J^Ii^ljREr UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS LIBRARY ^r URBANA-CHAIV;?.-jaN BOOKSTACKa CENTRAL CIRCULATION BOOKSTACKS The person charging this material is re- sponsible for its renewal or its return to the library from which it was borrowed on or before the Latest Date stamped below. You may be charged a minimum fee of $75.00 for each lost book. TiMft/ mutUotlon, and underihiing of books ore reasons for disciplinary oction and may result in dismissal from the University. TO RENCW CALL TELEPHONE CENTER, 333-8400 UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS LIBRARY AT URBANA-CHAMPAIGN OCT 1 1995 When renewing by phone, write new due date below previous due date. L162 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. A GUIDE TO THE AMATEUR IN THE Fruit, Vegetable, and Flower Garden, WITH FULL DIRECTIONS FOR THE Greenhouse, Conservatory, and Window Garden. BY PETER HEXDERSON, ArTHOB OF "QABDEXIXG FOB PBOFIT," " PBACTICAL FLORICCLTURE." " HAXD- BOOK OF PLANTS,' " GABDBX AND FABM TOPICS," -HOW THE FaKM PATS," ETC. NEW, ENLARGED EDITION, ILLUSTRATED. NEW YORK: 0. JTDD CO., DAVID W. JUDD, Preset, 751 BROADWAY. 1888. Entered, accoraing to Act of Congress, in the j-ear 1887, by the O. JUDD CO., In the OflBce of the Librarian of Congress, at Washintrton. \^ CONTENTS. J d — v^^ — oO Preface to Second Edition 7 . Introduction to First Edition 8 ^^ CHAPTER I. ^ Location and Soil 9 V CHAPTER II. Drainage 10 CHAPTER III. Preparation of the Ground 13 CHAPTER IV. Walks.-.. 14 ^ CHAPTER V. ^ Manures 17 CBAPTER VI. Special Fertilizers for Particular Plants - . 20 CHAPTER VII. The Lawn 23 CHAPTER VIII. Designs for Garden 27 CHAPTER IX. Plantin.ii' of Lawns and Flower Beds 31 CHAPTER X. Fall or Holland Bulbs, etc.. 44 CHAPTER XI. Propagation of Plants by Seeds 61 CHAPTER XII. Propagation of Plants by Cuttings - 64 CHAPTER XIII. Propagating by Layering 68 CHAPTER XIV. About Grafting and Budding - 69 CHAPTER XV. How Grafting and Budding are Done - 74 CHAPTER XVI. Treatment of Tropical Bulbs, Seeds, etc 80 CHAPTER XVII. The Potting of Plants 83 CHAPTER xVlII. Winter-Flowering Plants 85 CHAPTER XIX. Unhealthy Plants— The Remedy 104 CHAPTER XX. Plants Suited for Summer Decoration 106 (I") 589888 IV COisTENTS. CHAPTER XXI. Hanging^ Baskets 112 CHAPTER XXII. Window Gardening - 116 CHAPTER XXIII. Culture of Water Lilies and other Aquatic Plants - - 118 CHAPTER XXIV. The Chrysanthemum 147 CHAPTER XXV. Parlor Gardening, or the Cultivation of Plants in Rooms 153 CHAPTER XXVI. Wardian Cases, Ferneries, and Jardinieres. 159 CHAPTER XXVII. Greenhouses Attached to Dwellings - ..161 CHAPTER XXVIII. Detached Greenhouses, Modes of Heating, etc 165 CHAPTER XXIX. Greenhouses or Pits without Artificial Heating. 184 CHAPTER XXX. Combined Cellar and Greenhouse. 186 CHAPTER XXXI. Hardy Shrubs, Climbers, and Trees.. 189 CHAPTER XXXII. Hardy Herbaceous Perennials 193 CHAPTER XXXIIl. Flowers which will Grow in the Shade 199 CHAPTER XXXIV. Insects and other Parasites In j urious to Plants 200 CHAPTER XXXV. Frozen Plants 208 CHAPTER XXXVI. Mulching - 209 CHAPTER XXXVII. Shading ---- 211 CHAPTER XXXVIII. The Law of Color in Flowers --- 215 CHAPTER XXXIX. Humbugs in Horticulture - 216 CHAPTER XL. PiTjning. -- - 233 CHAPTER XLL Hardy Grapes - - 238 CHAPTER XLII. The Cold Grapeiy - 247 CONTENTS. V CHAPTER XLIII. The Hothouse or Foreinj? Grapery 253 CHAPTER XLIV. The Strawberry 256 CHAPTER XLV. Cottage Gardening — A Digression .301 CHAPTER XLVI. The Vegetable Garden 303 CHAPTER XL VII. Garden Implements 359 Monthly Calendar of Operations -. 385 ILLUSTKATIONS. 1. Rubble Drain 11 2. Horse-shoe Drain Tile 11 3. Triangular Board Drain.. 12 4. Approach to a House — Drive and Path 15 5. Section of Road with Drain each side 18 6. Design for Laying out Grounds '. 38 7. Design for (i rounds with Carriage Drive 30 8. Diagram of Flower Bed.. 32 9. Section of Flower Bed .... 33 10. Carpet Bed as Planted 37 11. Design for Flower Bed 37 12. Design for Flower Bed 38 13. Design for Flower Bed 39 14. Design for Flower Bed 40 15. Design for Flower Bed 41 16. Design for Flower Bed 42 17. Fancy Bedding at Lincoln Park, Chicago 43 18. Group of Holland Bulbs.. 46 19. Pot Culture of the Bermu- da Lily. 49 20. Lily of the Valley.. 51 21. Lilv of the Valley " Pip " — Good. 53 23. Amaryllis (Vittata Type).. 58 23. Cyclamen 60 34. Proper and Improper State of Cutting 65 25. Saucer Propagation 67 26. Propagation by Layering.. 68 27. Cleft Grafting (the Cklt). 76 28. Cleft Grafting? (the Cion).. 76 29. Cleft Grafting (Graft fitted) 76 30. Whip Graft 77 31. Side Graft.--. 77 33. Grafting the CamclUa ... 78 33. Budding (the Bud). 79 34. Buddiui,^ (the Cut) 79 35. Budding(the Bud in place) 79 36. Buddin2:(the Bud tied)-. 79 37. Rustic Hanging Basket. -.113 38. A Veranda Garden 115 39. Plain Window Box 116 40. Window Box Ornamented with Tiles 117 41. Aquatic Plants in Central Park. 134 43. Water Lily Bed 136 43. Amazon Lily, Victoria regia\28 44. Nympha?a De voniensis 133 45. ChrysanthemumMrs. Brett 150 46. Chrysanthemum Culliug- fordi.. :.153 47. Folding Plant Stand. 157 48 Wardian Case 159 49. Fernery with Glass Shade. 159 50. Base-burning Bo'ler. 163 51. Base-bui'uing Boiler (Sec- tion) 163 53. Conservatory attached to Dwelling (Elevation) 163 53. Conservatory attached to Dwelling (Ground Plan). 163 54. Conservatory attached to Dwelling 164 55. Greenhouse with equal Spans .166 56. End View and Plan of Greenhouse or Grapery.. 167 57. Elevation (in pail) of De- tached Greenhouse or Grapery 168 58. Three-quarter Span Green- house 171 59. Greenhouse, Rose House, and Potting Room 173 VI IXDEX TO ILLUSTRATIOXS. 60. Greenhouse, Rose House, or Vinery 174 61. Conservatory with Win2:s-175 62. Greenhouse heated by Flue under the center Bench. .178 63. Section of Greenhouse heated by a Flue-.. 180 64. Sunken Pit .185 65. Greenhouse and Cellar Combined 188 66. Where to Cut in Pruning (too close to Bud) 236 67. Where to Cut in Pruning (too far from Bud) 236 68. Where to Cut in Pruning (the proper place) 236 69. Pruning for Shape (where to Cut) -237 70. Pruning for Shape (to throw branches in). 237 71. Pnining for Shape (to throw branches out) 237 72. Grape Vine with Two Shoots - 240 73. Grape Vine with Arms 240 74. (jrrape Vine Spiu'-Pruned- -241 75. View of a Vineyard. 242 76. Grape Vine Cutting 243 77. Niagara Grape in Fruit 245 78. Greenhouse or Grapery (Section) 247 79. Lean-to Grapery (Section) 249 80. Forcing Grapery (Plan) 254 81. Front Elevation of Forcing Grapery 255 82. Section of ForcinuGrapery 255 83. Strawberry (Striking in Pots) 258 84. Strawberry,the Henderson 261 85. Strawberry, Crimson Clus- ter.. --.262 86. Strawberry, Jersey Queen 263 87. Strawberry, Sharpless 2M: 88. Strawberry, the J ewell 265 89. Strawberry Forcing House 267 90. Raspberry, Laying down Canes 271 91. Raspberry, Training to a Wire.-..' 271 92. Raspberry, the Hansell 272 93. Raspberry, Golden Queen. 274 94. Black Cap Raspberry (Thimbleberry), the Gregg - . .275 95. Blackberry, the Early Harvest. --.277 96. Blackbeny, the Wilson, Jr. 278 97. Blackbeiry or Dewberry, Lucretia 279 98. Blackberry, Crystal White. 280 99. Currant, Fay's Prolific. --.281 100. Currant, Black Champion. 281 101. GJooseberry, The Industry. 283 102. Cherry, Black Tailarian ..287 103. Persimmon, Japan 290 104. Apple, FaU Pippin 294 105. Pear, The Keifler 295 106. Pear, Cordon Training. --.296 107. Pear, The Bartlett 297 108. Plan for Fruit and Vege- table Garden 304 109. Asparagus, Plant With Roots^ .-.305 110. Asparagus, The Palmetto. 306 111. Artichoke, Globe 308 112. Artichoke, Jerusalem 308 113. Brussels Sprouts .313 114. Cauliflower, Henderson's Early Snowball 315 115. Cabbage, Savoy .316 116. Carrot, Varieties of 317 117. Celery. '' HandUng " 320 118. Celery, Banked Up 321 119. Celery, Stored in Trenches for Winter 323 120. Celery, Henderson's White Plume 323 121. Corn, Varieties of Sweet.. 326 122. Bryant's Plant Protector.. 327 123. Lettuce, Black-seeded Simpson .332 124. Lettuce, Paris White Cos .333 125. Musk Melon, Baltimore ..334 126. Musk Melon, Montreal Market . 334 127. Water Melon,' Scaly Bark .335 128. IMushrooms 337 129. Onion, Southport White Globe 341 130. Pea, American Wonder.. -343 131. Pea, Champion of Eng- land 345 132,- Rhubarb, St, Martin's ----348 133. Sea Kale 350 134. Squash, Essex Hybrid 352 135. Squash, Hubbard - 353 136. Tomato Perfection Grown on Trellis.. 354 137. Tomato Perfection 355 138. Turnip, White Egg 356 139. Turnip,Extra Early Milan. 357 140-203. Garden Implements, 359-384 Tail Piece, a Cluster of Grapes . .298 PREFACE TO SECOND EDITION. Twelve years have passed since the first edition of " Gardening for Pleasure " was published. lu that time vast strides and changes have been made in all depart- ments of horticulture, so that it has been found necessary not only to greatly enlarge the scope of this work, but also to make many changes. The newest and best methods of culture have been substituted for such as a farther experience has shown to have been faulty, so that it is believed that in all matters pertaining to amateur gardening, or ^^ gardening for pleasure," the ground is as well covered as is practicable in a book of this size treating on such a great variety of subjects. As in the first edition, 1 have endeavored to use the plainest and simplest language I could, avoiding as far as possible all technical and scientific terms used by the professional gardener, the use of which would only tend to coniuse and befog the beginner. Although this Avork is written only for such as garden for pleasure, yet I am well aware that hundreds every season, who have a taste for horticulture, branch out from private into commercial gardening, either from necessity or for a love of making a business 'of the work. To such, if the business of growing flowers or plants for sale is to be begun, my new edition of ** Practical Floriculture" is recommended. If growing fruit or vegetables for market, I advise *' Gardening for Profit." If the work of the farm is wanted to be made profitable, I flatter myself that my recent work on that subject, '^ How the Farm Pays," will help to that end. PETER HENDERSON. Jersey City Heights, N. J., Jan. let, 1888. (1) INTRODUCTION TO FIRST EDITION. I HAVE endeavored, in writing " Gardening for Pleas- ure," to divest it, as far as I was competent to do so, of the technical terms and phrases which professional gar- deners use in writing or talking on matters relating to horticulture, and to use the plainest language at my command in describing the simplest methods of culture. Whether I have succeeded in making the subject as clear as I have desired to do, those who read the work must decide. My aim in writing the book was to make it such as would be useful to the occupant of a city lot, or to the possessor of a few window plants, as well as to the owner of a country residence that is fully appointed in all mat- ters relating to the cultivation of flowers, fruits, and vegetables. The necessity for such a book has been made evident to me by inquiries from hundreds of amateurs in gardening ; inquiries to many of which neither of my previous works ("Gardening for Profit" or "Practical Floriculture") furnished proper replies ; the one being written mainly for information for the market gardener, and the other for the commercial florist. PETER HENDERSON. Jersey City, N. J., Oct., 1875. (8) GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. CHAPTER I. LOCATION AND SOIL. "Whenever practicable the location of tlie garden should be such as is sheltered from the north and west, either by hills or belts of timber. Where there is no such shelter naturally, it is of the first importance to plant belts of evergreens, such as Norway or Hemlock Spruce, in double or treble lines, at distances of six or eight feet apart, or if close enough to form hedges, all the better. When this is not done, a high board fence for shelter will answer a temporary purpose, but is neither so ornamental nor so effective as the shelter given by growing trees. Evergreens, such as Norway or Hemlock Spruce, can be bought from two to three feet high, at from 115 to $25 per hundred, and should be planted, according to size, from three to four feet apart, making a cheap and ever-improving screen or fence, which may be trimmed to any required hight or thickness. It is rare, in determining the site for a residence, that the soil is taken into consideration, and, in consequence, we sometimes find that the garden surrounding the house presents a barren appearance, that nothing can remedy short of placing a foot of good soil over the whole surface. This condition is not so often due to the natural poverty (9) 10 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. of the soil, as to the grading o2 the surface soil, or to filling Lij^ to the desired grade with the material thrown out in excavating the cellars, or other subsoil, clay, or gravelly material, and placing these over the soil intended for the garden. This is often done for the convenience of contractors, to the great injury of the proprietor, without either being aware of the bad results. As a good soil will tend more than all else to give satis- factory results in garden operations, it is all important to secure it. When discretion can be used in deciding on a location, one should be chosen that has naturally a suit- able soil, rather than to attempt to make it so by carting a foot of good soil over the bad, which would be found not only very expensive, but, in many situations, next to impracticable. I have before said, in some of my writ- ings on this subject, that the soil best suited for all gar- den purposes is what is known as '^ sandy loam," not less than ten inches deep, with a subsoil of sand or gravel. Such a soil rarely requires drainage, is easily worked, and gives better results than that known as " clayey loam," with a putty-like subsoil of blue or yellow clay, which must be drained thoroughly before a seed is sown or a plant set out, or there will be no satisfactory reward for the labor. CHAPTER II. DEAINAGE. As drainage will be in many instances indispensable to success, I will briefly state a few of the simplest methods that may be adopted, premising that it is utterly useless to expect to cultivate any soil satisfactorily that does not freely and rapidly carry off the surface water. An expert DRAIN'A(}E. 11 <^f4\^* in soils can determine almost to a certainty, by digging down two or three feet, whether or not a soil requires drainage ; but the safest guide for the inexperienced is to judge by the growing crops in his neighborhood. If on a similar soil good crops of corn, potatoes, or hay are found on undrained land, then it is certain there is no ne- cessity to drain; for no matter how cultivated, or how heavily manured land is, there can never be a good crop raised in any season, if the soil is water-logged. If the place to be drained is of large extent, and the ground nearly level, it will always be safer to call in the services of an engineer to give the proper levels and indicate the necessary fall, wliich should never be less than half a foot in the hundred, and if more can be had, so much the bet- ter. In heavy, clayey soils, we make our lateral drains three feet deep and fifteen feet apart. Where there is less clay in the subsoil we make them from twenty to thirty feet apart and four feet deep. If stones are plenty on the ground, they may be profitably used in filling up the excavated ditch to half its depth, as shown in figure 3, Fig. 1.— BUBBLE DBAIN. Fig. 2. — HOKSE-SHOE DRAIN TILE. and which is known as a rubble drain, using the larger stones at the bottom and smaller at top, and covering over with inverted sods, or six inches of shavings or hay, to keep the soil from being washed in among the stones, and thus choking up the drain. But when they can be 12 GARDE XING FOR PLEASURE. obtained at a reasonable price., the best and most durable draining is that done by tiles. It makes but little differ- ence whether the tile used is the round with collars, or the horse-shoe. We rather prefer the latter, particularly if the bottom of the drain is ^^ spongy/"' when we use a board for the bottom of the drain, as shown in figure 2. Here, again, great care must be used in covering up the tile with sods, shavings, or other covering, so as to pre- vent the soil being washed into the crevices and choking up the drain. This board is a common one of hemlock or spruce, cut in four pieces. It is ripped through the middle, and then these parts split in two, making boards of five inches wide by half an inch in thickness, thus rig. 3. — TBIANGITLAIt BOABD DBAIN. making the common hemlock board stretch out to a length of fifty feet. It is often a very troublesome mat- ter to get the few drain tiles necessary to drain a small garden, and in such cases an excellent and cheap substi- tute can be had by using one of boards. Take ordinary rough boards, pine, hemlock, or spruce, cut them into widths of three or four inches, and nail them together so as to form a triangular pipe, as represented in fig- ure 3, taking care to " break the joints " in putting the lengths together. Care must also be taken that the boards are not nailed together too closely, else they might swell Eo as to prevent the water passing into the drain to be carried off. These drains are usually set with a flat side down, but they will keep clear better if put with a point down, though it is more trouble to lay them. Drains made in this way will last much longer than might be sup- posed. In excavations recently made we found wooden PREPAEATION OF THE GROUND. 13 drains in perfect order that had been in the ground for twenty-five years. CHAPTER III. PREPARATION OF THE GROUND. After draining (if draining is necessary) comes the preparation of the soil. Presuming that the ground where the new garden is to be made is an open space, clear of trees or other obstructions, there is no cultiva- tion so cheap and yet so thorough as plowing and har- rowing. To do this properly, the ordinary plow should be followed by the subsoil plow, stirring the subsoil up about fifteen inches deep, so that the water will pass through to the drains, natural or artificial, freely. After the plow and subsoiler, follows the harrow (the Acme is the best ; see Implements), which should be weighted, so that the teeth sink six inches into the soil, in order to completely pulverize it. In Europe, it would be consid- ered sacrilege to use a plow or harrow in the preparation of a private garden, and most of old-country gardeners among us will stand aghast at such advice ; but I have been through all parts of the work, and am well satisfied, from no limited practice, that plowing and harrowing will not only do the work at one-fourth of the cost, but in a better manner than the ordinary digging or trench- ing with the spade. Let me here caution that great care be taken never to plow, dig, harrow, rake, or hoe ground when wet. If work must be done, pull out weeds, or set plants, if you will, but never, under any circumstances, stir the soil in preparation for a crop until it is dry enough not to clog. If stirred while wet, the particles stick together, and the crop is not only injured for the season, but in some soils the bad effects show for years. 14 GARDENIXG fOK PLEASURE. CHAPTER IV. WALKS. It is no unusual thing to see the owner of a neat cot- tage make himself perfectly ridiculous by the way in which he lavs out the walk from the street to his front door. There is a prevailing opinion that such walks should be curved ones, and gentlemen, often otherwise shrewd and intelligent, place themselves without ques- tion in the hands of some self-styled ^^ garden architect/' and thus manage to make themselves the laughing stock of a neighborhood. There was a well-marked instance of this in a garden occupying a block in almost the cen- ter of Jersey City, where a man pretending to have a full knowledge of the subject, induced the proprietor to have a walk running about one hundred yards from the street to the house, made so curved that its length was nearly twice that distance. It was hard on the butchers and grocer's boys, and it was said that even book-peddlers, sewing-machine agents, and lightning-rod men looked ruefully at it and left him in peace. Some old authority on this subject says that there "never should be any deviation from a straight line unless from some real or apparent cause." So if curved lines are insisted on, a tree, rock, or building must be placed at the bend as a reason for going around such obstacles. It will be evi- dent to any one who reflects upon the matter, that a curved walk running a distance of a hundred yards or so from the street to the house, across an unplanted lawn, is utterly absurd. All short foot- walks from the street to the house should be straight, entering from the street at as near right angles as possible, and leading direct to the front door. There should be no necessity for a carriage road to the front entrance of a house, unless it is distant WALKS. 15 at least 100 feet from the street, and tlien a drive is best made by having an entrance at each side of the lot, as given in figure 4, presuming that the width of the ground is 500 feet, and the distance from the street to the front door is 150 feet. Even here the foot-walk should be direct. The width of the roads or walks must be governed by the extent of the grounds. For carriage- way the width should not be less than ten feet, and for foot-walks, five feet. Nothing is more annoying than to STREET Fig-. 4.— APPROACH TO A HOUSE— DRIVE AND PATH. have a shower-batli in early morning from the dew from an overhanging branch in your narrow walk. We often see gardens of considerable pretensions where the walks are not more than three fet wide, where it is utterly im- possible for two persons to walk abreast without getting their dresses torn or faces scratched by overhanging branches. Besides, it argues a narrowness in the owner, particularly if the grounds are at all extensive, and looks as if he were determined to cultivate every available foot of land. Of course, it is another matter when the garden plot is limited to the width of a city lot (20 or 25 feet) ; then such economy of space is perfectly excusable. The character of the soil must in a great measure determine tlie manner of making roads or walks. Every one must have noticed that, after a heavy rain, un- paved streets in some districts remain next to impassable 16 GAllDENING FOR PLEASURE. for many hours, while in others, after the same amcnnt of rain, the roads will seem firm and comparatively dry. In the former all carriage roads, and even foot-walks, to have any satisfaction from them, should have their foun- dations formed something like that shown in figure 5. This gives thorough drainage for the water at each side, and a depth of from one foot at center to two feet on sides of rubble stone and gravel to form the bed of the road or walk ; but in sandy or gravelly soils, through which the water passes quickly, no such expense is nec- essary, as an equally good road may be made by five or six inches of gravel. In foot-walks on such soils, I have Fig. 5,— SECTION OF ROAD WITH DEAIN EACH SIDE. found that three or four inches of gravel mixed with one fourth its bulk of cement to ^^bind," when w^atered and w^ell rolled, makes an excellent smooth walk, and one in which, because of its hardness, there is no trouble with weeds. Let me here say, that when weeds are trouble- some on walks, or more particularly in paved gutters, that the quickest way to get rid of them is to sow salt over the surface about as thick as sand is strewed on a floor, and then sprinkle with water. Care must be taken, however, that the salt does not get on the grass or other plants, as, of course, it would be as quickly destructive to these as to the weeds. MANURES. 17 CHAPTER V. MANURES. Whether one wishes to cultivate vegetables, fruits, or flowers, all soils, to give good results, sooner or later need manure; and this is more particularly the case with what are known as '^^ vegetables," these being usually quick growing, succulent plants. No ^'fertilizer" answers so well for all purposes as thoroughly decayed stable ma- nure ; whether from horse or cow stable makes but little difference, except that that from the horse stable is best suited for heavy soils, while that from the cow stable suits best for light soils. The quantity used for vegeta- bles or fruits should not be less than would cover the whole surface of the ground at least three inches deep, and it should be mixed with the soil as thoroughly as possible by plowing or spading. In the absence of stable manure, recourse must be had to concentrated fertilizers, the best of which are Peruvian guano and bone dust. Here a word of caution is necessary as to the quantity to be used, as their fertilizing qualities are concentrated in- stead of being diffused, as in stable manure. If either guano or bone dust, or fertilizers of similar character, come directly in contact, in large quantities, with the roots of plants, it injures them beyond remedy ; hence in the use of these the necessity for caution. In our large field practice in vegetable growing, we use about 2,000 lbs. per acre of guano, sowing it on the surface of the ground after plowing, and then harrowing it in so as to mix it with the soil to the depth of five or six inches. Now, as there are 4,840 square yards in an acre, it will be seen that something less than half a pound of guano or bone dust is required for every square yard of surface to be fertilized. This quantity will just nicely cover the sur- 18 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. face about as thick as the sand on a sanded floor. After spreading on the dug surface, it should be mixed with the soil with a spading fork or long toothed rake to the depth of five or six inches, bearing in mind that the more thorouo-hly it is mixed with the soil the better will be the result. If used in " hills " for corn, tomatoes, melons, etc., the same proportionate quantity is to be applied, and the mixing must be equally thorough. Wood ashes are often a convenient fertilizer, and will be found to give excellent results if used as advised for guano and bone dust ; but three or four times the quantity will be re- quired to obtain the same results. HOW TO USE COXCEXTRATED FERTILIZERS. Whatever kind of concentrated fertilizer may be used, I find It well repays the labor to prepare it in the follow- ino" manner : to every bushel of fertilizer add three bush- els of either leaf mold (from the woods), well pulverized muck, sweepings from a paved street, or, in the absence of either of the above, common garden soil. In every case the material employed must be as dry as it is possi- ble to procure it. When guano is used, be careful to have it thoroughly pulverized and broken up before mix- ing with the other ingredients. The fertilizer must be well mixed with the soil or mold used by turning it at least twice. This mixing should be done in winter, or early spring, and the material packed away in barrels in a dry place for at least a month before using it. The main ob- ject of this operation is for the better separation and di- vision of the fertilizer, so that, when applied, it can be more regularly distributed over the land ; besides this, no doubt the fertilizing qualities of the leaf-mold or other substance are developed by this treatment. Experi- ment has shown that this method of using concentrated fertilizers of nearly all kinds materially increases their value. One of the most successful market gardeners in MANURES. 19 our neighborhood has adopted this method for years, and in extensive experiments with different kinds of fer- tilizers, with and without being mixed, finds a saving of quite one third in quantity in thus treating tiiem. He finds that 1,200 lbs. of guano, mixed with two tons of garden soil, and sown over the surface after plowing, and then harrowed in, is eqnal in effect to 2,000 lbs. of guano used without mixing. We have ourselves experimented with guano, blood and bone, and bone flour, with nearly like results, and as a top dressing for grass we think the advantage of mix- ing is even more marked. AVhen fertilizers are applied to corn, potatoes, tomatoes, etc., in hills or drills, it is not only more economical to mix in this manner, but much safer in inexperienced hands; for when any strong fertilizer is used pure, injury is often done to the roots by their coming in contact with it in too great quantity in the raw state, owing to imperfect mixing in the hill or drill, while, if composted as advised above, the danger is much less. In regard to which of the fertilizers is most desirable, we find but little difference, provided each is pure. Guano at $80 per ton is relatively as cheap as blood and bone fertilizer at $65, bone flour at $50, or superphosphate at $40 ; for in the lower priced articles we find we are obliged to increase the quantity to obtain the same results, so that the cost is nearly alike whichever be used. The all- important point is the purity of the article, a matter that few working farmers or gardeners ever attempt to decide except by the results in culture; hence we advise each one who has been using a fertilizer that has proved satisfac- tory, to experiment but lightly with another until the new article has proved its merits. The competition in the manufacture of articles so much in use as fertilizers, has in many instances forced down prices below the point at which they can be profitably produced in a pure state; hence 20 GARDENIXG FOR PLEASURE. the widespread adulteration with "salt cake," "plaster," and other articles utterly worthless but to make weight. Next in meanness to the quack who extracts money from a poor consumptive for his vile nostrums, is the man who compels the poor farmer or gardener, maybe a thousand miles away struggling for an existence, to pay freight on the sand mixed with his guano, or the plaster in his bone dust. In this relation I am reminded of a retribution that fell on the "Sands of Life" man, who figured so conspicuously a few years ago in New York. The adver- tisement of this philanthropic gentleman, it will be re- membered, was that "A retired clergyman, whose Sands of Life had nearly run out," would, for a consideration, tell how the "running out" could be stopped in others. A kind-hearted fellow in Illinois, deeply sympathizing with the old gentleman on account of his loss of "sand," sent him by express — but forgot to prepay — a thousand pounds of the article I It is reported that the "' retired clergyman," on opening the cask, expressed himself in a manner not only ungrateful, but utterly unclerical. We counsel no vengeance, but if some of these sand-mixing guano men could have the sand sifted out by their vic- tims with compound interest added, and returned to them under the fostering care of an express company, it would be but even-handed justice. CHAPTER VI. SPECIAL FERTILIZERS FOR PARTICULAR PLANTS. A MAX called at my office a few years ago with some dozen bottles as samples of special manures, indispensa- ble, he said, as fertilizers for certain kinds of plants. He had those with him that he claimed to be specially prepared for cabbage, corn, potatoes, wheat, grass, lawns, SPECIAL FERTILIZERS FOR PARTICULAR PLA^^TS. 21 beets, etc., etc. He even invaded Flora's realm, and de- clared that his nostrum for Eoses was a specific for any languid capers of this sometimes rather coquettish queen of flowers. His own arguments, which were rather plausible and glibly uttered, were backed up by numer- ous certificates — authentic, I have no doubt — where nis *' potato fertilizer'' had worked wonders with some, with others his ^'corn manure" had been of undoubted benefit, and so on all through the list. Now, I have no reason to say that the vender of these fertilizers was a quack, except the broad fact, gathered from an experience of nearly forty years, that has shown me that it makes but little difference with what fertilizer a crop is treated, provided the soil is properly pulverized and the fertilizer applied in proper proportions according to its strength. Had all his separate kinds of fertilizers been taken from the same bag (provided that bag con- tained a good article of bone dust or guano), the result to his patrons would have been the same, whether he had used it on one or all of the crops that he had special pre- scriptions for. There are few market gardeners in the vicinity of New York who have not, at one time or another, been obliged to take anything they could get for fertilizing purposes, and the difference has never been specially perceptible when manure from horse stables or cow stables have been applied, or when $100 per acre have been expended for bone dust or Peruvian guano, and these all used on a dozen different crops without any discrimination. Agricultural chemistry may be all very well in some respects, but if it gets down to such hair-splitting niceties as analyzing scores of special plants, and telling us that we must feed each with only just such food as the analysis shows it to be composed of, then our common sense, born of practical experience, must scout and ridi- cule such nonsense. 2:1 GAEDENIXG FOE PLEASURE. Plants, like animals, are not so much kept in good health by the special kind of food given as by the proper quantity and conditions surrounding the individual when the food is received ; and what proper temperature and pulverization of soil are to the plant, air and exercise, and also proper temperature, are the corresponding con- ditions necessary for healthy animal life. Who will say that the beef-fed English laborer is in any way the phys- ical superior of the Irishman or Scotchman whose daily food has only been potatoes and oat-meal ? You get usually fine and nearly equal development in each case, but it is a condition due to a natural use of the muscles in the open air in a congenial climate rather than to anything special in the food. It would be quite as rea- sonable tj tell us that a special food, chemically consid- ered, is necessary for each class of our domestic animals as for our domestic plants, and none but the veriest charlatan or ignoramus will do either. CHAPTER VIL THE LAWN. Since the introduction of the lawn mower, the keep- ino- of the lawn has been so simplified that no suburban residence is complete without one, and there is now no more excuse for tall grass '' going to hay " in the door yard than there would be for cobwebs taking possession of the rooms inside the dwelling. We occasionally see some parsimonious individual, even now, who remembers that in his grandfather's days grass was allowed to grow for the food of the ''critters," and he leaves it for food for his ''critters " still ; though at the same time his furni- ture inside, that nobody but himself ever sees, or has an THE LAWN. 23 opportunity to admire, for such men are not usually trou- bled with friends, may have cost him ^5,000 or $10,000. We have two or three notable examples of this kind in our immediate neighborhood, but it is gratifying to know that such neighbors are not numerous, for the example of the majority will soon shame them into decency. To have a lawn in first rate condition, the ground must be put in order in the way described under the heads of *' Draining " and '^Preparation of the Soil ;" for if these are necessary anywhere, they are still more necessary for the lawn, the soil of AA^hich should be as thoroughly pul- verized and enriched by manure as any ground intended for the cultivation of either vegetables or fruits. Great care must be taken to have the surface of the ground for the law^n (unless a very large one) made perfectly level ; for if this is not done before the lawn is sown, it cannot be altered except at great expense and inconvenience. After the surface is made level roughly, it should be further smoothed with the rake, or, what is even better, the disc harrow (see Implements), and all stones of any considerable size removed, so that the surface will be smooth for the action of the lawn mower. Wher- ever the extent of the lawn does not exceed 2,500 square feet, and where sods can be obtained from a suitable pasture near at hand without much cost, the quickest way to make the lawn is to sod it ; but before doing so, the ground should be rolled or beaten down, particularly if any por- tion of it has been filled in, so that there may be no *' settling" to form hollows or inequalities. A conven- ient size of sod to lay down is twelve by eighteen inches, and of a thickness of tw^o inches. In laying see that the edges are neatly laid together, and the whole firmly beaten down with the back of a spade. If it is dry Aveather when the work is done, it may be necessary to thoroughly drench the newly-laid sod for a week or so after, every other evening. When the lawn is too ex- 24: GARDENING FOK PLEASURE. tensive to be soddei, it can be sown with grass seed, which will produce a good lawn in three or four months. Some of the fine lawns seen at Newport, R. I., are composed almost entirely of Ehode Island Bent Grass mixed with about one-sixth of white clover ; but the hu- midity of the atmosphere there has no doubt more to do with the richness of the lawn than the variety of grass it is composed of. I may add a caution against the use of spurious seed for this purpose. It is no uncommon thing, either through ignorance or short-sighted economy, for " hayseed " to be taken direct from the hay loft and sown to form the lawn. If from good hay, the seed will be prin- cipally orchard grass or timothy and red clover, and vain would be all the attempts to get a smooth lawn from such a source. It would be about as reasonable to expect figs from thistles. The mixtures of grasses prepared by the seedsmen for the purpose are the simplest and safest to use. If the soil is rich, and has been thoroughly pre- pared, three bushels of the lawn grass mixture per acre will be sufficient; but if thin and poor, from four to five bushels had better be sown. If for small areas, sow at the rate of one quart for a space twenty by fifteen, or three hundred square feet. If sown in early spring, as soon as the soil is dry enough to work, a good lawn will be formed by midsummer the first year, if it has been mown regularly at intervals of eight or ten days. The seed must be sown as evenly as possible, and for this reason a calm day must be chosen, as a very slight wind will throw the seed into heaps. After sowing, the ground may be lightly harrowed if the surface is large ; if not, give it an even raking ; but in either case the ground should be smoothed down with a roller or patted with a spade, so as to form a smooth surface to be mowed. Al- though, if a choice can be had, it is best to sow the lawn seed in early spring, in this latitude in March, April, or May, yet it can be sown nearly as profitably in September, THE LAWN. Ji5 or in the more southerly states in October. To keep tlie lawn in proper condition, it should be mowed over once every week if the weather is moist, and not less than once in two weeks even in dry weather ; for if the lawn has been properly made in the first place, and "top dressed" with a good coat of well-rotted manure in fall, and the rough parts raked off in spring, the weather must be dry and hot indeed to prevent its growth. LAWNS ox SLOPING BANKS. It is exceedingly difficult to get a growth of grass from seed on a sloping bank at an angle of even fifteen degrees, because a heavy shower of rain on the sloping bank would wash off the fresh soil before the grass seed has formed enough roots to hold the young grass in place. To remedy this the following plan will be found most effective. To an area fifteen by twenty — three hundred square feet — or in this proportion, be the area large or small, take two quarts of lawn grass seed and mix it with four bushels of rather stiff soil, to which add two bushels of cow manure ; mix the whole with water to the con- sistency of thin mortar. This mixture is to be spread on the sloping bank, first having scratched the surface of the bank with a rake. It should be spread as thinly as will make a smooth and even surface ; in short, just as plaster is spread on a wall. The grass seed will start rapidly, and quickly make a sod of the ri»'hest green, its smooth, hard surface preventing its beinf^ furrowed out by the rains. It will be necessary, until the grass has fully covered the surface, to keep the plastered bank covered with hay or straw to prevent the covering from drying or cracking. If the weather is dry a gentle watering will hasten the growth of the seed. If sown at a season when the temperature averages seventy degrees, a green sward will be obtained in fifteen days. By this method, using orchard or other strong growing grasses, no cheaper or 2G GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. better plan could be adopted for keeping up railroad or other embankments. TO RENO V AT K OLD LAWNS. Lawns that have been worn oat by neglect or other causes, or where it is not convenient or desirable to renew them by plowing up, will be greatly benefited by running a light harrow over them if the surface is large, or by a sharp steel rake for smaller areas. After stirring the surface by such means, judiciously, so as not to injure the roots too severely, lawn grass should be sown over the surface, using about half the quantity of seed required for new lawns, and over this, for each acre, or m the same proportions for lesser areas, sow five hundred pounds of some good '•' lawn enricher ;'* again harrow er rake, and roll down firmly. WEEDS IN LAWNS, such as thistles, dandelions, dock roots, etc., can only be removed by cutting them out with a knife. Thistle and dock roots should be removed as far as possible ; but as to others, there is no necessity for cutting the whole root out. If cut beloiv the crown the root will not start again. ANTS ON LAWNS are a pest that we are almost powerless to cope with. Xothing seems to poison them, as either tiieir instinct teaches them to avoid the ordinary insect poisons, or their constitutions are proof against them. Every thing we have tried has failed, except Pyrethrum or Persian Insect Powder. This applied by a bellows quickly suffo- cates them ; but every insect needs to be struck by it, or it is useless, as it only kills them by suffocation. They can also be captured by placing fresh bones or molasses in plates around their haunts ; they attack these before any thing else. By persistently thus catching and de- stroying them two or three times a day, they may be permanently got rid of. DESTGI^ FOR GARDEX. 27 CHAPTER VIIL DESIGN FOR GARDEN. As this book is intended to comprehend all the wants of a cottage or suburban garden, including flowers, fruits, and vegetables, it would increase its size too much to give a great variety of designs for the flower garden. Those that require such should consult some intelli- gent landscape gardener. Intelligent, I say, for nine out of ten that pretend to be landscape gardeners are not ; but consult a man able to draw a neat design, for if he canno^ do that he is not a very safe person to be intrusted with the working out of the plan of another. You are careful to ascertain that the architect for your house is a man of education and intelligence before you entrust yourself in his hands, but when it comes to de- signing the lawn and flower grounds, the veriest bog- trotter, who styles himself a ^Handscaper," is too often allowed to display his "art," and at the same time make you ridiculous. Rest assured that if such a pretender has not had ambition enough to become fairly well in- structed, he is not likely to show much taste in designing your grounds. The design (fig. 6) shows an area of 200 feet by 350, or a plot of nearly two acres. About one third of the whole facing the street is used for flower garden and for dwell- ing, the two-thirds in the rear for fruit and vegetable grounds. There is a point in this sketch to which I wish to call attention, as it is one too often lost sight of. The flower garden and lawn face the street, while the fruit and vegetable grounds are at the rear. The view of these from the street is shut out upon one side by a screen or tall hedge of evergreens, f, and upon the other by a curvilinear glass structure, G^ which may be used GARDEXIXG FOR PLEASURE. 200 Feet Front. Fig. 6. — DESIGN FOR LAYING OUT GROUNDS. DESIGX POR GARDEN-. 29 either as a grapery or a greenhouse. The walk, w, passes on each side of the house to connect with other walks at the rear. The beds, f, may be planted in ribbon lines either with flowering plants or those with brilliant and strongly contrasting foliage. The flower beds, f, each side of the entrance near the front, may be made of any form that may be preferred. A simple circle, planted as suggested in the next chapter, will produce a good effect, and be more easily cared for than beds of the style here given. Most persons, where the floral ornamentation is, as in this case, confined to a few eflective masses, prefer to change not only the manner of planting such beds each year, but to alter their form occasionally. The unbroken area of lawn at c is intended for a croquet ground. At the rear of the house the central walk is spanned by a grape arbor, g a, if one wishes the vines to afford shade, or a simple trellis may run on each side. The borders next the fence on each side and at the rear (not shown in the plan) may also be used for grapes, or will be convenient for raspberries, currants, and other small fruits. The large plots, v f, are for the main crops of vegetables and fruits. Asparagus, rhubarb, straw- berries, and such other crops as remain year after year without being disturbed, should be so placed at the out- set as to be interfered with as little as possible in the frequent working of the soil necessary for other crops. A lot of this size will require the labor of one man, whose time must be exclusively devoted to the garden, and to nothing else, to keep it in proper order. Such is the extent and something near the design of the grounds I use for such purposes. I generally have selected one of my most active men to take charge of it, and find he has plenty to do to do it well. A second design (fig. 7) shows a lot of the same dimensions, with a different arrangement. There bemg a stable, s, and no rear en- trance, it is necessary to provide one from the front ; 30 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. 200 Feet Front. Fig, 7.