THE GARDEN MAGAZINE 
September scene in an August planted garden. 
ence five feet lacking three inches. If the 
season be uncommonly hot, try collards 
instead of spinach. 
Beets. — Another vegetable that may be 
safely recommended for August sowing is 
the beet. An August ist sowing yielded 
tender young roots by the fourth week in 
September. ‘They reached full size late in 
October. The growth was more vigorous 
than early plantings from the same package 
of seed. There would have been an excel- 
lent crop of greens even had the roots failed 
to mature. As it was the planting provided 
us with tender roots for the table for six 
weeks. Columbia, an excellent sort, was used, 
Peas are worth a trial. 
It would be desolate but for these late crops 
Endive. —Sowed August 1st, endive 
reached full size by the middle of October. 
Kohlirabi is a cool weather vegetable and 
will endure considerable frost. It is worth 
trying for an August sowing,since it matured 
in two months when sowed the first week in 
July. 
Cucumbers, in a favorable season, might 
reach pickling size before frost, and could 
be added to the list. 
PREPARATIONS FOR SPRING 
Besides sowing for immediate returns 
there are a few things that must be done 
now in order to have fresh vegetables in 
If they do not mature there is httle lost; if they succeed they are a welcome 
fall vegetable 
AueusT, 1908 
the early: spring. Welsh onions are sown 
now for leaves to be used for seasoning in 
early spring; salsify, to leave in the ground 
till spring; celery plants may be set out in 
August for a late crop; mustard will yield 
leaves large enough for use in less than a 
month; corn salad, to protect during the 
winter and use in early spring. Turnip-rooted 
chervil should be sowed in August to prevent 
the seeds drying out as they would if kept 
till spring; they will not germinate till the 
following season. 
Parsley sown on August ist made a 
growth of three inches, giving plants large 
enough to transplant to a box for winter 
growth indoors. It thrives in the same 
conditions as other houseplants and makes 
a constant and vigorous growth. A half 
dozen roots in a box that measures a foot 
square will be sufficient for a family of 
ordinary size. 
One point is important in all seed sowing 
in hot dry weather. The soil must be firmly 
pressed after the seeds are planted. As 
soon as the seedlings reach a size where 
cultivation is possible, the surface soil should 
be well stirred and kept so during the entire 
season. This treatment keeps down the 
weeds and provides a mulch to prevent the 
escape of moisture. 
Cannas for Central Texas 
By H. B. Beck, Central Texas 
EY my opinion, cannas represent an 
indispensable group of summer bed- 
ding plants, and for the last ten years I have 
tried to grow as good and if possible better 
flowers than those of my neighbors. But 
as I have been forced to rely on Eastern 
experiments and advice not at all suited to 
this section of the country, it is needless to 
say that my task has not been an easy one. 
The first lesson I learned was that for a 
permanent summer effect, the beautiful 
Crozy type, which is too delicate to stand 
the sun and wind, must be discarded and that 
the more hardy Italian and hybrid classes 
must be depended upon. I next learned 
to make my beds lower in the centre than 
on the edges and that, in order to strengthen 
the plants for the irrigation required to 
induce vigorous growth and bloom, it was 
best to put on from six to twelve inches of 
fresh stable manure in the spring and six 
inches more in mid-summer. I also found 
that there are no dwarf cannas in this 
climate, the Little Express growing four feet 
high instead of eighteen inches and Austria 
attaining a height of eight feet by the 
middle of July. 
While many beautiful varieties, like Black 
Beauty and King Humbert, are too delicate 
for our bright, clear sunshine and ceaseless 
winds there are some that succeed wonder- 
fully well. Austria, the best yellow, is a 
superb and constant bloomer, Pennsylvania 
and Louisiana are gorgeous reds, and 
Allemania is a fine blend of red and yellow. 
They give excellent results from the middle 
of April to the roth of December, and with 
the addition of Flamingo are among the 
best varieties. 
