Book of Gardens 



113 



September 



THE GARDENER'S CALENDAR 



Ninth Month 



A garden bed where 



the late crops can 



be protected is a 



good investment 



Good rutabagas 



must grow quickly. 



Nitrate of soda will 



stimulate them 



Herbaceous plants 



may be moved 



more successfidly in 



fall than spring 



SUNDAY 



MONDAY 



TUESDAY 



WEDNESDAY 



THURSDAY 



FRIDAY 



SATURDAY 



September 

 blowes 

 sojte 



Till the 

 jruite is 

 in the 

 lojte. 



—Old 

 Proverb 



1. The last 

 sowing of peas 

 should be made 

 the early part 

 of this month, 

 using only the 

 hard round- 

 seeded type, 

 which is quick 

 and vigorous 

 in growth. If 

 the ground is 

 dry. water the 

 drills well be- 

 fore sowing the 

 seed. 



. 2. Prune all 

 deciduous trees 

 before the 

 leaves fall, as it 

 Is much easier 

 then to deter- 

 mine what part 

 of the growth 

 Is to be r e- 

 moved. Cut 

 the branches 

 close, leaving 

 no stubs, and 

 paint the 

 wounds i m- 

 mediately. 



3. Do not 

 neglectthecane 

 fruits, if they 

 have not al- 

 ready been at- 

 tended to. Go 

 over them care- 

 fully, removing 

 the old canes 

 at the ground 

 line and tying 

 the young, vig- 

 orous shoots 

 into position to 

 prevent dam- 

 age by storms. 



4. It is not 

 too late to start 

 a strawberry 

 bed for next 

 season, ifpotted 

 plants are used 

 for planting. 

 Use pistillate 

 and staminate 

 types. Put in 

 plenty of man- 

 ure and a fair 

 amount of bone 

 meal to stimu- 

 late strong, ra- 

 pid growth. 



5. The or- 

 chard that Is 

 not growing sa- 

 tisfactorily can 

 be improved 

 wonderfully by 

 the sowing of 

 cover crops, 

 and subse- 

 quently turn- 

 ing them under 

 as described on 

 another page- 

 No orchard 

 should be 

 grown in sod. 



G. Evergreens 

 that have been 

 confined in 

 growth, hedges 

 and various 

 other plants 

 thatareclipped 

 frequently 

 should be given 

 a flnal clipping 

 at this time. 

 Do this before 

 the foliage 

 turns on the 

 deciduous 

 plants. 



7. Do not 

 stopcuttingthe 

 grass until all 

 growth has 

 ceased. Failure 

 to do this will 

 result in a long 

 growth, which 

 when carried 

 over the winter 

 will turn brown 

 in spring and 

 be hard to era- 

 dlcate when 

 the lawn is put 

 in order . 



8. Melon 

 frames and 

 other garden 

 accessories that 

 will not be used 

 again this sea- 

 son should be 

 repaired, paint- 

 ed and put 

 away in winter 

 storage. When 

 well cared foi 

 they will last 

 for several sea- 

 sons of actual 

 use. 



9. Vegetables 

 should bo 

 started In the 

 greenhouse 

 now for next 

 winter's use. 

 Cauliflower, 

 lettuce and 

 string beans 

 should be sown 

 about every 

 three weeks. 

 Tomatoes 

 and Swiss 

 chard need but 

 one sowing. 



10. This Is 

 peony month 

 in the flower 

 garden. If you 

 want good re- 

 sults next year, 

 it will be ne- 

 cessary to over- 

 haul the plants 

 now, digging 

 up the clumps 

 that are too 

 large, cutting 

 them into four 

 pieces and re- 

 setting. 



11. Where 

 heated frames 

 are available 

 for them, there 

 are a number 

 of crops that 

 can be started 

 at this time. 

 Radishes, spin- 

 ach, etc.. or 

 some of the 

 cooler flowers 

 such as violets 

 and pansies, 

 can be sown 

 in the frames. 



12. The flow- 

 er garden 

 should be given 

 a final clean-up 

 for the season. 

