294 



THE GARDEN MAGAZINE 



June, 1907 



The geraniums may all be planted about 

 fifteen inches each way; Madame Salleroi, 

 for an edging, about ten to twelve inches; 

 sweet alyssum, nasturtiums and ageratum 

 'about eight to ten inches. . 



Begonias are very suitable subjects for 

 summer bedding. The taller varieties, such 

 as B. coccinea (B. rubra of gardens), or 

 the metallica type make a good centre or 

 background with the free-flowering semper- 

 florens and Vernon types in the foreground, 

 and the Erdfordii varieties (such as Erfordii 

 gracilis, rosea and Fairy Queen) for an 

 edging. These begonias do well in a partially 

 shaded place but do not flower as freely as 

 in the sun. The larger varieties may be 

 planted eighteen inches apart and the dwarf 

 ones about twelve inches apart. 



For foliage effect, coleus gives the greatest 

 variety. Golden Bedder and Yellow Ver- 



schaffelti are the best yellows, Verschaffelti 

 the best red and Hero the best dark. They 

 are best used for formal design work but can 

 also be used for bedding. They also will do 

 well in a mixed bed having such things as 

 Thompsoni, Souvenir de Bon and Savitzi 

 abutilons with their variegated leaves in 

 the middle, and acalyphas or achyranthes 

 next to them; then a broad belt, say two or 

 three lines of coleus, with alternantheras 

 for an edging. When used in this way, 

 plant two or three rows of one color next to 

 one another, as single narrow lines of one 

 thing makes a bed look too patchy. 



A beautiful bed may be made of verbenas 

 alone planted ten inches apart, and helio- 

 tropes also look very well when planted en 

 masse. I have seen a very pretty bed made 

 of standard heliotropes. These are plants 

 trained to a single stem. The stem is three or 



four feet high with a bushy top, and a ground- 

 work of low dwarf plants. Such a bed is 

 very pretty and the flowers useful for cutting. 



Petunias are excellent for solid planting 

 but they do not look well when mixed with 

 other things. Examples are endless and we 

 could go on with enough to fill a volume. 



A very attractive bed of the house plants 

 may be arranged outdoors. Such plants as 

 palms, screw pines (Pandanus) Norfolk 

 pine, (Araucaria) all of which will do better 

 outdoors during the summer in shaded or 

 sheltered place than if kept in the house the 

 entire year, but sink the pots in the soil to the 

 rims. For edging use some such plant as 

 palm grass (Panicum plicatutri) or the so- 

 called variegated panicum (Oplismenns Bur- 

 mannii) . 



To avoid injury from late frosts do not put 

 any of these plants outdoors until after June i. 



What tO do With Old Bulbs-By John Dunbar, 



Rochester 



TAKE UP YOUR TULIPS, HYACINTHS AND DAFFODILS FROM FORMAL FLOWER BEDS BEFORE JUNE 1st, 

 TO MAKE ROOM FOR BEDDING PLANTS, AND STORE THE LARGE BULBS AS HERE DIRECTED 



AS THE quantity of bulbs imported from 

 Holland is annually increasing, it 

 seems a fair inference that there must be a 

 great deterioration in quality and a large 

 amount of waste in their cultivation, or else 

 our Dutch friends could not transact the 

 large amount of business they do amongst 

 us every year. 



We do not contend that tulips, hyacinths, 

 crocuses and many varieties of narcissus 

 can be perpetuated indefinitely, even with 

 the best care, without a certain amount of 

 annual deterioration and loss. The experi- 

 ence of the best horticulturists and gardeners 

 proves that tulips and hyacinths particularly 

 will decrease in numbers and quality. 



In saving over old bulbs at Highland Park, 

 Rochester, N. Y., I have tried different 

 methods with varying results, and the plan 

 now in operation I consider the best in giving 

 me quantity, quality and ease of handling. 



Tulips and hyacinths, when planted in 

 formal beds, must be lifted in order to get 

 the beds properly prepared for summer 

 bedding plants. It cannot be otherwise, 

 because it is necessary to manure, dig and 

 perhaps rearrange the grade of the beds. 

 In areas, and informal beds amongst shrubs, 

 where annuals may be largely planted, it is 



After the bulbs have been cleaned, stack them liKe 

 this in a cool, dry, well-ventilated room 



not so necessary to lift the bulbs, as the 

 annuals can be planted on top of the bulbs, 

 and the bulbs left undisturbed for two or 

 three years. I have frequently done this, 

 but my experience of late years has not been 

 favorable to this treatment of tulips and 

 hyacinths. The most satisfactory results are 

 obtained by lifting the bulbs no matter what 

 conditions they are planted under, at least 

 in this part of the world. 



In formal beds where there may be two 

 or three colors or varieties blended together 



in some kind of design, it is necessary to 

 prevent mixtures. When the bulbs are 

 blooming and before the decaying flower 

 stems or seed pods have been cut (and they 

 should be removed as soon as they are through 

 blooming) outline clearly the different vari- 

 eties or groups in the beds by making a 

 depressed mark with the end of a rake handle 

 or by laying a piece of stout cord, or a series 

 of narrow slat strips to indicate the lines of 

 demarcation. Of course, each variety should 

 be plainly labeled. 



As soon as the stems begin to turn yellow 

 and show evidences of ripening I start to 

 lift the bulbs. A light spade or spading fork 

 is placed behind the bulbs, the bulbs lifted 

 with the decaying stems attached and placed 

 in seed flats 22 x 14 x 3^ in. (but any 

 convenient size will do), and packed closely 

 together, a label bearing the name of the 

 variety being placed in the flat. The flats 

 are placed on the floor of a shed loft and the 

 windows and ventilators left open. Here 

 in a short time they soon get thoroughly 

 dried. If there is a large number of flats 

 and floor space limited you may pile the flats 

 one above another, but be sure to place large 

 cleats between them to allow the air to pass 

 freely. 



Dig your tulips towards the end of May to maKe room Lay the bulbs this way to economize space while Stack the flats liKe this. An ideal place for drying 

 for summer bedding plants securing perfect ventilation for all bulbs, cool, dry, well ventilated, roomy 



