164r 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST, 
[May, 
rant-worms must be taken in hand at their first 
appearance; the insect deposits its eggs on the 
under side of the lower leaves, and if a watch is 
kept for these, much trouble may be avoided by 
crashing- the eggs. As soon as the leaves appear 
to be eaten, begin the war. White Hellebore is the 
efficient remedy. It is sold at the drag stores in 
fine powder. This may be sifted upon the bushes, 
but it is better to apply it with water. Put a table¬ 
spoonful of the powder into a bowl or other vessel, 
and pour on a little boiling water ; thoroughly stir 
until the powder is all wetted, then add more boil¬ 
ing water, a quart or so, stirring to completely mix 
it; pour this into a pail, filling the pail with cold 
water. Apply this with a syringe or garden pump ; 
in three days apply again ; it more worms appear, 
repeat. Three applications are usually sufficient. 
Grape Vines, in northern localities, at least, do 
-not need a mulch ; they do better with their roots 
in warm soil. Sufficient is said on the management 
of the vine at this time on page 182. As the shoots 
develope, there will often be found a caterpillar 
enrolled in the young leaves. It does less injury 
than may be supposed, though as it disfigures 
some of the leaves, it is well to remove it, which 
can only be done by hand picking. When the 
vine flowers, Rose-bugs will usually find it out, and 
gather upon the clusters. Early in the morning, 
while they are torpid, shake them off into a pan or 
other vessel containing water, and kill afterwards 
by scalding. Beetles and other large insects that 
appear later, must be hand-picked. 
Training the Vine .—If one has only a few vines, it 
will pay him to train them in a regular manner, if 
the situation will allow, and to have Fuller’s 
“ Grape Culturist,” or other good work, as a guide. 
Our remarks on page 182 apply to young vines. 
For fruiting vines, we may state a few general 
principles, applicable to all vines, however trained. 
The fruit is always borneon thes/(Oofs(see page 182) 
of the present year. The clusters of flowers, and 
afterwards fruit, appear opposite the lower leaves 
in the place of tendrils. There are usually three of 
these, rarely more than four. Market growers find 
that it pays to remove all but one or two bunches. 
When the shoot has made two or three leaves 
beyond the uppermost cluster, its further growth 
may be stopped by pinching off the end, though 
some prefer to leave four or more leaves. Laterals 
will appear on these shoots, which are to be treated 
as directed on page 182. All barren shoots, unless 
wanted to supply canes for next year, and all shoots 
that appear where they are not wanted, are to be 
broken out as soon as they start. The young 
shoots are very brittle, and should.be-kept tied up 
to the wires of the trellis, if the vine is trained to one. 
,S£ifteIsesa assul Claris «'t Insn'dcss. 
In many localities it is the custom to move on 
the first of May, and those who are so unfortunate 
as to change their residence at this time, will begin 
their gardening rather late. This should not dis¬ 
courage them, as, with the exception of a few 
things, late sowing will generally give good crops, 
^especially if there is water at command. Those who 
begin late will find many useful hints in these 
.Notes for the past three months, and if in doubt 
about varieties, they may consult the list on page 
62 in February last. 
Succession Crops of spinach, radishes, etc., should 
he sown every 10 or 15 days, to keep up a supply. 
Tender Vegetables , such as squashes, melons, and 
all of that family, beans, okra, etc., are to be sown 
at corn-planting time, ,vhen the soil is warm. 
Buying Plants .—Those who have small gardens 
and have not much time, will find it cheaper to buy 
the few tomato, pepper, egg-plants, celery, and 
such other plants as they need, than to raise them. 
Asparagus should be cut by a careful hand, who 
will not injure the plants. That for market should 
be bunched and kept in an upright position. 
Beans .—For runners, set the poles first, in well- 
manured hills, 1 feet apart each way. Limas should 
not be planted until cold rains are over; put into 
the ground eye downwards, 4 or 5 beans to the hill. 
