1890. 



POPULAR GARDENING. 



89 



It is well to Ix" sin>ic'ii>iis (if all shrubs that come 

 from Africa, Oiina. Japan, Southoni Huroiic anil 

 Southern North Amorira. < >e«isionally we t^ot 

 a haniy shruh from theiu and a tine one, but 

 the.v art' the exception. The rule is for them to 

 be tenilcr here, lie also a little cautious about 

 buying new, Strang and wonderful plants of 

 strangers who have something your nursery- 

 man cannot get. The I'hilatliliiliu.-: (t'ommon 

 Syrintrai are all hardy and Rood bloomers, 

 either fnigrraut or not, accortiiuif to variety, and 

 hold their foliage well. We cannot do without 

 it. The Golden-leaved (awrcal is tine, hctlds its 

 color well and makes a low, compact shrub, 

 tine for fancy hedges. All golden-foliaged trees 

 and shrvibs must have full-light. 



ioHifoin, Tartarin}!, or Tret Himcy»ucklc\sa 

 fine shrub, very hardy, blooms freely, followed 

 by red or yellow berries which remain uutil fall 

 In color of bloom we have pink, red with white 

 striiK-'S, white and creaiu color, according to 

 variety. It should be planted much more than 

 it is. Sedebouri, a variety from California, may 

 lie tender. Syringa ( Lilacs ', all I have tried, are 

 hardy. The only fault is its tendency to sprout 

 from the root. The Persian and Josikea are 

 free from this fault. Among the new forms is a 

 weejier, having a white bloom and has to be 

 grafted standartl height, and one the Tree or 

 Giant Lilac, making a tree with a single smooth 

 trunk twenty or more feet high, blooming in 

 .ful.v. We have reason to believe they will be 

 hardy here. 



Viburmims are, as far as tried, all hardy with 

 one exception ; most of them are natives and 

 of various characteristic, making them desirable. 

 The Snow-ball, Viburnum sterilis, belongs to this 

 class. The variety, santonoides, is deser\nng a 

 place in every yard; blooms well and has a fine 

 leaf ; blossom-bud very conspicuous in the fall. 

 Viburnum plicatum from China, often called 

 .Tapan Snow-ball, is tender, even the roots are 

 destroyed by frost. The little Flowering Almond 

 we must have, although not fuUy hardy; abiiut 

 three years out of five, we get an abundance of 

 bloom; the roots always survive. 



Hydrangea (paniculata gi'antliflora) is perfectly 

 hardy; grows with me five feet high, with a fine 

 spreading top; is a fine, if not the finest, late- 

 blooming shi'Ub we have, with its large heads of 

 white bloom in August and September. It is 

 very attractive. It is well to keep it well- 

 trimmed and in a growing condition. The flowers 

 are on the new wood. 



Eusea rugn^a is a new variet.v of Rose from 

 Africa. It can, and, no doubt, will, be used as a 

 shrub, and will give good satisfaction There 

 are three colors, white,rose and red. The flowers 

 are large, often three or more inches in diameter 

 and fine in color; followed by bright berries, 

 foliage dense and good, remaining until late, 

 often changing to crimson in the fall. Plants 

 have been produced with double Roses by hybri- 

 dizing. These, with its complete hardiness, can 

 not fail to make it a favorite. 



Chkmaiithu." (Whit« Fringe) is one of the best 

 of shrubs, with leaves like the Laurel, shining 



A NOVEL FLOWER STAND. 



all summer, as it varnished, a delicate white 

 bloom in spring and as hardy as an Ash tree. 



Among the hardy shrubs, will be found the 

 following: Berberries (both common and purple), 

 Tellow, Flowering Currant, Purple Fringe iPhus 

 cotinus). Snow Berry (or Wax berry ), Cornus 

 sanguinea and the Siberian varieties, nearly all 

 the Spireas, and Daphne. 



CONDENSED GLEANINGS. 

 A Cheap lean-to Oreenhoiue. If those who 

 cultivate house-plants knew how much better 

 they can be grown in a room by themselves 



where the torai>ci*ature and moisture can be 

 regulated to suit their wants, there would l)e 

 more small greenhouses. It is possible, and easy, 

 to build a lean-to house eight by twelve feet, 

 and eight feet high at the highest part and live 

 feet at the lowest, for less than a hundretl dollars. 

