Book of Gardens 



107 



/i 



une 



THE GARDENER'S CALENDAR 



Sweet pea vines 



trained on fences 



should be tied up 



as they groiv 





Potato beetles 



should be met with 



poison sprays or 



powder 



The unproductive 



stickers should be 



cut away from the 



corn 



Sixth Month 



SUNDAY 



MONDAY 



TUESDAY 



WEDNESDAY 



THURSDAY 



FRIDAY 



SATURDAY 



1 . Do not 

 neglect tospray 

 the truit trees 

 when they arc 

 In flower, using 

 a combination 

 of Bordeaux 

 mixture and ar- 

 senate of lead. 

 Spray thor- 

 oughly from 

 different 

 angles. This 

 will destroy the 

 many harmful 

 insects. 



2. Sow now 

 kale, Brussels 

 sprouts, cab- 

 bage, celery 

 and cauliflow- 

 er. These when 

 large enough to 

 handle should 

 betransplanted 

 into other beds 

 and set about 

 4" apart From 

 here they can 

 be moved into 

 the garden 

 later. 



3. Before ap- 

 plying a mulch 

 to the straw- 

 berries to pro- 

 tect the fruit 

 from dirt it is a 

 good practice 

 to gi\'ethe 

 plants an ap- 

 plication ot 

 strong liquid 

 food. This will 

 greatlyincrease 

 the size of the 

 maturing ber- 

 ries. 



4. Do not 

 omit spraying 

 the potatoes 

 with arsenate 

 of lead at the 

 first appear- 

 ance of the 

 potato beetle. 

 Hilling the 

 potatoes when 

 they are in 

 flower is advis- 

 able. At this 

 stage the young 

 tubers are 

 forming. 



5. A top 

 dressing ap- 

 plied to the 

 lawn now will 

 encourage root 

 action that will 

 help the grass 

 to resist the dry 

 weather sure to 

 come later in 

 the season. 

 Sheep manure, 

 bone meal or 

 wood ashe.s are 

 excellent ma- 

 terials to use. 



6. If tbey 

 have finished 

 flowering, the 

 early spring 

 shrubs such as 

 forsythia.deut- 

 zla. etc., should 

 be pruned. The 

 best method is 

 to cut out en- 

 tirely several of 

 the very old 

 branches. By 

 pruning now no 

 flowers will be 

 sacrificed. 



7. Don't 

 neglect to keep 

 up the sowings 

 in the vege- 

 table garden. 

 Corn, beans 

 and cucumbers 

 should be sown 

 twice this 

 month. Inter- 

 cropping may 

 be resorted to 

 in many cases 

 with the pur- 

 pose of increas- 

 ing the yield. 



S. Look out 

 for rose bugs. 

 Go over the 

 plants each day 

 with a small 

 c-anoflverosene, 

 shaking the 

 flowers over 

 the can and 

 causing the in- 

 sects to fall into 

 the kerosene. 

 This will de- 

 stroy them 

 quickly and ef- 

 fectively. 



9. The climl 

 ing roses should 

 be looked over 

 carefully and 

 any heavy, ro- 

 b u s t new 

 growth should 

 be tied into 

 proper posi- 

 tion. Pruning 

 should be de- 

 ferred until 

 they have fin- 

 ished flowering, 

 when the old 

 wood is cut. 



10. Fruit 

 trees that have 

 reached the 

 producing 

 stage should be 

 sprayed regu- 

 larly with Bor- 

 deaux mixture. 

 This protects 

 the fruit from 

 the parasites 

 and fungi. Suc- 

 cessive genera- 

 tions must be 

 destroyed as 

 they hatch. 



1 1 . Toma- 

 toes, cucum- 

 b e r s and 

 melons, as well 

 as other garden 

 products that 

 are subject to 

 blight, should 

 be sprayed at 

 bi-weekly peri- 

 ods with Bor- 

 deaux mixture. 

 Leaves that are 

 affected should 

 be removed at 

 once. 