 The walks 

 should be prop- 

 erly edged, all 

 weed growth 

 and the old 

 stalks of plants 

 remo\'ed and 

 burned. This 

 will destroy 

 many insect 

 larvae. 



13. Do not 

 neglect to get 

 cuttings of the 

 bedding plants 

 before they are 

 destroyed by 

 frost. This ap- 

 plies to chry- 

 santhemums, 

 coleus, etc. 

 Each variety 

 should be kept 

 separate, as 

 mixed colors 

 are disappoint- 

 ing. 



14. This is 

 one of the bc3t 

 periods of the 

 year for seed- 

 ing down new 

 lawns, the rea- 

 son being that 

 most weed 

 growth is over 

 and the grass 

 will get suf- 

 ficient start to 

 carry it safely 

 through the 

 trials of winter 

 weather. 



15. Onions, 

 parsnips, spin- 

 ach and hardy 

 crops of this 

 character may 

 be sown in the 

 open with the 

 idea of carrying 

 them over the 

 winter. This 

 can be easily 

 done with a 

 little protec- 

 tion, such as 

 salt hay or sim- 

 ilar material. 



16. Ever- 

 greens that are 

 being trans- 

 planted now, 

 or have been 

 transplated re- 

 cently, must be 

 kept well wa- 

 tered. Although 

 top growth has 

 terminated, 

 these plants 

 are making 

 considerable 

 root growth 

 even now. 



17. Perman- 

 ent pastures 

 for grazing pur- 

 poses should'be 

 sown at this 

 time. Bear in 

 mind that if 

 properly put 

 down, a good 

 pasture will 

 last for many 

 years. Do not 

 under any cir- 

 cumstances 

 plant inferior 

 seed. 



IS. Attention 

 should be given 

 now to bulb 

 planting for 

 this season. If 

 not already 

 placed, orders 

 should be sent 

 inimmediately, 

 as early plant- 

 ing means bet- 

 ter results. It 

 gives the bulb 

 a chance to 

 form a root 

 system. 



19. Carna- 

 tions that were 

 planted out 

 may now be 

 put in the 

 greenhouse. 

 The glass 

 should be 

 shaded slightly 

 for several 

 days, or until 

 the roots have 

 again become 

 active. Over- 

 head spraying 

 is helpful. 



20. Chrysan- 

 themums and 

 other similar 

 plants that are 

 n bud should 

 be fed freely 

 with liquid 

 manures of dif- 

 ferent kinds. 

 This operation, 

 however, must 

 be discontinued 

 as soon as the 

 buds show 

 color and signs 

 of opening. 



21. Do not 

 neglect to sow 

 down with rye 

 and clover the 

 vacant patches 

 in the garden. 

 Sowings can 

 also be made 

 between corn, 

 cabbage and 

 other crops, 

 with the idea 

 of remaining 

 after these 

 crops have 

 been gathered. 



22. Celery 

 should be 

 banked with 

 earth now. It 

 is best if this is 

 attended to fre- 

 quently, as the 

 sou should 

 never be al- 

 lowed to work 

 its way Into the 

 heart of the 

 plant. Hold the 

 stalks together 

 while banking 

 them. 



23. Mush- 

 room beds may 

 be started in 

 the cellar at 

 this time. Be 

 sure to get 

 fresh droppings 

 for this pur- 

 pose, and by 

 all means use 

 new culture 

 spawn, which 

 is of high qual- 

 ity and the 

 most depend- 

 able. 



24. C 1 d - 

 frames that can 

 be protected 

 throughout the 

 winter should 

 be used for 

 sowing hardy 

 vegetables like 

 cabbage and 

 cauliflower 

 with the idea 

 of carrying 

 them over and 

 planting out 

 ea,rly In the 

 spring. 



25. It might 

 be advisable to 

 build a fire in 

 the greenhouse 

 occasionally. 

 Cold nights 

 and hot days 

 are productive 

 of mildew. To 

 overcome this 

 have the pipes 

 painted with a 

 paste made 

 from flowers of 

 sulphur and 

 water. 



