February, 1909 



THE GARDEN MAGAZINE 



15 



flowers of sulphur and keep the atmosphere 

 of the house a little dry until it disappears. 

 Watering needs attention at all times. 

 Never let the trees get thoroughly dry, yet 

 guard against keeping them too wet. Be- 

 ginners sometimes make the mistake of 

 giving too little water at one time, so that 

 the surface will be moist while the rest of 

 the soil is absolutely dry. This condition 

 will be avoided if one raps the pots before 

 watering, and waters all those which have 

 a hollow sound, giving ample water to 



thoroughly wet the soil through. If the 

 trees are healthy the foliage will be a deep 

 green. 



The color of the leaves is the best index 

 of a tree's condition, and if any paling or 

 yellowing occurs the cause is most likely 

 the souring of the soil due to over-water- 

 ing. If the drainage becomes clogged, 

 the holes at the bottom of the pot should be 

 cleaned out and the soil allowed to become 

 fairly dry before giving any more water. 



A light spraying on the mornings of bright 



days will do good until the buds begin to 

 show color, when the spraying should be 

 discontinued for a time. A gradual rise of 

 temperature should be allowed so that by 

 the time the flowers expand the greenhouse 

 will be kept at from 48 degrees to 50 degrees 

 at night. 



During the period from the flowering 

 until the fruit is finally thinned the tempera- 

 ture of the house should be gradually raised 

 until a night temperature of 58 degrees to 

 60 degrees is reached. 



Nasturtium— The Best Flower for the Million— By e. d. Darlington 



EASIER TO GROW THAN ANY OTHER ANNUAL, AND ADAPTED TO MORE USES AND GIVES MORE 

 FOR THE EFFORT EXPENDED —ARTISTIC WAYS TO USE IT AND IMPORTANT NEW TYPES 



. [Editor's Note. — We fear that this is the last important paper by Mr. Darlington that we shall have the privilege of publishing. It was prepared shortly before his death, 

 when he had the inspiration of living with a glorious collection of nasturtiums. Mr. Darlington was for many years superintendent of Fordhook Farms at Doylestown, Pa., 

 and was noted for his good judgment and painstaking accuracy. Although he died when his powers were at their best, he left an excellent series of booklets and leaflets, 

 covering the whole field of vegetable gardening and the art of growing flowers from seed.] 



T^HE nasturtium 





is, m my opm- 



The old and the new 

 types; note the great dif- 

 ference in size and vigor 



ion unequaled as 

 a popular flower 

 because of the ease 

 with which it may 

 be grown, the pro- 

 fusion and brilliant 

 coloring of the flow- 

 ers, the many pur- 

 poses for which it 

 can be used, and 

 its adaptability to 

 widely different 

 conditions of soil, 

 climate, and sur- 

 roundings. It is 

 used for window 

 gardens in city flats, 

 veranda boxes, 

 vases, hanging- 

 baskets, and flower 

 borders in cottage homes, and for large 

 mass effects on the lawns and in the 

 gardens of great estates. In a communica- 

 tion from the Yukon Territory the state- 

 ment was made that nasturtiums were in 

 fine flower in six weeks from the time the 

 seed was planted. Thus it would seem that 

 the range of territory or climate under which 

 the nasturtium may be grown is practically 

 without limit. 



The seed of the nasturtium costs less in 

 bulk than that of many other flowers, and 

 owing to the vigorous growth of the plants 

 a moderate quantity will plant quite a 

 large area. There is sometimes a slight 

 mixture of colors in varieties, when the seed 

 is purchased in separate varieties from the 

 seedsman and in the case of new varieties 

 of hybrid parentage; and there is always a 

 greater or less tendency to revert to the 

 parent sorts or to develop sports of new and 

 diverse colorings. However, these mixtures, 

 sports, and reversions are much less trouble- 

 some than with any other flower when nas- 

 turtiums are planted to produce a bed or 



border of solid color, because the "rogues"' 

 can be pulled out as soon as the first flowers 

 ■ appear, and the remaining plants of the true 

 variety or color will by their quick growth 

 quickly hide the vacant space where the 

 objectionable plant has been removed. 



The two chief groups among nasturtiums 

 are those in which the plants are of small, 

 compact, bushy growth and those which 

 throw out long running branches. The 

 dwarf or bush type, which is commonly 

 known as the Tom Thumb, makes a neat, 

 rounded bush about ten inches high with 

 comparatively small leaves, and in the older 

 varieties the flowers are relatively small; 

 but in the newer introductions the flowers 

 come much larger in size and with broader 

 and more fully rounded petals which, by 

 overlapping at their outer edges, make a 

 broad or bold-faced flower that is distinctly 

 showier than the smaller and more open 

 flower of the older types. 



The dwarf type of nasturtium is most de- 

 sirable for edging flower beds and garden 

 walks, as it makes a close, neat row of low, 

 rounded growth, relieved by the profusion 

 of highly colored flowers. It is also useful 

 when the space is very limited but comes 

 bushy only in well-drained soil or in a raised 

 bed in the full sunlight, for if planted in 

 low, wet ground or in partial shade there 

 will be a very dense growth of leaves and 

 stalks which is apt to blight and rot off 

 during wet weather. 



The tall or running varieties are the most 

 generally grown. For pot culture, hanging- 

 baskets, vases, boxes on the porch or lawn, 

 or for window boxes, they are by far the most 

 satisfactory type. They are also best for 

 planting along the fences, walls etc., or for 

 a long border where there is ample room for 

 the branches to spread as they increase in 

 growth. Also they are most desirable for 

 growing in solid beds or masses, as the long 

 shoots or runners interlace and mingle freely 

 over the entire bed or border, and will not 

 rot off in wet weather as the very compact 



bush plants do. In any case they must have 

 plenty of light and air. If planted in a shady 

 pl^ce they will make long, slender runners 

 and very few flowers. 



One of the best plans for growing the 

 running nasturtiums in a small garden is to 

 plant them in a long row like peas and pro- 

 vide brush or a poultry-wire netting for their 

 support. Treated in this way they will 

 come into flower earlier and blossom more 

 profusely than they will if left to run at will 

 on the ground. If a narrow border or bed 

 is dug along the bottom of a paling or light 

 ornamental iron fence, the shoots will climb 

 and twist through the fence, with very little 

 assistance in starting the early shoots in the 

 proper direction, and make a most pleasing 

 and ornamental effect. 



When planted in pots a slender stake should 

 be provided and the shoots carefully trained 

 or tied at intervals to this support, but for 

 baskets, vases, boxes, etc., the runners should 

 be allowed to hang over the edges and to grow 



The newest of the vine type; with mottled and 

 marbled foliage, creamy white on green 



