NOVBMBEH, 1910 



T HE (t A R D E N MAGAZINE 



181 



windows are the following: coral, semper- 

 florens, metallica and sanguinea. 



Window boxes need just good human 

 sort of treatment. Do not drown them 

 out or starve them either. During the 

 winter it is well to water once a week 

 window boxes, bulbs, and potted plants 

 with liquid manure or plant food. 



Ferns and Palms 



TN MOST school buildings and homes 

 '- these two kinds of plants hold chief 

 place. This doubtless is because they, 

 too, stand lack of attention. Most peo- 

 ple keep them waterlogged because 

 supposedly they are accustomed to and 

 need lots of water. We must keep in 

 mind that while ferns for instance are 

 found outdoors in very damp spots, they 

 are not in places undrained and choked 

 off from air. So the jardiniere half full 

 of water does not quite represent the real 

 environment of the fern. 



Going on with the fern there are a few 

 points to hold in mind. Do not permit 

 the room temperature to fall below 55 

 degrees. Neither should it rise above 

 70 degrees. Direct sunlight injures the 

 delicate fronds of ferns. A north window 

 where there is light without direct sun- 

 shine is the right fern place. Keep the 

 leaves clean by spraying with clear water 

 on bright days. If bugs appear, spray 

 weekly with tobacco water. This solu- 

 tion should be very weak. 



The best varieties to grow are the sword, 

 Boston, holly, and maidenhair. Use spider 

 ferns for the fern dish. 



Palms require great quantities of water, 

 even temperatures, little direct sunlight, 

 and daily sponging of the leaves. A 

 sponge dampened in clean water is the 

 best thing to use for this purpose. The 

 most popular and easiest-to-grow palms 

 are the following: Cocos Weddelliana, date 

 palm, kentia, and the arcea. 



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If possible, take out the drainage material from the 

 root mass before repotting 



Decorating with vines v/as the home garden "work 

 of a little Massachusetts girl 



Department Notices 



ALL the material, photographs, written matter 

 and specimens for the garden contest, 

 should be in by October 31. Everything should 

 be sent in as simply prepared as possible. We 

 wish especially to know the amount of land you 

 have used, cost of seed, care of the garden, amount 

 of product and what you have made in dollars 

 and cents. 



But do not delay too long. It takes some time 

 to settle up accounts here. We like to send out 

 our prizes as Christmas gifts. A set of books 

 is not such p bad thing to receive on Christmas 

 Day. 



Speaking of Christmas, makes one think of what 

 to buy. The next magazine will suggest gifts 

 suitable for young gardeners to give and splendid 

 for them to receive. 



A list of the best garden books is available 

 at any time by writing to this department. 



After the Christmas number, the following 

 numbers of the magazine will contain a series 

 of experiments. These experiments are for school 

 work or for the boj's and girls to perform at home. 

 The object of this is to enable children to garden 

 with a better understanding of the soil. To prepare 

 for the work get in a supply of garden soil as 

 suggested in the reminder, some gravel, sand, 

 clay and leaf mold from the woods. This work 

 will fit nicely into winter evenings, and stormy 

 Saturdays. 



Just notice the picture of a little girl's bit of 

 decorative gardening. 



A good deal had been said in the public schools 

 of North Andover, Massachusetts, about decorat- 

 ing the home grounds. The improvement society 

 there and the superintendent of schools believed 

 that the home gardening end was vitally important. 

 So everyone campaigned. 



This small girl owned a house. It was, to be 

 sure, a playhouse. But she reasoned that if big 

 folks' houses and grounds needed decorations, 

 little people's playhouses did too. So she planted 

 quick-growing vines. 



Somehow it seems as if she caught the true 

 spirit of things. 



What do your children say to a Junior Garden 

 Association? An association which should be 

 for the beautiful side of gardening as well as the 

 useful. I would like to hear from you concerning 

 it. I believe we could do wonders. What do you 

 think? Just think out loud to me on paper con- 

 cerning this. 



Things to be Attended to 



AGAIN let me suggest to you to read over the 

 reminder on the first page of this number. 

 It will add to the number of suggestions given 

 below: 



(i) All old straggly geraniums should be 

 slipped. From the largest ones a dozen cuttings 

 may be made. ' 



(2) If you live in a bayberry section pick the 

 berries before frost. Frost injures them. 



(3) .'Vgeralum, petunia, heliotrope and English 

 daisy may be taken up from the garden for indoor 

 house jjlants. 



(4) Canna bulbs, dahlias and other bulbous 

 plants should be cut down after the first light 

 frost. Dry the bulbs well and store in cellar free 

 from dampness. 



(5) With a little care the flowers in the school 

 garden may be saved until the heavy frosts 

 come. Use these fiowers freely for class-room 

 decorations. 



(6) .'\11 seeds which are being saved from the 

 garden should be thoroughly dried before packing 

 away. Use tin boxes to store in. 



(7) Hand over some of the corn and pumpkin 

 to the kindergarten to help in Hallowe'en decora- 

 tions. 



(8) A study of the weeds, which have grown 

 up in the garden, is good work for third and 

 fourth grades. Seeds of weeds placed in bottles 

 keep far better than when stuck on paste-board 

 mounts. 



(9) The Department of Agriculture publishes 

 several pamphlets on weeds. Send for these to 

 use in the class work. 



(10) Remember that vegetables, now green 

 on the vines, will ripen on a sunny window-sill. 



(11) As old vegetable matter is pulled up in 

 the garden burn it right there. 



(12) If the school garden is small, it may be 

 spaded up as soon as everything is out. Spade 

 barnyard dressing in with it. Leave the soil in 

 lumps for better weathering. 



(13) That little strawberry bed which some 

 of you started, should be covered with two inches 

 of hay. 



(14) Have a pile of leaves with which to cover 

 the bulb bed. Do the covering after there is 

 an inch of frost in the ground. 



(15) Clean up all the garden tools. Lay aside 

 the broken ones to mend during the winter. 



(16) Keep a bulb diary. That is, keep ac- 

 count of the date you planted the bulbs, the number 

 of pots, color of bulbs used in each, etc. Then 

 later add the date the bulbs were brought to light, 

 and date of blossoming. This will be a help next 

 year. 



(17) Before frost bring a big box or barrel of 

 soil into the cell.ir. Then you are ready for in- 

 door planting work all winter. 



(18) A box of small stones will be useful for 

 the water-planting of bulbs. Get these inside too. 



A straggly old geranium li:: ■ :_ :? _: - 

 twelve good cuttings 



