64 



iHHWAWHR-milADBPHIA-W- 



RELIABLE FLOWER SEEDS 



Dreer's Famous American Asters 



Asters are one of the most important summer and autumn flowers, and receive special care at our hands. Yearly exhaustive tests 

 are made with a view to offering only the choicest kinds, regardless of cost. As a result of this care our list comprises only such 

 sorts as can be planted with perfect confidence that nothing better is procurable, no matter at what price or from what source. 



The varieties offered on this and the following three pages represent the finest Asters introduced to date, and are all firmly estab- 

 lished favorites with the most critical growers of this popular flower, and should be in every garden where high quality is appre- 

 ciated. 



The early sorts, such as Queen of the Market, Lavender Gem and Royal, begin blooming in July, followed by the mid-season 

 varieties, which are usually at their best during August, and which include such splendid sorts as Pink Beauty, Mikado, Ostrich 

 Feather, and the Improved American Victorias. Then come the late-flowering kinds, which bloom from the end of August on 

 through September into October. This class furnishes the finest flowers of all, and is well represented in our list by our Superb 

 Late Branching in eight beautiful colors, our Peerless Pink, the finest Pink Aster grown, Crego's Giant, Crimson Giant, the Kings 

 and a number of other fine sorts. It is quite easy, therefore, with a little care in the selection of the varieties, to have Asters in 

 bloom from the first days in July until hard frost. 



A Few Cultural Hints on the Growing of Asters 



Asters will thrive in any good soil, prepared in the same way as you would for a crop of vegetables, but it is well to remember 

 that any extra care taken in the preparation of the soil is repaid by finer plants, larger blooms with longer stems and more profuse 

 flowering. They should have an open, sunny position, and prefer a good, heavy, loamy soil, enriched with a liberal quantity of 

 bone meal or other good commercial fertilizer; and the addition of wood ashes or air-slaked lime, and we do not advise growing 

 them on the same ground year after year; it is better to change each season. 



For early flowering the seed should be started in the house, hotbed or cold-frame in April, transferring them to their flowering 

 quarters as soon as danger from frost is past. For August and later flowering it is just as well to sow them in the open in May, 

 preferably in a prepared seed bed, transplanting them when two or three inches high to where they are to bloom, although they 

 may be sown where they are to flower with almost as good results. 



The main essentials to insure fine Asters are a rich soil, frequent cultivation, no check to their growth from start to finish and 

 ample room to develop. When wanted for cutting with long stems, they should be set out not closer than twelve inches apart in 

 the rows and two feet between the rows. When wanted for mass effects in beds they may be planted nine inches to a foot apart 

 each way. 



Asters are sometimes attacked by an aphis at their roots; also by stem rot, a fungous disease, which causes the stem to decay 

 just at the point where it emerges from the ground. Both of these troubles are rarely met with if the plants are grown on good 

 soil and are not checked in their growth. The addition of wood ashes or air-slaked lime at the time of the preparation of the 

 bed aho helps to prevent these troubles. 



The Aster or Black Beetle, which devours the flowers, can only be destroyed by hand-picking or by knocking them into a basin 

 or receptacle in which there is some water and kerosene oil. As a rule, these beetles come in August, and by growing only the 

 early and the late-flowering kinds can be avoided, 



jk ASTERMUM ASTERS 



A strain of Comet Asters which, on account of their size and 



Chrysanthemum-like appearance, have appropriately been named 



Astermums. The plants grow about 2 feet high, and come into 



| ,"'. . ^^"**« bloom a little earlier than the Crego's Giant. We offer three fine 



i' r 1 tl colors, as under: 



J^ 1261 Lavender. A rich shade of lavender or light 



iR^PI^^! ' mk *■ ^ '■ '*' r^ r^ 1262 Pink. Avery attractive shade of lively rose- 



Sit ' '^PJaWBS ^fc> ^ P ink - 



P'.~f ^ JP^ft ^g^** ■' Bf 1263 White, Purest snow-white. 



X.V^ J^'lL/^SB < - / Price. 15 cts. per pkt. ; a packet of each color for 



35 cts. 



CHINA ASTERS 



W^/'-'^~-^ mm ^amm^m \*f 1340 General Mixture. This mixture was saved 

 -^ -»• ^? ^P mL . <525 — i from the many sorts and colors grown on our 



■T &*"WHk\. x *<* - *-^'"^-^ — ^ - '■? tr ' a ' K rour 'ds the past season. 5 cts. per pkt.; \ 



ri ^^rtjj|jr , ^|BRC oz., 30 cts. 



W Crego's Giant Comet Asters 



Wf/^^^^** We c onsi der this the finest and largest of all Comet 



■ \J|1 L Asters, bearing immense fluffy Mowers five inches and 



™ JW ^VjjUgfca\ over in diameter, as fine as any Chrysanthemum, and 



||\*y when cut keep in good condition longer than any other 



WV ^w y of this type (illustrated on page 65). We offer five 



yv \, colors, viz. : 



. \ > > PBR PKT. 



r . M 'k gk v 1M 1281 White. Pure white 15 



/Mjt » A..H ■ ^Mk- ^ 1282 Pink. Delicate shell-pink 15 



1283 Purple. Bright purple 15 



1284 Rose. Rich deep rose 15 



] 285 Lavender. Deep lavender 15 



1288 Collection of a packet each of the 5 colors, 60 cts. 

 astermum 2290 Crego's Mixed. All colors. 15 cts. pkt. ; 75 cts. per \ oz. 



Alter* are continued on pages 65 to 67. See also Specialties, pages 50 to 59 



