The Garden Magazine 



Volume XVIII 



SEPTEMBER, 1913 



Number 2 



As to Dates 



The latitude of New 

 York City is gener- 

 ally taken as a stan- 

 dard. In applying 

 the directions to 

 other localities allow 

 six days' difference 

 for every hundred 

 miles of latitude. 



Important Things 



Divide peonies, iris, 

 phlox, etc. Trans- 

 plant herbaceous 

 stock. Replant 

 Dutch bulbs. Hurry 

 your orders for new 

 stock. Move orna- 

 mental deciduous 

 trees and shrubs. 

 Prepare for frosts. 

 Study the dahlias. 



THE luckless city dweller, returning from his vacation to 

 the stuffy flat and dusty desk, is not the only person who 

 must get back to work in September. After a month 

 of comparative ease, of occasional waterings and culti- 

 vatings, the gardener, too, must don his working togs and make 

 active preparations for future results. There are a few things to 

 be done right now. For instance: 



All sorts of herbaceous plants can be started; if they are already 

 growing in the garden, divide them, either according to the methods 

 outlined on page 179 of the April, 1913, Garden Magazine, or 

 simply by cutting apart the larger clumps with a sharp spade or 

 knife. 



If you want plants that you are not growing already, buy the 

 roots from the seedsman or nurseryman, who will supply them at 

 just the right time. Dog's tooth violet, lily-of-the-valley, crown 

 imperial and lycoris are illustrations of the sort of thing that can 

 be started most easily. 



Seeds of all these same hardy perennials can be sown now, 

 either in the border or in a coldframe. In the first case, you 

 will have to mulch them over winter; in the second, they may be 

 protected from the cold in the frame or even brought indoors and 

 kept growing until early spring. 



Of the annuals, the sweet pea gives successful results from 

 September planting. Wait till the end of the month, then make 

 the furrows deep and keep the seedlings almost covered with soil 

 as they grow. The opium poppy can also be started now. 



Of the bulbs, there are two classes to be started at once. First, 

 the Dutch varieties, such as hyacinths, tulips, 

 crocuses, scillas, etc., which must be buried in 

 moist sand or ashes, or if started in a bulb 

 glass, kept in a dark, cool place until a gener- 

 ous root system has developed. Secondly, 

 there are the Cape bulbs: the freesias, ixias, 

 oxalis, spiraxis, brodiaea, and others, which 

 may be started in pots and kept wherever they 

 are to grow permanently. Both of these 

 should provide blooms a week or more before 

 Christmas. 



September is above all things the peony 

 planting month; and up to the 15th conditions 

 are just as good for evergreen planting as any 

 part of August. 



In the vegetable garden it is not too late to 

 sow lettuce, radishes, spinach, chicory, chervil, 

 endive, and corn salad outdoors. Such of these 

 as will not mature this fall, or at least before 

 the snow comes, will remain alive and supply 

 early greens next spring. Cabbage and cauli- 

 flower can be started in coldframes and. planted 

 out next spring for an extra early crop. 



CROCUS 



$ SNOWDROP 



H. GLADIOLUS 



5 TULIP 



NARCISSUS 

 HYACINTH 



T LILY 



Minimum planting depths (inches) for 

 bulbs 



41 



Cut the asparagus tops before the end of the month and burn 

 them, together with all the other litter from the garden. 



Frosts are liable to occur after the 20th, so the following crops 

 should be completely harvested before that time: Tomatoes, 

 onions, corn, peas, beans, squash, melons, okra, eggplant, peppers. 

 Turnips, beets and carrots can be left a little longer, but parsnips 

 and salsify are the only species that are improved by being frozen 

 in the ground. 



Now of all times don't waste the garden's bounty. There are 

 all sorts of preserves that can still be made and of which you 

 cannot have too many. The late fall rhubarb is the only kind 

 that makes good marmalade, for instance. Even if you think you 

 have more preserves than your family can use, remember that half 

 a dozen jars of home made pickles, jellies, etc., are among the 

 best of Christmas presents for those shut-in city relatives. 



Early apples have been bearing for some time and if you are 

 wise you will consume them as rapidly as possible. They are in 

 general poor keepers and you must wait for the Baldwins, russets 

 and other winter sorts to store away. 



If growth has ceased, cut back the bramble canes to three feet, 

 removing in addition all old wood — that is, the canes that have 

 borne the past season. 



If your land is well drained, this is a good time to plant fruits, 

 either bushes or trees, but if there is any danger of wet feet over 

 winter hold off the trees until spring, and spend the fall putting 

 in tile drains. 



There must be no more cultivating, lest the trees be stimulated 

 into making late growth that will succumb to 

 the first frosts. It is not yet too late, however, 

 to sow some cover crops, such as rye, vetch, 

 etc., not only between the rows of trees and 

 bushes, but also over all bare spaces in the 

 garden. 



The possibility of frost has already been 

 mentioned but don't wait for it in ignorance. 

 The United States Weather Bureau can supply 

 you with temperature reports for your imme- 

 diate neighborhood for a sufficient number of 

 years to provide averages from which you can 

 estimate when a frost is liable to occur. 

 Conditions most conducive to it are still air, 

 clear sky, and a lack of humidity. 



In case the mercury drops suddenly, there 

 are three means of protecting the tender 

 plants: Either cover them with newspaper, 

 burlap, loose straw, corn stover, or something 

 of the kind; increase the moisture content of 

 the atmosphere by spraying, or raise the tem- 

 perature of the air by lighting smudge pots or 

 bonfires around the garden. It is well to get 



J 



Jl 