— DESIGN FOR GROUNDS WITH CARRIAGE -DRIVE. PLANTIN'G OF LAWNS AND FLOWER BEDS. 31 and ill order to secure a greater breadth of lawn, the house is placed at one side of the centre of the grounds. The drive, d, in the design is made to turn around a group of flower beds of fanciful pattern; but this may be replaced by a single circle, planted as suggested in the next chapter, or by a group of ornamental evergreen or other shrubs. In this design the croquet ground is at c, and the grape arbor, G a, is used to shut out the view of the vegetable grounds from the street. A row of closely planted evergreens at h serves to break the force of the winds. The suggestions as to the other details in the preceding plan (fig. 6) apply to this also. CHAPTER IX. PLANTING OF LAWNS AND FLOWER BEDS. The subject of lawn planting, including the proper setting and grouping of trees and shrubs, and their most effective disposal, is too extended for the scope of this book. These matters belong to works upon landscape gardening, and are ably treated in those by Downing, Kemp, Weidenmann, Scott, and others. But the plant- ing of flower beds comes properly within our limits. The old-fashioned mixed borders four or six feet wide alons: the walks of the fruit or vegetable garden, were usually planted with hardy herbaceous plants, the tall growing at the back, with the lower growing sorts in front. These, when there was a good collection, gave a bloom of varied color throughout the entire growing season. But the more modern style of flower borders has quite displaced such collections, and they are now but little seen, unless in very old gardens, or in botanical collections. Then, 32 GARDENIJ^G FOR PLEASURE. again, we have the mixed borders of bedding plants, a heterogeneous grouping of a]l kinds of tropical plants, still holding to tlie plan of either placing the highest at the back of the border if it has only one walk, or, if a bed has a walk on each side, the highest in the middle, and the plants sloping down to the walk on each side. The mixed system still has its advocates, who deprecate the modern plan of massing color as being too formal, and too unnatural a w\ay to dispose of flowers. But be that as it may, we will not stop to argue the matter further than to state, that on a visit to England in 1872, and again in 1885, it was most evident that the '' Carpet Styles " of massing plants, as done at Battersea Park and other public gardens in London, were interesting to the people in a way that no mixed border con Id ever be. Any one who has not yet seen the won- derful effects produced by the massing of plants in this way, has a treat before him. Nearly all the pub- lic parks in and about London are so planted, and thousands of cottage gardens vie with each other in imitation of the parks. But to plant m patterns or in ribbon lines requires for immediate effect a large number of plants, for the reason that they must be so set out that they will meet to form continuous masses shortly after planting. An illustration in circles (for convenience) is given in figure 8, to show what plants can be massed together to give a pleasing effect. Of course, it will be understood that a bed of any shape can be planted in this manner as Y»-ell as circular beds, only keeping in view the icidth of FiS. 8.— DIAGRAM OF FLOWER BED. PLANTING OF LAWNS AND FLOWER BEDS. 33 the bed. For example, a bed having a diameter of ten feet may require eiglit or ten different kinds of plants to form the necessary contrast, while that of five feet will not require more than half that number. The following named plants are well suited for planting in masses or ribbon lines. They are named as nearly as possible in the order of their hight, number one in each case being the tallest. Many will require to be ^^ pinched back " to keep them at the proper hight, so that the outline will form a regular slope from the center, or highest point, down to the front or lowest point. Thus, in list No. 1, Canna Fi^. 9. —SECTION OF FLOWER BED. Indica zebrina will grow six feet high, while Lobelia Paxtoni, the lowest, is less than six inches. The section given in figure 9 will give an idea of the arrangement of a bed of this kind. TiTST Xn 1 Average hight ijiox i.\\j. X. in feet. 1 . Canna Indica zebrina, leaves trreen and brown striped .6 2. Salvia splendens, flowers scarlet.. 5 3. Golden Coleus, leaves orange and brown 4 4. Achyranthes Lindeni, leaves rich crimson 3 5. Phalaris arundinacea var. , leaves white and green .2i 6. Achyranthes Gilsoni, leaves carmine ...2 7. Bronze Geranium, leaves golden bronze. .li 8. Centaurca Candida, leaves white ...1 9. Alternanthera paronychioides major, leaves crimson and^yellow % 10. Lobelia Paxtoni. flowers blue i 34 GAKDENIKG FOR PLEASURE. List Xo. 2. Average hlght injeet. 1. Caladium esculentum, leaves large green .-. 5 2. Japanese Maize, leaves striped white and yellow. 5 3. Coleus Verschaffeltii, leaves chocolate crimson. A 4. Delphinium bicolor, flowers blue and white 3 5. Cypenis altemifolius var., leaves white and green 2i 6. Achyranthes Verschaffeltii, leaves crimson 2 7. Mountain of Snow Geranium, leaves white and gi-een \k 8. Tropfeolum Ball of Fire, flowers flame color .__1 9. Echeveria metallica, leaves gi'ay, metallic lustre I 10. Altemanthera paroBychioides aurea, carmine i It will be understood that these lists of plants can be transposed in any way necessary to suit beds of all widths, keeping in view, that where small beds are placed near w^alks the lower growing kinds are most sniiable, while for beds at greater distances from walks, or other points of view, the taller growing kinds must be used. Very fine effects are produced by planting on a lawn a single specimen of stately habit, such as some varieties of the Ricinus, or Castor Oil Bean, which grow ten and twelve feet in hight in one season, and are particularly striking plants. Or, instead of this, a mass of six, eight, or twelve plants of Scarlet Sage will form a group six feet high by as many in diameter, and its dazzling scarlet color, con- trasting against the green of the lawn, is superb. Many of the Amaranths are also well suited for planting in sin- gle groups. Amarantiis tricolor gigantea (Joseph's Coat) grows to the hight of six feet, and its leaves, in the late summer and fall months, exceed in brilliancy of color any- thing we know of in foliage ; scarlet, crimson, and golden 3^ellow predominating. Another, the Amaraiitus ticolor ruber, grows to the hight of five feet, and is plumed with scarlet crimson. In contrast to these, plants of a more somber tint may be used, in individual specimens or in a group of such as Pampas Grass {Gynerium argenteiim), or the Ravenna Grrass {Eriantlius Ravennce), Each of these attain a hight from six to ten feet, and have a PLANTING OF LAWNS AND FLOWER BEDS. 35 graceful appearance. The Japan Ribbon Grass {Eulalia Japonica variegaia) and the Zebra Grass {EiilaliaJapoiiica zehriiia) each grows to a hight of seven to nine feet, are j)erfectly hardy, and are grand plants for grouping or planting singly on the lawn. Besides being ornamental in foliage, their flower spikes, which, when developed, somewhat resemble ostrich plumes, add much to their beauty. These flower spikes are easily dried, and can be kept for years, making unique parlor ornaments. The Tanyah {Caladium esctilentum) is a tropical looking plant growing three or four feet in hight, and producing leaves sometimes eighteen inches across. THE CARPET STYLE OF FLOWER-BED PLANTING is now done largely in nearly all the public parks of the large cities in Europe, also with us, particularly in Chicago, Philadelphia, Boston, and Alleghany City. But in the great Central Park of New York and the Prospect Park of Brooklyn, all such ornamentation is mostly con- spicuous by its absence, or is in quantity so meagre and in style so wretched as would disgrace a village of 5,000 inhabitants. But if we of New York suffer by the incom- petency or want of taste in the management of our public parks, we have certainly reason to be proud of the efforts of some private gentlemen here. The private grounds of William B. Dinsmore of Staatsburg, N. Y. , and John Hoey of Long Branch, N. J., have been noted for years for their grand display of carpet bedding — unequalcd, perhaps, by anything else in the world. Mr. Hoey's, from its proximity to the famous summer resort of Long Branch, is vi>ited daily by thousands, the private grounds of the munificent owner being thrown open as a public park. In the season of 1886, four beds in the grounds of Mr. Hoey were said to contain a million and a half of plants, arranged so artistically that at a distance they 36 GARDEXIXG FOR PLEASURE. might easily be mistaken for carpets laid out to air on the green lawn. In fact, a story is told of a thrifty old Jersey farmer and his wife, who had never seen these living carpets before, and who, happening to be driving in the grounds one day when a shower came up, drove up to Mr. Hoey's residence and told the ser- vants to get in the carpets, as they were getting ruined by the rain ! The example set by Mr. Hoey in clothing his grounds in this gorgeous coloring, where it is seen by tens of thousands annually, has had more to do with ex- tending the taste for the lawn decoration of flower beds than perhaps all other sources combined. The car- pet style, so called, consists in using plants that can be kept down to a few inches above the level of the lawn. A great variety of succulent plants are used, such as Echeverias, Sedums, Mesembryanthemums, etc., together with numerous low-growing Alpine plants, such as Ajugas, Cerastiums, Lysimachias, Lobelias, Ivies, Alter- nantheras, etc., etc. This style of bedding requires an im- mense number of plants. One bed in the carpet style at Battersea Park, London, containing less than 1,000 square feet, required 4,000 plants to produce the desired effect in the design, and not a leaf of these was more than six inches above the lawn. Planting in this style admits of unlimited variety in the form of the beds and contrasts of colors. So great is the care exercised abroad in arrang- ing the designs that colored papers, giving the exact tints of the leading flowers and colored foliage, are supplied by the dealers, in order that colored designs maybe made and studied before putting them into execution ; for a single misplaced color may sjDoil the effect of the whole. In works of this kind the parts of the design should be separated by well-defined portions of turf, as the color of each member of it is brought out more clearly and dis- tmctly, and the whole has a much better effect if a liberal amount of green is introduced. Figure 10 is introduced PLANTIiSTG OF LAWifS AND FLOWER BEDS. 37 Fig. 10.— CAKPET BED AS PLANTED. 1. Alternantheraparonychioidesma- 1 3. Echeveria Californica, Deep joror Rainbow Plant, Crimson | Sea Green shaded. 4. Alteinanthera versicolor, Car- 2. Alternantheraaurea nana, Golden mine and Rose Yellow. 5. Echeveria secunda, Pale Bluish Green. : i: • * ' N, / V> ->-...--- \ 2 /" ; / ; / --.-'-.' / I * 4 ^1 u-i Fig. 11.— DESIGN FOR FLOWER BED. 1. Crimson Coleus. 2. Golden Coleue. 38 GARDEXIXG FOR PLEASURE. to give an idea of some of the simpler designs, as they appear when planted to produce the best effect. The planting of ^' Carpet Beds," when succulent plants are used, is costly from the necessity of setting them so ! ^ ^ I « \ \ \ J V -IK > ^ ,•♦• Fig. 12.— DESIGN FOR FLOWER BED, 1. Coleus Verschaffeltii, Crimson. 2. Geranium General Grant, or other Scarlet. '6. Geranium Queen Olga, Pink. close that the whole ground has to be covered, as the growth of these is comparatively slow. PLANTING IN RIBBON LINES, AND MASSING IN COLORS, are in more general use than Carpet Bedding, not only for being much cheaper — the plants used being less costly — but, as they are of more vigorous growth, they can PLAJsTIXCr OF LAWIfS AJfD FLOWER BEDS. 39 .^ ,-• ^'\ 1 •• -^ * *•*•:!*'• 1 1 » V ^ ♦ *' . I'^v ' » *"■»< • r' \ — '.-. '-'-'"' .; \ * ^ ' "^ "». ' - ,'-"->-' / * V'-' "^^ "'-,-' I • V Fig. 13.— DESIGN FOE FLOWER BED. I. Altemanthera paronychioides major (Rainbow Plant). 3, Alter- nanthera aurea nana. 3. Dwai-f Scarlet Tropaeolum. 4. Blue Lobelia. 40 GARDENING FOR FLEASFKE* ^1/ : '7'^-' i ; ^ \ t 'v : / 2 ^/" » I " - . * — t ^ W ^ //- Fig. 14. — DESIGN FOR FLOWER BED. 1. Coleus Golden Bedder. 2. Geranium General Grant, or other Scarlet, 3. Coleus Versehaffeltii, CrimsoD. 4. Draesena indivisa. PLANTING OF LAWNS AND FLOWER BEDS. 41 be set much farther apart, usually from nine to twelve inches each way. All such planting must necessarily be largely a matter of taste, although, of course, sharply con- trasting colors make the most striking effects. As a rule, it is best to have comparatively few colors, and this will <3v v;: /A ¥ \ • \ » 6 ^; y I >' ...^.- k ^ ■■.-.T,S> •J^'> H- '\'sr: f ■'-3 / .'-'. Fig. 15. — DESIGN FOR FLOWER BED. 1. Grass. 2. Blue Lobelia. 3. Dwarf Scarlet Tropaeolum. '^> 4. Grass. 5. Alternanthera paronychioides (Rainbow Plant), Crimson. 6, Alternanthera aurea nana, Yellow. account for our recommending comparatively few varie- ties of plants for the designs here given as examples. One important point in all planting of this kind is to trim the plants so that they shall form clear defined lines ; that is, if they, in growing, overlap one another, they must be pinched back so that each color shows 4^ GAEDEXI2?^G FOR PLEASURE. \Z N ..-' '"'3 ^ » / .-'3 :. 4 ^ ' 2-: Fig. 16. — DESIGN FOB FLOWEB BED / : 1, Blue Lobelia. 2. Altemanthera aurea nana, Yel- low. 3. Achyranthes Lindeiiii, Deep Orimson. 4, Geranium Mountain of Snow, White. 5. Anthemis coronaiia, Double Yellow Marguerite. 6. Pink Geranium. 7. Dracaena indivisa, or Fountain Plant. 8. Geranium General Grant, Scar- let, PLANTING OF LAWNS AND FLOWER BEDS. 43 clearly and distinctly where they meet, also that the top growth be so pinched back that the bed presents a smooth and even surface. *' Ribbon lines," so called, are where two or more lines \ \ b ; \ \ \,,5 ---'^'-'-r,j.y / — \ "*-- "z. - ••■ / . wv. Fig. 17.— FANCY BEDDING AT LINCOLN PARK, CHICAGO. 1. Vase. 2. Coleus Bacon. 3. Coleus South Park Gem. 4. Achyrantlies metallica. 5. Coleus Mary Stewart. 6. Geranium Wonderful. 7. Geranium Madame Thebaud. 8. Geranium Mountain of Snow. 9. Gnaphalium lanatuni. 10. Coleus VerschalTeltii. of color are planted along margins of drives or walks. ''Massing in colors" is shown in the designs here given, figures 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, and 17. These illustrations were designed by George A. Solly & Son, Springfield, Mass. 44 GARDEXIXG FOR PLEASURE. CHAPTER X. FALL OR HOLLAND BULBS, ETC. These bulbs are mainly such as are imported from Holland in the fall, and consist of Hyacinths, Tulips, Crocuses, Jonquils, Narcissuses, Snow-drops, Lilies, and various other less known kinds. With few exceptions, all these bulbs are hardy in our most northern states, though all are benefited by a covering of two or three inches of rough litter or leaves spread over the beds be- fore freezing: weather. The soil best suited for all bulbs is a rich, but rather sandy loam. All these bulbs may be planted at any time from the middle of September until the ground is closed by frost in December. Hyacinths shou*ld be planted at distances of six or eight inches apart each way, and from three to four inches deep. Tulips, the same distance apart, but a little less deep. Crocuses three inches apart- and two inches deep. Jonquils and Narcissuses may be planted four inches apart and four inches deep. Snow-drops the same as Crocuses. Very fine effects are produced by planting Hyacinths in lines each of one color, but when mixed colors are placed in the lines, care must be taken to have them arranged so that the bed will give a harmonious blending of color. Crocuses have nearly the same range of color as the Hyacinth, and may be planted either Avay. All these bulbs are easily grown in pots. The Hya- cinth requires a pot six inches in depth and diameter. In potting it is only necessary to fill the pot rather loosely to the brim, and press the bulb down, so that only about one-fourth of it appears above the soil. The pot should then be struck smartly on the bench to give tlie soil the proper degree of firmness, leaving it, w^hen finished, about an inch or so below the rim of the pot. Then FALL OR HOLLAND BULBS, ETC. 45 water freely to still further settle the soil. When pots are not convenient, boxes four inches deep, setting the bulbs six inches apart, will do quite as well. The pots or boxes should then be placed where it is cool and dark, which will encourage a strong development of roots before the bulb starts to grow at the top. Such a situation can be made by covering up the pots or boxes with four or five inches of sand or leaves in a cool cellar, under the stage of a cool greenhouse, or in a sunken pit, or in -some sheltered spot in the open air, in each case covering with sand or leaves, so as to exclude heat and frost ; for it must not be forgotten that a strong development of root can only be had at a low temperature, say from forty to fifty degrees, and any attempt to force bulbs to make roots quicker by 2)lacing them in a high temperature, will most certainly enfeeble the flower. If we only observe how nature points out to us this necessity, we will see how safe it will be to follow her. In all hardy plauts, the roots in spring (when the temperature is low) begin to form the rootlets before a leaf or flower is developed. To show the bad effects when this is not the case, take a root of any of our hardy Lilies and plant it in March, and take a similar bulb and plant it in May; it will be found that the early planted bulb, that had an opportunity to slowly develop its roots before there was heat enough to start the top, will give a finer growth and finer flower than the bulb that was planted in May, and ran up into growth before it had an oi)portunity to suf- ficiently push its roots into the soil. The culture of all the bulbs before named, in pots, is the same as that of the Il3'acinth, only the Narcissuses and Tulips should be planted three or four in a six or seven-inch pot, and Cro- cuses ten or twelve in a pot. All these bulbs may like- wise be grown in moss, or even pure sand, provided that it is kept damp ; the necessity being a medium wherein the roots can revel in moisture. But whether potted in 46 GARDEI^ING FOR PLEASURE. '^'iiii ijlii FALL OR HOLLA I^^D BULBS, ETC. 47 soil, sand, or moss, there will be no need to further water in this semi-dormant state (if they have been well watered at the time of potting), provided the pots have been cov- ered up as directed, and kept cool and dark. If potted say the first week in October, they may be removed from their dark quarters in seven or eight weeks, only, before doing so, turn a few of them out of the pots to see whether they have rooted around the ball of earth. They may then be placed in full light and watered freely. Holland Bulbs are also very effective in groups planted in the open border. The accompanying illustration, fig. 18, shows a group of about thirty bulbs, consisting of Hy- acinths, Tulips, Narcissuses, and Crocuses, arranged so as to give the greatest contrast in colors. HYACIXTHS IN GLASSES. Although Jonquils and Narcissuses can be grown in water in glasses as well as the Hyacinth, they are not often so treated. Hyacinths being the only bulbs largely flowered in that way. The glasses for growing the lat- ter bulbs in water, are made in various styles, from the plain old-fashioned Belgian to the ornamental Bohemian, and are either plain glass or colored green, amber, claret, and other shades. The glasses, which are best of a dark color, are filled with water just high enough for the base of the bulb to touch it. The glasses must be placed in a cool and dark place. Care must be taken that the water does not freeze, else the glasses will be broken, and the Hyacinths more or less injured. Single Hyacinths are better than double ones for glasses. The water should be changed every six or eight days. THE BERMUDA EASTER LILY (LUUim HarHd). This is a grand variety of the well-known Lilinm longiflorum, or Trumpet Lily. It was introduced seven 48 GARDEXING FOR PLEASURE. vears ago from Bermuda, where it was found under culti- vation. It differs from the old variety in being much larger in size ; but its most valuable quality is, that it can be grown to flower in the greatest profusion from the Christmas Holidays throughout all the winter months until spring, according to the time it is planted and the temperature at which it is kept. Tens of thousands of it are now grown for church decoration at Easter ; hence the name. The manner of cultivation is very simple, and need never fail in the hands of even the most inexperi- enced amateurs. The bulbs should be planted in what are called five-inch pots, that is, five inches deep and five inches wide at rim. The soil should be rich, at least one-third old, well-rotted manure. The pot should be rather loosely filled with this soil, and the bulb pressed down deep enough to cover the bulb merely. This may be done any time from the middle of August until De- cember. Those potted in August will be in fiow^er by the Christmas Holidays ; those in October, November, and December correspondingly later. After potting, one of the most important things to observe is the proper placing of the pots containing the bulbs. Like all other bulbs, to get the best results in flowering, the pots must be filled with roots before the tops start to grow ; and, to do this, they must be placed in some cool place and excluded from the light. Those potted in August, September, or October can be placed outside, in the open air, and covered completely up with leaves or litter to the depth of four or five inches, until, on examination, the roots are found to be formed around the ball of earth. They should then be placed in the greenhouse or sitting-room, and if kept in a temperature of from sixty to seventy degrees, will come into bloom throughout January and February. Those potted later — say in November or December — should be placed in a cool cellar or cold frame, and covered up in the same FALL OE nOLLAis^D BULBS, ETC 49 Fig. ID.— POT CULTUEE OF THE BEEMUDA EASTEJi LULJ. 50 GAKDEISING FOR PLEASURE. way as recommended for those placed out of doors, until they also form roots, when, if placed in the light, in green- Tiiouse or sitting-room, they will flower from February to April, if kept in a temperature of sixty or seventy degrees. Each bulb will give from three to twenty flowers, accord- ino" to size, and not one in a hundred will fail if these simple directions are followed. The flowers are four or five inches in length, and frequently much longer, of the purest white, and of the most delicious fragrance. The Bermuda Lily is entirely hardy, when planted in the open ground, south of AVashington, and will stand our winters in nearly all parts of the A^orthern and West- ern States, if covered up with four or five inches of dry leaves or litter, on the approach of cold weather in December. Lilium candidum was formerly known also as the Easter Lily, but the Bermuda Lily {L. Harrisi) has so superseded its use for Easter decoration, that it is hardly now known as such. It is entirely distinct from the other, and grows from two to three feet in hight, pro- ducing from six to ten flow^ers in a whorl at the top. Its culture, both for forcing and growing in the open ground, is almost identical with the Bermuda Lily, and it is well worthy of cultivation. LILY OF THE VALLEY ( Convallavia majalis) is one of the most chaste and beautiful of all flowers. When planted in the open ground, where it is entirely hardy, its flowers are one of the first harbingers of spring. It is forced in immense quantities for winter flowers. The treatment is almost identical with that for Hyacinths and Lilies, only, whether the *' pips" — the single *' eyes" — or clumps containing a dozen or more ''eyes" are used, they should be packed closely together m shallow boxes, and placed out of doors or other cool place for eight to nine weeks before being brought in to force for flowers FALL OR nOLLAND BULBS, ETC. 51 in winter; but, unlike bulbs, the Lily of the Valley does not make any root growth while outside. The object of placing it outside at all is to giye it a period of ^'rest," which is absolutely necessary before it can be forced into flower. Lily of the Valley roots are not usually Fig. 20. — LILT OF THE VALLEY. to be had before the first of November ; and if placed in boxes then and set outside, they should not be brought in to force until the end of December. If then put in a temperature of from seventy to eighty degrees, they will come into bloom in from ten to fifteen days. It is best to bring in a few at a time, so that they can be had in bloom throughout the winter ; or, if wanted at any partic- 52 GARDENll^G FOR PLEASURE. nlar time after New Year, they can safely be relied on to flower in ten or fifteen days after being placed in a heat averaging eighty degrees. It is a good plan to cover the boxes slightly over with moss, so as to keep as moist an atmosphere as possible around the crowns while forcing them into flower. There is one rather discouraging feature to amateurs Fig. 21.— LILT OF THE VALLEY " PIP "—GOOD. in forcing Lily of the Valley, and also with most bulbs, in the fact that, after being thus artificially treated, the crowns are of no further use, to force at least. They may be planted out in the open ground in spring after forcing, and will recuperate to some extent in a year or two, but the same crowns once forced will hardly ever do again for that purpose. An exception among bulbs is the Bermuda Lily, which seems to be in no way injured by being forced. The crown, or *^pip," as florists sometimes call it, of the FALL OK HOLLAND BULBS, ETC. 53 Lily of the Valley, when sufficiently developed to flower, should be of the size and shape shown in figure 21. THE TUBEROSE {PoUanihes tiiierosa), when grown outdoors, should never be planted until the ground is warm. A good test (which our country readers can usually always avail themselves of) is never to plant the Tuberose until the corn crop is up two or three inches high, which, in the latitude of New York, is always about the first week in June. Dry bulbs or tubers then planted will usually flower in October. If wanted earlier, the dry bulbs should be started in moss or soil, in small pots or boxes, in a greenhouse or warm room, where there is plenty of light, about the first of May. Thus forwarded, if planted out by the first week in June, they will come into flower two or three weeks earlier. Forcing the T tiler ose — so as to have flowers during the winter months from January to April — cannot be done unless there are appliances of heat in the greenhouse that will keep up an average of eighty degrees, and that, too, with a moist atmosphere, as this bulb is of a nature that requires at all times a high temperature for its growth. It is, however, comparatively easy to have it produce flowers during November and December in the greenhouse by retarding the bulbs in some cool place until August. Planted then they make growth enough in the warm months of the fall to give them sufficient start to throw up the flower stems by the end of October. The greenhouse then, however, must be kei)t warm (say sixty- five at night with fifteen degrees higher in the daytime) for the proper development of the flowers during November and December. They should be set six or eight inches apart. The Pearl is the best for forcing, while the tall double is best for outdoor blooming. A new" single variety of Tuberose, ^* The Albino," originated in St. Louis, Mo., 54 GARDEXIXG TOR PLEASURE. in 1887. It has the peculiarity of throwing up from t\TO to four shoots from each bulb, and occasionally two to three branches on each stalk. The flow^ers are of the purest white, star shaped, being more reflexed than the old sort. It is altogether a valuable variety, and is cer- tain to be largely used for cut flowers. It is not yet offered for sale. THE LILY (Lilmm). I have already alluded to varieties of the Lily that are used for forcing in Avinter, which at present is confined to the white varieties, L. candidiim, L. longiflorum, and L. Harrisi. The hardy garden Lilies, which embrace a great range of color, are of the easiest cultivation, and, from the regal beauty of most of the species, are perhaps the most desirable of all our hardy perennial plants. They will flourish in almost any soil^ though, like all other plants, a deep, rich, sanely loam is the best. Lily bulbs can be set out either in fall or spring. When planted in fall thev should be covered with three or four inches of leaves or other litter ; for, although perfectly hardy, withstan diner the severest winter, all new plantations of any kind of plant are helped by a protection the first winter after planting. In spring planting they should be set out just as early as the ground is dry enough to work. The bulbs may be set, according to size, from three to four inches deep, and, if beds are to be formed of them, from nine to twelve inches apart. Although they will not bloom in complete shade, yet a position of partial shade is congenial to them ; and they will do equally well in open sunshine. The finest species are from Japan, though we have some very beautiful native kinds. The following list comprises the best known kinds : L. aurat'um, or Golden Banded ; L. speciosum and its va- rieties ; L. Krameri, L. Leichtlinii, L. tigrinum flora plena, L. Tliunhergiannm in variety, L. longifloriim. FALL OK HOLLAND BULBS, ETC. 55 L, candidum, the oldest known species, comes from the Levant. Asia furnishes L. Clialcedonicum ; Siberia the beautiful little L. tenuifolium, which is there grown as an article of food. The United States contributes L, suyerhum, L. Canadense, L. Pliiladelpliicum, L. Cates- hcei, L. Carolinianum, and L. Columhianum, together with L. Washingto7iianum, L. Humholdtii, L. parvum, L. Californiaim, L. pardalinum, L. Roezlii, L, Parry i, and L. Walkeri, from California. It may be added here that the California Lilies often remain in the ground a whole year before starting to grow. THE CALLA, or Lily of the Nile, is now known to botanists as Ricliardia ^tliiopica. It is largely grown for winter flowers, and is of the easiest culture, the only attention being an abund- ance of moisture, and an average temperature of seventy degrees, whether grown in tlie greenhouse or sitting- room. Although it will grow and flower during the entire season without resting if sufficiently fed by being re-potted, yet it is more profitable to dry it partly off, say from June 1st to September 1st. This is best done by placing the pots on their sides outdoors, so as to pre- vent the rains from wetting the soil, and covering them slightly with hay or moss, so as to keep the sun from drying the roots too much ; or, if a position of partial shade can be had, there will be no need of covering the pots. The roots thus rested will flower more abundantly and produce fewer leaves, and thus twice the number of flowers may be obtained from the same space. The bulbs are now being grown largely in California, where they are dried like Tuberoses and purchased by florists in the East- ern States. Thus dried, far more flowers are produced than when the bulb is kept growing. It is not well to give the Calla too much pot room, else 56 GAKDENIXG rOK PLEASURE. too much foliage is produced. We have found the best method to be not to use too large pots, and to use liquid manure freely, made from one bushel of cow dung to twenty-five or thirty gallons of water, or one pound of guano to ten gallons of water. When an excess of leaves occurs, cut them off freely, withholding water somewhat for a w^eek or so after cutting the leaves off. By this method the plants can be grown closely together, and a larger crop of flowers obtained from the same space. The Calla is one of the best of winter-flowering plants for room culture, needing little care be3'ond abundant water, and an occasional syringing or washing of the leaves to keep them free from dust and red spider. It is also a good plant for a large aquarium. The Divarf Calla, a sport from the original species, is identical in all respects except that its flowers and leaves are about half the size of the original. E. alba-maciilata, a species v/ith beautifully variegated or spotted foliage, makes a showy plant. The flowers are smaller than the Calla, and white, with purple throat. It comes into flower in May and June, making it valuable for a succession. It is also desirable in a collection of plants with variegated foliage. Another species, R. hastata, is somewhat similar to R. alhct-maculata, except that the flowers are a deep yellow with a purple throat. There is still another kind of "Calla," sometimes called the '^ Black Calla," from the very dark crimson of its velvet-like flowers. It is really, however, a plant of another genus, known as Arum Palcstinum. It is quite a scarce plant as yet, but will be a great acquisition from its unique and novel color. Unlike most species of the genus Arum, the flowers of this are of a pleasing fragrance. The species are all propagated by offsets, which should be taken off when the plant is at rest, and grown on in small pots for one season. FALL OK HOLLAND BULBS, ETC. 57 GLADIOLUS. There is perhaps no bulb that is so satisfactory or so easily cultivated as the Gladiolus; no other bulb embraces such a variation of color, comprising nearly every shade except blue. With the simplest culture there is an abso- lute certainty that they will flower, provided they are planted in fairly good soil and where they will not be shaded. Time to Plant. — During the winter, Gladiolus bulbs, whether large or small, should be kept in a dry, cool cellar. As the bulb is nearly hardy, plantings may be made as soon as the ground is fit to work in spring ; and even should the ground be slightly frozen after, they will sustain no injury. Bulbs set out during April will be usually at their best flowering in August, but '* succession i)lantings" may be made every ten days until the middle of July, which will give a succession of bloom the entire season. It is a common practice, with the New York florists, to reserve Gladiolus bulbs until August, which are then planted in boxes four or five inches deep, in rich soil. The boxes are kept out-doors until frosty when they are placed in a cool greenhouse, where they flower in November, at a time when everything is done outside. Whether planted in the open ground or in boxes for forcing, they should be set at from six to seven inches apart, and about two to three inches deep, that is, so that the top of the bulb will be covered an inch or an inch and a half. Gladiolus are admirably suited for cut-flower work, as they will keep for eight or ten days, and the unexpanded buds, if showing color, will develop fully when the stem is cut and placed in water. In addition to the fine hy- brid varieties long in cultivation, M. Lemoine, of France, in 1884 succeeded in producing a new class, entirely oS GARDEXIXG FOR PLEASURE. novel and of wonderful beauty. Each petal is spotted with crimson, carmine, scarlet, or rose, somewhat resembling the finest kinds of the Fancy Pelargoniums or Orchids. THE AMARYLLIS {Amaryllis). All the kinds are eminently ornamental and easy of culture, the great secret being to give them alternately Fig. 23.— AMARYLLIS. (Vittata Type.) a season of excitement and a season of repose. To do this effectually, the plants should be abundantly sup- plied with water and heat, and placed near the glass when they are coming into flower, and water should be withheld from them by degrees when they are done flow- ering, till they have entirely ceased growing, when they should be kept quite dry and in a state of rest. When in this state they may be placed in any obscure part of a greenhouse or in a cellar where it is dry, and of a tem- perature not under forty degrees. If kept in such a FALL OR HOLLAND BULBS, ETC. 59 situation during winter, some kinds may be turned out into a warm border in spring, where they will flower ; and if the season be fine, they will ripen their bulbs in time to be taken up before the approach of frost. The chief value of these plants, however, is to produce flowers in the winter season, which they readily do if they are kept dry and dormant during the latter part of the summer and autumn. Indeed, by having a large stock of these bulbs, a regular succession of flowers may be obtained during the year. AVhen the dormant bulbs are wanted to be thrown into flower, they should be fresh potted in sandy loam and leaf mold, and put in a hot- house, hot-bed, or warm sitting-room, at any date from October to January, when the dry bulbs can be had. They should be kept rather dry, and covered up with leaves until the pot is well filled with roots, just as is done in forcing Hyacinths or Lilies, except, in the case of Amaryllis, the temperature requires to be kept ten degrees higher, the heat beginning at fifty degrees, and ascending to sixty or seventy degrees ; and when the leaves or the flowers appear, the plants should be abund- antly supplied with water. Our long and warm summers enable us to cultivate many of these beautiful bulbs in the open air, by merely protecting the roots in winter in some dry, warm cellar, as we do Dahlias or Potatoes. THE CYCLAMEN". Many amateur florists have an ambition to grow this beautiful bulb, and it is often done well even in an ordi- nary sitting-room, though, as it requires a season of rest, it is often injured by this not being given properly or at the right time. Cyclamen bulbs, in the dry state, can be procured usually from seedsmen in September or October. When received they should be potted in five, six, or seven inch pots, according to the size of the bulb. The pots should be well drained and filled loosely with rich, soft 60 GARDEi^ING FOR PLEASURE. soil, sucli as is composed of one-third leaf mold being best. Press the bulb into the earth so that its top is level with the surface. Give it a good watering, and then place it in some dark closet or cellar for three or four weeks, when it may be brought into the light. The bulbs can often be bought already started from the flor- Fig-. 23.— CYCLAMEN. ists, when they may be placed among a general assort- ment of plants that are kept at fifty degrees at night with ten to fifteen higher in the daytime. The Cyclamen flowers usually from January to April. When done flower- ing the plants should be dried oft by laying the pots on their sides, as recommended for Callas, say from May to September, and then started again in the w^ay advised above. PROPAGATION OF PLANTS BY SEEDS. 61 CHAPTER XI. PROPAGATION OF PLANTS BY SEEDS. Nature provides abundantly for the reproduction of plants, and the difficulty of multiplying by one method is compensated by the ease with which it may be done by another. Whenever we find a plant that takes root with difficulty from " slips" or cuttings, in nine cases out of ten we find that it seeds freely, and gives us a ready means of increase. Thus we find that the much-admired Centaureas, one kind of the '* Dusty Millers" (the white- leaved plants now so much used in massing and for baskets) are exceedingly difficult and slow to root from cuttings, but are readily raised from seeds. Our fine strains of blotched Petunias are also troublesome as cut- tings, but make plants quickly from seeds. The Cycla- men, with its turnip-like stem or bulb, could only be propagated by cutting it in pieces, disfiguring its shape, and requiring years to form a circular bulb again ; but here we have seed coming to our help, which germinate freely, and make flowering plants in one year. The Apple Geranium never affords proper cuttings from which to make a plant, but it seeds freely, from which splendid plants can be produced in a few months. So the Primulas and Cinerarias, both slow and uncertain from cuttings, seed freely. Echeveria metallica, one of the beautiful plants of the Houseleek family, produces no bud from the base of the leaf, as nearly all the other species do; but, to make up, it seeds abundantly, and so with hundreds of other plants to which our space will not permit us to refer. There is no rule by which we can designate what plants are best propagated by seeds, and what by cuttings, experience being the only teacher, and even the experience of a lifetime is too short for 62 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. those of US that have had the largest practice. The de- scriptive catalogues issued by seedsmen and florists are now excellent practical guides in this matter, as the seeds of all plants best propagated from seeds are offered in the seed department of the catalogues, while those that are usually propagated by cuttings are offered in the plant catalogues. Seedling plants can be nearly as well raised in the win- dow of a sittmg-room or parlor, provided the tempera- ture is right, as in a greenhouse, for seeds do not need a strong direct light while germinating ; in fact, that is often a difficulty in a greenhouse, as the surface of the seed-bed dries up too quickly in the direct sunshine, ne- cessitating watering, which bakes the surface. The best thing wherein to sow seeds is a shallow box, which need not be more than two inches deep, with open seams at the bottom through which water will drain quickly. Fill the box within lialf an inch of the top with liglit rich earth. If it can be procured, nothing is better than black leaf mold from the woods, or light sandy soil mixed with an equal bulk of stable manure, so rotted as to resemble leaf mold ; but it will not answer unless rotted as fine as dust. In the absence of either of these, sweepings from a paved street are excellent, mixed with light sandy soil, the object in all cases being lightness of the soil or mold in which the seed is to be sown ; for if tiny seeds, as many of our flower seeds are, are embedded in a stiff soil, the germ in many of them is too weak to push its way to the light. When the proper soil has been secured, pat it down with a smooth board until it is as smooth and level as it well can be; then sow the seed carefully over the sur- face, distributing it evenly, and with a common kitchen sieve sift just so much earth evenly over the seed as will cover it and no more, pressing it down again with the smooth board ; next take a watering pot with the finest kind of a rose, and shower the earth with the spray. PROPAGATION OF PLAi^TS BY SEEDS. 63 Keep the box at a temperature as near sixty degrees as possible at night, with ten degrees higher in the daytime, taking care to give it a shower of spray only when the surface appears to be dry. But few seeds will fail to germinate under such conditions. This temperature will suffice for the germination of seeds of nearly all annuals and general assortment of greenhouse plants, which may be sown in greenhouse, hot-bed, or sitting-room, from January until March; by that time, as the season gets warmer, seeds of tropical plants, such as Coleus, Egg Plant, etc., may be sown. But after the seeds have **' brairded," as the Scotch gardeners say, comes another difficulty. In quite a number of plants, particularly if sown in the house, just as soon as the seed leaf has de- velopsd, and before the first rough or true leaves have formed, the seedling is attacked by a minute fungus, that will often sweep off the whole crop in forty-eight hours if not attended to. The required attention is, that as soon as there are indications of t?ie '^ dam})ing off" of these tiny seedlings, they must be carefully taken up and planted out in similar boxes, prepared exactly as the seed-boxes have been. They may be planted quite closely, not more than half an inch apart, and let their further treatment be exactly the same as in germinating the seeds. In the course of a few weeks they will have grown freely, and they may then be lifted and j^laced in simihir boxes, but wider apart, say three or four inches, or potted singly in two and a half or three-inch pots, as most convenient, until such time as they are to be planted out in the open ground, or used otherwise. In this way as great a number of plants may be raised from a twenty-five or fifty cent packet of seed as would cost $25 or .$50 to purchase in plants, besides the far greater satisfaction of their being the product of your own hands. 64 GARDEXIXG FOR PLEASURE. CHAPTER XII. PROPAGATION OF PLANTS BY CUTTINGS. There is no more interesting operation to the amateur gardener than that of increasing his stock of plants by cuttings or slips. Heretofore it was accounted a great mystery, and unless with some of the commonest kinds of Geraniums, few amateurs ever presumed to invade the territory of the professional gardener. Nearly all writers on the subject had so befogged this simple matter with technical nonsense, that few, not regularly brought up to the business, presumed to attempt it. We now consider it one of our simplest operations; far simpler than raising many kinds of plants from seed. Though we raise over two millions of plants annually, and kee^) a professional propagator with three assistants doing nothing else the en- tire year but propagating plants from slips, yet we could take any careful, intelligent man from iimong our garden laborers, and install him as a competent propagator in a year, and for many of the commoner things in half that time. Where plants are propagated from cuttings in large numbers, we elevate a bench, usually four feet wide, above the flue or hot- water or steam pipes, to within a foot or so of the glass at the front, and on this table or bench we place three or four inches of sand, of any color or tex- ture, provided it is not from the sea-shore (which contains salt). This bench is boarded down in front, so as to con- fine the heat from the flue or pipes under it, and give what is called ''bottom heat." The sand on a bench so formed will indicate a temperature of perhaps seventy degrees, while the atmosphere of the greenhouse, partic- ularly during the night, will be ten degrees less. ]N"ow, if the cuttings are in the right condition, and are inserted an inch or so in the sand, freely watered, and shaded PROPAGATION OF PLANTS BY CUTTINGS. (J5 from the sun from 9 or 10 A.M. to 3 or 4 p.m., cuttings of nearly all kinds of plants are certain to take root in from ten to twenty days. But the cutting must be in the right condition, and this is best shown by the engrav- ing (figure 24). It will be observed that the upper portion of the shoot is snapped or broken, while the Fig. 24. — PROPER AND IMPROPER STATE OF CUTTING. other is only kneed or bent. Tliis " snapping point," as we now term it, is a true indication of proper condition of the cutting. Where it bends and does not break, it is too hard ; and though a cutting will root when in that con- dition, it w^ill be slower in doing so, and the roots thrown out from it will be weaker and more wiry than when emitted from a cutting taken in the condition in which 6Q GARDEN"IXG FOR PLEASURE. it breaks. Besides, the plant grown from the older cut- ting is not likely to be so healthy or vigorous as one made when the shoot is in the proper state. In propagating woody plants, such as Roses, Azaleas, or Camellias, this test of breaking or snapping of the cutting does not in these indicate the proper condition. Although they also will root if taken in the soft state, yet we find it is not quite so well to do so as to wait until the cuttings of these woody plants get harder. What this proper hardness is, it is not very easy always to deter- mine. In Roses the best condition for taking the cutting is reached when the young shoot (of which the cutting is made) develops the flower bud to about the size of a large pea. Although the shoot on which the flower bud shows will make a j^roper enough cutting, yet, if it is not desired to waste the flower, cuttings had better be made of the ^^ blind" shoots, i. e., such 5'oung shoots as do not flower. In making the cuttings of Roses, or, in fact, of almost all plants (with a few exceptions hardly worth noting), there is no need to cut at a joint, although nine gardeners out of ten still do so, particularly those who have learned the business in Europe, where, in this as in many other things in horticulture, they still follow the dictum of some savant of a century ago, never question- ing why. But our business necessities here have caused us to ride rough-shod over many of their set rules, and in nono more ruthlessly than in this matter of propa- gating. But as this book is written mainly for amateurs in gardening, I will proceed to give a simple method by which any one can propagate plants from cuttings or slips, even when no greenhouse or hot-bed is at hand. It is called THE ''mud" or ''saucer SYSTEM" OF PROPAGATIN^G. Take any common saucer or plate, into which put sand to the depth of an inch or so ; then prepare the cut- PROPAGATION OF PLANTS BY CUTTINGS. <17 tings in the usual manner, and insert them in the sand close enough to touch each otlier, as in figure 25. The sand is then to be watered to bring it to the condition of mud. The saucer with the cuttings is then placed on the shelf of the greenhouse, in the hot-bed, or in a sunny window of any room in the dwelling-house ; in each case fully exposed to the sun and never shaded. But one condition is essential to success : until the cuttings be- come rooted, the sand must he Icepl continually saturated with loater and always in the condition of mud. To do this the saucers must ])c watered at least once a day with a very fine rose watering pot, and the watering must be done very gently, else the cuttings may be washed out. There is every probability that ninety per cent, of all cut- tings put in will take root, provided they were in the proper condition, and the temperature has not been lower than sixty-five de- grees nor above one hun- dred. By the saucer sys- Ficr. 25.