Beets. —Thin the early-sown ; the thinnings make 
excellent greens and are preferred by many to all 
others; sow the main crop—Long Blood is best. 
Cairots —Sow, using a plenty of seed, so that the 
plants may break the ground well. 
Cabbages and Cauliflowers. —Set out from hot-beds 
as soon as the plants are well hardened, setting 
well down in the soil. Sow seeds for the late crops. 
Celery. —Sow seed, if not already done, covering 
but lightly; roll or pat the surface down firmly 
with the back of the spade. The soil must be 
worked as soon as the rows can be seen ; to assist 
in this, sow a few radish-seeds with the celery. 
Corn. —Sow early sorts as soon as safe, and it is 
well to put in a little, in advance of the season, to 
take its chances. The drills may be 3 or 4 feet 
apart, according to the hight of the variety. 
Cucumbers and Melons. —Sow seeds and put out 
plants from hot-bed as soon as cold nights are over. 
Hand-lights are useful for these. 
Egg-Plants are the last thing to go from a hot¬ 
bed. Set when the weather is warm. Look out 
for potato-beetles, which are very fond of these. 
Horse-Badish is usually put between rows of early 
cabbages. Plant the sets 10 inches deep. 
Kohlrabi.— Sow, and thin plants to 8 or 10 inches. 
Lettuce transplant from liot-bed ; sow for late crop. 
Squashes. —Make well-enriched hills for the bush- 
sorts, 4 feet each way, and manure the whole 
ground for the later kinds with well manured 
hills 8 feet each way, using an abundance of seed. 
Sweet Potatoes.. —Put down well decomposed ma¬ 
nure in rows 30 or 36 inches apart ; with a garden 
plow turn a furrow towards it from each side, to 
form a ridge ; afterwards finish up the ridges with 
hoe and rake. Plant the potato sets or slips on this 
ridge, 15 inches apart; open a deep hole with a dib¬ 
ble or mason’s trowel, and put the set down so that 
several joints will be covered. If the soil is not 
fresh and moist, pour water into the holes, and let 
it soak away before setting the plants. The last 
week in May, or the first week in June, is early 
enough for the climate of New York City. 
Tomatoes. — A light, warm soil gives the earliest 
crops, but the bearing lasts longer in a strong and 
rich one. In a garden, a trellis, or some kind of 
support, should be given the vines. Our past 
volumes give a number of devices. Brash, to keep 
the fruit from the earth, is better than nothing. 
Weeds a id Wecders .—As soon as the rows of seed¬ 
lings can be seen, break the crust; this is especially 
necessary in soils that bake on the surface. An ex- 
excellent implement for this and much other weed¬ 
ing is a rake with long, sharp teeth ; this used 
when weeds are very small, allows of rapid and ef¬ 
fective work; the sun disposes of the uprooted 
weeds by thousands. Another implement that we 
can commend to every gardener is the lance-headed 
hoe. We are not aware that the best form is on 
sale ; we have ours made. The blade is a triangle 
of steel 41 in. long by 21 in. wide at base, and flat; 
a saw-plate will answer. This is riveted to an iron 
rod shaped like a goose-neck, of such a bend as 
will allow the blade to lie flat when the handle is 
erect; the rod is fastened into a common hoe han¬ 
dle. If the edges are kept sharp, an astonishing 
amount of work may be done with it. 
Odds and Ends— Do not delay brushing peas un¬ 
til they fall over.... Slaked lime, or a mixture of 
unleached wood ashes and plaster (gypsum), should 
be kept at hand ; it is not only a good fertilizer, 
but of great use on young cabbages, turnips, 
young plants of the squash family, and all others 
attacked by the 'flea-beetle, and other small 
insects_Hand-pick the first crop of potato- 
beetles on early potatoes, and be ready to give 
Paris green when the larvse appear-Have a sup¬ 
ply of seedlings of Sage, Thyme, and other sweet 
herbs, to occupy the land when other crops come 
off... .Thinning is rarely done to excess; the earlier 
it is done after the plants are large enough to han¬ 
dle, the better; root crops should be at least as 
far apart as the average diameter of the roots, and 
more would be better_All vegetables to be sold 
should be sent to market in neat order ; beets and 
all roots, asparagus, rhubarb, etc., are to be washed 
and put in bunches. 
