62 
House & Garden 
ake flours 
Not A House 
But A Home 
Avoid indifferent looking trim. Color in wood- 
work, whether stained, enameled or painted, is the 
keynote of taste in home dike rooms. 
Daintiness, warmth of tone and artistic effect are 
totally dependent upon the kind of wood on which 
the desired color scheme is carried out. 
ARKANSAS SOFT PINE 
With its individual physical qualities, is the ideal 
base for stains or enamel. Either finish will retain 
permanently, its luster or original whiteness, due to 
the nomresinous character of the wood. 
Our book on finishing explains why and tells 
how. A copy will be sent on request. Write 
today. Arkansas Soft Pine is Trade Marked 
and sold by dealers East of the Rockies. 
ARKANSAS SOFT PINE BUREAU ^ 
425 BANK OF COMMERCE BUILDING 
LITTLE ROCK -ARKANSAS 
n 
You’ve Long Wanted A Greenhouse 
Here it is. ready to set up, with all problems of erection so simple any carpenter 
can put it up and at lower cost than you thought! 
Callahan CUT-TO-FIT 
Greenhouses 
Made and guaranteed by one of the largest 
houses in the business, so they must be right. 
Best materials—everlasting Cypress. Practi¬ 
cal for largest grower or smali backyard, cap¬ 
able of expansion to any size—and at real 
economy figures. 
Greenhouses for Everyone —- 
This is an addition to our line of Callahan Sectional 
Greenhouses, which may be installed by any handy 
man. As artistic and complete as anyone could wish. 
The greenhouse can supply your family with food 
and flowers all year round, and show a handsome 
profit. Market gardeners who have been afraid of 
poor construction will appreciate the Callahan qual¬ 
ity. Write for particulars, mentioning your wants. 
Callahan Duo-Glazed Sasli Co. 
145 Fourth St., Dayton, O. 
Greenhouse Fruits with Outdoor Flavors 
(Continued from page 60) 
When the young trees are received the 
first operation is pruning. This is cus¬ 
tomarily done by removing all thin, weak, 
interior branches and cutting back the 
leaders in proportion to their strength; 
then after tying to the trellis, the trees 
are started into active growth. This is 
done by frequent spraying and gradually 
increasing the temperature. 
The Flowering and Fruiting Periods 
During the flowering period the tem¬ 
perature is dropped a few degrees and a 
dry atmosphere established to facilitate 
the “setting.” A camel’s hair brush 
should be used in early started houses to 
insure a perfect “set.” After the “set¬ 
ting” period, active growth is resumed, 
moisture freely supplied, and the tem¬ 
perature increased to give brisk growing 
conditions for the trees. 
The fruit must be thinned to insure 
superior quality. This should not be 
done until after the stoning period, as 
numerous fruits will fall at this impor¬ 
tant stage in the growth of the plant; 
but after this period is passed it should 
be attended to at once. Just how many 
to remove is rather hard to estimate, as 
the variety, vigor and general condition 
of the plant are the determining factors. 
Generally speaking, one fruit to a square 
foot of trellis is considered a fair crop. 
This applies, of course, to well-estab¬ 
lished trees. The trees should not, how¬ 
ever, be allowed to fruit until the third 
season after planting, and then only 
lightly until they have built a framework 
of healthy wood which warrants produc¬ 
tion. If properly cared for during the 
growing season, very little pruning will 
be necessary at their resting period. This 
little consists in pinching out all unde¬ 
sirable wood and making a continuous 
effort to check the tendency of the plant 
to go to growth rather than fruit. 
During the resting period the trees 
should be thoroughly cleaned, as re¬ 
commended for grapes, and any resting 
place for insects done away with. At 
this time of the year it is also well to 
paint the house and generally renovate it. 
Enemies and Varieties 
The borer is unquestionably the worst 
insect enemy of nectarines or peaches. 
The trees should be examined at the 
ground line frequently, and if any at¬ 
tempts of the borers to attack them are 
discovered, they must be checked at once. 
This is best done by constantly watching 
the vulnerable point, which is an inch or 
two below the grade on the trunk of the 
tree. If the borer does enter, a wire may 
be used to dislodge or kill him, and the 
opening should be thoroughly sealed with 
grafting wax. Wrapping the trunk with 
tar paper or painting with tar about 4" 
below the ground line will prevent the 
borers from entering. 
