XVI 



AMERICAN HOMES AND GA 



RDENS 



April, 1907 



^ Three Washable, Durable, Sanitary 

 and Highly Decorative Wall Coverings 





leatfjerole 













ititasi 



EACH HAS A DISTINCTIVE FIELD 

 of its own and is made to meet 

 special conditions and requirements 



J^J^^'y J^QI^p^ Beautifully embossed, in high and low 

 — ^— — — — — relief. Suitable for the very finest in- 

 teriors. Made in great variety of patterns, and hand decorated to 

 exactly harmonize with color schemes or period decorations. 



SA.N A.T I LEI '^^^ modern tiling. Has the same appear- 

 ' ance as glazed tiling and costs but one-fifth 



as much Made in many fine embossed designs. 



1^^^ J TA.S ideal wall covering, so far superior to wall 



— — — ^— — paper. Fully as decorative and far more dura- 

 ble. Dull or glazed surface. Costs no more than good cartridge paper. 



^ All three materials are waterproof and unaffected by dirt, dust or 

 smoke. Made on foundations of strong fabric coated with oil colors. 

 They cannot tear, crack, peel, fade or stain. 



Samples furnished upon request 



THE LEATHEROLE COMPANY 



24 East 22d Si (near Broadway) NEW YORK CITY 



SYKES 



TWO BEST LATHS IN THE WORLD 



METAL LATH a ROOFING CO. '^"-J:^^Sr'° 



.BROOKSfiCO.(U)(E!^'0- 



fL00R«5iDEmLK Lights, 



F EVERY DESCRIPTION. 



ISEND-f^PCATALOGUE. 



"THROUGH FRISCO'S FURNACE" 



EDITION 

 DE LUXE 



Illustrations of seven modern steel-frame buildings at San Francisco that withstood the earthquakes and fire 

 of April 18, 1906, with reports on the rust-resisting qualities of Dixon's Silica-Graphite Paint on the 

 steelwork. Write for a free copy of Book No. B 106. 



JOSEPH DIXON CRUCIBLE CO., JERSEY CITY, U.S.A. 



comes when it is safe to put them out. Thin 

 out, if too thick. 



Tube roses should be given an early start 

 if they are to complete their flowering in the 

 open ground before frost. In planting the 

 tubers, cut away the old roots which are found 

 in a dry mass at their base. Do this with a 

 thin-bladed sharp knife, and cut down to 

 healthy tissue. Pot the tubers in a rich, sandy 

 soil, and give them a warm place. Do not turn 

 them over to the garden until the weather has 

 become settled and \\'arm, as this pla.it is very 

 tender. 



Tuberous begonias and gloxinias should be 

 given attention now. Shake old plants out of 

 the soil in which they grew last year, and 

 spread them on moss, or an old blanket or 

 piece of carpeting — almost anything that can 

 be kept moist and warm, and leave them there 

 imtil they sprout. Then pot in rich fibrous 

 earth, allowing a six-inch pot for each tuber. 



It used to be thought that we could not 

 grow good dahlias at the north unless they 

 were given an early start in the house. But 

 I have satisfied myself that this is a mistake. 

 I put my tubers where they will be moist and 

 warm about the first of May. Very soon they 

 will begin to sprout. By the time the weather 

 is warm enough to warrant me in putting the 

 plants into the ground, active growth will 

 have begun. That is "eyes" or buds will have 

 developed to the growing stage. Then I 

 break the roots apart. One good, strong root 

 makes a better plant than a whole bunch of 

 tubers set out together. The soil in which 

 they are planted must be worked deeply — a 

 foot and a half at least — and made very rich. 

 This starts the plants off promptly, and pushes 

 them ahead rapidly, and the result with me 

 is earlier and finer flowers, and a good many 

 more of them than I ever got from starting 

 the plants into growth in the house, very 

 early in the season, because early started 

 plants generally suffer from too much warmth 

 and a dry atmosphere and become weak before 

 they are planted out, and have to put in the 

 first month of their life in the open in recu- 

 perating from the debilitating effects attendant 

 on their first stage of growth. I believe the 

 secret of successful dahlia culture consists in 

 starting the plants off vigorously and keeping 

 them going right ahead. 



I never advise any one to attempt the grow- 

 ing of ordinary garden annuals from seed in 

 boxes or pots in the house. If it were possi- 

 ble to regulate conditions so that healthy 

 growth could be secured, one might succeed in 

 growing good seedlings there. But the chances 

 are all against it. The plants are so weak 

 when put out in the ground that they receive 

 a check from which they will be so long in 

 recovering — -if they do recover — that plants for 

 seed sown in the open ground always get the 

 start of them. 



FLOORS 



By Alexander Hooper 



THERE is something to be said for and 

 against every kind of floor, but there is 

 more to be said in favor of the bare 

 floor than against it. It is sanitary and easily 

 kept clean ; dust need not rise from it in clouds 

 when it is swept ; it does away with the hard 

 part of the annual house cleaning and simpli- 

 fies the question of the walls and furnishing 

 because any color or combination of color will 

 harmonize with the floor. 



The most sanitary and beautiful floors are 

 those of hardwood. Their costliness, however, 

 make them impossible to many. The waxed 

 floor is very clean and sanitary, but it is slip- 

 pery and easily marred. A drop of clean 

 water, if allowed to dry on it, will leave a 

 stain. Next to the waxed comes the varnished 



