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HEDGE TIME IS s»^ 

 i^ HARVEST TIME 



Indian summer weather is had for the cut flower trade, but splendid for 

 planting hedges. The dull days of autumn can be made dollar days ^y the 

 florist who will take the opportunity to develop this lucrative and legitimate 

 side-line. What to plant and how to plant if, what it costs and why it's worth 

 it, are told here by an authority. 



|EEPING everlastingly at 

 it," is the modern form of 

 a recipe for success that 

 was not original with the 

 ancient Greek philosophers 

 who expressed it in a more 

 mellifluous style. But the 

 florist can't sell flowers to his patrons 

 when they are enjoying the glowing 

 colors of the autumn in their automo- 

 biles any more than he can when they 

 are spending their days in the salt sea 

 waves at Atlantic City or another sum- 

 mer resort. So, if he would keep busy 

 at this season, when his cut flower 

 trade promises well, but pays only fair- 

 ly, he must cast about for something 

 else that will enable him to give em- 

 ployment to the receiving teller rather 

 than the paying teller at his savings 

 bank. 



One of the first to sug- 

 gest itself is the planting 

 of hardy perennials, 

 shrubs, climbers, trees, 

 etc., and particularly the 

 planting of hedges. The 

 bedding plant trade is a 

 most important part of 

 many a florist's business 

 in the spring. Why 

 should he not have an 

 equally important trade in 

 hardy stock for fall? 

 This line has already be- 

 come of importance with 

 some florists, but, in com- 

 parison with the possibil- 

 ities, the surface as yet 

 has only been scratched. 



A Paying Proposition. 



What the public wants 

 depends to a great extent 

 upon what the public has 

 been told it ought to 

 have. The demand for 

 hardy stock in general 

 and for hedge plants in 

 particular will increase in 

 proportion as the florists 

 devote more effort to per- 

 suading the public that it 

 should have them. There 

 IS no reason why the sup- 

 plying and planting of 

 bedding plants and bulbs 

 should be the limit of the 

 florist 's outdoor activities. 



In response to the 

 prompt question, "Does it 

 pay!" a positive "Yes" 

 can be given, and it is for 

 this precise reason that 



this branch of the business should be 

 largely extended. Some of this work 

 must be left until spring, of course, but 

 at present far too much of it is left 

 till then. The work can be better done 

 in the autumn, when the soil is in bet- 

 ter condition and, if plants must be 

 bought, much finer and fresher ones 

 can be had. Some of these hedge 

 plants can easily be grown by the flo- 

 rist, but if time and space will not 

 allow this, they can be procured from 

 nurserymen at moderate rates. 



What to Plant. 



The demand in hedge plants in this 

 country is more for those of an orna- 

 mental character than for those used 

 for defense, as in Europe, where the 

 wonderful hedges of hawthorn excite 



Foremost Among Deciduous Hedge Plants is the Privet. 



the admiration of travelers year after 

 year. Honey locust, osage orange and 

 cockspur thorn are the leading defen- 

 sive hedge plants here, but none of 

 them makes a first-class hedge, and all 

 are more for agricultural than horti- 

 cultural use. 



We have, however, a good variety of 

 ornamental hedge plants, both decidu- 

 ous and evergreen. A neat hedge gives 

 a finished and more attractive appear- 

 ance to any place, and the seclusion 

 thus furnished adds to the charm of a 

 garden. In this connection, it may be 

 said that there is room for many times 

 the number of hedges now to be seen 

 without at all overdoing the hedge 

 planting business. It is not good policy 

 to recommend and plant the same type 

 of hedge for each customer. This only 

 intensifies the monotony 

 that is already too ap- 

 parent in American gar- 

 dens. It is sometimes 

 better to suggest hedges 

 which are a little out of 

 the ordinary, which will 

 give an air of distinction 

 to the grounds of the 

 owners using them. 



While many people pre- 

 fer hedges clipped square, 

 a somewhat rounded top 

 is to be recommended. 

 The latter is ordinarily 

 as handsome as the 

 square top, and has the 

 added advantage of shed- 

 ding snow much better. 



Deciduoiis Hedge Plants. 



Foremost among decid- 

 uous hedge plants come 

 the ligustrums, or privets. 

 The one most in demand 

 is the California privet, 

 L, ovalifolium. This is 

 quick growing and makes 

 a thick and handsome 

 hedge in a short time. It 

 cannot be used, however, 

 in the colder states, where 

 minimums of 5 to 20 de- 

 grees below zero are re- 

 corded, for under such 

 conditions it will be cut 

 down to the ground in 

 winter. A much hardier 

 and more satisfactory va- 

 riety, one which will 

 withstand tempera- 

 tures of 25 to 30 degrees 

 below zero, is L. Ibota, 

 the .Japanese privet. L. 



