Gardening for Amateurs 



359 



Something Worth Remembering 



TO Destroy Coarse Weeds. It 

 sometimes happens that certain of 

 the wilder portions of a garden 

 contain clumps of coarse perennial weeds, 

 which, if not checked, soon spread over 

 a considerable area of ground and be- 

 come a nuisance. To uproot them is a 

 costly and tedious undertaking, therefore 

 a simpler method of destruction is needed. 

 This is found by constantly mowing the 

 young shoots down as they appear. If 

 the shoots are never allowed to grow more 

 than a few inches high, the plants are 

 soon weakened, and in the course of two 

 or three years die outright. About four 

 mowings a year are usually sufficient. 



Violet Growing. As soon as Violets 

 have finished flowering they should be divided 

 up into small pieces, and be planted in cool, 

 moist ground for the summer. Every three 

 or four weeks it is necessary to look over 

 them and carefully remove the runners or 

 offsets. In the south and west counties 

 they may be left to bloom in the open, or at 

 best be covered by lights placed on bricks 

 or large flower pots, but in other parts of 

 the country they must, in September, be 

 removed to frames to flower. Frames placed 

 over a slight hotbed assist the plants to 

 recover from the transplanting quickly, after 

 which they must be given an abundance 

 of air on all favourable occasions. An 

 application of weak liquid manure to the 

 plants now and then is attended by good 

 results. Good kinds to grow are Czar, 

 California, Princess of Wales, Marie Louise, 

 and Neapolitan. 



Mistletoe. In some counties Mistletoe 

 is a considerable source of trouble to the 

 gardener and fniit farmer, for it becomes 

 established on Apple trees and seriously 

 affects growth. But in other places it 

 never appears to spread, and many people 

 arc quitr aii\ius to have a bunch or two 

 growing upon their trees. It may be estab- 

 INn-cl l.y taking the ri|>e fruits in February 

 and rubbing the seeds into crevices in the 

 bark. The sticky substance which surrounds 

 the seeds is usually sufficient to fix them in 



position, but a little gauze or fine-meshed 

 netting placed over the seeds protects them 

 from birds and insects. Germination takes 

 place during summer, but little growth can 

 be noticed for two or three years. Lime, 

 Poplar, Oak, and Thorn are other trees upon 

 which this parasite may be grown. 



Dividing Herbaceous Plants. This 

 work is likely to be taken in hand by every 

 gardener, whether professional or amateur, 

 at some time or other, therefore a few 

 remarks on procedure may be useful. Many 

 strong- growing subjects only give the best 

 results when divided annually or every 

 second year ; such as Asters, Sunflowers, 

 the more vigorous kinds of Phlox and 

 Delphiniums are cases in point, for if the 

 clumps are allowed to remain year after 

 year they become masses of weak stems and 

 the flowers deteriorate. Division may be 

 carried out at any time during late autumn 

 or winter, but the earlier it is done after the 

 plants die down the better. Strong-growing 

 plants may be chopped into pieces by means 

 of a spade or trowel, but with more delicate 

 sorts it is advisable to tear the roots apart 

 by the aid of two hand forks placed back to 

 back, or with the help of a pruning knife. 

 The size of the sections must be left to the 

 discretion of the cultivator, but any piece 

 with a little root may be expected to grow. 

 It is not advisable to make the divisions too 

 small, however. Do not let the roots got 

 dried up ; plant without delay. 



Propagating Vines by 4i Eyes." If a 

 bottom heat of 75 to 80 is available, Vines 

 for growing in pots may be raised by means 

 of " eyes." These eyes consist of pieces of 

 the previous year's growth, well-ripened, 

 and about 1 inch in length, carrying one 

 luid each. Slice off a portion of the wood 

 behind the bud, and place the pieces in 

 small jx>ts filled with sandy -oil. Allow the 

 bud to show aln>vr the -oil, and after water- 

 ing plunge the pots. When the buds com- 

 mence to grow water carefully, and before 

 the young plants !>< ome pot-lx>tmd move 

 them into larger jxits. still keeping them 

 plunged, in a slightly lower temperature. 



