KERR - LANGEN SEED CO. 
February — March 
“GARDEN GOSSIP" 
Telephone SAN MATEO DIAMOND 3-2286 
NOVELTIES 
If we are blessed with the weather we expect in this section during February 
and March there is lots of work and fun in the garden. Many years ago 
the All American trials for seeds was instituted and for 1950 a gold medal 
was awarded to a Petunia called Fire Chief. It is the first time in eleven 
years that the judges felt a flower justified a gold medal award and this 
petunia is really different. It is a regular dwarf petunia for garden work but 
it is actually a scarlet red—very bright and very striking. Sew in a flat 
or flower pot until the end of March or directly outdoors thereafter. Be 
sure to send or call for a packet of Fire Chief and have something worth- 
while and different. 
Two vegetables received Gold medal awards. Squash Uconn is a bush 
form of the popular Table Queen or Danish squash, so favored for baking. 
It makes a fine thrifty plant for the home garden. Bean Top Crop is a very 
yielding Bush Bean. Sow both the new Squash and bean end of March and 
at intervals until July for a steady supply of fresh vegetables. 
BEGONIAS 
Again we have received our 1950 seed of tuberous begonia from Blackmore 
and Langdon, England. We have some glowing reports from some ama- 
teurs on their success. One Burlingame lady reports over two hundred and 
fifty begonias last year from a dollar packet and has color pictures to sup- 
port her statement Why not try raising tuberous Begonias from seed using 
Vermiculite as the planting medium? Here’s how. Put about an inch of 
broken pot in the bottom of a five inch pot, fill the pot with Vermiculite, 
place pot in a bucket of water into which has been added one tablespoon 
of Liquinox. The table should be up to one inch from the top of the pot and 
no more than one tablespoon of Liquinox per gallon. The Vermiculite will 
have soaked up the water in five minutes. Vermiculite is neutral, free from 
disease and insects and is an excellent medium for both seeds and cuttings 
but has no food value. Place the pot in the kitchen or near the hot water 
heater. The night temperature should not fall below 40°. Repeat the same 
soaking and feeding about once per week. At the end of four weeks the 
seedlings can be pricked out into a mixture of lead mold, sand and soil. 
What funl 
We also have the very finest Antonelli Begonia bulbs and the price is most 
reasonable. Remember to start your begonia bulbs in damp peat moss when 
the little pins of growth start. Of course they must not be put directly out- 
doors until about the middle of Arril. 
Our Calla lilies are all very choice bulbs. Again we can recommend the 
baby Calla. It makes a dainty plant with a very attractive blossom. The 
Pink and the Yellow are splendid subjects and quite uncommon. Remember 
to cushion and cover the bulbs with sand in heavy soils. 
Why not try some Caladiums. They require similar treatment to Begonia 
bulbs with the difference that they have to be planted in a good soil mix- 
ture right to start with. A few of these mixed in the begonia bed are really 
different. 
HALF HARDY VEGETABLES 
During February and March is the proper time to sow Tomato, Pepper and 
Egg Plant. A five inch pot of each item will provide ample plants for the 
average family. Use a loose porous soil in order to avoid root injury when 
transplanting. One part sand two parts peat moss or leaf mold and one part 
soil is a good mixture. Start the plants in the garage or kitchen and do not 
expose them to frost until after March 3lst. Our killing frosts are usually 
over by this time. The best varieties to plant are listed in the “Gossip.” 
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