82 



POPULAR GARDENING. 



February, 



tion afforded during the freezing and thawing time 

 of weather in the spring 



213. Cutting back Fuchsias, etc. In all such 

 cases as " E. A. B." enquires about the plant 

 should be cut back first and allowed to throw out 

 shoots and show signs of active growth before 

 being repotted, the reason being that when a plant 

 is cut back it receives a check, and if before it has 

 recovered itself it receives another check from repot- 

 ting, it might prove fatal. First cut the plants back 

 as much as necessary, and then, when they have 

 well sprouted, repot in sweet soil, and they will be 

 very much benefited by the change.— W. C. Cowley. 



^U. Raspberry Cane-blight . The diseased 

 Raspberry cane has received my attention. It ex- 

 hibits no trace of insect work but it is a good 

 example of the Raspberry cane-blight, a disease 

 which is not at all well understood. It may be 

 caused by an undescribed fungus of the genus 

 Phyllosticta, which is always present. In this state 

 of uncertainty I can recommend definitely no good 

 remedy beyond careful pruning and burning of the 

 infested canes.— C. V. Riley, Entomologist U. S. 

 Agricultural Department. 



320. Celery Culture. (A) As soon as dry enough 

 to work— say April 15. (B) Celery is hardy enough 

 to withstand any frost that will come. (C) Sow as 

 near as possible so that they would come at 1-16 inch 

 apart, and thin out to 1-2 inch or so. (D) Nothing 

 would be gained by such a com'se. (E) If boards 

 are used at all, they should be placed against the 

 plants about September 1st, according to the season. 

 The time of blanching will take from 3 to tj weeks. 

 Peter Henderson. 



187. Red Spider on Window Plants. If a light 

 showering every day wiU not keep down Red Spider, 

 it is because the air'is kept to warm. B. B., Hickory 

 Corners^ Mich. 



234. Pruning Vines in Grapery. Do not leave 

 the pruning until the vines show the bunches, as 

 you propose, or you will make nsatters worse. They 

 should be pruned at once. Prune back to within 

 two eyes of last season's grc)wth, and to make sure 

 do not disbud them until the bunches show. If the 

 two eyes break and the lowest one shows a good 

 bimch. rub off the upper shoot altogether. You 

 should get some practical gardener to show how to 

 prune and disbud them. A. H. E. 



218. Gladioli from Seeds. If you will sow the 

 seeds of G. gaudavensis thinly in 7-inch pots about 

 the first week in April, and plunge the pots in a gen- 

 tle hot-bed, the plants will appear in about two 

 weeks. As they increase in strength, admit more 

 air than at first, until by the end of May they may 

 be placed in a cold frame. About the end of Octo- 

 ber the young plants will have completed their 

 growth, when water must be entirely withheld. 

 Turn the bulbs out in November; they will be from 

 the size of Peas to that of an ordinary Filbert. They 

 should be kept in dry sand and be planted out early 

 in March. Most of them will produce strong flower- 

 ing spikes the same season. I have had no experi- 

 ence in raising G. brenchleyensis from seeds; it is 

 scarcely necessary to do so, as the bulbs are so 

 cheap. Old Gardener. 



171. Evergreen Hardy Plants. Among the 

 hardiest stu'ubs in this line may be named the vari- 

 ous kinds of Box, Andromeda, C'otoneaster, Ever- 

 treen Thorn and Berberry, Daphne cneorum. 

 ;almia, Mahonia, Holly and Rhododendron. Of 

 those less hardy, Aucubas, Japan Evergreens, 

 Gardenia Florida. Jasminums, Japan Privets, Mag- 

 nolia grandifiora, (_Heander, Olive, Pittosporum and 

 Rhyncospernuni . 



197. Peach Yellows. This disease is readily dis- 

 tinguished by the leaves taking on a sickly yellow 

 color, the newer ones being of much smaller size 

 than ordinary, and the shoots coming out feeble. 

 The fruit is small, inferior and ripens prematurely. 



199. English Walnuts. We observe that Ell- 

 wanger & Barry. Rochester, N. Y., and J. T. Lovett, 

 Little Silver. N. J., have trees for sale. They are 

 not a tree that is quick to come into bearing; if any 

 fruit was to be yielded before seven years they 

 would be doing well. 



201. Hydrangea Budding in Cellar. We should 

 look upon the buds as premature in some way; 

 perhaps you have kept tlie soil rather wet. A single 

 cluster starting thus early should not lead to the 

 plant being taken up for growing any earlier than 

 usual. Keep it somewhat drier at the root untilyou 

 are ready to bring it to heat and light. 



