52 
House & Garden 
PLAIN 
FACTS ABOUT 
FALL PLANTING 
How and Why You Should Arrange for Beauty of Flower, Shrub 
and Tree Without Slighting That Patriotic Patch of Vegetables 
D . R . E D S 0 N 
Sound, unspotted tomatoes, wrapped separate¬ 
ly in paper and stored, will keep for weeks 
fete. 
T HERE are ordinarily sev¬ 
eral good reasons for get¬ 
ting all the planting possible 
done in the fall. This year there 
is an additional one. By taking 
full advantage of the opportunity 
which is open to everyone in¬ 
terested in gardening, it is pos¬ 
sible to go ahead with the work 
of making our places more at¬ 
tractive, and to have plenty of 
beautiful flowers, while reserv¬ 
ing full time next spring to de¬ 
vote to the growing of vegetables. 
While there are comparatively 
few vegetables which can be 
planted in the fall, the list of 
hardy perennials, shrubs and 
evergreens, spring-flowering 
bulbs and hardy lilies which can 
be planted during this and next 
month includes enough material 
to satisfy the most ambitious 
gardener. Let us have our war 
gardens, if conditions make them 
necessary, even though we may 
not care especially about grow¬ 
ing vegetables. But there is no 
need to sacrifice the flowers. Digging up rose gardens 
to plant potatoes is not patriotism; it is sheer panic! 
The Reasons for Fall Planting 
Even if one has not the space or the inclination for 
vegetable growing, fall planting should still be taken 
advantage of to the full, for three very good reasons. 
In the first place, plants which can be set out either 
now or in the spring gain from two to four months by 
fall planting; they will make growth until hard freez¬ 
ing weather, and begin again in the spring weeks 
before it is possible to get the ground into shape for 
planting. But the time gained is not the most impor¬ 
tant point. Such plants will be much better able to 
withstand the prolonged drought which is usually the 
most serious obstacle with which they have to contend 
during their first season’s growth. 
Secondly, any planting of this kind which may be 
done now, if postponed until spring is very likely to 
be put off and finally omitted altogether because of 
the multitude of things demanding attention at that 
time. Even under normal conditions the pressure of 
spring work makes it absolutely impossible for anyone 
Labor is lessened by a power mower that can 
be used for both trimming around trees and 
shrubbery and straightaway work 
who is doing his or her own 
work in the garden to attend to 
all the planting which might be 
done to advantage. By shifting 
part of it from April and May 
to September and October, the 
gardener’s task is not only made 
easier, but he can accomplish 
more, especially since the things 
which are planted in the fall are 
likely to be those of a perma¬ 
nent character, which will en¬ 
hance both the beauty and value 
of the place. 
Thirdly, a whole year is saved 
on many of the things planted 
now instead of next spring. 
Many shrubs and perennials, 
especially the early flowering 
ones, will make a satisfactory 
showing next season, whereas if 
not set out until spring they 
would do little more than sur¬ 
vive the struggle for existence 
through the first season. 
When to Plant 
There is no denying the fact 
that for most people it is more natural to plant in the 
spring than in the fall. Everybody’s doing it! It’s 
in the air, and catching. But where you see a gar¬ 
dener puttering away at his planting in the fall, you 
will stop to notice that garden in the spring, and 
wonder how on earth he ever got so far ahead of his 
neighbors in the results achieved. 
In the fall, as in the spring, it is not possible to set 
any calendar date and call it the best time to plant; 
the best time depends on weather conditions, and the 
beginner must learn to judge for himself, from a 
knowledge of what these conditions are, when it will 
be best to plant. 
In spring planting we are usually going from a wet, 
cold condition of soil and atmosphere to a warmer, 
drier one; in the fall, the situation is usually reversed. 
In both cases the earlier the planting can be done the 
better, provided other factors are favorable. But 
there’s the rub. In a season that has been very hot 
and dry through August and September, it is advisable 
to delay planting until the drought has broken—un¬ 
less irrigation is available, or so little planting is to be 
(Continued on page 68) 
Sheets of newspaper will protect tender 
vegetables from being nipped by the first 
light frosts 
End-of-the-season tomatoes that have not 
matured will ripen if picked and exposed to 
the full sun 
Do not think that all vegetables must be 
used as soon as picked. Many of them 
can be stored 
