220 



POPULAR GARDENING. 



September, 



426. Hardy Catalpa for Timber. Will some one 

 iDform me whether it will pay to plant hardy Ca- 

 talpa speciosa for timber, fencing, posts, etc., in 



Northwestern Ohio.— Subscriber. 



437. Keeping Grape Seed, etc. (a) What is 

 the best way to keep Grape seed, dry or bedded in 

 earth? {b) The best time to plant Black Rasp- 

 berries? Most of mine set in the spring have failed. 

 — E. P. F., Sterling, Ka7isas. 



428. Budding' Query. In cutting the bark of 

 stock for inserting the bud, should the inner bark 

 be cut through to the wood?— R., Toronto, Ont. 



429. Feas for Canning, Parties here want us 

 to raise 10 or 15 acres of Peas for them for canning 

 purposes. What do canning establishments East 

 pay per bushel for Peas? Are they a profitable 

 crop to raise at 40 cents per bushel where land rent 

 is three dollars per acre? Distance to deliver, half 

 mile?— Kansas Subscriber. 



430. Squashes Failing. Why is it that my 

 Squashes wilt and die when full grown? I find no 

 grub. How prevented?— James Worcester. 



431. Currants Losing Their Leaves. Several 



weeks ago my bushes began to turn brown and the 

 leaves drop, although they have had fair treatment. 

 I do not know whether the cause is insects or the 

 peculiar weather we have had. Will some one tell 

 me?— W. S. H . Montclair, N. J. 



433. Propagating Clematis. Will you please 

 inform me as to how these plants may be propa- 

 gated?— A Constant Reader. 



4.S3. Pruning Passion Flower. Would prun- 

 ing as soon as a crop of flowers is past induce a new 

 crop soon? What is the best treatment as to prun- 

 ing?— G. L. Wise. 



4*4. Wire Worms in Carrots. Mine are badly 



infested. What remedy can be applied.— Anxious. 



435. Mammotli Trees. Can any reader tell me 

 the sizes of the largest trees of Sequoia gigantea in 

 California?-A. M. 



436. Vinegar From Cider, I would like infor- 

 mation as to the best course for rapidly converting 

 cider into vinegar.— Geo. Watson. 



437. Stephanotis Culture. I have a Stephanotis 

 which has got through blooming. Ought it to be cut 

 back? It seems to be turning yellow. 



438. Moon Vine or Evening Glory. Can you 



inform me how to treat a plant that is growing 

 rapidly but hasnotyetbloomed? Howis the same 

 to be treated for the winter? I am anxious to pre- 

 serve mine.— Mrs. J. W. K., Brookline, Mass. 



439. Peach Evaporating or Canning. Which 

 way is the most profitable for d isposing of this fruit? 

 — D. S. H.. Northampton. Mass. 



440. Celery Culture. What soil is best adapted 

 to this crop? How is it best grown? Is there any 

 work devoted to its culture for market.— A. Gandy, 

 Shaimiee Co., Kansas. 



441 . Penstemons from Seed. I would feel obliged 

 for information on the raising of Penstemons from 

 seed.— Mrs. Chas. J. Wells. 



442. Warts on Vine Leaves. I enclose a speci- 

 men of leaves, from my grapery, that are covered 

 with warts. What is the cause and cure?— Anxious. 



REPLIES TO INQUIRIES. 



366. Autumn Blooming Crocus, Woolson & 

 Co., of Passaic, N. J., offer a number of these. 



375. Small Fruits South. For Georgia and the 

 South generally the following list with directions 

 will be found most suitable. Strawbein-ies. Varie- 

 ties. Charles Downing, Crescent, Cumberland, Ken- 

 tucky, Sharpless, Triumph de Gand, Wilson's. Any 

 soil not too wet will answer, deep, rich light loam 

 preferred. Plants set after the fall rains will yield 

 fairly the next season, and a large crop the second 

 year, after which it will not pay to keep up the bed. 

 Set in rows three feet by one foot. As a fertilizer 

 a compost of 100 bushels of cotten seed to ten two- 

 horse loads of manure per acre aoplied between the 

 plants after setting is unequaled. Raspberries. 

