16 
on your table on July 1st, when everybody 
else is satisfied if the corn is “knee high.” 
Although I grow vegetables, flowers are 
really the principal crop. I usually 
grow at least 2,000 each of tulips, narcissus, 
and hyacinths, too stocks, 200 Easter 
lilies, 2,000 freesias, I00 cyclamen, 100 
cineraria, 2,500 lily-of-the-valley, besides 
quantities of mignonette, primulas, lilacs, 
daisies, roses, and carnations. Returns of 
this kind can only be brought about by 
careful attention. to crops and keeping the 
benches filled at all times with growing 
plants. If you allow weeks or even days 
to elapse between crops, the lost time can- 
not be made up. 
While the details of running a greenhouse 
involve some study, as a matter of fact they 
are comparatively simple. Suppose we take 
mid-summer as the starting point when our 
hothouse will have nothing in it but chrys- 
anthemums. About August ist, sow the 
seed of tomatoes and cucumbers, using good 
All winter, and until the outdoor crops are ready, 
beans are grown in succession 
forcing varieties of both. Sutton’s Winter 
Beauty, Stirling Castle, Comet and First 
Best are all good tomatoes, and I have 
found Telegraph to be the best cucumber. 
The young plants are kept growing in pots 
and when large enough are planted in the 
benches in the end of the house nearest the 
boilers, as they both like heat. I  ferti- 
lize them heavily and keep them rather dry 
during dull damp weather. 
About September 1st I begin to sow 
cauliflower seed and continue to sow it 
every two or three weeks until January 1st — 
just enough to give about four dozen plants 
at a time. These are pricked off into a large 
flat box when large enough, taking pains to 
keep them growing. Tthey are never allowed 
to get stunted, but are benched when they 
are about four inches high. Radishes and 
chervil are sown between the cauliflower as 
soon as it is planted. They will be ready 
for use before the cauliflower crowds them 
THE GARDEN VAG UN 
Unless you have eaten greenhouse cauliflower you 
have not tasted this vegetable at its best 
out. A good strain of the early Erfurt 
cauliflower is the best forcer and can always 
be depended upon. 
I also sow glass house lettuce every 
three weeks beginning September ist, and 
handle the young plants the same as the 
cauliflower, except that in planting I allow ten 
inches for lettuce and fifteen for cauliflower. 
As soon as ten linear feet of bench are 
empty, it is refilled with good soil and after 
waiting a day or two for the soil to warm up 
and get a trifle dry, some Black Valentine 
or Early Mohawk bush beans are sown 
in rows about one foot apart. I never sow a 
quantity of any vegetable at one time, but 
sow about every three weeks to keep up a 
succession. 
A good way to grow parsley, without taking 
up a great deal of space, is to take a butter 
tub, clean it inside by burning, bore holes 
about six inches apart in the sides with a 
three-quarter-inch bit, lift some old roots 
from the garden in September, and plant 
them in the tub so that the crown of the 
plant projects from the hole. Also plant 
some roots in the top. The result is a 
ball of green parsley all winter To give 
parsley a dark green color, water it occasion- 
ally with nitrate of soda, using a teaspoonful 
to two gallons of water. 
ECONOMIZING SPACE 
Rhubarb is planted under the benches 
where it does not take up any valuable space. 
Old roots are brought in from the garden and 
forced. It is a good plan to divide the roots, 
leaving only one eye to a clump. Put the 
rhubarb in the coolest end of the house. 
Seakale is forced in much the same manner, 
only the seeds are sown in the garden in 
early spring. The roots are lifted and 
stored, and brought in as required. The 
seakale is forced in the warmest end of the 
house. Mushrooms are grown under the 
benches. A good plan is to have a 
BBE 
Fresh strawberries are always welcome and are 
easily had in spring 
Aveustr 1908 
double decked bench, using the lower one 
for mushrooms and the top one for low 
plants. 
Of the flowers, stocks, cyclamen, migno- 
nette, and cineraria are sown about the same 
time—August 15th. They will all flower the 
first season, except the cyclamen, which must 
be kept until the following winter. Cycla- 
men can also be sown in March. The 
stocks, cyclamen, and cineraria can be grown 
‘in pots, but the mignonette should be planted 
in the bench. Use the coolest end of the 
house for the mignonette and the cineraria 
and the warm end for the cyclamen and 
stocks. 
All bulbous flowers, such as tulips, nar- 
cissus and hyacinths should be potted or 
boxed up as soon as received, and buried 
outside until they have made root. It is 
not advisable to force tulips or narcissus 
before the holidays, but a few hyacinths can 
be grown early. After the holidays, however, 
the tulip and narcissus can be forced in 
quantity. Cover the bulbs outside in very 
Mushrooms under the bench are a sort of extra 
profit for plants grow above 
heavy weather to prevent the ground from 
freezing, as it is then quite difficult to get 
them out. Lilies, when received, should be 
potted up and covered lightly with ashes, but 
must be brought in if it freezes hard outside. 
Another grand bulbous plant is the freesia. 
This should be potted or boxed during 
August and forced in a frame as the young 
plants must not be kept too wet before they 
start to grow. 
Lily-of-the-valley is received in cases from 
Europe. Although costing a trifle more I 
always get the cold storage pips as they can 
always be depended upon. I have found 
it best to plant them in sand and place 
them right on the pipes in the warmest part 
of the house. They are kept dark and well 
sprayed until the leaves show pretty well 
when they must be removed to the light to 
give a good color to the foliage. Lily-of- 
the-valley if properly handled will be 