 In a house of this size all the plants can be 

 grown that most amateurs would find time to 

 take care of. Of course it would be necessary 

 to furnish the heat for such a house from the 

 dwelling with which it would have to be con. 

 nected by double doors, which could be thrown 

 open at night. The walls can be made of posts 

 set in the ground as one would set fence posts, 

 taking care to set them low enough to reach 

 below the frost-limit, to prevent heaving. These 

 should be set about two feet apart. All the 

 posts should be of the same thickness, boarded 

 up, outside and in, with cheap, matched lumber, 

 over which a layer of tarred sheathing-paper 

 should be tacked. Then give the Inside a ceiling 

 with cheap lumber, and the outside a finishing 

 of clapboards. In this way .vou get snug walls, 

 with an air-space between, which will keep out 

 frost more effectually than a brick wall. The 

 vertical sash can be made like regular window- 

 sash, or strips can be fastened perpendicularly 

 into which glass can be set, lapping it as it is 

 commonly done on greenhouse roofs.— ^?n«rica 11 

 Agriculturist. 



Thawing Frozen Groand, To thaw frozen 

 ground, says Building, use fresh slacked lime 

 over the ground to be opened. Water to be used 

 as little as possible; about eighteen pounds of 

 water to fifty-six pounds of lime will be the pro- 

 per proportion. More wat*fr would absorb a part 

 of the produced heat. The slacked lime should 

 stand on the places in paste form about eight 

 hours. To prevent the water from running off 

 the place has to be properly surrounded by sand. 

 As soon as the lime begins to slake it must be 

 covered with a thin layer of sand, or old bags. 

 A hole 3 feet by 3 feet and a depth of 3 feet will 

 require five bushels of hme. The thawing should 

 be commenced the night before the day the work 

 is to be done, in order to reduce expenses. For 

 work which must be rapidly done, as in case of 

 broken water-pipes, the above quantity of lime 

 must be doubled, in which case three hours 

 would be sufficient to penetrate through the 

 frost. The process must t>e repeated, if the lime 

 does not thaw through, after the loose ground 

 has been removed. The heat so produced is 

 about 100 degrees C, and will therefore not affect 

 stone-paving, which coal and wood fires will do. 



Andromeda Speciosa, This is one of the most 

 showy-fiowered of all the Andromedas. The 

 flowers are pure white in drooping racemes, the 

 individual flowers often measuring one half au 

 inch across. It is a native of North Carolina to 

 the Pine. barrens of Florida and is usually found 

 growing in low swampy ground. This handsome 

 species was introduded into Europe about the 

 year 1800, where ever since it has been much 

 appreciated, and it is much more easy to find 

 plants in European nurseries than in American 

 ones. This shrub is of slow growth, usually 

 flowering at four years from seeds. It requires 

 careful handling during the first year, but after 

 that it is comparatively easy to manage As the 

 fashion of forcing shrubs is growing this would 

 be a plant which, if once introduced, would be 

 much sought after. It flowers about the same 

 time as Dsutzia gracilis, and as all ericaceous 

 plants lift easily when well grown it could be 

 potted in late fall and kept in a cool pit until 

 wanted. By hauling a supply it could be had in 

 bloom from February till June. — Jack Dawson, 

 in Florist. 



Winter Lettuce There is no difficulty at all 

 with this crop, with low houses, heated with hot 

 water or steam. One end of the benches is used 

 for seedbed, from which plants are obtained, 

 and as fast as one crop is cut, the soil is turned 

 over, some manure added, and a new crop put 

 in. At least three crops can be obtained during 

 one winter. They are set quite thick, three or 

 tour inches apart, and grow upright, rather than 

 spreading. All are partially bleaehed by the 

 process, and just as soon as large enough are 

 tender enough and fit for market. A tempera- 

 ture of 55° at night is about right, rising fifteen 

 degrees to twenty degrees during the day. The 

 principal enemy is the green fly. Tobacco stems 

 distributed among the growing plants help a 

 great deal in keeping these down, which, with 

 fumigation regularly once a week, whether any 

 can be seen or not, will do the rest. If green 

 flies once get a firm foot hold, tbey^are difficult to 



get rid of them. In this case an ounce of pre- 

 vention is better than any cure.— PrairieFarmer. 