 The red Cuthbert and the black Gregg varieties 

 are the best for you. with the American Black and 

 the McCormick (Mammoth Cluster) worthy of 

 trial. Plant in rich well worked land, the reds three 

 by six. or four by five feet apart, the blacks some- 

 what further. They will bear the second year. 

 Blackberries. Varieties, Kittatinny, Lawton and 

 Wilson's Early. Soil and culture same as Red 

 Raspberries. You should be able to procure the 

 needed plants at the Fruitland Nurseries, Atlanta, 

 Georgia. P. S. Berckmans, proprietor, 



399. Birds and Vineyards. The robin, we be- 

 lieve, is the only bird that injures the Grape crop. 

 If the law prevents you from shooting the birds, 

 the only alternative left you is to frighten them off 

 some way. Strawberry-beds may be protected by 

 nets laid oyer, so that the birds cannot get at the 

 fruit. The best plan we can suggest in regard to 

 the vineyard is to keep one or more boys, or even 

 girls, that can be hired cheaply, to frighten them 

 off, either by clapping two sticks together, or by 

 the use of a watchman's rattle,which makes a noise 

 they do not enjoy. The owner of a vineyard re- 

 marked to us the other day that he adopted this 

 plan, and it was a good investment of his money. 



403. Rose for Wisconsin. Make your selection 

 from the following: Summer iRoses.CentifoIia (Hun- 

 dred-leaved), Chendolle, Magna Charta; Moss, 

 Common Moss Crested Moss, Princess Adelaide; 

 Hybrid Perpetual, Baronne Prevost, Baroness 

 Rothschild, La Reine. Mabel Morrison, General 

 Jacqueminot, Marshall P. Wilder. 



405. Lucretia Dewberry. See directions on page 

 185 of the August issue. 



439. Peach Evaporating or Canning. We 

 have always evaporated Peaches, getting about six 

 pounds of evaporated fruit from one bushel. Any 

 leading hardware house has parers and pitters to 

 do the work of paring and pitting. The fruit 

 should be cut in halves and laid flat side down on 

 racks. A. M. P. 



409. Cloth Frames. The fibre cloth referred 

 to has made for itself a good reputation in the time 

 it has been before the public. It is light, strong 

 and mildew proof. The simplest way of using this 

 or any cloth for protecting hot-beds, etc., is to tack 

 it to light frames, say three by six feet, using these 

 like sashes. These should cost not more than 20 

 cents each, while glass sashes cost about $2 each. 

 While such sashes can never answer every purpose 

 of glass they have at least one advantage. This is 

 in case the covering be left on in the daytime when 

 the sun is shining, there is comparatively little rise 

 of temperature underneath it, while it is well 

 known that if the ventilation of frames covered 

 by glass sashes is not carefully attended to the 

 crop beneath these may be quickly ruined. Peter 

 Henderson has recently stated that last spring 

 in his establishment they covered a lot of Cab- 

 bage plants with the protecting cloth for three 

 weeks, never once taking it off, night or day, and 

 the plants were nearly as good as those covered by 

 glass In experiments with it last winter it was 

 found that while the thermometer marked 25 

 degrees, the temperature imder this covering was 

 5 degrees higher, while under glass it was but 7 

 degrees higher. Experienced cultivators know 

 that the difference of five degrees in temperature 

 in most cases would save nearly all plants exposed 

 in the open air to the danger of injury by frost. 

 The sashes of cloth being much lighter than those 

 of glass, should be secured against lifting by the 

 wind by hooking down or weighting them with 

 scantlin, or the like. 



440. Celery Culture. The fact that Celery in 

 its wild state is found growing in wet ditches and 

 marshy situations sufficiently indicates the soil it 

 prefers. Those who grow the improved sorts for 

 market seek for level bottom lands of light soil and 

 rich in vegetable deposits. A light soil is desirable 

 for aiding the important part of earthing up. It 

 must be very rich to suit the crop, for no attempt 

 to grow it in a poor, harsh soil can be successful. 

