falian 
J atderer ; 
Flower Garden— 
Operations for November 
Violets Petunias 
Marigolds ‘ Zinnias 
Improving Phlox Fertilisation 
Cultivation Dahlia Growing 
Chrysanthemums Delphiniums 
Flower Garden— 
Garden Manure 
Ideal Country House 
The Orchard— 
Operations for November 
Spraying 
Peaches 
Fern Culture 
Codlin Moth 
Grafting 
Agriculture and Stock— 
Rotation of Crops 
Most Profitable Horse 
The Poultry Yard— 
Poultry Notes Indian Runner Ducks 
Poultry House Construction 
Summer Houses for Fowls 
The Draught Horse 
Elowrer Garden. 
Operations for November. 
By J. Cronin. 
Cultivation. 
The most important work during this month 
is reducing the surface soil to a condition of fine 
tilth, and applies particularly to soils of a heavy 
retentive nature, where the surface is rough and 
the soil in large lumps. The occasional showery 
and drying periods had a decidedly beneficial 
effect on such soils, and these, if well worked 
and pulverized during the present month, will 
retain the moisture already in the soil mass. 
In addition, cultivation will make available for 
plant food elements that the decomposing effects 
of the atmosphere had produced, beside keeping 
weeds that would impoverish under. The draw- 
hoe is by far the best implement to use in heavy 
soils, a blade 3 or 4 inches in width being most 
suitable, while in light and sandy soils the 
thrust, or Dutch hoe is preferable. Care sh. uld 
be taken not to approach too closely to the roots 
of plants, particularly those shallow and fibrous. 
Chrysanthemums. 
There is no plant more general] grown for 
exhibition, especially by amateur gardeners, 
than the chrysanthemum, a fact that is probably 
due to the hardiness of the plant, and also 
owing to the possibility of getting the best 
results in six or seven months. Where it is 
intended to grow them in the open ground, the 
plants should ! e put out in beds that have been 
specially prepared. Chrysaiithemums are greedy 
plants, that will almost grow on a heap of 
manure, but superabundant growth is not by any 
means desirable or necessary. A fair, sturdy, 
well-ripened growth, will, if properly managed 
during summer, produce large blooms of good 
quality. A well drained and fairly manured 
bed is needed, the manure or manures being 
added according to the ;overty and needs of the 
soil. Provision must be made for the protection 
of the blooms from rain, dews, and sun, during 
the flowering period, and to facilitate this the 
beds should be made narrow, about 6 feet in 
width being suitable. Two rows of plants will 
be accommodation in such beds, leaving a space 
of about 2 feet between the rows, and 18 inches 
between each plant. Rooted euttings or sucker 
growths of moderate size are most likely to grow 
into sturdy plants that will produce good blooms. 
Dahlias. 
Beds intended for the reception of dahlias 
should again be dug deeply, and the soil and 
manure well mixed. If it is found that the soil 
is too heavy and close, some sand, ashes, manure, 
or anything that will have a tendency to make 
it more porous and open should beadeed. If on 
the other hand, it is too sandy, clay, loam, or 
cow manure will improve it greatly. A fairly 
friable Joam is the desideratum. Except in 
* 
cool and late districts, it is not advisable to 
plant dahlias until December; but if an early 
blooming is desired, some may be planted now. 
In dividing roots, care should be taken to do so 
from the crown downwards, leaving one or 
more eyes or buds on each division. Uactus 
dahlias are much more popular and desirable 
than the older show types. The blooms are 
much lighter, more graceful, and the colours 
more varied. 
-Delphiniums 
are gaining in favour rapidly, and many 
improved varieties have been;imported. Some of 
these later varieties are very fine, and are 
undoubtedly among the best herbaceous plants 
cultivated. They are scarce and expensive at 
present; but seed fand seedlings are cheap and 
plentiful. A type known as Kelway’s hybrids 
is a strong-growing free - flowering strain, 
seedlings of which will bloom in a few weeks. 
They require rich soil, and generous watering, 
when making flower spikea. 
