Sk eer a HOME GARDENING GUIDE [ere 
Notes on FLOWER GROWING 
Plants subject to ground pests, such as 
asters, should have powdered tobacco 
mixed generously with the immediate top- 
soil when planied and again just before 
blooming time. Sulphur and tobacco are 
usually safe things to mix in the soil around 
the plant. 
Cultivate often until July first and then, 
if you wish to avoid labor and watering, 
try mulching with an inch of peat humus 
or peat moss, keeping this material slightly 
away from the stem. This can be raked off 
in the fall or left to be cultivated into the 
soil. 
Stake such tall plants as delphinium at 
once. Tie a raffia strip to the stake first and 
then to the plant. Remove all blossoms as 
soon as they fade to induce a prolonged 
flowering season, A second flowering can 
be secured from such plants as Canterbury 
bells by this method. Cut delphinium stalks 
to the ground after flowering to get new 
bloom stalks. Pansies bloom continuously 
if not allowed to seed. 
Divide your perennials. Most perennials 
must be divided every 3 or 4 years, Cut 
away all the dead roots and stalks, save 
the best portions, and start afresh. 
Flower bed preparation. A good border 
needs a well prepared subsoil, Dig deep 
and condition the subsoil just once, and 
you needn't bother about it again for many 
years. For this happy situation, break up 
heavy subsoil with sand, peat moss, humus, 
or lime. Top this off with fine loam. The 
double-dug bed will be higher than before, 
but will soon settle. 
Removing Flowers 
The gardener can lengthen the blooming 
season of all annuals and some perennials 
by removing old flowers as soon as they 
fade, and preventing the plant from going 
to seed. Delphiniums and Canterbury Bells 
will usually respond to this treatment by 
producing a second crop of flowers in fall. 
Cut and remove hollyhock, fox-glove, phlox 
and delphinium stalks as fast as they fade. 
Burn them to keep down mildew and black 
spot. 
Window Boxes 
There's nothing finer than window and 
porch boxes to make a house look “‘lived 
in” and gay. 
The necessary boxes may be bought ready- 
made, or constructed at home, Redwood or 
cypress are the best lasting materials, but 
ordinary yellow pine will do nicely if well 
painted. Paint at least two coats, and use 
brass screws instead of nails to joint the 
boards. 
Drainage of flower boxes is important. 
Use about two inches of coarse gravel at 
the bottom. Cover this with a layer of sand, 
and then with good, rich soil. 
Fertilizing may be done with liquid 
manure, bwt commercial plani tablets are 
even better, and much easier to apply. 
Plants suitable for window boxes are 
quite numerous. Among the best are 
petunias, nasturtium, ageratum, candytuft, 
dwarf marigold, cornflower, babysbreath, 
verbena, sweet alyssum, vinca. 
For shaded boxes vinca, viola, pansy, and 
English daisy will be satisfactory. If boxes 
are exposed to hot south sun a selection of 
petunia, dwarf marigold, small zinnia, and 
portulaca may be used, 
Watering should be carefully watched as 
the boxes dry out very rapidly when the 
plants have reached a good size and the 
roots are filling all of the soil. 
Pinching Back Flower Plants 
If sturdy, stocky plants are wanted, they 
will need ‘pinching back.'’ When five or 
six pairs of leaves have formed, pinch out 
the top,leaving two or three pairs of leaves 
on the stem. New shoots will come where 
the leaves join the stem. 
Sometimes a second pinch can be made, 
when these new shoots in turn have 
formed four or five pairs of leaves, leav- 
ing two pairs on each, Pinching increases 
the numbers of flowers, though sometimes 
it decreases their size. 
Petunias particularly need pinching back 
if they are to remain short. Towards the 
end of the flowing season, after Petunias 
have grown long and lanky, they can be 
cut back to within an inch or two of the 
ground and they will throw out new 
growth. If given a light feeding of mixed 
fertilizer, these rejuvenated plants will often 
bloom as well as younger plants early in 
the season. ei 
Correcting Acid or Alkaline Soils 
Acid soil conditions may be corrected by 
the use of lime, preferably as ground lime- 
stone, which has a longer effect. However, 
do not apply lime unless it is really need- 
ed, A good check on the need for lime 
is the way your beets grow. Usually a 
soil that will grow good beets contains 
enough lime.If you have trouble with 
beets, and clovers do not grow well in 
your vicinity, it will pay you to have your 
soil tested. (We have soil test kits that will 
show you the right amount of lime to ap- 
ply.) 
