larch 16. 1907. TUB GARDENING WORLD 
The Flower Garden 
daily paper has been disoussing, What 
i: ;ucoess? or rather its readers have, and 
majority of them, of course, look at the 
n ter from a commercial or sentimental 
p at of view. Success in gardening is 
v\ it all amateurs hope and strive for, but 
t, >btain it one has to work just as seriously 
a 1 earnestly as the individual who wants 
t, be a commercial success. Success never 
c les to the man who sits down and waits 
f| it. 
ine must run to meet it, and if it at- 
t ipts to dodge, or does dodge, then seek 
t. mow the reason why. The amateur who 
1 ; prepared his ground and made all 
1 dy for the coming season stands a great 
< mce of having a successful garden, pro- 
\ ing he pay attention to details. A good 
5 rt does not mean a good finish unless 
t re has been a good centre, a kind of go- 
; -the-way sort of thing. You know what 
j aean. 
J ses and the Frosts. 
’ersonally, I am rather pleased with the 
i y things are going at present, although 
am fain to say that the severe winter 
I acked things a trifle hard. Still, one need 
r grieve, because Euonymus, Laurels, 
; ivet, etc., are destitute of healthy foliage, 
i : because the Roses will require extra 
rd pruning this season. From what I 
■ 1 see, the frost has damaged the inner 
h of many Roses more than usual. This 
A should induce amateurs to prune really 
rd, that is, cut back until the pith shows 
3 en and healthy. When damaged by 
jst, the pith is brown or stained, and al- 
jugh shoots so affected wil-1 grow, they 
unot send out healthy, vigorous growth, 
ind you, I am not urging the pruning of 
>ses just yet, far from it. I should be 
cry to prune established bush or standard 
)3es before April is in. Therefore if any- 
e is tempted, because the weather is mild, 
ke my tip and don’t. There are plenty 
10 advocate early pruning, but there is 
ally no necessity for hurry even in the 
uth. 
ardy Annuals. 
If the sowing of hardy annuals has been 
flayed, take the first opportunity to get 
tern in, or they will not be blooming when 
1 anted. Half-hardy things of all kinds, of 
: burse, may still be sown in frames. 
upid Sweet Peas. 
I have just sown my Cupids and Bush 
weet Peas. These, like the tall sorts, I 
>w in pots, but give them less attention. I 
se large pots and sow quite thickly. When 
ley are two or three inches high I plant 
it where wanted. The shift does not 
reck them very much, and as they are only 
anted for garden decoration, a day or two’s 
elay in flowering does not matter. I have 
rown these types ever since their introduc- 
■on. and venture to say I have been one of 
ie most successful cultivators. Many 
eople speak badly of them, especially the 
upids, but when given a fairly dry and 
unny position, and planted not more than 
nree inches apart they' make a brave show, 
specially when grown in blocks of colour. 
>uch varieties as America, Boreatton, 
hamberlain, Countess, Firefly, Prima 
)onna, and White Cupid are splendid. 
They are all duplicates in colour of tall 
sorts. Other magnificent sorts are Royalty 
(pink), Salopian (crimson), Mauve Queen 
(mauve), Enchantress (creamy pink), and 
Bridesmaid (deep pink). 
Bush Sweet Peas. 
The majority of Bush sorts are in mix¬ 
ture, but fine named sorts are Blanch Bur¬ 
pee, Dorothy Tennant^ Her Majesty, Mon¬ 
arch, Prima Donna, Royal Rose, and Lady 
Mary Currie. The latter variety is inter¬ 
esting to me, because I obtained it from the 
Grey Friar, the first of the type. I could 
only save a few seeds, and after one season 
I passed it over to the originator of the 
type. I also had Navy Blue, but this failed 
to seed, and I have never heard of anyone 
else getting it since. 
Sweet Peas in Frames. 
While dealing with Sweet Peas let me 
advise attention to the early-sown batch in 
the frames. Do not allow them to get dry, 
nor keep them very wet. Plenty of air and 
light are essential. 
Autumn-Sown Sweet Peas. 
Autumn-sown plants -outdoors will now 
appreciate a light dressing of nitrate of 
soda. Do not allow it to touch the plants. 
Keep the soil stirred and see that twiggy 
sticks are given as soon as tendrils appear. 
Border Plants. 
See that border plants are got in without 
delay. Although I prefer early planting, 
there is yet time for this work. Any over¬ 
grown clumps should be lifted and divided. 
