HOUSE AND GARDEN 
March, 1910 
123 
If you are digging around your garden 
at any time remember that dug-in snow 
chills the soil where roots may be dor¬ 
mant, consequently they will be injured 
or killed by thoughtless treatment of 
this sort. _ 
Sow lettuce, globe artichokes in cold- 
frames and hotbeds, beets, carrots, onions, 
tomatoes, egg-plant and peppers in flats; 
also thin out those already up which you 
started earlier. _ 
If you sow parsley now indoors you 
will have a good April crop. Before plant¬ 
ing parsley seed soak it in warm water for 
a day, as it is very slow to germinate. 
If the season is a very early one get 
your Sweet Pea seeds into the ground 
early. __ L 
Fork asparagus beds lightly, first 
spreading well-rotted manure or bone 
meal on the ground. 
North exposure window boxes will suc¬ 
ceed when properly filled 
Window Boxes 
W ILL you kindly tell me what plants I 
can grow successfully in window boxes 
that have a northern exposure ? I am not sure 
of what to plant. 
The following list is recommended 
for your purpose: fancy caladiums, trail¬ 
ing Fuchsia, Maurandya, dwarf Ageratum, 
Ivy Geranium, Begonia, Manettia Vine, 
Boston Fern, Asparagus sprengeri, Cissus 
discolour, Russellia grandis and Asparagus 
tenuis simus. 
Liquid Fertilizer 
"\^7ILL you please give me directions for 
' * preparing some liquid fertilizer? 
One of the most satisfactory home¬ 
made mixtures is prepared with manure 
from the cow barn—two bushels to fifty 
gallons of water. And then good liquid 
fertilizer is prepared as follows: 
2 Quarts Water 
4 Ounces Nitrate of Soda 
8 “ Monobasic Calcium Phosphate 
5 “ Sulphate of Potash. 
When using take only one part of this 
mixture to thirty parts of water, applying 
once a week. Neater to handle are the 
prepared fertilizers put up in tablet or 
powder or liquid forms, which can be ob¬ 
tained through all seedsmen, and are 
especially convenient. 
A Spray for Insect Pests 
M Y plants suffer from aphides. What is a 
good exterminator of these pests? 
For plaui-iice, or aphides, try spraying 
the foliage with soapsuds and rinsing 
the plants afterwards, or you may spray 
with tobacco water that can be prepared 
from tobacco “stems” which any seeds¬ 
man can supply. Into a gallon of warm 
water put a large handful of these stems 
and let them stand covered for some 
twenty-four hours. 
Overwatering 
W HY do the leaves of my house-plants 
turn yellow and drop? I keep them 
plentifully watered. 
Probably, if the temperature of your 
room is right, and the potting soil suitable, 
the trouble lies with overwatering, which 
tends to sour the soil, causing the leaves 
to turn and fall, just as under watering 
causes them to wilt. More plants are 
killed by drowning than by drought. The 
article on Watering Flowering Plants in 
Pots, in the columns of this issue should 
prove of especial interest to you. 
Smilax 
AN you tell me something about Smilax 
and how it is best grown and cared for? 
The Smilax (Asparagus medeoloides, 
also known to florists as Myrsiphyllum 
asparagoides ,) is especially recommended 
for the window-garden. Moreover, it 
thrives in more shade than many other 
vines, and can be put to grow in the less 
well lighted corners of your window. It 
will often exceed eight feet in height, but of 
course requires a string to climb upon. 
The dark green foliage is glossy and hand¬ 
some, and eventually tiny single white 
sweet-scented flowers appear. 
Cyclamens come true to color from seed 
and one can buy named varieties that can 
be counted on to reproduce themselves 
Cyclamens from Seed 
It is always preferable to start Cycla¬ 
mens from seed to grow on unchecked till 
the following year. The period of germi¬ 
nation is a long one (often six or eight 
weeks), and some fifteen months are 
required to bring the plants to free bloom. 
Old Cyclamen bulbs are not worth keep¬ 
ing. 
Ornamental Grasses 
Many beautiful grasses may be planted 
on the home grounds to add to the effec¬ 
tiveness of any place. There are the tall 
varieties and the dwarf ones, both pro¬ 
ducing every shade of green, silver-gray, 
while many of them, such as the old- 
fashioned Ribbon Grass ( Phalaris arun- 
dinacea var. variegata ) are parti-colored. 
Ornamental grasses, reeds and sedges are useful additions to a lawn’s attractiveness. 
