July, 1909 



THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST 



149 



Notes on Culture of Asters 



C. M. Bezzo, 



TO grow asters successfully, ■ there 

 are, in addition to rich soil, two 

 things absolutely necessary ; they 

 jre, thorough tilling of the soil during 

 Ithe early stages of growth and frequent 

 'waterings during dry, hot weather, es- 

 ' pecially during the blooming period. As 

 soon after each rain, or watering with 

 the hose or watering pot, as can be done 

 without the ground sticking, the surface 

 soil should be loosened with a hoe or 

 small rake to a depth of one and one- 

 half to two inches. Care should be 

 taken, however, not to hoe too closely to 

 the plant at this depth as the aster throws 

 out roots very close to the surface of the 

 soil. This constant loosening of the sur- 

 face soil not only prevents the formation 

 of a crust which would exclude the air 

 and smother the roots, but it enables the 

 plants to draw up moisture from below. 

 It also enables the roots to strike down 

 deeper, reducing the danger of uprooting 

 by wind ; while cutworms, wireworms 

 and other like enemies can find no abid- 

 ing place in the ground that is constant- 

 ly stirred. 



Asters should never be allowed to suf- 

 fer in the least from the want of water. 

 Water in the evenings unless the nights 

 are very cool, in which case, if the hose 

 is used, the water had better be done 

 in the morning. But water any time, 

 morning, noon or night, in any kind of 

 weather, rather than have them suffer 

 from thirst. The plants when watered 

 should never be merely sprinkled, but 

 the ground should always be thoroughly 

 soaked. During the blooming period the 

 aster consumes a lot of water and it is 

 almost safe to advise watering them 

 every day. 



If the plants are massed and have be- 

 come so large as to render dangerous 

 the operation of hoeing, a two inch 

 mulch of straw, grass clippings or half 

 rotted manure shaken up finely will be 

 or great benefit in keeping the ground 

 ^cool and moist. 



To grow the finest bloom for exhibition 



Jurposes, pinch out the central bud when 



^he plants begin to branch, and allow 



Bnly about six of the side branches to 



frow, removing all the lateral buds and 



branches. The whole strength of the 



plant is thus given to the development 



bP the half dozen flowers. See that the 



slants have an abundance of plant food 



lin a soluble form. Sheep manure is a 



safe and convenient fertilizer and may be 



lioed in about the plants, or dissolved in 



i^ater and poured about the roots. Ni- 



rate of soda is a powerful stimulate, but 



|he greatest care must be exrecised in 



9ts use. Broadcast it evenly upon the 



Iground, at the rate of one pound to the 



Isquare rod, just previous to watering, 



'being careful not to put any of the soda 



on the leaves. When used in ^bove 



Berlin, Ontario 



quantity four or five iipplications may 

 safely be made at intervals during the 

 season. 



Daphne Cncorum 



Constance E. Hamilton, Lome Park, Ont. 



It may interest some of the readers of 

 The Canadian Horticulturist to hear 

 of my Daphne cneoruni which is now 

 (June 6) in full bloom. I secured the 

 plant from a florist in Pennsylvania and 

 he almost assured me it could not survive 

 our winters here. I have grown the 

 Daphne now for four years with excellent 

 results. The plant is an Alpine and of 

 low-growing habit. The blossoms are in 

 small clusters, bright pink and very 

 sweet scented, and when in bloom the 

 eflfect is of a carpet of pink emitting a 



ends. .As it is too late now, we would 

 suggest that you try propagating them 

 by means of cuttings of the growing 

 wood. It will not be any trouble in the 

 case of the spiraea but the honeysuckle 

 and the rambler roses may not take so 

 readily. When the new wood is large 

 enough take cuttings and plant them at 

 once in good soil in the open or in a cold 

 frame. 



The Flowering Plum (Prunus Triloba) in 



On lawn of Mr. Robt. Chambers, Lindsay, 



delicious perfume. Our soil is very sandy 

 and the plant is on quite an exposed posi- 

 tion. Last winter it had no covering 

 and seems to be none the worse. 



I would strongly recommend this plant 

 to amateur gardeners. My early recol- 

 lection of it is in a large circular bed 

 about five feet in diameter in a War- 

 wickshire garden. I should be interested 

 to hear of any of the readers of The 

 Canadian Horticiltlrist who may 

 know of or who have tried the Daphne 

 cneorum. 



Propagating by Cuttings 



Whon should I take cuttings for propa- 

 Kating spirspas, honoysucklos arc! rambler 

 roses?— T..J.O., Rhelbourne, Ont. 



The climbers and shrubs that you men- 

 tion in your letter usually arc propagated 

 from dormant cuttings, which, of course, 

 should be taken in the fall or winter and 

 stored to induce callousing of the butt 



The Care of Peonies 



RcT. Andrew B. Baird, Winnipeg 



There is nothing particularly delicate 

 or sensitive about the peony. It likes a 

 strong, well enriched soil and plenty of 

 water in dry weather. It is a heavy 

 feeder and responds to good treatment, 

 but there are some things that it will not 

 stand for. If it is planted in a low loca- 

 tion where the ice freezes over it in win- 

 ter, it will die. If in the anxiety to treat 

 it well, manure is applied 

 so as to come in contact 

 with the roots the plant 

 becomes dyspeptic and 

 its vitality is seriously 

 impaired ; but if the 

 ground has been thor- 

 oughly enriched a cou- 

 ple of years before plant- 

 ing and if the manure is 

 applied in the form of 

 top dressing or by an oc- 

 casional watering with 

 manure water, nothing 

 but good will result. 



Peonies look well al- 

 most anywhere in a gar- 

 den if they have room. 

 They look well in a bor- 

 der with other flowers 

 beside them, but pro- 

 bably they make the best 

 showing when planted in 

 groups or beds by them- 

 selves. If not set too 

 closely together, annuals which bloom 

 later in the year may be planted between 

 and the beds will wear a different kind 

 of beauty in the late summer. 



If possible, the plants should have a 

 location where they will be partially pro- 

 tected from the blazing sun and from 

 high winds. The blooms last longer if 

 they have some shade and they are apt, 

 since they grow on long slender stems, 

 to be battered by strong winds ; in such 

 a case, the plant should be supported by 

 a hoop or by a circle of string tied to 

 stakes. 



In the matter of planting one can 

 scarcely go wrong. The roots ought to 

 be put down so deep that the tops will 

 be a couple of inches below the surface. 

 They look very much like rhubarb roots, 

 and may be treated in the same way. 



Bloom 



Ontario 



Keep the soil stirred in hot weather. 



