1861.] 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
195 
and pear trees by the middle of the month. Use 
every precaution in securing true sorts, and mark 
tliG rows carefully. Insert the buds close to the 
ground. It is not necessary to remove the wood 
from the bud. Stocks budded last season, may now 
be rounded off close to the growing bud. See that 
all suckers arc removed. 
Inarching may now be performed on both decid¬ 
uous and evergreen trees, and quinces and other 
shrubby plants be increased by layering new wood. 
Insects are now troublesome, unless they were 
kept in check as advised last month. Continue to 
dust plum trees with lime, or syringe with the oil 
soap mixture, to repel the curculio. Make friends 
of the birds, even if they do take a few cherries. 
See article on apple borers, page 209. 
Plow, or run the cultivator between nursery rows, 
to loosen the soil and keep down weeds. The hoe 
will also be needed for the same purpose. 
Kitchen and Fruit Garden. 
One pleasing feature of this department of home 
labor is the quick returns received. Seeds of veget¬ 
ables sown in Spring, are already yielding the first 
fruits of the garden, and as the season advances, 
each month brings its increase. There is danger 
that the garden may be neglected in the busy sea¬ 
son of hayingand harvest; but no part of the home¬ 
stead pays better, especially if well worked. Do 
not leave hoeing, weeding, transplanting, etc., un¬ 
til some chance leisure hour, but take time at the 
right season for all operations needed to make a 
productive garden. 
Asparagus—Now that the cutting season is past, 
allow no bed to become a nursery of weeds. 
Beans—Gather for use as they ripen. “ String ” 
beans or the young pods cooked with pork, are gen¬ 
erally relished. A few quick growing kinds, as 
Early Valentine, Refugee, and China, planted ff, 
will yield a supply for use late in the season, and 
for putting up in bottles for Winter. 
Beets—Keep the rows well hoed. Thin to eight 
or ten inches apart in the row. 
Blackberries—Train the new growth to stakes or 
trellises. When five to six feet in length, nip off 
the ends of the new growth, to facilitate the setting 
of fruit-bearing buds. Support branches heavily 
loaded with ripening fruit, to keep from splitting. 
Cabbage and Cauliflower—Set out, ff, m, for latest 
crop, and sow seed for plants to be wintered in 
pits. In gathering early cabbages for table use, cut 
off the heads, and leave the stumps standing; the 
new growth of sprouts will furnish excellent greens. 
Celery—Transplant for late crops, ff, as directed 
in Calendar for June. Hoe former plantings often. 
Corn—Want, ff, for late use, and for drying and 
preserving for Winter. Hoe often about former 
plantings. 
Cucumbers—Plant, ff, for pickling. Hoe former 
plantings, and water occasionally with liquid ma¬ 
nure, either house slops, or poultry or cow drop¬ 
pings mixed with water. Guard against insects. 
Pinch off the ends of vines to prevent too rampant 
growth. 
Currants—Gather as they ripen for table use and 
for preserving. They are wholesome eaten fresh 
with sugar, if every berry be broken before swal¬ 
lowing. For jelly, use when fairly ripened. For 
preserves or wine, leave until fully matured. 
After fruiting is passed, prune the bushes, cut¬ 
ting out old wood, and as much of the new as 
necessary to keep in good shape. Remove all suck¬ 
ers which spring from the roots; otherwise there 
will soon be a hedge-row formed. Watch against 
insects, particularly the currant aphis, and the borer. 
Egg Plants—Keep well hoed and hill up slightly. 
Forward the growth with liquid manure. 
Espaliers, or trees trained to trellises or against 
walls, are ornamental on the borders of the garden. 
Pinch out all growth that interferes with proper 
shape, and keep new shoots well trained. Thin the 
fruit if necessary, before it has attained much size; 
the remaining specimens will be improved 
Gooseberries—Thin the fruit if the bushes arc 
well filled, and use the first pickings for cooking. 
