THE MONTH'S REMINDER, OCTOBER, 1918 



The purpose of the Reminder is to call to your attention the things which should be thought about or done during the next few weeks. For full 

 details as to how to do the different things suggested, see the current or back issues of The Garden Magazine. {An index of contents is pre- 

 pared for each completed volume, and is sent gratis on request. * # * Check off with a pencil, in the square D provided for that purpose, the items 

 that apply to your own case, and use the page as a reference list. * * * 



IT IS NOT all over yet! October is a late 

 month in the garden, but by no means an 

 empty one. In fact, if one takes full ad- 

 vantage of every thing that can be done, 

 it is one of the fullest months in the whole 

 garden year. 



In the Vegetable Garden 



THIRST of all, don't let late weeds go to 

 •*■ seed. □ Go over the garden carefully 

 and pull out or cut out every weed seen. Some 

 of the worst things, such as chickweed and 

 quack-grass, make a strong growth in the cool 

 fall weather and mature tremendous numbers 

 of seeds when the casual observer is taking it 

 for granted that everything has stopped grow- 

 ing. □ Buy or make a "weeding spud." 

 This is nothing but a sharp blade on the end of 

 a straight handle, preferably with a projection 

 or step at right angles, so that it can be forced 

 with the foot, through the root of a large weed 

 when a thrust with the hand is not sufficient. 

 A tool of this kind will prove invaluable in the 

 late crops in preventing the sowing of trouble 

 for next year. 



Clean up as you go! When you are through 

 with a crop, pull it up and feed it to the chickens, 

 or burn it. The remains of most crops should 

 not be put in the compost pile for fear of carrying 

 over disease germs. D Take up your bean poles 

 and tomato supports and store them away under 

 cover. It is wasteful as well as unsightly to 

 leave them to freeze in the ground. 



□ Sow every square foot with the winter 

 overcoat. It is a little late now for putting 

 in vetch in the Northern states, but still time for 

 rye. Even if it no more than sprouts before 

 freezing weather it will begin growth early in 

 the spring and make a good crop for spading 

 under in time for next year's late plantings. 



□ Protect the tender crops from early frost. 

 Almost invariably the first few killing nights 

 are followed by quite a long "spell" of good 

 growing weather. 



□ Save the things that can be saved and 

 enjoy your garden for several weeks more. 

 (See last month's Garden Magazine, page 43). 



Lettuce, string beans, lima beans, egg plant, 

 melons and other tender things that are often 

 caught, before they are through cropping, by 

 the earlier frost may be protected by a light 

 layer of marsh hay or of dry leaves. Go over 

 the melon vines just before danger of freezing 

 and remove all surplus vines, and all fruits 

 that have no chance of maturing. The re- 

 maining vines with the larger fruits attached 

 can be gathered up into a small space about 

 each hill which may there easily be protected. 



Handle as Careful as Eggs 



I~*HE "hard shelled" fruits — pumpkins and 

 -*- squash — bruise very easily and each bruise is 

 likely to become a centre of decay after storing. 

 After the vines have been killed leave fruits 

 for two or three sunny days with the bottom 

 side up to dry thoroughly and then store in a 

 dry place. Vegetables which can be left until 

 hard freezing are beets, cabbage, carrots, chard, 

 parsnip, salsify, rutabagas, winter radishes, 

 and turnips. Q Get potatoes in quite early 

 as they may be injured by freezing in the soil. 

 D Harvest the onions. If they have grown 

 late pull them and lay in rows just as soon as 

 the tops break open and the roots show a 

 tendency to part readily from the bulbs. If 

 left even a few days too long they may be 

 ruined by a spell of wet weather which will 

 start into rot and stop growth. Break over or 



stir up the rows every day until tops are fairly 

 dry and then store under cover in a thin layer 

 where they will get all the air possible. 



Get Permanent Storage Ready 



11JAVE you a place for everything you want 

 ■*■■*■ to save this winter? If not, get busy 

 now or some of the things, which you have in 

 temporary storage under cover, may be frost 

 bitten before you get them into permanent 

 quarters. Don't neglect this! 



Save seed where you can. Don't let go to 

 waste any crop from which you can get seed. 

 Products which have got too old or tough for 

 use or even for storing, may often be utilized 

 for producing seed. (On page 86 of this issue 

 further instructions for seed saving may be 

 found.) 



Plant Shrubs This Month! 



T) IGHT now is the best time of the whole 

 year to add to the attractiveness and value 

 of your place by improving the permanent 

 features. Plant shrubs this month any time 

 before hard freezing, but the sooner the better. 

 If you haven't followed our advice and ordered 

 already there is still time to do it — if you 

 hustle. You can't spend your money in any 

 other way that will bring as long lasting and 

 big returns. Well planted grounds are equiva- 

 lent to money in the bank. But 



Don't scatter shrubs indiscriminately over the 

 whole place. Shrubs stuck around all over the 

 lawn are worse than none at all. Plan your 

 shrubbery planting carefully. Remember it is 

 for a long time. Keep the plants around the 

 foundations of the house, near the boundary 

 lines, or in corners or curves along paths where 

 they can be seen to the best advantage, and 

 will not break up other views. Group care- 

 fully, so that the taller ones will be kept to the 

 back, and the period of bloom extended over 

 as long a season as possible. 