 On a large scale it is usually grown by the level 

 method, and not in trenches as in garden culture. 

 Ordinarily it is treated as a second crop, following 

 early Beets, Potatoes, Cabbages, Onions, Peas. etc. 

 A course of management may be outlined as fol- 

 lows: Sow the seed in a sheltered seed bed of 

 light, mellow, rich soil as early as tbe ground 

 works up well in the spring. Usually this is done 

 in drills a foot apart, scattering the seeds thinly, 

 and afterwards covering lightly and firming the 

 soil over the drill with the feet. When the plants 

 are up some three or four inches the tops are cut 

 off by most growers to induce stockiness. July is 

 the usual planting out time for the winter crop, 

 setting the plants five or six inches apart, in rows 

 three feet apart for the dwarfer kinds and four 

 feet for the strong growers. The plants should be 

 sorted to have those of the same size come to- 

 gether, and some trimming of the top is desirable. 

 Plant firmly with a dibble; if the weather is very 

 hot and dry some shade is beneficial. Until the 

 growth is a foot long nothing need be done but to 

 keep the crop thoroughly cultivated. That stage 

 reached, the first step in hilling— handling it is 

 called— is done by bdnging the leaves of each 

 plant closely together and pressing the soil against 

 the mass of stems, afterwards drawing some earth 

 against the raised soil, and repeating this at inter- 

 vals as growth proceeds. About the middle of Sep- 

 tember the regular banking up begins, which has 

 in view the bleaching of the hearts. This is done by 

 raising a bank of earth against the Celery on each 

 side and to within three or four inches of the tops, 

 taking much care to not have the soil enter the 

 heads About November 1st the crop is dug and 

 stored by packing closely in trenches a foot or less 

 in width, and of a height corresponding with the 

 length of the Celery. As the cold increases, the 

 trenches are covered to keep out hard frosts, and 

 to render the product accessible for use and mar- 

 keting at all seasons. More extended directions 

 for culture may be found in such works as Hen- 

 derson's ** Gardening for Profit." and Quiun's 

 "Money in the Garden." 



433. Pruning Passion Flower. You may cut 



back the laterals that have fiowered, and it is possi- 

 ble, if the plant is strong and its position in the 

 conservatory light, that fresh growths would push 

 that might flower later in the season. The shorten- 

 ing of those growths would, moreover, admit light 

 and air the more freely to the growths not cut back, 

 and these would ripen the better. < >vf rcrowding 

 should be avoided, and any parts of the plant may 

 be removed to prevent a close thicket of growth, 

 that being neither agreeable in appearance nor 

 good to the plant; but a general systtm of close 

 pruning must not be carritd out till late in autumn. 



425. Sowing Tulip Seed, (a) Sow any time after 

 they are ripe, in shallow boxes or in cold frames, in 

 light soil, and strew some half-rotted leaves or 

 chopped swamp moss over the surface of the soil 

 to keep it from getting hard, and shade from sun- 

 shine with lath or brush, shading tfil the seedlings 

 appear, when the shading may be gradually less- 

 ened. (6) Manettia bicolor.— W. F. 



432. Propagating Clematis. Clematis may be 

 propagated by means of cuttings, layers, and grafts, 

 but as grafting and striking cuttings require con- 

 siderable skill and experience to insure a full 

 measure of success, layering is the best method for 

 those who are not proficient in propagating these 

 plants. The layering should be done when the wood 

 is moderately firm, and in your case it will be pre- 

 ferable to layer the shoots in pots. Take a sufficient 

 number of five-inch pots and after placing bits of 

 crocks in each, fill them with a sandy mixture and 

 place them in convenient positions about the 

 plants from which the layers are to be taken. When 

 this has been done bring down the shoots, cut them 

 partly through in a slanting direction and peg them 

 securely in the pots, one in each, and cover with 

 sand. The soil must be maintained in a nice moist 

 state, and the pots should, if possible, have soil or 

 coal ashes packed aboutthem.— A. H. E. 



