1804 ] 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST.' 
163 
it. The ground for late sorts to be well manured. 
Dust abundantly with ashes while young. Look 
under the leaves for the squash-bug, kill and crush 
its eggs. If a plant wilts, look near the root for a 
grub, dig it out and cover the wound with earth. 
Sweet Potatoes. —Set plants as directed on page 178. 
Tomatoes. —Transplant for the late crop. Pinch 
hack if spreading too much. See article on train¬ 
ing in gardens on page 178. 
Turnips. —Sow for second early. Thin and hoe. 
Watering. —If this must be done, the evening is 
the best time. A free use of the hoe will usually 
prevent the necessity for it. 
Weeds. —If there .are any to be seen, the garden 
is too large. The same ground cannot well grow 
weeds and crops. If left to fight, it out by them¬ 
selves, the weeds will get the best of it. Do all the 
heavy work with horse power and it will be only 
sport to finish in the rows with the hand hoe. 
Winter Cherry.—Set and cultivate as tomatoes. 
Fruit Garden. 
Blackberries and Raspberries.— Tie up the new 
growth to stakes or the trellis. Keep down super 
fluous shoots, saving only the strongest. 
Currants. —By rubbing out straggling shoots 
much pruning may be avoided. Give the bushes 
frequent hoeing, and an occasional watering with 
slops or liquid manure will improve the size of the 
fruit. It often pays better to market the green 
fruit than to wait until it is ripe. 
Gooseberries— Give the same treatment as cur¬ 
rants. If mildew appears try Mr. Hite’s remedy : 
a quart of good ashes in a pailful of water as hot 
as the hand can bear, the mixture thrown with a 
syringe so as to wet both sides of the foliage. 
Gi-apes. —The new growth whether of young or 
old vines, cuttings or layers, is to be kept carefully 
tied up. Young vines should not be allowed to 
overbear, one or two bunches to the shoot will be 
enough. Pinch laterals as directed on page 179. 
If layers were made as directed last month, the 
trench may be gradually filled. Look out for rose- 
bugs and caterpillars and hand-pick them. 
Pears. —Shorten branches tending to make too 
much wood. Rub out superfluous shoots. Thin 
the fruit, especially the large varieties. If slugs 
appear, sprinkle air slaked lime upon them from a 
bag fastened to a pole. Dwarfs set this spring 
will be injured if they are allowed to bear. 
Strawberries.— If it is wished to multiply a variety, 
let the runners go, but remove them from beds 
■planted for fruiting. Keep clear of weeds. If the 
winter’s mulch is not left on it will be well to cover 
the beds with something to keep the fruit clean. 
Straw run through a cutting machine answers a 
good purpose, but tan or saw dust may be used. If 
fruit is sent to market, have the boxes of the same 
quality at top and bottom. It is well to assort the 
fruit and make two qualities. If living near New- 
Yorlt, send specimens to our Strawberry Show. 
Flower Ciarden and Fawn. 
This is the enjoyable month in the garden, for the 
queen of flowers, the Rose, now holds her court' 
there and all delight to do her honor. The enjoy¬ 
ment now experienced from the abundance of flo¬ 
ral gifts, should induce us to labor out of mere 
gratefulness. So leaving the Rose and all her sub¬ 
jects to win favor by their own loveliness, we write 
out the more prosy details of the labor which shall 
keep up a succession of beauty in the garden. 
Annuals. —Transplant those large enough, and sow 
seeds. If sown as late as the first week in June, 
annuals will frequently do as well in the open 
ground as those put in earlier. The soil being 
thoroughly warmed they grow very rapidly. 
Bulbs. —Allow the foliage to wither before taking 
them up. Dry in the shade and wrap in papers 
with labels and keep until autumn in a dry, cool 
place, away from mice. 
Carnations. —Tie the flower stalks to stakes. Sow 
seeds. Propagate by layers and cuttings. Cuttings 
put into very pure wet sand and kept in a cool 
place, root slowly but quite surely. 
Climbers. —Keep the perennials which need it, 
well tied to the trellises. Tender kinds which will 
need to be laid down in autumn, must not be allow¬ 
ed to secure themselves by intertwining with the 
lattice work. Screens or unsightly objects may 
still be covered with herbaceous climbers. Rooted 
plants of Oobsea and Lophospernum will grow rap¬ 
idly. Sow seeds of Morning glories, Cypress-vine, 
etc. Sweet Pea is fine for a low climber. 
Dahlias. —Those not already separated should be 
divided, leaving a tuber or portion of one to each, 
and planted. Set stakes at the same time. Allow 
but one shoot to grow to a root. 
Evo-greens.—' These may be removed this month 
if the roots are kept covered ; mulch after setting. 
Prune those needing it into shape. The upper 
branches should not over-hang the lower ones. 
Frames. —All are to be put under cover and 
glazed and repaired at the first leisure. 
Geraniums.— Plant out the bedding sorts and as 
they incline to grow out of shape, cut them back 
to a compact form. 
Gladiolus—As the flower stems appear, they will 
need to be secured to stakes. 
Grass Edgings.— Clip with the sickle as often as 
the grass is long enough to cut. Root out dande¬ 
lions and other coarse weeds. Keep the roots from 
extending into the borders and walks by use of an 
edging knife or very sharp spade. Trim the edges 
of lawns along the walks in the same way. 
Gravel Walks. —Rake and roll, if necessary to 
keep down the weeds, use a very sharp hoe. 
Hedges—Cot young hedges back to thicken the bot¬ 
tom. Keep established ones in shape by clipping. 
