The Garden Magazine 



Vol. XVI— No. 3 



Published Monthly 



OCTOBER, 1912 



\ One Dollar Fifty Cents a Year 

 ( Fifteen Cents a Copy 



1M0NTH5 



REMINDER 



[For the purpose of reckoning dates, New York is 

 generally taken as a standard. Allow six days' differ- 

 ence for every hundred miles of latitude.] 



In The October Garden 



ARRANGE shelter from both hot sun 

 and frost for half hardy chrysanthe- 

 mums outdoors. 



Keep dahlias, golden glow and other late 

 flowers picked so as to force blossoms right 

 up to frost. 



Last chance to sow mignonette in pots 

 for winter blossoms. 



Finish sowing cover crops; whatever 

 land not yet cleared had better be trenched 

 over winter or covered with manure. 



Sow the seed of the kentia palm as soon 

 as it is delivered by the florist. The fresher 

 the seed the more certain the results. 



October the Planting Month 



THIS is the best time for planting 

 nearly everything, both for the 

 gardener and for his crops. 



Of the fruits, plant apple, pear, quince, 

 grape, blackberry, raspberry, currant, mul- 

 berry. Do not plant the stone fruits — 

 peach, plum and cherry, nor strawberries, 

 except in nearby plots. 



Of the ornamental shrubs, plant every- 

 thing except those with thin bark, such as 

 the birch, and those with fleshy roots, such 

 as the magnolia, tulip tree, etc. 



Of the vegetables, plant fall spinach and 

 radishes, corn salad and onions for next 

 spring, and lettuce, beets and parsley in 

 coldframes for winter use. 



Of the herbaceous ornamentals plant all 

 bulbs and tubers that are ordinarily left in 

 the ground all winter. These include iris, 

 crocus, snowdrop, scilla, etc. Plant also 

 perennials of every description — aster, 

 anemone, agrostemma, snap-dragon, chry- 

 santhemum, phlox, dianthus, peony, rud- 

 beckia, poppy, pansy, columbine — 



everything of which you can obtain a root, 

 crown or clump. 



Don't forget to plant lilies this fall. It 

 is a mistake to wait until spring. Fall- 

 planted lilies will be twice as strong. 



All kinds of roses can be planted in 

 October, but it is wiser to save the teas, 

 standards and other tender sorts for spring 

 planting. 



Rhubarb and asparagus planted now 

 can be eaten in seven and nineteen months 

 respectively, but it is far better to give 

 them a whole season's growth in addition. 



Some Planting Principles 



FOR every tree or bush you plant dig a 

 bigger hole than you think you need. 

 Give the roots a chance to spread out and 

 grow through the newly turned, soft soil. 



Pack the richer top soil closely about the 

 feeding roots; the poorer soil thrown in on 

 top will gradually be improved by manur- 

 ing, cover cropping and cultivation. 



Cut back all excessively long branches, 

 but leave the serious pruning till spring. 

 Some shoots may be killed back by frost so 

 the longer they are now the better. Be- 

 sides, no growth will take place until after 

 the spring pruning season. 



Use plenty of water. This rule is vital 

 in spring and summer and decidedly im- 

 portant even in October. 



In planting trees, bushes and perennials, 

 fit the soil so that it will be strong and rich 

 for several years to come. Mix with it 

 plenty of well rotted manure and bone meal 

 if available. Most rose beds and perennial 

 borders need retrenching and manuring 

 every two or three years. But there is no 

 reason at all why they should if the work is 

 done well at first. 



Set any plant slightly deeper than it 

 grew in pot or nursery row, but don't bury 

 the crown completely (save that of as- 

 paragus). 



Leave a slight depression around the 

 stem or trunk so that moisture will sink 

 toward, and not away from the roots. 

 After every heavy rain or watering, rake 

 up a loose soil mulch half an inch deep. 

 This, of course, is not necessary if you use 

 a regular mulch of straw, leaves or manure. 



Odd Jobs 



'T V HE grower of chrysanthemums indoors 

 *■ will be busy with disbudding, training 

 and tying bush plants and standards; grad- 

 ing, packing and shipping early varieties; 

 and selecting the best plants for next 

 month's exhibitions. 



Select also your strongest stock plants 



91 



while in bloom, from which you will later on 

 take cuttings. 



Take cuttings of old geraniums for late 

 winter flowers, and for next year's annual 

 garden, cuttings of salvia, coleus, verbena, 

 petunia, etc. 



For indoor plants no better soil is needed 

 than a mixture of three parts peat or leaf 

 mold, one part rotted sod and one part 

 sand. Two pounds of charcoal to every 

 bushel will improve even this. 



Cut and burn the asparagus tops. They 

 have done all they can toward storing up 

 food for the production of next year's shoots. 



Seed selection is as good a practice in the 

 garden as on the farm. Whenever you 

 discover an especially fine hill of beans, 

 corn, or other vegetable save some of the 

 seed for next season. 



If the cabbages are maturing too rapidly, 

 take them in both hands and give them a 

 half turn without pulling them out of the 

 ground. This will prevent their cracking 

 open, without injuring their quality. 



Now is the time to store roots and extra 

 cabbage in a pit. Make it about three 

 feet deep, lay the roots close together, 

 sprinkling dirt between and keeping the 

 different sorts separate. Leave a place for 

 parsnips, salsify and turnips which are best 

 only after they have gone through a good 

 freeze. Cover the pit with straw then 

 dirt, then more straw and dirt as the 

 weather warrants. 



Cabbage for storing should be pulled, 

 not cut, and stood upside down, close to- 

 gether in a shallow part of the trench. 



Gardens and the Community 



Do you exhibit at your County or State 

 Fair? There are three main reasons why 

 you should: First, the competitive stimulus 

 makes for better gardens; second, by com- 

 ing in contact with other people and their 

 work you get new ideas for your own plot; 

 and, third, by taking part in the fair you 

 contribute to its success and thereby help 

 forward a good, wholesome movement. 



If there is no such exhibition open to 

 you, get some of your gardening friends 

 together and plan a little competition 

 for your own village. Pick a committee 

 to choose the best kept home grounds, the 

 best planned flower garden, the most 

 successful vegetable garden, the most 

 delicious home-made jellies and jams, etc. 

 Ask your State Horticultural Society or 

 your State Board of Agriculture to help 

 and advise you. If there is a Grange 

 nearby, it might cooperate. Even if you 

 do nothing more ambitious, get the chil- 

 dren interested. 



