DAHLIA ~, 
DAHLIAS 
Any reasonably careful gardener can grow 
dahlias easily and successfully. 
Soil needs of dahlias are no different than 
those of a good vegetable garden. Drain- 
age and porosity are important. 
Fertilizing calls for nothing more than a 
good balanced commercial fertilizer. 
Planting is simple, Set stout stakes first, 
Plant the tuber in a hole 6 inches deep, 
with eye up, and neck near stake. Cover 
with just enough soil to hide the tuber. 
As the eye grows, keep filling in soil. 
Culture. Cultivate frequently for about the 
first 10 weeks. Do not cultivate when 
flowers are in bud or bloom, 
Allow only one main stalk to grow. When 
stalk is about 10 inches high, pinch out 
the center just above the 2nd pair of 
leaves. When buds appear, pinch out all 
except the central one. Also pinch out all 
new lateral shoots except the two nearest 
the main stalk. This helps produce large 
blooms on low, bushy plants and en- 
courages long stems, 
CALADIUM—Modern decorators 
are using House Plants more and 
more for their decorative plans— 
Fancy Leaved Caladium is a na- 
tural for Home Beauty, 
GLADIOLUS 
Gladiolus are among the easiest of all 
flowers to grow. But while they stand 
neglect better than most plants, they also 
respond beautifully to proper treatment. 
So it is well to note these brief points: 
Soil should be well drained, sandy loam, 
preferably where no glads have been 
grown for the past 3 years. Cultivation to 
a depth of about 18 inches is highly de- 
sirable, 
Full sun is best, although they do fairly 
well in partial shade. Glads may be set 
out as soon as frost is out of the ground, 
but extra-early planting gains little, A 
succession of plantings about ten days 
apart gives a long blooming season. 
Depth of planting should be no more than 
4” in heavy soil and 5 to 6” in light, 
sandy soil. Planting Glad bulbs too shal- 
low in light soil will cause them to topple 
over or grow at bad angles. Space bulbs 
3” apart in rows 18 to 30” apart, Be sure 
to eliminate air pockets under the bulbs. 
Place bulbs in a well worked trench in 
staggered or zig-zag row—and cover at 
first with about two inches of loam. When 
shoots begin to appear, work balance of 
loam into the trench. 
Watering is important. Glads need an 
abundance of moisture, especially after 
the plant is well developed. 
Cut the spike when first bud fully opens. 
The other buds will open nicely and give 
you a longer period of bloom. 
Cutting the spike as soon as the first 
flower opens allows the plant strength 
to go into the corm, 
BULB ENEMIES 
Gladiolus thrips, mice, 
moles and rabbits are 
all enemies of your 
bulbs. 
Leafhoppers carry dis- 
ease and injure the 
plant by sucking the 
juice from leaves and 
stems, 
Thrips can destroy 
your bulbs, even 
when stored. Ask us 
about our many good 
preparations to con- 
trol these pests. 
causes much failure in successful 
bulb growth. In preparing the plant- 
ing pocket for your bulbs, be sure 
A Note on Proper Bulb Planting 
Take special care to plant your bulbs 
the right depth, as shallow planting 
the bottom is broad enough to per- 
mit the bulb base to rest on the soil. 
If an air pocket is left, the roots are 
quite likely to dry out before the 
bulb has started its growth. 
FANCY LEAVED CALADIUMS 
These spectacular foliage plants are par- 
ticularly valuable because they do well in 
shade. Start them in a mixture of half sand 
and half leaf mould at a temperature of 
over 70 degrees. When the roots are well- 
developed and the shoot is beginning to 
show, pot up in rich soil. Set out in the 
garden when weather is warm. 
LILIES 
Even the swamp lilies will not tolerate 
wet feet; all must have perfect drainage. 
Yet they like a moist, cool soil. This 
means that liberal quantities of old well. 
decayed compost is almost essential for 
lilies, 
CANNAS 
While cannas will tolerate cold soil, they 
usually do not start growing until hot 
weather comes. If planted in round beds, 
you will need 37 plants for a 10 foot bed 
(18 plants on the outside, 12 in the second 
row, six for the third row and one in the 
center). A 7 foot bed will use 19 plants, 
with 12 plants on the outside row, six for 
the middle row and one plant in the 
center, 
GLADIOLUS 
Picardy 