202. Sunlight for Palms, etc. Palms can get 

 along as well as any plants I know of in windows 

 where the sun never enters. On the other hand, 

 direct sunshine is too liable to blister or otherwise 

 injure the leaves to make it desirable to keep them 

 in this. The Jerusalem Cherry has no special need 

 of du-ect sunlight in the winter. P. P. Hayes, 

 Queens Co.., N. Y. 



223. Potting Old Fuchsias. The first thing to 

 do is to prune them, and this should be done at once, 

 as they will soon be breaking. Prune the wood 

 made last year back to two eyes, and cut entirely 

 away every weak, sprayey shoot. Water very 

 moderately only when the soil becomes quite dry; 

 and when new shoots an inch long are made, shake 

 away all the old soil and replace in a pot just about 

 large enough to contain the roots. Water moder- 

 ately until the plants come fully into growth, and 

 then more freely, and when the pots get full of 

 fibres, shift into larger pots. From the latter end of 

 June they do well in the open air. A. H. E. 



^eHou5ehoW po\iItpy 



Bluing is too often overdone 



An Irish Potato and some brick-dust for scour- 

 ing knives, etc. 



Sensible George Eliot's favorite room— a 

 bright kitchen. 



A better polish, it is claimed, will result if a lit- 

 tle sugar is mixed with the stove blacking 



Upsetting the fruit jar and holding its top in hot 

 water a little will help out. over an obstinate cover. 



Ammonia. A tablespoonful added to the over- 

 night soaking water will in washing ease up on the 

 arm muscles. 



We know of a housekeeper— there are many no 

 doubt — who would no more think of leaving the 

 outside of the pans and kettles unwashed than the 

 inside. It is the neat way, 



Do you take advantage of the more practical 

 labor-saving devices in doing your work ? Im- 

 provement here should be thought of before get- 

 ting farther into this new year. 



In cooking vegetables, they should for best 

 fiavor go directly from the washing-off water to the 

 stew-pan. This may seem unimportant ; there is 

 more in it than might be thought. 



The old wash boiler need not be cast aside when 

 leakage beyond repair sets in. This is the time it 

 should have the dents straightened out and be 

 scoured up to use for keeping bowls and glasses of 

 jelly and marmalade from the mice. 



The broom, instead of standing in a corner when 

 not in use, ought to be hung up. A strong twisted 

 or braided string put through a small hole in the 

 handle will doit. Wet the broom in boiling hot 

 suds every wash day ; if treated in this way it will 

 keep its shape, and wear much longer. 



Don't throw away things that may sometime be 

 of use, simply because the piece that matches it 

 has given out. I do not mean keep absolutely 

 worthless things to clutter up the premises, but see 

 first if the pieces cannot be made useful. A goblet 

 that has lost its base is quite as good as a whole 

 one to keep at the well. Elder's Wipe. 



Green Food for Canaries. Mrs. L. D. E., Living- 

 stone Co., this State, writes to this paper as follows: 

 I find that my canary is very fond of green food. 

 " To supply him during winter I scattered Lettuce 

 seeds in my plant pots, and also a few seeds of 

 Chickweed, which is rather a pretty little plant any- 

 way, and by simply breaking off branches of it, the 

 roots keep up a supply ; then, by way of variety, I 

 give him a few Oxalis leaves sometimes, and ten- 

 der tops of Celery. His enjoyment of them is am- 

 ple reward for the small amount of trouble." 



Damp Cellars. It would be well if the danger of 

 these to health was better recognized. Keeping 

 them ventilated and dry are simple matters, if 

 rightly attended to, and they are very important 

 ones. The builder in the first place should see that 

 the necessary api^liances for keeping a cellar in 

 good condition are furnished, but the occupant of 

 the house must see that they are kept in working 

 order ; that the places for ventilation are not 

 choked up ; that the cellar is kept perfectly clean. 

 And better not neglect a thick coating of whitewash 

 occasionally. 



If the Onion comes in for a good deal of good- 

 natured abuse because of the odor that lingers, it 

 also is entitled to the highest praises for its real 

 value among kitchen vegetables. Containing, as it 

 does, much nitrogenous matter, with a good deal of 

 sugar and a pungent oil, it is, to say the least, very 

 nutritious. Boiling dissipates the odorous oil of 

 the onion freely, as every one who is about where 

 the cooking is done knows, and also makes them 

 less acrid. When one cares for such flavoring, the 

 oil, to obtain which firmly press a shoe of the vege- 

 table against a grater, is useful. A drop of it goes 

 a long way. In the line of domestic medicine On- 

 ions have their uses. They are looked upon as 

 making one of the best poultices, when roasted, es- 

 pecially for that common winter complaint with 

 children, ear-ache. For making a soothing syrup, 

 along with sugar. Onions furnish a widely famed 

 remedy for colds, croup, etc. The vegetable is 

 also believed to have a quieting influence on the 

 nerves ; a person subject to wakefulness may often 

 find relief in eating a couple of small ones just be- 

 fore retiring. Id countries like Spain and Portugal 

 Onions are used to an enormous extent as food ; 

 very commonly the ordinary dinner of a working- 

 man and his family is a piece of bread, with an On- 

 ion for each. Those which are raised in a mild 

 cUmate like Bermuda are milder than our own. 



