November 14, 



S.] 



Garden and Forest. 



451 



is only necessary to take up the clumps of green leaves and 

 new bulbs, cover them well with sand and put them into a 

 cold-frame well tilled up afterward with leaves. In the spring 

 the clumps are almost as fresh and green as when first put 

 into the frame. Transplanted to the open border, they grow 

 freely, and produce their pure white, lily-like flowers in great 

 abundance from about the middle of August until they are 

 again taken up, unless cut down by frost. Few bulbs make so 

 many offsets. Clumps of Zephyranthcs Candida interspersed 

 with Colchicums make very attractive beds. In the absence 

 of other bulbs the clumps should be planted quite near each 

 other, so that the fine green foliage may completely cover the 

 ground. 



Newport, R. I., October 20th. f'K G. 



Shall We Plant in Fall or in Spring? 



'T'HE proper season for planting trees and vines is a ques- 

 ^ tion on which people differ materally, some insisting that 

 the fall is the very best time, and others advocate the spring 

 with equal vehemence. E.xperience leads me to believe that 

 the condition of soil and the subject to be planted has more 

 to do with results than the particular season at which the work 

 is done. Much of the loss is directly tracealjle to the treat- 

 ment which the trees or plants receive during the interval from 

 the time of their removal from the nursery until they are 

 planted. I have seen evergreens lying on the ground during 

 the noon hour, with roots exposed to the rays of a blazing sun 

 and drying winds, and I have too often seen choice trees 

 and plants similarly exposed while the so-called gardener was 

 getting ready to set them. No wonder failure follows such 

 treatment. In fact. Evergreens thus e.xposed had better be 

 thrown on the brush-pile at once, to save the labor of setting 

 and the vexation at the certain loss. The roots of trees and 

 plants of all kinds should be exposed as little as possible and 

 never allowed to become dry. This is especially true of trees 

 and plants having fine fibrous roots, which soon wither and 

 die of exposure in a dry atmosphere ; fleshy and woody roots 

 are not as susceptible, and will endure more exposure with 

 less apparent injury. 



Another serious cause of failure is the digging of trees and 

 vines before the wood is sufficiently matured. Nurserymen 

 anxious to commence operations m the fall sometimes yield 

 to the importunities of customers and dig trees before the- 

 leaves have fallen, in which case they are generally stripped 

 off by hand, entailing extra work. Such trees, especially Peach 

 trees, are often killed if exposed during the winter. For this 

 reason I prefer spring planting for the Peach, unless the trees 

 can be dug and planted late in the fall, after they have fullv 

 matured. Fall planting, then, is quite as safe. Spring is, also, 

 the best season for planting evergreens. It is well, in fall 

 planting of trees or even vines, to raise a mound of earth about 

 the trunk, and mulch with a little coarse manure. This course 

 is especially applicable to vines or small plants with superficial 

 roots, for these are much more apt to be lifted outby the action 

 of the frost. The earthing up turns the rain and snow- water a way 

 from them, and on ground infested with mice it is a good pro- 

 tection against their attacks. The soluble portion of the ma- 

 nure finds its way to the roots, while the manure itself is a safe- 

 guard against the piercing winds and severe cold. This 

 mound of earth should be leveled down in spring, and the 

 manure replaced around the stem of the plant, to serve as a 

 mulch, and keep the ground cool and moist. 



This earthing up process is also a good support to the tree 

 in preventing its being swayed about by the winds, although 

 to keep trees erect till established they should be staked and 

 tied. Another advantage of planting in autumn is that there 

 is then less hurry and rush than there is in spring. The 

 ground also can be worked in the fall into a condition not pos- 

 sible to reach in spring, because if it is so wet as to become 

 packed and hard the action of the frost will disintegrate it, 

 while soil in the same condition, and worked in spring, will 

 not become mellow at all during summer. Wet and unfavor- 

 able weather in springs such as the last interferes with and 

 often prevents contemplated planting, and hence it must go 

 over till another season, and a year is lost, while if done in the 

 fall a year is gained. Fall is the best season for purchasing, 

 even if the stock is not planted, because, while the assortment 

 is unbroken, the purchaser stands a much better chance of 

 getting the varieties he wants. 



In heeling in trees to be kept over for spring planting some 

 sheltered spot should be chosen and care should be taken that 

 the earth is well settled about the roots, leaving no air spaces. 

 If any danger of injury threatens, a few evergreen boughs 

 against the tops will greatly add to the security of the trees. 



