Our Native Wild Flowers 
By Clair Phillips, Minn. 
Since childhood, I have been interested 
in our native plants and thought they were 
worthy of much more attention than gener- 
ally accorded them. It gratifies me to see 
that they are being used more and more each 
year. 
For those difficult shady spots, what is 
better than a bed of hardy ferns and wild- 
flowers? Contrary to a rather general im- 
pression a gardener does not need a 
“greener thumb’ than average tc grow 
many of them. Given light shade, well 
drained but moisture-retentive soil and a 
little extra humus, such as leaf mold, rotted 
manure or rotted peat, a good percentage 
of our wildflowers and ferns will do well. 
In general, most of them are much better 
transplanted in the fall. Even when moved 
just before freeze-up, mulch them with 
leaves, straw, marsh hay or some similiar 
material, and they will come through in ex- 
cellent condition. Next year’s bud is devel- 
oped in late summer on the plants and, 
hardy ferns excepted, a good rule to follow 
is to plant with the top of this bud about 
one half inch to one inch beneath the sur- 
face of the soil. 
Probably more failures with ferns are 
caused by planting too deep than for any 
other reason. Those with heavy root stocks 
should be planted with the tip of the root- 
stock even with the surface and Pteritis 
nodulosa should have the crown well above 
the surface. Those ferns with running root- 
stocks should be planted about one inch 
deep. 
A few of the wildflowers have special re- 
quirements that must be met for success 
with them. MHepatica triloba, Clintonia bor 
ealis and Cypripedium acaule must have acid 
soil. The last two are especially particular 
in this respect. Well rotted evergreen need- 
les, acid peat or oak leaf mold are excellent 
conditioners for these and other acid soil 
plants. 
Cypripedium spectabile and Cypripedium, 
parviflorum like moist soil with plenty of 
humus, in light shade. 
Among those that will grow in full sun 
are Aquilegia canadensis, Geranium macul- 
atum, Dodecatheon meadia, Caltha palustr- 
is, Mimulus ringens and Parnassia palust- 
ris. For best results, the last three like a 
little extra moisture. Iris versicolor may 
be included in this category, also. 
Given a little shade and a reasonable a- 
mount of moisture, no plants could be much 
easier than Sanguinaria canadensis, Aris- 
aema triphyllum, Polygonatium  biflorum, 
Uvularia perfoliata and Caulophyllum thal- 
ictroides. 
BEEP YOUR GARDEN TOOLS IN A HANDY RACK. IT 1S ECONOMY. 
ARGEMONE 
They germinate readily outdoors late in 
the spring and develope rapidly to flowering 
plants. Seedlings should be pricked out 
into small pots as soon as the seed leaves 
are developed, as they do not tolerate much 
disturbance after they get started. 
SUBSCRIPTION PRICE $2.00 12 ISSUES 
1953 LELY SHOW in HAMILTON, ONT. 
The 1953 Lily Show of the North Amer- 
ican Lily Society will be held July 17 and 
18 at Hamilton, Ontario. Mr. James C. 
Taylor, at the Ontario Agricultural College 
at Guelph is in charge and those interested) 
in making exhibits should write him. 
Arvensis: arv-VEN-siss, of cultivated ground. 
Aridus: AR-id-us, dry, arid. 
267 
THE NEW PRIMULA OBCONICA 
WANTS ACORN and IRIS PODS 
Mrs. Grace J. Hoffman, 1142 15th Ave., 
N. Seattle, 2, Wash., writes us as follows: 
I am an instructor of Flower Craft in 
the hobby school of the Y. M. C. A. and 
am wondering if you could help me obtain 
whole acorns and Iris pods, also interesting, 
seed pods that could be used in my winter 
class for permanent work such as corsages, 
dry arrangements and placques. Those long. 
slim acorns from California are so desirable. 
We are pleased to pass this along and trust 
some of our readers can supply the items 
desired. She, of course, expects to pay for 
them. We can supply some pine cones and, 
Yucca pods. Lodgepole Pine cones $1.50 a 
bushel; Ponderosa Pine, $1.00 bu; Black 
Spruce $2.00; and Yucca pods at $1.25 per 
bushel, carriage not paid; these come from 
Montana and should be shipped by express 
but if wanted by parcel post postage would 
have to added. 
GROWING SEEDLINGS 
I have often wondered why those inter- 
ested in growing flowers did not attempt 
planting the various tree and shrub seeds 
and raise seedlings, especially would this de’ 
interesting with the more difficult kinds. 
Not much of this sort of work is done, 
even by nurserymen. Usually a well grown 
seedling can be sold as they are taken up 
from the seed bed and a sale could be made 
thru our classified section at very little 
expense. The seedlings can also be trans- 
planted into small thumb pots with a soil 
medium made up mostly of milled sphag- 
num, vermiculite and good loam, finely sift- 
ed. This would make a very light plant 
to be sent by mail; the plant can be knock- 
ed from the pot, wrapped in a light waxed 
paper and thus shipped without any dam- 
age at all. 
There are so many of the more rare sorts 
that could be handled this way; even many 
perennials. 
The usual nursery handles the popular 
kinds that sell readily but while this has 
one advantage, it also has plenty of compet- 
ition, too; there is a good: field here for 
anyone who has the ability to propagate 
plants. 
Assimilis: ass-SIM-il-iss; like another plant. 
