138 THREE ACRES AND LIBERTY 



a temperature as possible, so as to obtain good, vigorous, 

 healthy-growing plants. The best site is a level piece of 

 ground, or one sloping gently to the south. 



Of the diseases to which cultivated violets are subject, 

 Mr. P. H. Dorsett, of the Department of Agriculture, names 

 four as especially dangerous : Spot disease, producing whit- 

 ish spots on the foliage; root rot, apt to attack young 

 plants transplanted in hot, dry weather; wet rot, a fungus 

 apt to appear in too moist air or where ventilation is in- 

 sufficient; and yellowing, of the cause of which little is 

 known. Any of these diseases is difficult to exterminate 

 when it once gains a foothold. The best thing to do is to 

 get strong, vigorous cuttings, and then to give careful 

 attention to watering, cultivation, and ventilation, and the 

 destruction of dead and dying leaves and all runners as fast 

 as they appear. 



Among insect enemies, the aphids, red spiders, eel worms, 

 gall flies, and slugs may be mentioned. Most of these can 

 be easiest controlled by hydrocyanic acid gas treatment. 



Chrysanthemums, especially of preternatural size and 

 bizarre colors, the college colors at football games, for 

 instance, are in great demand. They are extremely deco- 

 rative, and their remarkable lasting quality insures their 

 permanent popularity. I have heard that the unexpanded 

 bud can be cooked like cauliflower for the table ; but we have 

 not learned to use them in that way. In Japan and China 

 the leaves of the chrysanthemum are esteemed as a salad. 

 One attempt has been made by English gardeners to intro- 

 duce this use of them into England, but it was unsuccessful. 



The annual shows of chrysanthemums and of roses indi- 

 cate the importance of the business. 



It is not generally known, but the poppies are coming 



