The Garden Magazine, April, 1922 



129 



THE OPE^C C 0LUM: K^ 



Readers' Interchange of Experience and Comment 



A "Readers' Own" Number! 



To the Editor of The Garden Magazine: 



RECENTLY I have had the pleasure of rereading a number of 

 copies of The Garden Magazine and felt moved to tell of the 

 inspiration and help received. "The Open Column" especially is helpful, 

 and I would like to see more records of the experiences of amateur 

 gardeners. — G. H. Smith, N. J. 



— And it shall be so! We have been favored by so many really 

 interesting letters from our readers and it is only the pressure of spring 

 activities that is responsible for a lessened number of "Open Column" 

 communications this month. Our May issue will be sanctified espe- 

 cially as a "Readers' Own" number, when this department will be 

 much expanded. — The Editors. 



Starting a Garden Study Club 



To the Editor of The Garden Magazine: 



WILL you kindly tell me how or where I can get advice or literature 

 on conducting a Garden Study Club? — G. E. Crawford, 

 Bridgeport, Conn. 



— We have never come into direct contact with the working of a Garden 

 Study Club, but we make these tentative suggestions which were fol- 

 lowed with success by a group of gardening students. 



At each meeting a chapter of Loudon's "Encyclopedia of Horticul- 

 ture" was read by a member, and followed by general discussion of the 

 topic or topics thus presented, especially with a view to their applica- 

 tion to the practical problems of each gardener present. Some similar 

 method might prove stimulating and instructive to the amateur gar- 

 dener. For instance, at a monthly meeting, the current number of 

 such a publication as The Garden Magazine might be brought under 

 discussion and different members made responsible for the introduction 

 of comments on different phases of the subject. 



A systematic attack in this way should be more productive of results 

 than a casual plan, and in the absence of an authoritative teacher to 

 conduct the class, a general synopsis cannot readily be drawn up be- 

 forehand and adhered to. — Ed. 



Large-flowered Chrysanthemums Outdoors 



To the Editor of The Garden Magazine: 



WHEN Mr. William Currie of New York wrote his letter on "Grow- 

 ing Exhibition Chrysanthemums Outdoors" (page 48 of last 

 issue), he "started something." If your readers order a few plants 

 for this year's growing, as he suggests, they will be most indebted to 

 him when gathering beautiful blooms in the fall. 



Ten years before Mr. Currie began I had grown my first order of some 

 twenty, '"Mums," following the instructions of an amateur published 

 by Dingee & Conard in the Chrysanthemum section of their Rose 

 catalogue. For many years since that time I have had my year's order 

 duplicated by four to ten friends, none of whom, with one exception 

 however, duplicated my successful results. Next year I hope to see 

 in one catalogue, at least, a list of varieties with large blooms suited for 

 growing outdoors. One grower consented to do this some time ago 

 and is to grow the varieties this season and check up with me at the 

 close. 



Mr. Currie's instructions are well worth following — they cannot be 

 improved upon! Yet he, it seems to me, has left some things unsaid; 

 a few supplementary facts are now offered : 



Among the varieties mentioned is Elberon, a pink; White Elberon 

 and Golden Elberon are now obtainable. Evidently he has not tried 

 Christy Mathewson and Betsy Ross, two magnificent whites, both 

 earlier than the Elberons which come too late for some folks. It is 

 not advisable to extend Mr. Currie's list further as those mentioned 

 by him will provide more than enough good varieties for the average 

 amateur's garden. 



Cheering news to most amateurs will be mention of the fact that 

 many of these varieties winter safely if mounded up with earth, and 

 yield many new shoots from which plants may be grown the following 

 spring. More cheering news is the fact that when pinching off the 

 tops, the pinched-off top, inserted in sand and kept moist, will yield 



another plant in a month's time that will bloom with its parent. The 

 six side shoots he mentions, also pinched off, yield a half dozen more. 



