14 



HOME AND FLOWEBS 



THIS, THAT AXD THE OTHEE 



A CALIFOEXIA CATALOGUE 



What delightfully tantalizing things the 

 florists' catalogues are ! Of all that have 

 come to me this season, the most tantaliz- 

 ing is that of Mrs. Theodosia B. Shepherd, 

 of Yentnra-by-the-Sea, California. It de- 

 scribes so many new plants that we do 

 not know which we would like most, and 

 have to be content with wanting all ! In it 

 I find listed many of the old varieties of 

 stand-bys, which, in their craze for "new" 

 things, our Eastern florists have discarded 

 — ^varieties far superior to many of the 

 kinds which have been allowed to take 

 their place. Some of these I have been 

 searching for for years without success, 

 and lo ! in this catalogue from the farthest 

 shore of our country I find them again! 

 It is like reading about old friends to go 

 through the pages of this most attractive 

 book. And the new things — I can give 

 you no idea of them I Get Mrs. Shepherd's 

 catalogue and enjoy it for yourself. 



A XEW HOLLYHOCK 



I notice that one of our most reliable old 

 seed firms advertises a strain of hollyhocks 

 which blooms the first season from seed. 

 I hope this is true, and I think it must be, 

 or this firm would not advertise it. But I 

 am afraid it is true in the sense that the 

 Marguerite carnation is said to be a first- 

 season bloomer. This plant, it is true, 

 icill bloom the first year, but generally it 

 has just begun to do so when frost comes. 

 It is so late that we get no pleasure from 

 it. If it is so with these hollyhocks they 

 will be no improvement on the old 

 varieties. 



ABOUT LILACS 



If you did not go over your lilacs last 

 year and cut off the old seed clusters, by 

 all means do so this spring, before the 

 bushes come into bloom. They detract 

 greatly from the beauty of the plants. As 

 soon as the flowering period is over make 

 it a point to cut off every bunch of seed. 



By doing this the bushes are made more 

 attractive, and a good deal of the strength 

 of them is thrown into the growth of the 

 season. This would go to the develo|:)ment 

 of seed if you gave the plants no attention. 

 These seed clusters are easily broken off, 

 or they can be removed by ' the pruning 

 shears. 



A GOOD AXXUAL 



The petunia has long been a popular 

 flower because of its free-flowering habit, 

 and its persistency in blooming throughout 

 the greater part of the season. But the old 

 petunia was quite an ordinary fln^wor com- 

 pared with the petunia of ihe present. It 

 has been so improved in size, form and 

 color that few would recognize in it the 

 small and not very showy flower which was 

 brought to our attention twenty-five or 

 thirty years ago. The best strains uive 

 us flowers three or four inches across, so 

 ruffled as to appear double, in a wide range 

 of brilliant and delicate colors, and with 

 such a variety of peculiar markings in the 

 way of blotches, flakes and lacings of con- 

 trasting color that hardly two flowers can 

 be found that are just alike. Xothing 

 among the annuals excels the petunia as 

 a bedder for the lawn, 



A FAVORITE OLD PLAXT 



Why is it that we so seldom see a good 

 specimen of the rose geranium nowadavs? 

 I suspect that the craze for neu: plants has 

 had a tendency to crowd it into the back- 

 ground, along with many other most meri- 

 torious plants which were formerlv favo- 

 rites. I am sorry aljout this, for many of 

 these old plants were far suiierior tn most 

 of the new ones. This is especiallv true of 

 the rose geranium. Specimens five or six 

 feet tall, with a corresponding spread of 

 branches, were not uncommon fifteen or 

 twentv years ago. and mo^t beautiful 

 plants thev were with their laro-e. finely 

 cut and deliciouslv fragrant foliage. Xo 

 one ever was at a loss as to what to use as 

 "green" among cut flowers when there was 