The careful planter will take but few trees or plants at a time 

 from the package, keeping their roots covered from sun and 

 wind till the last one is in the ground. With due precautions 

 in what may seem unimportant details, the percentage of 

 failures would be hardly worth notice, let the work be done in 

 autumn or spring. The anxiety and desire for quick results 

 as an atonement for past neglect often induces. the planter to 

 get extra-sized trees, but unless such trees have been fre- 

 quently transplanted and are well supplied with fine roots, 

 time is never gained, and trees are often lost. The inex- 

 perienced and impatient are slow to learn this fact. 

 Montclair, N.J. E. Williams. 



Nerine Fothergilli. — This is a gorgeous bulbous plant, and 

 one that requires but a small amount of care and attention, 

 while the fact of its flowering at this season, when so many 

 summer-blooming plants are on the wane, is an additional 

 merit. Many people fail to flower it in a satisfactory manner, 

 but year after year at Baron Schroeder's it is, during the au- 

 tumn, one of the most conspicuous features. One great 

 cause of failure in the cultivation of these plants is that many 

 people dry them off after flowering; whereas they really make 

 their growth during the winter and early spring, and require 

 all the light they can have at that season, instead of being 

 placed vmderneath the stage in the vain hope of inducing 

 them to go to rest. Where the plants are in good condition 

 the beautiful, bright, rich vermilion-colored flowers will be 

 now at their best, while the glaucous foliage is also effective. 

 Besides the rich coloring of the blooms, they appear over- 

 spread with a lustre like frosted gold, which is remarkably 

 striking. The soil best suited for this Nerine is good, fibrous, 

 rather heavy loam, with a little leaf-mould and a liberal ad- 

 mixture of silver sand. These plants dislike being disturbed 

 at the roots, so that they should not be potted unless it is ab- 

 solutely necessary. Thorough drainage is essential to their 

 well-doing. In the case of plants that are now flowering, they 

 should, when the blooms are over, be still kept in the green- 

 house in as light a position as possible, where they may be 

 allowed to stand till about next May, by which time they will 

 be in quite a dormant condition. If they have been well ex- 

 posed to the light, the bulbs will be plump and hard. Then 

 a very good plan is to turn them out-of-doors and stand them 

 where they will be fully exposed to the sun, such as at the 

 foot of a south wall or in a narrow border in front of a g'lass 

 structure. Wherever they are put, care must be taken that 

 worms do not enter the pots, for they will play great havoc 

 with the plants, not only destroying the drainage, but also 

 making the soil in such a state that it is absolutely necessary 

 to repot, and this considerably lessens the chance of the bulbs 

 flowering. If they are roasted up in a sunny spot, and only 

 watered about once a fortnight, they will by about the end of 

 July commence to push up their flower-spikes, when they 

 should be taken into the green-house or a cold-frame, and 

 those that are showing flower must be from that time watered 

 when necessary. If the spikes are not visible the plants are 

 better if kept dry for a little longer, and if watered too freely 

 before the blooms are seen, a large crop of leaves often re- 

 sults at the expense of the flower. The major variety of 

 Nerine Fothergilli is the largest and most imposing of the 

 genus, but all are very beautiful, and well worthy of a little 

 special care and attention. — The London Garden. 



Soil for Roses —If not already attended to, it should be 

 borne in mind that a good supply of soil will be necessary for 

 next year's operations in the Rose houses, and that now is 

 the time to secure it, for when stacked up at this season and 

 allowed to remain until needed for use next June or July, it 

 will be found in the best condition for working. The soil, for 

 this purpose, should be a good loam of medium consistency, 

 such as is usually found^in an old pasture, from which a 

 layer may be taken about as thick as a spade will cut, includ- 

 ing the sod. By medium consistency is meant a loam, not 

 very sandy, nor vet entirely composed of clay. When it is 

 too stiff it requires more preparation to fit it for successful 

 Rose culture, and, also, more careful applications of water 

 and of fertilizers. The sod for this supply should be stacked 

 up in a neat pile, about four feet in height, with some good, 

 short stable manure, in the proportion of one load to six of 

 sod, the latter being placed grass side down, so as to assist 

 the process of disintegration. Rose-growers differ as to the 

 best mamn-e to use for this purpose ; but |irobably a majority 

 are in favor of using that comi)Osed of equal parts of horse 

 and cow manure, besides wliich, many add a small jiroportion 

 of good bone-meal to the compost, before taking it into the 

 Rose houses. 



