

 imrreiused by cuttings ot the half-ripened wood. 



Hid. Grafting Marechal Neil Boses, Instead 

 of grafting I would Imil them. This can be done 

 at any time during the months of July or Au- 

 gust. For stocks the Maiu'tti is generall.>' em- 

 ployed. But I ha\e seen grand H()wcrs prf>diiced 

 from plants worked on Solfatcrreand La .Maripie 



841. Rhododendron Protection. Mulch well 

 with leaves and prot^'ct by covering with ever- 

 green branches. I suppose that it is growing in 

 a situation prot^'cted from cold winter winds, 

 and (his is alf the treatment required.— C. E. P. 



84S. Baspberries Dying. («) They are probably 

 affected by a blight with which we have had no 

 cxiK^rience. A quart of wood ashes or a little 

 potash might help them. If it does no good it 

 will perhaps be lie.st to dig them all <ait and 

 burn, planting again on ground on or near which 

 no Raspberries nave been (frown for several 

 years. (W Ves.— 1). N. LoNO, ErieCo., N. Y. 



