April, 19 18 



THE GARDEN MAGAZINE 



125 



are obtained by planting new clumps annually, 

 securing them by cutting off the stolons of 

 the old plants. The Doctor himself says: 

 "The discovery of this new plant has given 

 me more pleasure than many a legitimate 

 professional triumph." — ,E. I. Farrington. 



Swiss Chard, The Handy Vegetable. — How 

 many people know intimately the succulent 

 Swiss chard — so easy to grow, so easy to 

 cook, so easy to can? No vegetable gives 

 more bountiful returns for small labor or 

 offers a greater variety of uses as witness this 

 chart: 



Part 



Use 



Summer 



Winter 



Leaves Greens Young leaves, cook Cold Pack 

 as spinach 

 Ribs a. Greens Cut in small pieces 



cook as spinach 



b. Hot Vegetable 



1. With cream ~| Largest r jbs, cut in 



2. wXbutter >small pieces. Cook 



sauce 



c. Salad 



1. French vg oil I2 _ minutes 



Dressing ( chm bef(Jre servi 



2. Mayonnaise 



as celery 



Cut in 5 inch pieces, 

 tes. 

 ing 



A row 20 ft. long, planted at the same 

 time as the first wrinkled peas, will give 

 abundant supply for a family of five for the 

 whole season if only the outer ribs are cut 

 each time and the remainder of the plant 

 left to grow. — A. H. Macfarlane, Duluth, 

 Minn. 



A Watering Device. — To prevent the dirt 

 from being washed away from the roots in 

 watering plants with a garden hose, a water- 

 ing box as it might be called was made. 

 As the drawing shows, the hose empties into 



garden bose 



Z'XZ" Square at base 

 Rct/nd fcandle 



llwdi 



the box from whence the water flows on to 

 the soil. The box should not be made too 

 small or there may not be enough water to 

 check the force of the flow as it comes from 

 the hose. Several advantages are gained from 

 using this device. For one thing the water 

 is placed where needed without washing any 

 dirt away. Then the hose is kept out of the 

 mud and the box can be moved readily 

 enough without soiling one's clothes. Weighted 

 down with a stone it can be left standing 

 anywhere. — C. L. Meller, Fargo, N. D. 



Contrast in Planting. — If you wish to be 

 patriotic and "show your colors" — also feast 

 your own and your neighbors' eyes on a 

 dream of beauty — plant several Crimson 

 Ramblers rather close together on a trellis or 

 pergola. In front of these plant Delphiniums, 

 massing them closely together. For this, 

 you want either or both, dark blue and the 



true Belladonna — no light colors. In front 

 of these, a row or clumps of Madonna Lilies, 

 edged in front with Sweet Alyssum. As all 

 three or four of these bloom at the same time 

 (if the Alyssum is planted early enough or 

 self sown) perhaps you can imagine their 

 beauty. Of course, you must plan for this 

 the year before; in fact several years — unless 

 you already have the Ramblers. Tulips, 

 Hyacinths, Narcissus and Crocus can each 

 or all be planted in between the Delphiniums 

 and Lilies and under the Alyssum. The 

 Delphiniums if cut back as soon as faded, 

 and some fertilizer applied will bloom again — 

 sometimes three or even four times. It 

 depends largely on the season. After the 

 Lilies are cut down, seedlings of Phlox, 

 Pansies, or even Asters can be set in carefully, 

 so it will be beautiful all summer. — Mrs. E. B. 

 Murray, Ballston Lake, N. Y. 



Insects Defertilize Flowers. — A note of 

 curious interest, on observing a certain fly 

 (Syrphidie) gathering pollen for food, is read 

 in The Gardeners' Chronicle, London, for 

 January 5. The note tells of observing 

 the fly gathering pollen not only of the sta- 

 mens but from the stigmas of Pelargonium. 

 "Whilst I was watchingthe fly eating the pollen 

 from the anthers I noticed that the stigmas 

 were well dusted with pollen. The fly also 

 perceived that they were pollinated, for as 

 soon as it had finished with the anthers and 

 cleansed its feet of pollen, it turned its atten- 

 tion to the stigmas and very soon had picked 

 off every grain of pollen from their surface, 

 thus depollinating the flower and destroying 

 its chance of being fertilized." 



Flower Gardens in Alaska. — Flower garden- 

 ing is a thing not usually connected with 

 the popular conception of our great northern 

 territory, Alaska. Summer tourists, how- 

 ever, find many attractive gardens in every 

 Alaskan town of any size. Even those who 

 have discarded the erroneous notions about 

 its_ climate are surprised at the number and 

 variety of flowers which can be grown there. 

 The average observer, who has never read 

 a garden catalogue, would notice little 

 difference between an Alaskan flower garden 

 and one in the "States," as they call us. 

 Tests at the Sitka Agricultural Experiment 

 Station have shown that 25 perennials and 40 

 annuals are perfectly successful. Among the 

 perennials may be noted Columbines, Cam- 

 panulas, Daffodils, Daisies, Day Lilies, Fox- 

 gloves, Gypsophila, Larkspur, Phlox, Ice- 

 land and Oriental Poppies, Sweet Williams 

 and some kinds of Roses; among the annuals, 

 Asters, Candytuft, Dahlias, Kochias, Mari- 

 golds, Mallows, Petunias, Pansies, Poppies, 

 Snapdragon, Sweet Alyssum and Sweet Peas. 

 The Sweet Pea and Pansy are very popular 

 in Alaska and are no less successful there 

 than in more southern regions. Tourists 

 claim that Alaskan Pansies exceed all others 

 in size. The season is necessarily short in a 

 country so far north, but while it lasts growth 

 of all kinds is remarkably rapid and luxuriant. 

 This is attributable to the continual rains and 

 the long duration of daylight. — Leicester 

 Bradner, Conn. 



White Grubs Coming in 1918. — Large 

 flights of May beetles, well known as the 

 parents of the white grubs, destructive cereal 

 and forage insects, occurred in June, 1917, 

 throughout Illinois, Wisconsin, Michigan, 

 Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, 



The life of cut flowers can be lengthened by covering them 

 with a shade glass, the cut ends being thrust in damp soil 



and parts of other states. These flights mean, 

 says a report of the Bureau of Entomology, 

 United States Department of Agriculture, 

 that throughout the area affected the white 

 grubs will be destructively abundant in 1918, 

 which will be the second year in the life of the 

 resultant progeny. 



Keeping Cut Flowers for Weeks.— Now 

 and again, for some special purpose, it is 

 desirable to keep cut blooms. I have found 

 the following plan to be surprisingly, good. 

 Spread a layer of damp sand about an inch 

 deep on to some flat surface like a board. 

 Into the sand push the stalks of the flowers. 

 Then cover with a glass shade as shown in 

 the picture. Remove the whole thing to a 

 cool place where there is not. a strong light. 

 Flowers will keep in perfect condition for 

 several weeks, some kinds for as long as two 

 months. The only thing needful is to lift up 

 the glass shade now and again and clear away 

 any signs of mould that occasionally appear. 

 — S. Leonard Bastin, England. 



Flowers in an Alaska garden. Because the season is short 

 there is a grea t wealth of bloom at one time 



