1889. 



POPULAR GARDENING. 



287 



break off the tendei' young roots when they begin 

 to form. lu the bottom of the pot put a layer 

 of moss, pressing this down firmly, then add suffi- 

 cientsandy soil to fill the pot as far as the incision. 

 In close contact with the latter put pounded 

 charcoal and sand, but fill up the remainder of 

 the space with soil. For the fii'st few weeks the 

 soil mnst be kept just moist. In about six weeks 

 roots will have formed, and then should begin 

 the work of gradually severing the upper part 

 from the lower. It is best to cut a small notch in 

 the stem .iust below the suspended pot, making a 

 similar (jne at intervals of three days luitil a cir- 

 cle round the stem is completed, then sever it al- 

 toyelher, remove the stakes, wire, and sawn pot 

 carefully, and put the new roots and soil intact 

 in fresh soil in a five-inch pot. Sprinkle the foli- 

 age, and shade from the sun for a day or two, 

 and all will be right.— Amateur Gardening. 



Salphuric Acid on Lawns. Sulphuric acid is 

 often strongly recommended for destroying 

 Plantains and Dandelions on lawns. I have often 

 used it and found it very effectual. Take a large- 

 mouthed quart bottle and fill it about half full 

 of sulphuric acid; tie a piece of strong etring 

 securely round the top, attaching a piece of 

 wood to carry it by. Then take an iron skewer 

 about 15 inches or 18 inches long, and run It 

 through a round fiat piece of wood or a large 

 cork at a convenient distance from the top to 

 act as a guard for the hand ; dip the skewer into 

 the acid, and »>iei-ce the centre of the weed it is 

 intended to destroy. Great care must be taken, 

 as it is very dangerous stuff, and should never 

 be left about or in the way of children, but 

 always kept under lock and key when not in use. 

 It would be wise on the part of the operator to 

 put on some old clothes ( boots especially ), as the 

 least drop will quickly burn a hole in them. The 

 acid shim Id not be put into watering pots or 

 metal implements of any description, as it 

 quickly corrodes. It is not necessary to dilute 

 the acid with water, as a small quantity goes a 

 long way, and the stronger, the more effectual 

 is its action. In fact, it would be better not to 

 attempt its use unless the operat<:)r fully luider- 

 stands what he is about. When sulphuric acid 

 is mi.xed with water, violent action takes place, 

 and great heat is evolved, the temperature 

 reaching above boiling point, and should any get 

 into the eyes or on the face blindness or disfig- 

 urement would probably be the result. If it be 

 mi.xed, water should never be poured on to the 

 acid, but the acid mixed gently with the water 

 keeping itstirred all the time.—OanlcningWdrhl. 



Huckleberries, in New Jersey, the fii-st to 

 ripen are those gi'own on the uplands, known 



STEM PROPAGATION OF DRAC/ENAS. 



as Blueberry. They are medium in size and very 

 sweet The next to ripen are those known as 

 " Swamps,'' large, slightly acid, yet delicious to 

 eat, and of a dark blue in color. They are very 

 tender, but bear transportation when placed in 

 small i»ackages, say the quart l)eiTy baskets. 

 While the blue variety grows on bushes ranging 

 two feet high, the " Swamps" frc(iucntly grow 

 to the height of ten feet. "Cracker," is not a 

 favQiite, being quite acid and on account of 

 the seeds hard to chew. They are black, bear 



carrying well, and make good pies. Another 

 variety is know as the " Dangle " berry. Many 

 of them cling to the stems so closel.v that the 

 stem is picked with the berry. These are as 

 large as the "Swamps," about as tart as the 

 "Cracker," and possess a liright blue skin. The 

 variety called by the natives " Shiny lilacks " is 

 firm and tart, poor fruit for the table but good 

 for cooking. .Vnother known as the "Hog" berry 

 is a large brown fruit, but possesses no tlavor 

 and is not marketeil. ('ommonly called Huckle- 

 berry, but I think the correct name is Myrtle- 

 berry.— C. W. Idell, in Farm and Fireside. 