— SAUCER propagatiok. i^,^^ ^ i,;_i.^,. i.^^.,^^ l ^ rem a higher temperature may bo maintained without injury, as the cuttings are in reality placed in water, and will not wilt, provided the wa- ter is not allow^ed to dry up. Still the detached slip, until rooted, will not endure a long continuance of one hundred degrees, and we advise that propagation be done at such seasons that the cuttings, wherever they may be placed, will have, as near as possible, an average temperature of seventy-five or eighty degrees in the sunlight. The cut- tings will root (according to kinds and the temperature) in from six to twenty days. Verbenas, neliotro2:)es. Fuchsias, etc., root in a week, while Roses, Carnations, or Azaleas, take two, three, or four weeks. When rooted they should be potted in light soil (such as recommended in the article ^' Propagating of Plants by Seeds"), in pots from GS GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. two to three inches in diameter, and treated carefully by shading and watering for two or three days. The shad- ing is best done by covering the cuttings, after they are potted off, with paper kept damp by sprinkling, say from 9 A.M. to 3 P.M. if the sun is shining on them. To such as desire more extended information on the subject of propagating plants by cuttings, I would refer to my work, ^'Practical Floriculture." CHAPTER XIII. PROPAGATING BY LAYERING. Although florists now rarely resort to propagation by layering, yet now and then it may be desirable for ama- teurs to increase the number of some fayorite plant during the sum- mer season, where no other method of propa- gation can be used. The only difference between a layer and a cutting is, that the cutting is en- tirely detached from the parent plant, while the layer remains partly con- nected with it. Al- though layering may be done with the ripened wood of vines or shrubs of the growth of the previous season, yet it is preferable to use the shoot of the present year in its half-green state. For example, a rose or flowering shrub is pruned in the usual way in spring ; by midsummer it will have made strong shoots one, two, or three feet in length from or near the Tig. 26.— PKOPAGATING BY LAYERING. ABOUT GRAITING AND BUDDING. 69 base of the plant. Take the shoot then in the left hand (after having stripped it of its leaves for a tew inches on each side of where it is to be cut), keep the fingers under the shoot, and make a cut on the upper pari, an inch or so in length, and to about half the thickness of the shoot ; then slightly twist the ''tongue" or cut part to one side, as shown in the engraving, figure 26. Having opened a shallow trench, fasten the branch down with a hooked peg, and cover with earth. It is a good plan to place a liat stone over the layer to prevent the soil from drying out. This plan of cutting the shoot in layering is rarely shown in illustrations on the subject, the cuts usually being represented at the under side of the shoot. When cut at the lower side, the shoot can not be laid down without danger of breaking it. CHAPTER XIV. ABOUT GRAFTING AND BUDDING. It is often desirable to be able to bud or graft one va- riety of plant on another entirely different variety; and it is an interesting fact to know that the bud taken from one plant and inserted so that it grows in another, and is entirely sustained by the plant into which it has been budded, in no way changes its character. This fact is so well known to gardeners that they rarely think it neces- sary to mention it in WTiting on the subject, and many amateurs interested in horticultural matters have very confused notions on budding. To illustrate : if a leaf bud is taken from a wiiite Rose, and inserted in the stem of a red Rose, all the branches that proceed from this bud, leaves or flowers, will be identical with the white Rose from which it was taken. Or if a leaf bud of the red Rose be inserted in the white, the same result will 70 GARDEi^^ING FOR PLEASURE. follow ; it will be identical in all respects with the red variety. Or you may take a bnd or graft from the sour- est Crab Apple, and insert it into a branch of the sweetest Apple tree you can find, and the shoot which grows from the Crab Apple bud will ever remain a Crab, and will in no way be affected by the sweet Apple stock on which it is growing. Or if the operation is reversed, and the sweet Apple be budded or grafted on the sour, the result will be the same. Its individuality will be in no way changed ; it will be identical with the variety from which it was taken. Still further to illustrate this matter of budding or grafting, you may take a Eose-bush having any number of shoots, it makes no difference whether one or a hun- dred. On each shoot you may bud a distinct variety of Kose, of all the colors, forms, or odors embraced in Koses, and each one will hold its distinct characteristic of color, form, or fragrance, be it crimson, white, pink, or yellow in color, double or single in form, or of tea or other odor. Or you may take a young seedling Apple tree, insert a bud of another into it, then, after that bud has made a growth, bud still another variety into that, and so on as many as is desired ; rub off all shoots in the stem that start below, and the variety last budded will hold its individuality unchanged, no matter though the life-sustaining sap flows through the cells of several dif- ferent kinds. You may mark the space occupied by each of the varieties, and cut back to any particular variety, and the fruit that will be produced by that part, which will then be the top, will hold its character without change. What is true of Roses and Apples is, of course, equally true of whatever plant that can be grafted or budded. The stock does not in any mauner affect the individu- ality of the graft, and I supposed that this was one of the generally accepted axioms of horticulture ; but in a con- ABOUT GRAFTING AND BUDDING. 71 versation not long ago Avith a gentleman whose opinion is entitled to consideration, I found him inclined to believe that there were some few exceptions to what had been admitted to be a general law, and in support of his argu- ment he referred me for exceptions to Darwin's '' Plants and Animals under Domestication." I have examined this work, and find but few cases wherein it is claimed that the graft is influenced by the stock, or the stock by the graft. At page 413, vol. i., is cited one of the most important, that of the Cytisus Adami, produced, it is claimed, by grafting the Cytisus purpurea on the Cytisus Laburnum. This so-called '^ graft hybrid" repeatedly showed its drooping racemes of flowers to be blended yel- low and purple on the same raceme, and again, on the same plant, racemes clear yellow and clear purple unblended were produced. Again at page 457, vol. i., Avhere '^ Prof. Caspary describes the case of a six-year-old white Moss Eose, which sent up several suckers, one of which was thorny and destitute of moss, exactly like those of the Pro- vence Rose {R. centifolia), while another shoot bore both kinds of flowers, and in addition longitudinally striped flowers. As this white Moss had been grafted on the Provence Rose, Prof. Caspary attributes tlie above changes to the influence of the stock ; but, from the facts already given, and from others to be given, bud variation with reversion is probably sufficient explanation ; " and Dar- win proceeds to give nearly a dozen cases of like variation where there was no grafting at all. A very marked case of this 'M3ud variation " recently occurred in my own greenhouses. In a bed of about one hundred plants of the Tea Rose ^'La Nankin," all made from cuttings from one parent plant, we have had four distinct varie- ties. The original flower or bud has its base or louver half of a nankeen yellow color, while its upper half is pure white, the separate colors being clearly defined ; yet among our plants from cuttings we have some flowers 72 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. that are entirely of the nankeen color, without white ; then, again, pure white with no nankeen, and on one ahoot the flowers came of a light pink or blush shade. Now had Prof. Caspary a grafted plant of ^^ La Nankin " play- ing these freaks, he no doubt would have concluded that it was the influence of the graft on the stock. There are other instances in grafting where an amalgamation of individualities aiyparently occurs. These cases are famil- iar to all horticulturists of much experience, and are also alluded to by Darwin in the work above referred to. He gives a number of instances where the variegated Ole- ander grafted on the j^lain-leaved variety as a stock, imparts the variegation to the stock, or where a yellow- leaved ash tree, grafted on the common green-leaved variety, produced a blotched or variegated variety. That most of the variegation in the foliage of plants is due to disease, or at least some disturbance of the regular functions of the sap, there is but little doubt, and it is therefore but an accidental condition of the individual. Where a variegated plant is budded or grafted upon a healthy subject, the disease is transmitted from the un- healthy bud or graft to the healthy stock in a manner somewhat analogous to inoculation of smallpox virus in man. The character or constitution of the individual is in no way affected in the one case more than in the other. All who have been extensively engaged in the growing of plants, either in the greenhouse or in the open field, know that, when variegated kinds of almost any variety of woody plants are grafted on those having plain leaves, the variegation will be transferred to the plain-leaved stock, but the variegation only; it is changed in no other respect. The most common examples of this are the variegated Ahiitilon, variegated AUheas, or variegated Ivies, which almost invariably transmit the '^diseased" foliage to the healthy stock; but there is never any change made in the coloring of the flower nor in the shape of ABOUT GRAFTIXG AND BUDDING. 73 the leaTCs. I consider it most unfortunate for Mr. Dar- win to have advanced the peculiarity of variegated leaves, as bearing on his theory of ^' graft hybrids." That leaf variegation is indicative of disease is manifest from many facts. It is quite a common thing to find a shoot sent out by the silver-leaved or variegated Geraniums that is pure white in stem and leaves, without a particle of green, or such golden variegated kinds of Geraniums as *^Mrs. Pollock" will send out a pure yellow shoot ; but all efforts to make plants of such shoots will fail. They may feebly root as cuttings, or tbey may be grafted on a green-leaved, healthy stock long enough to drag out a few A\eeks of existence, but the disease is here thoroughly established, and all attempts to propagate these entirely abnormal growths completely fail. It has been claimed that the Duchesse d'AngoulOme and other pears are much better flavored when grafted on the quince than on the pear stock, and these are quoted as examples of the influence of the stock on the graft; but to me this seems capable of another explanation. We know that the pear stock is a vigorous and ram- pant grower as compared with the quince, and may it not be that this vigor of growth in the tree impairs the flavor of the fruit in some varieties, just as we find the flavor of fruits impaired when grown in too rich soil ? The effect of soil upon quality is particularly marked in melons. I remember that I once grew^ a field of three acres of Xutmeg melons. One half of the patch was rich bottom land, and the other portion was a rather poor hillside. The fruit pro- duced on the bottom land was much larger, but so different from and inferior in flavor to those on the hillside that no one would have recoo:nized the two as beins: of the same variety. Grapes grown on a shaly hillside are better fla- vored than on a rich alluvial deposit. The same, though in a less marked degree, probably occurs in other fruits under similar conditions. For these reasons I believe 74 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. it safe to assert that the preponderance of. evidence is against the belief that the stock in an}^ manner aifects the graft other than that it may cause it to grow stronger or weaker, just as the stock is strong or weak, and the amount of such influence will be only such as a rich or poor soil would produce. In other words, the *' stock" is only a medium or soil wherein the grafted individual grows, and affects it no more than if it drew its suste- nance direct from the earth : strong, if on a strong stock, as on a fertile soil, and weak, if on a weak stock, as on a sterile soil. I believe that the smallest or the greatest of God's creations has a separate and distinct individuality, and that they cannot be blended, except by generation, and that the product of generation, whether in the lowest microscoi^ic germ, or in the highest type, man, has an individuality distinct and separate that it cannot attach to another. CHAPTER XV. HOW GRAFTING AND BUDDING ARE DONE. , After this discussion of general j^rinciples, let us come to the practice of grafting and budding. In what has been said, the words have been used as synonyms, and their object is precisely the same — to propagate a particular jplant upon a rooted plant of another kind. Among fruits we do this because we cannot multiply choice vari- eties by seed or by cuttings. Stocks are raised from seed, which, if allowed to grow and bear, may produce a poor and worthless fruit, or it may be a good kind. To make matters sure, we graft a twig of a kind that we know upon a seedling about which we know nothing. "With Camellias, some of the choice kinds cannot well be 2)ropagated HOW GRAFTING AND BUDDING ARE DONE. 7o from cuttings, but many of tlie commoner kinds will grow in this wti3% and the choice Camellias are grafted upon stocks obtained by rooting cuttings of the other strong growing kinds ; so in various cases among fruits and llowers, budding or grafting affords the readiest, if not the only method by which we can multiply certain va- rieties. A graft is a tsvig containing one or more buds, and so inserted or planted in the stock that the new bark and new wood of the two shall be in close con- tact. In budding, a single bud with as little wood as possible, is inserted or planted below the bark of the stock, and in direct contact with its new or sap woo i. While we give the two operations different names, the French call budding simply a variety of grafting — shield- grafting. In a general way, it may be stated that in grafting we use buds of a previous year, and insert them upon the stock where they are to grow the spring after they are formed, and as soon as vegetation starts, these buds commence to grow. In budding we use buds of the current season's growth. The recently formed buds, near the end of the growing season, are planted in the stock, where they unite, and remain dormant until spring, when the* inserted bud pushes into growth at the time that the natural buds of the stock start. These statements apply only to out-door grafting and budding. AVlien these oper- ations are performed under glass, the propagator has con- trol of atmospheric conditions, and varies them to suit the subjects in hand. In out-door grafting, such as that upon fruit trees, the cions are best if cut in the fall and preserved in sand or sawdust in the cellar during the winter ; though with very hardy sorts this is not essential, they should be cut before any swelling of the buds takes place. The operation succeeds best when the buds on the cion are perfectly dormant, and those on the stock have swollen and about to open. 76 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. GRAFTING. The Yarious methods of grafting* are too many to de- scribe here. The simplest is the cleft graft. The stock is sawed off, and the end cleft or split for a few inches down through the center (figure 27) ; the cion (or two if the stock is over an inch in diameter), with two or three bnds, has its lower end smoothly cut to form a wedge a trifle thicker on one side than tiie other (figure 28) ; the cleft in the stock is pried open by means of an iron w^edge or a w^dge-shaped stick, and the cion or cions set with the thicker edge of the wedge outward, ob- serving to bring the inner bark and new wood of stock and cion in as close contact as possible. The opening wedge being withdrawn, the spring of the stock will hold the cions in place (figure 29). The junction is to be covered with graft- ing wax, or w\axed cloth, taking care to completely cover every wounded .portion of both stock and cion. It is by this method that most of the grafting is done by farmers all over the country. It is rude, but very successful. The objection to it is, that it leaves too great a wound to be closed over. For small stocks the whip-graft is generally used. It is much easier to do it than to describe it. Stock and cion should be as nearly of a size as possible. Both arc cut with a similar slope, and in each slope is cut a tongue, as in figure 30. A\'hen the two slopes are put together, the two tongues are interlocked as in the engraving, taking care that the inner bark of stock and cion come in con- Fig. 27. Fig. 28. Fig. 29. CLEFT GRAFTING. HOW GRAFTING AND BUDDING ARE DONE. 77 tact as completely as possible. In this illustration the parfcs are represented as tied with twine, to show the joint below, but in practice the whole is completely cov- ered with a band of waxed cloth. This, where practica- ble, is an excellent graft, there being no large wounds to heal over, and the points of union are numerous. This graft is much used by nurserymen in root grafting small apple and pear stocks. A very simple form called the side-graft is often employed by florists and nurserymen. Fig. 30.— WHIP GRAFT. '■m\r Fig. 31.— SIDE GRAJT. The cion is cut to a long wedge, and the stock has a downward cue made in its stem, into which the cion is inserted, as in figure 31. In grafting the Camellia, the Rose, and other hard-wooded plants, a combina- tion of the whip and side graft is made use of, as shown in figure 32. Grafting wax used to cover the wounds made in graft- ing may be purchased at the seed and implement stores. 78 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. or the amateur can make it himself. It should be soft enough to be molded by the heat of the hand on a cool day, but not so soft as to run when exposed to the heat of the sun. It is essentially rosin and beeswax, with tal- low or linseed oil enough to make it sufficiently soft. A good formula is rosin 2 lbs., beeswax V/^ lb., tallow y, lb. The better way for the amateur to use this is to melt the whole together thoroughly, and then dip in it strips of well-worn cloth, such as may be torn from a worn-out sheet or calico dress. These waxed strips will tear read- Fig. 33. — GRAFTING THE CAMELLIA. ily, and may be neatly fitted to the graft to make a com- plete covering. The fingers should be slightly greased when applying the waxed cloth. We find in our prac- tice of grafting Roses, for which we use mainly the Ma- netta Rose stock, to do the work from January to March, a slight bottom heat is indispensable for the best success; that is, from sixty-five to seventy-five degrees bottom heat, with ten degrees less ^'top" heat, must, as near as HOW GliAFTIlN^G AXD BUDDIXG ARE DONE. 79 possible, be kept in tlie greenhouse or hot-bed where the grafting is being done. BUDDII^G. The shoot or stock to be budded upon must be in a thrifty growing state, so that the bark can be raised freely from the wood, and the bud to be inserted must be in such a state that it shows prominently at the axil of the leaf. Select a smooth portion of the stem of the stock, strip it of leaves sufficiently to allow room for the Fio-. 86. BUD TI2I). THE METHOD OF BLDDING. operation, and then make a cut tlirough tlie bark to the wood of an inch or so, with a cross cut at the top, as shown in figure 34. Although the illustration does not show it, a slight cut of the bark should be made above the cross-cut. This is done to allow the bud to slip in better. This cus- tom, we think, is not general, but we find the operation is done quicker aud better by its use. Next take the shoot from which the bud is to be cut, and selecting a properly developed bud, cut it from the shoot as shown in fio-ure 33. The edges of the cut in the stock are lifted by the point of the knife or an ivory attachment to the budding-knife, the bud inserted and pushed down as in 80 G.VRDEXIXG FOR PLEASURE. figure 35. The portion of bark attached to the bud that projects above the horizontal cut in the stock is cut off, and the tie applied. The tying material should be RiifRa bark, though cotton wick or other soft material will do. The engraving, figure 36, shows where to place the tie ; but when of Raflfia bark it quite covers the wound and excludes water and prevents drying. In two or three weeks after the bud has been inserted, it will be safe to remove the tying, and if the operation has been performed on a Rose in June, it will often make a considerable growth the same season ; but if done in August or September, it usually lies dormant until the next spring. All shoots upon the stock below the bud must be rubbed off, both in budding and grafting, and when the bud that has been inserted starts to grow, the stem above it must also be cut back just above, so that the inserted bud, which now becomes the plant, may get the full benefit ot the root. CHAPTER XVI. TREAT^klENT OF TROPICAL BULBS, SEEDS, ETC. Any information that can be given in an article sliort enough to be suitable for amateurs on a subject so ex- tended as this must be confined to a few well-known and leading plants most valued for general cultivation. The Tuberose is one of the tropical clai)iM^i„>..,>iu»}ri„m -30'- :j csi ■^3i Fig. 53.— GROUND PLAN OF CONSERVATORY, FIG. 52. 164 GARDEXTNG FOR PLEASURE. tention than any base-burning stove. Tbe boiler takes up no more room than an ordinary stove, and requires no setting. It is shown in figure 50, and in section in fig- ure 51. It is fed by coal from the top, and can be left with safety ten or twelve hours without any attention. Fig. 54. — CONSERVATORY ATTACHED TO DWELLING. It must be borne iu mind that, in constructing the con- servatory, it must be built where a chimney is accessible by which to carry off the smoke from the boiler or water DETACHED GUEEXHOL'SES, ETC. 1(J5 heater, just as would be necessary for an ordinary stove. If the greenhouse is small enough to be heated by a register from the furnace or steam boiler that heats the dwelling, much of the cost may be saved, as it will be seen that nearly half of the cost of construction is the heating apparatus. Figure 52 shows a front elevation of a conservatory suitable to attach to dwellings. It is six- teen feet wide and thirty feet in length. Its ground plan, showing the arrangement of the benches and walks, is given in figure 53. Such a structure in every way com- plete, heated with the Hitchings Base-burning Water- heater, should not exceed one dollar and twenty-five cents per foot of glass surface, or $600. Figure 54 shows a more elegant style of conservatory attached to a dwelling. The size is sixteen by sixteen; hight, twelve feet. The estimated cost complete, with heating apparatus included, for every square foot of glass surface covered, at four dollars per foot, would be $1,024. If heated from the boiler or furnace used to heat the dwelling, perhaps one-third less. This design is given by Lord & Burnham, horticultural architects. CHAPTER XXVIII. DETACHED GREENHOUSES, MODES OF HEATING, ETC. When more extended glass structures are desired they must, of course, be detached from the dwelling or other buildings ; and if shelter, ivithoiit sJiade, can be had from hills, w^oods, or buildings from the north or north- west, so much the better. When greenhouses, graperies, rose houses, or other greenhouse structures are wanted for forcing flowers or fruits m the winter months, they should alwavs be built after what are called '^ three- 166 GAEDEXIXG FOE PLEASURE. quarter spans ; " that is, haying nearly two-thirds of the roof long on one side and the other one-third on the other. The long or two-thirds side should in all cases, as near as possible, slope directly south, the ob- ject being to obtain, dur- insr the dull davs of win- ter, as much sunlight as possible ; and for the same reason the wood work of the frame should be as light as possible, and the glass of the largest size that can be economically used. The average size now in use for this purpose is twelve by twenty inches, put in the twelve inch way. The brand of glass most- ly used is what is known as ^^second quality dou- ble thick French." It is of the utmost impor- tance that the glass be clear and without flaws; otherwise the flaws will concentrate the sun's rays, forming lenses, and burn the foliage. When greenhouse struc- tures are not wanted specially for winter flow- ers or fruit, they may be formed of equal spans, as in figure 55. In this case the ends should face north and DETACHED GEEEXHOUSES, ETC. 167 SCALE^-i Fig. 56. — END-VIEW AND PLA.N OF DETACHED GBEENHOUSE OB GEAPEBT. 168 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. Fio-. 57.— ELEVATION (iN PAUT) OF DETACHED GKEENHOTJSE OB GEAPEET. DETACHED GREENHOL^SES, ETC. 169 south, so that the distribution of light will be equal on each side : the east side in the morning and the west in the afternoon. All the walling from the surface of the ground to the glass of a greenhouse had better be made of wood, unless the walls are made very thick when built of brick or stone. The continued warfare in winter between a zero temperature outside and sixty to seventy degrees inside, will in a few years destroy brick or stone walls. When the walls are formed of wood, the best way is to place locust posts at distances of four feet apart, and nail to these a sheathing of boards. Against the boards tack asphaltum or tarred paper, and again against that place the weather-boarding. This forms a wall which, if kept painted, will last for fifty years, and is equally warm as a twelve-inch brick wall, and costs less than half. A common error is to board on each side of the post and fill in with saw^dust or shavings. This should never be done, as this filling soon decays, besides forming a resort for mice and other vermin. We have had just such a structure (as figure 57) in use fifteen years as a cold grapery, that has no heating apparatus, the forwarding being done only by the action of the sun on the glass, and it has proved a cheap and satisfactory luxury. A con- servatory or grapery of this style (figures 56 and 57) costs from fifty to sixty cents per square foot, without heating apparatus. Heated by hot water, it would cost one dol- lar to one dollar and twenty-five cents per square foot. If heated by a horizontal flue in the manner here described, the cost would be about seventy-five cents per square foot. GLASS AND GLAZING. If for Avinter forcing of either fruit or flowers, the glass should be not less than ten by twelve in size, laid in the twelve way, and if twelve by twenty all the better. Even with the greatest care, some flaws in 170 GARDEXIIs^G FOR PLEASURE. the glass will escape detection, and more or less burn the leaves after the sun becomes strong, to counteract which a slight shading had better be used on the glass from April to September. We use naphtha, with just enough white lead mixed in it to give it the appearance of thin milk. This we put on with a syringe, which sufficiently covers up all flaws in the gkss to prevent burning, and at the same time tends to cool the house from the violence of the sun's rays. Tiiis is by far the cheapest and best shading we have ever used. It can be graded to any degree of thickness, and costs only about twenty-five cents per thousand square feet of glass, for material and labor. In glazing, the method now almost universally adopted is to bed the glass in putty, and tack it on top with glazier's points, using no putty on the top. The glazier's points are triangular, one corner of which is turned down, so that, when it is driven in, it fits the lower edge of each pane and prevents it from slipping down. A great mistake is often made in giving the glass too much lap. It should only be given just enough to cover the edge of the pane (from one-eighth to one-fourth of an inch). If given too much, the water gets in, and when it freezes it cracks the glass. All who have had experience with greenhouses know that, no matter how well the glazing has been done by bed- ding the glass in putty, the water gets in at the crevices sooner or later, rotting the putty, and, consequently, loos- ening the glass. A simple plan to obviate this (which has recently been introduced) is to pour along the junction of the bar with the glass a thin line of white lead in oil from the slender spout of a machine oil can, over which is shaken dry sand. This at once hardens, and makes a cement which effectually checks all leakage. This, care- fully done, will make such a tight job that no repairs will be necessary for many years. DETACHED GREENHOUSES, ETC. 171 17*^ GARDEJS^ING FOR PLEASURE. The following are a few styles of greenhouse structures of finer finish than most of the preceding. It is all im- portant that the hights, angles, etc., be kept as near to the plans given as possible, as each plan we believe to be as near correct as it well can be, to give the best results in culture. No scale is given, but a scale can easily be adapted from any of the accompanying measurements. Figure 58 is taken from Lord and Burnham's book of greenhouse plans, and represents a three-quarter span house, seventeen by sixty, ridge eight feet, heated by six runs of four-inch pipes for hot water. It is the most useful style of all greenhouse structures, and is used for the model rose house, but can be adapted to the grow- ing of all kinds of flowering plants for winter blooming, or for forcing strawberries, cucumbers, and other fruits or vegetables. The estimated cost of such a structure (if the frame and walls are made of wood, and, as a general thing, we advise them made of wood) would be from one dollar and twenty-five cents to one dollar and fifty cents per foot for the ground area covered by the house ; that is, a house seventeen by sixty at one dollar and twen- ty-five cents would cost $1,275 for the whole structure complete, including the healing by steam or hot water, ventilating apparatus, etc. Of course, the cost would be lessened in proportion to the size of the buildings. The engraving shows the walls to be formed of brick; but this is not only more costly, but, in our experience, is not so good as wood. (See Greenhouse Structures.) Figure 59 represents a greenhouse twenty by sixty, ridge eleven feet high, full span. The ground plan shows it to be divided in the center by a glass partition, so that, thus divided, it can, if required, be used for greenhouse and hothouse plants by simply adding two additional pipes to the section used for the hothouse ; or one section may be used as a rose house and the other for greenhouse plants. The construction is the same as recommended DETACHED GREENHOUSES, ETC. 173 174 GARDEXIiS'G FOR PLEASURE. DETACHED GREENHOUSES, ETC. 175 for the house seventeen by sixty (figure 58). The cost of this structure would be about one dollar and fifty cents per foot, or $1,800 for a house twenty by sixty complete. Figure 60 represents a curvilinear, three-quarter ^^ span house, eighteen by A sixty, with twelve feet ridge, ^ which can be used as a green- house, rose house, or grap- ery. The cost, if built of wood (as advised in the house seventeen by sixty, figure 58), would be about one dollar and fifty cents per foot, or $1,620. " Figure 61 (center, fifty by fifty, each wing twenty-five by forty-five) shows a beau- tiful and one of the most useful of glass structures. The center is to be used for a conservatory or show house, where ornamental foliaged or flowering plants may be placed. The wings are to be used for a grapery, green- house, or rose liouse, as de- sired. Such a building as is shown in the engraving would cost, with iron frame, brick foundations, and heat- ing and ventilating appara- tus complete, about two dollar.- aiid fifty cents per foot, or Sll,875, if of the above dimensions. This is the ^ a* 176 GARDEXIXG FOR PLEASURE. faTorite style of greenhouse structure in the vicinity of New York on well-appointed places, yaried somewhat in size or architectural details, according to the taste of the owner. HEATIKG BY HOT WATER AND STEAM. These methods are in almost universal use, though many, who do not wish to go to the expense, still use smoke flues. In heating by hot water it is important that the work be given to some reputable firm, whose knowledge is such as will enable them not only to judge what is the proper capacity of the boiler for the number of pipes to be used, but also how many pipes are necessary to be used for the surface of glass to be heated. Men who have done a large business in heating greenhouses have far better opportunities for knowledge in this matter than the average gardener or florist ; and if those erecting greenhouses have not had extensive and varied practice, they had better be guided by the men who make a busi- ness of heating, as the want of the requisite knowledge of these matters often works serious mischief. Of course, the size of the greenhouse or greenhouses to be heated must determine the capacity of the boiler wanted ; but the boiler being properly apportioned to the length of pipe, the following data, used in our own establishment, may be useful In our houses, which are twenty feet wide and one hundred feet long, when a night tempera- ture of seventy degrees is required in the coldest weather, ten runs or rows of four-inch pipe, five on each side ; when sixty degrees are wanted, eight runs of pipe, four on each side ; when fifty degrees are wanted, six runs of pipe ; and when only thirty-five or forty degrees are wanted, four runs of pipe. This is for the latitude of New York City, where the temperature rarely falls lower than ten degrees below zero. Latitudes north or south of New York should be graded accordingly. If esti- DETACHED GREENHOUSES, ETC. 177 mated by glass surface, about one foot in length of four- inch pipe is necessary for every three and a half square feet of glass surface, when the temperature is at ten de- grees below zero, to keep a temperature of fifty degrees in the greenhouse. We now place all our pipes under the side benches, as that enables us to use the space under the middle for stowing away many plants safely, which otherwise could not be done if the pipes were there. Heating greenhouses by steam is rapidly coming into use, and, in my opinion, whenever the extent to be heated is over five thousand feet of glass surface, steam should be used in preference to hot water, for the reason that it ought to be cheaper to put up, one foot of steam pipe costing ten cents being equal to the hot-water pipe costing twenty cents ; and, in addition, in a thorough compara- tive trial we find it to be a saving of about twenty-five per cent, in coal. As far as the well-being of the plants is concerned, it makes no difference whatever whether the greenhouse is heated by hot water or by steam. There is an impression that the heat given off from hot-water pipes is more moist than that from steam ; but this is an error, as experiments show there is no difference whatever. USIlfQ GAS TAB ON STEAM OR HOT- WATER PIPES. Every season some one is led into the grievous blun- der of painting the hot-water or steam pipes with gas tar. This never fails to result in the almost complete destruc- tion of the plants as soon as the necessity for heating the pipes begins. The heat evolved from the pipes so painted gives out a gas destructive to all species of plant life. When the blunder has been committed, there is no remedy but to take out the pipes and bum the gas tar off by a red heat. All kinds of remedies have been tried again and again, and all have failed, for the reason that 178 GABDEitflKG FOE PLEA.SURE. •''" " ** ^^ *v / > V \ ' / \ ^ 1 1 • t i * ' ' [ 1 [^_ -^-^ ^ ^•^_i-^ . . PI ;3 e3 O a> o o3 -^^ DETACHED GREEJ^HOUSES, ETC. 179 the gas tar eats right into the grain of the metal, often half through it, so that all surface applications are use- less. Better let all painting of the pipes alone, as a rather better radiation of heat is got if left unpainted. HEATIXG BY FLUES. When personal attention can be given to the fires, by heating greenhouses with flues a great saving in cost can be made ; in fact, nearly half the cost of construction ; for we find that the hot-water heating apparatus usually is half the cost of building greenhouses, while, if heated by flues, the cost would not be more than ten per cep.t. of the whole. A new method of constructing flues (or rather a revived method, for it originated in 18:^2,) has been in use for the past few years, which has such mani- fest advantages that many now use it who would no doubt otherwise have used hot- water heating. Its pe- culiarity consists in running the flue back to the furnace from which it starts and into the chimney, which is built on the top of the furnace. As soon as the fire is lighted in the furnace, the brick-work forming the arch gets heated, and at once starts an upward draft, driving out the cold air from the chimney, which puts the smoke flue into immediate action and maintains it ; hence there IS never any trouble about the draft, as in ordinary flues having the chimney at the most distant point from the furnace. It will be understood that the chimney into which the flue is returned is placed on the top of the arch of the furnace, and not in it, as some might suppose. By this plan we not only get rid of the violent heat given out by the furnace, but at the same time it insures a complete draft, so tliat the heated air from the furnace is so rapidly carried through the entire lengtli of the flue, that it is nearly as hot when it enters the chimney as 180 gardexiis^Ct for pleasure. when it left the furnace. This perfect draft also does away with all danger of the escape of gas from the flues into the greenhouse, which ol'tea happens when the draft is not active. Although no system of heating by smoke flues is so satisfactory as by hot water or steam, yet there are many who do not want to go to the expense of hot-water heating, and to such this revived method is one that will, to a great extent, simplify and cheapen the erection of greenhouses. Figure 62 (one-eighth of an inch to the foot scale) shows a greenhouse twenty feet wide by fifty feet long, with furnace room, or shed, ten by twenty feet. Here Fig. 63.— (Scale Vs of an incli to the foot.) the flues are so disposed as to avoid crossing the walks, being placed under the center bench, but as near as pos- sible to the w^alk on each side, so that the heat may be evenly diffused throughout. If a difference in tempera- ture is required in a house of this kind, it may be ob- tained by running a glass partition across the house, say at twenty-five feet from the furnace end, which will, of course, make the latter end the hottest. It will be ob- served that the plan (figure 62) shows by dotted lines this new or revived plan of flue heating. Figure 63 (the DETACHED GREENHOUSES, ETC. 181 ' same scale) is a section, showing the arrangement of the benches, etc. In constructing the furnace for flue heating, the size of the furnace doors should be, for a greenhouse twenty by fifty, about fourteen inches square, and the length of the furnace bars thirty inches. The furnace should be arched over, and the top of the inside of the arch should be about twenty inches from the bars. The flue will always ^'draw" better if slightly on the ascent through- out its entire length. It should be elevated in all cases from the ground, on flags or bricks, so that its heat may be given out on all sides. The inside measure of the brick flue should not be less than eight by fourteen inches. If tiles can be conveniently procured, they are best to cover with ; but, if not, the top of the flue may be contracted to six inches, and covered with bricks. After the flue has been built of brick to twenty-five or thirty feet from the f urnai^e, cement or vitrified drain pipe, eight or nine inches in diameter, should be used, as they are not only cheaper, but radiate the heat quicker than the bricks ; they are also much easier constructed and cleaned. Care should be taken that no wood work is in contact with the flue at any place. It should be taken as a safe rule, that wood work should in no case be nearer the flue or furnace than eight inches. In constructing, do not be influenced by what the mechanics w411 tell you, as few of them have any experience in such matters, and are not able to judge of the dangers resulting from wood work being in close contact with the heated bricks. There are scores of greenhouses burned every year owi'ng to carelessness or ignorance in allowing the brick work to be too close to the wood. The cost of such a green- house (tw^enty by fifty feet), at present prices, heated by flue, would be about six hundred dollars, or about sixty cents per square foot covered by the greenhouse. 182 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. HEATING BY HOT-BEDS. There is no better artificial heat used for the starting of seeds or growing of plants than that obtained from the hot-bed. The material used is manure fresh from the horse-stable, and wlien they can be procured, it is better to mix it with about an equal bulk of tan bark or leaves from the woods, or refuse hops. If the weather is very cold, the bulk of manure must be of good size, from five to six wagon loads, thrown into a compact round heap, else the mass may be so chilled that heat will not gener- ate. If a shed is convenient, the manure may be placed there, especially if the quantity is small, to be protected from cold until the heat begins to rise. The heap should be turned and well broken up before being used for the hot-beds, so that the rank steam may escape, and the manure become of the proper *' sweetened" condition. It is economy of the heating material to use a pit for the hot-bed. This should be made from two to three feet deep, six feet wide, and of any required length. When a hot-bed is made on the surface of the ground the heat- ing material should not be less than thirty inches deep, and should be at least two feet wider and longer than the frame on which the sashes are placed. Thus, if the hot- bed is for three three-by-six sashes, the actual space covered by the frame would be nine by eighteen ; and for this the hot-bed on which it rests should be twelve by twenty. After the heating material has been packed in the pit to the depth of twenty to twenty-four inches, according to the purpose for Avhich it is wanted, or the season of the year (the earlier in the season, the deeper it is needed), the sashes should be placed on the frame, and kept close until the heat generates in the hot-bed, which will usually take twenty-four hours. Xow plunge a thermometer into the manure, and if all is right it will DETACHED GEEENHOUSES, ETC. 183 indicate one hundred degrees or more ; but this is yet too hot as bottom heat for the growth of seeds or plants, and a few days of dehiy must be allowed until the ther- mometer indicates a falling of eight or ten degrees, when four or five inches of soil may be placed upon the manure, and the seeds sown or plants set out in the hot-bed. Am- ateurs are apt to be impatient in the matter of hot-beds, and often lose their first crop by sowing or planting be- fore the first violent heat has subsided. Another very common mistake is in beginning too early in the season. In the latitude of New York nothing is gained by begin- ning before the first week in March, and the result will be very nearly as good if not begun until a month later. There are two or three important matters to bear in mind in the use of hot-beds. It is indispensable for safety to cover the glass at night with shutters or mats until all danger of frost is over ; for it must be remem- bered that the contents of a hot-bed are always tender, from being forced so rapidly by the heat below, and that the slightest frost will kill them. Again, there is danger of overheating in the daytime by a neglect to ventilate when the sun is shining. As a general rule, it will be safe in all the average days of March, April, and May, to have the sash of the hot-bed tilted up from an inch to three inches at the back from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Much will, of course, depend upon the activity of the heating material in the hot-bed, the warmth of the weather, and the character of the plants in the bed, so that we can only give a loose general rule. Numbers of inexperienced amateur cultivators often lose the entire contents of their hot-beds by having omitted to ventilate them, and on their return home from business at night find all the plants scorched up ; or the danger of the other extreme IS, that the plants are frozen through neglect to cover them at night. A hot-bed requires a certain amount of attention, which must be given at the right time, or no 184 GARDEmNG FOR PLEASURE. satisfactory results can be expected. Careful attention must be given to watering, which should be increased in quantity as the season advances. In all cases, as the tiny hot-bed plants are always tender, tepid water is pref- erable to use, and it should be put on very gently with a fine rose watering pot. CHAPTER XXIX. GREENHOUSES OR PITS WITHOUT ARTIFICIAL HEATING. The directions given for heating greenhouses by hot water or by flues apply, of course, only to sections of the country where the temperature during the winter months makes heating a necessity. In many of the southern states there is no need of artificial heat. A greenhouse tightly glazed, and placed against a building where it is sheltered from the north and northwest, will keep out frost when the temperature does not fall lower than twenty-five degrees above zero ; and if light wooden shut- ters are used to cover the glass, all those classed as "green- house " plants will be safe even at ten degrees lower, provided the conservatory is attached to the south or southeast side of a dwellino^ or other buildinof. An- other cheap and simple method of keeping plants during winter in mild latitudes is by the use of the sunken pit or deep frame, which affords the needed protection even more completely than the elevated greenhouse. This is formed by excavating the soil to the depth of from eigh- teen to thirty-six inches, according to the size of the plants it is intended to contain. A convenient width is six feet, the ordinary length of a hot-bed sash, and of such length as may be desired. Great care must be taken that the ground is such that no water will stand GREENHOUSES WITHOUT ARTIFICIAL HEATING, 185 in the pit. If the soil is moist it should be drained, and the bottom covered with an inch or two of cement. The sides of the pit may be either walled up by a four or eight-inch course of brick work, or planked up, as may be preferred; but in either case the bach wall should be raised about eighteen inches and the front about six inches above the surface, in order to give the necessary slope to receive the sun's rays and to shed the water. A section of such a pit is shown in figure 64. If a pit of this kind is made in a dry and sheltered position, and the orlass covered by liarht ^- ---^^^^^^^m^^ ^r shutters of half-inch boards. Fig. 64.