1889. 



POPULAR GARDENING. 



51 



A Few Good Chrysanthemums. 



FRED \V. CAUn, TOMPKINS CO., N. T. 



It is very (litlicult for one unaquainted 

 with varieties to select from a catnlofiue 

 seeils or plants of any kind suited to his 

 wants. HavinK this in mind I have noted a 

 few ont of the .">u varieties of Chrysanthe- 

 mums growing in the Cornell University 

 conservatories which happen to -suit my 

 taste, and would give a Kood collection 

 of colors to any one wanting but few 

 plants: !<n(>U(]ni. pure white; X Mas 

 Eve, cream, EdiKt Crniij, white, pink tinge; 

 QUirinitiim, bright yellow; Mdtl. Andignicr, 

 pink; Jupiter, wine color; CuUinijforclia, 

 dark (dark mahogany crimson). 



To these perhaps I mightadd: \cUicBlij. 

 dark yellow; Lady SUule, pink incurved 

 (large Rose shaped blossoms). While there 

 are no doubt many others in the collection 

 equally good, or even better, which might 

 take preference with another taste, I think 

 these would make an entirely satisfactory 

 collection. 



Notes from the Popular Gardening 



Grounds at La Salle-on-the- 



Niagara. 



Beautiful Celery.— yfe have been much pleased 

 with the Bouquet Celery sent out last Spring by 

 Peter Henderson & Co., of New York. It is a 

 dwarf or half-dwarf variety of strong, compact, 

 healthy growth, equal in flavor and crispness to 

 the best, and in beauty of foliage far surpassing 

 anything we have ever seen in the Celery line. 

 No doubt about its being rightly named- 

 Bouquet. It would seem to be an ideal sort tor 

 " soup "' Celery, and we can justly recommend it 

 for trial to gardeners who grow Soup Celerj' in 

 cold frames. 



Another good sort, especially valuable for 

 home use, is the New Rose, introduced, we be- 

 lieve, by the same firm as the Bouquet. In 

 quality it has no superior, in growth it is strong 

 and healthy, and its delicate pinkish color makes 

 it a favorite on our table. As a market sort it 

 has the same fate as other red varieties— it is not 

 as much in demand as the white sorts. 



Kalamazoo seems to resemble Golden Heart, 

 at least we did not notice much difterence be- 

 tween them, and both sorts are good and reliable, 

 both for home use and market. 



Our White Plume behaved somewhat strange- 

 ly this season. The self-bleaching feature of 

 this sort appeared in a much less pronounced 

 degree than we were accustomed to see, but 

 whether this is owing to th-^ peculiar atmos- 

 pheric conditions of the season, or to the natural 

 tendency of a self-bleaching sort of reverting to 

 its original type, we are unable to say. 



Under our mode of cultivation we have always 

 been fortunate enough to obtain Celery of un- 

 surpassed sweetness and brittleness. What we 



BOUQUET CELERY, 

 would like to know is this : to what extent qual- 

 ity and tenderness of Celery is influenced by 

 feeding with different manures, how much by 

 cultivation, and how much by variety? We 

 have tried a good many varieties, but never yet 

 have grown the great, coarse, hollow, tough 

 stalks that we find on cit5' hotel tables. And in 

 particular, does nitrate of soda tend to produce 

 brittleness in this and other vegetables ? 



I'rntnits fur the jy<irt/i.— Wo have once more 

 tried a inimlicrof Peanut varieties, although not 

 with much confidence in our ability to obtain a 

 paying crop, I'cirtunately, fur he who e.\iiects 

 little will not Ik' diaaiipointccl. The conditions of 

 soil and sua.si>ii were almut as unfavorable as 

 they could well be. The common Peanut of our 

 stores (Virginia Peanut) and Faust's Improved 

 Griiund-nut entirely 

 failed to set fruit, but 

 the Spanish and 

 Maule's Improved 

 Peanut. — which seem 

 to be identical ma- 

 tured at least a few -'~^^. 

 specimens. On suit- ^-r- z^ '^ 

 able soil (ours was too 

 wet and heavy), and 

 in an avei-age season 

 there can be no doubt 

 that a fair crop of 

 Nuts can be obtained, 

 even in this latitude, 

 by planting these ear- 

 ly varieties. The pods 

 are small, but closely 

 tilled with a nut of 

 most excellent quali- 

 ty. In fact there is 

 no variety superior 

 to these in this rr- 

 spect, and we Bud that ' 

 an extra price is asked 

 for this dainty sort at 

 our fruit stores. But 

 we do no intend to 

 attempt growing the 

 ordinary Virginia 

 Peanut again, at least 

 not so long as we live 

 north of Maryland. 

