The Garden Magazine, September, 1921 



13 



Sow a Cover Crop 



After harvesting the crop of potatoes sow Rye on the plot, immediately. 



This advice applies equally to any other part of the garden from 



which the crops have been removed. 

 Don't let the orchard lie bare all winter, but sow Rye, two bushels to the 



acre, mixed with Vetch. 

 Cover crops are beneficial not only to the ground when turned under 



in the spring, but they keep down weeds, prevent erosion, and make 



the garden clean and attractive looking during the fall and winter. 



Make it a rule not to let the winter find any part of the garden 



without a cover crop. 



Ordering the Fruit Garden 



Now is the time to study what is needed in the way of fruit to be 

 planted this fall. With the exception of stone fruits (and these 

 are better planned for now, and ordered, in readiness for spring 

 planting), all kinds of fruits are best planted in the fall. 



Transplant fruit trees or bushes as soon as circumstances permit; it is 

 not necessary to wait until all the leaves are off. If the roots are 

 badly mutilated, reduce the head proportionally, cutting away 

 whatever wood is not likely to mature. See that the earth is 

 packed thoroughly about the roots. Blackberry and Raspberry 

 old canes not cut out last month to be attended to at once. Straw- 

 berries planted out last month to have runners taken off to throw 

 the energy into a single crown for next season's fruiting. 



Frames to Help the Earnest Gardener 



If you have no frames now is the time to get some. They can be put 

 to excellent use during the next two or three months. 



Old sash to have broken glass replaced and other repairs made. 



Lettuce, of the heading type, sown outdoors anytime up to the middle 

 of the month, and transplanted to the frames when large enough 

 to handle, will furnish a supply of salad until Thanksgiving. 



Radishes to be grown between the plants while they are small. 



Pansies, Myosotis, English Daisies, etc., sown last month and big 

 enough to handle to be transplanted into the frames for wintering. 



Hydrangeas and Christmas Peppers to be lifted from outdoors, potted, 

 and placed in a coldframe and shaded until re-established. 



Anemone japonica to be propagated from root cuttings and over- 

 wintered in a coldframe. 



Early planted cold storage Lilies to be carried along in a cool house. 

 Formosum Lilies to be planted for Easter flowering. Set them in 

 frames with excelsior or other covering. Avoid too rich soil, and 

 have good drainage. 



Greenhouse for Winter Cheer 



Eternal vigilance is the price of success with greenhouse crops at this 

 time. Watch Carnations for green fly and thrips; Roses for green 

 fly, red spider and mildew. Sow some trailing plant alongside 

 the benches of the Carnation and Roses. Sweet Alyssum and 

 Candytuft will do among the Carnations, and Nasturtiums are very 

 good in the rose house. Sweet-peas can be grown along the purlin 

 supports of the carnation house; be sure to get a winter-flowering 

 strain — there's a reason! 



Bulbs for winter forcing to be potted or boxed up as soon as they arrive, 

 for the sooner they are planted the sooner will they begin to make 

 a mass of roots so essential to successful forcing. Prepare a rich 

 friable soil and see that the receptacles have ample drainage; 

 after planting water thoroughly. If the bulbs can then be placed 

 in a trench or cellar, and covered with a foot or more of coal ashes 

 or soil, so much the better. 



Stock, Nicotiana, Schizanthus, Annual Larkspur, Gypsophila, etc., to 

 be sown at intervals to keep up a supply of flowers. Mignonette 

 is not a "cropper" so one sowing will suffice. 



Cutting of choice Pentstemons to be rooted now and wintered over in 

 a cool house. 



Make preparations for planting indoors field grown Violets; Pansies and 

 Mignonette are good companion plants. 



Chorizemas and Ericas to be kept in the coolest house possible. 



Annual Lupines to be sown for flowering in March, April. Another 

 batch of Sweet-peas to be sown. 



Late flowering Cosmos to be transplanted from outdoors to some posi- 

 tion under glass. Chrysanthemums grown to single stem for 

 large flowers to have side shoots and extra buds scrupulously 

 removed. Support the stem as required, and feed freely. 



Take available cuttings of Geraniums and put them in the propagating 

 bench to remain for the next few weeks. 