A Lasting Grape Trellis, A correspondent of 

 Orange Judd Farmer speaks in favor of the trellis 

 here illustrated. The part of the braces and 

 posts buried in the earth is joined to the upi>er 

 portion by mortise and tenon. By this arrange- 

 ment, when the buried portion decays it can be 

 renewed easily without loss of that part which is 

 yet in a state of preservation, and which will last 

 a lifetime, if painted. Posts and braces are joined 

 in a similar manner at the top, being held in their 

 respective places both above and below by loose 

 fitting pins, which permit to their easy withdraw- 

 al. By removing the side braces the trellis can 

 be laid down on its side, permitting the vine to 

 be covered for the winter, if protection is neces- 

 sary. I use Hemlock for posts and braces, but 

 more durable timber below the soil. Posts are 

 4x4 inch, and (i feet long. Side braces are 2x4, 

 and 4 feet long, while the longer brace is 2.x4, and 

 S feet in length. I do not brace the central posts, 

 except by the small ones shown in the drawing, 

 as my rows are short, and the long ones are only 

 needed at the end. But for field culture I advise 

 bracing every post in the direction of the rows, 

 for if bi'aced in all directions, not neai' so many 

 posts are needed. 



Where Cauliflowers are Grown. It is not gen- 

 erally known that nearly eight-tenths of all the 

 Cauliflowers which come to this market are grown 

 within a belt of about 30 miles on Long Island. 

 From Southoldto Hiverhead almost everj' farmer 

 is devoted to their culture, the climate and soil 

 being particularly adapted to their development. 

 This year the product was much more than suffi- 

 cient to supply the demands of the cities; so little 

 houses were erected near the railway stations and 

 scores of chore boys were set to work cutting up 

 theflowers and pickhngthem. A somewhat sing- 

 ular incident in the growing of this plant is that 

 in no other locality on Long Island, or for that 

 matter in the New England or Middle States, have 

 the farmers met with any success in its perfect 

 production. The result is that Suffolk county 

 has amonopoly of Cauliflower, which gives an in- 

 come of nearly $200,000 a year.— Hartford Times. 



Grape Vine Bark Louse, The brown, hemis- 

 pherical scales of this insect are found during 

 the month of June on the branches of the Grape 

 Nine, with a white, cottony substance protruding 

 from one end. By the first part of July these 

 cottony masses, which contain the eggs of the 

 insect, have attained their full size. Soon the 

 minute young, oval and slightly yellowish lice 

 issue from it, and, scattering over the branches 

 select places were they attach themselves per- 

 manently and suck the juice from the plant. 

 Very fortunately, they are not usually very 

 abundant, and, according to Sanders, may be 

 scraped off with a knife or other suitable instru- 

 ment before the young lice escape. Perhaps a 

 quicker and more effectual way would be to use 

 a sponge or brush and strong soap-suds; this 

 would kill the young lice, if tBey had made their 

 appearance.— Prairie Farmer. 



Gold Banded Lily. I regret to name Lilium 

 auratum as one not suited for general cultiva- 

 tion. The first season after planting it is a glorious 

 addition to any flower garden, but each year 

 thereafter, like the Hyacinth, it gradually de- 

 creases in size and effectiveness, until it ceases to 

 live. I have had this Lily succeed satisfactorily 

 two or three years and then mysteriously pass 

 away without any apparent cause. Lilies are all 

 fond of deep, light, moderately rich soil, with 

 perfect drainage, and should have a fair amount 

 of sand incorporated with it. Do not set the 

 bulbs too deep; three or fourinches wdl be sulfic- 

 ient, and in all cases place a handful of sand 

 under each. Set in early autumn and midch 

 lightly with some light material— sphagnum 

 moss is as good its anything. When growing 

 never neglect t<t stake the stems securelj-.-N. Y.T. 



