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The Readers* Service will give you 

 suggestions jor the care oj live-stock 



THE GARDEN MAGAZINE 



February, 1912 



Instruction 



For Amateurs 



Dreer's 



Garden Book 



NO matter how inexperi- 

 enced you are, you'll 

 have no difficulty in under- 

 standing just what you want 

 to know concerning flowers, 

 seeds or vegetables. 



And no matter what your 

 favorite flower is, we have it 

 among the 1200 other varie- 

 ties we handle. 



Perhaps your 

 fancy runs to 

 vegetables. If 

 it does, you'll 

 want to see our 

 list of new ones 

 — Sure Crop 

 Stringless Wax 

 Bean, Early 

 Model Beet, 

 French Unrival- 

 led Lettuce, Mar- 

 ket Surprise Pea, 

 Keeney's String- 

 less Refugee Bean, 

 and others. 

 Dreer's Garden 

 Book is written in 

 plain, conciseEng- 

 ish in a manner 

 that goes straight 

 to the heart of the 

 subject. 



Everything that can possibly interest the flower enthusiast is treated in this volume. 



Dreer's Garden Book for 1912 is a comprehensive work of 288 pages, illustrated 

 with 1000 photo reproductions. Four pages are beautifully colored and six are duo- 

 tone plates. 



Full directions are given for the growing of almost every plant and seed. Among the 

 many American and European novelties this year are the Splendid Cardinal Climber, 

 Asters, Sweet Peas and Zinnias. Read of our collection of new Hardy Plants — the 

 best and latest Larkspurs, Iris, Phloxes, Paeonies — Hardy Shrubs and Climbers. 



A complete offering of the World's Best Roses — strong 2-year old plants that will 

 give a full crop this season. 



DREER'S GARDEN BOOK is declared by a legion of gardening enthusiasts — 

 amateur and professional — to be the finest and most complete catalogue of seeds, 

 plants and bulbs published 



Sent free to anyone mentioning this publication. 



DREER'S ORCHID-FLOWERED SWEET PEAS 



The finest of all with immense wavy flowers in sprays of three 

 and four blossoms each — just as easy to grow as the common 

 sorts. Our mixture contains a full range of colors. 10 cents 

 per packet — 15 cents per ounce — 40 cents per l A pound. 



HENRY A. DREER 



714 Chestnut Street Philadelphia, Pa. 



require great care. Any special or unusual colors 

 or forms you may desire to save, may be spared for 

 setting out in the summer. 



The flowers in blossom in April are: primroses 

 in variety, Gloire de Lorraine and gracilis be- 

 gonias, late bulbs in variety, nasturtiums, petunias, 

 geraniums, Impatiens. 



May. Finish removing old primroses. Prim- 

 rose seeds should be up early in the month. Keep 

 seedlings out of hot noon sun, and keep moist, not 

 wet. At the end of the month, cover the windows 

 with sheets of thin blue tissue paper pasted to the 

 glass. This tempers the hot sunlight, and is neces- 

 sary for the comfort of the tuberous begonias. 

 Give the conservatory plenty of air, keeping the 

 windows open whenever possible. 



Flowers in bloom in May are: Begonias, gladioli, 

 Spanish iris or other late bulbs, petunias, nastur- 

 tiums, geraniums and Impatiens. 



June. By this time the tuberous begonias should 

 have begun to blossom. Stake all that need it, 

 with the slender dark green florist's stakes. Dig 

 a spoonful of bone-meal around each bulb. Plant 

 out in the garden, in a shady spot, all begonias, 

 geraniums, petunias, Impatiens, etc. Prepare 

 long, narrow, shady beds with well-fined soil, and 

 plant out your seedling primroses. They should be 

 in complete shade, and should be set four inches 

 apart. Mark position of special varieties or colors. 



The flowers in blossom in June, July, and August 

 are: Nasturtiums and tuberous begonias. 



July. Keep the soil well stirred around seedling 

 primroses. In dry season water every evenins. 

 Fertilize scantily with bone meal. Keep tuberous 

 begonias well watered and soil enriched. Sow 

 seeds, out of doors, of any annuals you wish to try 

 next winter in the conservatory. 



August. Take slips of geraniums, petunias, 

 Gloire de Lorraine and gracilis begonias, Impatiens. 

 etc., for the winter's blooming. A flat box, filled 

 with damp sand, set in a moderately sunn}' corner 

 of the yard, and covered with a sheet of glass makes 

 a good propagating box. As soon as the slips 

 begin to grow, give air for several hours a day. 

 Old plants of primroses, set out in June, should be 

 divided into two or three little plants, and reset. 



September. Pull up the old nasturtiums that 

 have been in the conservatory all the year, and plant 

 new seeds. See that your winter bulbs are planted, 

 and stored in the cellar by the middle or end of the 

 month. Plant slips of geraniums and other plant? 

 in the conservatory benches. Plant seedling prim- 

 roses in their winter positions, mixing the colors, 

 but keeping the varieties separate. The tuberous 

 begonias will still be in blossom, but the young 

 primrose plants can be planted among them. Pull 

 up any tuberous begonia bulbs that are through 

 blooming. Start polyanthus, and Chinese sacred 

 narcissus in bowls of water. Start freesias in pots 

 or boxes in full light. Remove blue tissue paper 

 from the windows. 



The flowers in blossom in September are: 

 Tuberous begonias in variety, and a few Impatiens. 



October. Pull up bulbs of tuberous begonias 

 that are through blooming. Bring in and plant 

 divided plants of the old primroses you saved from 

 last year. Bring in any annuals you wish to ex- 

 periment with. Dig bone meal around all plants. 

 Keep a watch for aphis and red spider. 



Flowers in blossom in October are: Tuberous 

 begonias, polyanthus narcissus, Chinese sacred 

 narcissus, geraniums, and Impatiens. 



November. Train young nasturtium plants 

 carefully on trellises. Pull up last tuberous be- 

 gonias. The tuberous begonia bulbs should be dug 

 up carefully, and planted in boxes of earth in the 

 cellar. Water should be gradually withheld until 

 the tops have turned yellow. Then the bulbs may 

 be dug up and stored in dry sand, in a cool place 

 for the next year. They can be used year after 

 year if care is taken in storing. Cultivate primroses. 



Flowers in blossom in November are: Poly- 

 anthus narcissus, Chinese sacred narcissus, geran- 

 iums, Impatiens. 



December. Bring up white Roman hyacinths 

 for forcing. Watch out for insects; do the regular 

 greenhouse work of watering, fertilizing, etc. 



The flowers in blossom in December should be: 

 Primroses in variety (just beginning), freesias 

 (just beginning), Gloire de Lorraine and gracilis 

 begonias, Impatiens, and geraniums. 



New Hampshire. Martha H. Clark. 