434. Wire Worms in Carrots. We fear there 

 is not much chance of saving the rest of the crop 

 from injury. Potatoes buried in the soil form a 

 good trap; a stick should be placed through each 

 Potato to show its position. Visit the traps fre- 

 quently, and destroy the worms found therein. 

 When a crop is cleared, a dredging with salt and 

 fresh air-slaked lime is said to assist in getting rid 

 of them; if you dig the surface, you will expose the 

 worms to birds, which are fond of thf m. 



408. Spotted-leaved Calla— Asparagus termis- 

 simus. The Spotted Calla, Richardia alba macu- 

 lata., grows only for about five months in the year^ 

 It should be grown in a well drained pot and given 

 a compost composed of two-thirds turfy loam and 

 one-third well decayed manure, well mixed. Start 

 the plant into growth early in the spring, and in 

 the winter store the pot in a warm cellar or under 

 the greenhouse stage. Water sparingly at first; 

 during its season of growth give an abundant sup- 

 ply. As soon as the foliage commences to de- 

 cay gradually reduce the supply of water. Aspara- 

 gus termissimus will grow very well in a similar 

 compost, if given a moist, shady situation in a warm 



f greenhouse. It should not be overpotted, and yet 

 ikes a liberal supply of room for its roots. Water 

 freely at all times when the plant is in a state of 

 growth. See that the pot is well drained— this is an 

 essential point. — Chas. E. Parnell, Queens, L, I. 



417. Cauliflower Not Heading. The cause of 

 Cauliflower growing all to leaves usually is poor or 

 cheap seed. The best Early Dwarf Erfurt never 

 grows all to leaves. But the seed costs about $5.00 

 per ounce, which deters many from sowing it. The 

 cheaper varieties need a rich, moist soil and cool 

 weather to grow to perfection, and even then there 

 is apt to be some that have many leaves in the 

 heads.— D. N. Long. 



39G. Dressing for Koses. The guano killed the 

 Rose. For plants both indoors and out I prefer to 

 use guano in the liquid form. Dissolve two ounces 

 of guano in a gallon of water and water thoroughly 

 every ten days during the season of growth. The 

 best dressing for outdoor Roses is thoroughly de- 

 cayed stable manure. — C. E. P. 



400. Planting Evergreens in the Fall. Yes, 

 they can be grown with success in August or Sep- 

 tember if moist and the situation is sheltered. 

 Otherwise I would prefer tbe spring.~C. E. P. 



380. Fuchsia Leaves Crinkled. It is evident 

 that something is wrong with the roots of the 

 plants. It may be that the plants are overpotted; 

 they may have been kept too wet, or else potted in 

 too rich a soil. Or the pot drainage may be imper- 

 fect. Your best course will be to turn the plants 

 out of their pots and repot them. Use clean pots, 

 fresh compost, and be sure to drain well. Place the 

 plants in as small pots as possible. Give them a 

 compost composed of two-thirds turfy loam, one- 

 third well decayed manure, with a sprinkling of 

 bone dust. When the pots are well filled with roots 

 shift into larger pots. It is not advisable to prop- 

 agate from such plants.— C. E. P., Queens, L. I. 



390. Watering Agapanthus. if the plants are 

 properly cared for there will be no necessity of 

 placing their pots in pans of water. I do not think 

 that they will be benefited thereby.— C. E. P. 



3i)2. Liquid Manure. This will do very well, 

 but be careful not to use it too strong.— C. E. P. 



400. Planting Evergreens in the Fall, In 

 warm, sheltered places, and in the case of full-root- 

 ing plants likeYews, or very hardy ones of any sort, 

 September is a capital time, but August is usually 

 too dry and hot. But in the case of very choice 

 plants and if the place is at all bleak or exposed, 

 defer planting till early spring.— W. F. 



406. Brush in Balsam Fir. When Balsam Firs 

 attain that size they generally assume a backward 

 move and nothing can prevent them. Yes, cut out 

 the dead wood. No danger from sun now.— W. F. 



398. Crown Imperials Not Blooming. These 

 plants dislike disturbance at the root and often miss 

 flowering tbe first or second year after moving. 

 They do best in light, rich, well-drained soil. 



