756 



THE V SA V. 



the young plants are large enough to handle they should 

 be pricked out, and when they begin to grow again care 

 should be taken that they do not become drawn. This 

 can be prevented by allowing the plants plenty of air 

 during seasonable weather. About the first or second 

 ■week of June, according to latitude, the plants may be 

 set out where they are intended to flower, setting them 

 at least two feet apart. A neat stake should be placed 

 beside each one for the purpose of securing the leading 

 shoot. The zinnia delights in a light rich soil. In this 

 latitude the seed may be sown out-doors during the 

 first week of March, but a garden light or canvas frame 

 ■will be required to protect the bed from heavy rains 

 until the plants come up. 



Zinnias may be disposed of in the garden in a vari- 

 eties of ways. A long row, if backed up with suitable 

 plants, has a very striking effect. Or they may be used 

 to fill beds by themselves and in this case they should 

 be pegged down so as to cover the whole surface of the 

 bed and to replace any gaps that may occur through 

 the death of any of the plants. The zinnia is a sun- 

 loving flower and refuses to thrive when shaded by trees 

 or other large plants. The plants should be carefully 

 hoed until they become too large. — H. W. Smith, 

 Baton Rouge, La. 



Helianthus multiflorus. — Seeing what Mrs. Mary 

 M says in the September number of The Ameri- 

 can Garden, viz., that Helianthus miiltijlorits neeAs no 

 protection, reminds me that all climates are not alike 

 any more than all people, and if some one in Minne- 

 sota should conclude to leave this plant without a good 

 covering during the winter they would find themselves 

 without the little yellow sunflower the next season — I 

 speak from experience. It needs fully six inches of 

 some sort of covering, leaves, or litter from the stable ; 

 for we are never sure of deep snows to protect plants, 

 but always sure of cold weather. I find that the white 

 day lily does much better if kept in a tub of rich soil 

 without changing the earth for several years. I set the 

 tub in the cellar during winter and bring it up early in 

 spring, and in that way I get all the bloom there is in 

 the plant before frost. If it is left in the ground the 

 plant will live through our winters but will only begin 

 to bloom in the fall about the time we have our first 

 frost. — Miriam Parker, Minnesota. 



Some Bedding Plants. — Oue of our prettiest bed- 

 ding plants is the double white petunia ; for an oval 

 bed four feet in length, five well-rooted petunias will 

 be sufficient. Have them well scattered over the bed, so 

 that the ground may be evenly covered. As fast as the 

 plants grow, peg them down to the soil with common 

 ■wire hair-pins, for they are not so easily displaced by 

 storms. Nip off the points of all branches, thus caus- 

 ing them to spread out more. In a very short time the 

 bed will be covered and a constant succession of white 

 flowers will appear until autumn. Another most de- 

 sirable plant is the thunbergia, for although it is a vine, 

 it is admirable Tor bedding purposes, especially 7 hiin- 

 hergia aurani . ica. It is best to procure the plants, 



Eugenia Myrtifglia. 



though the seed will come on rapidly if the soil is in 

 good condition, warm and mellow. The stems should 

 be pegged down at the joints. Lay them over the bed 

 as evenly as possible, and the latter will soon be a mass 

 of bloom. The dark green of the foliage and the clear, 

 orange blossoms with dark eyes form a beautiful and 

 striking contrast. — Mrs. A. D. Brown, Belleviie, Penn. 

 Eugenia Myrtifolia, a very beautiful low shrub 



with evergreen myr- 

 tle-like leaves and 

 fragrant, white, fun- 

 nel-formed flowers, 

 has been in bloom 

 for the past two 

 months in my gar- 

 den. The pale green 

 and reddish sepals or 

 bracts are orna- 

 mental after the co- 

 rolla falls off, the 

 branchlets drooping 

 gracefully. I never 

 saw this plant culti. 

 vated in the eastern 

 states ; I suppose it would not stand heavy frosts, and 

 I think this number of The American Garden gives 

 the first drawing of it. It is a dainty plant, probably 

 from Japan. — K. P. S. Boyd, Sati Francisco. 



Notes from Minnesota. — Put your moonflower 

 vines in the sunniest place you have and give them very 

 rich soil if you want them to get ready to bloom before 

 frost comes. I saw this in some floral magazine — 

 "Plant the moonflower where it will not get so much 

 sun" — that was not meant for Minnesota. Our season 

 for growing plants is short, to be sure, but how they do 

 grow while they are at it ! and by doing our best with 

 them we can have very lovely flower gardens, and a 

 great variety of flowers. I have in my yard large 

 oleanders, cactus, achania, pomegranate, enonymus, 

 jessamine and passion vine, all growing in tubs. These 

 are consigned to the cellar during winter and they 

 bloom finely during summer — no, the jessamine and 

 passion vine do not bloom freely, but they grow like 

 Jack's bean stalk ! The others except euonvmus, 

 which is grown for its foliage, bloom finely. I am go- 

 ing to add magnolia and other southern shrubs to my 

 "tub collection," for I can, with a frost-proof cellar 

 and some sunny windows, grow anything, even in 

 Minnesota. At this writing, October 6th, frost has cut 

 down dahlias, but marigolds of different sorts, petunias, 

 and even Salvia splendetis are making the garden bright, 

 while vines (partially protected by porches), morning 

 glories, the different ipomeas, etc., are still blooming. 

 Abutilons that were planted out last spring have grown 

 to be immense shrubs. They are still in the ground, 

 uninjured by frost, and are full of buds and blossoms. 

 — Miriam Parker, Minnesota. 



The Herbaceous Perennials of Nurserymen. — ■ 

 Noting the increasing interest in perennia' tor the 



