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THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST 



taking the old ])laiits during August and 

 cutting off the- young shoots wliicfi arc 

 around tlie base, many of which you 

 will lind already supplied with roots. 

 Plant them in a small prepared plot of 

 rather sandy soil in a shady place. Keep 

 them well sprinkled, and they will soon 

 root and make vigorous plants to put 

 in winter quarters, ready for ne.xl spring. 

 Pansics may be grown from seed. 

 For April bloom, sow now in cold 

 frames. Bellis, or English Daisy, may 

 be grown similarly. 



CUTTING FLOWERS KOR EXHIBITION 



Flowers cut for exhibition purposes 

 should be immediately placed in a pail 

 or large jug of water and put away in a 



part. I'ood for the day is sup])lied by 

 sulphate of ammonia, a few dro])s of 

 which should be added to the water put 

 in the vase. At night put the Howers 

 into some dark cool place - say a pantry, 

 as it is not good cither for the flowers 

 or for the household that they should 

 remain all the time in the living rooms. 



BUDDING ROSES 



The tops of undesirable rose bushes 

 may be changed by budding. August 

 is the best time to do the work. At 

 this j)eriod the bark of nearly all vari 

 eties peels with greater facility, making 

 it easy to insert the bud. Near the 

 base of the new growth make a T-shaped 

 incision. Into this insert a shield- 



A Chinese Wistaria in Hamilton 



cool place until taken to the exhibition. 

 Cut them early in the morning on the 

 day of the show, before the sun shines 

 on them very much. 



KEEPING CUT FLOWERS FRESH 



Cut flowers, when properly treated, 

 can be made to look fresh for three or 

 four weeks. Every night take them out 

 of the water and thoroughly rinse the 

 stalks under a faucet, removing with 

 the fingers any decomposed matter. 

 Then put them to bed for the night in a 

 basin of strong soapsuds, but be careful 

 not to allow any water to touch the 

 blossoms. The soapsuds supplv a cer- 

 tain amount of nourishment. In the 

 morning rinse the stalks under the 

 water again, and as each blossom is 

 arranged for the day in the vase of 

 fresh water, snip off a tiny portion of 

 the stalk with a pair of scissors. Al- 

 ways carefully trim away any faded 



shaped bud cut from a new shoot of the ■ 

 desired variety. Tie the bud with 

 string or raffia. In two or three weeks 

 the raffia should be cut. The bud re- 

 mains dormant during winter. In early 

 spring the stock should be cut imme- 

 diately over the bud, so that the flow of 

 sap will be thrown into the bud and 

 force its growth as rapidly as possible. 



THE PURPLE BEECH 



If your newly-planted blood-leaved 

 beech fails to put on its darkest hue the 

 firgt season, do not blame the nursery- 

 man for net selling the proper kind. 

 The first leaves of the purple beech, 

 after transplanting, are a light copper 

 color. It is only after it is well estab- 

 lished that the full dark purple color 

 comes. 



PLANTING EVERGREENS IN AUGUST 



Many expert gardeners believe that 

 more evergreens are injured by summer 



heat than by winter cold. Spring plant 

 ing is the customary practice, but if 

 followed by a summer drought it is 

 often disastrous. Planting in late fall 

 is not advisable, because the evergreens 

 do not become firmly established before 

 winter. The best time to plant is, per 

 haps, in August, but see that the roots 

 are well protected from exposure to sun 

 and wind. The evergreens will have 

 plenty of time to become settled before 

 winter, and you will avoid the annoy- 

 ance of spring delays. 



I'REPARE FOR FALL MULCHING 



Lawns should be mulched in the fall, 

 and now is the time to prepare the ma 

 terial. The common practice of using 

 coarse stable manure is objectionable; 

 it is unsightly, foul-odored. and intro- 

 duces weed seeds. A more effective and 

 lasting mulch for lawns is one recom- 

 mended by Wni. Hunt, O.A.C., Gueljih. 

 It is an earth mulch, composed of e(|;ial 

 parts of good clean soil and well-rotted 

 stable manure. The materials should 

 be obtained in August and turned over 

 occasionally until October, then spread 

 on the lawn. 



W^istaria CKinensis 



In August and September, depending 

 on the locahiy, the Chinese wistaria 

 produces a wealth of bloom and pri 

 sents a lovely picture to the passer-by. 

 The one in the illustration is to be seen 

 at the residence of .Mr. R. A. Lucas, of 

 Hamilton, Ont. It is Wistaria Chinensis 

 carulea, and is over 20 yiars old. With 

 its graceful racemes of lavender flowers 

 hanging in profusion from the almost 

 leafless branches, no climber is more 

 tender in color or more beautiful. It 

 is one of the few vines that will twine 

 around large supports, pillars of ver- 

 andas or arbors. 



At one time Mr. Lucas' wistaria 

 used to grow close to the wall of the 

 house, but the sun burning the voung 

 leaves and tendrils, it did not thrive. 

 It is now on a trellis, 10 inches from the 

 wall, and is growing vigorously. The 

 wistaria, illustrated, blooms profusely 

 for about two weeks. The length of 

 the season of bloom depends on the 

 weather; when the days are bright, 

 dry and calm, the bloom is more last- 

 ing. A warm soil and a sunny jxjsi- 

 tion are the conditions most desirable 

 for the production of flowers. A severe 

 pruning when dormant, cutting back 

 the previous season's growth to about 

 two buds, except where vacant places 

 require filling, is necessary also to en- 

 sure freedom of bloom the next season. 



There is nothing more graceful than 

 the silky blooms of the single poppies 

 nodding on the apex of their long wiry 

 stocks like some tropical butterflies that 

 a passing zephyr might waft from their 

 airv perches. — N. S. Dunlop, Floral 

 De'pt. C.P.R., Montreal. 



