242 



POPULAR GARDENING. 



July, 



1,270. Boses not Blooming. You rlo not say 

 whether your Roses are in pots or not, but pre- 

 sumably in either case they need more nourish- 

 ment. Fine ground bone worked into the soil 

 liffhtly is as good as anything. Do you cut them 

 back sufficiently V—M. Tl. F. 



1.371. nnsatiafactoTy Grape Vines. I am not 

 acqiiaint«d with the Ives, but the true Concord 

 certainly out to ripen with you as even in North- 

 ern Vermont it ripens perfectly nearly every sea- 

 son Give the new growth a good cutting back 

 in .July. It can do no harm. Possibly your vines 

 are not true to name — M. B. F. 



1.372. Grapes on Walls. If on the North or 

 South sides of a farm would be an advantage, 

 but if the opposite in ordinary locations they 

 would succeed just as well without. — M. B. F. 



1.274. Tree Faeony. Temple & Beard, Shady 

 Hill Nurseries, Cambridge, Mass., make a spec- 

 ialty of this class of plants. A postal card will 

 bring catalogue. 



1.275. Strawberry for Amateur. On light soil 

 try Chas. Downing or Cmnherland Triumph, on 

 high rich soil Jucinula or Black Defiance.— M. 

 B. F. 



1.276. Well Sotted Sawdust. Unless thor- 

 oughly decomposed, don't use it. It is a cold 

 sour nature, and will breed ants both large and 

 small by the million.— M. B, F. 



l,2()(t. Strawberry Seedlings. Patience is a 

 prime rerjuisite in raising seedling Strawberries. 

 The best plan is to save the best^shaped well- 

 ripened berries Take some clean sharp sand 

 and squeeze the berries into it, working the ber- 

 ries up so as to separate the seed from the pulp. 

 After this is thortnJvrhl>' done, set aside until the 

 whole is dry. About tlir middle of July select a 

 partially slmdcd Incatioii where the soilis a light 

 friable loam if I'ossihle, srattcr tlu-scr<l and sand 

 as evenly a.-? possible o\-er the surface, an<l cover 

 to the depth of one half inch by sifting light soil 

 or a mi.xture of sand and leaf mold over the top. 

 Firm the soil thoroughly by "patting" down 

 with the back of a spa«h* or with a board Keep 

 the surface e\cniy moist, not wet The seed- 

 lings should make their appearance in about two 

 weeks and by the close of the season if every- 

 thing is favorable, will be from two to three 

 inches high. Upon the arrival of the first light 

 snow cover to the depth of an inch with straw or 

 better still if available some evergreen boughs. 

 If the plants are not too thick they may remain 

 m the seed bed the following season but when- 

 ever transplanted all that is necessary is to treat 

 the same as old jilants. The character of the 

 different varieties cannot bedeflnitely determin- 

 ed under four or five 5'ears, though some fruit 

 will be produced the third year. Many of the 

 seedlings will closely resemble the parent plant 

 while others will be \-ery different.— M. B. Faxon. 



1,279. Ants on Strawberry Plants. If your 

 bed is not too large, use a strong Tobacco water 

 decoction pouring it in and about their burrows, 

 if the plantation is large, of course, this would 

 be too troublesome a method — M. B . F. 



1,2.10. Forcing Strawberries, I have yet to 

 hear of any one who has made a great success of 

 forcing strawberries The secret of the whole 

 thing is that the plants need rest. I e.\periment- 

 ed in a smll way a few years ago with the Bid- 

 well and Jas ^ ick The latter did the best I 

 took layer plants rooted in "thumbs" and after- 

 . wards potted in four and then in six inch pots, 

 Rich soil was used with a liberal amount of com- 

 post sn with plenty of moisture the plants made 

 a vigorniis growth As freezing weather came 

 on the>- w(.Tc removed to a frame but were given 

 plenty of air through the winter. About March 

 1st they were phu-cd in light heatand afterwards 

 into a warm bcil. I raised quite a oroj) of fine 

 looking berries though they were lacking in fla- 

 vor. I do not know how well they might have 

 done if grown in a house but I would not advise 

 any one to place too high hopes on the results.— 

 M. B. Faxon. 



The Culture of Chinese Primroses. 



JOHN F. RUrr, CUMBERLAND CO., PA. 



Tlie Cliinese Primroses stand without a 

 rival amongst the winter-bloom iug plants 

 for easy culture, profusion of ijloom and 

 great variety and beauty of flowers. Their 

 improvement durhig the past few years has 

 made them universal favorites for house 

 culture, so much so, that nearly every florist 

 makes stire to have a good supply of them 

 for his fall trade. The plants are always free 

 of insect enemies, and require but ordinary 

 care to have them produce an abundance of 

 large and highly colored flowers. 



The colors range from pure white to the 

 most beautiful crimson-maroon, while there 

 are also striped varieties. The flowers, when 

 well-grown, are very large and showy, meas- 

 uring oue-and-a-half to two inches in diame- 

 ter, borne upon tall stems, making them 

 conspicuous above the foliage. They will 

 well repay all the care bestowed upou them 

 by continual blooming the entire winter. 