12. Care 

 should be 

 taken with all 

 newly planted 

 hardy stock 

 that It be not 

 allowed to suf- 

 fer for lack of 

 water. Thor- 

 ough soaking 

 of the ground — 

 not a mere 

 sprinkling — 

 followed by a 

 heavy mulch is 

 needed . 



13. All the 

 hedge cutting 

 should be done 

 now. Frequent 

 trimming is re- 

 quired in order 

 to avoid mak- 

 ing a number 

 of unsightly 

 voids. Hedges 

 that have been 

 neglected f o r 

 some time may 

 be improved by 

 tying in shape 

 before cutting. 



14. It is a 

 good plan to go 

 over the 

 tomato plants, 

 reducing the 

 quantity of un- 

 unproductive 

 vines and sup- 

 porting those 

 left to carry 

 the crop. It 

 matters little 

 what system is 

 employed to 

 keep the fruit 

 supported. 



15. Onion 

 maggots are 

 very destruct- 

 ive at this sea- 

 son of the year. 

 It is good prac- 

 tice to top dress 

 the soil thor- 

 oughly with 

 soot to keep 

 them In check. 

 Thorough at- 

 tention in this 

 matter will be 

 well repaid by 

 a better crop. 



16. One of 

 the essentials 

 in producing 

 good fruit is 

 the proper 

 thinning of the 

 crop. The trees 

 should be gone 

 over carefully 

 now, reducing 

 the quantity ot 

 the fruit by 

 about one-half. 

 Larger and bet- 

 ter fruit will be 

 the result. 



17. Do not 

 neglect to work 

 the garden soil 

 deeply and 

 often. Tnisnor 

 only keeps the 

 weeds in check, 

 but preserves 

 the soil mois- 

 ture for the use 

 01 the plants. 

 If this Is not 

 done the mois- 

 ture from the 

 soil will quick- 

 ly evaporate. 



IS. Now Is 

 the time to 

 stop using the 

 asparagus, as 

 there are other 

 vegetables 

 available now 

 to take its 

 place. Keep the 

 asparagus 

 dusted during 

 the summer- 

 with a poison 

 to destroy the 

 asparagus 

 beetle. 



19. Theflow- 

 er garden 

 should be 

 looked over 

 and any dry 

 stalks should 

 be removed. 

 Plants that 

 bloom through- 

 out the enthe 

 sea«:on should 

 be top-dressed 

 occasionally 

 with some good 

 fertilizer to 

 maintain vigor. 



20. Tall 

 flowers such as 

 hollyhocks, del- 

 phiniums, heli- 

 anthus. etc.. 

 snould be sup- 

 ported before 

 any damage is 

 done by storms 

 and heavy 

 winds. Proper 

 stakes should 

 be put in and 

 the plants can, 

 be tied In to 

 them. 



21 . Be sure 

 you keep the 

 lima beans and 

 peas properly 

 suppori,ed; the 

 peas by staking 

 and the limas 

 by tying in to 

 their poles. 

 Bush limas 

 should be sup- 

 poj ted by small 

 pea brush 

 placed in the 

 row. Such at- 

 tention repays. 



22 It is good 

 practice to go 

 over the bed- 

 ding plants, 

 pinching the 

 tips of their 

 growth ire- 

 quenlly. This 

 will cause them 

 to become more 

 sturdy and to 

 develop more 

 quickly and in 

 i)etter form. 

 Only the tips 

 need removal. 



23. Don't 

 neglect to soak 

 the soil thor- 

 oughly when it 

 Is necessary to 

 resort to arti- 

 ncial watering. 

 K V e n i n g s or 

 early mornings 

 are the best 

 time for this 

 work. Cultiva- 

 tion should fol- 

 low so as to re- 

 establish the 

 dust mulch. 



24. Thinning 

 out all the 

 crops in the 

 garden is ad- 

 visable. This 

 should be done 

 when the plants 

 are small and 

 before the roots 

 areinterlocked, 

 or numerous 

 desirable 

 plants will be 

 removed. 

 Water well be- 

 fore lifting. 



2.5. Carna- 

 t i n s in th6 

 field which are 

 intended for 

 planting out in 

 greenhouses for 

 bloom next 

 winter should 

 be sprayed oc- 

 casionally with 

 Bordeaux mix- 

 ture if there is 

 any indication 

 of rust. This 

 will make much 

 difference later. 



