I89I. 



POPULAR GARDENING. 



219 



some pecuniary interest in or derives some pecu- 

 niary profit from the cultivation and sale of 

 plants and flowers. A private gardener is one 

 whocultivates plants and flowers for some other 

 person than himself, not a florist, and in which 

 cultivation he has no pecuniary interest and for 

 which he derives no pecuniary profit, except as 

 salary or wages from his employer. A n amatetir 

 is one who cultivates for pleasure or for love of 

 the plants and flowers themselves, and not for 

 pecuniary profit. 



New Book on Hanares, The subject of soil 

 fertility being of paramount importance to every 

 cultivator, we welcome any work that serves to 

 throw a clear and strong light upon the entire 

 question. The new treatise, " Practical Farm 

 Chemistrj'," by T. Greiner, is a very timely pub- 

 lication. It presents the latest phases of the 

 manure question, especially as related to the 

 more or less obscure subject of commercial and 

 chemical fertilizers. It treats in a plain, com- 

 -mon-sense way on what fertilizing substances 

 we shall apply to our crops, where and in what 

 form we can procure them most cheaply, and 

 how to apply them for best results. The author 

 truly says that millions of dollars are annually 

 wasted on manures that are not suitable for the 

 crop and soil to which they are applied. The 

 new work throws a flood of light upon all these 

 things, and its study will put the reader in the 

 way of avoiding the expense and waste of inju- 

 dicious manuring. The lucid explanation of the 

 mysteries of Agricultural Chemistry will be of 

 particular interest to young farmers and far- 

 mers' boys. The book contains 163 pages. Price, 

 $1 00. To be had from this ofiice. 



Amateor's Way of Booting Cnttings. A brief 

 note on rooting cuttings in an ordinary tumbler 

 with a wad of cotton batting in the bottom, ap- 

 peared in an earlier number of Popclar Gard- 

 ening. This method proves to be an easy and 

 convenient one for the amateur having only a 

 few cuttings to strike at a time, and not always 

 the necessary conveniences, propagating bench, 

 sand, etc., at command. During April we re- 

 ceived some choice Tomato plants by mail, which 

 were all broken up, so that only a few of the 

 tips were in good shape. These inserted in cotton 

 batting in a tumbler in same way as Geranium 

 and Coleus cuttings, etc., are shown in illustra- 

 tion on this page, and placed in the windows of 

 the sitting room, soon emitted healthy, fibrous 

 roots, although left entirely without attention, 

 and no water was applied after the first thorough 

 soaking given to the cotton batting. These 

 plants were set into open ground directly after 

 taken out of the tumbler, and are now as large 

 and thrifty plants as any we can show that were 

 grown from seedlings. It is wonderful how long 

 cotton batting will remain moist after once being 

 soaked full of water. Undoubtedly this method 

 will be found useful by amateurs in many ways. 

 Italian Taste Not Onr Taste. While the love 

 for Chrysanthemums has become almost a craze 

 in many countries, yet in South Italy, according 

 to a report in Gartenflora, it is the " Flower of 

 Death," and rarely grown e.\cept in graveyards, 

 or near bj', for the purpose of decorating graves 

 at the feast of All Saints. If it is seen in a gar- 

 den, the place is pretty sure to belong to a 

 foreigner; no native would stick a Chrysanthe- 

 mum in his button-hole, and it is doubted whether 

 ladies will ever fill their vases with them. He 

 has seen an Englishwoman stared at by a wond- 

 ering crowd in the streets of Naples because she 

 was carrying an armful of these " unlucky death- 

 flowers." At All Saints, however, the cemeteries 

 become perfect seas of Chrysanthemum blossoms, 

 other flowers seldom being mingled with them, 

 and they are profusely planted near graves and 

 along the borders of cemeteries. In no part of 

 Europe could the Chrysanthemum be grown to 

 better advantage than in southern Italy, for it 

 is green all the year round, and blooms from 

 July to January. It often occurs wild, even in 

 good old varieties with double flowers, although 

 these seem to ripen seeds only now and then, 

 and one form is entirely naturalized— a single 

 yellow-flowered form— which grows in a some- 

 what ragged way, but is well covered with pretty 

 green leaves which retain their freshness even 

 in times of great drought. 



