•Ghe RURAL NEW-YORKER 
1239 
Full Year to Pay 
Yes—spread your payments over a year. 
That is the offer made and backed by a 
$12,000,000 concern on the famous “Majestic" 
Enjrine. We take all the risk. Try it free 
for 30 days before you decide. No money in 
advance, no deposit, no C. O. D. You know 
we could send only an engrine of the very 
highest auality on such an offer as this. 
The Wonderful “Majestic” 
On 30 Days’ Free Trial 
Uses either gasoline or kerosene. Water 
cooled by open jacket hopper-cooled system. 
Bed and cylinder cast in one piece giving 
greatest possible solidity. Perfect lubrica¬ 
tion. Most power at lowest cost. Made in 
2, 3, 5, 9 and 14 H. P. L. M. Massey, Del., 
says: ‘ Develops more power than you 
claim.” W. E. Gregor, Col., says: “Easiest 
running engine in neighborhood. 
planting time. This interval is also the 
busiest period of the whole year for tlie 
wholesale grow'er of peonies. In plant¬ 
ing a peony root as early as the middle 
of August there is a great danger that 
the buds have not matured for the 
following year, or “ripened’’ as the 
nurseryman calls it, and in setting out 
the root as late as the latter part of No¬ 
vember one runs the risk of not giving 
the root time enough to get well 
started in the ground before the Winter 
frosts. 
After the root is at last carefully 
planted, one does not have to worry 
about one’s peony till the beginning of 
the really cold, icy weather. Then during 
the first Winter it is generally wise to 
protect the root with .a small handful 
The Home Garden 
The Peony—a Flower for the Farmers to 
Cultivate 
After having worked for several years 
in my father’s peony garden, and learned 
a great deal about the cultivation of 
this flower, I have often Avondered why 
it is not grown more widely, both by 
farmers and the owners of small gar¬ 
dens. Certainly there is no flower that 
requires so little care and gives so much 
pleasure in return. Perhaps, however, 
the gardeners and farmers of today do 
not know the wonderful development 
which this flower has undergone in the 
last three-quarters of a century. There 
was a time when if anyone spoke of 
the peony, everj'body thought of the 
old-fashioned flower of our grandmother’s 
(lay—a bright crimson or white blos¬ 
som that is through blooming before some 
of the finer motleru varieties of the 
peony have begun to unfold. I’ut now 
what a Avealth of beauty and color the 
thousand or more present varieties of the 
peony afford us! Some of these are as 
delicately tinted as roses, and possess 
fragrance, too; others are of more bril¬ 
liant shades, and arrest attention by 
their very novelty of color. Best of 
all. the peony season can now be made 
to last through a whole month, for there 
are many earl.v and many late varieties. 
It is reall.v remarkable when one 
thinks of the w'onderful improvenumt in 
the flower itself that the new'er varieties 
of the peony should be as easy to grow 
as the old-fashioned bright l*(“d flower 
of your grandmother’s day, which always 
came up and bloomed, no matter how 
cold the Winter. A little care at the 
time of planting, a little more tending-to 
for a year or two afterward, and your 
peony is almo.st sure to last a lifi'time 
and prove a more beautiful hardy flower 
in your yard with everj’ passing year. 
For its permanence and beauty together 
it would seem the ideal flower for the 
bus.v farmer’s front yard. It is almost 
the only flower that will solve the prob¬ 
lem in his mind of getting a hardy flower 
that will grow vigorously and take care 
of itself after being once planted. 
The planting of the peony is a com¬ 
paratively simple matter if certain 
things are kept in mind. In the first 
l)lace, it should be planted in a large 
hole, at least 20 inches deep, and from 
two feet to three feet in diameter ac¬ 
cording to the size of the root. This is 
necessary on account of the rapid rate 
at which the plant grows; its tubers dig 
deep in the earth in their search for 
nourishment, and the peony is on the 
whole a very “gross feeder.” The more 
the soil is loosened and the richer the 
ground is in the neighborhood of the 
root, the easier and better will the 
jilant grow. Once the hole is dug, how¬ 
ever, it is well to replace the gravel or 
yellow dirt which ivas taken out of the 
bottom with good earth or with some old 
manure mixed with leaf mold, I re¬ 
member a favorite substitute of my 
father’s, if he did not happen to have 
either of the latter things handy, was to 
put a couple of pieces of sod turned up¬ 
side down in the bottom of the hole. 
When the sod had rotted, it formed rich 
earth for the roots to luxuriate in. The 
peony root itself, however, should be 
jdanted in as rich ground as can be ob¬ 
tained to put on top of the sod or 
manure at the bottom. It should be set 
at a very shallow depth, the buds on 
the main stem being not less than one 
and not more than three inches below 
the surface of the ground. If the buds 
are set deeper than this, the planter is 
certainly taking a big risk on his peony 
not doing well from the very start. In 
planting the root the ground should also 
be well firmed around the roots, just as 
in planting a fruit tree. 
So much for the actual planting of the 
peony; now for the best time to plant and 
the care the root needs afterward. Al¬ 
though it is possible to set out peonies 
in the Spring, it is not at all practicable, 
since it disturbs the plant just before the 
blooming season. Any time in the Fall 
from about the middle of September till 
the end of October is considered a good 
have heard of market growers who have 
tried the St. Regis in a different soil 
from mine and have increased their 
I)lautiug. Therefore, it remains for J. 
M. to make the test in his soil. I re¬ 
gret that I cannot give any information 
in regard to the newer varieties of rasp¬ 
berries named, for I have not grown any 
of them. I have grown the Cuthbert 
largely, and know that it is still good. 
Whether the Columbian is better I can¬ 
not say, for I have never even seen it. 