Summer bedding plants such as [resine. or 
blood-leaf, Alternanthera, Lobelia, &« may be 
planted, as also Salvia -‘ Bonfire.” Seeds of 
annual and perennial plants may still be sown. 
Violets. 
Violets are best shifted now. Delay no 
longer, for it is inflnitely better to lose alittle of 
the flowering, and to get the shift made before 
the very hot weather comes in, than it is to wait 
for the last bloom, and lose the young plants 
after shifting them. Dig the old borders out, 
and take the young plants--those without hard- 
looking old crowns are the young ones—and 
put them into good borders of friable loam, 
at about eight inches distant from one another. 
Put in a double row if you like. It is much 
better to do two rows than one. In thts way you 
havea double chance. Let the plants be arranged 
so as not to bring them quite opposite one 
another. Plant Princess of Wales wherever 
you can ; it is the violet we like best of all. 
Petunias 
Should on no account be forgotten Buy the 
best seed you can, and be careful with it. Put 
it out in a seed pan or box filled to within half- 
an-inch of the top with loose sandy soil, and be 
careful how you use the watering can. Prick the 
yonng seedlings off into another box or bed as 
quickly as possible, and get them into their per- 
manentplaces when they are an inch or two high. 
There is no time of the year when the petunia will 
not flower if it is placed in an open, sunny 
position. 
All through the winter we have been watching 
a lovely show of these popular flowers. When 
there was nothing else to see those petunias 
made the garden bright. The newer single 
varieties are much the showiest, and according 
to our way of thinking are much the prettiest. 
7 
Ask for any of the grandiflora sorts. They cost 
1s'per packet, but not a seed should go to waste. 
Young plants are easily grown at this season 
from cuttings. Take the ends and insert them 
in pots of light soil, with a layer of clean shar; 
sand on the surface. : 
Marigolds 
One of the bestlate summer and early autumn 
flowers is the new African Marigold. Itis quite 
a gem, free in flowering, glorions in orange and 
_ yellow coloring, and as good in growth that any~ 
thing we have grown for a long time. Ask 
your seedsman to send you'a packet of each of 
the two colours, and get them out into seed beds 
as quickly as possible. They are not afraid of 
heat, and will thrive. where most things die. 
Try and not over-manure the seed beds, as it is 
better that the young plants should make 
sturdy growth, rather than grow spindly. 
Amateurs frequently make a very great mis- 
take in preferring tall seedlings to those which 
are short and stunted. The short ones usually 
make the best flowering plants. With stocks 
and other things, about which there is no cer- 
tainty of the flower coming either double or 
single, the stocky, stumpy plants are almost 
invariably double. This is a point worth 
remembering. Get the seed of the marigolds — 
sown, so as to be in time for planting it out early 
in December. For a bed, or as clumps,in the 
herbaceous borders, these Africans are really 
fine. Last year we flowered them in between 
our dahlias, and they made quite a pretty effect 
‘with their yellow flower balls in among the rich 
green leaves of the tall growing cactus dahlias. 
These friends bloom well on into the winter. 
Even the old French Marigolds are worth a 
place in our affections and our gardens. 
Zinnias 
Early spring is the Zinnia planting time. This 
glorious race of flowers does a royal work ata 
time when so many of our friends are either off 
through the heat or out of season. Zinnias are 
not difficult to raise, nor are they hard to get at 
their best. A light soil with plenty of manure, 
or clayey soil enriched rather more than usual 
and a_ plentiful watering will force your Zinnias 
to do their best. For the past two seasons these 
flowers have done very well with us. S me of 
glandiflora varieties are extraordinarily large in, 
their blooms, many of them being equaltoa 
fair-sized dahlia. {he show they make when 
set in a nice large bowl, with their brilliant 
heads and firm-set leaves, all striving to please, 
makes them hard to equal. For garden 
decoration there are quite a wide range of color 
and form among the zinnias, some of them being 
quite as tall as an ordinary-sized man, and 
others so dwarf that you need a good eye to 
find them out. 
Put the seeds out now that the weather is 
warming, and keep them moist by an occasionaal 
A light layer of 
watering with a fine rose can. 
