1890. 



POPULAR GARDENING. 



215 



aud refreshes the jilants after a hot day. 

 Insects are sometimes troublesome at this 

 season, renderini; a sharper outlook neces- 

 sary, and tlie applying of i)rompt measures 

 to secure (juick eradication, which is easily 

 done if time is taken hy the forelock, pro- 

 crastination being not tolerated, (ireen and 

 black tly are easily got rid of by dusting 

 the parts affected with Tobacco powder; 

 niiUlew by the use of flowers of sulphur 

 sprinkle<l on the alfected parts twice— if 

 once is not enough. A small grub which is 

 secreted between the two skins of the leaves, 

 burrowing away until the 

 leaves are so distignred in ap- 

 pearance that their complete 

 removal is requisite can only 

 be hand-picked. The leaves 

 nearest the soil are those gener- 

 ally tirst attacked, and if not 

 at once checked, the whole 

 stem for two feet upwards is 

 quickly destroyed in appear- 

 ance by the loss of foliage. 



blossoming is much prolonged. When an- 

 nuals are well cared for, they are not the 

 weedy things too often seen. 



Fuchsias in Summer. 



.V Fuchsia in perfection is always attrac- 

 tractive, yet really good specimens are 

 comparatively rare. No stunted, starved 

 Fuchsia will ever give satisfaction, and un- 

 less the plant is given rich soil, sufficient 

 moisture and partial sunshine, it would not 

 pay to grow it. 



To those, who have seen noble specimens 



The Season of Annual 

 Flowers. 



One might suppose from the 

 excessive use of bedding plants 

 in all town gardens, that f\\' 

 annual flowers were in bad 

 repute, with most cultivators, 

 not to say that hardy perenni- 

 als were lightly esteemed. The 

 writer of this, last season met 

 a garden almost wholly depen- 

 dent upon annuals for bloom, 

 and which was indeed a charm- 

 ing place. 



All around the large house 

 and cut into grass was a border 

 about live feet wide, and which 

 was allowed to come up to the 

 main windows. Here on the 

 walls were trained somewhat 

 loosely, Roses, Honeysuckles, 

 Clematis, and Cobiea, which 

 form a very telling background. 

 The border was filled with 

 Dwarf Roses, Pinks, Carna- 

 tions,and a very pretty arrange- 

 ment of annuals. The latter 

 were sown in spring, and well 

 thinned out, so that each plant 

 had sufficient space to show its 

 true character. 



The groups were not of one 

 size, nor was there any plan or 

 method in their arrangement, nor yet was 

 any pinching or picking to make any partic- 

 ular group fit into any particular place ; but 

 the whole group was free, graceful, and 

 natural, and the border compared most 

 favorably with any arrangement of bed- 

 ding plants. In no other way could so much 

 variety in color be obtained, and the colors 

 were so soft and pleasing, and there was .so 

 much grace in free and unfettered growth. 



Among the annuals used were, Phlox 

 Drummondi, Petunias, Asters, Balsams, 

 Linum grandiflorum rubrum. Blue Corn- 

 flowers, Yellow Escholtzias, Dwarf 

 French Poppies (both single and double in 

 many colors). Mignonette, Love-in-a-mist 

 (Nigella hispanica), Calliopsis tinctoria, sev- 

 eral varieties of annual Chrysanthemums, 

 Clarkia elegans rosea, Clintonia elegans 

 (blue). Agrostemma coeli rosea, Brachyconie 

 iberidiflora, Cacaliacoccinea (Tassel Flower) 

 Marigold (Meteor), Candytufts in various 

 colors, Collinsia bicolor, Godetias in sev- 

 eral varieties, Kaulfussia amelloides (blue), 

 Leptosiphon in variety. Nasturtium (Tom 

 Thumb) in variety, Nemophila insignis, 

 Sweet Peas, Sanvitalia procumbens flore- 

 pleno. Dwarf German Scabiosa, etc. 



When each plant has room to get strong, 

 it has a greater length of life, and if, in ad- 

 dition, the seeds are picked ofi, the season of 



AMARYLLIS, ONE OF THE LIGHT TYPES. 



growing as high as eight feet, and loaded 

 with handsome foliage and flowers, says our 

 correspondent, W'. F. Lake, in Country 

 Gentlemen, no word is needed to convince 

 them that they are worth the extra care 

 necessary to attain this size, being far su- 

 perior to smaller plants. 



