ISO 



[October, 



THE CARDINAL FLOWER. 



Clare, Anabel, and little Hugh, 

 Brush from the grass the morning dew, 

 Iu quest of flowers. With laughter sweet, 

 They press with eager, tireless feet, 

 Down lanes ablaze with Golden Rod, 

 Where white and crimson Thistles noil, 

 Where purple Asters, leaning, look 

 At purple Asters in the brook. 



They gather wreaths of Clematis, 

 And blithely, deeming naught amiss. 

 Where pale pink Roses lately grew, 

 Pluck shining spheres of scarlet hue, 

 And berries like red ivory gleam 

 From stems of glossy Wiutergreen. 

 And now their bright, enraptured eyes 

 Are fastened on a rarer prize; 

 Upon a steep bank, just beyond 

 The confines on a marshy pond, 

 In lonely grandeur brave and tall, 

 There flames a scarlet Cardinal. 



They pick their way among the rocks. 

 Their pains the radiant vision mocks. 

 All reacting is iu vain, and they, 

 With backward glances, turn away, 

 Till, flushed and weary with their toils. 

 And laden with the brilliant spoils, 

 That, wilting now within their arms, 

 Are losing fast their early charms, 

 They rest beside the roadside brook, 

 With half a disappointed look. 



Ah, Clare and Anabel and Hugh, 



Not if you search the meadows through, 



And gather more than you can hold 



Of autumn's purple, red, and gold, 



Will you And aught so fair to each, 



As that one flower you could not reach ! 



—^Gongregationalist. 



SEASONABLE HINTS. 



Herbaceous Plants, as Texas Penstemons, 

 Antirrhinums, Canterbury Bells, and others 

 that are not reliably hardy, should be lifted 

 and transplanted to a cold frame. Some of 

 these, when left out, survive some of our 

 winters all right, but succumb during oth- 

 ers ; all live well in a cold frame. 



If hardy herbaceous plants are lifted, 

 divided, and transplanted m early autumn, 

 so that they may get well rooted before 

 winter sets in, they may winter all well 

 and good ; but if this operation be delayed 

 till late in October or November, success 

 is less certain. In fact, many prefer the 

 spring-time for the replanting of herbaceous 

 plants, — that is, with the exception of com- 

 mon White Lilies, Pseonias, Hepatieas, and 

 early-blooming plants generally, which had 

 better be transplanted in the fall. 



Of Creeping Veronicas, Ajugas, dwarf 

 yellow Yarrow, Thyme, Moss Pinks, and 

 several other common but pretty spreading 

 plants, a lot may be lifted in the fall, 

 broken up into as many slips as there are 

 rooted pieces, and transplanted thickly into 

 sandy soil in a cold frame ; they make excel- 

 lent little plants for setting out in spring. 



When the frost has destroyed your Scarlet 

 Sages, Dahlias, Heliotropes, Geraniums, and 

 other bedding plants, and you have lifted 

 and saved what you want of them, don't let 

 your garden remain in a rough and unkempt 

 condition ; on the contrary, smooth over the 

 soil, cut down or root up and remove all de- 

 cayed stems and dead plants, old vines, and 

 other unsightly material. 



THE CLEMATIS. 



The wonderful improvement in these 

 beautiful plants, combined with their easy 

 culture, and the many uses to which they 

 may be employed, has created a popularity 

 and demand for them unequaled by any 

 other climbers. 



In answer to several readers about the 

 hardiness and culture of the Clematis, we 

 may safely state that all the best and most 

 beautiful varieties are perfectly hardy in the 

 Northern States, and of the easiest culture. 

 Yet, as with most plants, to obtain best 

 results, a certain amount of care and atten- 

 tion has to be given. Even throughout 

 Canada they are now grown extensively and 

 satisfactorily. Mr. Wellington, who has 

 given much attention to their culture, stated 

 before the Fruit-growers' Association of 

 Ontario that he considered them thoroughly 

 hardy in Canada, capable of the finest 

 results, and that there is scarcely any place 

 where they are inappropriate. "They are 

 excellent upon the lawn as pillar or stake 

 plants, or growing upon stumps of trees ; in 

 beds or borders, in the garden, they cover 

 the surface with the richest carpet of bril- 

 liance and beauty ; for trailing upon veran- 

 das, or trellises and arbors, there is nothing 

 so effective and pleasing; over mounds of 

 rock-work, with an intermingling of varieties 

 of different colors, they present an appear- 

 ance of marvelous beauty, and as pot-plants, 

 trained upon wire frames of any desired 

 shape, they have few equals." 



