THE GRBBN I N G LANDSCAPU COMPANY, MONROB, MICHIGAN 



35 



Before very severe weather 



,.,TTT ^.rxT-v,^ comes on, the l)ecls should be 



MULCHING , • , 



covered with straw, lea\'es or 



long manure to protect them 

 from severe cold during winter; but care should be taken 

 that this covering be not too thick and dense, as the bulbs 

 are as likely to be injured by being kept too warm as bv 

 freezing. The covering should ht removed as earlv in 

 the spring as severe weather is over and growth com- 

 mences. 



SPRING BULBS and TUBERS 



T 



ITESE plants are too tender to withstand outdoor 

 exposure during the winter, and are therefore 



planted in the spring: hence the name. In autumn, be- 

 fore freezing", they niust be dug up and the tops allowed 

 to dry down, after which they should be cut off and the 

 earth and old roots can be removed. Store in a cool, dr}- 

 place, secure from frost, tuitil spring. 



These plants are not imported but are produced in 

 this country and it will be noticed that only the Tuberose 

 and Gladiolus are true bulbs. The others — Canna, Cala- 

 dium, Dahlia and Begonia — have potato-like roots and 

 are known as tubers. 



A very good use of the Gladiolus is to color up the 

 rose bed, especially of the so-called Hybrid Perpetuals, 

 which have not many blossoms after the month of June. 

 The Dahlia serves the same purpose among shrubs, as it 

 grows about four feet high and its many branches are 

 fairh- loaded with gorgeous flowers. A few tubers inter- 

 spersed among the shrubs will add a \-i\'acious pic[uancy 

 to the border that is very pleasing. 



Many Dahlia plants are wasted every year on account of plant- 

 ing too early. The temptation is strong to put out the tubers as 

 soon as the weather warms up in the spring — at the end of April 

 or early May. It is a little secret of the florist's trade to plant late 

 and the commercial cultivators around the big cities, who grow the 

 Dahlia for exhibition bloom, usually plant from June 10th to 

 July 4th. 



The ad\'antages of late planting are logical. It is the expe- 

 rience of everyone and more especially of those who are complain- 

 ing of lack of success in flowering that a remarkable growth takes 

 place in May and early June, when the tubers are first put out ; 

 that the plants grow and flourish for awhile, then stop, and the 

 foliage grows smaller instead of bigger and dries up ; and whatever 

 flower buds may be formed go practically the same way. The 



TULIPS IN FORMAL GARDEN 



It is the month of April. Trees and shrubs have not yet felt the thrill of the 

 new birth. Winter still sits in the lap of spring. But the Tulips are with us. The 

 above garden shows solid beds — whole sheets of bloom — the colors distinct, gorgeous 

 and plenteous. When the bulbs have ripened they are taken up and cellared for 

 replanting in October; meanwhile the ground will be occupied during the summer 

 with Verbenas, Portulacas, Mignonette, Pinks, Nasturtiums, Sweet Alyssum, Petunias, 

 Phlox Drummondi or Poppy. These are self-seeding annuals that come year after 

 year without care except thinning out. 



plants never revive until the late fall, and in many instances not 

 even then. 



Late planting prevents all this, inasmuch as the first severe hot 

 spell or drought is passed before the plants attain any size; in fact, 

 they never stop growing. Another great advantage is that treated 

 in this way no stakes are recjuired. Roots can be planted close 

 together in the row and they will resist wind and any ordinary gale 

 without the assistance of a stake. They begin blooming in August 

 and are practically never out of bloom until frost cuts them down. 



Another system which I have ado]3ted on my grounds apart 

 from the late planting is to dig out c[uite a good deep hole, almost 

 a spade deep, and inserting the tuber only let it fill gradual!}'' as the 

 plant grows. This may not be necessar}' in all soils, but with mine 

 it certainly was an advantage. Many gro\\-ers who have followed 

 my advice find the plan xtry successful. 