Mildew will also attack peaches, but 
it is usually caused by too much forcing, 
resulting in a soft foliage which falls an 
easy prey to this disease. Flowers of sul¬ 
phur, either painted on the pipes or 
dusted on the foliage, will usually over¬ 
come this difficulty. 
Red spider and green fly will also be¬ 
come troublesome if the trees are not 
sprayed frequently, but both of these in¬ 
sects are so easily controlled with water 
forcibly applied that they are not con¬ 
sidered serious. 
In the matter of varieties: among the 
peaches, Peregrine, Early Rivers, Duke 
of York, Thomas Rivers, Royal George 
and Victoria are good, dependable vari¬ 
eties; of nectarines, Early Rivers, Stan- 
wick, Elruge, Cardinal, Victor and Lord 
Napier are good standard varieties that 
have withstood the test of time. 
Figs and Melons 
The fig is a native of Asia and, when 
picked ripe from the tree, is one of the 
most luscious fruits we have. In fact, 
it is heavily scented, and few persons can 
partake of more than a few at one time, 
as they are extremely rich. Fig trees do 
very well under glass and, when properly 
managed, two crops a year are possible. 
They are often successfully planted on 
the rear wall of the old type of fruit 
house. However, with the advent of the 
even-span house for fruit growing, other 
means were necessary. Here they are. 
usually grown in tubs and, if handled 
properly, will do very well. There are 
no particular cultural requirements other 
than those afforded to most plants— 
good, well enriched soil to grow in, 
wholesome growing conditions, and a 
moderate amount of attention. 
The fig is very slightly subject to dis¬ 
eases and can be raised as a sort of by¬ 
product for the house where grapes and 
other fruits are grown. They bear when 
quite small. Turkey, Negro, Largo and 
Black Marseillaise are the best varieties. 
Muskmelons really require a house by 
themselves. They are not what you 
might call “good mixers.” They demand 
a high, intense atmosphere during the 
growing season and, when ripening, a 
drier atmosphere to put the proper flavor 
into the fruit. 
Seed, Soil and Vines 
If you are considering melons, get the 
best seed procurable. Choose a selected 
type for forcing in the greenhouse, such 
as Blenheim, Orange, King George, 
Royal Sovereign or Invincible Scarlet. 
The seed is usually sown in 2" pots, two 
seeds to a pot. When large enough, if 
both seeds germinate, they are thinned 
out to one plant in a pot and, when well 
rooted, the young plants are shifted into 
4" pots, from which they are transferred 
to hills about 2' apart. 
The soil should be rich, containing all 
of the essential plant fertilizer to promote 
a healthy, quick growth. A mixture of 
three parts soil, one of well-rotted ma¬ 
nure, a fair sprinkling of sheep manure 
and a small quantity of lime or powdered 
charcoal should be used. This will keep 
the soil from souring. 
The plants are trained perpendicularly 
up the sides and roof of the greenhouse. 
When the plant has reached a height 
of about 6' or 7', it is “stopped” by 
pinching out the end of the growth. The 
lateral growths are trained out in a hori¬ 
zontal position and all fruit is kept re¬ 
moved until a perfect “set” is obtained. 
If one fruit is allowed to set before the 
others it will develop while the others 
stand still, so it is important to get all 
the crop set at one time. In winter, two 
fruits to a plant are considered a good 
crop, as these melons, when well fin¬ 
ished, will weigh ten pounds or more; 
but as the growing season gets more 
favorable, the crop can be increased 
until in the summer six fruits can safely 
be carried by a plant. 
When any feeding is required, it is 
advisable to apply a mulch to the outside 
of the hills. It is easy to ascertain when 
the plants require more plant food, as the 
white feed roots will show on the outside 
of the hill. This is a sure indication that 
the plant is in search of food and this 
signal must not be ignored. A couple of 
inches at each mulching is an abundance. 
Care must be taken, when applying the 
mulch, not to cover the neck of the plant, 
as this is liable to cause stem rot, which 
is the particular trouble that we have 
with winter melons under glass. 
When thoroughly ripe the melon leaves 
the vine and some protection must be 
provided or it will fall and in many cases 
be ruined. The best thing is a small 
cord net or sling placed under the melon 
just before the ripening period. If the 
melon then leaves the plant from its own 
weight, it will be suspended by the net. 
These nets can be used over and over 
again and are inexpensive. 
(Continued on page 64) 
