The Garden Magazine 



Experimenting With Hunnemannia. — Every 

 year, I try a new (to me) flower and am 

 so delighted with my trial this year that 

 I want to share my find with all the flower 

 lovers who read The Garden Magazine — 

 perhaps they have grown Hunnemannia and, 

 therefore, know all about it, but I will tell 

 my results just the same. Several years ago at 

 the Flower Show at the Grand Central Palace, 

 New York, Max Schling,the 59th Street florist, 

 had a bunch of these beautiful flowers in his 

 exhibit and I at once felt I must have some. 

 I planted an ounce of seed in 1916 but not one 

 came up. Last fall I planted another ounce 

 (from another seed house) in my cold green- 

 house and two plants appeared after several 

 months. This spring I made up my mind I 

 would try again and bought another ounce 

 (from a third seed house). I soaked them all 

 night (putting them in hot water) and planted 

 them the next day in the bed in which Nigella 

 Miss Jeykll had grown the year before and 

 many self-sown seeds came up with the Hun- 

 nemannia. It's my belief that every seed 

 germinated. The bed has been one of the 

 most beautiful in my entire garden, and now 

 in the bare days of October I am still picking 

 both kinds of flowers every few days. The 

 color of the Hunnemannia is not only a won- 

 derful yellow but the flowers last at least a 

 week, while a Poppy does not last a day. — 

 Frank H. Presby, Montclair, N. J. 



Tulips and Daffodils Planted Late. — One 

 of the vissicitudes of war that the gar- 

 dener meets, his inability to secure the cus- 

 tomary supply of Dutch bulbs at the usual 

 planting time, need not dishearten him Iso far 

 as Tulips, Crocuses, and Daffodils are con- 

 cerned. They may be planted as late as 

 January first and bloom satisfactorily. A 

 few years ago I received as a gift at Christmas 

 time a fine package of bulbs, including Darwin 

 Tulips, named Hyacinths, a mixed assortment 

 of Crocuses, and 100 bulbs of Poet's Narcissus. 

 There was five inches of snow upon the ground 

 and I had very faint hopes for success when I 

 carried the entire assortment to the banks of a 

 little brook that winds through my garden, 

 and planted them. The snow was scraped 

 away with a hoe after which the bulbs were 

 inserted singly and in clumps under the frozen 

 top-soil among the Willows and Dogwoods bor- 

 dering the stream, and right down to the 

 glassy ice mirror. The snow lasted a few days, 



then came two weeks of warm weather during 

 which the bulbs had time to get a hold upon the 

 soil. In the spring I was somewhat surprised 

 to see the Crocuses showing their pretty blos- 

 soms with the budding Willows. The Tulips 

 and Daffodils followed, later, but no less 

 beautiful. The Hyacinths did not make 

 satisfactory bloom; the flower stalks were 

 short and the blossoms were crowded to- 

 gether. I think that they failed to make the 

 root-growth required. — Buford Reid, Osceola, 

 Ark. 



The Topeka Hollyhock Chain. — We have 

 realized so much pleasure through the free 

 distribution of a large quantity of Hollyhock 

 seed to my patrons and friends that I am 

 more than half inclined to extend the privilege 

 to those who may not be fortunate enough 



The easily grown Hollyhock was selected to start a chain 

 campaign for civic improvement in Topeka 



149 



to enjoy the privilege of living in Topeka. 

 I first brought from my summer vacations 

 a small quantity of seed offering them to 

 those who came to my office; and it was a 

 success, as they asked for more. Requests 

 later came from away beyond the transfer 

 man's "field of operations" much to my satis- 

 faction, however. This caused me to think 

 out a plan by which one might interest flower 

 lovers in other cities by offering seeds, and 

 through them influencing the Civic Improve- 

 ment clubs or committees to take up this 

 matter of systematically decorating the alley 

 fences and unsightly buildings with a per- 

 petual screen of varying colors as it was 

 in Topeka all June and July. To all 

 comers who sent postage (or for nothing if 

 they can not afford that) Hollyhock seeds are 

 given on the promise that: From the "First 

 fruits" they give Three Seeds for Three 

 years or more to Three Friends, flower- 

 lovers. As one seed has produced 85,000 

 of its fellows, there are immense possibilities 

 in the Topeka "Hollyhock Chain" should it 

 be acted upon by the cities in general. Holly- 

 hocks are hardy, grow in almost any soil, 

 ordinarily require no second planting and 

 bloom and seed abundantly. The "Neigh- 

 bors" might start a Civic Improvement chain 

 in each of their own towns with but a modest 

 cost compared with the splendid results pos- 

 sible to attain through the systematic plant- 

 ing of one kind of seed throughout the 

 cities. Address (with or without postage), 

 Clarence D. Skinner, Topeka, Kansas. 



Where to Obtain Rare Plants. — In a recent 

 number of The Garden Magazine you 

 speak of Chinese Bush -cherry, also the 

 Spring Cherry and Morus acidosa. From 

 what nurseryman may these be procured. — 

 /. E. Cannaday, Charleston, W . Va. 

 — The Chinese Bush-cherry (Prunus tomen- 

 tosa) can be obtained from Bay State Nur- 

 series, North Abington, Mass.; Framingham 

 Nurseries, Framingham, Mass.; F. &. F. 

 Nurseries, Springfield, N. J., and probably 

 others. The Spring Cherry (Prunus sub- 

 hirtella) is not listed by any dealers at present 

 to my knowledge. But try such large growers 

 as Meehan, Moon, and Andorra. It is fairly 

 common in gardens about Boston, and seed 

 may perhaps be obtained in July from the Ar- 

 nold.Arboretum. The new Mulberry (Morus 

 acidosa) can as yet be gotten only through the 