In growing these large specimens, cut- 

 tings, which should be rather short shoots, 

 may be taken off at the end of August or 

 early in .September, and as soon as they 

 have formed roots, should be potted at first 

 in pots not over three inches in diameter, 

 placing them in rather a warm position for 

 a time. When the plants have nearly filled 

 the pots with roots, shift, using the next 

 size larger. The main cause of "scrubby" 

 Fuchsias, is allowing them to become pot- 

 bound in the early period of their growth, 

 and at no time, until bloom is desired should 

 the roots be allowed to become pot-bound. 



As summer-bedding plants in a shady lo- 

 cation, Fuchsias possess strong merits. If 

 the soil be light and rich they will make 

 surprisingly vigorous growth, and, as in the 

 case of all bedding plants, the foliage and 

 flowers will be decidedly improved in color 

 and substance. 



Care should be taken that the plants are 

 not exposed to strong winds, as the fragile 

 flowers are easily Injured and the buds 



knocked off, or whipped about so they will 

 be ragged or torn, if those left are open. 



Watering in the dry sea.son should not be 

 overlooked, and should be applied in a thor- 

 ough manner, soaking ground clear to 

 bottom of roots. 



As to the matter of the best varieties for 

 summer bloom, one can hardly go amiss in 

 selecting the most beautiful ones, if the 

 plant is of a strong-growing habit, this 

 being the main thing to look for. unless one 

 is well versed in plant lore. 

 A very interesting sort is F. fnhiins, 

 which is a bulbous variety, dies 

 down in the fall, and has a 

 tuber which may be wintered 

 as we keep Gladioli and 

 Dahlias. The flowers are pro- 

 duced in panicles and are very 

 slender, and from one to four 

 inches long. This variety is 

 started early in pots, and 

 afterward set in open ground, 

 comes into bloom at a time 

 when there is usually a scarcity 

 of flowers in the garden, and 

 never falls to attract attention 

 from its peculiar shape of 

 flowers. 



Considerable interest may be 

 derived in growing the Fuchsia 

 from seed, and watching the 

 different characteristics of the 

 plant as they come into flower, 

 and in fact, during the whole 

 period of their growth. Very 

 good varieties may be secured 

 from seeds taken from the 

 fruit-like balls on your own 

 plants, which will follow if the 

 flowers are not picked off, the 

 seed being found inside of the 

 reddish purple fruit. This 

 should be sown in boxes in 

 heat and the seedlings pricked 

 into thumb-pots, after they 

 have formed the second pair of 

 leaves. If kept growing, will 

 usually flower the first season. 

 When Fuchsias are forced 

 for winter they seldom amount 

 to anything the following 

 summer, unless taken from the 

 pots after they have finished, 

 all the soil shaken off and 

 replaced again in smaller pots 

 in a rich soil and watered spar- 

 ingly until well started again. 

 Treated in this way, they will usually 

 flower again in late summer or early fall, 

 sometimes continuing up till winter very 

 profusely. 



1,782. Pruning the Pear for Frnit. The Pear, 

 if a young tree, may be rendered fruitful by root 

 pruning at the proper season. All long shoots 

 that grow during the coming summer should be 

 shortened at the end of July to about fl\e leaves, 

 at the winter pruning tbey should be further cut 

 back to about three inches: tlii.'. will aid in the 

 formation of fruit spui-s. It the trees are in 

 orchard, the only pruning that should be at- 

 tempted is that of keeping the head open so as 

 tu allow of the free passage of the sunlight, for 

 tlif trees will produce fruit when they have at- 

 tained a suitable age. Old trees are often cut 

 back so as to encourage new growth, which in 

 its turn brings increased fruitf ulness. To cut 

 liack any tree that is iu healthy growth means a 

 more vigorous growth still the following season. 

 — W. H. Smith, La. 



1,78.3. Eucharie Amazonica. This is a stove 

 plant, and to enable it to [iroduee its flowers, a 

 temperature of about 80° during the day and 75° 

 during the night is required, with an abundance 

 of moisture both at the roots and in the atmos- 

 phere. A temperature of not less than f)H° is re- 

 quired to keep it during the winter. After it 

 has flowered and the leaves aie perfected, water 

 may lie ^withheld until the leaves Bag, when it 

 should receive a watering, and this treatment 

 -lionlri be given for a month or six weeks. Once 

 in threeyears is often enough to repot.— W. H. 

 Smith, La. 



