122 



POPULAR GARDENING. 



March, 



Successful Cultural Experiments 

 With Plants. 



MRS. J. S. R. THOMSON, SPARTANBtTRQ CO., S. C. 



One must love their work I believe to sue- 

 ceeil init to any great extent. I have become 

 possessed of many things suited to our soil 

 and climate and others easily cared for in 

 an ordinary greenhouse. I read so much of 

 plants requiring such different soils and 

 treatment in which I do not concur; I agree 

 with Peter Henderson when he states that 

 he uses the same soil and treatment for the 

 general run of plants — exceptions of course 

 there are to the rule — but for the general 

 culturist one may safely rely upon it, that If 

 they succeed with one plant success may be 

 hoped for with others. 



A florist once gave me this rule for making 

 up potting soil: 1 part sand, 3 parts well 

 rotted cow manure, 3 parts garden or vege- 

 table mould, and following these directions 

 I have had marvelous success. While it is 

 not agreed with all that drainage is essen- 

 tial with pot plants yet my best success 

 came from a liberal use of same. 



Liquid manure is one of the right hand 

 measures to a vigorous and thrifty growth 

 of plants; strong enough to color the water 

 and applied regularly once a week the result 

 will astonish you. I have also used, as 

 cleaner and less objectionable, a weak 

 solution of ammonia. 



I think in Geraniums I had my poorest 

 luck; I have read of and occasionally seen 

 plants covered with blooms, but I never had 

 the joy of possessing them. My plants 

 made vigorous growth, but rarely had over 

 three clusters of blooms, sometimes not 

 that. I knew I fed them and tended them 

 faithfully, but no blooms, whiLst my friends, 

 whom in my conceit I thought I could teach 

 how to grow plants, often surpassed 

 me with these. 



I came to learn after a long while that 

 small pots and plants root bound were the 

 best for bloom. I have often bought a 

 Geranium growing in a rusty, dirty Tomato 

 or Peach can and carefully transplanted it 

 into what I considered far better soil and 

 quarters, but which as a rule ceased to be a 

 thing to be desired, though with the scented 

 Geraniums I always succeeded. 



I often wonder at not seeing more written 

 about the Apple-scented Geranium, often 

 incorrectly called the Spice and Nutmeg 

 Geranium, though it bears but a slight 

 semblance in leaf to these. On fine speci- 

 mens the leaves often are as large as in the 

 Zonale section ; in habit the Spice and 

 Nutmeg is of shrubby growth, while the 

 Apple-scented is almost a climber, shall I 

 say, or trailer; yet not really a climber, 

 because it does not cling, but its branches 

 have a viney look, long and slender, with 

 no off shoots. 



Another peculiarity of the Apple Gerani- 

 um is its not growing from cuttings, being 

 propagated from seed alone. The plant 

 throws out leaves and branches directly 

 from the crown root, like a Strawberry. 

 One lady who grows these to perfection 

 once had a plant in an eight inch pot with 

 leaves 4 inches in diameter and having a 

 dozen branches, many three and a half feet 

 long. The odor is delicious. 



Another plant I have succeeded with is 

 the Garland Flower or Butterfly Lily {Hcdy- 

 ei^lm) which is so common in Florida gar- 

 dens. It resembles a dwarf Canna but the 

 flower is a pure waxy white and deliciously 

 fragrant; fresh blooms appear each day in 

 spring from under a sheath-like or burr- 

 shaped head, one plant bearing from twenty 

 to forty flowers before being exhausted. 

 The blooms are wonderfully like a pure 

 white butterfly in full flight. 



This coming season I intend to experiment 

 with two new plants: Freesias in open 

 ground from seed, hoping to prove my 



belief in our climate being adapted to their 

 successful growing. Lately in trying to 

 procure seed of Preesia I wrote to a German 

 seed grower for price per ounce and pound, 

 but when his reply reached me the price was 

 given in German money and I had to ask the 

 grower to give it in American money, but 

 ventured to guess at the price and said to 

 him: "It my guess of .*3..50 per pound is cor- 

 rect send me one pound," but the real price 

 was ^37.50 per pound. I was relieved that 

 the pound was not sent and reduced my 

 order to two ounces. 



The other plant I had never heard of until 

 last season. An article in the Scientific 

 American, which advised Americans to test 

 it in that part of the country south of Penn- 

 sylvania, said that more money was to be 

 made thereby than in growing either Sugar 

 or Tobacco. This plant is the Ambrette or 

 Musk Plant {Hibiscus tiheimoschus) used 

 in perfumery and by tobacconists and has 

 a delicious musky odor. I have received 

 one pound of seed from an importing house 

 in New York, which in a closed box emits a 

 delicate odor; and coming from India re- 

 calls that of Sandal wood. 



Concerning Apple Culture. 



A. P. REED, JJO. BRIDOTON, ME. 



Generally speaking Apple trees are 

 thought to be able to take care of them- 

 selves after they are once in bearing. True 

 the trees can take care of themselves and 

 remain in a paying condition by virtue of 

 their own vitality much better than the Pear, 

 the Peach, or almost anything else, but it 

 is also true that no other tree will better 

 repay for good care and attention. Here in 

 New England, where some of the finest 

 Apples are gi-own, both as to flavor and 

 keeping as well as to appearance, we have 

 the past year exceptionally fine fruit. 