— sunken pit. it may be used to keep all the hardier class of greenhouse plants, even in localities where the thermometer falls to zero. After all danger of severe weather is past, which, in the latitude of New York, is usually by the last week of April, greenhouses or pits without artificial heat can be safely used for keeping all kinds of greenhouse plants, unless the very tender kinds, such as Coleus, as we rarely have frost sufficiently severe after that date to penetrate into the cold pit or cold greenhouses. In the hands of inexperienced cultivators, plants win always be grown better without artificial heat, which is often very difficult to properly adjust, particularly when the greenhouse is small. A new covering for plants has recently come into use, under the name of ^' Protecting Cloth." It can be bought for eight or ten cents per yard, so that two yards of it tacked to a light frame will make a "sash covering to protect plants, at a cost of twenty-five cents each, which will answer nearly as well as a glass sash, costing ten times as much, for all protection that plants require after danger of severe freezing is past. Often, during 186 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. the early part of May, we have from four to six degrees of frost, which would be fatal to all tender plants, which, if covered by the protecting cloth, could be saved. I have frequently been asked since the introduction of the protecting cloth, whether it can be used instead of glass for small greenhouses in winter. In very mild climates, where there is but a few degrees of frost, it would answer fairly well. The only objection would be in case of con- tinued wet weather, as, of course, the cloth would not shed the rain unless placed at a very sharp angle. CHAPTER XXX. COMBINED CELLAR AND GREENHOUSE. In connection with the description of the cold pit or greenhouse without fire heat, may be mentioned the com- bined cellar and greenhouse. Many years ago an acci- dental circumstance gave me an opportunity of testing the utility of such a structure. An excavation, twenty by forty feet, and seven feet deep, had been made, walled up with stone, and beams laid across preparatory to placing a building upon it, when the owner changed his plans, and found himself with this useless excavation within a dozen yards of his costly residence. There seemed to be no alternative but to fill it up or plank it over ; but both plans were objectionable, and in discussing how to get out of the ditliculty, I suggested erecting a low-roofed greenhouse over it, as the owner had a taste for cultivat- ing plants. This suggestion was followed, and the walls were raised two feet above the surface, and a span-roofed greenhouse erected over it. My idea (which was found to be nearly correct) was, . that the laro^e volume of air in the excavation would at COMBINED CELLAR AND GREENHOUSE. 187 no season go below forty degrees, and be sufficient to keep the upper or greenhouse portion of the structure above the freezing point in the coldest weather. This it did completely when the ghiss was covered at night with shutters ; and the plants with which it was filled, 01 a kind requiring a low temperature, kept in better health than if they had been grown in a greenhouse havinsr fire heat. Under favorable circumstances such a structure might be made of great utility, and at a trifling cost ; for as it dispenses with heating apparatus, which usually is more than half of the whole cost in all greenhouses, the use of a cellar and greenhouse could be had at probably less than the cost of an ordinary greenhouse ; and for half- hardy plants — plants that will do well in winter if kept only above the freezing point — such a structure will be better for many of them than any kind of greenhouse heated by fire heat. All kinds of Roses, Camellias, Azaleas, Zonal Geraniums, Violets, Cape Jessamines, Carnations, Abutilons, Verbenas. Primulas, Stevias, and, in short, all plants known as cool greenhouse plants, will keep in a healthy, though nearly dormant condition, during the winter months ; but they will flourish with greatly increased vigor at their natural season of growth and flowering as spring advances. Besides, the cellar may be used for the ordinary purposes of such a place ; or, if exclusively for horticultural purposes, no better place can be had for keeping all deciduous hardy or half- hardy plants, Hyacinths in pots to start to flower, or any bulbs of similar nature. The great point to be observed is, that the soil where such a structure is to be erected is entirely free from water, or, if not so naturally, it must be made entirely dry by draining. The style that I think would suit best for general pur- poses would be twelve feet in width, and of any length desired. The excavation should not be less than seven 188 GARDEXIXG FOR PLEASURE. feet deep, walled up to about one foot above the surface. When complete it would show something like the section in figure 65. If desired, the walls might be raised two feet above the surface level, which would admit of a few windows in the wall to give light in the cellar, if so de- sired. If the glass roof is made fixed, it should have ventilating sashes three by three, at intervals of six or nine feet on each side of the roof ; if of sashes, they should be seven feet long by three feet wide, every alter- nate one being arranged to move for ventilation in the usual way. The position of the structure would be best with its ends north and south. The shutters for cover- Fig. 65. — GREENHOUSE AND CELLAB COarBINED. ing the glass at night should be made of light half-inch pine boards, three feet wide by seven feet long. It will be understood that the advantage of this com- bination of cellar and greenhouse over the ordinary cold pit is, that the air of the greenhouse is warmed or equalized by mixing with the atmosphere of the cellar, which will rarely be less than forty degrees. For the same reason, if a high temperature by fire heat were wanted, say seventy degrees, this large body of air from below of forty degrees would make it difficult to obtain HARDY SHRUBS, CLIMBERS, AND TREES. 189 it. If the flooring above the cellar is made water tight, which could easily be done, even if covered by plank, by cementing over the plank, the cellar could be used as a musliroom house, as no light is necessary for the growth of musiirooms. (For instructions, see ^'Mush- room Culture.") CHAPTER XXXI. HARDY SHRUBS, CLIMBERS, AND TREES. A PLACE is seldom so small that a few choice shrubs cannot appropriately find room, and in which climbers are not desirable, while in the larger places these become important to its proper ornamentation. Whether its size admits of the use of trees or not, both deciduous and evergreen shrubs, climbers as well as evergreen trees of low growth, are indispensable. We here append a list of the leading kinds in each class, but which by no means exhausts the number of desirable varieties ; and for the others reference may be made to the catalogues of the principal nurseries, where also will be found descriptions of those here named. HARDY DECIDUOUS SHRUBS. ^scidus parviflora - - Dwarf Tlorse-Chestnut, rosy white. Azalea Fbiitica, hybrids. - - -Bel2:ian Azaleas, rose, yellow, etc. Berheris vulgaris'- Barberry, yellow. a u var. /)jfrp?«-i07iia) grandijlom .... Large-flowered Trumpet Vine, orange- scailet. < ' {Bignonia) radicatis Trumpet Creeper, orange. Wistaria frutescciis American Wistana, purple and white. " Sinensis Chinese Wistaria, purple. << '< var. alba - . .White Wistaria. «« " << Alleni Allen's Wistaria, violet. " magnlfica Magnificent Wistaiia, dark purple, large. For a proper understandiiig of where to plant the dif- ferent kinds of climbing plants, it is necessary to divide them into two classes. The "twining" kinds, such as are adapted to twine around wire, strings, trellis-work, or limbs of trees, which comprise the largest class ; and the "climbing" kinds, in which is included the Clematis, the grandest and most varied of all climbing plants. The "twining" kinds can be trained on poles eight or ten feet high as individual specimens, or on the trellis-work of verandas, or on wire fences, or on any material which thev can twine around. The Loniceras or Honeysuckles require similar treatment ; and though by no means so varied or brilliant in coloring as the Clematis, they are all deliciously fragrant, while, so far, there is only one variety of Clematis that is fragrant, C. flammnla. Of the hardy HARDY HERBACEOUS PERENNIALS. 193 climbing plants that ''cling" rather than twine there are the Ampelopsis (known as Virginia Creeper, Boston Ivj, etc.) and the Hedera Helix, the true European Ivy. Both of these attach themselves, in climbing, to walls of brick, stone, or rough wood, trees, etc., by throwing out rootlets or suckers from the stem as they climb, which are firmly attached to whatever they are climbing on. The Ampelopsis Veitchii and Royali are comparatively new plants, but hundreds of thousands of them are now sold annually, and grand specimens are seen in nearly every section of the country. When once established they will climb against walls ten feet in a season, and attaiu to a bight of fifty feet in three or four years. Many buildings in Boston, New York, and elsewhere, are covered to the roof with these beautiful climbers. The leaves, which are green in summer, overlap like a coat of mail ; but it is in autumn that they are seen in their glory. No '' autumn leaves" surpass in beauty the Am- pelopsis ; shaded crimson, scarlet, and orange, they can be seen, in a clear day, nearly a mile distant. The Am- pelopsis has been largely planted by the Pennsylvania and other railroad lines against the rocks where cuts have been made, and it is in contemplation to use this plant to cling to embankments to prevent sliding. Climbing Roses can be trained on wire or wooden fences, verandas, dead trees, or to poles ; but in all cases they require to be tied or tacked to the support to keep them in proper shape. CHAPTER XXXII. HARDY HERBACEOUS PERENNIALS. Herbaceous perennials include those hardy plants, the stems of which die down at the approach of winter, or earlier if they have completed their growth. The roots 194 GARDENIiq^a FOR PLEASURE. being hardy, they remain in the same place for many years in succession. Plants of this class were formerly more popular than they have been of late years, the taste for brilliant bedding effects having caused these former favorites to be neglected. Recently the taste for peren- nials has revived, and while they cannot serve as substi- tutes for what are known as bedding plants, they are ex- ceedingly useful for those who wish to have flowers with but little trouble, as most of them can remain for eight or ten years without requiring any other care than to keep them clear of weeds. It will renew their vigor, however, when the clumps become too large, to lift, divide, and re-set them in fresh soil. For the best results it is advisable to re-set most of them every third year, while some may remain in place indefinitely, taking care to give them a yearly manuring, as the vigorous growing ones soon exhaust the soil immediately around them. In setting out these plants, the taller kinds should be placed at the back of the border, or in the center if the bed is to be seen from both sides, while those of the lowest growth are to be placed at the edge, and those of intermediate size between. A proper selection of these plants will give a succession from early spring until frost stops all bloom. Many of these perennials remain unchanged from their natural state, but bloom in our borders just as they appeared in .their native woods and hills in different parts of the world, and seem to show no disposition to *' break" or deviate from their normal form, notwithstanding they have been in cultivation for a century or two. On the other hand, many have, by ^' sporting," or by hybridizing and crossing, as in the case of Peonies, Phloxes, Irises, and others, produced many florists' varieties, which show forms and colors not found in the native state of the plants, and the frequent occurrence of double flowers among them shows that cultivation has not been without HARDY HERBACEOUS PEREN^NIALS. 195 its influence. As many of the hardy herbaceous peren- nials are natives of shady woods and swamps, they suffer greatly if exposed to the scorching rays of our summer suns, unless mulched with manure, leaves, or some such material to protect the roots. Most of them also do rather better in a little shade than when exposed to full sunsh-ine. With such a number to select from, it is diffi- cult to make a list of twenty-five, or even fiftj^, and not leave out many desirable kinds. Those in the followiug list are all of generally admitted ex- cellence, and are usually to be obtained from florists and nurserymen. It maybe added here, that there is no part of the coun- try which does not afford wild flowers of sufficient beauty to merit a place in the garden, and most of them, except, perhaps, those which naturally grow in deep shade, will grow larger and bloom finer in a rich border than in their native localities. Perennials are propagated by division of the clumps, by cuttings of the stems, and sometimes of the roots, and by seeds. In many cases the seeds are very slow of germination unless sown as soon as ripe. As most of them do not bloom until the seedlings have made one year's growth, the seeds should be sown in a reserve bed, from which, at the end of the first summer, or in the following spring, they may be transplanted to the place where they are to flower. It is well to give the seedlings some protection the first winter, not because they are not hardy, but to prevent them from being thrown out of the soil by frequent freezing and thawing. A covering of evergreen boughs is most suitable ; but if these are not at hand, use coarse hay or other litter, first laying down some brush, to keep the covering from matting down upon them. 196 GARDENIKG FOR PLEASURE. Aconitum Napellus Monkshood. " " variegatum ..Variegated Monkshood. Anemone Japonica Japan Windflower. " " war. ^oworijzejb&er^.. White Japan Windflower. " Pulsatilla Pasque Flower. Aquilegiaalpina Alpine Columbine. " ccerulea .Rocky Mountain Columbine. " chrysantJia Golden-spurred Columbine. '' vulgaris Garden Columbine. Asperula odorata Woodruff. Astilbe Japonica (Incorrectly Spu-aea.) Baptisia australis False Indigo. Campanula Ca^patica. Carpathian Harebell. " persicifolia Peach-leaved Harebell. * ' grandiflora Great-flowered Harebell, and others. Cassia 3Iarilandica Wild Senna. Clematis erecta Upright Clematis. ' ' integrifolia Entire-leaved Clematis. Colchicum autumnale Meadow Saffron. Convallaria tnajalis Lily of the Valley. Chrysanthemum, V?iinese and Japanese.. The grand hybrid varieties of the Chrysanthemum now run into thou- sands, of almost eveiy shade except blue and bright scarlet. They are hardy in nearly all sections south of Baltimore, and on light, well-drained soils, in nearly all sections of the country, if covered with four or five inches of leaves or litter late in the fall. Delphinium elatum Bee Larkspur. ' * nudicaule Scarlet Larkspur, and others. Dianthus plumarius Garden Pink. " superhv.'i .- .Fringed Pink. Dicentra eximia.. Plumy Dicentra. " spectdbilis - -Bleeding Heart. Dictamnus Fraxinella .Fraxinella. Dodecatheon 3Ieadia American Cowslip. Eranthis hiemalis Winter Aconite. Erica carnea Winter Heath. Funlcia ovata Blue Plantain Lily. " Japonica {suhcordata) Japan Plantain Lily. Gypsophila paniculala. Panicled Gypsophila. HellchoriLS niger. .Christmas Rose. Hepatica triloba .Liver-leaf. " " fl- pl Double-flowered Liver-leai. Iheris Gihraltarica Gibraltar Candytuft. * * sempervirens Perennial Candytuft. Iris Germanica German Iris. HARDY HERBACEOUS PERENNIALS. 197 Iris Iberica Iberian Iris. " Kcempferi. - Japan Iris. " pumila .Dwarf Iris, and many others of a great range of colors. Lathyrus, perennial Flowering Pea. Liatris spicata Blazing Star. " squarrosa .Blazing Star, and others. Lilium auratum Gold-banded Lily. This, with raany other Japanese species in the catalogues, is per- fectly hardy, and there should be a good collection of them in every garden. Linumperenne - . .Perennial Flax. Lobelia cardinalis Cardinal Flower. This native (also its hybrids) does perfectly well in the soil of the garden. Lupinuspolyphyllus Many-leaved Lupine. Lychnis Chalceclonica Scarlet Lychnis, and several others. Lysimachia nicmmularia. Moneywort. Mertemia Virginica Virginia Lungwort. Myosotis palusiris Forget-me-not. " Azorica Azorean Forget-me-not. * ' dissitiflora Early Forget-me-not. Narcissus bijlorus Twin-flowered Nai'cissus. " poeticus - Poet's Narcissus. *♦ Jonquilla .Jonquil, * * Pseudo- Narcissus Daffodil, in double and single varieties. (Ejiothera MissouHensis Missouri Evening Primrose. PcBonia officinalis Common Pseony, and the various hybrids of this and other species, of which there are many fine named sorts. PcBonia tenuifoha - - -Fennel-leaved Poeony. " Moutan Tree Paeony, of which there are many named varieties. Papaver Oricntale Oriental Poppy. Ptntstemongrandiflorus. Large-flowered Pentstemon. " barbatus var. Torreyi .Torrey's Pentstemon. ♦' Palmeri Palmer's Pentstemon, and several other hardy species. Phlox, herbaceous Garden Phlox. Under this head a great number of named varieties may be had. New- ones are offered every year, and a good selection of colors malies a grand show. Phlox subulata Moss Pink. Also the white variety. 398 GARDEXIK'G FOR PLEASURE. Iblemonmm reptans Jacob's Ladder. * ' coeruleum Greek Valerian. Primula veris English Cowslip. This and the Polyanthus varieties need a moist and shady place. P. cortusoides is hardy, and P, Japonica probably so. Pijrethrum carneum. .Rosy Pyrethrum, the new double varieties. Saxifraga crassifolia Thick-leaved Saxifrage, ' ' cordifolia Heart -leaved Saxifi*age. Sedum acre Stonecrop. " Sieboldii {and varieyata) Siebold's Stonecrop. " pidchellum Beautiful Stonecrop. " spsddbile Showy Stonecrop, and a large number of others, presenting a great variety in foliage and flowers. Sempervivum arachnoideum Cobweb Houseleek. '* calcareum (Ca?ifo;'wicMm)-Purple-tipped Houseleek. " tectorum Common Houseleek. Of these curious plants there are more that fifty species in cultivation, and all perfectly hardy ; useful on rock work. Spircea filipendula (and double) Drop wort. " palmaia Palmate Spirsea. " Ulmaria Meadow Sweet. " lobata ---Queen of the Meadow. Symphytum officbiale var .Variegated Comfrey. Thalictrum mbius. Maiden-hah Meadow Rue. Tritoma tivaria (and vars.) Red-hot Poker, needs covering in winter with litter. Tunica Saxifraja Rock Tunica. Titcca fllamentosa.. Adam's Thi-ead or Needle. PEREX^nAL ORNAMENTAL, GRASSES. 1. Arundo Donax .Great Reed. 2. " " versicolor.. Variegated Reed. 3. " conspicica Silvery Reed. 4. EHanthus liavennce - -Ravenna Grass. 5. Eulalia Japonica variegata Japan Eulalia. 6. ** " zebrina Japan Zebra Eulalia. 7. Fcstuca glauca .Blue Fescue Grass. 8. Oyncrinm argenteum Pampas Grass. 9. Panicicm virgatum. -Wand-like Panic. 10. P/ialaris arundinacea picta Ribbon Grass. 11. Stipa pennata Feather Grass. In the climate of New York, Nos. 1, 2 and 8 need protection; Nos. 1 and 2 by litter over the roots, and No 8 by covering it with a cask or box. In the order of their hight, No. 7 is 6 inches, 10 and 11 a foot, 5 and 6, 4 to 8 feet, and 1, 2, 3, 4, and 8 from 6 to 12 feet, according to the age of the plants. FLOWERS WHICH WILL GROW IX THE SHADE. 199 CHAPTER XXXITI. FLOWERS WHICH WILL GROW IN THE SHADE. There are few plants that will flower in places from which sunshine is entirely excluded. Some plants will grow well enougli, developiug shoots and leaves, but flowers oi nearly all kinds must have some sunshine. Of those that do well and flower when planted out in the open ground where sunlight only comes for two or three hours during the day, may be named the following : Calceolarias, Fuchsias, Lobelias, Herbaceous Phloxes, Pansies, Forget-me-nots, Lily of the Valley, and other lierbaceous plants and shrubs whose native habitat is shady woods. Perhaps a better effect is produced in such situations by ornamental leaved plants, such as Cbleuses of all kinds, Amaranths, Achyranthes, Caladi- nms, Cannas, and other plants with highly colored or ornamental leaves. With these may be combined the different styles of whits or grajMeaved plants, such as Centaureas, Cinerarias, and Gnaphaliums, plants known under the general popular terra of ^' Dusty Millers." For our own part, we much prefer to devote shaded siti- ations to such plants, rather than to see the abortive at- tempts to produce flowers mide by phmts in positiqns where there is no sunshine. It may be here remarked, that the cultivator of plants in rooms should understr^nd the necessity of sunlight to plants that are to, flqwer, and endeavor to get them as near as possible tq a window hay- ing an eastern or a soutliern aspect. The higher the temperature, the more plants suffer for the want of light. Many plants, such as Gerar^iun^s, Fuchsias, or Roses, might remain in a temperature of forty degrees, in a cellar for example, away from direct light, for months without material injury, while jf the cellar contained a 200 GARDENIl^G FOR PLEASURE. furnace teeping up a temperature of seventy degrees, they would all die before the Avinter was ended, particu- larly if the plants were of a half-hardy nature. If trop- ical species, they might stand it better ; but all plants quickly become enfeebled when kept at a high tempera- ture and away from the light. CHAPTER XXXIV. INSECTS AND OTHER PARASITES INJURIOUS TO PLANTS. When insects attack plants in the greenhouse, parlor, or anywhere under cover, we can geoerally manage to get them under control; but when they attack plants in the open air, it is, according to our experience, diflScult to destroy them. Insects are injurious to plants in the open air in two principal ways : some attack the branches and leaves, and others infest the roots. When insects attack the roots of a plant, we have been able to do but little to stop their ravages. We can manage somewhat better with those attacking the leaves, but even this di- vision of the enemy is often too much for us. As a pre- ventive, we would strongly advise that birds of all kinds should be encouraged. Since the European Sparrows have favored us with their presence in such numbers, in- sects of nearly all kinds have much decreased. Most people will remember the disgusting ^* measuring worm" tlmt festooned the shade trees in New York, Brooklyn, and other cities twenty years ago. These made their exit almost in proportion to the increase of Sparrows, and they are certainly lessened from what they were before the introduction of the Sparrow. The same is true of the Rose Slug. In my Rose grounds, a few years ago, we were obliged to employ a number of boys for weeks INSECTS AND OTHER PARASITES. 201 during the summer to shake off and kill the Rose Slug, in order to keep the plants alive ; but since we have had the Sparrows in such numbers, hardly one of these pests is now seeu. An examination of the crop of a Sparrow killed in July showed that it contained Eose Slugs, Aphis, or green fly, and the seeds of chickweed and other plants, proving beyond question the fact that they are promiscuous feeders. The Rose Slug {Selanclria roscB)f referred to above, is a light green, soft insect, varying from one-sixteenth of an inch to nearly an inch in length. There are apparently two species or varieties, one of which eats only the cuticle of the lower side of the leaf, the other eats it entire. The first is by far the more destructive here. In a few days after the plants are attacked they appear as if they had been burned. The Rose Chaffer {Macrodactylus subspinosus) gets its name from the preference it shows for the buds and blossoms of the Rose, though it is equally destructive to the Dahlia, Aster, Balsam, and many other flowers, and es- pecially grape blossoms. An excellent application for the prevention of the rav- ages of the Rose Chaffer or the Rose Slug, which attack the hardy or June Roses, is whale-oil soap dissolved in the proportion of one pound to eight gallons of water. This, if steadily applied twice a week witn a syringe on Rose plants, before the leaf has developed in spring, will entirely prevent the attacks of the insects. Another remedy is to mix an ounce of Paris green in one hundred gallons of water, and syringe as advised with the whale- oil soap. It will be observed that the quantity of Paris green advised is very small to be mixed in such a quan- tity of water ; but it is found to be ample. We find, however, that if the Slug once gets fairly at work, either remedy is powerless unless used so strong as to injure the leaves. The Rose Bug, so called (Aramigus Fulleri), is the 203 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. most destructive of all insects attacking the Rose while forcing in winter ; for its ravages are so insidious that often the whole Eose house is ruined before it is known, by inexperienced hands, what is the matter. The per- fect iusect somewhat resembles a small cockroach, but is of a grayish brown color. It is not easily observed, as it keeps always under the leaves or close to the stems of the plant, audits presence is usually first noticed by half cir- cular pieces being bitten from the edges of the leaves; but it does comparatively little harm in that way. It is when it deposits its eggs in the soil close to the roots that the danger begins. The eggs in a few weeks hatch out into larvae, which at once attack, and, if in sufficient num- bers, entirely destroy the roots of the Rose. So far there is no known remedy against the Rose Bug, unless it be to carefully search for and destroy the perfect insect on the plant. In our own establishment we have got entirely free from it by persistent care in destroying the insect by picking it fi'om the plants. When the soil has become infested by the larvae or maggots of the Rose Bug, there is no remedy. The plants, soil, and even the benches of the greenhouse had better be taken out and burned if the insect is there in great numbers. Before we understood how to manage it, ou one occasion we threw out and destroyed the plants, soil, and benches in a Rose house three hundred feet long by twenty feet wide. Hundreds of amateurs, and even professional florists, fail in grow- ing Ro3e buds in winter from no other cause than the ravages of this insect. Green Fly, or Aphis, is one of the most common, but, fortunately, most easily destroyed, of any insect that in- fests plants, either in-doors or out. In our greenhouses, as already stated, we fumigate twice a week, by burning about half a pound of refuse tobacco stems (made damp) to every five hundred square feet of glass surface ; but in private greenhouses, or on plants in rooms, fumigating is IXSECTS AND OTHER PARASITES. 203 often impracticable. Then the tobacco stems can be used by steeping one pound in five gallons of water, until the water gets to be the color of strong tea. This liquid, applied over and under the leaves with a syringe, will de- stroy the insect quite as well as by fumigating, only in either case the application should be made before the insects are seen, to prevent their coming rather than to destroy them when established ; for often by neglect they get a foothold in such legions that all remedies become ineffectual to dislodge them. Another means of prevent- ing the green fly is to apply tobacco in the shape of dust, or the sweepings of tobacco warehouses, which can be found for sale in most seed or agricultural establish- ments, at a cost of five to ten cents per pound. This, ap- plied once or twice a week to an ordinary sized private greenhouse, would effectually prevent any injury from green fly. No special quantity of this need be prescribed, as all that is necessary is to see that it is so dusted on that it reaches all parts of the plant and on both sides of the leaves. It it best to slightly syringe the plants be- forehand, so that the dust will adhere to the leaves. When applied to plants out-doors, it should be done in the morning when the dew is on. Fruit-trees of many kinds, shrubs, Roses of all kinds. Chrysanthemums, and many other plants grown out of doors, are particu- larly liable to injury from some species of Aphis ; but the application of tobacco dust, if made in time, will be found a cheap and effectual remedy. Ground or Blue Aphis is a close relative of the preced- ing, but it gets its living from the roots down in the soil, while the Green and Black Aphis feed in the air on the leaves. The Blue Aphis attacks a great many varieties of plants, particularly in hot, dry weather ; and whenever Asters, Verbenas, Petunias, Centaureas, or such plants begin to droop, it will be found on examination, in three cases out of four, that the farthest extremities of their 204 GARDE]S^ING FOR PLEASURE. roots are completely surrounded by the Blue Aphis. The only remedy we have ever found for this pest is a strong decoction of tobacco, made so strong as to resemble black coffee in color. The earth around the plants must be soaked with this, so that the lowest roots will be reached. The tobacco water will not hurt the plants, but will be fatal to the insect, and, if it has not already damaged the roots to too great an extent, may prove a remedy. Ants. — These are not usually troublesome in the open ground, unless on lawns. (For remedies there see Chap- ter on ^"Lawns.") In greenhouses, however, they are one of the worst pests, not so much from the injury they do themselves as by their carrying mealy bug, green fly, and other insects, so that from one plant thus affected the ants will soon distribute them over all the plants in the greenhouse. A simple method we have found to get rid of them, is to lay fresh bones around the infested plants. They will leave everything to feed on these, and when thus accumulated may be easily destroyed. Another method is to blow Pyretlirum or Persian Insect Powder over them with a bellows. They are killed at once if the powder strikes them in a dry state ; but it has no effect if damp, for, when strewed in their haunts, they run over it with impunity. The Red Spider is one of the most insidious enemies of plants, both when under glass and in the open air in summer. It luxuriates in a hot and dry atmosphere, and the only remedy that I can safely recommend to am- ateurs is copious syringings with water, if in the green- house, so that a moist atmosphere can be obtained. This, of course, is not practicable when plants are grown in rooms, and the only thing that can then be done is to sponge off the leaves. It is this insect, more than any- thing else, that makes it so difficult to grow plants in the dry air of the sitting-room, as it may be sapping the life blood from a plant, and its owner never discover the INSECTS AND OTHER PARASITES. 205 cause of his trouble. It is so minute as hardly to be B§en by the naked eye, but its ravages soon show; and if the leaves of your plants begin to get brown, an exami- nation of the under surface of the leaf will usually reveal the little pests in great numbers. When they get thus established there is no remedy but to sponge the leaves thoroughly with water or weak soapsuds. The Mealy Bug, as it is generally called, is a white mealy or downy-looking insect, which is often very trou- blesome among hothouse plants, but rarely does any harm among those that can live in a cool room. It is a native of some tropical latitudes, and can only exist in such a temperature as is required by plants of that class. There are various remedies used by florists, but the safest is to use Cole's Insect Destroyer, a remedy that never fails to destroy this insect, without injury to the plant, when sprayed on the plants by a barber's atomizer. On a large scale we find a certain remedy in the use of one pint of Fir Tree Oil to ten gallons of water, applied by the syringe once a week. In fact, we find the use of Fir Tree Oil in this proportion a safe and sure remedy against all insect life; but its application must be continuous, and at least once a week. Brown and White Scale Insects. — These appear as if lifeless, and adhere closely to the stems of such plants as Oleanders, Ivies, etc., and, like the Mealy Bug, are best destroyed by being washed or rubbed off. Remedy, when on a large scale, is Fir Tree Oil, TJirips. — This is an insect varying in color from light yellow to dark brown, and much more active in its move- ments than the Green Fly, and more difiScult to destroy. When it once gets a foothold it is very destructive. It succumbs to tobacco in any of the forms recommended for the destruction of Green Fly, but not so readily. It luxuriates m shaded situations, and generally abounds where plants are standing too thickly together, or where 206 ' GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. TeDtilation or light is deficient. It may be safely as- serted, that in any well-regulated place where plants are kept, no injury from this or Green Fly will ever become serious if due attention has been given to keeping the atmos})here of the place moist, and using tobacco freely in any of the forms we have recommended. The Angle Worm. — This is the common worm seen in every soil in pots and in the open ground. It is harmless so far as feeding goes, for it seems never to touch plants as food ; but it bores and crawls around in a way by no means beneficial to pot-grown plants. It is, however, easily dislodged. By slaking a quart of lime and adding water to make up ten gallons of the liquid, and watering the plants with it after it has become clear, the caustic qualities of the lime will be quickly fatal to the worm. When troublesome in the open ground, sow slaked lime on the dug or plowed surface about as thickly as sand is strewn on a floor, and rake or harrow it in, so as to mix it with the soil. Some writers have asserted that the Angle Worm benefits the soil by its movements through it. Few practical gardeners will believe this, as they are usually destroyed on sight by all workers in the soil. MILDEW. Mildew is a parasitical fungus, often seen on green- house and other plants, and is quickly destructive to their health. But, as with all other plant troubles, it is best to prevent it rather than cure. Care should be taken, particularly where Roses or Grapevines are grown under glass (as both of these are especially liable to be attacked), to avoid a rapid change of temperature, or a long exposure to sudden chill by draughts in ventilating. iVs soon as spots of grayish-white appear on the leaves of Roses or Grapevines, either out-doors or under glass, it is certain that mildew is present ; but if it has not been INSECTS AND OTHER PARASITES. 207 neglected too long, the following preparation will usually be found a prompt remedy : Take three pounds each of flowers of sulphur and quick-lime, put together and slake the lime, and add six gallons of water ; then boil all to- gether until the liquid is reduced to two gallons, allow it to settle until it gets clear, and bottle for use. One gill only of this is to be mixed in five gallons of water, and syringed over the plants in the evening, taking care not to use it on the fruit when ripe, as it would communicate a taste and smell which would render it useless. Applied in this weak state, it does not injure the leaves, and yet has the power to destroy the low form of vegetable growth which we call mildew. We apply it just as we do to- bacco, once or twice a week, as a preventive; and we rarely have a speck of mildew. Another remedy, not quite so good, but easier to get, is to mix one pound of virgin sulphur with ten pounds of tobacco dust, and throw this mixture with a bellows on the leaves of Grape- vines or Roses outside when the dew is on, so that it shall adhere ; or, if in the greenhouse, after syringing. If this is done once or twice a week the mildew or aphis will never get much of a foothold, the sulphur being the specific against the mildew and the tobacco dust check- ing the aphis. These remedies are such as are employed at seasons when there is no artificial heat used in the greenhouse or the grapery ; but when fire heat is applied to the flue, steam, or hot- water pipes, then the most certain preventive of mildew is to mix lime and sulphur with water to the consistency of thick whitewash, and apply it to the upper surface of the hot-water pipes. This can be done with perfect safety to hot-water pipes, and it had better be done two or three times during the winter. It can also be safely applied to steam pipes heated by low pressure steam, if one-fourth of the surface of the pipe only is covered. "With flues it should only be applied at the cold end. 208 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. The fumes of sulphur thus slowly evolved by the water or steam pipes is certain destruction to mildew, and there is no danger whatever to the foliage if the precautions given are taken. It is our own practice to wash our hot- water and steam pipes four or five times during winter with this sulphur wash. CHAPTER XXXV. FROZEN PLANTS. When by any mishap the plants, whether in parlor or gi'eenhouse, become frozen, either at once remove them (taking care not to touch the leaves) to some place warm enough to be just above the point of freezing ; or, if there are too many to do that, get up the fire as rapidly as possible, and raise the temperature. The usual advice is to sprinkle the leaves and shade the plants from the sun. We have never found either remedy of any avail with frozen plants, and the sprinkling is often a serious injury if done before the temperature is above the freez- ing point. In our experience with thousands of frozen plants, we have tried all manner of expedients, and found no better method than to get them out of the freezing atmosphere as quickly as possible ; and we have also found that the damage is in proportion to the succulent condition of the plant and the intensity of the freezing. Just what degree of cold plants in any given condition can endure without injury, we are unable to state. Plants are often frozen so that the leaves hang down, but when thawed out are found to be not at all injured. At an- other time the same low temperature acting on the same kind of plants may kill them outright if they happen to be growing more thriftily, and are full of sap. Much depends on the temperature at which plants have been MULCHING. 209 growing ; for example, we find, if we have a warm spell in fall when, for a week or so, the temperature has been at sixty-five or sevent}^ degrees at night with ten to fifteen degrees more in the open air, that a slight frost will kill or greatly injure such half-hardy plants as Carnations, Geraniums, or monthly Roses ; but should the weather be such as to gradually get colder, so that the tempera- ture has been lowered twenty to twenty-five degrees, a slight frost then coming w^U do little or no injury to such plants. When the frost is penetrating into a green- house or room in which plants are kept, and the heating arrangements are inadequate to keep it out, the best thing to do is to cover the plants with paper (newspapers) or sheeting. Thus protected, most plants will be en- abled to resist four or five degrees of frost. Paper is rather better than sheeting for this purpose. CHAPTER XXXVI. MULCHING. Litter of any kind placed around newly-planted trees to prevent evaporation from the soil was the original meaning of mulch; but it is at present extended to in- clude a covering of the soil applied at any time, and for very different purposes. Good cultivators apply hay, straw, or other litter to the surface of the soil to protect the roots of certain plants against the action of frost, it being useful, not so much against freezing as to prevent the alternate freezing and thawing that is apt to occur in our variable and uncertain climate, even in mid- win- ter. As stated under ''Strawberry Culture," the mulch applied in the fall protects the roots during winter. It is allowed to remain on the bed, where, if thick enough, it keeps down weeds, and prevents the evaporation of 210 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. moisture from the soil during the dry time we are apt to have between the flowering and the ripening of the Straw- berry. Besides all this, it makes a clean bed for the fruit to rest upon, and should a driving shower come up as the fruit is ripening, there is no danger that the berries will be splashed with mud and spoiled. The utility of a mulch is not confined to the Strawberry among fruits. Raspberries and Currants are much benefited by it, and bv its use a gardener of my acquaintance succeeds in growing fine crops of the choice varieties of English Gooseberries, a fruit with which very few succeed in our hot summers. Newly-planted trees, whether of fruit or ornamental kinds, are much benefited by a mulch, and its application often settles the question of success or failure. We have known a whole Pear orchard to be mulched, and the owner thought its cost was more than repaid by saving the fallen fruit from bruises. The root- ing of a layer is by some gardeners thought to be facili- tated by placing a flat stone over the buried branch; the fact being that the stone acts as a mulch, and prevents the soil around the cut portion from drying out, and greatly favors the rooting process. Even in the vegetable garden mulching is found useful, especially with Cauli- flowers, which find our summers quite too dry. The material of the mulch is not of much importance, the effect being mainly mechanical, and one kind of litter will answer as well as another. The material will be gov- erned in great measure by locality. Those Hving near salt water will find salt hay, as hay from the marshes is called, the most readily procured. Those who live near pine forests use the fallen leaves, or pine needles, as they are called. In the grain-growing districts straw is abund- ant, and nothing can be better. It can be applied more thoroughly if run through a cutter, though the thrashing machine often makes it short enough. Leaves are na- ture's own mulch, and answer admirably. If there is SHADING. 211 danger of their being blown away, brush laid over them, or even a little earth sprinkled on them, will keep them in place. Tan-bark and sawdust may serve for some uses, but they are very bad for Stra\> berries, their finer particles being about as objectionable as the soil. One of the best materials to use for Strawberry mulching is the green grass mowed from lawns. This, applied to the thickness of two or three inches around the roots of Strawberries or other small fruits, will be found not only to greatly benefit the crop, particularly in dry weather, but will save greatly in labor by preventing the growth of weeds. One of our best private gardeners in the vicin- ity of New York has adopted this summer mulching with the grass from the lawn for nearly twenty years, and has succeeded in growing all kinds of small fruits in the highest degree of perfection. CHAPTER XXXVII. SHADING. In mulching the object is to prevent evaporation from the soil, as well as to shield the roots from sudden changes of temperature. It is often necessary to protect the whole plant in this respect, and this is accomplished by shading. Although, on a large scale, we can do little in the way of shading plants in the open ground, yet the amateur will often find it of great utility, as screening will frequently save a recently transplanted plant, which without it would be quite ruined by a few hours' exposure to the sun. For shading small plants in the border, such as transplanted annuals, a few shingles will be found very useful. One or two of these can be stuck in the ground so as to completely protect the deli- 212 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. cate plant, and yet not deprive it of air. Six-inch boards of half-inch stuff nailed together to form a V shaped trough are very useful in the garden. They are handy to place over small plants during cold nights, and may be turned over and set to make a screen against strong winds, or used for shading plants in rows. Seedlings often suffer from the heat of the sun in the middle of the day; the seedlings of even the hardiest forest trees are very delicate when young. The seeds of such trees when sown naturally almost always fall where the young plant will be shaded, and the amateur who experiments in this very interesting branch of horticulture, the rais- ino- of eversfreen and deciduous trees and shrubs from seed, will find it necessary to imitate Nature, and protect his young seedlings from the intense heat of the sun. There are several ways of doing this. If the seeds have been sown in an open border, let him take twigs about a foot long, evergreen if they can be had, but, if not, those from any deciduous tree, and stick them a few inches apart all over the bed. This will give the seedlings very much such a protection as they would naturally have had in the shade of other plants ; and though evergreens will look better for a while, the dead leaves of deciduous twigs will give quite as useful a shade. It is always safer to sow seeds in a frame, as the young plants are then under more complete control. Frames are easily shaded by means of a lattice made of common laths. Strips of inch stuff, an inch and a half or two inches wide, are used for the sides of the lattice, and laths are nailed across as far apart as their own width. One lath being nailed on, another is laid down to mark the distance, the third one put down and nailed, and the second lath is moved along to mark the distance for the fourth, and so on. With a screen of this kind there is abundant light, but the sun does not shine long at a time on one spot, and the plants have a constantly chang- SHADING. 