Keep the ground mulched to prevent mildewing. 
Grapes—Continue to remove superfluous growth. 
Leave but one, or at most, two clusters of fruit on a 
spur, and pinch off the ends of bearing shoots four 
or five leaves beyond the berries. Remove insects 
by hand picking. Keep the border free from grass 
and weeds. Mulching is beneficial. 
Herbs—Cut while in blossom, dry them in the 
shade, and preserve in tight boxes, cans, or bottles. 
Hoeing frequently will partially make up for want 
of manure and rain. If the ground becomes crust¬ 
ed, it shuts out air, warmth, and moisture. 
Insects require constant watchfulness, particu¬ 
larly upon melons, cucumbers, cabbages, and tur¬ 
nips. Study their habits, experiment to prevent 
their ravages. He will be a fortunate discoverer 
who can find a perfect safeguard from the pests. 
Our principal reliance is on toads and chickens. 
Lettuce—Sow at intervals for a succession. The 
Silesian is valuable for late use. 
Manure—Growing plants will be benefited by 
hoeing in an occasional top-dressing of ashes, plas¬ 
ter, bone dust, guano, etc. Very rapid growth of 
almost all garden plants may be induced by fre¬ 
quent watering with liquid manure. A shovelful 
of poultry droppings dissolved in eight gallons of 
water, will make a strong fertilizer. 
Melons—Cultivate as directed for cucumbers. 
As the fruit enlarges, support it from the ground 
with a small strip of board. 
Mushrooms—Collect necessary materials for 
Autumn beds, m, U, as we have formerly directed. 
Onions—Keep the beds free from weeds, and the 
soil loose. Try a weak solution of oil soap, a pound 
to eight gallons of water, upon a small plot, if 
troubled with the onion maggot. Thin the plants if 
orowded ; the young growth may be used in salads. 
Sow seed, ll, for small bulbs to set next Spring. 
Peas—Sow,/, m, l, for late use. Pick from former 
plantings as they grow to proper size, but leave the 
earliest and finest pods to ripen for seed. 
Potatoes—Dig early varieties, and devote the 
space to turnips, late spinage, etc. 
Preserving Fruits and Vegetables—Read and fol¬ 
low directions on page 215, of this number. 
Raspberries—If more fruit ripens than is wanted 
for immediate use, dry it, or preserve in bottles. 
When fruiting is over, cut down old canes. Re¬ 
move all but two or three of the strongest young 
shoots, and train them to trellises in fan shape, for 
next year’s fruiting. Keep the ground around them 
well hoed, but do not disturb the roots. 
Rhubarb—A good supply for Winter use may be 
dried, or better, preserved in bottles. For drying, 
cut the stalks into pieces, and string them on twine. 
Seeds—As Turnip, Cabbage, and other seeds 
ripen, select the earliest and best growth, as fast as 
it matures, and dry on sheets or newspapers in a 
loft or other secure place. If neglected until all is 
ripe, much of the best growth will be wasted. 
When sufficiently dried, put up neatly in papers— 
old envelopes are good for this use—mark each 
package plainly, with the name and date of growth, 
and keep secure from dampness and mice. 
Spinage—Sow,./, m, for late use. Leave enough 
plants of early growth, for seed. 
Strawberries—As soon as the last fruit is gathered, 
weed and thin the beds, and transplant young root¬ 
ed plants for new plots. Culture in hills or rows 
is generally recommended. To keep them in 
proper bounds, clip the runners as they appear. 
Ashes worked into the soil will be beneficial. 
Thin out old plants which are crowded, and pick 
off melons, tomatoes, etc., which set too late to 
ripen. Those left will be all the better. 
Tomatoes—Train to trellises of lath, or support 
with frames of poles, or brush, as for peas. When a 
fair quantity of fruit is set, nip off the ends of the 
vines to prevent further growth, and allow the sap 
to perfect the fruit. 
