June, 1907 



THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST 



147 



so as to bring the earth into close con- 

 tact with the seed. If planted in rows, 

 your bed will be more easily kept free 

 from weeds, as you can do the work with 

 a hoe, but scattering the seed over the 

 whole surface makes a much more at- 

 tractive show bed in the garden. 



Keep all weeds pulled and stir the 

 earth frequently between the plants to 

 keep it from getting hard. It is not 

 necessarv to water, as poppies grow best 

 in hot, dry weather. Do not allow any 

 seed to ripen. Cut off the seed pods 

 every day, as soon as the petals fall off. 



"Windo-w Boxes 



Every home should have one or more 

 window boxes of foliage or flowers. 

 No form of gardening is more appro- 

 priate to redeem the barrenness of 

 countless homes in our cities, where 

 there is scarcely a spot of green grass 

 or workable soil on the premises. For 

 such homes, the effectiveness of a 

 simple display of flowers outside the 

 windows cannot be estimated. Not 

 onlv is it for homes of this kind that 

 window boxes are useful, however, but 

 also for houses everywhere, even those 

 that are surrounded with flowers, plants 

 and trees in great variety. 



It is not a difficult or expensive 

 matter to make boxes suitable for 

 growing plants at the window. The 

 simpler and less obstrusive the box, 

 the better. A plain wooden box paint- 

 ed green or a rustic box finished in 

 natural bark is far superior to one 

 made of expensive material with fancy 

 frills, and decorated in all colors of 

 the rainbow. The box should be 

 strongly made, as it is required to sup- 

 port a heavy weight of soil. Supply 

 drainage by holes bored in the bottom, 

 six inches apart, and covered with 

 pieces of broken flower pots. 



Secure good soil for the plants to be 

 grown in. A good mixture is one- 

 third ordinary garden soil, one-third 

 well-rotted manure and one-third sand. 

 If ferns and begonias are to be used, 

 omit the manure and use instead well- 

 rotted leaf mould. 



Among the plants best for window 

 boxes are geraniums, ageratum, snap- 

 dragons, verbenas, vincas, tradescen- 

 tias, petunias. Phlox Drummondii, As- 

 paragus sprengeri, and for trailing or 

 climbing, nasturtiums, morning glorys 

 and Cobea scandens. 



Window boxes must be given plenty 

 of water every day, or they will dry out 

 quickly from exposure to the sun and 

 wind. A little care will be rewarded. 



Vines that are bare at the base may 

 be improved by training the new shoots 

 downwards. 



Lawns require liberal fertilizing. Many 

 Canadian lawns are underfed. 



Cultivating the MarKet Garden 



BY the proper cultivation of the 

 market garden soil, many import- 

 ant things are accomplished. The 

 surface soil is brought into the best con- 

 dition to resist drought and to conserve 

 moisture in the soil. Plant foods are 

 made more valuable for the use of the 

 growing crop. Weeds are kept out so 

 that they do not rob the crop of mois- 

 ture and food. Various methods of 

 working the soil are practised. The fol- 

 lowing are some of them : 



CULTIVATING ONIONS 



"When onions are about two inches 

 high," wrote Mr. Herbert Hachborn 

 of Echo Place, Ont., "they should be 

 weeded and thinned ; that is, if the seed 

 was sown rather thickly. It is my 

 custom to weed onions about twice dur- 

 ing the season. I cultivate them with 

 a wheel hoe once a week until they 

 commence to form bulbs. After that, I 

 cultivate with an ordinary hand hoe 

 until time for harvesting." 



The planting and cultivating of late 

 cauhflowers as practised by Mr. John N. 

 Watts, of Portsmouth, Ont., is as follows : 

 "I make three sowings of seed, the first 

 about May 15, the second about the 24th, 

 and the third before June 10. I make 

 also three plantings ; the first about May 

 25, the second in June, and the third 

 about the first week of July. The last 

 planting gives the best results. It 

 often happens that a fair crop may be 

 obtained from any one of the three 

 plantings, but in case the first or second 

 should fail the third is almost certain 



to succeed. Good cultivation and care 

 must be given. When setting out the 

 plants, care should be exercised not to 

 have them too old or woody. Have a 

 fine bed for them to root in. After they 

 have started, a deep hoeing should fol- 

 low. The soil between the rows should 

 be well cultivated to prevent injury from 

 drought. When the young plants have - 

 attained the height of one foot the cab- 

 bage worm will put in his appearance. 

 It can be destroyed by the use of one 

 quart of flour in which a teaspoonful of 

 Paris green has been mixed. Dust this 

 on the plants once a week with a box 

 havinga perforated lid." 



GROWING POTATOES 



"The first step in the cultivation of 

 the potato," wrote Mr. H. A. Blunden, 

 of Sarnia, Ont., "is made at. the time of 

 planting when a ridge of earth is left over 

 each row. Just as the young plants are 

 making their appearance, the grower 

 must go crossways of the rows with a 

 horse weeder or hght harrow and partly 

 knock down the ridge. This operation 

 kills countless numbers of newly-sprout- 

 ed weeds. In the course of a week 

 afterwards the soil should be cultivated 

 with a horse cultivator. Between the 

 rows, hoeing should be done to make 

 the ridge level with the soil between the 

 rows. Continue to cultivate once a week 

 during the growing season. The first 

 cultivation should be about four inches 

 deep. Cultivate gradually shallower 

 and narrower. At the last cultivation 

 the rows should be moulded." 



Caxiliflow^er Growing 



FranK F. Reeves. Humber Day. Ontario 



IN sowing cauliflower seed I prefer to 

 use a seed drill, for two reasons: I 

 can get the plants more even, and the 

 seed goes in at a more regular depth. 

 One ounce of seed should sow from 350 

 to 400 feet of row, and should produce 

 at least 1,500 plants. In growing cauH- 

 flower as a second crop sow about May 

 17 to 24. This gives lots of time to 

 produce stout stocky plants by the time 

 the ground is ready for planting. It is 

 advisable to make two or three sowings 

 so as to have plants the right size when 

 wanted. 



A great enemy to young plants is the 

 small fly. The best way to check this 

 pest is to take wood ashes, or air-slaked 

 lime, and dust along the row when the 

 dew is on the plants. Tobacco dust 

 sprinkled on the ground also is a good 

 preventive. No workable plan has 

 been found to combat the root maggot. 



One of the most important factors in 

 the cultivation of cauHflower as in ^11 

 other crops is to find land that is most 



suitable for them, and then stay with it. 

 A good sandy loam inclined to clay is 

 the ideal spot in which to grow this crop. 

 Being a rank feeder it is necessary that 

 the land be well manured. It is best to 

 grow them after a crop of early radish 

 or spinach. To do this, manure the 

 land well in the fall. About the middle 

 of June, plow in another good coat of 

 manure, let the land he for a few days, 

 till the weeds begin to show themselves, 

 then start the disc or harrows going. By 

 doing this, weeds do not attain any size, 

 and moisture is conserved. 



I plant from July 1 to 15. The 

 ground should be harrowed and boarded 

 as often as possible to get it solid. This 

 causes the plants to take hold far quicker 

 and be able to withstand dry weather 

 and hot winds. Make the rows three 

 feet apart and place the plants two feet 

 apart in the row. If the land is marked 

 both ways, it can all be scuffled. This 

 saves a lot of hand hoeing. If possible 