As a rule hero the blackcaps do bet¬ 
ter than red raspberries in our light, 
sandy soil. I said Cuthbert because 
ft 
Cuthbii'rt is an old and well-tested 
variety. The Columbian may be all that 
is claimed for it. and I may plant some 
in order to get acquainted with it. With 
a plant that is so easily tested as the 
raspberi'y it is not well to condemn a 
variety because it has not done well in a 
very different soil and climate. I re¬ 
ft 
Herbaceous Peony Madame Chaumy—Light Pink 
of old leaves spread over the top of the 
plant. In older to keep the wind from 
blowing these away a small amount of 
earth can be scattered over them. But 
one should remember that with the return 
of warm weather in the .Spring this cov¬ 
ering should be removed, and that during 
the second Winter no covering is neces¬ 
sary at all. 
Just a few Aveeks before the peony 
blooms is the time when it needs nour¬ 
ishment most, and if one has the time and 
energy, one might Avork some fertilizer, 
such as Avood ashes or well-rotted man¬ 
ure, in the ground around the roots of 
the plant. This is a method by Avhich 
an experienced peony groAver makes the 
most bashful plant.s' produce the most 
beautiful floAA-ers. In Avorking the fer¬ 
tilizer in the ground, hoAvever, it must 
be spaded in A'ery lightly, for even the 
small, fine, thread-like roots AA’hich lie 
nearest the surface must not be dis¬ 
turbed in any Avay. When the young 
plant’s hunger for nourishment has thus 
been properly satisfied, it is almost cer¬ 
tain to show its gratitude by more beau¬ 
tiful floAvers Avhen the time comes. 
“And is this all that the farmer has 
to do to haA’e beautiful ])eonies in his 
front lawn?” somebody asks. Yes, this 
is practically eA’erything, and the strange 
part is that Avith a hardy lloAver so e.x- 
quisite in its new shadi's and so easy to 
grow more farmers Avith beautiful homes 
hiive not found this out earlier. But the 
nurserymen tell us—and this is encour¬ 
aging'—that the peony is today coming 
into its OAA-n as a popular flower for 
the humble, as Avell as the Avealthy man’s 
garden. PAtrL v. D. tioysraot. 
Dutchess Co., N. Y. 
ferred simply to my own conditions, 
and did not mean to infer that the St. 
Regis may not be far better under dif¬ 
ferent conditions. w. F. masska'. 
Pay Nothing 
For 60 Days 
Prove before you pay a penny that the 
famous ‘Majestic” is thestrongest, mosteco- 
nomical, easiest to operate, and most powerful 
engine for its rated H. P. Then return it if it 
isn’t the ntKMt satisfactory engine you ever saw. 
If you keep it, make first small payment in 60 days. 
Balance in equal payments 60 days apart. 
Send for Free Bool 
Tells all aboutengines. Shows 
you how to buy on money-sav¬ 
ing basis. Also explains our 
30 days free trial, no mon¬ 
ey in advance, year to 
pay offer. Don’t miss 
this. The book is free. 
Send postal or letter 
for it today. 
THE HARTMAN CO. 
4019 LaSalle St., Dept. 816 Chicago 
Saving Tomato Seed 
I suAV directions in The R. N.-Y. re¬ 
cently in regard to saving tomato seed, 
llere i.s a better Avay for tomato, melon 
and other puliiy seeds. Squeeze the 
])ulp contuining seeds into a can, cover 
Avilii Avater and alloAV the Avhole to fer¬ 
ment two or three days. Then Ava.sh 
out, float off tlie pulp and dry your 
sei'd.s. The seed Avill sink and is easil.v 
cleaned and does not stick together 
tightly. GARDE.VEK. 
Books Worth Buying 
Landscape Gardening, Parsons.2,00 
Lawn Making, Barron. 1.10 
Fertilizers and Crops, Van Slyke.... 2.50 
Weeds of Farm and Garden, Pammel 1.50 
Book of Wheat, Dondlinger. 2.00 
Buccessful Fruit Culture, Maynard.. 1.00 
Irrigation and Drainage, King.... 1.50 
Study of Corn, Sboesmith.50 
The Soil, King. 1.50 
THE HURAL NEW-YORKER, 
333 WEST 30th ST., NEW YORK. 
St. Regis and Cuthbert Raspberries 
Prof, Massey tolls ns that he proposes 
grubbing out all his St. Regis raspberry 
plants. I Avish I bad heard of this seven 
months ago; I would not now have about 
150 feet of roAV of them. He also says 
that Cuthbert is still the best red rasp¬ 
berry. What about the Columbian? 
“Green’s Fruit Grower” says that from 
1,350 feet of row they got GO bushels of 
berries. I Avas going to plant a lot of 
them next Spring, but not if Cuthbert is 
a better berry. Why is Cuthbert better 
than Columbian? Do you know anything 
about the neAV raspberries—Syracuse and 
Herbert ? j. m, 
Cokeville, Pa. 
It Avill not do to jump to the con¬ 
clusion that because the St. Regis rasp¬ 
berry has failed in my soil and climate 
it Avill fail in Westmoreland Co., Pa. I 
The imported India ruby mica insulation of the 
SPLITDORF Plug is wound lengthwise around the 
core and fitted into the bushing in such a manner that 
every explosion tightens it anew—making it absolutely 
emd permanently gas and oil tight. 
Make Your Engine 
Easy to Start 
The SUMTER Plugoscillator on medium and large 
size stationary and marine engines or the SUMTER 
Starter-Coupling on trucks, tractors, marine and 
heavy duty engines will make starting sure and easy. 
Your manufacturer will give you the equipment 
if you INSIST. 
SPLITDORF ELECTRICAL 
NEWARK, N. J. 
CO. 
I \ 
SPARK PLUGS 