213 ing sun and shade. This lath screen may be used for shading plants in the open ground, if supported at a proper hight above them. In a propagating house, where it is necessary, as it often is, to shade cuttings, a lattice laid upon the outside of the glass answers a good purpose. The laths are sometimes tied together with strong twine, the cord answering the place of slats, and serving as a warp with which the laths are woven ; the advantage of a screen of this kind being that it can be rolled up. Another and excellent screen to shade is to make frames three by six feet of the '* Protecting Cloth" already alluded to in the chapter on ** Greenhouses or Pits without Artificial Heat." Plants kept in windows dur- ing summer months will, if in a sunny exposure, require some kind of a shade, and if the one provided to keep the sun from the room shuts out too much light, or ex- cludes air as well as sun, something must be provided which will give protection during the heat of the day, and still allow sufficient light and an abundant circu- lation of air. Any one with ingenuity can arrange a screen of white cotton cloth to answer the purpose. The old practice of stripping the greenhouse in sum- mer is falling into disuse. By a proper selection of plants and sufficient shade, it is made as attractive then as at any other season ; but even for tropical plants the glass must be shaded. For a small lean-to, a screen of light canvas, muslin, or the ** Protecting Cloth," ar- ranged upon the outside, so tliat it may be wound up on a roller when not wanted, will answer ; and if it be de- sired to keep the house as cool as possible, this should be so contrived that there will be a space of six inches or so between that and the glass. But upon a large house, or one with a curvilinear roof, this is not so manageable, and the usual method is to coat the glass with some ma- terial which will obstruct a part of the light. The most common method is to give the outside of the glass a coat 214 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. of lime whitewash made very thin. This makes a suffi- cient shade, and is gradually dissolved by the rains, so that by autumn the coating is removed, or so nearly so that what remains may be readily washed off. A more pleasant effect is produced by spattering the glass with a prepara- tion of naphtha and white lead, made so thin as to resem- ble skimmed milk. This can be put on by a syringe at a cost not to exceed twenty-five cents for every thousand square feet of glass. It is best to put it on gradually, be- ginning in May by lightly covering the glass in numer- ous fine drops, like rain drops, and increasing its thickness as the season advances. Whatever may be the means of effecting it, we find that in this latitude shading of some kind is required from about the first of May to the middle of September by nearly all plants grown under glass. Ferns, Lycopods, Caladiums, Primulas, Fuchsias, Begonias, Gloxinias, Achimenes, Lobelias, Smilax, and plants of that charac- ter require the glass to be heavily shaded, while Roses, Carnations, Bouvardias, Poinsettias, Geraniums of all kinds, and nearly all succulent plants, do not need so much. The method of spattering the glass outside with the preparation of naphtha and white lead, allows the shading to be light or heavy, as required. When first done, it is spattered very thinly, merely to break the strong glare of the sun, just about thick enough to half cover the surface. As the season advances, the spatter- ing should be repeated to increase the shade, but at no time for the plants last mentioned do we entirely cover the glass. In Fjugland, especially for Fern houses, Brunswick green mixed with milk is used, to give a green shade, which is thought to be best suited to these plants. The blue glass for greenhouses which was so highly lauded a few years ago has not met with much favor ; but recent experiments in glazing with ground glass have given such results as to warrant the use of it THE LAW OF COLOR IX FLOWERS. 215 on houses in which nearly all kinds of plants are grown, except Roses, Grapes, Strawberries, or other plants the flowers and fruit of which are wanted in midwinter. At that season all the light possible is required ; and al- though ground glass but slightly obscures the light, yet it is found that it does not answer so well as clear glass from the middle of December to the middle of January. Before or after these dates it can be used to advantage for any greenhouse purpose. CHAPTER XXXVIII. THE LAW OF COLOR IN FLOWERS. I REFER to this matter in the hope that it may be the means of saving some of my readers, not only from being duped and swindled by a class of itinerant scamps that annually reap a rich harvest in disposing of impossibili- ties in flowers, but that I may assure them of the utter improbability of their ever seeing such wonders as these fellows offer, thereby saving them from parting with money for worthless objects, and from the ridicule of their friends who are already better advised. This sub- ject cannot ba too often brought before our amateur hor- ticulturists. Warnings are given year after year in lead- ing agricultural and other journals devoted to gardening, vet a new crop of dupes is always coming up, who readily fall victims to the scoundrels who live upon their credu- lity. Not a season passes but some of these swindling dealers have the audacity to plant themselves right in the business centers of our large cities, and hundreds of our sharp business men glide smoothly into their nets. The very men who will chuckle at the misfortunes of a poor rustic when he falls into the hands of a mock 216 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. auctioneer, or a pocket-book dropper, will freely pay ten dollars for a rose plant of which a picture has been shown them as having a blue flower ; the chance of its coming blue being about equal to the chance that the watch of the mock auctioneer will be gold. It has long been known among the best observers of such matters, that in certain families of plants particular colors prevail, and that in no single instance can we ever expect to see hluey yelloiUf and scarlet colors in varieties of the same species. If any one at all conversant with plants will bring any family of them to mind, it will at once be seen how undeviatiug is this law. In the Dahlia we have scarlet and yellow, but no approach to blue, and so in the Rose, Hollyhock, etc. Again, in the Verbena, Salvia, etc., we have scarlet and blue, but no yelloio ! In the Hyacinth we have blue and a fairly good yellow, but no scarlet. Some have con- tended that in this family we have the combination, for of course we have crimson ; but crimson is not scarlet any more than blue is purple. If we reflect it will be seen that there is nothing out of the order of Nature in this arrangement. We never expect to see among our poul- try, with their varied but somber plumage, any assume the azure hues of our spring Blue-bird or the dazzling tints of the Oriole ; why, then, should Ave expect Nature to step out of what seems her fixed laws, and give us a blue Rose, a blue Dahlia, or a yellow Verbena ? CHAPTER XXXIX. HUMBUGS IN HORTICULTURE. A PAPER under this head was read by me at a meeting of the National Association of Nurserymen and Florists held at Chicago, 111., June 16th, 1880; and although it has already in part been published in my work, " Garden and Farm Topics,'' yet I take the liberty of again repeat- HUMBUGS IN HORTICULTURE. 317 ing the main parts of it here, in the hope that it may be the means of preventing mj amateur readers (those who •are ^'gardening for pleasure") from falling into the many traps set for them by those who make a business of swindling in trees, plants, seeds, or fertilizers. The lifetime experience of any man is not too short to be imposed upon by many of the hundreds of old va- rieties of fruits, flowers, or vegetables that are sent out annually under new names. Any well-posted nursery- man can easily detect when a Bartlett Pear or a Baldwin Apple appears under a new name ; or a florist, making a specialty of Roses, knows, as, for example, when, some years ago, the old Solfaterre Rose was sent out under the name of " Augusta" (claiming it to be hardy in every State of the Union, and sold as a great bargain at five dollars apiece), that the venders thereof were either swindlers or entirely ignorant of the business they had embarked in ; or when the confiding market gardener is induced to buy a new and superior Cabbage or Tomato seed at five dollars an ounce, and finds them identical with varieties that he can buy at half that price per pound, he has good reason to come to the conclusion that the man from wliom he pur- chased was either a humbug or else unfitted, from his ignorance, to engage in the business of a seedsman. But, unfortunately, from the varied nature of these impostures, it is exceedingly difficult to mete out justice to those who, knowingly or otherwise, place such swindles on the horticultural community; for the man who grows fruit trees is as likely to know as little about Roses as the man who grows Roses is to know about fruit trees, and either is less likely to be posted on the merits of vege- tables. So, then, if the partly experienced horticulturist may be imposed upon in such a way, how safe is the field when the swindler tries his tricks upon the general public ? The sharp man of the city falls as quickly into the 218 GARDEXIXG FOR PLEASURE. trap of the horticultural swindler as the veriest rustic, be- cause his city experience of impostures in other matters helps him nothing in this. He may not be much trou- bled when he sees a bootblack fall off the dock into the river, particularly if his companion plays off the heroic role, and plunges in after him to the rescue. He under- stands it all, for both can swim like ducks, and there was no more danger for the first than for the second, and none for either. A well-stuffed pocket-book snatched from under his feet is an incident that does not in the least arouse his cupidity, for he has long been conversant with the trick of the pocket-book dropper. The mock auctioneer may scream himself hoarse, offering gold watches at five dollars apiece, and it hardly elicits a smile of derision. The tears of the benighted orphan in search of his uncle does not bring a dime from his pocket, for he understands it all, together with a score more of the tricks of the greab city. But in the springtime, when his garden instincts begin to bud, and he sees in some window in Broadway flaming representations of fruits and flowers, he falls into the trap and is ready for the spoiler. Some years ago I had occasion to act as an amateur detective in one of these horticultural swindling shops, the owners of which, are now known in New York as the *'Blue Eose Men." When I arrived, there were at least a dozen ladies and gentlemen engaged in buying seeds, bulbs, and plants, the flowers and fruits of which were represented by the pictures on the walls : for example, Asparagus was shown as having shoots as thick as a broom handle, the seeds of which were selling rapidly at one cent apiece, warranted to produce a crop in three months from the time of sowing. An old lady had just become the possessor of five dollars' worth, and seemed delighted with her bargain. One of the most attractive pictures on the wall was HUMBUGS IN HORTICULTURE. 219 an immense colored engraving, showing a tree, on which Strawberries were growing, and as big as Oranges. My gaze was attracted to a handsome plate of Bhie Moss Roses, and I modestly asked the price of the plants. The polite Frenchman (who was doing the principal selling for the concern) whisked out from beneath the table three plants, representing them to be Moss Roses (which, by-the-way, were all alike, and were all our common Prairie Rose), and said, **This one, he bloom only once, I tell you the truth, so I sell him for two dollar. This one, he be the Remontant, he bloom twice — just twice — I sell him for three dollar ; but this one, he be the ever- blooming, perpetual Blue Moss Rose, he bloom all the time, he cheap at five dollars." I quietly remarked, if it bloomed all the time, why was it not blooming now ? He looked at me pityingly, and said, ** My dear sir, you expect too much. These Moss Rose just come over in the ship from Paris. You take him home and plant him, and he bloom right away, and he keep on bloom- ing." I did not take him home, but 1 took the story, something in the shape it is now told, and had it pub- lished in one of the leading New York papers, and in less than a week the ** Blue Rose Men " had pulled up stakes, but, no doubt, to pitch their camp somewhere else, and set their traps for fresh victims. The '^ Blue Rose Men" are very impartial in their wanderings, and rarely omit a city of any size, beginning usually in New Orleans in January, running northward, and ending up with Philadelphia, New York, and Boston through April and May. These humbugs in horticulture have their comical side. A few years ago, in passing St. Paul's Church (Broad w^ay). New York, I saw an old negro squatted on the pavement with a great bundle of plants, carefully mossed up, lying alongside of him. On inquiring what they were, he said they were Rose bushes ; Rose bushes having all the good 220 gardenijh^g for pleasure. things wanted in a Rose, fragrance, hardinecs, and eyer- blooming, and the price but fifty cents apiece. He had got them, he said, from the boss, and was selling them on a commission. The poor darkey was only an innocent agent. He no doubt believed he was selling Rose bushes, but the boss, whoever he might be, undoubtedly knew better, for the plants were not Roses at all, but the com- mon Cat Brier (Smilax sarsaparilla), one of the worst pests of our hedgerows, but the plant of which is near enough in appearance to a Rose to deceive the ordinary city merchant. That same season at every prominent street corner could be seen the venders of the ** Alligator Plant,'* which some enterprising genius cut by the wagon load from the Jersey swamps, and dealt them out to those who retailed them on the street. The " Alligator Plant" was sold in lengths of twelve to twenty inches, at from twenty-five to fifty cents apiece, according to its straightness and length ; and by the number engaged in the business, hundreds of dollars* worth must have been sold. The " Alligator Plant " is the rough, triangular branches of the Sweet Gum Tree {Liquidamhar styraciflua), common in most parts of the country. There is no doubt whatever that these pieces of stick have been planted by thousands during the last six years in the gardens in and around New York, with about as much chance of their growing as the fence pickets or paving stones. The bulb peddlers, a class of itinerant swindlers, de- serve brief attention. They have always some wonderful novelty in bulbs ; and their mode of operating, to the uninitiated, has a semblance of fairness, as they are lib- eral fellows, and frankly offer to take one-half cash on delivery, and if the goods do not come up to the repre- sentation, the other half need not be paid. For example, when the Gold-banded Japan Lily was first introduced. HUMBUGS IN HORTICULTURE. 221 bulbs the size of hickory nuts sold at two hundred and fifty dollars per hundred. About that time one of these worthies came along with samples of a Lily of fine size and appearance, which, he said, he had just received from Japan. There was no doubt of its genuineness, for tie had seen it in flower. He had a large stock, and would sell at one hundred dollars per hundred, but he was willing to take half that amount down, and the other half when the bulbs flowered and had proved correct. They did not prove correct, and he never called. The bulb he sold was the common White Lily {Lilium candidum), which is sold everywhere at five or six dollars per hun- dred. These same scamps flood the rural districts every year with blue Gladiolus, scarlet Tuberoses, and other absurdities in bulbs and seeds, usually on the same terms of one-half cash down, the other half when the rara avis has feathered out. The present season (1887), one of these ' worthies found out that the flowers of Tuberoses and Lily of the Valley, by being placed in red or blue ink, would in an hour or two absorb enough of the ink to make them a beautiful blue or red. Carrying the colored flowers with him, having the shape, fragrance, and general appearance of the actual flowers of these bulbs, he was successful in selling hundreds of dollars' worth of these wonderful novelties, at ten times their actual value. It is needless to say that they never try it twice on the same victim, but avail themselves of our broad continent to seek out new fields for their operations. One of the most successful swindlers of this type was Comanche George, whose fame became almost national. George made his advent in New York in 1876. He waa, he said, a Texas scout, and for years his rifle, revolver, and bowie knife had been the terror of the red men; but one day, in his rambles on the lone Texas prairies, his eye was arrested by a flower, whose wonderful coloring eclipsed the rainbow, and whose delicate perfume was 222 GARDEI^'ING FOR PLEASITEE. wafted over the Brazos for leagues ; in short, never before had eye of mortal rested on such a flower. The man of war was subdued. He betook himself to the peaceful task of gathering seed, and turned his steps to the haunts of civilized man to distribute it. We first heard of him in Washington, where he wished to place it in the hands of the government, and accordingly offered it to Mr. William Smith, Superintendent of the Botanic Gardens there ; but the government, being short of funds, so Smith said, was not just then in a position to buy, and with his advice George trimmed his *' sales "for New York and a market. His success in Baltimore and Philadelphia was so great (where he started the sale of the seeds at two cents apiece) that it induced him, when he struck New York, to advance the price to five cents a seed. He put up at one of the best hotels, and claimed that for a month his sales of the seed of the Cockatelle — the beautiful Texas flower — reached fifty dollars a day. But his success threw liim off his balance. He took to fire water, and in an unguarded moment fell into the hands of a newspaper man, who extracted from him all the facts connected with the enterprise. George never was a scout, had never been in Texas, but he had been a good customer to the various seedsmen of the different cities, where his purchases of Okra or Gumbo seed, at about fifty cents a pound, had made nearly a dearth of the article. His victims (whose names he gave by the score, and which were duly chronicled in the newspaper article referred to) were from all classes : the enterprising florist, who secretly went into it in a wholesale way, with a view to outwit his less fortunate fellows ; the grandee of Fifth Avenue, who • anticipated a blaze of beauty on his lawn ; the hotel man, whose window boxes were to perfume the air ; all had fallen easy victims to the wiles of Comanche George. George disappeared from New York, though there is but little doubt that his business had been too HUMBUGS IK HORTICULTURE. 223 successful for him to abandon it. A newspaper para- graph which reads as follows, looks as if it might be the Texas scout in a somewhat different role : *'The prepossessing appearance, gentlemanly demeanor, and foreign accent of the man who called himself Carlo Corella, botanist to the Court of Brazil, convinced a number of wealthy San Francisco ladies that he was truthful. He said to each that the failure of a remittance compelled him to sell some rare bulbs of Brazilian Lilies, which he had intended to present to Mrs. R. B. Hayes. 'The flower,' says the Clironicle, 'was to be a great scar- let bell, with ecra ruchings on the petals, a solferino frill around the pistil, and a whole bottle of perfumery in each stamen.' He sold about fifty almost worthless bulbs at four dollars each." Nurserymen are no doubt better posted in the swindles practiced in their particular department than I am ; but operators engage in different lines in different parts of the country; for example, we have never yet seen in the Eastern States any one trying to sell an apple tree bear- ing blue apples as big as melons, as we were told, at our meeting at Cleveland, had been successfully done in Ohio and Hlinois. Still we have men of fair ability in the nursery swindling line, one of whom last winter suc- ceeded in disposing of hundreds of '* winter-bearing grapes," by carrying with him a few good bunches of the white Malaga of the shops. One great detriment, not only to the florist, but to the purchaser, is begotten of these swindles in horticulture. The purchaser of flowers in our markets must have his plants in bloom, because he has been at times so swindled that he must now see what he buys. In New York, the amateur rarely buys from the grower, but from the agent or middleman who sells in the market stands or street comers. These, whether men or women, are generally entirely ignorant of the nature of plants, and most of 224 GAEDEiq-INQ FOR PLEASURE. them have no responsibility, and they rarely fail to make their wares accord with the wants of the purchaser : nearly every plant is hardy, ever-blooming, and has all the qualities desired by the buyer. But now and then these swindles become a serious matter to the victim. Some years ago a typical English- man, who had been a green grocer in Covent Garden Market, London, found his way to New York. He at once discovered an almost entire absence of Cauliflowers in our markets, and what few there were, were sold at prices four times those of London. He soon made up his mind to make his fortune, and, at the same time, show the Yankees something they did not know. He duly selected and prepared the ground for an acre, and one day in May he sallied into the market to procure his Cauliflower plants. This he found no difficulty in doing, for at Dutch Peggy's (in those days the headquarters for all kind of herbs, plants, and seeds) they were to be seen by the wagon load. Ten thousand were procured (the num- ber required for his acre), and, duly planted, they began to grow apace. He had planted the first of May. If it had been in England, his Cauliflower heads would have been ready about the first of July; but something was evi- dently wrong in the Yankee climate. His Cauliflowers grew through June, through July into August, only to develop into fine specimens of Drumhead Cabbage, then of hardly the value he had paid for them as Cauliflower plants. He got out of the business thoroughly dis- gusted ; and in telling his sorrowful tale to me a year afterward, he related that when he went to expostulate with old Peggy about having blasted his prospects, before he could get a word said, she recognized him as a cus- tomer, and demanded to know if he did not again want some more early Cauliflower plants. I have said old Peggy was also a vender of seeds. It is now nearly forty years ago that a young florist pre- HUMBUGS IN HORTICULTURE. 225 eented himself before her and purchased an ounce of Mignonette. Ever alive to business, Peggy asked him if he had tried the new red Mignonette. He protested there was no such thing, but Peggy's candid manner persuaded him, and fifty cents were invested. The seed looked familiar, and when it sprouted it looked more familiar ; when it bloomed it was far too familiar, for it was Red Clover. Peggy has long since been gathered to her fathers, and 1 have entirely forgiven her for selling me the red Mignonette. Perhaps there is no swindling that is more extensively practiced, and which so cruelly injures the operators of the soil, as that of adulteration in fertilizers. The great mass of our farmers and gardeners are poor men, who can ill afford even to pay for the pure fertilizers necessary to grow their crops, and to pay money and high freights on adulterations worse than useless, is hard indeed. The ignorance of those dealing in such wares does much to spread the evil. A man came into my office last sum- mer with samples of a fertilizer, nicely put up in cans, which he claimed could be sold in immense quantities by the seedsmen, as it had not only the wonderful properties of invigorating and stimulating all planted crops, but that it at the same time luould hill all noxious weeds. T need not say that he had waked up the wrong passenger, and that he made a rapid movement toward the door. Yet, notwithstanding the impudence and absurdity of such a claim, the scamp was enabled to prowl around the vicinity of New York for weeks, and, undoubtedly, sold to hundreds. If he had said he had a cannon from which, when grape shot was fired into a crowd, it killed only enemies — never friends — the one claim would have been as reasonable as the other. There is another species of humbugging, which, though it can hardly be called swindling, is somewhat akin to it. I refer to the men who claim to have secrets by which 226 GARDENIJTG FOR PLEASURE. they can accomplish extraordinary results in the propa- gation and culture of plants. I can well remember, in my early days, that the nursery propagator was looked upon as a sort of demi-god, possessing secrets known only to himself and a favored few, whose interest it was to continue to throw dust in the eyes of every young as- pirant after knowledge. The door of the propagating house was locked and bolted, as if it were a Bastile, and even the proprietor (if he were unfortunate enough not to have practical knowledge) was allowed entrance only as a special favor ; for his propagator was an autocrat, of whom he stood in awe and reverence. But since the advent of horticultural publications in America, particu- larly during the past fifteen or twenty years, the ^'secrets" of these pretentious fellows have had such ventilation, that now nearly every operation of the greenhouse is as well understood by the tens of thousands engaged in the business, as the operations of the farm are by the farmer. The most of these pretenders to this secret knowledge of horticulture are foreigners, though occasionally a native tries it on. Some twenty years ago, when the grape-vine mania was at its hight, an old Connecticut farmer pre- tended he had discovered a new method of propagating the grape, which he would impart for a consideration to the highest bidder. He issued a profusion of hand bills to the trade, asking for bids, modestly requesting the re- ceiver of the hand bill to hang it up in a conspicuous place. I sent my copy to my friend Meehan, of the Gardener^ s Monthly, saying that the pages of that magazine were the most conspicuous place I knew of to comply with the wish of the old gentleman. Mr. Meehan not only in- serted the advertisement gratis, and in the most conspicu- ous manner, but he did more, for he appended below the advertisement a few remarks I had ventured to make on the subject. This opened the ball, and for six months HUMBUGS li^^ HORTICULTURE. • 227 the pages of the Gardener^s Monthly became the battle ground for the opinions of the ^Miscoverer" and myself. But the gratuitous advertisement did not avail him much, for he and his secret soon passed into oblivion, and were heard from no more. Tiiere are no secrets in horticul- ture. The laws that govern the germination of a seed, the rooting of a cutting, or the taking of a bud or graft, are the same now as they were a thousand years ago, and anyone pretending to have any secret knowledge in the matter is either an ignoramus or an imposter. Since the above was written several other swindlinir schemes have been perpetrated. Among others, the bulb man has turned up again. Having for the time being become too well known in the city, he has betaken him- self to the rural districts, where he plied his trade last fall most successfully, finding his victims chiefly among confiding women. Taking pattern of the** Blue Rose Man," he has provided himself with gaudy pictures of impossible Lilies, which ought to deceive none but the thoughtless or ignorant. As a matter of precaution, it may be well to describe his methods of operating. His first move is to learn the names of the wealthiest and best known people in the neighborhood. He then begins his canvass, calling at houses where he has reason to believe none of the male members of the family is at home. He has just returned from California, w^here he had the great good fortune to discover three kinds of the most gorgeous of all Lilies, hitherto entirely unknown, and now for the first and only time offered for sale. Their size is immense, the colors gorgeous, and the fragrance exquisite. No such Lilies have been seen before. He has sold Mrs. Brown, and Mrs. Smith, and Mrs. Jones (naming well-known neighbors) bulbs of each of the three kinds at four and five dollars a bulb ; but as he has only a few left, and is anxious to get home, he will sell the remainder at two and three dollars each. His vie- 228 GARDENING FOK PLEASURE. tims hesitate in doubt a few moments, and then drop in to the net. I had the pleasure of blocking this feJlow's operations in one instance, appearing on the scene just in time to do so. In one locality, within my personal knowl- edge, this man sold dozens of these bulbs to confiding victims. I saw some of these '' gorgeous " new California Lilies when they came into flower, and they were all neither more nor less than the common white garden Lily {Lilium candidum), fine bulbs of which can always be bought for ten or twelve cents each. Another instance may be mentioned, in which the rogue' offered for sale, at a dollar a paper, the seed of a variety of Mignonette even more famous than the red Mignon- ette of Aunt Peggy before mentioned. .This bore mag- nificent spikes of flowers, nearly two feet long and of delicious frasfrance. A lady friend, one of his victims, carefully sowed the seeds, and waited anxiously for the appearance of the plants. The seedlings proved to be so vigorous that she ventured to separate and transplant them in the open border. They grew and grew till they finally rivaled in growth the famous mustard seed mentioned in the good Book. The reader will probably smile when I tell him that this famous Mignonette proved to be Pearl Millet, a kind of grass growing ten feet high. The present season one of these itinerants is doing a thriving business by selling common Parsnip seed, which he has caused to absorb various perfumes. This, supplemented with flam- ing pictures of Koses of every hue, makes it an easy busi- ness for him to sell this ''Rose Seed" of any perfume desired ! The f olio win c^ from the Xew York Tribune of Febru- ary 19th, 1882, shows that occasionally these enterprising gentlemen receive their deserts : ''The case of John Harrison, the industrious seed peddler, who was locked up in Kewark the other day, is HUMBUGS IK HORTICULTURE. 239 one which calls for commiseration. It was a propitious season for business in this line, for the near approach of spring had begun to warm up the desire to worry the soil and plant something, a desire that slumbers in the bosom of every man or woman who is the proprietor of a garden, a back-yard, or even of a flower pot. Our vender was therefore driving a brisk trade, when he was arrested for obtaining money under false pretenses. The pre- tense and falsehood charged were Mr. Harrison's state- ment that his seeds, when dro]3ped mto water or earth, would speedily germinate and grow into a Dush, which would suddenly burst into beautiful and fragrant bloom, and then bear a rich fruitage of * wash-rags ;' a crop which at once commended itself to the cleanly and thrifty housewives of New Jersey. ISTow there is a well- known vine of the Cucumber family which flourishes in the West Indies, and bears a gourd-like fruit, the spongy lining of whose tough shell is used by the simple islanders to brush their huts with When they have any, and for toilet and culinary cleansing as well. Mr. Harrison's descriptions of this vegetable may have been a trifle too eloquent, but surely a merciful magistrate would con- sider this nothing more than justifiable professional ex- aggeration. Any one who has been attacked by a roving tree agent, armed with a book full of colored lithographic plates of trees clad with rainbow-hued foliage, and decorated still further with fruit of marvelous shape and bulk, will understand that Mr. Harrison is not a unique sinner, but simply a man who understands his business." This list of humbugs on horticultural subjects might be greatly extended, but perhaps enough has been said to put the intelligent and thoughtful reader on his guard in the future. THE FRUIT GARDEN. 231 i i PRUNING. 233 CHAPTER XL. PRUNING. Though the chapter on pruning is placed at the com- mencement of that division of the work which treats upon fruits, the fact must not be lost sight of that prun- ing is often quite as necessary upon trees and shrubs cul- tivated for their flowers or foliage as upon those grown for their fruit. In pruning we cut away some portion of a tree, shrub, or other plant, for the benefit of that which remains ; and whether performed upon a branch six inches through, or upon a shoot so tender as to be cut by the thumb nail, the object is essentially the same. The operation, though very simple, is one which the amateur often fears to undertake ; and having no confi- dence in his own ability, he often employs some jobbing gardener, who has no fears on this or any other garden- ing matter. Pruning is done for Yarious ends, and un- less one has a definite reason for doing it, he had better leave it undone. Many have an idea that pruning must, for some reason, be done every year, just as it used to be thought necessary for people to be bled every spring, whether well or ill. We prune to control the shape of a tree or shrub, and by directing the growth from one part to another, obtain a symmetrical form, especially in fruit trees, where it is desirable that the weight of fruit be equally distributed. In some trees, where the fruit is borne only on the wood of the previous season, the bear- ing portions are each year removed further and further from the body of the tree. In such cases a shortening of the growth each year will cause the fo;'mation of a compact head instead of the loose straggling limbs that re- sult when this is omitted. We prune to renew the vigor of a plant. The inexperienced cannot understand how 234 GARDENIl^G FOR PLEASURE. cutting away a third, a half, or even more of a plant can improve it in vigor and fruitfulness, or abundance and size of flowers. Let us suppose that a stem which grew last year has twenty buds upon it. If this is allowed to take its own course in the spring, a few of the upper buds will push with great vigor, and form strong shoots ; while those below will make gradually weaker shoots, and for probably the lower third of the stem the buds will not start at all. In fruit trees, as a rule, the most vigorous growth is at the top. The buds there were the last formed in the previous summer, are the most excit- able, and the soonest to grow the next spring, and getting the start of those below them, they draw the nourishment to themselves and starve the others. If, instead of allowing this stem to grow at will in this man- ner, it had been, before any of the buds started, cut back so as to leave only a few of the lower ones, those having an abundance of nutriment would push forth with great vigor and be nearly equal in size, while the flowers or fruit borne upon them would be greatly superior to those upon the unpruned stem. Any one can readily be con- vinced of the utility of pruning by taking two rose bushes of equal size, leaving one without any pruning to take care of itself, and each sj^ring cutting the other back severely, pruning away one-third or one-half of the wood that was formed the previous season. The result at the end of two years will be very striking. No general rule can be given for pruning. The ama- teur should use his eyes, and notice the habit of growth of his trees and shrubs. He will find that many, like the Rose, produce their flowers upon the new wood of the present seiison, and that such plants are greatly bene- fited by cutting back more or less each spring. But there are other plants for which this treatment will not answer. If we examine a Horse-chestnut tree, or a Lilac bush, and many others, we shall find that the flowers PRUN^ING. 235 come from the large buds that were formed on the end of last season's growth, and to cut back such plants would be to remove all the flower buds. AVith shrubs of this kind, all that need be done is to thin out the branches where they are too crowded. These examples will warn the novice against indiscriminate pruning ; and unless, as he stands before his shrub or tree, knife in hand, he knows why he is to prune and how, let him put his knife in his pocket, and give the plant the benefit of the doubt. While, under the different fruits, we can give di- rections for the particular iDruning required by each, the proper method of treating a miscellaneous collection of ornamental shrubs and trees can only be learned by observation. The term pruning is generally applied to the cutting away, in w^hole or in part, of the ripened wood ; but much pruning may be done by the use of the thumb and finger. This is termed pincUiny, and is practised upon young shoots at the growing season, while they are yet soft. This most useful form of pruning allows us to control the form of a j)lant with the greatest ease, and is applied not only to soft-wooded plants, but to trees and shrubs, and may be so performed on these as to render nearly, if not quite, all pruning of ripened wood unnecessary. "When soft- wooded plants, such as Chrysan- themums, Geraniums, or Colons, are planted out or grown in pots, and left to themselves, most kinds will grow tall and straggling ; but if judiciously '^pinched back," as it is called (that is, the top of the strongest shoots pinched out), the plants can be shaped into a bushy, rounded form at will. If a vigorous shoot has its end or **grow- ing point" pinched out it will cease to elongate, but will throw out branches below, the growth of wiiich may be controlled in the same manner. The Blackberry illus- trates the utility of this kind of pruning. The rampant growing shoot which springs up from the root will, if 236 GARDENING FOK PLEASURE. left to itself, make a long cane six or eiglit feet high, and with a very few branches near the top. If, w^hen this shoot has reached four, or at most five feet, its end be pinched off, it will then throw our numerous branches ; and if the upper branches, when they reach the length of eighteen inches, be '^ stopped" (as it is called), in a sim- ilar manner, by pinching, the growth will be directed to the lower ones, and by the end of the season, instead of a long, unmanageable wand, there will be a well-branched bush, which will bear its fruit all within reach. The grower of plants in pots is usually afraid to remove even a single inch of the stem, and the result is usually a lot of ^^ leggy" specimens not worth the care that is oth- erwise bestowed upon them. Plants may be prevented from ever reaching this condition, if their growth be properly controlled by pinching ; but if they have once reached it, they should be cut back se- verely, and a compact, bushy form obtained from the new shoots which will soon start. I may state here, however, that if it becomes necessary to cut back a plant in full leaf, care must be taken to with- hold water until it agam throws out shoots below, for the reason that, being robbed of the foliage and shoots that elaborated the top, an excess of moisture given to the roots, which have now no work to do, will gorge and de- stroy them. The mechanical part of pruning is very simple. A sharp knife is the best implement, as it makes a clean cut without bruising the bark, and the wound quickly heals. Shears are much easier to handle, and the work Fig. 66. Fig. 67. Fig. 68. WHERE TO CUT IN PEUNING. PRUNING. 237 can be done so much more quickly, that they are generally preferred, and for rampant growing bushes will answer ; but upon fruit trees, and choice plants generally, the knife is much better. The cut should be made just at a joint, but not so far above it as to leave a stub, as in figure 67, which will die back to the bud, there being nothing to contribute to its growth ; nor should it be made so close to the bud as to endanger it, as in figure ijQ. The cut should start just opposite the lower part of the bud and end just above its top, as in figure 68. For the removal of branches too large to cut witli the knife, as must some- times be done on neglected trees, a saw is required. Saws are made especially for the purpose, but any narrow one with the teeth set wide will answer. The rough cut left by the saw should be pared smooth, and if an inch or more in diameter, the wound should be cov- ered. Ordinary paint, melt- ed grafting wax, or shellac varnish will answer to pro- tect the bare wood from air and moisture, and prevent decay. In pruning it is well to remember that the future shape of the tree will be materially affected by the position upon the branch of the bud to which the cut is made. The upper bud left on the branch will con- tinue the growth, and the new shoot will be in the direc- tion of that bud. If a young tree is, as in, figure 69, to have all its branches shortened, and each is cut to a bud. A, pointing towards the center of the tree, the tendency of the new growth will all be inward, as in figure 70; while Fig. 69. Fig. 70. Fig. 71. PRUNING FOB SHAPE. 238 GARDEXIXG FOR PLEASURE. if all be cut to an outside bud, b, the result will be to spread the growth, as in figure 71. As to the tune of pruning, about which there has been much discussion, it may be done on small stems at any time after the fall of the leaf, before the growth starts in the spring ; but for the removal of large branches, late in winter is regarded as the best time. It is a popu- lar idea that trees should not be pruned in excessively cold weather. A very sensible belief, as affecting the comfort of the pruner ; but rest assured, it in no way adds to the discomfort of the tree, either present or prospective. Pinching is, of course, done whenever it is needed during the summer months. CHAPTER XLI. HARDY GRAPES. Grapes can be grown in almost any soil, provided it is not a wet one. Although the Grape will take abundance of water when in a growing state, it must j)ass off quickly, or the growth will be impeded. If the ground is not naturally suitable {i. e., at least a foot in depth of good soil), a border prepared in the manner recommended in the chapter on '-'Cold Grapery" will well repay the trouble. It is imperative that the position wiiere the vine is planted be such as will enable it to get sunlight for the greater portion of the day. Twenty years ago I planted an arbor (with an arched top) one hundred feet long by sixteen feet wide and ten feet high, covering a walk running east and west. This gave a south and a north exposure. The crop has always been excellent and abundant (and is to-day) on the south side and top of the arbor, but on the north side (unless for the first and HA.RDY GRAPES. 239 second years of fruiting, when there was not sufficient foliage to impede the light) it has been nearly a failure. There is much misconception as to what should be the age of a grape-vine when planted. Nine-tenths of our amateur customers ask for vines three or four years old. If a vine of that age could be properly lifted with every root unbroken, then there might be some advantage in its greater strength ; but as vines are usually grown in the nurseries closely together, with the roots all inter- laced, large plants can rarely be got with roots enough to support the vine and maintain its vigor after trans- planting. As a rule, it is better to plant one or two- year-old vines, which can usually be bought at half the price of those of three or four years old, and which, in all probability, will give a crop quite as soon as the large ones, if not sooner. The manner of planting the vine is similar to that of any other tree or shrub. The ground must be thor- oughly broken up, not in a mere hole only sufficient to hold the roots, but, if a regular border has not been made, the place where each vine is to be planted should not be less than three feet in diameter (and if double that, all the better), and of a depth of not less than a foot. On receiving the vine from the nursery, it may con- sist of one or more shoots, but on planting it should be cut back to only two or three eyes or buds. On starting to grow, all of these buds or eyes should bo rubbed off except one, selecting the strongest. Train this shoot perpendicularly to a stake the first year of its growth. The next fall, w^hen the leaves drop, cut it back to nine or ten inches from the ground. When the vine starts the next spring, rub off all eyes or buds except two, which during the season will form two canes, as in figure 73. These, if they are canes half an inch in diameter, are in the fall to be pruned to three or four feet long, and the following spring trained horizontally, one to 240 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. the right, the other to the left. -If, at the end of the second year, they are still small, it is better to delay laying down the arms until another year, and grow two upright shoots again, to get them sufficiently strong. These will form the base from which to start the upright shoots, as shown in figure 73. These upright growths will be the permanent fruiting canes, and should be from fifteen to eighteen inches apart, and pruned on what is known as the spur system, as shown by figure 74. There is nothing arbitrary as to the hight of these canes. It is Fig. 72. — VIXE WITH TWO SHOOTS. Fig. 73.— VINE WITH ASMS. a matter of convenience or taste whether they be trained to three feet or fifteen feet. Vines thus treated may be allowed to produce a few bunches the third year, and by the sixth year may be fruited to the hight of ten or twelve feet of cane, if desired. Not more than two bunches of fruit should be allowed to each shoot. We give this manner of training as one of the simplest, al- though the system of training has but little to do with the crop. My own Grape arbor planted twenty years HARDY GRAPES. 241 ago. trained and pruned in this way, is still in excellent vigor, and looks as if it might remain so for twenty years longer. A top-dressing of rotted manure is placed on the border (nine feet wide on each side) every fall, and forked in in the spring. The same system of pruning and training is equally applicable to vines planted against fences or walls having an eastern or southern aspect. The distance apart at Avhicli grape-vines may be planted, except the Delaware and a few of the weaker growing sorts, is about eight feet. The Delaware may be set one-third closer if trained in the manner described ; but Fig. 74. — VINE SPUR-PKUNED. if planted in the open field, and trained to stakes and wires, as shown in figure 75, they may be planted, to begin with, at least three feet in the rows and six feet between. Although grape-vines are hardy in nearly all sections, yet in any locality where the thermometer falls to zero it is beneficial to lay them down close to the ground, and cover them up with rough litter, before the ap- proach of severe weather in winter, allowing it to remain on in spring until the buds begin to swell, when the vines are uncovered and tied up to the trellis or stake. If covered in this way they should be pruned before being laid down. Pruning may be dime at any time from November to March. It is a common belief that grape-vines should be pruned only at certain seasons. The weather must not be too cold, otherwise it is sup- 242 GARDEJ^ING FOR PLEASURE. posed they may be injured if then pruned. Again, they must not be pruned late in the spring, else the sap oozing from the cuts may bleed them to death. Let me say that both these notions are utter nonsense. The Fig. 75. — VIBW OF VINEYARD. pruning of any tree or vine in the coldest weather cannot possibly injure it, and the " bleeding " or running of the sap after any ordinary pruning can no more hurt the HARDY GRAPES. 243 vine than the blood flowing from a pin scratch would weaken a healthy man. This method of covering up the grape-vine is not commonly practised, but we are satis- fied that in exposed positions it is well worth the trouble. I have practised it witli vines now over twenty years old, embracing some twenty varieties. My soil is a stiff clay, very unsuitable for the Grape ; yet these vines have kept clear of mildew when my neigh- bor's vines, a few hundred yards off, have been seriously injured by it. I have long believed that intense cold, long continued, is hurtful to even such plants as we call hardy, and the wonderful vigor of these old vines, so treated, seems a good evidence of it. The litter used in covering (which has become well-rotted by spring) is spread over the border, acting both as a summer mulch and fertilizer. Mildew is the worst enemy to the vine. The same i-emedy we recommend in this book for mildew on Roses will be found equally efficacious for the Grape. On a large scale, dry sulphur is used, blown upon the vines by a bellows made for the purpose. Propagation of the Grape is done by nur- serymen in greenhouses similar to that used for propagating florists' plants ; but most of the varieties can be grown with fair success by cuttings in the open air. The cuttings (made from the young, well-ripened shoots of the pre- vious year's growth) may be made with two (figure 76) or three buds or eyes, planted in rows, say one foot apart and three inches be- tween the cuttings, and set so that the top eye or bud only is above ground. The situation where the cuttings are placed should be well exposed to the sun, the soil rich and deep, and of sandy or light character. Care must be taken that the cutfin^ m Fig. 76. CUTTING. 