20 



The Weekly Florists^ Review^ 



May 20, 1909. 



if planted where water will stand in win- 

 ter the bulbs will rot. By lifting and 

 dividing the roots about the last of Oc- 

 tober, I have always had excellent suc- 

 cess, giving the plants a good mulching 

 of leaves when the ground is frozen. 

 Bulbs lifted and stored over winter in a 

 eool cellar and planted out in April will 

 make a good succession to the fall planted 

 bulbs. The montbretias are all excellent 

 for cutting and we see no reason why 

 they should not become more popular 

 commercially. 



Trollius Asiaticus Excelsior. 



Of the various globe flowers in cultiva- 

 tion, none catches the popular eye as 

 quickly as Trollius Asiaticus excelsior. 

 The deep orange colored flowers, which 

 are produced during May and to some 

 extent during the later summer months, 

 are of a color which is always immensely 

 popular. It succeeds well fti the full sun, 

 but does better where it can be shaded 

 partially from the hot summer sun. It 

 does not require a damp location, like T. 

 Europseus, but grows well in light, well 

 drained garden soil. Division of the roots 

 is the best method of propagation, early 

 fall being the best time for this work. 

 Any florist having a row or bed of this 



fects, it is not generally known what a 

 fine subject Phlox divaricata is in pots or 

 pans for greenhouse purposes. I venture 

 to predict that any wide-awake florist, 

 who works up a stock of this in pans and 

 flowers it in March or early April, as is 

 easily done, would sell his plants on sight, 

 for there is nothing to at all compare 

 with it in color, and any purchasers can 

 use the plants in their hardy border and 

 get a nice floral display another season. 

 For pot culture the plants should be 

 lifted in September and brought into 

 gentle heat in January. W. N. Ceaig. 



BOYS' GARDENS IN DAYTON, O. 



What N. C. R. Co. Has Done for the City. 



Several years ago the neighborhood in 

 which the National Cash Register Co. is 

 located was one of the "toughest" and 

 most dilapidated sections in Dayton, O. 

 No person of standing cared to rent or 

 buy property there, and those who did in- 

 habit it cared little about the appear- 

 ance of the neighborhood. John H. Pat- 

 terson, president of the National Cash 

 Register Co., became much <!«^ncerned and 

 was anxious to see rapid improvements. 



J. H. Patterson. 



(Whose services to horticulture have been of utmost value to the trade.) 



striking trollius will have no diflSculty in 

 selling it, once customers have seen it. 



Phlox Divaricata Laphami. 



Phlox divaricata is a beautiful plant 

 for the herbaceous or rock garden, grow- 

 ing well in almost any location. The va- 

 riety Laphami possesses greater vigor 

 than the type, with flowers of larger size 

 and of a rich plumbago blue color. 



While popular for outdoor spring ef- 



The beautifying of the factory prem- 

 ises was the first step taken. The effort 

 began with a general cleaning up. Fences 

 were removed, walks were repaired and 

 grass, trees, flowers and shrubbery were 

 planted. 



The A-B-C Principle. 



Mr. Patterson secured the services of 

 J. C. Olmsted, of Brookline, Mass., to 

 lay out the grounds surrounding the fac- 



tory. The following rules were followed, 

 and called the ABC principle of land- 

 scape gardening: A, "Keep center of 

 lawn open"; B, "Plant in masses"; C, 

 "Avoid straight lines." These princi- 

 ples were afterward adopted by the peo- 

 ple of the N. C. R. neighborhood and 

 marvelous improvements took place, until 

 today the N. C R. neighborhood is one 

 of Dayton's beauty spots. 



Keeping Boys Out of Mischief. 



After this movement was well under 

 way, Mr. Patterson's attention was at- 

 tracted by three small boys, who, by 

 their pranks, had cost the neighborhood 

 $30,000. Mr. Patterson estimated that 

 each boy had done $10,000 worth of dam- 

 age. He tried to discover the cause and 

 furnish a remedy. The cause, he found, 

 was idleness; the remedy, healthful work. 

 So he decided to give them something 

 to do. 



Mr. Patterson had spent his boyhood 

 on a farm, and realized the value of such 

 training for a boy. It was impossible to 

 take them all to a farm, so he had two 

 acres of ground plowed up and laid out 

 into fifty individual gardens, each 10x100 

 feet in extent. The tools, seeds and all 

 equipments were furnished by the com- 

 pany and a head gardener was hired to 

 direct the work of instruction. The age 

 of the lads was set at 10 to 14 years. 



The Boys Get Interested. 



At first the boys jeered at Mr. Patter- 

 son's efforts. Then a few took hold, 

 and when the seed began to grow and 

 the vegetables came, others joined them, 

 and before the first season ended there 

 were forty boys working systematically 

 in the gardens. Prizes amounting to $50 

 were awarded the boys, and, besides, they 

 were allowed to sell their vegetables on 

 the market. 



This movement was started in 1897, 

 and each year the interest increases. 

 Each boy strives to produce better vege- 

 tables than his neighbor. The results 

 have been, an improvement in the char- 

 acter of the neighborhood, a remedy for 

 the idleness of the boys, the formation 

 of their own character and the success- 

 ful adoption of the boys ' gardens in 

 various parts of America. 



A part of the N. C. R. gardens at 

 Dayton, with the boys at work, is shown 

 in the accompanying illustration. 



Methods and Results. 



The course of instruction covers two 

 years. Diplomas are awarded at an an- 

 nual banquet given by President Patter- 

 son. Many more applications are re- 

 ceived than there are gardens to assign. 

 In such cases, seeds, bulbs and tools are 

 given the boys who wish to start gardens 

 at home. 



This year fifty boys began work April 

 10. The gardens were prepared and the 

 first planting was done April 20. Much 

 of the teaching is done by example. The 

 instructor and more competent boys offer 

 suggestions to the less experienced gar- 

 deners. 



All ground is used to the best advan- 

 tage and several crops are taken from 

 the gardens each season. Last year three 

 crops of lettuce, three crops of beans 

 and 6,000 pounds of radishes were a part 

 of the output. Ten tons of vegetables 

 constituted the season's yield. This year 

 eight new gardens were opened. 



Stimulating Competition. 



Uniformity is required in the working 

 hours and in the products of the garden. 