Transplant to supply vacancies in rows of corn, 
hills of melons, etc. By following directions given 
in previous numbers, this can be done successfully 
in the hottest weather. 
Weeds disfigure the garden, and injure the grow¬ 
ing crops. Keep them under by frequent hoeing, 
and by mulching with straw, tan bark, leaves, etc. 
Flower Garden and F^awii. 
The cold wet weather of May and June prevent¬ 
ed many seeds from vegetating, and retarded the 
biooming season of many perennials. Still, the 
flower borders should now be rich in bloom, for 
while the early sorts still linger, the later varieties 
are unfolding. July is a growing month, no less for 
weeds than flowers, and hoes, rakes, and fingers will 
all be needed to keep the borders in good condition. 
Now is the time to train the rapidly growing shrub¬ 
bery to proper form. Pinch back the leaders if a 
more compact head is wanted; prune off lower 
side shoots to increase the hight, when desirable. 
Annuals of quick growth may still be sown,/; 
to take the place of e*>y blooming plants. The 
most of them will fic~-. before frost, even if they 
do not ripen seed. T„cy will also help to lengthen 
out the floral season. Soak the seed over night to 
make them vegetate quickly. 
Box edgings may now receive their final shearing. 
Cut to a line stretched at the top, and pare the sides 
to nearly a cone shape, but do not shave too close¬ 
ly, or the hot sun will burn the plants. 
Bulbs—Those which are to be reset, should now 
be lifted,/; dried, and put away in drawers 'or 
wrapped in papers and carefully labeled. It is not 
necessary to transplant them every year. 
Carnations, Picotces, and Pinks, should continue 
to receive the care recommended last month. They 
should make a fine show now. Slit the sheath of 
those flowers which burst upon only one side. 
Climbers—See that they are provided with sup 
ports. Most of them will follow a string or wire 
better than any thing else. A small cedar or juni¬ 
per tree, with the bark and outer branches removed, 
is made quite picturesque when covered with some 
climber, filling and drooping from the branches. 
The climber can be kept in bounds by pinching. 
Dahlias may still be set for a late bloom. Keep 
well tied to stakes and cut off lower side branches, 
leaving a single stalk to a hilL 'Watch for and des¬ 
troy borers which are now penetrating the stalks. 
Evergreens make much of their growth in July, 
and are particularly ornamental at this period. No 
lawn or ornamental ground is complete without a 
collection of them. They are beautiful at all sea¬ 
sons, and fine for the “Winter garden.” Now is the 
season to prune them. If to make stately trees, 
leave the leader uninjured, but when desired to 
form shrubs, both the upright and principal side 
shoots may be pinched in. 
Flower stalks should be cut down as soon as they 
have finished blooming, unless seeds are wanted. 
Annuals may be sown or transplanted near them, 
that no space be wasted. 
Geraniums are in full flower, and if well arranged, 
make a fine show. The Tom Thumbs answer ad¬ 
mirably for bedding out. Both layers an.l cuttings 
may now be made. They take root very readily* 
from cuttings, and this is the proper season for 
starting a supply to bloom in the houses next Win¬ 
ter. Shade from the hot sun, and water freely. 
Gravel walks—Pull the weeds by hand, or ran a 
scuffle hoe beneath the gravel. 
Hedges—The first clipping should be finished,/ - . 
Cut evenly and to a line upon the top, leaving them 
a little cone shaped. Do not trim from the sides 
near the bottom at this season, as the object now is 
to thicken the hedge. Thin places can soon be 
filled up by judicious pruning. • 
Hoe grounds often. Even if there are no weeds, 
the soil should be frequently stirred with a hoe or 
rake, to prevent crusting. Use a push hoe and 
walk backwards, which will leave the weeds loose 
upon the top without any footprints; remember 
that even in dry weather, a good hoeing is frequent¬ 
ly better than a watering, which bake* the surface. 