Light is one of the essentials. 



Homceopathic doses, if any, for hens. 



Early breakfasts for the fowls in winter. 



Animal food like meat or milk is always appre- 

 ciated by the hens. It will come back animal food, 

 in the shape of eggs. 



Tell us that the egg shells are very thin or quite 

 often entirely absent and we tell you that lime in the 

 food is what is lacking. 



The Asphalt pavement men can make you a good 

 floor for the hen house at a moderate cost. Such a 

 one would be, in a degree, moist, while also dry 

 enough and one of the easiest to keep clean. 



"Artificial Chicks get a false start at birth, 

 and from my observation are never so strong as the 

 rugged specimens reared in the old fashioned way. 

 I have noticed also that the meat of the incubator 

 product is comparatively pale and flabby looking 

 and lacking in flavor, and that such fowls do not 

 command the highest price, as many first-class 

 hotels will not use them." This is what an experi-* 

 enced poultry dealer of Boston offers on the subject. 



A fowl infested with vermin is a miserable object. 

 Thrive it cannot. No man who will allow the pres- 

 ence of insects deserves success at poultry raising. 

 The shortest cut to not having any vermin about is 

 to prevent its approach. The material composing 

 the nests for laying hens, and for which straw alone 

 is as good as any, should be frequently destroyed 

 and especially after hatching. Before fresh ma- 

 terial is provided in the nest, some carbolic disin- 

 fectant ought to be lightly syringed about. Scatter- 

 ing some sulphur over the dust bath occasionally 

 will tend to keep the hens clean. 



Early hatching under right conditions is easily 

 carried on. For the setting nests secure a room in 

 which to place them, where the temperature can be 

 controlled. If a room in itself warm cannot be had, 

 a good nest may be made in any fairly close build- 

 ing, by using a pile of fresh horse manure under- 

 neath it, covering the manure with a layer of earth 

 on which is to come the nest of straw or hay. The 

 manure will provide both modified heat and a de- 

 sirable degree of moisture. When the chicks are 

 out keep them protected from sudden changes in 

 temperature, and after 24 hours feed generously. 



Pigeons, according to E, S. Starr in the Century, 

 are more used as couriers than is generally known. 

 Business men in cities communicate with home in 

 the suburbs by pigeon post, or use them between 

 office and factory. Farmers use them as mes- 

 sengers from the post-office and the town. Country 

 physicians now often carry their birds with them, 

 to be left with patients for bringing on later word, 

 and to send word home when there is need. Mr. R. 

 D. Hune of Fruit Vale, Cai., claims to use pigeons 

 with complete success between his factories, some 

 three hundred miles apart. A New York broker 

 says: "I use my birds to bring the reports from 

 Wall Street to me at Chetolah.my summer residence, 

 near North Branch." 



Poultry Fences. One of the principal drawbacks 



in raising poultry in yards is the cost of the fences. 

 Galvanized wire is an excellent material, but it 

 allows no protection in winter from winds. Boards 

 are expensive in some sections, and palings or 

 pickets are not always obtainable. A good and 

 cheap fence may be made of lath, and if rightly 

 constructed will last for a number of years. A lath 

 fence six feet high may be made by placing the 

 posts eight feet apart, using thi-ee strips running 

 from post to post, for the purpose of holding the 

 lath. If preferred, a one-foot board may be used 

 in place of the bottom strip. Place the second (or 

 middle) strip two feet above the bottom one, and 

 nail half laths to the two strips, cutting four-foot 

 laths in two pieces for that purpose. This will 

 make the two feet of fence at the bottom strong 

 enough to resist considerable pressure, keeping off 

 dogs, and even largfer animals. The third strip 

 should be three feet above that in the middle, and 

 whole laths should be nailed to them, which will 

 leave each lath projecting one foot above the top 

 strip. When completed the fence will be six feet 

 high, or seven if a board is used at the bottom, or 

 two feet from the ground, where it is most needed. 

 The bottom half-laths may be placed very closely 

 together, but two inches of space will be sufficient 

 for the upper ones. Such a fence will cost but 

 little, and is the cheapest good fence that can be 

 made, so far as cost of material is concerned.— 

 Fai'^n^ Field and Stockman. 