The MiBsoari Botanical Oarden Beport, Not 

 alone Missouri and her chief citj", but the country 

 at large, is to be congratulated on the possession 

 of the rich horticultural legacy in the shape of 

 the Missouri Botanical Garden, bequeathed by the 

 late Henry Shaw, of St. Louis, forever to the use 

 of the public. It was not merely the founding 

 of a magnificent garden that he did, but his 



wisdom, foresight and liberality lead to his mak- 

 ing amjile provision for its perpetual develop- 

 ment and maintenance. Thisisshownin strong 

 light by the report for 1890, recently issued by 

 Professor William Trelease, the able director of 

 the garden. According to the record the total 

 cash receipts from stores, dwellings, lands, etc., 

 bequeathed by Mr. Shaw for the purposes of the 

 garden, amounted to the large sum of Sl~'0,841 

 for the period from September, 1889, to end of 

 1890. During the same period there was expended 

 for all purposes $95,622, leaving the handsome 

 balance of $31,0.W at the beginning of the present 

 year. With such a large income at the disposal 

 of the board of trustees, and with the present 



Booting Cuttings in Cotton Batting. 



efflcient corps of managers, headed by Prof. 

 Trelease, the desire of the founder to develop 

 the most important botanical establishment in 

 the world, ought speedily to be realized That 

 the work is progressing satisfactoiilj', the fine 

 report before us shows. It is a large volume, 

 comprising 110 pages of type matter, besides more 

 than fifty full-page engraved plates, and a num- 

 ber of maps. The contents include the Report of 

 the Oflicers of the Hoard, Report of the Director, 

 Proceedings of the First Annual Banquet to 

 Gardeners, An Elaborate Revision of North 

 American Epilobiums, by Wm. Trelease. Among 

 the handsomely engraved plates are subjects 

 taken from the greenhouse, the orchard and the 

 botanical grounds 



Central Park, New York, in Jnly. A drive 

 through this famous park July 5 revealed the 

 usual midsummer dullness in hardy flowers. 

 The trees of t'atalpa bignonoides were in full 

 bloom, and scattered rather freely here and 

 there, were, to the eye, easily the most conspicu- 

 ous objects of their class. But for sweetness the 

 European Linden was ahead of all others. These 

 trees were flowering profusely, loading the at- 

 mosphere for considerable distances with pure, 

 sweet odor. " What smells so delightful," was a 

 common question on many lips. The long, 

 spreading tassels of Chestnut bloom also were 

 out. In hardy climbers, the Wistarias, of which 

 the park contains many fine specimens. Trumpet 

 Vines and Clematises were showing flowers 

 freely. The Spanish Bayonet (Yucca filamentosa) 

 was in its most attractive state, as regards bloom, 

 and being naturalized quite largely here, served 

 to liven manyaslope and nookwith its tall spikes 

 of creamy white bloom. Over a number of rocky 

 mounds some Sedums, especiallj' Sedum acre, 

 were displaying a considerable surface of bloom. 

 At the date of our ^^sit, signs of drouth were 

 everywhere present over the park lawns, but 

 the dryness had not been severe enough to injure 

 the thriftiness of the trees. In this visit we 

 could not help but notice a fault of this magnifi- 

 cent park, that becomes more marked as each 

 decade adds to the size of the trees. We refer to 

 the overabundance of trees and shrubs that is 

 apparent in many places throughout the park 

 as a result of too close planting. The axe could 

 be brought into capital use in many places. It 



is but truth to say that this park lacks in the 

 broad restful landscapes that should abound in 

 an area of this extent: the cxowded areas are too 

 much broken up, not only by the planting, but 

 by walks, drives and other features of question- 

 able merit. 