□ Get ready for planting before your shrubs 

 arrive. Mark out with great care where each 

 thing is to go, and either dig up the whole 

 border and enrich it with bone and manure; 

 or if that is not feasible, dig out the individual 

 holes to a generous size — much larger than 

 merely large enough to take the ball of roots — 

 enrich it and have it ready for planting as 

 soon as the shipment arrives from the express 

 office. 



Take good care of all shipments immediately 

 on receipt. If, in spite of your good intentions, 

 your plants arrive from the nursery before you 

 are ready for them, dig a trench in a well drained 

 part of the garden, and "heel in" — simply 

 undo the packages, and set the plants out as 

 thick as they will go in the trench, covering 

 the roots with soil. Then take them out as 

 wanted for planting, being careful not to expose 

 the plants to sun or wind for more than a 

 few minutes during the planting operations. 



D Get the materials for winter mulching 

 now. Remember that the newly set shrubs 

 will need mulching later on when the ground 

 freezes, and get the material for this protection 

 now. Get dry, well rotted manure if possible: 

 otherwise marsh hay or leaves will answer the 

 purpose. 



Bulbs and Flower Border 



"YJOTHING will more surely give returns for 

 ■*■ ^ good care in preparation of the soil than 

 spring-blooming bulbs. If your Tulips, Nar- 

 cissus, and Hyacinths have not yet come in 

 remember that they are likely to arrive at any 



78 



time now, and the sooner thereafter you can 

 get them into the ground the better. □ Prepare 

 the bed in advance. Essential points are: 



First; thorough drainage — fill in if not 

 naturally good. 



Second; rich soil — don't believe that "bulbs 

 will grow in any soil;" they will exist, but for 

 the best blooms, enrich thoroughly with bone 

 meal, wry finely rotted manure, or both. Note: 

 (Avoid fresh manure, as it may rot the bulbs). 



Make sure of the drainage, when planting, 

 by dropping a handful or two of sand in to 

 each hole before putting in the bulb. Probably 

 more bulbs are lost from rotting than from any 

 other one thing, and this simple expedient 

 affords the best protection. This is especially 

 important in planting the hardy Lilies. 



□ Arrange for bulbs that may be received 

 late — after the surface of the ground is frozen 

 hard — by preparing the bed and covering it 

 with straw or manure to keep from freezing, so 

 that planting can be done easily when the late 

 bulbs finally come in. 



□ Get ready material for mulching later. 

 As with shrubs winter protection will be wanted 

 later for the bulbs, and now is the time to make 

 preparations for it. 



Plants for the House and the Winter Garden 



T^ON'T let your porch boxes and outside 

 *-" window boxes remain empty and unsightly 

 during the winter. Have you ever noticed how 

 very attractive a few low evergreens, even the 

 very low and cheap ones, are when used for 

 filling in these boxes, after the summer flowers 

 have been removed? □ Why not add this 

 attractive touch to your house, this fall, to be 

 enjoyed all this winter and next spring. 



The plants which have been summered over 

 for winter flowering should of course be taken 

 in before danger of frost. D But don't be 

 in a hurry about it until there actually is danger; 

 and then give all the air and sunshine possible. 



Don't crowd your plants in the window. 

 Better to discard some of them altogether than 

 to have too many. □ Better still, however, 

 to provide some of the modern convenient 

 portable or folding wall brackets or shelves, 

 and make room for several plants up the side 

 of each window, instead of crowding them all 

 on the sill. Hanging baskets can also be used 

 for such things as Asparagus, Begonias, Ivy 

 Geraniums, Fuchsias, Oxalis, etc. 



In the Flower Gardens 



TV /TOST of the end of the season work which can 

 -L^-I- bedonenowwassuggestedlastmonth But — 



□ Keep late flowers supported with stakes 

 and twine for the last fine blooms, as autumn 

 winds and rains are hard on them. 



□ Where room is scarce, take cuttings of 

 the things you most want to keep. These 

 may be started in sand in a warm window in 

 the house, and later transferred to small pots. 

 In this way they can be carried over winter 

 and still take up very little room. 



Not yet too late to plant fresh purchases 

 or to take up and divide late flowering hardy 

 perennials. Don't leave overgrown, starved out 

 clumps to give few and inferior flowers again 

 next year. □ Take up, divide, and replant 

 in fresh soil or in the same place enriched with 

 bone meal manure, humus, etc. 



D Get materials for the winter mulch; 

 gather up every bagful of leaves that falls on 

 your own place or near by. Don't burn this 

 autumn's leaves. Those you don't need for 

 mulch, will be valuable decayed, as leaf mold 

 next year. 