Pot-up sufficient stock plants of Heliotrope, Ageratum, Fuchsia, Coleus, 

 Salvia, Abutilon, etc., to provide cuttings later. 



Snapdragons may still be planted for winter flowering. 



Primulas and Cinerarias to be repotted as required. Cyclamen should 

 now be in their flowering pots. 



Summer flowering bulbs, such as Achimines, Gloxinias, Gesneras, Tu- 

 berous Begonias, etc., as they pass out of flower to have the water 

 gradually witheld until they have time to ripen up. Place in 

 some dry corner of a cool house, where they will be free from drip. 



Spanish Iris for forcing to be planted in flats five inches deep, covering 

 the bulbs with two inches of soil. Keep outdoors, but be prepared 

 to protect from drenching rains during November. The first 

 planted ones may be put in a cool greenhouse in December, where 

 the night temperature never exceeds 45-48 degrees — any higher 

 temperature is ruinous. The first batch will bloom the middle of 

 March; succession batches taking less time. A flat 24 x 12 inches 

 will hold 60 to 70 bulbs. 



Gardenias to be ventilated with care as the days get shorter, and the 

 nights cooler. A Utile heat is necessary during the night. The 

 plants will have made many roots by this time and a top-dressing 

 of one part well-rotted cow manure, and two parts new loam applied 

 half an inch thick and repeated at intervals will help. Maintain a 

 night temperature of 68-70 degrees (and keep the atmosphere 

 moist.) 



Make out the list of shrubs needed for forcing during winter and 

 spring. Mark any in your own gardens for lifting and potting 

 next month; place orders promptly for others. 



Sowing Vegetables Inside for Winter Use 



Tomatoes for forcing to be sown at once. Red Currant, Red Cherry, 

 and Yellow Cherry are useful for salads, and are very effective for 

 garnishing. 



Cucumbers to be sown at once. They make excellent companion 

 plants for Tomatoes in the warm end of the house. Box-in the 

 pipes under the Cucumbers to provide bottom heat. 



Carrots, Radish, and Parsley to be sown as early in the month as 

 possible; Beans the latter part of the month and successions every 

 three weeks; Beets toward the end of the month. 



Repotting Fruit Trees for Forcing 



Pot-fruit trees now outdoors will be ripening their wood during Septem- 

 ber. Remove any suckers from the base; keep free from insects; 

 water copiously; the sun will do the rest. 



Do the annual repotting at the end of the month — no need to wait 

 until the leaves have all fallen provided they have had good care 

 and growth has "ripened-off." Turfy loam three parts, wood 

 ashes one part, and a six-inch potful of bonemeal to each bushel 

 of soil, well mixed together makes a very good compost. 



Fruit Under Glass 



Strawberries for winter forcing to be taken up and potted into six-inch 

 pots; use heavy loam; pot firmly. 



Melons being "finished" under glass often show a tendency to crack 

 as the fruit begins to ripen. This is attributed to an excess of sap 

 just at a time when nothing above normal is required. If detected 

 in time, cutting out a V-shaped portion of the stem of the lateral 

 carrying the fruit will be advantageous. Keep the house a trifle 

 cooler, and the roots somewhat drier; but do not dry out. 



To Grow Mushrooms in the Cellar 



New Mushroom beds to be spawned when the temperature has re- 

 ceded to 85 degrees. Do not cover the bed for a few days until 

 the temperature has fallen several degrees more; then case it over 

 with virgin loam an inch and a half thick. The crop will be 

 ready to pick in six weeks, under favorable conditions. 



It will he advisable to dampen the surface of the beds together with the 

 walls, etc., if the cellar be not naturally damp. Keep the tempera- 

 ture at 60 degrees at all times. Continue to prepare new beds. 



FOR THE CALIFORNIAN GARDEN 



September and October. In the first month prune back Roses and 

 water and cultivate them to encourage autumn flowers. Sow Sweet- 

 peas for early bloom. Plant Freesias and Watsonias in September, all 

 other spring-flowering bulbs in October. This is a good time to make 

 new lawns. October is about the best month to put in cuttings of 

 Carnations, Geraniums, Pelargoniums, and Pentstemons, and hard- 

 wood Rose cuttings. 



