228 



THE GARDEN MAGAZINE 



May, 1907 



colors mixed. Therefore buy named vari- 

 eties and sow them separately. After the 

 plants are above the ground a few inches, 

 thin them out to not less than four inches 

 apart; crowding is the one great cause of 

 yellow foliage in all annual plants. 



Of all the nasturtiums sown it would be 

 safe to say that 75 per cent, are on the yellow 

 or orange shades, but there are great possi- 

 bilities for garden effects in the use of scarlets, 

 crimsons or browns. 



The nasturtium will stand a lot of abuse, 

 but it must have water during dry weather as 

 otherwise the leaves will turn yellow. Another 

 cause of yellow foliage is planting in too much 

 shade ; it prefers the full sunshine. The nastur- 



tiums are twiners and are rather dwarf in hab- 

 it, six feet being about the maximum height. 



VINES WITH YELLOW FLOWERS 



The best yellow-flowered, annual vine is 

 the canary-bird vine (Tropceolum peregrinum) 

 not so well known as it deserves to be. The 

 flowers are a good clear yellow — a color that 

 is seen in but few vines. Sow the seed in the 

 greenhouse or frame about the middle of 

 March. The plant will then flower by 

 July 1st and continue blooming until frost. 

 If sown in the open ground, the results will 

 not be so satisfactory, and will not be pro- 

 duced before September 1st. Then the cool 

 nights will check the growth. Since the plant 



likes the heat and does better in a hot, sunny 

 location, it will do reasonably well in a dry 

 location, and is valuable on that account 

 alone. Under favorable conditions and 

 given a long season of growth, it will cover 

 a trellis to a height of twenty feet. 



This is another vine that, like the morning- 

 glory, varies greatly in quality and floriferous- 

 ness, and often fails to give satisfaction 

 because of the use of seeds from a poor strain. 

 The remedy is obvious when you do get a 

 good strain, save your own seed. The plant 

 is a twiner but makes a tender, succulent stem 

 and should be afforded a trellis that holds it 

 well in position. It is also well adapted for 

 use as a trailer for boxes, baskets, etc. 



Inside Facts About Table Corn— By e. d. Darlington, 



Pennsyl- 



A GUIDE TO THE BEST VARIETIES FOR SUCCESSION IN ALL PARTS OF THE COUNTRY— SOME 

 FIELD CORNS THAT ARE REALLY BETTER THAN THE TRUE SUGAR CORNS FOR EARLY PLANTING 



IN making selection of the varieties of 

 corn to be planted for table use, it is 

 important to consider the local conditions 

 of season and climate to secure satisfactory 

 results. In some sections, as in the warm 

 Southern States, the extra early sweet, or 

 sugar, corns do not do well, as these varieties 

 are practically valueless because of the smut 

 and from the ravages of the green worms in 

 the young ears. For the earliest supply 

 under such circumstances, a very early white 

 field corn is used, the grains of which are 

 quite tender and juicy when gathered at the 

 proper stage, although of course the flavor 

 cannot be compared with that of the true 

 sweet, or sugar corns. 



In the cooler Northern sections, a hard- 

 grained, early variety is usually selected for 

 the earliest plantings, as the hard, flinty 

 grains can be planted earlier in the spring 

 than the shrivelled grains of the sugar corns. 

 The plants of these hard-grained types are 

 hardier and more robust than those of the 

 more tender sugar corn, and the ears are 

 protected by a thick, rather coarse husk, 

 coming well over the tip of the ear, affording 

 good protection against the worms. Dif- 

 ferent types of these hardy corns are used in 

 different sections, those planted in the North 

 being of comparatively dwarf, stocky growth, 

 with pearly white, or smoky-colored, grains, 

 while in the South the varieties used grow to 

 a height of seven to eight feet and produce a 

 large many-rowed ear. 



The smaller Northern type is generally 

 eight-rowed and has a smoothly rounded 

 flinty grain, while the Southern type has a 

 deeper, slender grain of paper whiteness and 

 resembles a dent field corn when fully 

 mature. 