 But with early sorts 

 it is interesting. 



i'lcet't Votatoes.—y^e 

 do not think we would 

 care to engage in 

 growing Sweet Pota- 

 toes for market in 

 this vicinity; yet our 

 season's experience 

 with them shows that 

 there is nothing to 



hinder the home gardener from producing all the 

 Sweet Potatoes he may want to use, the only 

 condition of success being that good plants be 

 set in warm and dry soil early in June, or as soon 

 as the ground has become thoroughly warm, and 

 be treated in the usual manner. Excessively 

 rich soil should be avoided, as also nitrogenous 

 manures on land already provided with sufBcient 

 vegetable matter. A high-grade complete fer- 

 tilizer—a special Potato manure, for instance- 

 can usually be reUed on for good results, and 

 only where the soil is somewhat thin would it be 

 necessary or advisable to apply yard compost. 

 When stimulated by rich soil or manure, the 

 plants are only too apt to expend their energies 

 in making vines. We have had hard work, on 

 former occassions. to keep the rines from rooting 

 all over the ground where the whole surface 

 was enriched, and for this reason now always 

 apply whatever fertilizer we use, in the hill only. 

 In fact this is the only crop tor which we omit to 

 apply at least a portion of the fertilizer broad- 

 cast, and practice hill application exclusively. 



Of the three varieties we cultivated this year— 

 a yellow, a red, and a white one— contrary to 

 pre\-ious experience, the Yellow Nansemond 

 has done by far the l)est. The red ( Ked Jersey) 

 last year, and the year before, had given us so 

 much nicer tubers, and larger crops, than the 

 Yellow Nansemond, that we were quite disap- 

 pointed in it this year. This might have been 

 merely accidental, and we shall not yet reverse 

 our former good opinion of the Red Jersey. The 

 white sorts. New Early Golden, Southern Queen, 

 etc. included - always ranked last in our favor, 

 and this year's test has not changed our opinion. 



Praiius PimarAi. We have on several occa- 

 sions given expression to the high estimation in 

 which wc hold this tree. No matter what Mr. 

 McMillan may say against variegated or high- 

 colored foliage, we know that if properly set off, it 

 will make a most attractive bed or single subject. 

 In short it finds a place, and many people desire 

 to display foliage of just such exceedingly rich 

 color. Prunus Pissardi has merits in respect to 

 quality and price which should strongly recom- 

 mend it to all who wish to employ trees of high- 

 colored foliage. It is as rich as River's Purple- 



leaved Beach ; but » hilc the latter is a" hard 

 subject to transplant, Prunus Pissardi trans- 

 plants as easily as any of our ordinary trees. 

 Ilut look at the price. A nice large specimen^of 

 Purple-lca\'ecl Reach will cost you several dollars; 

 Prunus Ptssardi can be had as cheap as a com- 

 mon Plum or Cherry tree. Like common Plum 

 trees the Pissardi blooms freely, and its white 



PURPLE-LEAVED PLUM IN FLOWER. 



flowers are well set off against the glossy 

 purple foUage. Its fruit is small, deep red or 

 purple, of rather inferior quality. 



Fruits, The Catalogues Know 

 Nothing of. 



There are thousands of good varieties of 

 Apples, Pears, Plums, Peaches and other 

 fruits which are not mentioned in the cata- 

 logues. Many of these have a wide local 

 reputation, and are grown extensively in 

 certain neighborhoods for market or special 

 purposes. There they have found environ- 

 ments, and conditions of soil and climate 

 specially suited to their wants. There they 

 are doing good in a quiet way without mak- 

 ing much ado about it. They are known 

 and appreciated in the local markets, and 

 the growers are doing well with them. 



This, however, does not prove that they 

 would do as well, or be appreciated to the 

 same degree elsewhere. Some of them might 

 prove worthy of introduction and general 

 cultivation, but there is usually so much of 

 an element of uncertainty about the final 

 success, that it would be too much risk to 

 attempt introducing them. We have at 

 present a most excellent assortment of 

 fruits, and any new variety, to be worthy 

 of introduction, must combine a number of 

 points of superiority. But the facts stated 

 are often brought to our attention by the 

 specimens of " local celebrities " sent us for 

 examination by our kind friends. 



Apples. Mr. John F. Rupp of Cumber- 

 land County, Pa., semis us specimens of two 

 local Apples, with the following description: 

 '■ The Streintown Pippin is one of our most 

 profitable varieties; it is an immense bearer 

 and a long keeper. Last year our row of 

 this variety produced an extraordinary 

 heavy crop, and this year the crop is remark- 

 ably good; the trees averaging fifteen 