Alkaline soil conditions may cause bleach- 
ing and stunting of plants. This can be 
remedied by using soil sulphur or gypsum. 
Here, again, caution should be used to 
find out, by soil tests, the right amount to 
use for your particular soil and crops, 
Most garden plants do best in a soil that 
is neither strongly alkaline or acid but 
nearly neutral. A soil test of pH 6.0 to 7.0 
is ideal, for most crops. 
Storing Vegetables 
Successful storage depends upon (1) select- 
ing vegetables of good quality; (2) picking 
them at the proper stage of maturity; (3) 
having the proper temperature and the 
tight degree of humidity in the storeroom, 
The desirable stage of maturity varies with 
the crop, Cabbage, onions, squashes and 
fyi enid will net keep well unless fully 
on VEGETABLES 
matured, Beets, carrots, parsnips, turnips 
and salsify should not be allowed to be- 
come fully matured, as they are likely to 
become woody. 
Best storage conditions can be summarized 
thus: cool and moist—beets, carrots, salsify, 
turnips, winter radishes and celery; cool 
and moderately moist—cabbage and po- 
tatoes; cool and dry—onions and dry beans; 
warm and dry—squashes, pumpkins and 
sweet potatoes, 
A dirt floor is best and, if humidity is low, 
water can be sprinkled on the floor, Roof 
crops can be stored in boxes of sand or 
soil in the basement and kept just moist. 
Beets, Carrots, Turnips, Winter Radishes— 
Do not wash. Pack in loose moist sand or 
fine moist soil. Store in unheated cellar, or 
in ventilated room away from heat. 
Cabbage — Roughly trim heads, cut off 
roots. Store in temperature of 40 to 60°, 
with high humidity or cover heads with 
moist soil or sand. 
Celery, Kale, Chinese Cabbage, Endive, 
Leeks—Store in trenches outdoors or in 
boxes of soil in basement, Outdoors must 
be covered with straw to prevent freezing. 
Squash, Pumpkins—Harvest as they ma- 
ture, leaving 3 to 4” of stem, Cure for a 
few days at 80 to 85°. Store in dry place, 
Peas, Beans—May be picked off plants or 
the whole plant pulled and placed in dry 
airy place to cure, After thoroughly dried, 
shell, clean, sort and store in jars or cans 
in cool, dry, dark place. 
Onions—Pull as soon as most of the tops 
fall over, Place in racks or spread out on 
dry wooden floors—or hang is dry airy 
place. Store in dry well-ventilated place at 
a temperature just above freezing. 
Parsnips, Salsify, Horseradish—Not injured 
by freezing, and may be left in the gar- 
den, or stored in moist soil or sand in 
cool building. 
Potatoes—Should be kept in slatted bins 
for ventilation and left uncovered. Protect 
from strong light. Keep longer at 36 to 40°, 
but cook better if stored at higher tempera- 
ture. 
Sweet Potatoes — Dig as they mature or 
after first killing frost. Sort them as dug, 
and place in crates, Cure for two weeks at 
80 to 85°F, before storing. Best storage 
temperature 50 to 55°. 
How to plant fine seed 
In planting fine seed, tear off one corner 
of the packet, if Rootone is used, drop in a 
pinch and shake, The seed can be tapped 
out of the torn corner of the packet one at 
a time. Fine seed is often mixed with dry 
sand so that it will spread out better, but 
this will only work if seed is not more than 
twice the size of the sand grains, 
Large seeds should be poured out of the 
packet into a cup or bowl so that they can 
be dropped individually into the furrow, 
Beans and peas should be treated with a 
legume inoculation before planting, even 
_if this was done last year, Improved legume 
,cultures are, constantly being propagated 
in the laboratories and give superior results 
to natural inoculation, 
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