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AMERICAN HOMES AND GARDENS 



December, 1905 



The Homelike Living-Room of the House 



plated plumbing. The servants' quarters are placed on the 

 third floor; there is also ample storage space on this floor. 

 There is a small cellar for the storage of fuel, etc., under- 

 neath the kitchen part of the house. 



It is a pleasant home, pleasantly designed and built in a 

 charming spot. It is a homelike home. 



Mr. Ernest M. A. Machado, architect, 8 Cornhill Street, 

 Boston, Mass. 



The Sand Box 



By Ida D. Bennett 



VERY useful adjunct to the window garden 

 during the summer months is found in the 

 sand box. There is always the question 

 before us of what to do with our house 

 plants during the summer months, especially 

 those that, through the warm weather, are 

 not desired for bedding purposes, are not especially orna- 

 mental at this time of year, or those more or less tender 

 seedlings that are being grown for winter use. For all 

 these the sand box offers a most satisfactory solution. 



Almost any size box of convenient shape — not too wide to 

 reach across and not more than five or six inches deep — will 

 answer, the size depending upon the plants to be accom- 

 modated, though this is an elastic estimate, as the number 

 of plants are sure to increase through the summer beyond the 

 bounds of one's most liberal spring estimate. The box 

 should be raised upon some kind of supports — sawhorses 

 will do as well as anything — to a height convenient to reach 

 across when sitting on a chair or stool. It must be filled 

 with clean, white sand and kept constantly moist. The best 

 general location for the sand box is on the south or east 

 side of the house, according as the plants require much or 

 little sunshine. For such plants as geraniums, roses or 



coleuses the south side will be found favorable, for ferns and 

 the like the north offers greater inducements; but for the 

 general run of plants the east side, with some protection on 

 the south, is the ideal situation. 



Plunge the plants deep in the sand showering every day. 

 The space between the pots may be utilized for rooting 

 cuttings. I have rarely found any cutting fail to root, and 

 roses are especially sure — simply press them into the sand, 

 press the sand closely around them and leave them until 

 they show vigorous top growth, when they may be potted 

 off or placed in a prepared bed. Gloxinia leaves laid on the 

 surface of the sand — the stems caught under a pot — are 

 sure to root, and should be left undisturbed until fall to 

 form bulbs. 



Tuberous begonias, potted and plunged into the sand, 

 bloom luxuriantly, as do also the Chinese hibiscus, crinums 

 and many other sun and moisture loving plants. 



Aside from its convenience as a summer home for plants 

 the sand box has the advantage of being out of the reach 

 of predatory cats and dogs. It may be made attractive 

 with trailing vines, and form a fascinating spot to the flower 

 lover, and its general contributions to the winter garden 

 will more than repay the trifling time spent in its care. 