This should encourage our farmers to push 

 the Apple as a foremost crop. Notwith- 

 standing the past favorable crop it is still 

 true that more care and attention bestowed 

 upon trees, more fertilizing and removing of 

 dead and decaying wood, would cause the 

 Apple crop to average better both as to 

 quality and quantity. In fact the possibili- 

 ties of this little .spot called New England in 

 Apple culture can hardly be estimated, under 

 proper care, and the same is probably true of 

 some other sections of our land. And at 

 the lowest figures there is always a paying 

 demand for Apples. 



A Convenient Hot-bed Frame. 



M. B. NEWBERnI" ONTARIO CO., N. Y. 



Useful as the hot-bed frame may be dur- 

 ing the spring, it is not only of no use for 

 the greater part of the year, but as ordi- 

 narily made and managed, it often becomes 

 a perfect weed breeder. 



Now I am speaking of the frame as ordin- 

 arily made, but I have in use one that over- 

 comes the evil referred to and has advantages 

 besides. It is a cross between the ordinary 

 frame and a wagon box, the peculiar fea- 

 tures being that it can be taken apart and 

 laid away compactly in the dry when not in 

 use. The parts, excepting the cross slats, 

 are held in place by rods at each end like a 

 common wagon. The end pieces fit between 

 slats on the side sections as shown in 

 the sketch. 



The cross bars are fastened with screws 

 to steady the frame and keep themselves in 

 place, and a stake is driven down against 

 the sides to keep the frame from spreading. 

 After the sejison is over I unfasten the ends, 

 take off the bars, and having the pieces of 

 each frame similarly marked, I pile them 

 together neatly, and use the ground for late 

 crops, while my frames last nearly twice as 

 long as the other kind. 



About Stachys (or Crones) and 

 Dandelions. 



JOHN F. RUFF, CUMBERLAND CO., PA. 



The peculiar vegetable Stachys tuberifera 

 (commonly called Crones, from the French 

 town of Crones, where it was first culti- 

 vated), recently introduced from Japan, 

 proves to be a meritorious novelty in the 

 way of garden products, and is a new de- 

 parture in the manner of growth of the 

 species. The plants grow in globular form 

 about one foot in height, having medium 

 sized, oval leaves, and small pink flowers. 

 The tubers, which are the edible part, are 

 produced in such an abundance as to be 



Tubers of the Stachys or Crones; JSdibte. 



truly wonderful, as many as 300 having been 

 grown from a single tuber in one season. 



They average about two inches in length 

 by one-half inch in thickness, grovring in 

 shape of a series of circular ridges which 

 give them an appearance of large caterpil- 

 lars or worms. 



Their uses, and best modes of preparation 

 for the table are not yet known. We find 

 by mashing them and preparing as we do 

 Egg Plants, that they closely resemble the 

 latter; having that pleasant, spicy charac- 

 teristic flavor, and as they are as easily kept 

 as Potatoes, it is a real treat to have this very 

 good substitute in the winter. They are 

 also good when fried or roasted. As they 

 have been cultivated in this country but 

 one season, their real value is not, as yet, 

 fully determined. 



Dandelion Culture. I refer to the im- 

 proved varieties, which show but little re- 

 semblance to the wild forms. We have 

 grown it for quite a long while and would 

 not do without it since learning its value for 

 an early spring and summer greens. Plants 

 have been grown measuring 30 inches in 

 diameter, having tender and crisp leaves 

 which, when prepared for the table were 

 equal to the best Endive. 



If planted in good soil the plants can re- 

 main from year to year, and will produce 

 two profuse crops of leaves each spring, if 

 cut closely at the first cutting. It may also 

 be tied and blanched like Endive. A small 

 bed of it should be in every garden, as it is 

 considered most healthful. 



1.117. Potato Orowing. This question the 

 farmers of New England have been for years 

 trying to solve; my fa\orites in Potatoes are : 

 Early Beauty of Hebron, Early Rose, Clark's No. 

 1, and Pearl of Savo.v. Early Rose are good 

 enough for anyone.— M. B. F. 



1.118. Some Good House Plants. X.T.Z. should 

 be able to have a very nice window of plants 

 with " plenty of sun and no furnace heat." No 

 better plants for a window can be selected than 

 Geraniums, Fuschias, and English 1%'ies; of 

 course there is a long li&t of plants that will 

 succeed well in windows but the above named 

 are probably the best to begin with.— M. B. F. 



1.119. Watering Plants. Plants as a rule 

 should be watered when comparatively dry and 

 then watered thoroughly. When the soil be- 

 comes dry which may be known by the appear- 

 ance of the surface and sides of the pot, water 

 should be applied until it begins to run into the 

 saucer. No more water should be given until 

 it again becomes dry, or nearly so,— which will 

 depend upon the dryness of the atmosphere, 

 the amount of soil in the pots and the loliage 

 upon the plant— when water should be used as 

 before ; the true principle being to keep the soil 

 as nearly as possible in the same condition as for 

 the best growth in the outdoor garden. More 

 plants are injured by over-watering than tinder- 

 watering, yet plants should not be allowed to get 

 so dry as to wilt. Pots should be washed as often 

 as mould or fungus growth appears, to allow 

 evaporation and a free access ot air.— M. B. F. 