Montbretias especially pay for dividing. 
Creepers on Walls. 
Creepers on walls, such as Ivy and Vir¬ 
ginian Creeper are better and look more 
shipshape if they are clipped in closely 
with the shears. 
Dahlias. 
Dahlia roots should now be brought forth 
if they have been stored in the cellar or 
clamped out of doors. Pack all sound 
roots closely together in boxes, filling the 
spaces with soil. Keep the boxes in the 
light, but not necessarily in a warm place. 
If room is available it is, of course, better 
to start the roots in heat and take cuttings, 
but for the general run of amateurs old 
roots, if divided, give excellent results. 
Do not divide until the shoots appear, as 
it is impossible to tell whether a root will 
grow or not. If any roots fail to start 
after a fair time has elapsed it may be 
taken for granted that they have no growth 
buds. 
Lawns and Grass Paths. 
Give lawns and grass paths as much 
attention as possible. The roller will do a 
world of good now. The mower may re¬ 
main idle just at present. 
The Fruit Garden. 
Apricots and Peaches. 
Take heed of what has .been said before 
with regard to netting Apricots and Peaches 
on walls. A sharp frost will injure the 
flowers if unprotected. See that all tying- 
in is finished not forgetting Morello Cher¬ 
ries on walls. These are usually left until 
the last. Do not prune the .young growths 
save where they are in the way. Morellos 
bear on the new wood. 
189 
Grafting. 
Grafting may still be continued. Use a 
reliable wax. A recipe for same has fre¬ 
quently been given in these columns. 
Manuring Bush Fruits. 
Where manure is scarce give bush fruits 
a dressing of artificials. A general manure 
such as guano will do a lot of good or 
9 uper-nitrate and potash may be applied. 
Gooseberries require more potash than most 
fruits. Retain all the soot that comes from 
the kitchen, and after a little exposure 
strew it between the bushes. It will do 
much gcod. 
The Kitchen Garden. 
The main batch of Brussels Sprouts 
should now be sown ; also Autumn Broccoli, 
leaving the other sorts for a week or two. 
Cabbages. 
Fresh young Cabbages are very much ap¬ 
preciated in the autumn, and by sowing now 
a supply is assured. 
Hoe frequently between the spring plants, 
which should now be getting a move on 
them. 
Various Sowings. 
Maincrop Peas should go in as soon as 
possible, and on no account delay the sow¬ 
ing of Onions, Parsnips, Leeks, Spinach, 
etc., if not already in. 
Carrots are safer if the seed is allowed 
to remain in the packet a little while longer. 
Celery. 
Celery sown on a hotbed will probably be 
through now. Keep close to the glass and 
thin out a bit if too thick. More Celery, 
both Red and White, may be sown. 
Potatos. 
Early Potatos may safely be planted now. 
Watch for the sprouts, as they appear very 
quickly in mild weather. 
Draw earth over any that are now showing 
above ground. When planting Potatos al¬ 
low less room fox the early sorts than is 
required . for main crops. Early varieties 
do better on rich soil than later sorts. The 
latter will produce fine crops on artificial 
manures alone, but earlies do better with 
dung. ^The only artificial manure I use 
for earlies is nitrate of soda or sulphate of 
ammonia. The latter may be applied at 
planting time. Nitrate should be given 
just before'earthing up. Superphosphate of 
lime or bone flour four parts, sulphate of 
potash two parts, if applied to the main 
crop plot now, will have time to precipi¬ 
tate. Half a pound to the square yard will 
help things later on. 
“ Horti.” 
The Amateur’s Greenhouse. 
Sowing Tomatos. 
Now is probably the best time of the year 
to sow the main crop of Tomatos, either for 
growing indoors or planting outside. Many 
growers save their own seed, and because it 
is thus cheap they sow far too thickly, so 
that home saved seed becomes doubly dis¬ 
appointing. Always buy new seed is my 
advice; the crop will be better, and the seeds 
receive more careful handling. I prefer 
to sow in a pan if raising many plants; in 
a 6in. pot, well crocked, if only a few are 
wanted. In either case, the seeds should 
be placed in singly with the hand, and kept 
one inch apart. A covering of half an inch 
of soil is ample, and this should consist of 
leaf mould and sand in equal parts. Water 
the seeds well in,-.cover with a pane of 
glass, and stand in a warm and moist corner. 
The seedlings should be pricked out as soon 
as the second pair of leaves shows, sinking 
them in the soil to the level of the lowest 
leaves. 
