Saving the Garden Plants from FrOSt— By Parker Thayer Barnes, ? 



HOW TO CARRY OVER WINTER TENDER PLANTS FROM OUTDOORS-THE KINDS THAT WILL FLOWER 

 INDOORS THIS WINTER AND NEXT SPRING— THOSE THAT WILL BLOOM NEXT SUMMER OUTDOORS 



ew 

 York 



MANY of the plants that have adorned 

 the garden all summer can be saved 

 for house decoration through winter and also 

 to furnish stock for next summer's garden by- 

 digging them up and putting them into pots; 

 during earlv fall, in September, before the 



CrocKed and ready for the soil. Place the potsherd 

 round side up, covering lightly with a handful of 

 coarse fibrous earth 



early frosts have nipped them, is the proper 

 time. The labor is small, and the materials, 

 some pots costing only a few cents apiece, 

 and some good garden loam. Some of the 

 plants most easily kept over are named 

 below: 



For winter blooming: Ageratum, begonia, 

 English daisy, canna (for winter or spring), 

 geranium, heliotrope, and petunia. For 

 spring blooming (February and later): 

 Flowering maple (Abuliton), fuchsia, hibis- 

 cus, lantana, oxalis, and Lady Washing- 

 ton geranium (Pelargonium). 



Repotting is done when the roots are in active 

 growth, and when the roots completely cover the 

 ball, but before (hey become woody 



Nearly all the above plants may also 

 be carried over the winter by means of cuttings 

 taken now and rooted on benches in sand. 

 Alternanthera, rubber plant, salvia, ver- 

 bena, and vinca — can also be propagated by 

 cuttings. 



Many of the annuals, seeds of which were 

 sown late will also make excellent winter 

 plants, if potted up before frost. 



Before digging the plants every prepara- 

 tion for potting must be made. First mix 

 the soil. I have found that a soil composed 

 of equal parts of rotted sod, leaf mold or 

 peat, well-decayed horse manure, and sand, 

 will give excellent results. If rotted sods are 

 not available, then use a garden loam having 

 considerable humus. Such soil can usually 

 be procured from the vegetable garden. 

 Leaf mold is not absolutely essential, but 

 should be used if it is obtainable because it 

 improves the texture of the soil. Coal ashes 

 can be substituted for sand. The object 

 of sand or ashes is to keep the soil open so 

 that surplus water will drain away rapidly. 

 Horse manure is better than cow manure 

 because the latter is cold, but either may be 

 used well decomposed. 



Commercial fertilizers are not generally 

 needed in potting, for good composts contain 

 sufficient plant food for ordinary purposes. 

 Thev may be used occasionally, however, 

 in the case of emergency. Ground bone 

 and pulverized sheep manure are good, but 

 they are concentrated, so must be used very 

 sparingly — a pint of either will be sufficient 

 for a bushel of soil. 



If the soil contains many lumps or coarse 

 pieces of sod (as sometimes happens when 

 the sod is not completely rotted), screen 

 them out. The ordinary ash sieve is just 

 the thing for this. Or you can make a 

 sieve from a small box, say about eighteen 

 inches square, cut off at a depth of three 

 inches and the bottom covered in with wire 

 screen netting which has a \- or j-inch mesh, 

 and sift the dirt through this. Save the 

 coarse material — it will be useful when 

 potting. 



In the bottom of each pot put some coarse 

 drainage. Broken pots are usually used 

 for this, but coal clinkers or stones are just 

 as good. Use whichever is the handiest. 

 Broken charcoal is very good also. The 

 larger sizes of pots — 3-inch and up — need 

 crocking; use from a quarter of an inch to 

 two inches according to the size of the pot. 

 If you use broken pots, put the pieces in 

 with the curved side up; the crocks will fit 

 better. Over this drainage put some of the 

 coarse screenings to keep the finer soil from 

 washing down through. If there are no 

 coarse screenings, use a little sphagnum 

 moss. 



The pots may be obtained at almost any 

 hardware store, and buy the heavier ones as 

 the very thin ones now manufactured by 

 62 



some firms dry out too quickly. Soak new 

 pots in water until they get through " bub- 

 bling"; otherwise, the soil of the newly potted 

 plants will dry out too quickly. If the pots 

 are old and green with alga?, clean by scrub- 

 bing with sand and water, for the "green" 



When potting throw in a little soil with the hand. 

 Work the plant up and down a little and then fill up, 

 making all firm 



makes them less porous and old earth dried 

 on the inside surface interferes with the new 

 root-growth. 



Don't work on the principle that the 

 larger the pot and the more soil, the thriftier 

 the plant. It is not the amount of food 

 available, but the amount assimilated, that 

 counts. As a rule any pot which seems to 

 be in proportion to the plant, holding soil 

 enough to keep it from being top-heavy, will 

 be sufficiently large. Most amateurs make 

 a mistake in the size of the pot, using one 

 a size or two too large. It is very easy, 



When potting a rooted cutting, have the soil in 

 the pot, make a hole with the forefinger and quickly 

 inserting the plantlet press firm with the thumbs 



