114 AMERICAN HOMES AND GARDENS 
Verbena picked after a killing frost 
»UCH energy is wasted in sowing tender 
annuals that are rendered unsightly by 
the first frosts, when the same time might 
be given to planting a bed of frost-proof 
ones that keep their decorative qualities 
long after sensitive varieties have been 
destroyed. It is better worth while for 
the amateur gardener to give his attention to plants that 
flower for weeks after tender sorts are blackened with 
the cold, for surely those that will thaw out and regain 
their freshness, after a cold snap that causes a half-inch 
of ice to form, pay better for the trouble than the kinds 
that perish in early October, and leave no choice but with- 
ered vines or bare ground as an outlook for the rest of 
the season. Then, too, a frost resisting flower bed can 
be sowed at the gardener’s leisure, after the spring rush. 
There are nearly a score of annuals that survive the early 
frosts. “[wo-thirds of these have been proved by personal 
experience. 
Mignonette is so hardy that fresh flowers were picked 
when the temperature 
was eight degrees be- 
low freezing point. 
It flowered for six 
weeks after the first 
frost. This was sowed 
late in July for fall 
bloom. Mignonette is 
at its best during the 
cool months. It should 
be sowed in moist, cool 
soil, that is moderately 
rich, where shade can 
be given part of the 
day. An early sowing 
bloomed for three 
months as a result of 
constant picking, no 
seed being allowed to 
ripen. 
Asters deserve a 
prominent place on the 
hardy list, as they will 
endure more frost than 
the cabbage of ironclad 
reputation. Plump seed, of the Branching variety, sowed 
in early June, will produce a fine fall display. The seed 
should be sowed an inch deep, in good garden loam, and 
the surface of the soil sprinkled afterward with air slaked 
lime to discourage the insects. When the little plants are 
Planting a Frost 
Detying Flower Garden 
By I. M. Angell 
Some Iron-clad Annuals that Bloomed for 
Weeks after I ender Plants were 
Blighted by the Cold 
Eight iron-clads that were picked four days after killing frost. Annual! Phlox, 
Sweet Alyssum, Stock, Verbena, Calendula, Cornflower, 
Mignonette, Pansy 
March, 1911 
Verbena picked after a killing frost 
an inch high, earth should be drawn up around the stems. 
A mulch of tobacco stems is a wise precaution when the 
flowers begin to show. Later, if the black beetle should 
put in an appearance, he can be fought off with benzine 
and water, one part of the former to four parts of the 
latter, mixed in a can and held under the affected parts of 
the plant. This must be done often for the few days that 
they will need watching. As asters are very attractive to 
the squash bug, it is well not to plant too near the vegetable 
garden. 
Pansies are near the head of the list for frost defying 
qualitfes. They escaped destruction when tender plants 
were blighted under a carpet covering, and revived and lifted 
their heads after being wilted and almost blackened with . 
the cold. A fresh blossom was picked on November 24th, 
more than six weeks after the first black frost. They were 
sowed in the spring, and in order to force them to their 
best efforts in the fall, all flower buds were nipped off, and 
straggling branches pruned, during the hot months, to con- 
serve their energy for bloom in cool weather. They were 
sowed in a bed of rich 
soil, under a tree that 
provided shade during 
part of the day. Water 
and liquid manure were 
supplied frequently, 
the’ lattice m itwicema 
week. From three 
of these plants 250 
flowers were picked in 
one day. 
Sweet Alyssum gave 
a good report of itself 
during the entire sea- 
son. Bloom _ began 
when the little plants 
were less than two 
inches high, and con- 
tinued until covered 
with snow, forty days 
after frost annihilated 
the tender annuals. 
Seed was sown July Ist 
for fall bloom. Early 
plantings of alyssum 
are improved by cutting back. This variety self-sows freely, 
and the plants are at their best in the fall. Alyssum can 
be transplanted when in bloom. 
Annual Phlox is one of the brightest of the hardy sorts. 
Combined with sweet alyssum, it made one of the most at- 
