Trees in this neglected condition necessitate immediate 
attention. To prevent further decay first clean out stump 
Cut off the small branches surrounding the stump and 
see that the decayed edges are cut away 
Then fill the hole with cement and paint the stump of 
the branches to preserve the sap 
Garden Suggestions and Queries 
Conducted by F. F. Rockwell 
The Editor will be glad to answer subscribers' questions pertaining to individual problems connected with the gardens and grounds. When a direct 
personal reply is desired, please enclose a self-addressed stamped envelope 
First Call for Fall Planting 
NDOUBTEDLY, the biggest oppor¬ 
tunity the average gardener misses 
is that of fall planting. There are two 
big reasons for this: the planting fever is 
not “in the air” as it is in the spring, and 
one may seem to be working against 
Nature, rather than with Nature, in plant¬ 
ing at this season of the year. But this 
is only apparent; in the lives of many 
classes of plants there is a natural lull 
during some six to ten weeks before 
freezing weather, when they have ceased 
growth and are in a more or less dormant 
condition, and consequently just right for 
planting out, moving or resetting. This 
is particularly true of things which bloom 
early in the spring and which, if shifted 
at that time, are apt to lose a season’s 
bloom. The other reason is that, while 
the policy of procrastination is undesir¬ 
able in the spring, it is fatal in the fall. 
For most things October is the best 
month to plant in—but the gardener who 
has not his plans definitely made -and his 
stock ordered in September is likely to 
“get left” altogether or be so late with 
his work that the crops will not be satis¬ 
factory — for which, of course, he blames 
the person who advised him to plant in 
the fall and resolves never to attempt it 
hereafter. 
The things which should be set out this 
fall are the deciduous shrubs, the coni¬ 
ferous and broad-leaved evergreens, pro¬ 
vided they are done at once, the hardy 
perennials, deciduous shade trees and 
fruit trees, with the exception of the 
pome fruits, and the thin-skinned trees, 
such as birch and peach, the rugosa 
and the hardiest climbing roses, and, 
among seeds, the hardiest annuals and 
perennials for wintering over in frames, 
and, just before hard frost, sweet peas 
for coming up early in the spring. Among 
vegetables, the asparagus, rhubarb and 
sea-kale may be set out now with advan¬ 
tage ; the sooner they can be got in, the 
better, as the more firmly they can be¬ 
come established in their new quarters be¬ 
fore freezing weather the surer will be 
the success of the planting. 
In ordering shrubs, and especially ever¬ 
greens, it is well, if possible, to make a 
personal visit to the nursery when select¬ 
ing your stock. This method has two 
decided advantages over ordering by mail 
“sight unseenin the first place, indi¬ 
vidual specimens vary so greatly that the 
real difference in value of the two or three 
plants out of a large-sized stock is two or 
three times as great as that of the average. 
A symmetrical tree with a good, straight 
leader will be an ornament and a satis¬ 
faction from the start. One which may 
take several years to “get straightened 
out” (nearly all of the evergreens are 
propagated "from branch cuttings and do 
not start like seedling plants) will prove, 
temporarily at least, a source of annoy¬ 
ance and will probably never make as 
good a specimen. Furthermore, an actual 
sight of the various shrubs and trees, es¬ 
pecially the coniferous evergreens with 
the so-called blue, silver, golden and other 
colored foliage, unless you are already 
familiar with them, will give a much more 
definite knowledge of their desirability 
for different purposes than all the reading 
of catalogs. Do not visit a nursery, how¬ 
ever, without a pretty definite plan of 
what you want to plant and, incidentally, 
of what you want to spend! 
Get the Frames in Shape Now 
One of the most important jobs for 
this month is to make ready your cold- 
frames and the materials for the hotbed, 
if you are going to have one through the 
winter, so that at the end of the month 
they will be ready to receive lettuce plants, 
radishes, spinach, pansies, half - hardy 
perennials and other things which may be 
successfully grown or carried through the 
winter. In this connection the greatest 
advantage of the double-glassed sash with 
the cold air spaces should be emphasized; 
even if you already have a number of the 
standard types, get two or three of these 
for your winter use. 
For lettuce the soil can hardly be made 
too rich, provided the right materials are 
used — well-rotted horse manure, if it can 
be had, otherwise prepared horse or sheep 
manure and fertilizer rich in nitrogen. 
The radishes will be helped by a generous 
application of land plaster. The frames 
which are to be used for planting next 
spring may be heavily manured this fall. 
It will save doing the work then, and the 
soil will be in better condition than if it 
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