MM 
18 
To enable such people to obtain the very best garden efforts, and to make the task 
of selection as easy as possible for those who have very little time to give to gardening, 
I shall be glad to select a group of 50 Hardy Perennials of the finest types, in lots of 
5 of each kind, to make an adequate representation of each variety. Such a Collection 
will make a charming little garden from which an abundance of splendid flowers can 
be cut for house and table decoration from June until late autumn. 
DUCKHAM’S 
SOIL - STERILIZER 
OFFER No. 1 
50 Perennial Plants, carefully labeled and packed, our selection, for.$10 00 
OFFER No. 2 
75 Perennial Plants, carefully labeled and packed, our selection, for. 14 50 
OFFER No. 3 
100 Perennial Plants, carefully labeled and packed, our selection, for. 18 50 
Arranging and Planting Hardy 
Flower Borders 
Preparing the Ground. The ground for a Perennial bed should be spaded at least 
8 to 10 inches deep, and twice that if the ground is at all poor. The best practice is to 
remove the top 8 inches of the ground entirely and spade into the bottom of the bed 
a liberal quantity of well-rotted manure or fertilizer, returning the top-soil after 
breaking it up very fine and mixing with a small amount of some effective artificial 
fertilizer. This work should be done several weeks in advance of planting the bed. 
Planting. A gardener’s trowel is the most practical tool for setting out plants of 
ordinary size. Before beginning it is well to lay the plants on the ground in the bed 
as they are indicated in the sketch or diagram, and then plant them as quickly as 
possible to prevent the roots from drying out. Always set plants just a little deeper 
than the old soil-line, and make the roots very firm in the ground. Loose planting is 
the cause of a great deal of loss. 
Arrangement. In planting such borders, always give careful consideration to the 
height of the plants as indicated all through this Catalogue. Tall plants should be 
kept to the back of the border, those of medium height in the middle, while dwarf or 
smaller plants should be kept in the front. This should be varied a little, so that in 
some places tall plants come in the front of the border, partially concealing some lower 
plants beyond them. This device is especially effective in straight borders, adding a 
little air of mystery and surprise, such as is accomplished naturally in curved borders. 
The color of the flower is important, and the time of year in which they bloom is 
even more so. An effort should be made to have a few flowers in bloom throughout the 
border all season. 
Winter Care. A light cover of dry litter, such as grass-clippings, leaves, or strawy 
manure is very beneficial after the first frost has nipped things down in late autumn. 
If manure is used, it may be raked in the ground in the spring, adding a very desirable 
element of fertility. 
Duckham’s Electric Soil-Sterilizer 
fills an urgent need for a simple and 
practical method of sterilizing the soil 
before using it in seed-flats, since so 
many of the fungous diseases attack 
newly germinated seedlings. It oper¬ 
ates entirely by electricity and will 
thoroughly sterilize enough soil for 
several seed-flats within two hours. 
The physical condition of the sterilized 
soil is greatly improved, all weed-seed 
is destroyed, the rate of germination 
is improved, damping off is completely 
controlled, and the ultimate stand of 
seedlings is from 40 to 90 per cent 
better than that from unsterilized soil. 
This practical and efficient appliance, 
equipped with 10 feet of electric cord 
and a high-grade thermometer, for 
$59.50. Literature will be sent on 
request. 
WILLIAM C. DUCKHAM, MADISON, N. J. 