Insects. —Use whale oil soap for slugs and hand 
pick and destroy rose bugs and larger insects.' 
Keeping. —The garden whether small or large 
' should every where bear evidence of what is called 
“ good keeping.” Weeds ought not to be seen, and 
old flower stalks, decayed leaves, and everything 
unsightly removed to the manure heap. 
Lawns. —Mow as often as there is sufficient 
growth for the scythe to take hold of, using a very 
long scythe. Cut a well defined circle around 
trees and shrubs, and keep all within this clear of 
grass and weeds. If the grass makes a poor growth, 
give a dressing of bone dust or a sprinkling with 
liquid manure. Thisties, dock and all large weeds 
should be carefully eradicated with spade or trowel. 
Mounds. —It often produces a good effect to raise 
a circular mound in the lawn of good soil and cov¬ 
er it with low bedding plants, such as Verbenas, 
or with Portulaccas, and other showy annuals. 
Potted Plants. —Those set out in the grounds 
should be sheltered or they will be blown over by 
high winds. Water regularly as they may need it, 
unless the pots are plunged in the earth. 
Roses. —Cut back the perpetuals as soon as they 
have done blooming. Shake off the rose-bugs early 
in the morning into a vessel of hot water. One 
pound of whale oil soap to 8 gallons of water is the 
best for slugs. In the absence of this try strong 
soft soap suds. 
Transplanting. —The hints given on another page 
are to be noted. In dry weather make holes and 
pour in water, and after it has sunk into the earth 
set the plant. If very hot, shade with paper, an 
inverted flower pot, or a shingle. 
Verbenas. —Peg down if needed. They may still 
be set out. They look best in masses. 
Green and Slot-a louses. 
These are by this time nearly emptied of their 
contents, all except the tropical plants being set in 
the ground. Display the few things that are left 
| to the best advantage, and keep the house neat. 
Camellias. —These need partial shade which may 
be given by a lattice-work as mentioned last month. 
Watch for insects, particularly the mealy bug. 
Cuttings of all kinds ©f stock to bloom next win¬ 
ter, can be made in-doors where they can have 
proper moisture and 6hade. 
Geraniums. —These are now in flower and will 
need free watering. Make cuttings. 
Inarch such plants as are propagated in this way. 
Potting ;—As the plants increase in size give more 
pot room. A good supply of suitable soil and va-. 
rious sized pots should be always at hand. ■ Get 
sods from an old pasture and stack Up to decay. 
Save old hot-bed manure to use in composts. 
Seedlings. —Plants started in the green-house from 
seeds are now large enough to put out. 
Water. —The atmosphere of the house must be 
kept properly moist and care taken that the soil in 
small pots does not become too dry. 
Cold Grapery. 
Great care is required in ventilation to avoid 
sudden changes. The house should be opened and 
closed early ; the time of doing this must'be gov 
erned by the thermometer which may reach 85° to 
90°, at mid-day. The rise from the night tempera 
ture to this should be gradual. During blossoming 
discontinue watering overhead. It is necessary to 
assist the distribution of pollen and ensure fertil¬ 
ization by going over the house every morning and 
give.the bunches a shake with the finger. After 
the berries are set, syringe overhead to clean away 
the remains of the flowers. Give water freely. 
Leave one bunch of fruit to a spur and pinch off 
the end of the shoot at the third or fourth leaf be- 
ybnd the bunch. The number of bunches left on 
the vine will depend upon its strength—with young- 
vines it is safe to remove the fruit from each alter¬ 
nate spur. When of the size of peas thin’the ber¬ 
ries one half more or less according to variety. 
Tie up the side branches to the horizontal wires. 
Apiary ibb June. 
Prepared by M. Quinby — By Request. 
When the weather through May has been favora¬ 
ble, the best hives will be full, and the bees ready 
to go into the surplus boxes. Occasionally, a box 
or two may be filled before clover blossoms ; it is 
then, however, quite sure to be stained with pollen 
from dandelions. Those who want honey for the 
table or market, of the purest quality, only—of fla¬ 
vor and appearance—would do well not to put on 
boxes until these latter flowers are gone. When¬ 
ever the hive becomes full of bees, the boxes may 
be added without waiting for them to appear on the 
outside. In cold weather they will crowd togeth¬ 
er inside much longer than when very warm. Yet 
the inexperienced can have no better guide for this, 
than when the bees cluster outside. There is usu¬ 
ally much gain in getting them to work in the box¬ 
es before they swarm. Boxes, whether of wood or 
glass, should not be over five inches deep. To en¬ 
courage a beginning, pieces of clean white combs 
should be fastened in the top; if one or more is 
large enough to reach the bottom, it is still greater 
inducement. After a swarm leaves, when only a 
small family remains, they will often fiuish boxes, 
partly full, when nothing would induce them to be¬ 
gin. Should any colony entirely leave such boxes, 
or commence removing the honey to the hive be¬ 
low, the boxes should be taken off, and given to 
some strong swarm, that will finish them- 
Any hive, failing to increase its bees by this time, 
should be examined. If the brood is diseased, 
drive out the bees to begin anew, before the num¬ 
bers are reduced too much to do any thing. If 
queenless, they are generally reduced too much by 
this time to wait to raise a queen. It is better, un¬ 
less too far gone to recover, to give them a mature, 
laying queen. If one can be procured in no other 
way; drive out the bees of a strong colony, find the 
queen and introduce her to the distitute one, re¬ 
turn the bees, and in a few days—twelve or four¬ 
teen—they will raise queens, some of which, at 
