AMONG THE FLOWERS WITH REXFOBD 



103 



THIS, THAT AND THE OTHER 



IT WILL be seen from the following let- 

 ter that those living in tropical cli- 

 mates have floricnltnral troubles, ^^the 

 same as other folks/' It is from Trii;idad, 

 British West Indies. 



^*Will you kindly solve the difficulties of 

 an amateur from the West Indies? First 

 about dahlias. Mine grow well at first, 

 but then the young leaves begin to curl up, 

 many of them blacken and the flowers are 

 extremely small, scarcely larger than a 

 quarter of a dollar, although they are 

 choice varieties from two of the best 

 florists in America. I give them light, 

 rich soil and plenty of water as advised. 

 I have tried them in full sunlight and in 

 partial shade with the same result — curled 

 leaves. What is the remedy? And what 

 fault is there in my cultivation ? Then 

 for carnations what soil is required, sandy 

 or otherwise ? Do they want manure, and 

 do they prefer sun or shade, much or little 

 water? The same questions apply to be- 

 gonias, the perplexing points of soil and 

 water chiefly. ^Vill smilax grow well in a 

 larofe pot, or is it a large vine that requires 

 bedding? It is a stranger to me. I 

 always look out for the "Floral Perplexi- 

 ties" in the delightful little magazine. 

 Home axd Flowers. We residents in 

 the tropics have many difficulties. All 

 the florists books are written for cold 

 countries, and we smile under the broiling 

 Christmas sun to read about saving the 

 plants from frost !" 



Mrs. Salome Legge. 



In reply to Mrs. Legge's first question I 

 would say that bacterial disease of some 

 sort is indicated. Here we have no 

 trouble of that kind, among dahlias, to 

 contend against. Her treatment as to 

 soil and moisture is all that can be desired. 

 I would advise sunshine instead of shade. 

 Carnations like a rather heavy, firm soil, 

 a moderate amount, of water and plenty 

 of sun. That is — with us. There may 

 be peculiarities of climate, soil and other 

 conditions there which would demand a 

 different treatment. Begonias, as a gen- 

 eral thing, like a light, porous soil, plenty 

 of water, and partial shade. Smilax 

 grows well in pots. A large pot will not 



be needed. Its vines average about five 

 feet in length. Give a rich, sandy soil 

 and moderate amount of water. Thank 

 you for your kind words about Home and 

 Flov^ers. We are trying, all the time, to 

 make a better magazine of it than it has 

 been heretofore. Its readers will be glad 

 to hear from Mrs. Legge again, I am very 

 sure. 



* * * 



The following letter sets forth quite 

 fully the claim of the columbine, or 

 aquilegia, to consideration as a candidate 

 for the honor of being adopted as a na- 

 tional flower : 



"As you have so cordially invited the 

 subscribers of Home and Flowers to 

 speak out in meeting I could not resist the 

 temptation of speaking out upon a sub- 

 ject in which I am much interested, and 

 feel sure many others are — a national 

 flower. When are we to decide which of 

 our many beautiful flowers shall be chosen 

 as our national emblem ? The one chosen 

 I think should be purely American, wide- 

 spread, distinct in character, hardy, grace- 

 ful and fragrant. Our beautiful columbine 

 seems to fulfil all those conditions — even 

 the name is suggestive of "Columbia". It 

 grows generally in the North, South, East 

 and West — even above the timber line on 

 the western mountains, which proves that 

 it is very hardy. The three wild varieties 

 are red, white and blue, although there 

 are many shades of red and blue, both 

 double and single, also bright lemon-yel- 

 low. The columbine is tall and extremely 

 graceful with a dainty fragrance. The 

 five petals of the flower are perfect "liberty 

 caps", and reversed are "horns of plenty". 

 The word columbine Webster says is from 

 Ko-lum-bin, "like or pertaining to a dove", 

 therefore, an emblem of "peace" as well as 

 "prosperity". A bed of columbines of the 

 different varieties massed together with 

 their graceful, nodding heads, and rich, 

 luxuriant foliage is truly a delight to the 

 lover of flowers. They are perennials, 

 growing in any soil; are not sensitive to 

 change of location. They love the sun- 

 shine, but will thrive in shade nearly as 

 well. Next to the columbine I would 

 choose the Indian corn or maize, being 

 strictly American, useful and ornamental. 