{Flower {warden and Lawn. 
If a lawn must be started so late as this, it is ad¬ 
visable to use turf, if it can be procured. See last 
month on sowing grass seeds ; it is well now to mix 
a quart or so of oats with each bushel of grass 
seed, that the oats may shade the young grass ; the 
oats should be mown before they flower 
The Lawn Mower should be used on well estab¬ 
lished lawns once a week or ten days, until the 
drouths come, when the slower growth will require 
it less frequently. 
Weeds in Lawns, if annuals, are soon killed by 
frequent mowing ; thistles, docks, plantains, and 
other perennials, can be pulled, when small, if the 
ground is moist, or if too large, cut below the sur¬ 
face with a knife. A few children will soon clear 
them out at a little expense. 
Bedding is usually of greenhouse tender plants, 
which should not be put out until cool nights are 
over, and they should have rich soil, that they may 
produce an effect as soon as possible. Most an¬ 
nuals used for bedding are hardier, but these 
need shelter, if cold winds come before they get 
established, by brush stuck amongst them. 
Cannas and Tubei-oses ought not to be put out 
until settled warm weather, and where this comes 
late, it is well to start them in boxes of earth in a 
greenhouse, frame, or sunny window. 
Gladioluses are almost hardy. It is well to make 
two or three plantings at intervals of two weeks, 
to prolong the blooming season. 
Dahlias are very tender, and are best started in a 
hot-bed, or in a sunny corner where they can be 
sheltered at night. Before planting a Dahlia, plant ■ 
a stake, and keep it tied up as soon as tall enough 
to tie, else a wind will break the tender stem. 
Evergreens are, according to some, likely to do 
better if transplanted just as the new growth 
starts : our experience is, that the important point 
is to never let the roots get dry ; an exposure of an 
hour to drying winds will often place the roots in 
a condition p»ast recovery. We can not too highly 
recommend the practice of mulching newly-planted 
Evergreens with stones. Place stones from the 
size of a cocoanut up to as large as one can con¬ 
veniently lift all around the tree and over the 
roots ; these will keep the roots moist, and anchw 
the tree better than any stakes ; these trees offer 
great resistance to the wind, and are often bent in 
the direction of the prevailing gales, unless some 
such precaution is taken. 
Climbers should be introduced wherever there is 
a proper place for them. A rough screen covered 
with annuals, such as Morning Glories, Canary 
Creeper, Thunbergias, etc., and with Maderia Vine, 
Maurandia, Cobaea, etc., may be made to shut out 
an unsightly object and be pleasing in itself. Sweet 
Peas should have been put in as soon as the ground 
was open ; if sown now, put two or three inches 
deep; if no other method is better, stick them 
like garden peas ; have a plenty for cut flowers. 
Annuals started under glass, or in window-boxes, 
should be hardened off by gradual exposure, before 
putting them in the open ground. 
Perennials of the later kind may be had of the 
dealers. Do not forget Chrysanthemums to make 
the garden bright until the last. 
Boses require almost as much care, so far as in¬ 
sects go, as potatoes ; but these are as essential in 
the flower garden as the potatoes in the kitchen 
garden. Begin with tobacco water for the Rose- 
louse or aphis ; go for the slug with White Helle¬ 
bore, as advised under Fruit Garden, for Currant 
Worms. When the Rose-bugs come, treat them as 
directed under Grape Vines. 
CSreenlionse an«l ^Vin«low Plants. 
The custom of completely clearing out the 
greenhouse is not so general as formerly. With 
proper attention to shade, and water, and insects, 
it may be kept attractive all summer. If one has 