Extending the Strawberry Season. Straw- 

 lierries can be made a week or ten days later by 

 mulching quite hea\ily, and leaving the mulch 

 on until late in the spring This will enable the 

 farmer to prolong the season of fruit if he wil 



imcover a part of his bed early, and the remain- 

 der ten days or so later. This plan will enable 

 you to have berries on the table Just about a 

 month. I believe it to be best to plant in rows 

 four feet apart, and form a matted row about 

 eighteen inches wide, and leave the rest of the 

 land bare of plants. In covering forwinter pro- 

 tection, cover the rows ipiite heavil.v and then 

 in the spring, before uncovering the rows, work 

 the space between deep and mellow, and move 

 the covering from the rows on to this mellow 



A PERMANENT GRAPE TRELLIS. 



strip. If there is not enough of this mulch to 

 keep the fruit clean, you can add to the mulch 

 in spring.— Cor. in Country Gentleman. 



Pinching Pansies. I pinched off the ends of 

 all my Pansies. This induced other branches to 

 start, and these were pinched off when they had 

 grown a few inches. In tins way I had some 

 compact little plants rather than the usual 

 slender, sprawling specimens. I think this treat- 

 ment would be of benefit to the Pansy luidcr any 

 circumstances, and I shall practice the pinching 

 system the coming season. It is a characteristic 

 of this most charming flower to send out but 

 few branches, and these are so slender, as a 

 general thing, that they are easily broken. If 

 the plants will adapt itself to pinching, as I think 

 it will, during its summer growth, I do not see 

 why we may not have bushy, compact plants, 

 with more flowers from them than we usually 

 get from plants allowed to grow to suit thera- 

 selves.— Vick's Magazine. 



Heuchera Sanguinea. This plant, now in bloom 

 justifies all that has already been written and 

 said in its favor. The flowei-s are borne on long, 

 slender stems and are of a bright coral red. The 

 foliage is handsome also, being mottled with 

 brown. The plants from seed vary considerably 

 in this respect. Our plants are twelve months 

 old from seed, but we find that side shoots are 

 freely produced, and these root readily and soon 

 form nice plants. It would be interesting to 

 know if any one has tested the plant as to its 

 hardiness in the eastern states, it being a native 

 of Mexico. It will probably prove tender, hut 

 even if this is so, the plant has the value of pro- 

 ducing flowers in winter when ]iotted and placed 

 in a warm house where a temperature of about 

 .50° can be maintained.— E. Orput in G. and F. 



Care of Fruit Pays. The men who succeed 

 best, obtain the best prices, and who receive 

 returns every year, and those that take the best 

 care of their trees and the crops which grow on 

 them. They do not shake off' their fruit in gath- 

 ering, nor allow it to become small and wormj-. 

 They treat their orchards as well as they do their 

 Corn and Potatoes— manure them as freely, cul- 

 tivate them as carefully. They do not allow 

 Apples to become small and scabby from over- 

 bearing, any sooner than they would allow a 

 field of Corn to fail by planting three times too 

 thick. Poor Pears can hardly be sold for fifty 

 cents a bushel; the best, put up in the best con- 

 dition, often brings from three to five dollars, if 

 marketed at the proper season. — C. Gentlemen. 



Planting Strawberries in Fall, The first 

 early Strawberries come from plants two or more 

 years old; hence it is often well to have an old 

 patch somewhere to furnish the first family 

 supply. But of cour.se the largest and finest 

 come from the new bed of younger aitd more 

 thrift.v plants. Very early spring is the best 

 time in the whole year f<ir Strawberry planting; 

 but, if it was neglected then and you want ber- 

 ries the next .\ ear in Jiuie, you may have them 

 by planting very earl,^■ in .\ngust. But don't fool 

 yourself into thinking that they may be planted 

 at any time in the fall and then fruit to any ex- 

 tent the next June. They will not do it — J. H. 

 Hale, in Ohio P'armer. 



Keeping Grapes. Mr. Roc says that few of the 

 early sorts will last long, but that some of the 