The crown buds had better be removed and the terminals relied upon 

 for best blooms. I presume this is what Mr. Currie advises when he 

 enjoins removing buds appearing before September 10th. If plants 

 with soil on roots are ordered by express, and potted up in four-inch 

 pots, being suited to six-inch and finally eight-inch, the soil being made 

 richer each time, blooms may be had earlier and plants may be taken 

 indoors in the fall to flower in a cool room. 



'Mums do well in a partly shaded position in spring and early 

 summer but in late fall they need warm soil. If grown in pots it is an 

 easy matter to shift them about as the sun changes its position. 



My records for the past fifteen years are a fund of information but 

 Mr. Currie's letter is all sufficient for the beginner. By all means 

 follow his advice and order some of these large flowered 'Mums immedi- 

 ately. Plant them any time from April 25th on. — Henry Wenzel, 

 Brooklyn, N. Y. 



Sowing for Fall Bloom in the Carolinas 



To the Editor of The Garden Magazine: 



IN THE July, 1921, issue I noticed with considerable interest that 

 this was the month to plant a second batch of Cornflowers for late 

 bloom. Please advise me if this embraces Centaurea imperialis or 

 Royal Sweet Sultan, and whether if a second planting be made in July, 

 good bloom could surely be had before fall in this region where we are 

 not apt to have a killing frost until late October. 



Last season I had some Royal Sweet Sultan which, being new here, 

 was the admiration of all around, but from the very first I had consider- 

 able trouble with the plants. Seeds were planted in April, seedlings 

 came up vigorous and strong and grew well. We had a rainy, cold, 

 late spring. When six inches to a foot high the plants began to 

 bloom but, strangely enough, an apparently healthy and strong-looking 

 plant would turn completely brown and die from one day to the next. 

 This happened right along and I could not determine whether it was 

 caused by disease, hot weather, or what. 



I moved about ninety plants to a specially prepared bed where I 

 thought they ought to do well and shaded them for a few days. Though 

 seemingly vigorous and continuing to give fine bloom, the plants kept 

 on dying suddenly just as when in the seed bed. What is your opin- 

 ion? My experience is hard to reconcile with the general catalog 

 statements that Royal Sweet Sultan is of the easiest culture, succeeding 

 everywhere, for I never had plants die off like these. 



Also will Zinnias planted in July have time to perfect their flowers 

 for late summer bloom? I have had some fine cactus-flowered ones 

 and would like to try different sorts — the large dahlia-flowered, the 

 lilliput, crested and curled, and conical — and am anxious to have them 

 all grow and do well. — H. C. Lanneau, Wake Forest, N. C. 

 — The reference in the July, 192 1, issue of The Garden Magazine 

 was, of course, for the common Cornflower, Centaurea Cyanus, and 

 anything with the Sweet Sultan would be experimental. If from sow- 

 ing in April you get flowers in July, you should get flowers perhaps by 

 the end of September and October by a second sowing in July. 



The condition you describe would seem to indicate a disease that 

 attacks the woody vessels of the plant. This type of disease is not 

 uncommon in certain groups of plants but there has been no particular 

 study of it and no report made. It would seem to be a bacterial disease 

 and the remedy might be met in soil sterilization. The effect of the 

 disease on the plant is so to choke the woody vessels as to prevent the 

 ascent of water. — Ed. 



The Secret of Growing Wong Bock 



To the Editor of The Garden Magazine: 



AFTER trying for three years to grow Chinese Cabbage my efforts 

 were handsomely rewarded last season. Most catalogues tell 

 us to sow August 1st, but this date has proven too late with me. This 

 time I sowed on July 15th and fine heads were ready to use in late 

 September. The variety was Wong Bock, which makes a compact 

 head and does not need any artificial bleaching, although tying the 

 heads lightly with strips of cloth keeps the outer leaves from breaking 

 down. The secret of growing this vegetable is rich soil, plenty of water, 

 and some quick acting fertilizer such as nitrate of soda. As soon as 

 the plants are up they may be greatly damaged by flea beetles, but 

 these may be held in check by dusting with air-slaked lime or Bordeaux 

 mixture. There is no question but that the Chinese Cabbage will be one 

 of the most popular salad plants just as soon as it becomes better known. 