The Century Plant in Florida. The Agave 

 family does wonderfully well in this soil and 

 climate. We have growing in our grounds the 

 foUowing varieties, viz.; A. Americana and 

 Americana variegata, rigida, from which Sisal 

 Hemp is manufactured in Yucatan; recurvata 

 and the " Maguey." The latter variety is in all 

 probability destined to become very valuable as 

 a fibre producing plant, being superior in quality 

 as well as in productiveness to ri{iida or Sisal 

 Hemp. The Magney attains maturity in five or 

 f six years, when, like all A ga ves, the plant blooms 

 and dies. In the mean time hundreds of plants 

 have l)een produced by suckers, which should be 

 detached from the parent when large enough to 

 handle. I forward specimen of fibre of this 

 plant. Of the recurvata variety there are now in 

 bloom here in St. Augustine eighteen plants. 

 The flower spikes measure from 30 to 35 feet in 

 height, and the plants from ten to twelve feet in 

 diameter from point to point of the leaves. This 

 variety is the most symmetrical in form, and is 

 quite numerous now in this neighborhood. The 

 plant attains its full growth here in about fifteen 

 years, and it is interesting to observe that all 

 the young plants that are not detached from the 

 parent, are blooming with it, so that it would be 

 an easy thing to send north a Century plant in 

 bloom but one year old. There has been but one 

 plant in bloom of the variety A mericana during 

 the five years I have been in the city, and that, 

 to the best of my information, is about thirty 

 years old. For ornamental purposes alone con- 

 sidered, this is the best variety to grow. I have 

 plants measuring fifteen feetfrom point to point 

 of the leaves —fiicftarrt Dale, Florida. [The 

 sample of ' fibre" was received at this office. It 

 is snow-white, remarkably strong, and in appear- 

 ance closely resembles hair from a horse's tail, 

 but is finer.— Editor.] 



Carpet-bag Flower. In the greenhouse few 

 spring flowers attract more attention than well- 

 grown Calceolarias or Carpet-bag flowers; the 

 little bags are so interesting, and the colors- 

 yellow being the base-so cheerful. The class re- 

 ferred to and illustrated, are the Herbaceous 

 Calceolarias raised from seed. Their culture is 

 not so difficult but what any amateur may 

 expect to obtain success, and great is the reward 

 of all well directed efforts in their culture. Seed. 

 This can be obtained of all flrst-elass seedsmen, 

 at from twenty-five to fifty cents per package, 

 for strains that would prove satisfactory. It is 

 not well to bother with cheaper grades. One 

 packet will make scores of plants. Sowing. 

 Here comes the rub with average growers, for 

 no seed is finer than that of the present subject. 

 Still we have had success equal to that of sowing 

 any kind of seed, by the following course: We 

 prepare a pot, say six inches across, by providing 

 ample drainage in the bottom, using a handful 

 of potsherds; on this we place some rough sitt- 

 ings, and above that, to within an inch of the 

 rim, some finely sifted soil, which contains a good 

 proportion of sand. Now we soak the earth, by 

 sinking the iiot for a moment to a depth that 

 will all but submerge the surface of the soil. 

 After that the seed is evenly scattered over the 

 surface but not covered. No water is ever ap- 

 plied to the soil, but instead a sheet of white 

 paper is bound over the pot, tying it under the 

 rim, and this is kept watered. That is to say, by 

 applying Avater on the paper, the center becomes 

 slightly depressed to hold water, after which the 

 depression should be kept constantly filled. This 

 treatment is given until the seeds are well up. 

 Seedlings. As soon as they are of a size that can 

 be handled they should be pricked (dibbled) out 

 singly into small pots, using light, fibrous 

 earth, watering slightly afterwards. From this 

 stage on the plants should receive ordinary at- 

 tention as to watering; should be kept near the 

 glass in a temperature of about 45 degrees at 

 night, and should be shifted into one size after 

 another of pots, until a six or seven inch pot is 

 reached in which to flower. Shifting is really 

 one of the great points in Calceolaria culture; it 

 should in every instance be done some time be- 

 fore there is danger of the roots becoming 

 matted around the ball of earth. Neglect that 

 point and your plants will get dwarfed, worse 

 yet, lousy; but with right attention here, and 

 to the other points suggested, and success be- 

 comes easy. 