In the Middle and Southern States, Clema- 

 tises will grow in almost any situation if the 

 soil is of moderate fertility, and if the roots 

 of other plants do not rob them of their 

 proper share of nutriment. To insure suc- 

 cess in northern latitudes, more care is 

 required, however. Mr. Wellington says in 

 this regard : ' ' Our own experience would 

 lead us to say success depends upon high 

 culture. It transplants well, but is a gross 

 feeder ; you can scarcely overfeed it. Se- 

 lect a good, rich soil, in the first place, and 

 then annually or oftener supply heavy 

 dressings of rich, well-rotted manure, 

 thoroughly incorporating with the soil. Fre- 

 quent applications of liquid manure will be 

 found very beneficial, and amply repay time 

 and trouble. The perpetual qualities of the 

 plant are not fully brought out unless kept 

 constantly growing, and to do this it is 

 necessary to supply- unfailing nourishment. 

 In the fall, before freezing weather sets in, 

 mulch heavily, from four to six inches deep, 

 with well-rotted compost, spading into the 

 soil in the spring before the plants begin to 

 start. We do not know of any better system 

 of culture than this. It has never failed to 

 produce the most satisfactory results with 

 us. Should the soil become heavy, we would 

 loosen it with an application of sand or 

 sandy loam. 



They carry and transplant easily, and with 

 any fair usage the plant is sure to grow. If 

 liberally fed, the plant each year increases 

 in strength and number of its shoots, and 

 consequently the number and size of its bril- 

 liant blossoms. They generally flower the 

 first season, and it is not uncommon for 

 them to give grand results when well cared 

 for, growing vigorously, and producing a 

 profuse mass of flowers. The introduction 

 of the C. coccinea, with its bright scarlet 

 flowers, adds a new and brilliant shade to 

 their already unsurpassed galaxy of colors. 



THE EVERLASTING: PEA. 



I was delighted to see the article in your 

 August number on " Good Old-fashioned 

 Flowers," for I cultivate them religiously for 

 the old-time associations. Let me add a 

 word for the Lathyvus, or Everlasting Pea. 

 It is a pity it is not more cultivated, when 

 there are so many unsightly board fences 

 whose ugliness could be so easily and ele- 

 gantly veiled with it. It was years since I 

 had seen a plant, when by accident I got 

 one. 



I had picked out all the Sweet Peas from 

 my Premium "Wild Garden" seeds, and all 

 flowered but one. When frost came I cut 

 them all down except this one, that hap- 

 pened to lie on the ground, with several 

 sprays still green. The winter before last 

 was pretty severe for out-of-door plants, 

 but, to my astonishment, there lay my Pea 

 green on the snow even till spring. I, of 

 course, knew then it was the Everlasting Pea, 

 and for two summers it produced a very 

 bower of beauty. 



To produce the best effect, spread it well 

 out, plant a pink and a white one together, and 

 do not let them ripen more than a bunch or 

 two of seeds, and they will flower till frost 

 comes. 



I have an Ipomeea limbata elegantissima 

 that has crept up into my Peas ; and early 

 morning, when it opens its great deep blue 

 and white flowers among the pink blooms 

 of the Peas, it presents a lovely picture. 



Now is the time to sow the seeds for next 

 year's blooming, but they will do even as 

 late as the end of October. 



Mrs. M. L. P. 



WINTERING DAHLIA-ROOTS, 



At this season, when night-frosts may be 

 expected to lay low our floral treasures, the 

 following directions given in " Gardening 

 Illustrated " may be of value to many of 

 our readers. 



As long as the weather keeps mild, Dahlia- 

 roots are best in the ground; but, should 

 sharp frosts be followed by heavy rain, their 

 removal from the ground should be prompt. 

 A dry day should be chosen for lifting the 

 roots, the stem of the plant sawn or cut off 

 to within two or three inches of the crown 

 of the roots, and the roots placed on some 

 sticks or boughs to dry with the neck down- 

 ward, and so arranged that the air can pass 

 underneath them. Some soil may be allowed 

 to adhere to the tubers, but the greater por- 

 tion is best removed by means of a pointed 

 stick. If the weather be fine and dry, the 

 roots may remain in this position for about 

 three days, if covered with a mat at night to 

 protect them from frost. The floor of a 

 greenhouse, or a dry cellar from which frost 

 can be excluded, is a capital place wherein to 

 store the roots. A little ventilation is neces- 

 sary to keep them from getting moldy ; and 

 on the other hand, a hot, dry atmosphere, in 

 which the tubers might shrivel, must be 

 avoided. For small quantities a good way 

 is to place the roots as closely together as 

 possible in a shallow box, but not one on 

 another, shake sifted ashes or sand in all 

 around them, covering the crowns, but not 

 the stems. The moisture attracted by the 

 dry material in which they are bedded will 

 suffice to keep them fresh and plump until 

 spring. 



