170 THE GARDEN BEAUTIFUL 



eral supply of white clover as advised in the chapter 

 on lawns. 



MARCH 



The month of March should be a very active one 

 so far as general garden work is concerned, and 

 planting, pruning and propagation should be the 

 active program, followed by irrigation, cultivation 

 and fertilization. 



GENERAL WORK 



Ground should be spaded up and aired for two or 

 three weeks for the tropical perennials. After thor- 

 ough exposure for a time scatter some well rotted 

 manure over the surface, roughly break up the lumps 

 and smooth it somewhat and respade to mix the fer- 

 tilizer thoroughly into the soil. Not until April will 

 the ground be warm enough to induce a quick, vigor- 

 ous growth of these plants. 



Don't continually stir the soil around shallow 

 rooted plants. Get some well rotted manure and 

 mulch the surface of your beds, being careful not to 

 cover the crown of the plants. You will lighten your 

 work and get infinitely better results. A mulch 

 keeps the soil cool and moist; it checks evaporation 

 and prevents the soil from cracking and drying out. 

 It eliminates a lot of useless labor and will insure 

 you a fine crop of perfect blooms. 



SEED SOWING 



In the sowing of all seeds mentioned care must be 

 exercised to keep them constantly moist and to sow 

 them in a rather light compost; this is particularly 

 applicable to asters, which if allowed to become dry 

 at any time during the germinating period will sure- 

 ly perish. 



