HOUSE AND GARDEN 
July, 1910 
This shows what planting will do. It is the 
only garden spot for miles around near 
Maricopa in the Arizona desert 
Wall-Planting 
ANY gardens, especially those in the 
country, are often near, or bounded 
on at least one side by stone walls. At¬ 
tractive wall-planting has, therefore, be¬ 
come an important consideration in gar¬ 
dening, especially with amateurs. There 
are many devices by which wall-gardening 
is facilitated, such as the fastening of 
“pockets,” pots, etc., against the side of 
walls, in-setting alcove-like boxes, and 
again planting in crevices. Sunny Walls 
may be made beautiful with Lobelia, Ivy¬ 
leaved Pelargonium, Petunias, Heliotrope 
and Tropceolum Lobii, to mention a few 
sun-loving plants. In watering any plants 
especially exposed to the sun, use luke¬ 
warm water instead of chilling them with 
cold douches. Shaded Walls will be the 
place for ferns, Begonias, Saxifrage (S'. 
sarmentosa), trailing Campanula ( fra- 
Mis garganica ), Lysiniachia Nummularia, 
etc., while at least two roses, the lovely 
“Gloire de Dijon” and the “William Al¬ 
len Richardson” will thrive on the shaded 
wall, east or west, if not exposed to high 
and cold winds. It is worth while turn¬ 
ing your attention to the matter of plants 
for your wall-gardens, for the subject is 
more than a passing fad, and wall-garden¬ 
ing ought everywhere to be encouraged. 
Plant-Leaves Turning Brown 
L AST season we had more or less trouble 
in our garden with Phlox and certain 
other plants, the leaves of which turned 
brown and began dying from the base of the 
plants up, although the blossoms looked fair¬ 
ly well. I could not seem to find out what 
was the trouble and this year I would like 
to know what to do in time to prevent a 
recurrence of this sort. 
Undoubtedly there is something wrong 
with the soil in which the plants you de¬ 
scribe are grown. Try sprinkling a little 
lime around the roots, pricking it into the 
soil slightly. Should this fail plants may 
be watered now and then with a solution 
of one ounce of sulphate of iron to a gal¬ 
lon of water. 
Garden Labels 
NEAT home garden is made much 
more interesting when the various 
plants, especially those that may be un¬ 
common, or new in variety, are labelled 
with the common name, the botanical name 
and the variety. Labels for this purpose 
may be obtained from any dealer in garden 
supplies. They are to be had in a variety 
of forms, both wood and metal, for stake¬ 
driving, or for attaching loose. One of 
the most satisfactory forms of labels is 
that of the stake-label, a label attached to 
a thin wooden or metal rod, permitting the 
plant-name to be read without having to 
stoop over to see it. 
A S Dahlias produce their best blossoms 
in August it is well, if buds appear 
in July, to pinch them off when starting. 
This will enable the Dahlia plants to per¬ 
fect their blossoms later. 
Border Plants for a Lake Shore 
HAT plants do you suggest for beau¬ 
tifying the border of a little lake on 
which our country home ground touches? I 
have planted Iris, the blue variety, and would 
like to experiment further this season and 
next. M. L. R. 
Sweet Flag ( Acorus Calamus), and the 
variegated form (A. gramineus var. varic- 
gatus) will be good additions for foliage. 
Then the rose-colored Milkweed ( Ascle- 
pias incarnata ), Purple Loosestrife (Ly- 
thrum Salicaria), Yellow Flag ( Iris 
Pseudacorus), Swamp Pink ( Helonias 
bullata), Swamp Mallow ( Hibiscus Mos- 
cheutos ), Swamp Aster (A. prenanthor- 
ides) , are suggested for color, and also the 
low-growing Marsh Marigold ( Caltha 
palustris ). These plants may be obtained 
from nurseries that make a specialty of 
aquatic stock for all situations. 
Beds of Portulaca withstand sun and drought 
and may be of indifferent soil 
Portulaca for Dry Gardens 
HE gem-like brilliancy of the little 
flowers of the Portulaca is not sur¬ 
passed by any other annual of low 
growth. Unfortunately, popular as it was 
in the gardens of our great-grandmothers, 
we seldom see Portulaca in the gardens of 
to-day. And yet there is scarcely a better 
dry-weather plant for flat bedding, car¬ 
peting, and to fill out gaps in walls and 
for rockwork in general. Its foliage is 
succulent and a soft green, while the red, 
white, yellow, and pink flowers, like min¬ 
iature Wild Roses, produce a wealth of 
gorgeous bloom. It is a good plant to sow 
in July, for its seed does not germinate 
until hot weather. Indeed, ignorance of 
this fact has often led garden beginners 
to believe it was not coming up at all. It 
can be transplanted in full flower. 
This is the way an up-to-date vegetable garden should look, no matter how small a plot is 
given to it. The kitchen-garden should always be as neat as the flower-garden 