26. Azaleas. 

 genistas, aca- 

 c i as . etc., 

 should be 

 plunged in beds 

 out of doors, 

 where they can 

 be well pro- 

 V 1 d e d with 

 water and 

 sprayed. These 

 plants will be 

 making growth 

 at this time and 

 forming next 

 year's buds. 



27. It is ad- 

 visable at this 

 time to take 

 largequantltles 

 of chrysanthe- 

 mum cuttings. 

 These if rooted 

 now will make 

 fine plants for 

 6" or 7" pots, 

 or when bed- 

 ded out will 

 make stems 

 about 3' long 

 with good sized 

 flowers. 



28. Keep a 

 sharp lookout 

 for aphis of all 

 kinds if the 

 weather is at 

 all dry. If the 

 plants are in- 

 fested spray 

 them for three 

 successive 

 evenings with 

 a reliable to- 

 bacco solution. 

 Be sure the 

 spray reaches 

 the under sides. 



29. Lettuce 

 will frequently 

 run to seed at 

 this season of 

 the year. 

 Boards or other 

 covering ma- 

 terial placed 

 over [he plants 

 will tend to re- 

 duce the loss 

 from this 

 source. Re- 

 move all such 

 covering dur- 

 ing wet spells. 



30. Crops 

 such as pota- 

 toes, celery, 

 tomatoes, etc., 

 will be i m- 

 proved by mild 

 applications of 

 fertilizer. Scat- 

 ter the fertil- 

 izer on the 

 ground around 

 the stems of 

 the plants, 

 working it well 

 into the sotl 

 with a hoc 



Into the stilly woods I go, 

 Where the shadows are deep 



and the •wind-flowers 



blow, 

 And the hotirs are dreamy 



and lone and long, 

 A?id the power of silence 



is greater than song. 



— Wilfred Campbell 



This Calendar of the gardener's labors is 

 aimed as a reminder for undertaking all his 

 tasks in season. It is fitted to the latitude 

 of the Middle States, but its service should 

 be available for the whole country if it be 

 remembered that for every one hundred 

 miles north or south there is a difference 

 of from five to seven days later or earlier 

 in performing garden operations. The dates 

 given are, of course, for an average season. 



'T'HE other rnorin'n' I noticed some o' the extry early strazvbcrries had bren half ct np._ They looked like 

 ^ a turtle had been after 'em. an' pretty soon I found him — a big box-turtle layin' right in among the 

 plants. They ain't nothin' surprisin' 'bout that, fer ev'ry farmer's boy knows hozv fond them critters is o' 

 ripe strazvbe'rrics. I took an' carried this particular turtle outside the garden fence an' set him down at 

 the edge o' the woods, fifty yards azvav. Next afternoon, dummed if he zvarn't back ag'inf Then J got 

 right mad an' toted him off to the szL-amp back o' the barn, thinkin' that zvonld sure lose him. Not a bit — 

 in tw'o days he zvas catin' them berries ag'in like he'd alzvays been thar. I found^ the hole in the fence 

 zchere he 'got in. an' stopped it up; an' there zvarn't no more trouble. Nozv, they's t'vo tnterestin' p'ints 

 'bout all this. Fust, hozv did he trail them strazvbcrries such a long ways: an' second, how did he find 

 that one little hole in the fence zu'ich let him in at 'em? 'Pears to me turtles ain't such dum fools, 



after all. ^,, r^ 



— Old Doc Lemmon. 



A little fertilizer 



scattered on the soil 



will improve the 



crop 



Some sort of trellis 

 should be made 

 ready for the to- 

 mato plants 



A can partly filled 



with kerosene is an 



excellent receptacle 



for rose bugs 



A Utile sheep nianitit MUtUttd o^c llu gfdsi will 



improve its quality. This fertilizer should be spread 



as evenly as possible 



The root stock growth of 



grafted roses should be kept 



reduced 



Old barrel hoops surrounding the plants and raised 



on stakes 1' or so make excellent supports for the 



tomatoes 