26. Bef or e 

 the leaves 

 begin to fall, 

 look the garden 

 and grounds 

 over carefully 

 with an eye to 

 changes in 

 their arrange- 

 m e n t. The 

 reason for this, 

 and how to go 

 about it. are 

 detailed on 

 another pagein 

 this issue. 



27. Just as 

 soon as the 

 foliage turns 

 yellow on de- 

 ciduous plants 

 it is safe to 

 start trans- 

 planting; in 

 fact, the earlier 

 in the fall this 

 is attended to 

 the better, as 

 the roots will 

 take hold be- 

 fore cold wea- 

 ther. 



2S. Wire 

 grass, rye grass 

 and other 

 heavy growing 

 grasses and 

 weeds grow 

 very ranidl> at 

 this season of 

 the year, and 

 if allowed to 

 overrun your 

 garden they 

 will be a serious 

 factor to con- 

 tend with next 

 spring- 



29. A great 

 deal of our ao- 

 called winter 

 losses, especi- 

 ally with ever- 

 greens, is the 

 result of these 

 plants being al- 

 lowed to be- 

 come bone dry 

 at this season 

 when they are 

 developing a 

 root system 

 to carry them 

 over winter. 



30. It would 

 not be amiss 

 with late grow- 

 ing crops such 

 as celery, ruta- 

 baga, carrots, 

 parsnip and 

 New Zealand 

 spinach, or 

 other crops still 

 bearing, to ap- 

 ply frequent 

 dressings of 

 manure and oc- 

 casionally ni- 

 trate of soda. 



O'er yon- 

 bare knoll 

 the point- 

 ed cedar 

 shadows 



Drowse on 

 the crisp, 

 gray 

 moss. 



-Lowell 



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 di^erence 

 of from five to seven days later or earlier 

 in performing garden operations. The dates 

 given are, of course, for an average season. 



/n THER day a young college professor passed our farm, an' seein' me a-jixxn' the line fence along the 

 ^^ road he stops to visit for a spell. Right nice young feller he was, an' I kinder took to him; he was 

 on a walkin' trip, he says, up toward the Canada border. IVa'l, we stood there talkin 'boiit crops an' the 

 like o' that, an' pretty soon he says, a-lookin' np the slope a' the hill pasture, "That's a fine oak ye have 

 on the hilltop yonder — big an' rugged an' strong. I've often thought trees must have souls, they're so- 

 like people." / been stndyin' over that idee ever since, an' by jing, he's right; an' they're like diff'rcnt 

 kinds o' people, too. I've secji plenty o' gals thafs reg'lar aspen trees — flippity an' gay an' shimmcrin' , 

 but without no strcn'th worth spcakin' of zvhen a real storm come along. Spruces, too, remind me o' sad, 

 weepy people, ahvays a-droopin' down toward the ground when they gets old. Red maples, on t'other 

 hand, are solid an' neat an' dependable, with wholesome lookin' leaves an' cheery color in the fall. They're 

 mighty diff'rent frotn the silver tnaples, which're forever reachin' out long, scraggly arms that don't never 

 seem to do nofhin' much worth while. If ye'll notice, too, pretty near all trees are like people in another 

 way: when they're young they're mostly all legs, skinny an' awkward. Them that ain't thataway don't 

 affect the likeness none — they's chunky, well formed children to match 'em. 



Old Doc Lcmmon. 



Sweet peas for win- 

 ter bloom in the 

 greenhouse should be 

 planted now 



Gathering rutabagas 



that have attained 



the proper size and 



best quality 



Boards held with 



stakes may be used 



in blanching the 



early celery crop 



% ^r\ ^^ 



The last of the season's clipping of the 



formal evergreens may be done during 



September 



The time is ap- 

 proaching to plant 

 hardy bulbs outdoors 



Start this month to 

 hill tip the late cel- 

 ery plants with earth 



Lettuce may be planted in the cold- 

 frame to yield a post-season crop which 

 will repay the effort 



