THE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE OF AMERICA 357 
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I Our American Home Gardens 
I — 1918 Preparedness — 
ANY of those that started out gaily to do gardening last May had enough of it by the middle of July. 
Others pegged away and were rewarded so much the more, but the vacation period intervening, 
they, too, got little further after their return than to mow the lawn or do some weeding. The 
true gardening spirit sees beauty, work and interest all the time. July is the second lap in the 
race. A sort of fresh start is made then for the fall and winter, and also in preparation of stock 
for next spring and summer. If you can just harvest a late crop and make it the third for that year against your 
neighbor's two, or possibly only one, you begin to feel justifiably proud; and rest assured that if all goes well the 
next year you will have a closer competitor to fight. The gardening spirit seems hard to rouse among the gen- 
erality of our people. Nevertheless, this country has more gardeners today than it ever had. Next year it will 
have still more, by a long way, than it has now. But how can we, who know the true lasting joys of gardening, 
direct the raw recruits and get them [permanently of us and among us? 
The seed and nursery trade would seem to have a fertile field here to cultivate, equally with the press. Simple 
rules and plain articles of a thoroughly practical character are wanted and will be forthcoming. The garden 
clubs should take themselves seriously. The Government needs their help. They can assist immensely, if they 
will, in directing the men and women of the land to make the most of the gardens they possess. These clubs 
are already organized in many cities and towns. Hitherto they have been mainly social centers, where talks on 
flowers were indulged in at fairly regular mtervals. We hope they will still have such addresses and talks. 
It will soon be lime to lay plans for winter work. It is only a few weeks to Christmas, then New Year, and 
after that we seem to be looking daily for the early seed catalogs again. They are, indeed, well on the way, 
many of them in preparation for the printer. What subjects have you noted recently among annuals, either 
flowers or vegetables? What roses, evergreens, flowering shrubs have you in mind? Why not write out your 
reminiscences and make your lists ready for your seedsman or nurseryman. Mail them now; the firms will 
supply you in due course. 
Too many of us are always just a month behind. We know well enough we should have ordered the 
Forsythias several weeks ago if we expect to plant them this fall and have them in flower among the earliest of 
all subjects next spring. It will be the same with hardy plants next year; and roses and evergreens and those 
fruit trees we had promised ourselves. Well, probably it is too late now. You can wire your nurseryman today 
or simply write him, remembering, for comfort, that the seasons "are not the same as they used to be." This 
appears to be true. We used to have snow nearly always around Thanksgiving, but snow and frost hardly 
come much before Christmas now. Our springs used to open up in the third week of March, around St. Patrick's 
Day; now it is the 1 5th of April before the ground is fit to dig. So we may take a chance, a pretty safe chance, 
and order supplies of trees, shrubs, roses, fruits and hardy plants even now. Remember, however, that these are 
days of delayed shipments and possess your soul in patience accordingly. And when January comes, remember 
to order your hot-bed frames ; better lay the order now for these, too. There are lots always going forward, 
always needing to be thought of — tools, trellises, stakes, seeds, bulbs, etc. 
Lastly, here the summer has gone and the little attached greenhouse that you wanted for the east or west 
side of your dwelling has not even been estimated for. Why not, at least, have an airy sun parlor or sunny room; 
one with an abundance of glass to give light overhead and at the front and sides. It would be the simplest thing 
in the world to make the addition of a greenhouse to the piazza of thousands of homes everywhere; or the addi- 
tion could be made even better against the side of the house, much to the improvement of this latter, and furnishing 
a much-prized, beautiful, pleasure-giving adjunct. The little attention that the plants would require would be 
just all that a lady or gentleman wanted or needed to give a refreshing form of mental stimulus and occupation 
at odd times during the severe cold of the winter and spring. Here, too, would be a comfortable smoking room 
or a tea room or lounge; although one could not expect to see all these attached greenhouses quite so big as to 
furnish space for chairs and tables. They could all, however, be places of the greatest interest and enjoyment. 
There has been far too much of the ill-judged despoiling of lawns, flower beds, hardy plant borders this 
year and other uncalled-for work of this kind from which the paltry returns in a few potatoes or corn or other 
vegetables will never begin to pay for the losses of the lawns or the collections of plants. This practice, much 
of which undoubtedly was indulged in as a passing fashion should be discouraged. There is plenty useful but quite 
idle land nearby. When there is not, then the plov^ang up of splendid lawns and flower beds might be justifiable. 