In order to obtain the best results in their 

 culture the most important factors are good 

 seed and suitable soil. The soil should be 

 prepared several months previous to the 

 time when wanted for use. Woods mold, 

 well decayed sod, and a liberal amount of 

 well-rotted stable manure will make a good 

 compost. For use it should be finely sif- 

 ted, and a small quantity of sand added. 



The most suitable time for sowing the 



DOUBLE CHINESE PRIMROSE. 



seed is in July, the plants then commence 

 to bloom about the beginning of December, 

 and continue in perfect flower until spring. 

 If started earlier the flowers will not be so 

 fine during the winter, when they would be 

 most appreciated. Sow in shallow boxes or 

 pans, filled about two inchesdeep withearth. 

 Sow thinly, press with the bottom of a small 

 flower pot and cover evenly with soil one- 

 sixteenth of an inch, smooth off and press 

 again rather firmly, cover lightly with moss 

 or blades of grass to keep the soil from dry- 

 ing out, then dampen it. Keep the pans or 

 bo.xes in some shaded and dry place where 

 the wind cannot reach them. Do not give 

 much water, only enough to keep the soil 

 damp. As soon as the plants make their 

 appearance the covering should be carefully 

 removed, and the boxes kept in a well-aired 

 place where there is plenty of light, but not 

 in the sun. The greatest trouble in Primrose 

 growing is the damping off of the young 

 plants while yet in the seed boxes. This can 

 easily be overcome by giving plenty of air 

 and light. After being transplanted the 

 trouble will be over. 



When the plants are of sufficient size and 

 have made some fibrous roots, they should 

 be planted into small pots, the smallest that 

 can be had, using sifted soil as described, 

 then give a pretty thorough watering and 

 shade for a few days, afterwards setting 

 them in as light and cool a place as can be 

 found, keeping the soil moderately moist. 

 In all stages of growth an over-supply of 

 water should be avoided; it being better to 

 allow soil to become quite dry occasionally. 

 When the pots become filled with roots the 

 plants should be shifted into three-inch pots, 

 and treated as when in small pots. As soon 

 as these pots are well packed with roots, 

 when the lower leaves begin to turn yellow, 

 they must be put into larger pots; the lower 

 leaves should be cut off and the plants set a 

 little deeper than they were before. Use 

 four-inch pots for this planting. Should they 

 require another repotting use larger sized 



pots as most suitable to the size of the plants. 

 They must be kept in vigorous growth to 

 bring the flowers to the largest size and 

 greatest beauty. A small quantity of good 

 fertilizer mixed with the soil when repotting 

 will prove beneficial. 



About the time the flower buds appear the 

 plants should be set where wanted when in 

 bloom, they then become adopted to the 

 place, and will do better than if changed 

 while blooming. When set in a window 

 they should be placed near the glass to have 

 a good share of light and a cool place. If 

 lightly shaded the flowers will be larger 

 and of brighter colors than when kept under 

 the full rays of the sun. 



When it is desired to keep Primroses over 

 the summer, put them in a frame or under 

 a tree. They will need very little attention 

 during the summer. About the first of 

 September take them out of the pots, cut off 

 nearly all the roots and leaves, plant into 

 smaller pots and start to growing. When 

 they have made good growth shift into 

 larger pots. Though they generally give 

 satisfaction they seldom produce flowers as 

 fine as those on young plants. 



Lawn Trees for Kansas. 



J. ALBERT SMITH. LINCOLN CO.. KANS. 



Why do so many of the catalogxtes recom- 

 mend Catalpa and Russian Mulberry as 

 lawn and shade trees ? These trees are ad- 

 mirably adapted to withstand the extremes 

 of heat, drouth, and cold, and cannot be too 

 highly recommended for timber claims and 

 forest culttire. But when used for this pur- 

 pose they should be planted about fotxr feet 

 apart, and afterward thinned out as they 

 begin to crowd each other for room ; in this 

 way they trim themselves and form better 

 heads higher from the ground than they 

 would otherwise. The Mulberry on a lawn, 

 as a single specimen, sprawls out and 

 sprouts from the base of the main stem, and 

 presents very few attractive features. The 

 Catalpa is a little better for a shade tree, but 

 requires careful training, aiul even then is 

 not nearly so good as the Soft Maple, White 

 Elm or Black Locust. Its leaves are large, 

 the branches coarse and not very numerous, 

 and the amotmt of shade it casts is not 

 worth mentioning. 



In this country, where the prairie soil is 

 naturally rich in plant food, it is a mistake 

 to add barnyard manure for evergreens. 

 Such a course generally insures the tree's 

 death. The soil should be clean and mellow, 

 and free from manure. The Red Cedar 

 proves to be the hardiest evergreen with us, 

 the Scotch Pine acting second. I am grow- 

 ing a Colorado Blue Spruce, and it promises 



Si7iale Chinese Primrose 

 well. I begin to think it may be the best 

 evergreen for a dry, arid climate. The pres- 

 ent high price asked for it places it beyond 

 the reach of the average planter. Don't 

 recommend Norway Spruce and Arbor Vitae 

 for Western Kansas ; they are invariable 

 failures even here, and we are in the central 

 portion of the State. 