In the true sugar corns, the earliest varieties 

 are of dwarf habit, the height of full-grown 

 stalks being from two and one-half to four 

 feet, and the ears are set near the ground, 

 or at the base of the stalk. As the season 

 of maturity of the different varieties becomes 

 later and the period required for the develop- 

 ment of growth and ear longer, the height of 



stalk and size of ear increases in proportion. 

 The ears are borne higher up on the stalk, 

 contain a larger number of rows of grains 

 and the stalks are more abundantly fur- 

 nished with leaves, or blades. 



The grains of the dwarf, extra early sorts, 

 are not fertilized as readily as those of the 

 larger, later sorts, consequently, it is a great 

 advantage to have the rows close together 

 and the stalks closer in the row than would 

 be advisable for the taller-growing later 

 varieties. In the thicker planting there is 

 greater economy of pollen and much more 

 likelihood that all silk, even to the tip of the 

 ear, will be fertilized. In addition to better- 

 filled ears the gardener also gets a much 

 larger return on a given space from the close 

 planting. 



In small gardens, where the cultivation 

 is done with hand or wheel hoe, the dwarf 

 extra early corns may be planted in rows two 

 feet apart; the taller second earlies, three 

 feet apart; and the tall late sorts, four feet 

 apart. The stalks in each case to stand 

 singly and one foot apart in the row. 



For horse cultivation in one direction, 

 the small extra earlies, growing three to 

 four and a half feet high, may be planted in 

 rows three feet apart; and the taller later 

 sorts four feet apart. Use a liberal quantity 

 of seed to insure a good stand, and when well 

 started, thin to one foot apart. 



Two big factors make for the best flavor 

 in table corn: first, picking the ears at the 

 critical stage of ripeness; second, cooking 

 in boiling water for exactly the right length 

 of time. The proper stage of develop- 

 ment is when the grains are fully developed, 

 but while they still remain tender and juicy, 

 and before the skin of the grain starts to 

 glaze or become hard. Gather the ears just 

 before they are to be cooked if possible or at 

 least early in the morning of the same day 

 that they are to be eaten. Keep them in the 

 husk in a cool place until a short time before 

 they are to go into the pot. For the better 

 varieties, ten minutes' boiling is amply 

 sufficient, and overcooking causes a rapid 



deterioration in flavor. If they cannot be 

 served immediately when cooked, take the 

 ears from the boiling water, drain carefully 

 and cover with a cloth to retain the heat. 



Ears that are too old for boiling on the 

 cob need not be wasted; they are just what 

 is needed for the best griddle cakes, or corn 

 oysters. The ears are husked and freed from 

 silk, then the interior portion of the grain 

 is scraped out with a fork, or the small scraper 

 which is made especially for this purpose. 

 Treated in this way, only the soft, milky, 

 interior portion of the grain is taken and the 

 tough skin is left on the cob. 



VARIETIES OE HARDY EARLY CORN 



The Extra Early Adams is the leading 

 variety, aside from the true sugar corns, for 

 early planting in the middle and cooler 

 Northern States. The seed of this variety 

 is white in color, quite hard, and may be 

 planted very early in the spring in well- 

 drained ground, or about the time the sugar 

 maples are coming into leaf. The stalks 

 grow from five to six feet high and generally 

 produce in rich soil two good ears. The 

 ears are seven to eight inches long, with 

 twelve to fourteen rows of medium-sized 

 grains. The husks are rather coarse and 

 thick, affording good protection for the ears. 



Burlington Hybrid is similar in growth and 

 season to the Extra Early Adams, and is very 

 largely planted for early market. It pro- 

 duces a rather slender, eight-rowed ear, seven 

 inches in length. When fully ripe, the grain 

 is very hard, or flinty, in character, and of a 

 smoky, brownish tint. Another variety, 

 not especially distinguished by name but 

 having a flinty, white grain, is grown in some 

 of the cooler Northern States, and differs 

 from the Burlington chiefly in the coloring 

 of the fully matured seed. 



Early Adams is the Southern type of hardy 

 early corn, with stalks growing from seven 

 to eight feet in height, about ten days later 

 in season than the preceding varieties and 

 with much larger ears. The ears are set 

 rather high on the stalk and measure from 



