544 



Gardening for Amateurs 



Unbleached calico can be made into an 

 excellent shading material for Sweet Peas 

 and other flowers. Nail the cloth tightly 

 over a frame similar to that recommended 

 above. Now get 3 pints of linseed oil, 



Fig. 1. Sweet Pea cutting prepared by 

 cutting the shoot beneath a joint. 



Fig. 2. Inserting the cuttings in a box 

 of sandy soil. 



1 oz. of sugar of lead (lead acetate a poison), 

 and 4 oz. of white resin ; place these in an 

 old tin or paint pail, stand this in a saucepan 

 of boiling water, and keep stirring it until 

 a thorough mixture is obtained. When this 

 liquid is still warm, paint it over the cloth 

 with an ordinary paint brush, and give the 

 material a second coat a day or two later. 

 The calico will then be transparent and 

 waterproof. 



The dimensions given above represent a 

 handy size for convenience. When preparing 

 the soil for Sweet Peas, erect poles at suitable 

 distances to act as supports for them ; it is 

 much better to do this work then than to 

 be working among the plants when they are 

 9 or 10 feet high. Two pieces of wood 

 nailed on opposite sides of this pole and 

 facing along the row of plants serve as a 

 secure support, and if the shades are tied 

 down firmly to this there will be no fear of 

 their taking flight in the first storm. 



Gutting Back the Plants is not so 

 freely indulged in as it was a few years ago 

 when many growers made it a rule to cut 

 the stems almost half way back after the 

 plants had been flowering for a month or 

 six weeks. The object of this was to induce 

 the side shoots to make quick progress ; this 

 plan when followed by a more than usual 

 generous system of feeding, watering, and 

 overhead syringing was considered the best 

 means of obtaining a late show of bloom. 

 It is, however, doubtful whether as a rule this 

 practice is justified by results. It is a great 

 mistake to allow plants from which a long 

 succession of flowers is expected to ripen 

 seeds ; nothing is more certain to put a stop 

 to flower production or to reduce the size 

 of the blooms and length of stem. 



FLOWERS FOR EXHIBITION 



All that has been written previously has 

 been for the guidance of the amateur who 

 desires a good show in the garden and plenty 

 of first-class flowers for indoor decoration 

 The cultivation of Sweet Peas expressly for 

 exhibition necessarily involves closer atten- 

 tion to details and in some ways special 

 treatment. The system of soil preparation 

 described in the earlier part of these notes 

 applies here also . The difference in treatment 

 begins at the time of or soon after planting 



