WINTER HOUSING FOR ROOTS AND BULBS 



CHARLES OLIVE 

 Attention to the Old Roots After the Killing Frost 



\T IS necessary, of course, to give the flower bulbs and" 

 roots some attention in the fall. Cannas and Dahlias 

 should be taken up immediately after their tops have 

 ^^ been blackened by the first frost. Cut off the tops 

 about two inches above the ground, and dig out the roots care- 

 fully so that they do not get bruised. As you dig them up, 

 label each clump, and you will be able to tell next spring just 

 what you have to plant. Let the roots dry for a few days in 

 the sun, and then deposit them in slatted boxes through which 

 the air can circulate freely. The boxes, when ready, should 

 be placed in a reliable vegetable cellar. Dahlias will not stand 

 so much cold as Cannas, but they will be safe in a place where 

 the temperature hovers around thirty-two degrees. 



Gladiolus are much hardier than either Cannas or Dahlias, 

 and often, if the weather is not too cold, they can be left in the 

 ground till the first light snow comes. When digging them up, 

 one should be careful to get all the bulblets and small, hair-like 

 roots that have formed around the old bulbs. Each large bulb, 



with its cluster of rootlets, should be lifted entire and placed 

 on a handler, which can be made from an old pail provided 

 with a wire screen bottom. If the bulbs are gently shaken in 

 this receptacle the dirt will filter through, leaving the roots clean. 

 Each variety should be labeled and placed in a separate box 

 to dry thoroughly, after which the roots can be put in paper 

 bags and kept where no frost reaches till spring. 



Tuberous Begonias are delicate bulbs, easily damaged 

 by cold, therefore they must not be neglected in the fall 

 until a hard frost comes. They should be taken up before freez- 

 ing weather arrives, and placed in a shed where they are safe 

 from frost, and where there enters plenty of sun and air. It 

 is best to leave half of the tops on, but when these become dry, 

 they should be removed, and the bulbs packed in wooden or 

 paper boxes filled with clean, dry sawdust. Here they will 

 keep in good condition till they are ready to start in the spring. 

 The boxes should, of course, be kept in a dry place where it is 

 not too cold. 



WINTER QUARTERS FOR TENDER PERENNIALS, ETC. 



CARL STANTON 



[OW many times we hear it said: "If I only had some 

 place where my tender flowering plants and vegetables 

 liHfcl would really keep, 1 would raise so many moreof them." 

 IwDlil Yet it is really an absurdly simple thing to winter over 



your tender perennials and to keep your vegetables in good 



eating condition if only you plan ahead to have a proper place 



to store them. 



Let me describe a storage room that has brought all kinds of 



pleasure to the owner, who has not even yet found out all that 



it is capable of carrying through the winter. The room proper 



is in a furnace-heated basement, built into 



the north corner, the farthest from the 



furnace. It is 7 x 9 ft., and is built 



of I inch boarding (preferably matched), 



nailed to 2 x 3 inch 'uprights, placed 



2\ or 3 ft. apart. Heavy building or 



roofing paper is used against the board- 

 ing to make the room less susceptible 



to the heat of the cellar. 



Against the outside wall on the longer 



side is a 3 ft. wide bench (C on ac- 

 companying diagram) 3 ft. from the 



floor; and over this, down about 2 ft. 



from the ceiling is an 18 in. shelf (B). 



On the opposite side of the room is a case 



(F) 4 ft. long, 1 ft. deep, and tall enough 



to contain the family preserves. The 



rest of the floor space is allotted to barrels. 



Built outside of this main closet is a small 



one, 2x3 ft. /reaching to the ceiling, with 



three of its shelves made so that the air 



can circulate around the front and the 



back. There is a ventilator opening from 



this room to the large one, to be used 



in case the small one becomes too warm. 



AN IDEAL STORAGE ROOM 



Top view showing shelves, closets, etc 



cLi. 



Cross section on line A' B 



If the floor is made of cement, cover it over with 4 or 5 inches 

 of earth kept slightly moist by watering occasionally. The 

 door is made 3 ft. wide to allow for wheeling boxes in on the 

 wheelbarrow. The window is either painted black, or covered 

 with cloth to exclude the light. It can be fixed so as to be 

 opened or closed at will from the outside cellar without the 

 bother of going into the closet. To aid in doing this, a slit 

 is cut in the door, covered with glass, and a thermometer 

 placed inside. This thermometer should read about 40 F., 

 which will be a generally safe temperature — neither too 

 cold nor too warm. 



Many plants can be kept perfectly 

 here that usually have to be started 

 from seed each year. Try it with 

 Snapdragons, or any of the plants 

 listed in the catalogues as being "half- 

 hardy" perennials or annuals, or even 

 some of the tender perennials. Be 

 careful to start them slowly in the 

 spring, by placing them in a light place, 

 giving a temperature of 50 , and watering 

 slightly. 



Started this way you will have Snap- 

 dragons that can be put out by May 

 15th; and you will have them hardier, 

 larger, and in greater profusion than it 

 is possible to get from seed; also you 

 can have them all the same shade, by 

 using a little judgment in the selection 

 of the plants to be stored. If you 

 have a coldframe, hotbed, or a green- 

 house, the plants can be potted up 

 March 1st; treated as above; and by 

 April 1 5th you can be cutting blooms 

 for your house. 