244 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. is well firmed in the soil ; and if sawdust or some other non-conducting material is sifted over them (covering all up but the buds), success will be greater, as this will pre- vent the sun from baking and drying up the soil. The cuttings may be made from the pruniiigs at any time during winter, and kept in a damp cellar or buried out- side in sand until planted in the cutting-bed in the spring. VARIETIES OF THE GRAPE. It is the most unsatisfactory part of works on gar- dening to name varieties. What are cultivated as the best to-day may ten years hence be entirely discarded. Moreover, what does well in one section may be less val- uable in another ; but lists must be given, and all we can do in the matter is to name such as we believe to be the best for general use at the date at which we write. The varieties are named in the order that we deem most desirable for private use. Concord is perhaps more universally cultivated than any other. It grows most luxuriantly, bearing bunches of large size abundantly. Color black, with a rich blue bloom. The flavor is of average quality. Eipens during the month of September. Moore's Early. — Eesembles the Concord in general appearance, but ripens two or three weeks earlier. Per- haps the best early black grape for family use. Worden. — Color black. Bunches and berries of medi- um size. Very early, ripening the last of August. Of excellent quality. A most desirable variety. Delaicare. — This is perhaps the richest in flavor of all hardy grapes, and (piite equal to most of the foreign kinds. The bunches are small, however, though borne in great abundance, so that the weight of fruit on a given space is equal to most of the larger kinds. Color red. Medium early. HARDY GEAPES. 245 24G GARDEXI^G FOR PLEASURE. Brighton.— Color a rich copper red. Bunches large, and of excellent flavor. Ripens in September. One of the finest of red-colored grapes yet known. Magara.— So far believed to be the best tvJiite grape for the table. It is medium early, ripening in September. In flavor it is considered equal to the best of the foreign grapes of the Chasselas class. A most abundant bearer. See engraving (figure 77), taken from a photograph two years after planting. PocJcUngton.— Bunches and berries of large size. Color greenish amber, occasionally tinged with pink. It is of medium earliness, and good quality, but having a foxy odor which is objectionable to some. Wilder.— One of the Eogers's Hybrids. Bunch medi- u m, berries large, rich black. Flavor excellent. It ripens in September, and is unsurpassed in all good qualities. Agawam. — Color reddish bronze. Size of bunches and berries medium. Eipens in September. This is another of the Eogers's Hybrids, having a distinct and delicious flavor, similar to some of the hothouse grapes. Salem. — Color reddish bronze. Bunches and berries large. Eipens in September, and again, like all the Eogers's Hybrids, of excelleut flavor. Martha. — A strong-growing w^hite grape. Bunches and berries of medium size, borne in great profusion. It is medium early and very handsome in appearance. Merrimaclc. — Color deep black. Bunches and berries large. Late, ripening in October. One of the Eogers's Hybrids. Flavor excellent. The varieties named in this list have been selected with a view to have fruit in succession from August to October, and, besides, to have a selection of such colors as will be most desirable when dished on the table, which, in the great variety of shades which we now have in this delicious fruit, makes a most beautiful or- nament. THE COLD GRAPERY. 247 CHAPTER XLII. THE COLD GRAPERY. I KNOW of no addition to a country home from which such a large amount of satisfaction can be obtained at so small an outlay as from a grapery for growing the differ- ent varieties of foreign grapes. It has been proved that none of these fine varieties can be cultivated with any satisfaction in any part of the Northern or even Middle States, except under glass. In California and some other states and territories west of the Mississippi, the varieties of the European Grape have been extensively grown in the open air. There the conditions of climate are such as to make their culture a success equal to that attained any where in Europe. Besides the luxury of the Grape as a table fruit, xio finer sight can be seen, and there is nothing of which an amateur gardener may be more proud than a grapery in which the vines are loaded with ripe fruit. And as this can be obtained at a trifling Fig. 78. — GEEENHOUSE OK GRAPERY. original outlay, and with but little attention in the culti- vation afterward, I will briefly describe how to do it. Our climate is particularly well adapted to the cultiva- tion of vines under glass without fire heat, and the won- der is that cold graperies are not in more general use, even by people of moderate means, than they at present are. We built one for our own use on the plan shown in figure 78, which is adapted, if desired, for a greenhouse 248 garde:n^ij^g for pleasure. as well as for a grapery. The dimensions are fifty feet long by twenty-five feet wide. It is finished in very good style, and cost but little more than 81,000 without artificial heat. If heated by hot-water pipes, as shown in the interior view, it would cost about 8500 more, or 81,500 complete. It was planted in June, and the third year from planting we cut upwards of 300 pounds of fruit from it. The next season it yielded nearly double that quantity. The build- ing was begun by setting locust posts four feet apart. On these was framed the sill, on the front of which were placed upright sashes two and a half feet in hight, and on these the gutter. From the gutter was sprung the bars, ten inches apart each way, running on the west side clear to the ridge pole ; on the east framed to within two feet of it, so as to give room for lifting sashes. These were two feet wide by six feet long. To these sashes, eight in number, were attached the patent ventilating apparatus, which, by turning a crank, opens these sashes from one to twenty-four inches, as desired. The front sashes may be made so that every alternate one can open outward. With the instructions given in the chapters on Greenhouse Structures, any intelligent mechanic should be able to build from this plan, though, whenever green- houses or graperies are to be erected on a large scale, it will always be found to be the cheapest and most satisfac- tory plan to have it done by a regular greenhouse archi- tect. If there is no city or hydrant water, j)rovision should be made by building a cistern inside the grapery, say four feet deep by eight feet in diameter, or of that capacity in an oblong shape would be better. This cistern can be supplied by water from the roof, having a waste pipe for overflow. These general directions for such a structure as is shown in the cut, figure 78, are equally applicable for almost any size or kind of grapery. Many are built in the form of a ^^ean to ;" that is, placed against any building or fence, using such for the back wall of the THE COLD GRAPERY. 249 grapery. This would necessitate only the low front wall, which need not be more than one foot from the ground, if the width is but ten or twelve feet ; but a path would require to be sunk inside to give room to stand upright. The sketch, figure 79, shows an outline of a ^Mean-to" grapery twenty feet wide, nine feet high at back, and two feet in front. Such a structure (exclusive of the *^ border") may be put up roughly at a cost not exceed- ing four dollars per running foot, without heating ap- ^0 ft ^^ Fig. 79.— LEAN-TO GRAPERY. paratus. Its aspect may be any point from east to southwest, though if due south all the better. I recollect that some twenty years ago a German jeweler in Jersey City, N. J., grew a splendid crop of Black Hamburghs on vines which had been planted against the rear fence of his city lot, by placing against the fence some old sashes eight feet long. It was rather a bung- ling sort of an arrangement and awkward to get at, but it served the purpose of ripening the Hamburgh grapes, which could not have been done without the glass. The border of the grapery we have in use was begun by excavating the natural soil to the depth of twenty inches and fifteen feet in width, for the length of the grapery on each side. The inside was left untouched, 250 GARDEXIXG FOR PLEASURE. the borders being entirely outside. The bottom of the excavation was graded from the front of the building to the outside of the borders, with a fall of about an inch to a foot, so that thorough and rapid drainage would be sure to be attained. At the extremity of each border a drain was built to carry off the water. The whole bot- tom was then cemented over so as to prevent the roots from penetrating the subsoil. This pit was then filled to the depth of about two feet (four inches being allowed for settling) with a compost which was previously pre- pared by mixing about three parts of turf taken from the surface of a rather shaly pasture, one part of rotten stable manure, and one part of lime rubbish. In addi- tion, about one-twentieth part of rough or broken bone was added. It is one of the popular errors that vines for graperies should be two or three vears old. The asfe of a vine usually has but little to do with its size, and if grape- vines are properly grown the first year from cuttings, they will be quite as good for planting as if two or three years old. In fact, it is a question whether a vine grown from a cutting in March, and planted in June, is not quite as good as one a year older. Our experience has shown that there is hardly a perceptible difference in the two at the end of the season. As such vines, however, are too tender to be shipped far, we generally recommend buying one year old vines that may be planted in April, May, or June, having ripened shoots about three feet in length. These vines are all grown in pots the previous season, and when received the soil should be shaken off entirely, and the roots spread out in the border without injuring them. The root, it will be understood, is planted outside in the border, and the shoot taken inside, through an opening in the walls, which may be made of brick, stone, or wood, and should be left open at every three feet, the distance at which the vines should be THE COLD GRAPERY. 251 planted. If the y^W is of wood, it can easily be cut to suit the size of the vine. The plants we used were strong one-year-old vines, and were set about June 1st. By October they had grown to over twenty feet in length. In November they were cut back to the bottom of the rafter, or about three feet from the ground, and quickly reached the top again the second year, with firm, well- ripened wood. In November following they were again pruned back to about five feet above the foot of the rafter, or eight feet from the ground. These shoots produced the 300 pounds of fruit referred to (the third year from the time of planting). The fourth year they reached the top of the rafter, when a much larger crop was taken. The varieties used were nine-tenths Black Ham- burgh, with a few Muscats and Frontignans, all of which have done exceedingly well, and have now been in bearing nearly twenty years. Since they liave been in full bearing, which was five years from the time of planting, they have averaged, one year with another, 1250 pounds of splendid grapes, or about one pound for every square foot of base surface. Every December we lay the vines down alcng the front wall after being pruned, covering them completely with soil until May, when they are taken up and tied to the wires, which are one-sixteenth inch galvanized iron, and run across the rafters fifteen inches apart and fifteen inches from the glass. The training followed is what is called the ''spur" system, which is simply to allow one cane or shoot to each rafter (or three feet apart), and pruning the side shoots or "bearing wood'' annually back to one eye, which is the same plan advised for hardy grapes. In the summer treatment of the cold grapery, the prin- ciple must never be lost sight of, that to keep the vines m perfect health, a temperature of not less than seventy degrees at night, with ten or fifteen degrees higher dur- ing the day, is always necessary. Any rapid variation 252 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. downward is certain to result in mildew. The floor of the grapery should be kept dashed with water at all times, unless in damp weather, from the time the buds start in May until the fruit begins to ripen in September, except during the period the vines are in flower, when it should be dispensed with until the fruit is set. If the weather is dry, copious watering is necessary for the border outside. The summer pruning consists simply in pinching off the laterals, or side shoots which start from where the leaf joins the stem, to one leaf. Every winter four inches of the best well-rotted stable manure is spread over the border, and over that six inches of leaves or litter. This is raked off in spring, and the manure forked in, the object being to feed the roots from the top of the border. This same treatment we give our hardy grapes with excellent results. I am a good deal of a utilitarian, and am very apt to make even my luxuries *^^pay" when it is practicable to do so ; and though I would hardly think of selling my grapes that have been grown for private use, yet I do not scruple to make the glass that shelters them do double duty by using it in Avinter to shelter our half-hardy Roses from November to May. Those that do not make rose- growing a business, as I do, can nevertheless profit by my example, and use the cold grapery for many purposes during the winter monfhs when it is not needed for the grape-vines. Besides Roses, all plants of a half-hardy char- acter may be kept there, such as Pomegranates, Oranges, figs, Crape Myrtles, Pampas Grass, Tritomas, Carnations, etc., care being taken that the pots or tubs in which they are planted are plunged in leaves, tan, or some such sub- stance, so that the roots do not freeze. The cold grapery makes an excellent poultry house in winter, only, if put to that use, care must be taken that the buried vines are secure against the scratching of the hens. In some sec- tions grape-vines are often attacked, when thus buried. THE HOTHOUSE OR FORCING GRAPERY. 253 by ground mice, which gnaw the bark, sometimes so as to completely destroy them. As a precaution, it is well to wrap the vines with hay, straw, or cotton batting, over which sprinkle a mixture of twenty parts flour to one of Paris green. This will poison the mice if they cub through the covering to get at the bark. Be careful not to use any greater proportion of Paris green than advised, as too much of it might injure the vines ; or the labor of wrapping the vines may be dispensed with by poisoning the vermin in the ordinary way. CHAPTER XLTII. THE HOTHOUSE OR FORCING GRAPERY. Whe"N" grapes are forced by artificial heat, probably the best plan is that of the *^ lean-to " structure shown by the illustrations, figures 80, 81, and 82. Figure 80 gives the plan, which, as in some former engravings, it is not practicable to show on the page at full length ; and it is accordingly * 'broken," a portion, as shown by the irregular lines, being taken out of each compartment. The figures give the proper proportions. Figure 81 is a part of the front elevation, and figure 82 a section at the division between the two houses. The house is one hundred feet long by sixteen feet wide, divided into two compartments for early and late forcing, each fifty by sixteen feet, and both heated by one boiler, with valves in the furnace pit to shut off and taps to draw the water from the pipes not in usQ, a matter to be looked to when vineries are not in use ; for if the water is not drawn out of the pipes it may freeze and break them. "When grapes are to be forced, it is essential that a suflicient covering of manure or leaves be placed on tlie border to prevent frost from 254 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. Fig. 80.— PLAN or FORCING GRAPERT. THE HOTHOUSE OR FORCING GRAPERY. 255 reaching the roots, as to apply heat to the vines inside while the roots are frozen would seriously injure them. For very early forcing, when the vines are started as Fig. 81.— ELEVATION OF FBONT OF FOKCING GRAPERY (iN PART). cr. TZT^r Fig. 82.— SECTION OF FORCING GRAPERY. early as January, it is usual not only to put on covering enough to secure from frost, but also to slightly ferment, 60 as to throw some warmth into the border. Ko matter 256 GAEDENIIJG FOR PLEASURE. at what season the grapery is started for forcing, the temperature should not run over fifty or fifty-five degrees at ni^ht, with a day temperature of ten or fifteen degrees higher, increasing ten degrees when the buds have opened, which will be in four or five weeks from the time of starting. In five or six weeks the fruit will be set, and the temperature is to be raised ten degrees more. In forcing, moisture is of equal importance with heat ; for if this is not attended to, you may expect red spiders and thrips, and then all your labor may be in vain. To keep up this moisture, tanks are usually placed on the hot-water pipes for graperies, and these are kept filled with water, keeping up a continued evaporation, except at the time the vines are in flower. It should then be discontinued until the fruit is set. When there is no such arrangement for evaporation, dash water over the floors and use the syringe. To secure fine berries and bunches, one-half of the berries should be thinned out when of the size of peas, using scissors made for this purpose. The rules for making the border, pruning, training, and general culture are the same for the forcing grapery as for the cold grapery. CHAPTER XLIV. THE STRAWBERRY. Of all small fruits, none stand so high in general favor as the Strawberry. Its culture is simple ; and as it grows freely in almost any soil, adapting itself to the climate of the extreme South as well as to our most Northern States, no garden of any pretensions should be without it. If a choice of soil can be had, nothing is so suitable as a deep, rich, but rather sandy loam, though it will yield returns suflQcient to warrant its cultivation on THE STRAWBERRY. 257 any soil, from almost pare sand to clay, provided it is drained naturally or artificially. In all soils, deep spad- ing or plowing is essential to the production of fine crops ; and this should not be less than a foot, and if eighteen inches, all the better. A coat of thoroughly rotted stable manure, at least three inches in thickness, should be dug in and well mixed with the soil to a depth of six or nine inches. In the absence of stable manure, any of the concentrated fertilizers mentioned in Chapter VI., '*How to Use Concentrated Fertilizers," used in the manner and quantities there described, will do as a substitute. AYhere muck from the swamps or leaf mold from the woods can be obtained, twenty bushels of either of these mixed with one bushel of ashes will make an ex- cellent fertilizer for Strawberries, and may be spread on as thickly as stable manure, and on sandy soils is prob- ably better. Strawberries maybe planted either in the fall or spring. If the plants are to be set in the fall, it should not be done, in this latitude, if it can be avoided, before the middle of September. This, of course, refers to the plants from runners taken up from the bed in the usual manner ; and there is nothing gained in time over plant- ing the next spring, as the plant must grow for one sea- son before it can bear a full crop of fruit. In private gardens it is much better to have the plants la3'ered in pots, as they may then be set at almost any time. These pots may be from two to three inches in diameter. When a lot of Strawberry plants are wanted for a new bed, all that is necessary to do is to fill these small pots with soil, and "plunge" or plant the pot just to the surface level, placing the unrooted "runner" of the Strawberry plant on the top of the soil in the flower pot, and laying a small stone or clod on it to keep it in place. This method of striking in pots is shown in figure 83. The runners so treated will form plants in two or three weeks, 258 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. and may be planted out with safety any time from August to October. If Strawberry plants, treated in this way, are planted in x\ugust, and care taken that all runners that come from them be cut off as soon as formed, so that the whole force of the root is thrown into the main crown, a full crop of berries will be gathered the season following, or in nine or ten months from the time of planting. We have practised this sys- tem of layering Strawberry plants in pots, for what we •^71. Fig. 83. — STRIKING STEAWBEKRIES IN POTS. need for our own use, for the past twenty years, and the results have been so successful that we have many con- verts to the system, not only among those who grow for their own private use, but many who grow this fruit for market now use no other method. Plants grown in this manner can be obtained from the nurseries, but the nec- essary labor and the expense of the pots make the price five times more than that of ordinary plants rooted in the usual way and known as 'Aground layers." THE STRAWBERRY. 259 When Strawberry plants are set out in the fall, unless under favorable circumstances, many will fail to grow, for the reason that each young plant or runner is sus- tained in part by the old plant, and when detached, feels the shock more than a rooted cutting or seedling plant does, that has been growing for weeks on its own ac- count. For that reason we have always advised all that were intending to plant fresh Strawberry beds, to prepare their plants a few weeks ahead by layering them in pots. Two to four hundred plants are all that an ordinary family will need, and two or three hours' work would be all the time required to layer the plants in the pots. One hundred plants so prepared will give more fruit the first season than a thousand planted in the usual way, and the i^lant forms a clump quicker, and much less time is expended in keeping them clean. The use of layered plants is recommended specially for summer and fall planting. The plants may be oljtained, by tliis plan of layering, as early as July, and the sooner they are set out the greater will be the crop of fruit the next season, al- though if, for any reason, the layered plants cannot be obtained to plant before September, they will even then produce a fair crop of fruit. Our own planting is usually done by the first week in August, and we rarely obtain less than a pint from each plant. In spring the use of potted plants would have no spe- cial advantage, as, if planted in April or May, they would have all the summer to grow, but, of course, little fruit can be expected the season of planting. For this reason, it will be seen that, to secure a crop quickly, the time to plant is in July, August, or September, and from plants that have been layered in pots. There is no arbitrary rule for the distance apart at which Strawberry plants should be set; but if the ground has been prepared as ad- vised, the finest fruit will be had by giving them plenty of room. For our own use we usuallv set four hundred 260 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. plants annually in August, at two feet apart between the rows, and eighteen inches between the plants, and gather about two hundred quarts of splendid fruit. If the ground is limited they may be planted at half the above distances, particularly if set late in fall. There is no plant cultivated where the necessity for keeping the ground clean is so imperative as it is for Strawberries. It never can be made profitable under slipshod culture, for, from the nature of the plant, it cannot defend itself against weeds, and if neglected will quickly get over- whelmed and destroyed. Thousands of acres of Straw- berries are planted annually, which, from the Avant of prompt work at the proper time, are allowed to be de- stroyed by weeds. At a small cost in labor, at the proper time, such crops might have paid a handsome profit. There is one very important point in Strawberry cul- ture that should never be neglected ; and that is, that the beds be entirely covered with hay, straw, or leaves, to the depth of three or four inches. This covering should not be put on, liowever, before the approach of se- vere weather, which, in this latitude, is about the middle of December. This covering should not be taken off in spring. It is only necessary to go over the beds as soon as growth begins, and pull the covering back from the plants just sufficient to expose the crown, allowing all to remain on the bed. This covering serves several purposes. It keeps the roots warm until the plants start to grow; it keeps the fruit clean when ripe ; it prevents the growth of weeds, and, finally, acts as a mulch to keep the soil from drying in hot weather. Although Strawberry beds will remain in bearing for a number of years, the fruit is always largest and finest the first season of bearing, gradually getting smaller as the plants get older ; hence it is desirable to provide for a suc- cession, if not every year, at least every second year. For THE STRAWBERRY 261 garden culture in this, as in all other fruits, it is unwise to use any but fully tested varieties, five or six of which are sufficient. Here, again, as in almost every other fruit or flower, the advance in excellence compels us to name a different set every few years ; so that, of the kinds ad- vised in the last edition of this book written in 1875, not one can be named in 1887; and it may be that in another decade these too will have been superseded by others more desirable. VARIETIES OF THE STRAWBERRY. There are hardly two sections of the country, one hun- dred miles apart, where the same varieties of Strawberries Fig. 84. — THE HENTJEKSON STRAWBERRY. are grown. We can only offer those grown in the vicinity of New York as our standard. The Henderson (figure 84). This new Strawberry originated with Mr. George Seymour, South Xoiwalk, 2Q2 GARDEXIXG FOR PLEASURE. Conn., in 1883, who named it in honor of the author of this work. It is doubtful if there is another Straw- berry in cultivation having such a combination of good qualities as the Henderson. The fruit is of the largest size, rich, glossy crimson in color, looking as if varnished, early, and exceedingly productive ; but its ex- celling merit is its exquisite flavor and aroma. Whether for family or market use, the Henderson is almost certain to become a standard sort, particularly on light soils. It seems not to be so well adapted to heavy soils. Fi?. 85. — CBmsoN cltjstek strawberbt. It is a perfect-flowered variety, and, therefore, never fails to set its fruit. Crimson Cluster (figure 85). On the 10th of Juno, 1886, I examined this Strawberry on the grounds of the raiser, Mr. E. W. Durand, and found 3,000 plants that had been planted on the 15th of August, 1885, which, in less than ten months from the date of planting, were producing a crop that would average fully a quart to each plant ; 3,000 quarts from the 3,000 plants, or at the rate of over 20,000 quarts per acre. The crop was so immense, and the size of the berries so large, that the THE STRAWBEKRY. 263 pickers, who were paid two cents per quart, averaged twenty-five quarts per hour, or five dollars per day ; a fact beyond question, and which could be attested by a dozen affidavits. At the first picking, every yard of row yielded a quart of fruit. Wlien to this extraordinary production we add the further facts, that this Strawberry is of tlie richest crimson color, borne in immense clusters (hence the name), and that it is one of the earliest as well as the latest — as its great vigor prolongs its season Fig. 86.— JEHSEY QUEEN STBAWBEBRT. of fruiting — combined with its excellent quality, there is every reason to think that it is bound to be the most valuable Strawberry ever raised by Mr. Diirand. On the 10th of July, one month after my first exami- nation, seventy quarts of splendid fruit were gathered from the 3,000 plants above referred to ; and furthermore, to show that it still kept on fruiting, Mr. Durand sent me a large cluster of berries in all stages of development on the 30th of July ; something entirely unknown in a 264: GARDEXIXG FOR PLEASURE. Strawberry that had already given an immense early crop. Mr. Durand says that the Crimson Cluster is so completely a pistillate variety that the stamens can hardly be seen, yet, he further says, it may be planted five miles away from any other Strawberry and never fail to produce enormous crops. He adds that he has grown it in frames under glass in early spring, where it could Fig. 87. — SHAEPLESS STRAWBERRY. not possibly be impregnated witli any other variety, with the same results — an abundant crop. He thinks that this fact, to a great extent, upsets the very prevalent notion that perfect stamens and pistils on the same plant are necessary to produce a crop of fruit. Without having personally given the matter much atten- tion, I have long believed, from general observation, that there was more importance given to the necessity for THE STRAWBERRY. 205 ''perfect flowers/' as they are called, in Strawberries than results warranted. From its free fruiting qualities I am inclined to believe that the Crimson Cluster will prove to be a grand forcing Strawberry. Jersey Queen (figure 80). This variety was sold for the first time in the fall of 1881, and is, perhaps, one of the very best late Strawberries thus far introduced. The size is immense, often measuring six inches in cir- cumference. Shape, roundish conical ; color, a beautiful Fig. 88. — THE JEWELL STRAWBERRY. scarlet crimson ; perfectly solid, and of excellent flavor. It is an enormous bearer, many plants averaging a quart of first quality fruit. It is one of the latest Strawberries, the crop in this vicinity being in perfection about the 25th of June, while the average crop of Strawberries is at its best by the 15th of June. For this reason it is found to be one of the best kinds to grow at the summer liotels in the North. SharpJess (figure 87). With the exception of Jersey Queen and Crimson Chister. the largest and one of the 266 GARDEXIXG FOR PLEASURE. heaviest berries of this collection. It is of fine flayer, a good bearer, and has now become a standard sort. Parry. — One of the earliest large berries, of great beauty, excellent quality, prolific, and one of the very hardiest and strongest growers. Jewell (figure 88). A comparatively new variety, orig- inated in 1880. It is of the largest size, perfect form, color bright red changing to crimson, of medium earli- ness ; an enormous cropper, sometimes reaching four hundred bushels per acre. The Hoffman. — This is now the most popular berry for the Southern States. It is of medium size, average flavor, but a most abundant bearer and strong grower, and, above all, has the requisite solidity or firmness essential for distant carriage. FORCING STRAWBERRIES. The three-quarter span greenhouses (already described and illustrated in the chapter on Greenhouse Structures), or the lean-to style, as advised for forcing graperies, are equally adapted, with slight modification, for the forcing of Strawberries. This modification i.s in having the benches or tables raised, so as to be as near the glass as it is practicable to have them, as shown by the sketch (fig- ure 89) of end section annexed. The proper preparation of the plants for Strawberry forcing is indispensable to suc- cess. This is best done by layering the runners in small pots, as described under the head of *' Strawberry Cul- ture." The layers may be placed in the pots at any time from the middle of July to September 1st. When the pot is filled with roots (which will be in about two or three weeks from the time the Strawberry runner is placed in it), it is taken up and shifted into a four-inch pot in soil four-fifths turfy loam to one-fifth rotted cow dung, to which may be added a sliglit sprinkling of pure bone dust — say a handful to every bushel of soil. THE STRAWBERRY. ^iCT When the Strawberry plants have been shifted from the pots in which they were layered into the four-inch size, they should be set in the open sunshine, standing the pots close together, and carefully watered as occasion requires, so as to induce the best possible growth. All runners should be carefully pinched off as they appear, so that the whole force of the roots may go to develop the main plant, or fruiting crown, as it is sometimes called. In four or five weeks the four-ioch pots will be Fig. 89.— STRAWBERRY FORCING HOUSE. filled with roots, and the plants must again be shifted into six-inch pots and treated as before, which will give, by the middle of October, the necessary strong plants for forcing. As the season of growth stops about this date, water should be withheld to some extent, so that the plants may get a season of rest. AVhen they are placed in the forcing-house they may either be planted out on the benches at six or eight inches apart, in soil five or six inches deep, or they may be forced in the pots, as may be desired ; but, in any case, twice as many plants should be prepared as will fill the 26S GARDENING FOB PLEASURE. house, for, if desired, two crops can easily be raised in succession. The first plants should be placed in the forcing-house about Xovember loth. These will produce ripe fruit by January or February. Plants put in in February will be ready by March or April. Of course, it will be necessary to keep the reserve plants of Straw- berries in a dormant state, which is best done in cold frames or pits, or even in a light or cold cellar, the pots being plunged up to the rims in dry leaves. The best rule to follow in forcing any plant is to keep as near as possible to its natural condition. We know that, as the Strawberry plant develops its leaves and flowers throughout May in this latitude in the open ground, the night temperature will average, perhaps, forty degrees for the first two weeks in May and fifty degrees for the last weeks, while for the first two weeks in June it will be about sixty degrees at night, and in all cases from ten to fifteen degrees higher in the day. This, then, is our rule for the forcing houses : Start slowly, increasing the temperature as the plant develops and ripens its fruit, just as Nature does in the field. Like Cucumbers, artificial impregnation is necessary for the Strawberry in the dull winter months. This is best done by using a camel's hair pencil, twirling it from one flower to another (particularly from the perfect to the pistillate flowers, if such varieties are forced) on clear days, and allowing all possible ventilation. Sometimes hives of bees are kept in Strawberry and Cucumber forcing houses, to assist in the impregnation. Some judgment is necessary in watering until there are indications of vigorous growth. Water at the roots spar- ingly; but, at the same time, do not allow the soil to get too dry, and be careful not to water the plants overhead when in bloom, as that will check the impregnation. When the fruit has "set," give water freely whenever necessary, and throughout the whole season of growth THE STRAWBERRY. 269 keep the atmosphere of the house well charged with moisture, in order to keep down the Eed Spider, the in- sect which is quickly destructive to both Strawberries and Cucumbers. The kinds of Strawberries which seem to have been the favorites for forcing are the Champion, a rather dark crimson berry of great beauty and of the largest size, with occasional trials of Jersey Queen, on account of the great size and beauty of the fruit. But the new variety Crimson Cluster, from trials made with it, is likely to prove the most valuable variety for forcing purposes. It is of the largest size, of beautiful form ; color, a rich shade of scarlet crimson, the surface looking as if var- nished. These peculiarities make it specially attractive, a necessity for forced Strawberries when retailed at about fifty cents a berry; for in the winter months, it must bo remembered, they sell at wholesale at six dollars per quart, and it takes only eighteen to twenty large berries to make a quart. To our rural readers this extraordinary price paid for fruit may seem incredible ; but all large cities contain people who are rich enough to afford these prices, not only for fruits, but for flowers, for it is no unusual thing for one dollar and even two dollars to be paid for single rosebuds of the rarer or finer sorts. At the same date tliat forced Strawberries are selling in Xew York at six dollars per quart, or forced Cucumbers at six dollars per dozen, both Strawberries and Cucumbers grown m the Southern States are selling at one-sixth these prices ; but the quality, of course, bears no comparison with the forced commodities. Besides its value as a fruit, as a beautiful feature in the forcing house nothing exceeds the Strawberry when fully ripe. A few dozen plants will fill the house with their delightful aroma. 270 GARDEJS'ING FOR PLEASURE. RASPBERRY. To have the Raspberry in perfection, the same prepara- tion of soil is necessary as for the Strawberry, only that, while, for the best results, the Strawberry bed must be perfectly clear of shade, the Raspberries will do very well in a little shade ; that is, in such a situation as will allow them one half or so of the sunlight. The canes or shoots of the Raspberry are biennial; that is, the cane or shoot that is formed one season bears fruit the next season, and dies off after fruiting, giving place to the young cane that is to fruit the following season, and so on. The distances apart to plant the Raspberry for garden culture may be, if in rows, four feet apart, with the plants two feet apart in the row; or, if in separate stools or hills, they may be set three feet each way; or, planted at distances of four feet aj^art, three plants may be put in each ^' hill," which will sooner secure a crop. They may be set either in fall or in spring. If in the fall, a covering of four or five, inches of dry leaves or litter should be spread over the roots to prevent them from getting too much frozen. Even when the plants are established and growing, it is neces- sary, in many cold sections, to bend down the canes and cover them with pine branches or some covering that will shield them from severe freezing. On a large scale the canes are bent down and covered with a few inches of earth, an operation that may be rapidly performed by two persons. One bends down the canes (using a pitchfork or other implement), as shown in the accompanying dia- gram (figure 90), while the other throws sufificient earth near the tips to hold the canes in place. After a rov/ is thus bent over, the two go back and cover with earth more completely. All the pruning that is necessary for the Raspberry is to thin out the shoots in each hill to four or six. This is best done in the summer after the fruit is gathered, UASPBERRT. 271 and at the same time the old caries that have borne the fruit should be cut out, so that the young shoots, coming forward to do duty next season, may have room to Fis:. 90.— LAYING DOWN BASPPERRT CAJTES. grow freely, and develop and ripen the wood. On rich soils these shoots are very vigorous, and, if left to grow unchecked, would reach seven to eight feet in hight; but it is best to pinch out the tops of the young shoots when Fig. 91.— TRAINING RASPBERRIES TO A WIRE. about six feet high. This makes the shoots stouter, be- sides keeping the plant at a convenient hight to pick the fruit. When the leaves drop in fall, the canes may be 272 GAEDEJ^ING FOR PLEASURE. shortened down a foot or so, whicli will complete tlie pruning process. To get the full benefit of all the fruit, it is very neces- sary to stake the Kaspberry. This may be done either by tying the canes of each plant separately to a stout stake, driven two feet or so into the ground, or, if grown in rows, they may be tied to wires running along the rows. The KASPBERRY. 213 wires should be stretched between two stout posts, one at each end of the row, and three feet, more or less, above the ground, according to variety. To prevent the wire from sagging, stakes should be driven into the ground directly under it, at intervals of six or ten feet. The wire is attached to these by means of staples placed over it and driven into the ends of the stakes. The diafrram (figure 91) shows the method of training to the wire. The longer canes at the right and left are the canes which are to fruit the current year. These are tied out as there shown, while the new shoots, which are to furnish canes for the next year's fruiting, grow up in the center, and as soon as tall enough arc tied to the wire. After the outer canes have fruited, they are cut away to give the others more room. The varieties are very numerous. Those named below are sucli as will be most satisfactory for private use in this section of the country. From one hundred to two hundred hills or plants, of all varieties, will usually be sufficient for most families. HansplL — One of the earliest of all the Red Raspberries. It is of large size, beautiful in a])pcarance, and has a rich, spicy flavor. Color a bright crimson. It is one of the hardiest varieties, and has for the past five years been considered one of the best for either family or market use. (Figure 92.) Cuthbert. — Somewhat larger than the Hansell. Color dark crimson; flavor sprightly and delicious. Comes in in succession to the Hansell. Golden Queen. — Found growing in a field of the Cuth- bert Raspberry, and is, in all probability, a *^ sj)ort," as it is technically called, from that variety. The berry is of the largest size. The color is a deep orange yellow, and, like all the yellow kinds, is richer in flavor than 274 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. the reds, and far surpassing them in our opinion. Be- sides, the rich orange yellow color makes it a beautiful Fig. 93. — GOLDEN QUEEN KASPBERKY. table ornament when placed alongside of the red and black varieties. (Figure 93.) THIJIBLEBERRY. 275 THIMBLEBERRY OR BLACK CAP RASPBERRIES Kave become very popular of late years, many persons preferring their peculiar flavor to that of the red or yel- low. They belong to a distinct species of Raspberry. The plants make no suckers, but propagate themselves by taking root at the ends of the long branches, which in the fall, if allowed to grow at will, bend over and reach the earth. They throw up shoots from the base of the plant, which take the place of those which have already borne a crop. In gardens, where there is no desire to Fig. 94.— GREGG THIIMBLEBEHRY. propagate the plants, the growing shoots should be pinched off when they get three or four feet high, and any side shoots they may throw off are stopped by pinching when they are about eighteen inches long. The bearing wood is thinned out after the fruit is off. They are of the easiest culture, and even on light sandy or gravelly soils good crops can be raised. They should be planted about four feet apart each way, or five feet between 2i'G GARDEXIXG FOIJ PLEASIKE. rows and two feet between the plants, for garden culture. The Black Cap is the only Raspberry suitable for drying, and for that purpose it is now largely grown. Gregg. — This is now grown to nearly the exclusion of all other kinds of Black Caps. It is of the largest size, excellent flavor, and enormously productive. The cut (figure 94) shows a few berries of natural size. Erliart Everlearing. — This is also an excellent variety, nearly equal to the G-regg, with the property of bearing three crops during the season, the last crop being late in the fall. BLACKBERRY. The cultivation of the Blackberry is nearly similar to that of the Raspberry, except that it should be planted about one-third farther apart, and being hardier, there is no need for covering it in winter in this latitude. As it has a more vigorous growth, it is sometimes set in any out-of-the-way corner, and in almost any soil ;. but it will amply repay generous cultivation with finer fruit. The manner of growth is the same as the Raspberry ; and when the fruit is picked, the old canes are to be cut out to give the new ones a chance. The new shoots grow vigorously, and when they reach the bight of five, or, at most, six feet, they should be stopped by pinching. This will cause an abundance of side shoots to start, which are to be pinched when about eighteen inches long. This treatment increases the productiveness of the plants and keeps the fruit within reach. The bushes should be kept tied to stout stakes or wires, as advised for the Raspberry. The following are a few of the popular kinds: Early Harvest. — This is not only a first-class Black- berry in every respect, but its great merit is earliness, coming right in to succeed the Strawberries, beginning in this section to ripen tlie first week in July, and per- I^LACKBERRY. 277 fectiiig its entire crop before other kinds have ripened. It is enormously productive, a quart of fine fruit being easily picked from a single shoot. (Figure 95.) Wilsoji, Jr. — This comparatively new variety combines all the good qualities of the old Wilson Blackl)erry, and exceeds it in being of a more vigorous and liealthy growth, and, like the Early Harvest, produces immense 278 CtArdenixg for plrasuke. Fiff. 'Jo. — THE WILSON. JUNIOR, SLACKBEKRT. BLACKBERRY. 273 quantities of fruit of the finest qualit}*. As will be seen by the illustration (figure 96), the fruit is of the largest size. Color, deep glossy black. Wachusetts Thornless. — A strong growing variety, al- most destitute of spines, which makes it, for that reason, much prized for the private garden. It is a late variety, beginning to ripen in midsummer, and continuing for a long time in bearing. Of unsurpassed flavor. Fie:. 97.— LUCKETIA DEWBERRY. Lucretia. — This belongs to the class of Blackberries known as Dewberries. They are of trailing habit, doing nicely along the foot of old walls or waste places, creep- ing in the grass. Of course, if given garden culture, which might be similar to that for Strawberries, the fruit will be finer. It is an interesting variety, and well worthy of a place in every garden. (Figure 9T.) 280 GARDEXING FOR PLEASURE. Cry.^tal White- Fi X. 98. — CRYSTAL WHITE This seems, as Mr. Lovett says, '^a veritable albino," a white Black- berry, a novelty as rare as a white crow or a white blackbird among birds. It is of clear, translucent white, very sweet and pleasant in flavor. Well worthy, from its novelty, of a place in the fruit garden. It is less hardy than the black kinds, requiring the same protection as raspberries (lig.98). CURRANTS. The Currant is useful both for dessert and for preserv- ing purposes. An immense weight of fruit is obtained for the space it occupies, and the ease of its culture makes it common in every garden. The red and white varieties may be planted three or four feet apart each way, the black at four or five feet apart. Pruning is done in the fall by cutting off about a third of the young growth of the previous summer, and thinning out old shoots when the plants get too thick. All are trained in low bush form, the whites and reds usually from three to four feet high and wide, and the black four to six feet. They can also be grown trained against fences or walls like grape vines, and will, in such positions, attain eight or ten feet in hight in five or six years from the time of planting, if the soil is deep and rich. Grown in this way, if care is taken in training, the fruit is larger, and when ripe, particularly if the black, white, and red varieties are placed in contrast, they form very attractive orna- ments for the garden. In many places, where the area for garden operations is limited, they can easily be trained against the fence.