 Preserving Grape Juice, Those who have what 

 is rare, namul.v, more than the family wants to 

 eat of (Jrapes well-ripene)l, because from vines 

 well-fed, well-pruned, and well-thinned, can pre- 

 serve all the .iuice in sweet condition for years 

 by simply heating it to 140 degrees and sealing 

 close, as in preserving fruit. Thei-e will be no 

 fermentation, if the sealing is secure. Some re- 

 commend the raising of the heat to the boiling 



A CHEAP LEAN-TO GREENHOUSE, 

 point, but it is unnecessary and alters the flavor 

 more; 1.30 degrees really suffices to destroy the 

 germs of fermentation. Some heat the Grapes 

 after stemming and sorting, as it softens the pulp 

 and makes it much easier to press out all the 

 juice. By dipping the bulb of a small thermom- 

 eter, such as is used for cream or soil, into the 

 neck of a bottle while standing in the boiler it 

 can readily be seen when the proper temperature 

 is attained,— N. T. Tribune. 



Crescent and Wilson Strawberries. I seriously 

 doubt whether Jessie, or Sharpless either, will 

 give as much fruit per plant as Crescent and 

 Wilson, and perhaps some others. Our objection 

 to the Crescent is the small size; but a great many 

 of our customers this summer decidedly prefer 

 the small berries to the great large ones, which 

 some say are tasteless. Bubach is certainl.v a 

 massive berry. We have single leaves that would 

 cover a pint bowl, and the berries are monsters. 

 But they are all gone after one or two pickings, 

 while the Crescent, with its great clusters of small 

 berries, still keeps the pickers busy. Sometimes 

 1 think there is no better berry, all things consid- 

 ered, than the old Wilson. Then again I am in- 

 clined to favor Crescent. Finally I decide that 

 no berry patch is complete without half a dozen 

 or, better still, a dozen of the popular kinds.— 

 Gleanings in Bee Culture. 



No Danger in Good Frnit. Some people are 

 afraid to eat fruit, thinking that fruit and 

 diarrhcea are always associated. 'Tis true that 

 fruit eaten green or between meals will interfere 

 with digestion and cause bowel trouble ; but use 

 fruit that is perfectly ripe at mealtime, and only 

 beneficial results will follow. Fruit is a perfect 

 food when fully ripe, and if it were in dail.v use 

 from youth to age there would be less gout, gall- 

 stones and stone in the bladder. There are many, 

 however, who can not eat it, on account either 

 of the acidity of the fruit or the excess of sugar 

 to make it palatable. Sugar does not, counteract 

 acidity ; it only disguises it— Medical Classics. 



Novel Flower Stand. Orange Judd, farmer, 

 gives the plan of a flower stand so arranged that 

 the plants will be hidden from view. Our illus- 

 tration represents a cross section. It is made in 

 the usual manner, plain or fancy, as may be de- 

 sired, only with this difference that upright 

 boards are added which reach just a little above 

 the top of the pot on each shelf. Another little 

 strip is nailed on the top of the upright as shown 

 in illustration. This is for large and medinm- 

 sized plants. For small plants the stand may be 

 slightly altered, bringing the upper part of the 

 pots to view, and hiding only the lower one- half 

 or two-thirds of them. 



Soil for Plants in Pots. The best soil for plants 

 in pots is to be found in well-rotted turf, or at 

 least sufficiently rotted to destroy the life in the 

 roots of the grass, then the coarser the better, as 

 the growing plants wUl consume it as wanted. 

 The provident gardener or amateur will always 

 have a pile of sods in some out-of-the-way place, 

 where it will decay and be ever-ready for potting 

 purposes. Some of the best Rose growers in our 

 country use nothing else for their young Roses, 

 and there can be nothing better; others, in piling 

 up the sods, alternate the layers with stable man- 

 ure. This makes a good compost, but is a con- 

 genial home for worms and grubs which are de- 

 structive to the plants. For the best results use 

 sod only, and make an occasional application of 



