4© 6 



AMERICAN HOMES AND GARDENS 



November, 19 13 



Around the Garden 



A MONTHLY KALENDER OF TIMELY GARDEN OPERA- 

 TIONS AND USEFUL HINTS AND SUGGESTIONS 

 ABOUT THE HOME GARDEN AND 

 GROUNDS 



All queries will gladly be answered by the Editor. If a personal 

 reply is desired by subscribers stamps should be enclosed therewith 



j^ooooc^oooo^x fQj x^oooocSxxioo^j 



NOVEMBERgIN THE GARDEN 



By Gardner Teall 



OVEMBER, pioneer of Winter, comes with 

 his sickle of frost to mow down the last 

 outside vestiges of Summer's festive fruit- 

 fulness, only defied by the Evergreen in its 

 magie armor. The brown, dry leaves will 

 be blown hither and thither, rustling across 

 tne ground to the music of the late Autumn winds. We 

 miss the song birds, and half pity the sparrows as they 

 chatter in their almost affected cheerfulness. The purples 

 of cloudland are becoming leaden hued at times, and the 

 little children are alertly watching for the earliest snow- 

 flakes. City dwellers go about much as usual and it little 

 occurs to them to reflect upon Nature's changed aspect 

 along the countryside unless some journey takes them farther 

 from their lanes of asphalt and the groves of brick and 

 mortar. And yet there is something restful in the contem- 

 plation of November in the country if one may come in 

 from an exhilirating walk over hill and dale to the crackling 

 open fire that awaits him indoors. There will be stories 

 to tell of the little animals we have seen busy at work in 

 the nut woods laying in their Winter stores. These are 

 busy times of provisioning for them. The squirrel will be 

 the busiest of all, for he hibernates for the shortest time, 

 and he will not be minded to wake up to an empty larder. 

 We will watch his antics laughingly, and wonder if we have 

 learned our lesson as well as he has. If our vegetable 

 cellars are well stored we will bear him no grudge. We 

 may well be reminded, though, that if our harvest is over 

 there is still work for us to do in our gardens. We have 

 probably cellared 

 our beets, carrots, 

 turnips, celery, 

 etc., in cool but 

 frost-proof places 

 by this time, and 

 we should turn 

 our attention to 

 the lettuce, cauli- 

 flower, etc., that 

 can now go into 

 the cold frame 

 for wintering 

 against setting 

 out early in the 

 Springtime. One 

 garden - maker 

 suggests that in 

 the wilder locali- 

 ties the lettuce 

 bed in the open In Winter Dwarf Evergreens may be 



can be made to continue to produce lettuce heads up to 

 the middle of December by placing a cloth or straw cover- 

 ing over the plants. 



THE GARDEN INDOORS 



NOVEMBER brings one to contemplate the garden in- 

 doors. House-plants have come to be much neglected 

 of late years. Of course, one does not wish for the return 

 of the senseless old fashion of filling up every window in 

 the house with foliage which once prevailed. What funny 

 things one use to see — delicate Fuchsias in tomato-can pots 

 or an old sugar-bowl converted into a receptacle for the 

 second best geranium! Nevertheless, there is much hap- 

 piness to be attained through the pursuit of indoor garden- 

 ing, and it is well worth thinking about seriously. The 

 December issue of American Homes and Gardens will 

 contain an excellent and finely illustrated article on the 

 subject of house-plants by F. F. Rockwell, an authority on 

 horticultural subjects. This will contain many hints that 

 will prove helpful to the plant lover. 



THE OLEANDER 



IN answer to a reader's inquiry, we suggest that the 

 Nerium Oleander (the correct name of the plant com- 

 monly known as the Oleander), would be particularly ap- 

 propriate for a place in a niche of the small conservatory. 

 A peat loam well enriched with leaf mold and barnyard 

 manure is the best potting soil for this plant. While the 

 Oleander requires less water in Winter than when taken out- 

 side in Summer, the soil must not be permitted to become 

 dry. The pink blossoms have an exquisite fragrance and 

 the plant attains considerable height. In pruning back any 

 of the shoots it will be well to remember that the juice of 

 the wood of the Nerium Oleander is poisonous, and care 



must be taken to 

 avoid its coming 

 in contact with 

 any cuts on the 

 hand. 



MIGNONETTE 



r is little known 

 among indoor 

 gardeners thatthe 

 Mignonette lends 

 itself successfully 

 to house culture, 

 and if carefully 

 managed it will 

 prove one of the 

 most successful 

 plants for home 

 growing. They 

 should be started 

 under glass, how- 

 substituted for flowers in porch boxes ever, in all cases. 



r 