-. An insect known as the currant worm is often verv de- OLRKANTS. :381 Fig. 99.— fat's prolific. Fii;. 10;>. —BLACK CHAMPION. 282 GARDEN^ING FOR PLEASURE. structive. On its first appearance, if confined to a few leaves, these should be cut off, shoot and all, and de- stroyed. If they threaten to be troublesome, powdered White Hellebore or Persian Insect Powder, either dusted on or mixed four ounces to a pailful of water and applied with a syringe, will destroy them at once. Of course these poisonous remedies can only be used before the fruit is ripe. Fay^s Prolific. — Color reddish amber; berries and bunch large; flavor excellent. An abundant bearer, and a most beautiful and desirable fruit for dessert. (Figure 99.) Black Najyles. — This is the favorite black variety, and is used almost exclusively for jams and jellies. The black varieties are much less grown here than in Europe, but the taste for them is increasing. Black Champion. — An improved variety of Black Cur- rant, with dense clusters, very prolific, and decidedly superior in flavor to the preceding. The bunches, how- ever, are hardly so large. (Figure 100.) ^Mlite Grape. — Berries large, of a yellowish-white color. The flavor of this variety is less acid than any other. Excellent for dessert. Cherry. — Berries larger than that of any other sort, but too acid for most tastes, and only suitable for jelly. GOOSEBERRY. The Gooseberry is a fruit better suited for the climate of Great Britain than for ours, and it is rarely seen here in the perfection it attains there. It ripens just when our hottest weather occurs, forcing it unnaturally to maturity, and hence the absence of the size and flavor it attains when ripened at a lo\ver temperature. The native varieties, though far inferior in size and quality, are usually more free from mildew, and are therefore most desirable for cultivation here, as the fruit with us is more used in the green than in the ripe state. Goose- GOOSEDEURY. 283 berries are planted from three to four feet apart, and are treated in all other respects like Currant bushes. Industry. — A European variety that proves admirably adapted to our climate. Il is comparatively new. In size and flavor it is equal to many of the finest English sorts. Color a dark red. The cut (figure 101) is an ex- cellent representation of its average size. 284 GARDEN I N'G FOR PLEASURE. Doiuning. — A native variety of medium size, greenish- white when ripe, and of excellent quality. Houglitonh Seedling. — Also a native variety. Size medium, color red, flavor average. Of the foreign varieties among Reds may be named as loading sorts, Warrington, Champion, Waterloo ; of Greens, Green Globe, Melville, Green Gage ; of Yellows, Sulphur, Champagne, Golden Drop ; of Whites, Crystal, AVhitesmith, Dutch. There are a number of English and Scotch mechanics employed at the mills in Paterson, X. J., who make a specialty of growing English Gooseberries in their cottage gardens, and hold yearly exhibitions for prizes for the best sj^ecimens. By the following method they have attained nearly as good success as is met with in Eng- land. The soil (which is naturally a good strong loam, and one foot or more in depth) is trenched to a depth of fifteen or eighteen inches, and mixed with the subsoil, which U partly sand and partly clay. Through this soil is incorporated three inches of well-rotted cow duns:. The Gooseberry plants, which are all imported from Eng- land, are planted about three and a half feet each way ; and as soon as the hot and dry weather begins (usually about the middle of June), a heavy mulching, three or four inches deep, of well-rotted horse or cow dung is spread over the whole surface. This keeps the roots cool and moist, the necessary conditions for the perfection of this fruit. FIGS. The Fig, on account of not being hardy in the Xorth- ern States, is but little cultivated, unless in tubs, which are placed in cellars or sheds to protect them during tlio winter months, or occasionally on the back wall of lean- to graperies : but in all parts of the countrv where the Ql'lNCE. 285 thermometer does not get lower than twenty degrees above zero, they can be grown freely in the open air without protection. It is hardly ever necessary to prune the Fig, except to regulate its shape by cutting back any extra strong shoots. In sections of the country such as Maryland, West Virginia, or Delaware, where it may require slight protection when grown in the open air, it should bo planted against a wall or fence, and trained against it. On the approach of cold weather it should be laid down and covered as recommended for hardy grapes. When grown in tubs to be kept in cellars, sheds, or greenhouse pits, they should be placed under cover in this latitude early in November, kept as dry as possible without shrivelling, and set out in the open air again in May. The soil and general treatment for plants grown in the open air in pots or tubs will be suitable for them. There are numerous sorts in cultivation, from which we select the following : White Genoa. — Large, roundish, yellow skin ; flesh reddish pink, excellent flavor. Broion Turkey. — Pear shaped, average size, brown skin ; flesh red, rich flavor. Early Violet, — Skin brownish-red ; flesh reddish-crim- son, delicious flavor ; fruit rather small. One of the hardiest. Brown Ischia. — Size large, skin yellowish-brown ; flesh violet, sweet and luscious. Very prolific. QUINCE. A few Quince trees should be planted in every garden where there is any pretension to a collection of fruits. It is a tree requiring but little attention, and for that reason is often neglected, and very unsightly specimens are seen. The tree ij very ornamental in flower and fruit ; and by 2^0 GARDEXIXG TOR PLEASLRE. a little attention to pruning, a handsome head may be formed, though equally luxuriant crops are seen on trees that have been untouched for years. They may be planted eight or ten feet apart. The following varieties are in most general use. Apple-shaped or Orange. — A large round variety, bright golden-yellow. Pear-shaped, — Color greenish-yellow, and its shape being more pear-like, readily distinguishes it from the other and better variety. Rea^s Seedling. — This variety is the largest and finest of all. CHERRY. The Cherry-tree begins to bear usually in two or tliree years after planting trees of the size sold at the nurseries, and continues to enlarge in growth and productiveness annually, until it often attains a larger size than most of our fruit-trees. The Cherry grows freely in almost any soil that is free from moisture, preferring, however, like most other fruits, a deep loamy soil. The tree may be trained as desired, either in pyramidal form or with a round top, by pruning and directing the shoots. The distance apart may be ten or twelve feet. Varieties : Blarh Tartarian. — Deep purplish-black, very large ; fine solid flesh. Season last of June. This variety has been in cultivation for over fifty years, and yet standi un equaled in quality. (Figure 102.) RocJcport.'—Yerj large, amber-yellow, dotted red ; flesh firm, sweet, and excellent. Eipens in June. Coe's Transparent. — Color pale amber-yellow, spotted with pink ; flesh tender, sweet, and of fine flavor. Ripens middle of June. May Duke. — Color dark red, size medium, quality ex- cellent. Ripens early in June. PLLM. 2S\ Morello. — A sub-acid variety of medium size, color bright red, changing to darker color when fully ripe. Fig. 102.— BLACK TARTARIAN CHBRRT. Hangs long on the tree, and is mainly used for pies and preserving. PLUM. The cultivation of the Plum is rendered nearly useless in most places by the attacks of the Curculio, or Plum Weevil. An almost certain remedy is to use a teaspoon- ful of London Purple or Paris Green to six gallons of ^88 GAKDEXIXG FOK PLEAS I'll K. water, syringed on the trees every other day for fifteen days, beginning the operation as the flower begins to drop, as it is just when the fruit is forming that the in- sect deposits its egg. No danger need be apprehended from the small quantity of the poison used, as it will be all washed from the fruit long before it rij^ens. Another remedy, which will effectually save a crop in the districts infested by this insect, is to jar the tree in the morning or in cool days, first spreading sheets under the trees to catch the weevils, after which they may be burned. If this is begun as soon as the Plums ai-e formed, and per- sisted in every few days until they are ripe, a large share of the crop may be saved. This may be thought to be paying rather dear for a crop of Plums, but it is really the only way it can be secured. Many years ago the crop of a Plum orchard under my charge, numbering over a hundred large trees, was saved by this process, while all other Plums in the district, where the jarring of the trees was not resorted to, were completely destroyed. This plan was recommended nearly half a century ago, and no other practicable method has been presented until the recent use of Paris Green, applied as already described. It has been recommended by some to plant the trees on the bank of a pond or running stream, and train them to overhang the water ; also to jDave or cement around the roots, so that the insect cannot burrow; but these plans would be often impossible, and are practically useless in general culture. Trees upon stiff, clayey soils are more exempt from the ravages of the Curcuho than those upon light ones, probably for the reason that the insect in the grub or larvae state cannot penetrate them so readily, as they must enter the ground to become perfect insects. The average distance at which the Plum may be planted is from ten to twelve feet. The following are distinct and fine sorts. Smith's Orleans. — Color purple, with a rich blue JAPANESE PERSIMMON. 289 bloom ; size medinm ; flesli deep yellow; flavor of first quality ; clingstone. Ripens in August. Washingto7i. — Color yellow, marbled witli red next the sun ; large size ; flesh firm, sweet, and rich ; freestone. Ripens first of September. Green Gage. — A well-known variety, rather small in size, but of exquisite flavor. Color greenish-yellow, spotted with red on the sunny side ; freestone. Ripens early in August. Imperial Gage. — Of large size, and similar in flavor to the Green Gage. Color yellowish-green. Columbia. — Of the largest size; color brownish-purple; flesh yellow, sweet, and finely flavored ; freestone. Ripens the last of August. Coe's Golden Drop. — A very old and well-known sort. Color golden yellow with red spots next the sun ; large, oval ; rich, sweet, yellow fleshc3d. Ripens the middle of September. Magnum Bonum. — Yellowish white, egg-shaped, of large size and having a rich spicy flavor. JAPANESE PERSIMMON. An entirely distinct species from the American Persim- mon, and is likely to become a valuable addition to fruits in the Southern States, but the Southern States only, as repeated trials have shown that it is not likely to prove hardy in any part of the country where the thermometer falls lower than fifteen degrees above zero. It has al- ready been grown, to some extent, in Florida and Cali- fornia, and the fruit from Florida is now finding its way into our Northern markets, and at this time brings the very high price of twenty-five cents each, while oran.i^es from the same section hardly bring one-sixth of that price. 290 GARDEKIXG FOR PLEASURE. The culture is very similar to that for the Orange, ex- cept that the Japan Persimmon, like its American rela- tive, is deciduous ; that is, it drops its leaves in the winter months. The fruit in taste is somewhat be- tween a Fig and an Apricot, and when fully ripe is de» licious. It has been long grown in Japan, where the varieties are quite as numerous as Phims are with us. hi size and coloring some kinds resemble a red tomato, Fig. 103. — JAPAN PERSIMMON {Fi'om a Photograph). though there is a great difference in the various kinds, both in shape and color. Figure 103 shows a variety of medium size. PEACH. The Peach prefers the light, dry, and warm soils known as sandy loams. The tree is short-lived in most sections, and attains its best fruiting condition usually when from fire to nine years old. The tree is greatly benefited by pruning. The growth of the previous sea- PEACH. 291 Bon should be shortened about one-third. This, if an- nually followed from the time the trees are set, will give them compact heads instead of open, straggling ones, the branches of which will break down with the first full crop of fruit. In the Peach-growing districts the culti- vators do not expect more than three crops in five years ; and if they get two full crops in that time they are con- tent, and amateurs should expect no more. When a crop sets at all there is usually more fruit than the tree can carry and ripen. No fruit needs severe thinning more than the Peach. In bearing seasons half or two-thirds of the Peaches which set niay be removed with benefit to the rest. The fruit should be removed when about the size of hazel nuts. When a tree appears sickly with yellow foliage, dig it up at once. The distance the trees should be set apart may be from ten to twelve feet. Among the favorite varieties for garden culture may be named the following: Hale's Early. — A very early Peach, of fair size and great beauty, but has the fault that it in some localities rots just as it begins to ripen, a difficulty probably due to overbearing rather than to locality. Preestone, excellent. Columbia, — Large, round, color yellow and red, streaked wdth dark crimson ; flesh yellow, rich, and juicy ; flavor excellent. Freestone ; ripens in September. Craioford's Early. — Large, roundish, color yellow, tinged with red ; flesh yellow, rich, and sweet. Ripens last of August ; freestone. CraioforcVs Late. — Similar in appearance, but ripening three weeks later. Cooledge's Favorite. — Size medium, roundish oval, color clear white with crimson cheek ; flesh rich, juicy, and of first quality. Ripens in August ; freestone. Honest John, or Early York. — Large, roundish, white 292 GAEDEXIXG FOR PLEASURE. ■with red cheek ; flesh white, very juicy, excellent flaror. Eipens the middle of August ; freestone. Morris WJdte. — A well-known variety, size medium, color greenish-white, flavor average. The variety mostly used for preserving. Eipens the middle of September ; freestone. Bed Cheeh Melocoton. — Fruit large, yellow, with dark red cheek; flesh orange-3'ellow, flavor excellent- Eipens the middle of September ; freestone. NECTARINES. Nectarines are only smooth-skinned Peaches, requiring in all respects similar treatment to the Peach. They are but little grown in this country, as they are even more liable than the Plum itself to injury by the attacks of the Plum Curculio. The same treatment recommended for its destruction in Plums must be applied to the Nectarine. There is a peculiarity in the flavor of some varieties of Nectarines differing from that of any of the Peaches, and by some they arc greatly preferred to any Peach, in flavor. The varieties are not numerous. Early Newington. — Large, roundish oval, greenish- yellow, mottled red ; flesh yellowish-white. Eipens in September ; cling. Hunfs Taicny. — Large, round, amber-yellow^ with red cheek ; flesh orange, melting, flavor excellent. Eipens in August ; freestone. Boston. — Large, oval, yellow, with mottled crimson cheek; flesh yellow, quality excellent. Eipens in Sep- tember ; freestone. APRICOT. The Apricot is closely related to the Plum, but belongs to another species. It is a delicious fruit, and in cold latitudes succeeds best grown against a fence or the side APPLE. 293 of a house. The blighting Curculio attacks the Apricot also, and its culture can only be successful by combating the difficulties that attend tliat of the Plum, unless in special locations that seem few and far between. It is now grown to a large extent in California, where it is preserved by canning in immense quantities. The fol- lowing are good varieties : Moorpark. — Size large as an average Peach, yellow with red cheek; flesh orange, sweet, and of exquisite flavor. Ripens in July. Orange. — Pale yellow with red cheek, size medium. Ripens end of July. Turkey. — Large, deep yellow, shaded orange ; flesh pale yellow, firm, rich, and sweet. Ripens in August. APPLE. The Apple can only be grown in small gardens as a dwarf, either kept in a bush form or trained as a pyramid or other shap3. The dwarf trees are made so by grafting on dwarfing stocks, while the varieties are the same as those found in the large trees of the orchard. Two sorts of dwarfing stocks are used by nurserymen, the Doucin and the Paradise. Trees upon the Doucin will ultimately grow quite large ; and as the Paradise is the only stock which makes really dwarf trees, the amateur who wishes to grow dwarf apple-trees should make sure that they are worked on Paradise stocks. Of course, trees of this kind are not advised as a source of profit ; but there can scarcely be a handsomer object in the garden than a bush six feet high, and about the same through, loaded with enormous apples. Dwarf apple-trees may be planted six feet ai)art each way, while ordinary trees in the orchard are given fifteen to thirty feet, or even forty feet. The following sorts are recommended for garden culture. 294 gardexi:n"g for pleasure. (For descriptions, see nursery catalogueG,) Baldwin, Gravenstein, Khode Island Greening, King of Tompkins Fig. lOi. — FALL PIPPIN APPLE. Connty, Maiden's Blush, Esopus Spitzenberg, Early Har- vest, Northern Spy, Porter, and Fall Pippin (figure 104). PEARS. Like Apples, Pears are grown as dwarfs and standards; the former being planted from eight to ten feet apart, the latter from ten to fifteen feet. The dwarfs, budded on the quince stock, are mostly used for garden culture, as, from their habit, they are more suitable, besides having the invaluable quality of coming quicker into bearing. Time was when the adage went, ^' He that plants Pears, PEARS. 295 plants for his heirs;" but this is now no more applicable to the Pear than to the Peach ; for we can have fine crops of Pears budded on the Quince in three to five years from the time of planting. The trees may be grown as pyramids (as in figure 105), or in the bush form ; or, in small gardens, Pear, Peach, and other trees can be suc- YiiX. 105. — IvEIFFER PEAR, cessfully trained in what is called the oblique cordon, v/hich allows a number of varieties to be grown in a small space. Only a general outline of the method can be given here, referring for fuller details to Barry's and 296 GARDEN^ING FOR PLEASURE. other works on fruit culture. A trellis is built about eight feet high, by nailing a strong top and bottom rail to posts, which should be about eight feet apart. Slats of inch stuff are put on between the two rails at an angle of thirty degrees. These are fastened on with screws, as, when the trees have reached the top, the slats are to be brought down to forty-five degrees ; and they should be long enough to allow for doing this. Young trees are set in an inclined position in a line with these slats, which are three feet apart. Each tree is cut back to a few buds, and one shoot allowed to grow from the Fil?. 106. — COEDON-TBAINrNQ OF PEAK TREES. strongest bud, all the others beins^ removed. This shoot, as it grows, is kept tied to the slat, and when it throws out side shoots, as it soon will, they are pinched back to three or four leaves, whenever the shoot is sufficiently developed to allow the number of the leaves to Be seen. By growing in this inclined position, and by pinching every shoot back to three or four leaves, the tree is dwarfed and made to bear early, and, when properly managed, forms a perfect cordon or garland, with fruit PEARS. 297 Fig. 107. — BARTLETT FEAB. 298 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. along its whole length. Figure 106 shows a portion of a trellis of this kind. The following varieties are recommended for either kind of training. (For descriptions, see nursery cata- logues.) BeuiTe d'Anjou, Seckel, Beurre Bosc, Sheldon, Summer Doyenne, Winter Nelis, D .ichesse d'Angouleme, Doyenne Boussock, Lawrence, Howell, Belle Lucrative, Louise Bonne de Jersey, and Bartlett (figure 107). Beurre Bosc, Sheldon, and Winter Nelis on Quince stock should bd double worked. VEGETABLE GARDEN. 299 1 COTTAGE GARDENING — A DIGRESSION. 301 CHAPTER XLV. COTTAGE GARDENING— A DIGRESSION. Before taking up the subject of vegetable culture, I ■will relate an incident connected with cottage gardening that may interest, if it does not benefit, some of those into whose hands this book may fall. About twenty years ago I had the pleasure of making the acquaintance of a gen- tleman whose duties compelled him to be at his desk in a close office in the city of New York, from nine o'clock A.M. to four P.M. Being naturally of a weak constitution, his sedentary life soon made him the victim of dyspepsy to such a degree that he felt that he must soon resign his situation. He was then a man of forty, entirely ignorant of anything pertaining to country life, and it was with great misgivings and reluctance that, by the advice of his physician, he changed his home from a closely built part of New York to a cottage in the then country-like suburb of Jersey City Heights, N. J. His means enabled him to purchase a modest cottage built on a lot fifty by one hundred and fifty feet. He did not want the land, he said, but the cottage was such as he fancied, and the ground had to go with it. It was about this time that I formed his acquaintance, through some business transac- tion, and he asked my professional advice as to what he could do with his land, which he had already begun to consider somewhat of an encumbrance. I replied to him that, if I was not greatly mistaken, in his little plot of ground lay a cure for all his bodily ills, and that, besides, it could add to the comforts if not the luxuries of his table if he would only work it. ''I work it!" he ex- claimed. *^You don't suppose that these hands could dig or delve," holding up his thin and bloodless fingers; and if they could, I know nothing about gardening." t( 302 GARDEi^IN^G FOR PLEASURE. I told him I tlionglit neither objection insurmountable, if he once began. The result of our conversation was, that he resolved to try, and try he did to a purpose. Our interview was in March, and before the end of April he had his lot all nicely dug over, the labor being done by his own hands during an hour and a half each morning. His custom was to get up at six o'clock, and work at his garden until half past seven. This gave him ample time to dress, get breakfast, and be at his desk in the city by nine. The labor of merely digging was (to him) heavy and rather monotonous ; but he stuck to it bravely, and when he again presented himself before me for plants and seeds, and information as to what to do with them, it was with some pride that I saw my prescription had worked so well, for my friend then looked more like a farmer than a pallid clerk. The regulating of his little garden was a simple matter, and was djne according to the following diagram : Cauliflower, Cabbage, and Lettuce. : Strawberries. Cucumbers, Onions, and Parsley. Raspberries. Beets, Carrots, and Parsnips. Tomatoes. Peas and Bush Beans. Asparagus and Rhubarb. During his first season, of course, he made some blun- ders and some failures, but his interest in the work in- creased year by year. His family was supplied with an abundance of all the fresh vegetables and fruits his lim- ited space could admit of being grown; a supply that it would have taken at least one hundred and fifty dollars to purchase at retail, and stale at that. But the benefit derived from the cultivation of this cottage garden was THE VEGETABLE GARDEIN'. 303 health— strong, rugged health — that, for the six years he was my neighbor, never once failed him. I know this case is an extremely exceptional one, for I never knew anotlier man who so resolutely worked him- self into health. There are hundreds of business men, book-keepers, salesmen, clerks, and the like, who live in the suburbs of all great cities, many of whom can ill afford to pay for tlie keeping of the plots surrounding their cottages, but ^vho think they can far less afford to do the work themselves. As a consequence, in nine cases out of ten, the rear, at least, of their suburban plots is a wilderness of weeds. But this is not the leazt of the evils. The owner has a certain amount of muscular force, and this, be it more or less, being unused, its possessor pays the penalty of his laziness in dyspe|)sy and a host of other ills. The proofs are apparent everywhere that garden operations are conducive to health and longevity. The work is not unduly laborious, and when fairly en- tered into has a never-failing interest. The growing and the watching of the great variety of plants give a healthy tone to the mind,Avhile the physical labor demanded by cultivation takes care of the body. CHAPTER XLVL THE VEGETABLE GARDEN. It is perhaps best that the space allotted to vegetables should be at one side of the garden, and that for fruits at the other, at least in the beginning, though a rotation of crops or change of position may be advantageous in course of time. Figure 108 gives a convenient plan for the Fruit and Vegetable Garden. I will give in brief the 304 GAUDEXING FOR PLEASURE. U i 'i ^ iHh-i-n 111 II li ¥=F^ bo culture of each vegetable in general use, placing them alphabetically for easy reference, and enumerate the lead- ing varieties. ASPARAGUS {Asparagtis officinalis). Asparagus should be planted the first spring that the owner comes into possession of the land. In the latitude of IN'ew York any time from April 1st to May ASPARAGUS. 305 15th ; and if the house is yet to be built, let the Aspara- gus bed be planted at once, as it takes the roots two or three years to acquire sufficient strength to give a crop. For an ordinary family a bed of six rows of fifty or sixty feet in length, and three feet apart, will be suf- ficient, the plants in the rows being set nine inches apart. In planting it is customary to use two-year-old plants ; but it often happens that as large a plant is raised from seed in good soil in one year as in a Fig. 109. — ASPARAGUS. poorer soil in two years. In such cases the one-year- old plant is preferable. The preparation of the Asparagus bed should be made with more care than for most vegetables, from the fact that it is a permanent crop, which ought to yield as well at the end of twenty-five as of five years, if the soil has been well prepared. The Asparagus bed, to start with, should be on ground thoroughly drained, either naturally or artificially, and if choice cau be had, on a rather light, 306 GARDEiq"IN^G FOR PLEASURE. sandy loam. This should be trenched and mixed with suf- ficient manure to foi'm a coat- ing at least six inches thick oyer the bed. This manure should be worked into the soil by trenching to the depth of two feet, as the roots of the plant will reach quite that depth in a few years. In setting, the crowns of the plants should be placed at least three inches below the surface. Asparagus may be planted either in the spring or the fall. If in the spring, it should be done as early as the ground is dry enough to work ; and if in the fall, just as soon as the plants can be had, which is usually in the early part of October. We prefer fall planting on light, well-drained soils, for the rea- son that, if it is done then, young roots are formed which are ready to grow on the ap- proach of spring; but if the planting is done in March, April, or May, this formation of new roots has to take place then and causes a correspond- ing delay in growth. Plants are sold by market gardeners and seedsmen; and as it will Fig. iio.-PALMETTo ASPAEAGus. savc a ycar or two to pur- ARTICHOKE, GLOBE. 307 chase them, it is not worth while to raise them from seed in a private garden. The edible portion is the undeveloped stems, which, if cut away as soon as they appear, are followed by others, which start from the crown of the plant. The cutting, if continued too long, would finally exhaust the root ; hence it is customary to stop cutting as soon as early peas become plent}^ and allow the remaining shoots to grow during the rest of the season, and thus accu- mulate sufiicient strength in the plant to allow it to pro- duce another crop of shoots the next season. The en- graving (figure 109) represents a strong plant with the earth removed from the roots. The shoots are shown in diiferent stages of development, and it will be seen how readily careless cutting may injure the buds which are ready to produce a succession of shoots. The surface of the Asparagus bed should have a top- dressing of three or four inches of rough stable manure every fall (November), which should be lightly forked into the bed in the spring. The variety mostly grown- is the Colossal, although the new French variety, known as the Palmetto (figure 110), is likely to supersede it, its merit being that the shoots grow more uniformly large than the Colossal. In some localities Asparagus is attacked by an insect called the Asparagus Beetle. The best method of getting rid of this pest, that we have found, is to coop up a hen, and let the chickens eat the insects and their eggs. ARTICHOKE, GLOBE {Cynara Scohjmus). The portion used of this plant is the undeveloped flower cluster, or the portion which is known as the scales of the involucre. They are boiled and served with drawn butter ; but outside of France they do not seem to be very generally appreciated. The plants are propagated 308 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. first by seeds, sown in a hot-bed in March, and planted out at distances of from two to three feet. It is not always hardy enough for our winters in the North- ern States, though it proves so in all latitudes south of Washington. Here it is necessary, on the approach of winter, to draw the leaves togeth- er and earth up around them, and later to cover the tops with litter. ARTICHOKE, JERUSALEM {Rclianthics tvberosus). This is an entirely dif- ferent plant from the pre- ceding; but as the two are sometimes confounded, we give engravings of both. The edible por- tion of this is the tuber. Fior. lll.~GLOBE AKTICnOKE. while that of the Glohe Artichoke is the scales surround- ing the flowers. The tubers of the Jerusalem Artichoke somewhat resemble the Potato in appearance, and the Fig. 112. — JERUSALEM AKTICHOKE. plant produces immense crops. But few persons in this country like the flavor, and it is rarely grown unless for stock or as a curiosity. Its culture is similar to the BEAN. 300 Potato. It has stems, leaves, and flov/ers macli like th^ common annual Sunflower, to which fr.mily it belongs. BEAN (Fhaseolus vvXgans var. nanus), BUSH, SNAP, OR KIDNEY. An indispensable vegetable, of easy cultivation, grow- ing freely in almost any soil, though in Avell-enriched land it will be more prolific in quantity and more tender in quality. It is a plant of tropical origin, and, like all such, shonld not be sown until the weather is settled and warm, and all danger from frost is past. In this latitude, the time of sowing should not be sooner than the fifth of May. Sow at intervals of two or three weeks all through the season, if wanted for use. Seed may be sown in drills eighteen to twenty-four inches apart, and three inches deep, dropping the seeds at distances of two or three inches in the drills, and covering to the general level. For such as use them all through the season, three or four quarts would be required, although a quart at one sowing would give an ample quantity for any average family. The varieties most in use at present are Red Valentine, Early Mohawk, Yellow Six AVeeks, Refugee, White Marrowfat, Black Wax, and Golden Wax. BEAN, POLE OR RUNNING, AND LIMA {Phaseolus lunatics). Pole Beans are usually cultivated in hills three or four feet apart. The poles (which are best made of young cedar trees) should be nine or ten feet high, and firmly fixed at least eighteen inclies deep in the ground, and the hills formed around them by digging up the soil and mixing it with a shovelful of well-rotted manure, or an ounce or so of guano or bone-dust, if the stable manure is not attainable ; but in either case let the mixing be thorough. The hills should be but two or tliree inches above the general level, and at least eighteen inches in 310 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. diameter. The term '' bill" is an unfortunate one, as it often leads inexperienced persons to suppose that a tall heap must be made, and it is a common mistake to form miniature hills often a foot or more in bight, upon which to sow seeds or set plants. The effect of this is to confine t!ie roots to this small, high, and dry space. When the word 'Miill" is used in this work, it is to indicate the place plants are to occupy, and unless some bight is mentioned, it is not above the general level. After the hill has been properly formed around the pole, from five to six beans should be planted around it at a depth of two inches ; but the planting should never be done in this latitude before the 20th of May. In all our experience as seedsmen, we know of no seed that is so universally replanted as Lima Beans. I think it safe to say, that at least half of all the people who buy, plant before the ground is dry and warm, and then tell us that the seed must have been bad, because it rotted in the ground. In the hurry of business we have not always time to explain why they rotted, and would here state, for the sake of ourselves and cotemporaries, that the reason why the Limas fail to grow in ninety-nine cases out of a hundred is, that they are planted too early, and that it is no fault of the seed, which is rarely imperfect. The proper method of planting Lima Beans is to push each one singly into the soil, from one to two inches deep, with the eye down\vard. The embryo is so very broad and flat that it is difficult for it to turn itself as smaller seeds do when placed in a wrong position. From one to two quarts are used for an ordinary family. The Large White Lima is the variety that is most prized. The Jersey Extra Early Lima is a new and excellent variety, nearly a w^eek earlier than the Large Lima, though not quite so large. The Scarlet Runner is a highly ornamental variety, BEET — BORECOLE. 311 producing dazzling scarlet flowers during the whole summer. It is used mainly as a snap bean. Lima Beans are usually planted only once in this latitude, as they take nearly the whole season to mature. All kinds of running or pole beans have been usually grown on poles eight or ten feet long ; but the new pea vine trellis (see ^'Implements"), introduced in 1887, is infinitely better and far more convenient. BEET {Bsta vulgaris). Sow in shallow drills twelve to eighteen inches apart in April or May, dropping the seeds so that they will fall an inch or so apart. When the plants have grown to the hight of about two inches, thin out, so that they will stand four inches apart. When the roots are three inches in diameter they are fit for use. Of course they are used when much larger, but the younger they are, the more delicate and tender. Four ounces of each kind will be sufficient for ordinary family use, unless successional crops are wanted, when double the quantity may be used. The kinds most used are Egyptian Turnip, Eclipse, and Long Smooth Blood. BORECOLE OR KALE {Brassica oleracea var.). The rather indefinite name of *' sprouts" is given to this vegetable about New York. It is sown here in Sep- tember, in rows one foot apart, treated in every way as Spinach, and is ready for use in early spring. Four ounces of seed are sufficient to sow thret' hundred feet of row. Two varieties of this, but little grown here, are the Scotch Kale, or Curled Greens, and the Dwaif German Greens. The former is of a deep green color, the latter bluish purple. Both varieties are much curled, almost like Parsley. The seeds of these arc sown in May, and transplanted in July, just as we do late Cab- 312 GARDENIJq^G FOR PLEASURE. bages, at distances of two feet apart each way. These '* Greens," of either variety, when touched by frost, are the most tender and delicate of all the cabbage tribe, and it has always been a matter of wonder to me why their cultivation has not been more general in this country. In Britain they are used very extensively as a wdnter vegetable. The most popular German variety is Purple Borecole. The most popular English variety is Cottager's Kale, very hardy and profitable, more weight of it being grown in the same space than of any other variety. An ounce of each kind is about the average quantity used. BROCCOLI {Brassica olcracen var.). We persist in growing under the two distinct names of Broccoli and Cauliflower, plants which at best are noth- jnof more than verv nearly related varieties. The main difference between them is, that what we call Broccoli is planted for fall use, while that w^iich we call Cauliflower is planted for spring or summer use ; though in this respect they are frequently reversed without seeming to mind it. For fall use a packet of seed should be sown in the early part of May, which will give plants large enough to be set out in July. Further south the sowii^ig of the seed should be delayed from four to six weeks later, and the plants be set out correspondingly later. Here we put them out in July, though further south it may be de- layed to August or September. In the mild autumn weather of those latitudes this vegetable may be had in perfection from November to March, while with us, if planted out in July it matures during October and November. The plants are set at two and a half to three feet apart, and as a hundred plants? are all that most families would use, it is usually cheaper to buy them, if in a section where they are sold, than to raise the plants from seed. Broccoli requires an abundance of manure. "The varieties are — BRUSSELS SPROUTS. 313 TVhite and Pnr2:tle Cape.—ThQm is no difference in flavor, thoiL^li the white is the most pleasant looking vegetable when cooked. BRUSSELS SPROUTS {Brassica oleracea var.). This vegetable, as the engraving shows, is a variety of the Cabbage which forms scarcely any terminal bud or head ; but the buds along the stem, which in the ordi- Fig. 113. — BRUSSELS SPROUTS, nary Cabbage remain small, are in this developed into small heads, which are the edible portion. Brussels Sprouts are much more used in Europe than with us. Though the plant is not sufficiently hardy to endure our northern winters, it will stand in this latitude until 314 GARUEXING FOR PLEASURE. Christmas. Its cultivation is exactly similar in all re- spects to that of Broccoli, except that it may be planted closer, say from one and a half to two feet apart. CAULIFLOWER {Brassica oleracea var.). There is quite an ambition among amateur gardeners to raise early Cauliflower; but as the conditions necessary to success with this are not quite so easy to command as with most other vegetables, probably not one in three who try it succeed. In England, and most places on the Continent of Europe, it is the most valued of all vegetables, and is grown there nearly as easily as early Cabbages. But it must be remembered that the temper- ature there is on the average ten degrees lower at the time it matures (June) than with us; besides, their atmosphere is much more humid, two conditions essen- tial to its best development. I will briefly state how early Cauliflowers can be most successfully grown here. First, the soil must be well broken and pulverized by spading or plowing to at least a foot in depth, mixing through it a layer of three or four inches of strong, well- rotted" stable manure. The plants may be either those from seed sown last fall and wintered over in cold frames, or else started from seeds sown in January or February, in a hot-bed or greenhouse, and planted in small pots or boxes, so as to make plants strong enough to be set out as soon as the soil is fit to work, which in this latitude is usually the first week in April. We are often applied to for Cauliflower plants as late as the end of May, but the chances of their forming heads when planted late in May are slim indeed. The surest way to secure the heading of Cauliflowers is to use what are called hand-glasses, some of which are described in the chapter on *' Implement?." These are usually made about two feet square, which gives room CAULIFLOWER. 1)15 enough for three or four plants of Cauliflower, until the}' are so far forwarded that the glass can be taken off. AVheii the hand-glass is used, the Cauliflowers may be planted out in any warm border early in March and covered by them. This covering protects them from frosts at night, and gives the necessary increase of tem- peratiiro for growth during the cold weeks of March and April ; so that by the first week in May, if the Cauli- flower has been properly hardened off by ventilating (by tilting up the hand-glasses on one side), they may be Fig. 114,— HENDERSON'S EARLY SNOWBALL CAULIFLOWER. taken off altogether, and then used to forward Tomatoes, Melons, or Cucumbers, at which date these may be started, if under the protection of hand-glasses. If the weather is dry, the Cauliflowers will be much benefited by being thoroughly soaked with water twice or thrice a week; not a mere sprinkling, which is of no use, but a complete drenching, so that the water will reach to the lowest roots. If the ground is slightly sprinkled around the roots with guano before watering, all the better. The best varieties of Cauliflower we have found as yet are the Early Snowball (figure 114), introduced by me in 316 GARDEXING FOR PLEASURE. 1883, and, for succession, Early Paris or Algiers. These instructions refer to the early crop of Cauliflower. For late or fall crop sow the seeds in May, and plant out as for Cabbage in June or July. In our climate there is usually more success with late than early Cauliflower. CABBAGE {Brassica oleracea var.). The Cabbage is so easily raised that but little space need be devoted to it here. Like all of its tribe, it re- quires an abundance of manure for its full development. Fig. 115. — CABBAGE, SAVOY. The early varieties should be either raised in cold frames or in hot-beds, as stated foj Cauliflower, and planted out at distances of from twenty to thirty inches apart each "way, as early as the ground is fit to work in April. The best early varieties are the Early Wakefield and Early CARROT. 317 Summer. As a siiccessional variet}' the Winiiingstadt is yery popular. It has a sharply conical head, and sometimes grows quite large. For late varieties, the seed should be sown in May, and the plants set out in June or July at two to three feet apart. For winter use the Flat Dutch or Drumhead is usually grown, to the exclusion of all others ; and while the Curled Savoy is vastly better flavored, not one Savoy is planted for every thousand Drumhead. The flavor of Fig. 116.— VARIETIES OF THE CARROT. 1. — EARLY FRENCH FORCING. 2.— EARLY HORN, 3.— LONG ORANGE. the Savoy is as superior to that of tlie Drumhead, as that of a Bartlett is to that of a choke pear, and it is alto- gether the best late Cabbage for family use, and the wonder is how long it has taken for it to be appreciated here, though we f nd its culture is mcreasing rapidly. CARROT {Daucus Carota). Carrots are sown any time from April to June, in rows one foot apart, covering the seed two inches deep. If 318 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. the soil is light, they will be better flayored. When the plants are an inch or so high, thin out to three or four inches apart. The varieties most in use are Early French Forcing, Early Horn, and Long Orange. Eight ounces of seed will sow three hundred feet of row, which, for most families, would be an abundance, both for summer and winter use. Carrots are much prized as food for horses and cows, and if wanted for this purpose in quan- tity, they should be sown with a seed-drill, in rows one and a half to two feet apart. About foui* pounds of seed per acre are required. CELERY (Aphtm graveolens]. If I am fitted to instruct on the cultivation of any veg- etable, it is this, as for many years I have cultivated nearly half a million roots annually, and this experience has resulted in greatly simplifying the operation. The seeds are sown on a well-pulverized, rich border, in the open ground, as early in the season as the ground can be worked. The bed is kept clear of weeds until July, when the plants are set out for the crop. But as the seedling plants are rather troublesome to raise, the small number wanted for private use can usually be purchased cheaper than they can be raised on a small scale (they cost from fifty cents to a dollar per hundred); and if they can be procured fresh from the seedsmen, market gardeners, or florists in the neighborhood, it is never worth while to sow the seed, as from three hundred to five hundred plants are ample for ordinary sized families. The European plan is to make a trench six or eight inches deep in which to plant Celery; but our violent rain storms in summer soon showed us that this plan was not a good one here, so we set about planting on the level surface of the ground, just as we do with all vegetables. Celery is a ^' gross feeder," and requires two or three CELERY. 319 inches thick of well-rotted manure, which, as usual, must be well mixed and incorporated with the soil before the Celery is set out. If stable manure is not convenient, bone dust, guano, or other concentrated fertilizer may be sown on the rows about as thick as sand or sawdust is strewn on a floor, and well chopped in and mixed with the coil. Whether stable manure or a concentrated fertilizer be used, it should be spread over and mixed to at least twelve inches in width and six inches in depth. When the ground is thus prepared, we stretch a line to the distance required, and beat it slightly with a spade, so that it leaves a mark to show where to place the plants. These are set out at distances of six inches between the plants, and usually four feet between the rows. Great care must be taken in putting out the Celery, to see that the plant is set just to the depth of the roots. If much deeper, the "heart" might be too much covered up, which would impede the growth. It is also important that the soil be well packed to the root m planting ; and if the operation can be done in the evening, and the plants copiously watered, no farther watering will usually be required. If planted in July, nothing is to be done but keep the crop clear of weeds until September. By that time the handling process is to be begun, which consists in draw- ing the earth to each side of the Celery, and pressing it tightly to it, so as to give the leaves an upward growth preparatory to blanching for use. Supposing this hand- ling process is done by the middle of September, by the first week in October it is ready for *' banking up," which is done by digging the soil from between the rows and laying or banking it up on each side of the row of Celery. After being so banked up in October, it will be ready for use in three or four weeks, if wanted at that time. But if, as is usually the case, it is needed for winter use only, and is to be put away in trenches, or in the cellar, as 320 GARDEXIXG FOR PLEASURE. will be hereafter described, all that it requires is the operation of '^landling," to straighten it up. If the Celery is to be left in the open ground where it was grown (as it' can be in any section of the country where the ther- mometer does not fall more than fifteen degrees below the freezing point), then a heavy bank must be made on each side of the rows, and as cold weather approaches— say by the middle of November — an additional covering of at least a foot of leaves or litter must be closely packed against the bank, to protect it from frost. Perhaps the best way to keep Celery for family use is in a cellar. This can be done by storing it in narrow Fig. 117. — " HAN'DLING " CELERY. boxes of a depth a little less than the hight of the Celery. A few inches of sand or soil are placed in the bottom of the box, and the Celery is packed upright, the roots being placed on damp sand or earth at the bottom, hvt none is to be put hehoeen the lieads; and be careful not to water- the Celery, as, if packed moderately tight, the air will be excluded, so that it will not wilt ; and the roots being on the damp sand or soil at the bottom of the box, the moisture there will sustain them. Boxes thus packed and placed in a cool cellar in November, will be blanched fit for use during January, February, and March, though, for succession, it will be better to put it in the boxes CELERY. 