388 
The Garden Magazine, August, 1920 
tion, I am unable to say, but I prefer to plant them as soon as collected. 
As Scilla sibirica is a species and comes true from seed I do not see 
why this exquisite spring flowering bulb should not be propagated 
here as well as in any other country. It’s a little floral gem and we 
should have more of them. — Mrs. R. W. Walters, Springfield, 
Ohio. 
Sweet Corn 
Saved from 
Jack Frost 
W HEN a heavy frost threatensyourgarden, 
a spade and some muscle will save your 
unharvested Corn. Select the stalks which 
have ears that are ready for the table and 
those with ears only partly filled. Instead of pulling the ears, dig up 
the plants by the roots so that some of the earth will cling. Then pack 
the roots closely in a ring, leaving the centre hollow and the stalks up. 
Surround the corn with a layer of old stalks as a protection from the 
cold, throw dirt against the roots, packing it tightly, and draw the 
tops together and tie with twine. The air space in the centre keeps 
the corn from moulding, and the unfilled ears will continue to ripen. 
You can pull the stalks apart and reach in for the corn. We tried this 
plan one summer and were able to serve sweet corn for two weeks after 
our neighbor’s gardens were hopelessly frosted. — B. V. Bell, Santa 
Cruz, Cal. 
IN A recent article in the Garden Magazine 
or “No 4 ” ^ mention was made of the new Raspberry 
P , ‘ known as Minnesota No. 4. This Raspberry, 
" y which was originated at the Minnesota Fruit 
Breeding Farm and has made a splendid" reputation as a hardy variety 
for the northern states, has just been given a permanent name which 
will take the place of the number by which it has so far been known. 
Henceforth it will be called Latham, in honor of A. W. Latham, who 
for many years has been secretary of the Minnesota State Horticul- 
tural Society. It is probable, that this Raspberry will soon become as 
widely known as any variety. The writer is having excellent success 
with it in'New England, where i‘t has "not suffered at all during the past 
hard winter, and where it produces abundantly as well as suckering 
freely. Several other plants put out from the Minnesota Fruit Breed- 
ing Farm and which have been known -by numbers heretofore, have 
also been given names. They include Minnesota for the No. 3 Straw- 
berry, a kind which has proved very hardy in the Nor|h; Duluth for 
the No. 1017 Strawberry, an everbearing variety of good quality; Red- 
wing for the No. 12 Plum; Monitor for the No. 70 Plum, and Minne- 
haha for the No. 300 Apple. Apparently the Duluth Strawberry is 
going to become a close rival of Progressive and Superb, at least in the 
North, particularly in home gardens. It has proved a heavy yielder 
of good sized berries, both in the spring and in the fall, although its 
color is not quite so desirable perhaps- as- that of the other two: — 
E. I. F. 
Rare Irises 
and Their 
Growers 
I WAS greatly.* interested in Mr. Julian 
Hinckley's note' 1 in the June Garden 
Magazine and agree fully as to the disas- 
trous effects of Quarantine 37 on our gardens. 
This subject must be kept before the public so that we can keep a 
united public opinion behind the Committee of Six representing more 
than 50 horticultural organizations, which is to lead the fight against 
present regulations. If we on this committee have the gardeners of 
America united behind us we can accomplish anything; without such 
united support our time and efforts will be wasted. I am sorry that 
Mr. Hinckley prophesies failure for our new Iris Society. Many of us 
who started it would have been willing to prophesy failure six months 
ago; but now, although we are only five months’ old we have a member- 
ship of 400, and all of us who are connected with it officially have been 
astounded at the enthusiasm with which our efforts have been met. 
We admit with sorrow that we have been unable to tell our members 
where Bulbous Iris may be secured; if we cannot succeed in raising the 
import ban against them then we must make efforts to induce 
some Westerner to grow them commercially. We admit, further, that 
few dealers offer many Iris species, but after all this is because our gar- 
deners have not demanded them; our nurseries have not found a ready 
sale for the few species they do offer and have therefore been afraid to 
add further to their lists. The present demand is almost entirely for 
the tall bearded Irises, and this is reflected at once in nursery lists 
which offer hundreds of varieties. Surely it cannot be said that only 
the commoner kinds are offered when the additions of the last ten years 
both of European and American novelties are considered. Let the 
public take a similar interest in species and the nurseries will find it 
worth while to grow cristata, fulva, chrysographes and others which are 
now so hard to get. A certain number of amateurs and professionals 
are growing them now but only in small quantities. I have had fulva 
here for several years but have not got stock enough of it yet to offer 
any. Mrs. McKinney, of Madison, N. J., has cristata in quantity and 
probably other species, and Mr. Morrison, our Regional Vice-President 
of the East, has a large number of species in his garden; but as a rule it is 
hard to interest gardeners in them as many of them are not very showy. 
