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Where to Buy Novelties 
To the Editor of The Garden Magazine: 
W E READ with pleasure and interest of novelties that your con- 
tributors delight in describing for us. At once we ask ourselves 
where obtainable — from what nursery men, florists, or growers. It 
would be very helpful to the reader if the writer would, in describing 
the novelty tell whether it is procurable, and if so, where it can be 
bought. It is necessary for practical use to know where to buy, so we 
can choose any desired novelties for ourselves, observe their growth, 
and as a result become acquainted. — W illiam H. Hatfield, Greens- 
boro, N. C. 
— But is there not some allure in the fun of the chase? The Garden 
Magazine is ever ready to give credit to whom credit is due, in crediting 
the actual producer or introducer of a novelty or rarity; but it is mani- 
festly impracticable to make invidious distinction by referring to the 
A. B. C’s nurseries as sources of supply when in fact D. E. F and per- 
haps a lot more) are also able to satisfy the reader’s desires. Our ad- 
vertising pages carry announcements of most of the progressive dealers 
and, may we suggest that the answer to the question “where can I get 
it?” may frequently be found in that way. To not a few subscribers 
those pages of announcements carry messages of importance, if we 
may believe the evidence of letters assuring us that “the ad. pages are 
as interesting as the text.” — Ed. 
An Ingenious Marker 
To the Editor of The Garden Magazine: 
L ET’S be done with the unendurable wooden marker for the garden. 
' The drawing below shows a long bottle (the kind the wife buys her 
perfume in or an old test tube from the laboratory) stuck in the ground. 
This bottle contains complete data concerning the shrub or plant 
beside which it is placed. The notations on the paper inside the 
bottle can be referred to at any time, and can be changed or added to as 
necessity demands. The glass bottle, of course, prevents the atmo- 
sphere from destroying the legibility of the writing and leaves it dis- 
cernible at any time. This bottle marker can be left out during the 
winter, or, if a marker for garden truck, can be put away during the 
winter and utilized the following spring. — Merritt L. Allen 
Schenectady, N. Y. 
[But you must carefully avoid it when using hoe or cultivator. — Ed.] 
The Billboard Nuisance 
\ 
To the Editor of The Garden Magazine: 
H AVING read of the resolution condemning billboards adopted by 
the National Gardeners’ Association, at their meeting 
The Garden Magazine, April, 1921 
the layer of leaves prevents that, and anyway the needles do not 
begin to fall until nearly time for the trees to be removed. 
I took the trees off the bed on the 1 6 th of March; and a week later I 
began gradually removing the layer of leaves, leaving the bed clear by 
the end of the month. Although it was a winter during which my 
gardening neighbors met with many losses I did not lose a single plant; 
nor did I ever have so little dead wood to prune away; and these 
were not particularly hardy Roses. Frau Karl Druschki was the only 
Hybrid Perpetual in the bed; the majority were Hybrid Teas, which 
are by no means indifferent to zero weather. I had also two full- 
blooded Teas, Lady Hillingdon and William R. Smith; we know how 
little the Teas can stand cold, but these came through as well as any. 
1 could not ask to start a summer with healthier plants, and they 
began blooming luxuriantly the first week in June. — Agnes Fales, 
Plainfield, N. J . 
Witloof Chicory in Winter 
To the Editor of The Garden Magazine: 
IN PLANNING the garden, more attention should be given to winter 
*■ vegetables, both those that can be left in the ground and those that 
are to be dried, canned or forced. Forced Chicory is a well known 
market product in Europe. It is known to some extent in the large 
American cities and is gaining in popularity, especially for salad pur- 
poses. Salads are now very popular on American tables, as they have 
long been in Europe. Forced Chicory roots produce an abundance of 
bleached leaves which make a unique salad, that pleases at once both 
eye and palate. The blanched leaves are also boiled and used as greens; 
and since the forcing of Chicory is not only possible but easy and 
profitable, market gardeners should give this crop a trial, especially 
now when prices are high. There are several methods of forcing 
Chicory. It is forced in dark houses, such as those in which Mush- 
rooms, Asparagus, or Rhubarb are forced. In some instances the space 
under greenhouse benches is used, provided there are not too many 
heating pipes under the benches, and a curtain is dropped down to 
exclude the light. I find it easy to force in an ordinary warm cellar. 
The cellar should be dark or the heads will not be well bleached, but 
green and bitter. Of course, such a result would defeat the purpose 
of forcing the crop, yet the product could be made use of for potherb, 
similar to Spinach or Dandelions, but more delicate than either, when 
boiled in two waters to remove the bitter taste. The roots for forcing 
are lifted just before the ground is likely to freeze, and stored in a shed 
until wanted for forcing. In forcing, the roots are placed in beds 
or boxes, first cutting them off at the bottom to a uniform length of 
nine inches. They are peeled in the bed about three inches apart with 
the top sticking above the soil, so that soil will not get into the leaves. 
For holding the roots any soil or sand will do, since the 
growth of the heads is from the food stored in the root 
and does not depend at all on the soil fertility. The 
tops are trimmed off closely and the soil is packed around 
the roots carefully and then well watered. If the roots 
are watered thoroughly when placed, not much water is 
required later. A foot of straw, or a light covering 
of straw and then eight inches of clear sand, or, 
what is better, several inches of warm manure is then 
placed over the forcing beds. Under this covering, 
the leaves will be formed in a solid head within two 
or three weeks of what is known in the market as 
Witloof or French Endive. — Samuel H. Garekol, 
Maryland. 
Gladiolus as a Cut Flower 
To the Editor of The Garden Magazine: 
HAVE had considerable experience in growing most 
of the outdoor garden flowers, but I think to-day that 
the Gladiolus stands ahead cf them all as a cut 
flower. I think many people make a mistake to 
plant Gladiolus amongst shrubbery. The chances 
are that they will be practically starved to death, 
and, furthermore, it is only for a day or two that 
the bloom will be anything like presentable out of 
doors, so that the real field for Gladiolus growing, 
as I see it, is as a cut flower, and they should 
be grown in the vegetable garden where they can 
have the right kind of attention and plenty of some- 
thing to eat. — A. L. Stephen, Mass. 
at St. Louis, 1 thought it would interest you to know 
that when traveling to Salt Lake City, to attend the 
sessions of the Farm Women’s National Congress, we 
were so annoyed by the big sign boards that spoilt so much 
of our view of the scenery, that we hurriedly drew up 
a short resolution expressing our feelings. We were plain 
farm women, and used no extra phrases, just short and 
to the point; we did not know these sign boards had 
annoyed any one else as they did us. One of our party 
exclaimed, “ I never will buy a * * * car, because 1 will 
always think how that big sign board up on the moun- 
tain side cut off the scenery so many, many times.” — 
Mrs. Theodore Saxon, Topeka, Kan. 
Winter Protection for Roses 
To the Editor of The Garden Magazine: 
HEN the ground was well frozen, I spread a layer 
W 
After Christmas I bought a wagon load of left-over 
Christmas trees for a mere song. The longest of these 
I laid down the long sides of the bed and the rest right 
across them; in this way, there was not so much weight 
upon the Rose bushes as to harm their branches. 
These trees served the purpose of protection perfectly, 
being heavy enough to break the frost and keep the 
sun from harming the Rose branches, and, on the other 
hand, sufficiently light to admit a free circulation of 
air. Of course, it would not be desirable to have their 
resinous needles fall into the soil of the Rose bed, but 
PLANT MARKER 
The inverted, and converted 
bottle, keeps the garden labels 
legible in all sorts of weather 