I entirely agree that it would be proper for The Garden Magazine 
to inform its readers where some of these rarer things may be had. I 
believe there are many specialists about whom we do not know who 
have these plants. — John C. Wister. 
— These columns are ever open to legitimate interchange of informa- 
tion. Unfortunately the Editor does not know, any more than those 
who specialize, about sources of some rare plants; but he is al- 
ways glad to have this column serve to bridge gaps. — Ed. 
On Weed pAURING the summer of 1919 I carried on 
t^- * 11" L' some experiments to determine the effect of 
o certain sprays on killing the common weeds in 
** ^ the lawns. This work was done at the Ohjo 
State University. The Colorado Experiment Station and the North 
Dakota Experiment Station seem to have gotten good results "but ,t lie 
records of other experimenters do not show much promise. The. results 
• seem "to "be due to location geographically as much as anything .else. 
..The’ work as carried on was in brief this: plots were laid off in places 
. where the weeds seemed to have. the best of things and a definitexfuan- 
f tity of spray of a known concentration was applied to these' plots. 
Applications were made at about ten to twenty day periods' depend- 
ing on the weather and the effect of the spray on the plants. The 
sprays used were iron sulphate and copper sulphate and were applied 
at the rate of 250 cubic centimeters to an area of one square meter. 
The weeds were Dandelion, English and Broad-leaf Plantain. Sum- 
mary of results: 
1. Sprays applied strong enough to kill the weeds also killed the grass. 
2. Sprays applied at such a strength so to not injure the grass would kill the leaves of the weeds 
but would not bring about permanent results even though it was kept up during the summer. 
3. Grass continued to thrive under the moderate-strength sprays and even made some growth 
due to the fact that weed leaves were killed and thus giving more light to the grass. 
4. Results this spring indicate that the spray in all concentrations was detrimental to grass, as 
it efid not- come out with the vigor of the unsprayed lawn. 
5.. Blooming period of the Dandelions was held back about one week on the plots that were 
sprayed/ 
These results while not conclusive seem to indicate that the use of 
sprays, in this part of the country, is not particularly desirable. The 
problem does not look hopeless, however, and will stand further in- 
vestigation; those who are much troubled with these obnoxious weeds 
might do a little experimenting with iron sulphate at the rate of i| 
pounds to a gallon of water, spray with a fine mist and thoroughly 
cover the weeds. The organic acids seem to offer a solution to this 
problem and it is hoped that more work can be done in effectually 
ridding the lawns of these pests. — Carl E. Gressle. 
— Sulphate of iron has been recommended as a weed killer particu- 
larly by the American Steel and Wire Company which in its printed 
circular states, “destroys Wild-mustard, Kale, Wild-ra.dish, and so on.” 
In a recent letter from the company we read as follows: “We call par- 
ticular attention to the fact that our product is not satisfactory for 
the destruction of all kinds of weeds, and is mainly used to eliminate 
Wild-mustard, Kale, Wild-radish, etc.” — Ed. 
Y OU can’t get this Rose by writing to one 
^ of the nurseries and enclosing a check. 
Rose It’s one of the things that you can’t buy with 
mere money, for it is a Rose with a pedigree. 
When the French settlers first came to southeastern America they 
brought it with them and have handed it down to their families and 
their friends. The one in the picture on the next page is growing in Mrs. 
L. J. Stoddard’s yard, in Columbia, S. C. It is fully fifteen feet high 
and during the early part of May is literally covered with the most ex- 
quisite white blooms; the same kind we have to pay from four to six 
dollars a dozen in our northern markets. (I’m talking about old 
prices now for I haven’t been North for ten years.) To me, it was 
one of the most beautiful sights I had ever seen, a great tree of 
Roses! — Mrs. A. Louginbill. 