321 from the open ground at three different times, say October 25th, November 10th, and November 20th. Or, if boxes are not at htind, the Celery may be put away on the floor of the celhir in strips nine or ten inches wide, separated by spaces of the same width, and divided by boards of a hight equal to the hight of the Celery. The reason for dividing the Celery in these narrow strips by boards is to prevent ' 'heating,'' which w^onld take place if the plants were packed together in too thick masses. The dates above given apply, of course, to the latitude of New York. If farther south, do the work later ; if farther north, earlier. If one has no suitable cellar, the /ft ^1^ ^^ if J* Fig. 118— SHOWS CELERY BANKED UP. Celery can be very readily preserved in the manner fol- lowed by market gardeners, thus : After it has been 'Mianaled" or straightened up, as before described, what is intended for use by Christmas should be dug up by about October 25th ; that to be used in January and February, by November 10th ; and that for March use, by November 20th, which latter date is as late-as it can be risked here. Although it will stand quite a sharp frost, the weather by the end of November is often severe enough to kill it, or so freeze it in the ground that it cannot be dug up. The ground in which it is to be preserved for winter use must be as 322 GAKDENIKG FOR PLEASURE. dry as possible, and so arranged that no water can remain in the trench. Dig a trench as narrow as possible (it should not be wider than ten inches), and of a depth equal to the hight of the Celery ; that is, if the plant of Celery be eighteen inches high, the trench should be dug eighteen inches deep. The Celery is then packed exactly in the manner described for storing in boxes to be placed in the cellar; that is, stand it as nearly npright as possible, and pack as closely together as can be done without bruising it. As the weather becomes cold, the trenches should be gradually covered with leaves or litter to the thickness of six or eight inches, Avhich will be enough to m:^ Fig. 119. — STORING CELERY IN TRENCHES FOR WINTEB. prevent severe freezing, and enable the roots to'be taken out easily when wanted. Figure 119 represents this method of storing Celery in trenches for winter nse. The best varieties of Celery for family use I believe to be the four described below : White Plume, introduced by me in 1884, is now perhaps more largely grown than any other Celery, and possesses all the best qualities of the be^t of the old kinds. It has the great merit of being nearly self- blanching, as in its natural growth, without being earthed up, the inner stems and leaves are white, and nearly fit for use without being blanched artificially. CELERY. 323 The flavor, however, is much improved by blanching, so that it is necessary to at least handle and earth up this variety to half its higlit to get the best results. Another Fig. 120.— HENDERSON'S WHITE PLUME CELERY. great merit of the White Plume Celery is that, while being unsurpassed in flavor, it excels all other vegetables 324 GARDEXIXG FOR PLEASURE. as an ornament for the dinner table, its graceful white leaves resembling somewhat an ostrich feather. We sent samples of it to all the leading hotels in New York the present season, from all of which we had the most flatter- ing testimonials of its excellence. Sandringham.— This is a dwarf, full-hearted kind, and, when it does well, is one of the very best, equaled by none in fact; but it has a great tendency to rust or burn, which impairs its value. A new sport from this, known as the Golde7i Self- Blanching, is somewhat of an improvement on the Sandringham. For general use the Golden Dwarf comes next in merit to the White Plume. It is a short-growing or half-dwarf sort, with yellowish heart, solid and crisp. A variety introduced by us in 1886, called the Rose, is the best of all the Red or Pink Celeries. The red kinds are used nearly exclusively in the London markets, as they are certainly more crisp and better flavored than any of the white kinds, besides being hardier and less liable to rot in winter ; but, so far, they are comparatively little used in this country. While we sell nearly a thou- sand pounds of seed each of such kinds as White Plume and Gclden Dwarf annually, we do not, as yet, sell one- tenth of that quantity of the Red. CELERIAC, OR TURNIP-ROOTED CELERY {^Apium graveolms var .). This is grown almost the same as the common Celery ; and as it requires but little earthing-up, the rows may be nearer together. Its turnip-like root is used as a salad, mostly by the French and Germans. It is some- times stewed, but usually simply boiled, sliced, and dressed as a salad for the table. CORN-SALAD OR EETTICUS {Valerianella olitoHa). This is sold to a considerable extent in spring in i\\Q city markets for use as an early salad. For mode of cul- CHIVES — CRESS— CORN. 325 tivation, etc., see Spinach, as it is grown in exactly the same manner. CHIVES (^Allium Schcenoprasum). An entirely hardy, onion-like plant, of easy culture. It will grow on almost any soil for years without being transplanted. The leaves are the part used, and may be shorn off every two weeks during summer. It is propa- gated by tearing apart the old clumps and setting the divisions in rows a foot apart. CRESS OR PEPPER GRASS {Lepidium sativum). A spring and summer salad plant. Sow in early spring, and in succession every week or so if desired, in rows one foot apart. The curled variety is the best, as it can be used for garnishing as well as for salad. CRESS, WATER {Nasturtium officinale). A hardy aquatic plant, which can only be properly cul- tivated wliere there are running streams. If there is a brook on the place, all that would be wanted for private use may be had by setting a few plants or sowing seeds in spring on tlie margin of the water. There is a variety recently introduced known as '' Upland Cress," that can be grown in an ordinary garden. It is almost identical in flavor with the Water Cress. CORN {Zea Mays). The varieties known as "Sweet" are the kinds culti- vated to be used in the green state. Corn may either be planted in " hills" (dropping three or four seeds in a hill) four feet apart each way, or in rows live feet apart, drop- ping the seeds at distances of eight or ten inches in the rows. In this latitude it is useless to plant Corn before the middle of May. For successional crops it should be 326 GAEDENIJ^G FOR PLEASURE. CUCUMBER. 327 planted every two or three weeks until July first. After that date it will not mature here. Corn requires a rich, light soil to be earl}'. The leading yarieties are shown in figure 131. Three or four quarts are required, if successional crops are sown. If only one crop, two or three pints will be sufficient for an ordinary family. CUCUMBER {Cucumis satitms). In most places where the Cucumber is grown out- doors, it is more or less troubled with the '^Striped Bug ; " but if only a few dozen hills are cultivated, it is not a very troublesome matter to pick them off, which is about the only sure way to get rid of them. The safest method of raising Cucumbers, however, is to cover the seeds, when first sown, with the hand-glass described in the chapter on '^Iini^lements," which, by the time they are wanted for Cucumbers, are no longer needed over Cauliflowers. If such hand-glasses are not obtainable, a simple method is to use a light box ten or twelve inches square, and place it over the seeds after sowing, covering it with a pane of glass. This will not only forward the ger- mination of the seeds, but will protect the plants against the bugs until they are strong enough not to be injured by them. Bryant's Plant Protec- tor, a simple article, made of light strips of wood covered ^^^- ^^''^• .,, ., ... BRYANT'S PLANT PROTECTOB. With mosquito netting, may be used instead of a hand-glass. This uill be found equally valuable for protecting all plants liable to the attacks of flying insects, and against the light frosts so often injurious to tender plants. Light, sandy soil is rather best for Cucumbers. The "hills" should 328 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. be prepared in the same manner as for Lima Beans, but set three feet apart, dropping five or six seeds in each hill. Cucumbers may be sown about the middle of May, and in succession, every three or four weeks, until July. The White Spine and Long Green Prickly are favorite varieties. The Gherkin or Burr is by some used for jDickling. Forcing Oltcumbers. — The forcing house shown at page 267 as suitable for Strawberry forcing, can be made equally available for forcing Cucumbers, either during the entire winter or spring season, or to succeed the early forced crops of vegetables or fruits in spring. If wanted for forcing Cucumbers during the fall or winter, the seed should be sown in the greenhouse in October or November, in small pots, three or four seeds in each, and thinning out to one strong plant. These, if grown in a temperature averaging seventy-five degrees, will in thirty days have become sufficiently strong to plant out at twenty-four inches apart on the south side of the bench, one row only. A trellis of galvanized iron wire is made with about a nine-inch mesh, diamond shaped. This, on the middle bench, should be kept two feet from the glass, but on the front bench it can only be kept one foot, owing to its nearness to the glass. The depth of soil should be, if on raised wooden benches, about five or six inches ; if on the solid center bed, ten to fifteen inches. The soil should be a sandy loam, with one-fifth well-rotted cow manure. The night tem- perature in the forcinor-house for the fall, winter, and spring months for Cucumbers, should range as near as possible from sixty to sixty-five degrees, with a tempera- ture on bright days of from ten to fifteen degrees higher, giving ventilation at all reasonable times. Cucumbers delight in a moist atmosphere, and whenever the weather is bright and clear, water should be sprinkled on the pipes, walks, and under the benches. A dry atmosphere CUCUMBER. 329 is certain to develop the Eed Spider, which is fatal to success. It may also be here stated, if Cucumbers are to be forced during the winter months, that, to keep up the necessary high temperature, eight runs of four-inch pipes will be required in a greenhouse twenty feet wide. Although there is no necessity for artificial impregna- tion of the Cucumber flowers when grown in the oi3en air, where the insects and winds do the work, yet, when grown in the forcing house, it is absolutely necessary, particularly in midAvinter. This is best done with a camel's hair pencil, by detaching the pollen, or fertilizing dust, from the stamens and applying it to the stigma. It will also facilitate impregnation on bright days to slightly jar the wire trellis, so as to let the jwllen loose, which, in floating through the air, fastens on the stigma. Tl-o Cucumber and all plants of that class have the male ani female flowers separate on the same plant. Cucumbers from seed sown in October will give a continuous crop until June — of course, if well handled. When wanted only to succeed crops of forced Lettuce, Eadishes, or Strawberries in spring, the seed should not be sown until February or March. The variety for forcing which seems to be most favorably received in our markets is Selected Early White Spine, though, of late yearc, tlie beautiful long kinds, such as Telegraph and Rambler, which are almost exclusively used in Europe for forcing, are beginning to be favorably received. Although Cucumbers are now to be found in our markets at nearly all seasons of the year, grown at the south, yet they never have the fine appearance nor the delicate flavor of those grown by being forced under glass ; so that large areas of forcing houses for this and other vegetable and fruit crops are now profitably used in all our large cities, though coming in direct compe- tition with Southern products. 330 GAllDEJSflNG FOR PLEASURE. EGG PLANT (Solanum Melongend). This is always an interesting vegetable to cultiyate, being worthy of a place as an ornamental plant, as well as being mucli prized for culinary nse. If is a native of the tropics, and peculiarly tender. AVe find the seeds will not germinate freely below a temperature of seventy degrees ; and even then often tardily, unless the condi- tions are just right. Nothing suits them so well as a warm hot-bed ; and to get plants of the proper size to be set in the open ground by the end of May, the seeds should be sown early in March, and the plants potted into small pots when an inch or so in hight. But as only a dozen or two plants are needed for a family, when- ever the plants can be purchased conveniently, it is never worth the trouble to attempt the raising of them from seeds, unless, indeed, there is room in a hot-bed, or a hot-house used for other purposes. Do not plant out sooner, in this latitude, than the 25th of May, unless tliey can be protected by hand-glasses. Set at distances of four feet apart, preparing the hills as described for Lima Beans. Each plant should average a dozen fruits, which will weigh from ten to forty ounces each. The best flavored variety, in our opinion, is the Black Pekin, but the most prolific is the New York Market. A pure pearly white variety is highly ornamental, and also of excellent flavor. There is also a beautiful scarlet variety, sometimes grown as a greenhouse ornament. The Egg Plant is usually fried in slices ; but there are other methods to be found in the proper authorities on such matters. ENDIVE ( Cichorium Endivia). A plant related to the Lettuce. If sown in early spring, either in a hot-bed or in the open ground in April, it will be ready in May. Set out at distances of fifteen HERBS — GARLIC — HORSERADISH. 331 inches apart. It is mostly used towards fall, however, and when wanted at that time, should be sown in June or July, and set out in August or September. Nothing further is done after planting but hoeing to keep down tlie weeds, until it attains its full growth, which is from twelve to eighteen inches in diameter. It is then "blanched," either by gathering up the leaves and tying them by their, tops in a conical form, or by placing a slate or flat stone on the plant to exclude the liglit and eifect the blanching. It is used as a salad. The varie- ties are the Moss Curled and Plain-leaved Batavian. HERBS, SWEET. Thyme, Sage, Basil, Sweet Marjoram, and Summer Savory are those in general use. The seeds of all should be sown in shallow drills, one foot apart, in May, and the plants will be fit for use in September and October. * GARLIC {Allium sativum). This is used mostly by Europeans. It grows freely on any soil. The sets, obtained by breaking up the old bulbs, are planted in early spring in rows one foot apart, and five or six inches between the plants. When the leaves wither, the bulbs are taken up and hung in a dry, cool place. * HORSERADISH {Cochlearia Armoracea). For family use a few roots of this should be planted in some out-of-the-way corner of the vegetable garden. A dozen roots, once planted, will usually give enough for a lifetime, as it increases and spreads so tliat .there is never any danger of being without it. The trouble is, if it is once admitted into the garden, it is difficult to bo got rid of, if so desired. 332 GARDEJ^IXG FOR PLEASURE. KOHLRABI. OR TURNIP-ROOTED CABBAGE (Brassica oleracea var.\ This vegetable resembles a Turnip, but is regarded as a variety of the Cabbage, with a fleshy, edible stem. Seeds should be sown in rows fifteen or eighteen, inches apart, in May or June, and when an inch high, thinned out to nine or ten inches. It is a favorite vegetable with the Germans, and immense quantities are sold in the markets of Xew York. There are two varieties, AVhite and Purple. LEEK {Allium Porrum). Sow in April, and plant out in June or July, in rows one foot apart and six inches betAveen the plants. It is used mainly during the winter months. It is an entirely hardy plant ; yet, in order that it may be handy to get at in winter, it is better to put it in trenches or boxes, as advised for preserving Celery. LETTUCE {Lactuca sativd). Lettuce should be sown in a hot-bed or greenhouse, if wanted early. Seeds sown there in February will give Fig. 123. — ^BLACK-SEEDED SIMPSON LETTCJCE. nice plants to set out in April, to mature in May; or, if it is sown in the open ground in April and planted out in MARTYKIA — MELON. 333 May, it will mature in June, and so on through the sum- mer season if suceessional crops are desired, as it only takes from live to six weeks to mature. The great excel- lence of Lettuce consists in its freshness, and it can rarely be purchased m perfect con- dition ; hence, those who would enjoy it in its best state should raise it them- selves. For early use, to be ready in May, the Curled Silesia and Boston Market are the best; while for sum- mer use the Salamander, New York, and Black-seed- ed Simj^son (figure 123) should be sown, as they do not readily run to seed. The Cos varieties are mainly used in Europe, and are by far the best flavored; but, from their tendency to run to seed in our warmer climate, are but little cultivated, though they miglit be safely grown in the cool weather, in spring or in fall. Although usually transplanted, the seed is also sown in rows, and the plants thinned out to twelve inches apart. An ounce of seed of each variety w^ill be ample. Fia;. 124. PARIS WHITE COS LETTUCE. MARTYNIA {Marty nia proboscidea). The unripe pods, when perfectly tender, are used for pickling. They must be gathered every day or two, or some will become hard and useless. Sow in open ground in May, in drills two feet apart, and thin out to one foot. MELON, MUSK (Cucumis Blelo). The cultivation of the Melon is almost identical with that of the Cucumber, to which reference may be made. 334 GAEDEXIXG FOR PLEASURE. Tlie varieties are numerous, those named below being the most popular at the date I write. Early Hackensack, Fig. 125. — BALTIMORE MUSK MELON. Baltimore (fig-ure 125), and Montreal Market (figure 126). (For illustrations and descriptions see seed lists.) Fig. 123. — M02>TREAL MARKET MUSK MELON. :MEL0N, water {CitruUus vulgaris). The cultivation of the "Water Melon is in all respects similar to that of the Musk Melon, except that, being a MELON — MLSTARD. 335 larger and stronger growing plant, it requires to be planted at greater distances. Tlie hills should, not be less than eight feet apart each way. It delights in a light, sandy soil, and. will not grow satisfactorily on heavy, clayey soils. The leading sorts are named, as usual, in Fig. 127. — SCALY BARK WATER MELON. t!ic order of what I consider to be their excellence, and are of the kinds most approved at the date of writing. Phinney's Early, Rattlesnake or Gypsy, Ironclad Mam- moth, and Scaly Bark. '^ Green and Gold," an entirely new and excellent variety, with golden yellow flesii, will be sent out by us the ])rescnt season (1888). (For illus- trations and descriptions, see seed catalogues.) MUSTARD {Si7iapis alba). For use and cultivation see Cress. 336 GARDENI^NiG FOR PLEASURE. MUSHROOM (Agaricus campestris). Many who have a taste for liorticultural pursuits grow Mushrooms as much for the novelty of the thing as for use; for it is certainly very gratifying for an amateur to find that he has succeeded with a cro]) of this curious vegetable in mid-winter, when everything outside is frost-locked and snow-bound. I have said that the nov- elty is attractive ; for in growing all other plants the cultivator sees something tangible to start with, either seeds, plants, or roots, but with the Mushroom it may be said he sees none of these; for no seeds can be discov- ered either with the naked eye or with a magnifier, and it requires some faith to believe the minute, thread-like substance we call ^'^ spawn " to be either plants or roots. Mushrooms are always raised in the dark, and any cel- lar, stable, or an out-house of any sort, wherein a temper- ature of forty-five to sixty-five degrees can be commanded, will grow them. There are various methods followed by Mushroom growers, but I will only give two, premising that, if the directions given are strictly followed, success is just as certain as in growing a crop of Feasor Potatoes. Let horse droppings be procured from the stables each day, in quantities not less than a barrow load. To every barrow load of droppings add one-fourth the quantity of fresh loam from a pasture or sod land, or soil of any kind that has not been manured (the objection to old manured soil being that it may contain the spores of spurious fungi). Let the droppings and soil be mixed together day by day, as the manure can be j^trocured ; or, if they can be had all at once in sufficient quantity, so much the better. Let the heaj:) (which should be under cover, so as not to get wet) be turned every day, so that it is not allowed to heat violently until you have got together a sufficient quantity to form a bed of the desired size. From the prepared droppings and soil, begin to form MUSHROOM. 337 the bed. A convenient width is four feet, and the length may be as great as desired. First spread a thin layer of the compost, pounding it down firmly with a brick or mallet, layer after layer, until it reaches a depth of eight inches. Be careful tliat the thickness is just about eight inches, as, if more, it would heat too violently, and if less, it would not heat enough. Into this bed plunge a thermometer. In two or three days the bed will heat, so that the thermometer will rise to one hun- dred degrees or over. As soon as the temperature de- clines to ninety degrees, take a sharp stick and make Fig. 128.— MUSHBOOMS. holes an inch or so in diameter all over the bed, at about a foot apart and six inches deep. Into these holes droj) two or three pieces of '"^ spawn," and cover up the holes again with the compost of which the bed is made, and beat it slightly again, so that the bed will present the same level surface as before the spawn was put in. Let the bed remain in this condition for ten or twelve days, by which time the spawn will liave run all through it. Now spread evenly over the surface of the bed about two inches of fresh loam, press it down moderately with the 338 GARDEXIXG FOR PLEASURE. back of a spade, and cover up the bed with hay or straw to the thickness of three or four inches. If this operation is finished in November or December, and the place has an avei'age temperature of fifty-five de- grees, you may look for a crop in January or February. The bed will continue bearing about three or four weeks, and the crop is usually enormous, often producing a bushel on two square yards of space. After the first crop is gathered, a second, and even a third, can be taken, if desired, from the same bed without further trouble than to spread a little fresh soil on the surface, giving it a gentle watering, and covering up with hay as before. Great care must be taken that, after placing the spawn in the new^ly-made bed, the earth covering is not put on sooner than ten or twelve days. In my first attempt at Mushroom growing I failed two years in succession, be- cause I put on the soil when the spawn was first put into the bed. By so doing, the steam arising from the manure was prevented from passing off, and the result was, that the spawn rotted. I believe this very common error is the cause of most of the failures in raising Mushrooms. Another method of raising Mushrooms in winter in cold cellars, or other places where there is no artificial heat, is as follows, given by John Cullen, of Bethlehem, Penn., whose success in Mushroom growing has been unfailing. *^My Mushroom cellar is a structure fifteen feet long and twelve feet wide. Formerly it was a water cistern, but with a little alteration was easily converted into a Mushroom cellar. My plan of culture is as follows : In September manure from horse stables is collected in a heap, and to that is added one-fifth of soil. To prevent overheating it is turned over three times a week for a month. By that time the violent heat is subdued. ^'Making the Beds. — Having obtained a sufficiency of horse droppings for a bed, in the right condition, that is. MUSHROOM. 339 rather dry, and turned so as to expel the violent heat, a layer four inches thick is placed on the floor of the cellar and beaten down firmly. Another layer of the same thickness is added, and the same beating process carried out, and so on till the bed is made of sufficient thickness. I make my beds fifteen inches in depth when artificial heat can be obtained of fifty degrees, but in cold cellars the bed should be at least eighteen inches. ''^Spawning the Bed. — I spawn my beds when the tem- perature declines to eighty-five degrees at about three inches under the surface, though the heat in the centre of the bed may be one hundred degrees. The spawn is broken in pieces of about one and a half to two inches, and I insert them about seven inches apart each way, and so deep as to admit of being covered about an inch with the same material as the bed is composed of, firming it well about and over the spawn. ^'Soiling the Bed. — This is done in eight days from the time of spavming. T i3ut two inches of fine loam all over the bed, making it firm by beating it well with the back of the spade, damping the surface, and passing the back of the spade over it at the last to give a smooth finish to it. As soon as the soil is placed on the bed a covering of hay is placed over it rather thinly, doubling it as the heat declines. ''Gathering the Crop. — In six weeks from the time of soiling I usually gather my first crop of Mushrooms, and cut from ten to twelve pounds weekly from a space of two hundred square feet, or, for the whole crop, an average of about one pound per square foot, some of them measuring five inches in diameter. In ffatherin": I draw the Mushrooms out of the bed with a twist, so as not to disturb the roots remaining, after- ward filling tlie holes with some fresh loam. "Water about ten degrees warmer than the cellar is applied when the surface of the bed becomes dry." 340 GARDEKIXG FOR PLEASURE. NASTURTIUM, INDIAN CRESS (Tropceolum majus). A highly ornamental plant, cultivated in flower gardens as well as in the kitchen garden. The shoots and flowers are sometimes used in salads, but it is mainly grown for its fruit or seed pods, which are pickled in vinegar and used as a substitute for capers. The plant is of the easiest culture. Sow in shallow drills in May. The tall variety will reach a hight of ten or fifteen feet if fur- nished with strings or wires, and makes an excellent screen for shade, or for quickly covering up and conceal- ing any unsightly place. The dwarf variety is grown like Peas, and staked with brush, or grown on the garden trellis. OKRA OR GUMBO {Ahelmoschus esculentus). A vegetable of the easiest culture. Sow in drills in May, three feet apart for dwarf and four feet for tall sorts, in drills two or three inches deep. The long pods, when very young and tender, are used in soups, stews, etc., and are very nutritious. ONION {Allium cepa). Onions are raised either from ''sets," which are small dry Onions grown the previous year, or from seeds. When grown from the sets, they should be planted out as early in spring as the ground is dry enough to work. Plant them in rows one foot apart, with the sets three or four inches apart. \V hen raised from sets, the Onions can be used in the green state in June, or they will be ripened off by July. When raised from seeds, these are sown at about the same distance between the rows, and when the young plants are an inch or so high, they are thinned out to two or three inches apart. It is important that Onion seed be sown very early. In this latitude it should be sown not later than the middle of ONIOX. 341 April ; for, if delayed until May, warm weather sets in and delays, or rather prolongs the growth until fall, and often the bulbs will not ripen. We find that, unless the Ouion tops dry oft* and the bulbs ripen by August, they will hardly do so later. The best known sorts are Early Flat Red, Yellow Globe Dauvers, and South port White Globe. The Italian kinds best suited for the Southern States are White Queen and Red Giant Rocca. Two kinds are grown exclusively from bulbs. One of Fig. 129. — souTnpoRT white globe onion. these is the Potato Onion, or ''Multiplier," which in- creases by the bulb splitting up and dividing itself into six or eight smaller bulbs, which in turn form the sets to plant for the next crop. The other variety is what is called the Top Onion, which forms little bulbs on the stem in the place of flowers. These bulbs are in clusters, and about the size of hazel nuts. The bulbs are broken 342 GARDENIJTG FOR PLEASURE. apart, and planted in spring at the same distances as the '•sets" referred to on page 340. All mature in August. PARSLEY (Apium retroselinum). But a Tery small quantity of this is usually wanted in the family garden. Sow in shallow drills in April or May. A good plan is to sow in shallow boxes as much as may be needed. They can be placed wherever there is mod- erate light and no frost, in the kitchen window or similar place. By this means a fresh supply may be kept on hand in hard winter weather, when it is most desirable to have it, either for garnishing dishes or for other uses. The best variety to grow is the Moss or Double Curled. PARSNIP {Pastinaca sativa). 'For the mode of cultivation of Parsnips, see Carrot, as their culture is identical, except that this, being hardy, can be left out in winter, while in this latitude Carrots cannot. A portion of the crop may be dug and stored in the cellar or in trenches, and the remainder may be left until spring. The Hollow Crowned is best for general use. PEA (Pisum sativum). The Pea is indispensable in the garden, and there is more satisfaction in growing it on one's own ground than there is in raising any other vegetable. If too old when picked, or stale, which is too often the case when purchased from the dealers. Peas have but little resem- blance to those taken directly from the vines. For an early crop Peas should be one of the first things sown in the spring. We prefer to sow in double rows, which saves half the labor in staking or bushing up, and gives nearly the same crop to the row as if sown in single row^s. PEA. 343 344 GAKDENING FOR PLEASURE. Double rows are made at eight or nine inches apart, and four feet from other rows. Set a line, and draw the drills three or four inches deep with a hoe. The seed should be sown, as nearly as possible, an inch or so apart. In order to have a succession of crops of Peas, they should be sown every two or three weeks until July. If successional crops are grown, an average quan- tity for a family would be twelve quarts ; if only first crops of early and late, from four to six quarts will be sufficient. The new Pea Vine Trellis, described in the chapter on *' Implements," is the most valuable acquisition to Pea growing ever introduced. We used it the past season on over two thousand feet of row in our trial ground with the most gratifying results, finding it not only much better for the purpose than the ordinary "pea stakes" cut from the woods, but far more sightly; and taking into con- sideration that the pea vine trellis may be used for a dozen years, it is actually cheaper. The varieties of Peas are almost innumerable, and new sorts — or at least sorts with new names — are sent out every year. They may be classed in two groups, the round and the wrinkled Peas. The round varieties are the earliest, but they are as much inferior to the v/rinkled or marrow kinds as field is to sweet corn. These two groups are subdivided according to hight. The earliest round Pea we have found to be a selection made by us, and sent out in 1883 under the name of First of All. The earliest wrinkled variety is the American Wonder (figure 130). These two are really all that are needed for private use for early, while for successio7ial or late kinds, Champion of England (figure 131) and Telephone seem 3'et the best. But all seed catalogues now give very full illustrations and descriptions of new kinds, which are being yearly in- troduced, and to which my readers are referred. PEA. 345 346 GARDEXII^G FOR PLEASURE. PEPPER OR CAPSICUM {Capsicum annuum). The Pepper is sown and cultivated in all respects the same as the Egg Plant, whicJi may be referred to. The leading varieties are the Bull Nose or Bell (scarlet), the Golden Dawn (yellow), and the Long Red Cayenne. POTATO {Solanum tuberosum). Potatoes are grown by planting the tubers, either cut or whole, it makes but little difference which. If large, cut them ; if small, leave them uncut. They are usually planted in drills three feet apart, and four or five inches deep. The ground should be prepared by first spreading in the drills a good coat of stable manure, say two inches deep, upon wiiich are planted the tubers or sets, at dis- tances of eight or ten inches apart. In a warm exposure planting may be begun early in April, and the crop will be fit for use in June. Some of the small-leaved varieties, such as the Ash-leaved Kidney, w^ere formerly grown under hand glasses, or in frames, to forward them; but now this is hardly worth the trouble, as our supplies from southern latitudes are so early that it is no longer desir- able to force the crop. The generally favorite variety for early crops is still the Early Rose. Among other greatly improved sorts for the general crop are Early Puritan, Vanguard, and Beauty of Hebron; but there are scores of other varieties which have a special or local reputation. PU^IPKIN {CucurUta Pepo). Pumpkins are still grown in many gardens with a te- nacity that is astonishing, when it should long ago have been known that they have no business there, as their first cousins, the Squashes, are eminently superior for every culinary purpose whatever. The Pumpkin is a valuable product for the farm, as a food for cattle, but RADISH — RHUBARB. 347 for nothing else. If people will waste valuable land in raising Pumpkins^ they may plant them the same as di- rected for Squashes. RADISH {Raphanus sativus). One of the first vegetables that we crave in spring is the Radish, and it is so easy of culture that every family can have it fresh, crisp, and in abundance. A garden patch of a few feet square will give enough for an ordi- nary family. It is sown either in drills or broadcast, care being taken that the seed is not put in too thickly; from one to two inches apart, either in drill or broadcast, being the proper distance, as usually every seed germi- nates. The best varieties are the Red and French Turnip, and the Short Top Long, Red or White. Some beautiful fancy kinds have been recently introduced, equally as crisp and well flavored as the older sorts, and which are very ornamental for the table besides. The most marked are the Round White-tipped Turnip Radish and the Long Chartier, white tipped. If wanted specially early, the above sorts are best for hot-bed forcing ; for summer and winter use the yellow and gray varieties are preferred. RHUBARB OR PIE-PLANT {Rheum Rhaponticum). Rhubarb may be planted in either fall or spring, using either plants raised from the seed, or sets obtained by di- vision of the old roots, taking care to have a bud to each. Set at distances of three or four feet apart each way. The place where each plant is to be set should be dug eighteen inches deep and the same in width, and the soil mixed w^ith two or three shovelfuls of well-rotted stable manure. Two dozen strong plants will be enough for the w^ants of an average family. If desired in winter or early spring, a few roots can be taken up and placed 348 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. in a warm cellar or any such dark and warm place. The roots, if the cellar is dark, may be put in a box with earth around them, or, if in a light cellar, they may be put in the bottom of a barrel with earth, and the top covered. The only care needed is to see that the roots do not get too dry, though water is rarely necessary when the plants are placed in a dark cellar. The useful por- tions are the long and thick leaf-stalks, and these, when Fig. 132.— ST. martin's RHmBARB. forced, are much finer in flavor than when grown exposed to air and light in the open garden. The plants in the open ground should have the flower stalks cut away as they appear. In gathering do not cut the leaf stalks, as they will readily come away by a sidewise pull, and leave no remnant to decay. The varieties are Myatt's, Linnaeus, Victoria, and the new variety known as St. Martin's (figure 132), which has a distinct gooseberry flavor. SALSIFY — SEA KALE. 349 SALSIFY OR OYSTER PLANT {Tragopogon porrifoUus). The culture of this vegetable is the same in all respects as for Carrots, whicli see. Like the Parsnip, it is hardy, and can be left out during winter in any district without injury fiom frost. It is rapidly becoming more popular. It is stewed like Parsnips or Carrots, is used to make soup, which has a decided flavor of the oyster, or is first parboiled and then fried. There is but one kind. SCORZONERA OR BLACK SALSIFY (Scorzonera Hispanica). This is somewhat different in flavor from Salsify, and is preferred to it by many. It has much broader leaves, but is cultivated and used in the same manner. SEA KALE {Oramhe maritima). Sea Kale is a favorite vegetable in European gardens, but here, as yet, almost unknown. Anticipating that at no distant day it may be as generally cultivated as it de- serves to be, I briefly describe the mode of culture. The seeds of Sea Kale should be sown in the greenhouse, or in a slight hot-bed in February or March, and when the plants are an inch or two in bight, they should be potted in two or three-inch pots, and placed in a cold frame to harden, until sufficiently strong to be planted in the open ground. They should then be set out in rows three feet apart, with two feet between the plants, on land en- riched as for any ordinary cabbage crop. If the plants and the soil in which they have been planted are both good, and cultivation has been properly attended to, by keeping the plants avcH hoed during the summer, they will have ^^crowns" strong enough to give a crop the next season. In the northern states it will be necessary to cover the rows with three or four inches of leaves, to pro- tect the plants from frost. Sea Kale is only tit for use 350 GARDEI^IN^G FOR PLEASURE. when '^ blanclied ;" and to effect this, on the approach of spring the "crowns" should be covered with some light material, such as sand or leaf mold, to the depth of twelve or fifteen inches, so that the young shoots, being thus excluded from the light, will become blanched in growing through this covering. Sometimes cans made for the purjDose, or large flower pots, or even wooden boxes, are inverted over the plants, the object in each case being to exclude the light. If it is desired to force Sea Kale, or forward it earlier, the materials used to make hot- beds, leaves or stable manure, are heaped over the pots or cans in a sufficient quantity to gener- ate the proper heat to forward or force on the growth of the plants. The young shoots are cut from the plant before the leaves are developed, and Avhen cooked, have a flavor something betvreen Asparagus and Cauliflower, but by most persons much preferred to either. The engraving (figure 133) shows young shoots when ready for the table. Fig. 133.— SEA KALE. SHALLOTS {Allium Ascalonicum). A plant of the Onion genus, which is cultivated by set- ting out the divided bulbs in September in rows a foot apart, allowing six inches between them. It is entirely hardy, and fit for use in early spring. SPINACH {Spinacia oleraced). Spinach is a vegetable of easy culture. The seed may be sown either in spring or fall. If in the fall, the proper time is from the 10th to the 25th of September, in rows one foot SPINACH. 351 apart. Sow rather thickly. Cover the plants with two or three inches of hay or leaves on the approach of severe frost in December. When sown in the fall, the crop, of course, is ready for use much earlier than when sown in the spring, as half the growth is made in the fall months. By the time the seed can be sown in the spring, the crop that has been wintered over will be com- ing into use. To follow the crop thus wintered, seeds should be sown in the same manner in the spring, as early as the soil can be worked, and another sowing may be made two weeks later. The variety known as Savoy- leaved is best for winter, and Thick-leaved for spring. About four ounces are enough for ordinary wants for either season's sowing. SPINACH, SUBSTITUTES FOR. In the southern states, or even in our northern sum- mers, Spinach runs rapidly to seed if sown in hot weather, and several plants may be used as substitutes. Among these are Swiss Chard, a species of Beet, some- times called Spinach Beet, or Perpetual Spinach. Young plants of the ordinary Beet are by some preferred to Spinach. Ordinarily Beets need thinning, and the seed is sometimes sown very thickly, in order that there may be an abundance of thinnings to use as Spinach, or Beet greens. They are used with the young Beet attached, which should not be thicker than an ordinary lead pencil. If larger, the leaves will be too strong. Another substi- tute is NEW ZEALAND SPINACH {Tetragonia ezpansa). This is a remarkable plant, of low, branching habit, and grows with surprising luxuriance during hot weather. Single plants often spread from five to eight feet in diameter. The leaves are used exactly as ordinary Spin- ach. The seed should not be sown before warm weather 352 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. sets in in May, and the plants should be set out in hills three or four feet apart each way. SQUASH (Cucurbita Pepo and C. maxima). The summer yarieties are, among others, the White and Yellow Bush and Summer Crookneck. As with all plants of this class, it is useless to sow the seeds before warm weather in May, and the directions given for Cu- cumbers and Melons are alike applicable to the Squash, except the distances apart of the hills, which should be from three to four feet for the bush sorts, and from six to eight for the other varieties, which "run "or make a lon^y vine. The fall or winter Squashes are planted at the same time, but are allowed to mature or ripen, while Fig. 134. — ESSEX HYBRID SQUASH. the summer varieties are used green. They are usually planted eight or nine feet apart, in hills prepared in the usual way. These Squashes are great feeders, and for the best results the soil should be well enriched, besides the special manuring in the hills, as the vines throw out roots at every joint to assist in feeding and maturing the heavy crop they usually bear. The popular varieties are the Essex Hybrid (figure 134), Hubbard (figure 135), Marblehead, and Mammoth Chili. (For descriptions and SWEET POTATO. 353 illustrations, see seed catalogues.) Most of the winter varieties, if kept in a dry atmosphere at a tcmioerature from forty to fifty degrees, will keep until May. A garret Fig. 135.— IIUCBARD SQUASn. room in a moderately well-heated dwelling house will often be a very suitable place for storing them. SWEET POTATO {Ijionma Batatas). It is useless to attempt to grow the Sweet Potato on anything but a light and dry soil. On clayey soils the plant not only grows poorly, but the potatoes raised upon such soil are watery and poorly flavored. The plants are raised by laying the roots on their sides on a hot-bed or the bench of a greenhouse, and covering them over with sand, about the first week in May. By keeping up an average temperature of seventy-five or eighty degrees, fine plants will be produced by June ]st, at which time they should be planted in this vicinity. Tlie plants arc set in hills three feet apart each way, or on ridges four feet apart, and twelve or fifteen inches between the plants, drawing the earth up to them as they grow, until 354 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. the top of the ridge or hill is four or six inches above the level. The soil under the ridges should be highly manured, and as the vines grow they should be kept clear bo of weeds. When, late in the season, they show a disposi- tion to root at the joints, they must be moved every week or so. This is easilv done bv running a rake handle or TOMATO. 355 other stick under the vines, and lifting them sufficiently to draw out the small roots upon the stem. As is the case with many other vegetables of which the plants or sets are raised in large quantities for sale, it is better and cheaper, when Sweet Potato plants are procurable, to purchase them, than to attempt to raise the small number required in a private garden. A hundred plants, not costing more than a dollar, are all that most families w^ould require. The Xansemond is the favorite variet}-. TOMATO {Lycopersicum csculentum). If any vegetable is grown in a family garden, it is almost certain to be the Tomato. Hundreds of people who have only a few feet of ground at their disposal, manage to cultivate a dozen or two of Tomato plants. Fig. 1. ECTION :OMATO. though they may have nothing else. So well is it known, that I think few of my readers will require to be told much about its culture. The Tomato will grow any- where, and under almost any circumstances, provided 356 gardexixCt for pleasure. always that it has the necessary high temperature. It is essentially a plant of the tropics, and need never be sown in a hot-bed here before March, or planted in the open ground before the middle of May. When grown in pri- vate gardens, the Tomato should always be provided with some sort of trellis (see description of Pea Vine Trellis in chapter on "Implements," and also figure 136), or be tacked up against a fence or wall. By this treatment, not only will a heavier crop be obtained, but the flavor will be better. When the fruit rests on the ground it has often an inferior flavor, particularly when eaten raw, and is also more apt to decay. A few dozen plants usually suffice for an ordinary fam- ily; and if there are no hot- beds or other glass arrange- J ments on hand, the plants ^ had better be purchased, as ^ they are sold cheaply every- where. The favorite varieties are the new Mikado, Acme, Perfection (figure 137), Par- agon, Trophy (all scarlet or crimson), and the Yellow Trophy, besides the Red and Yellow Plum Tomatoes, used for pickling and preserves. TURNIP (Brassica campcstris). The Turnip, if wanted for an early crop, is sown in Fig.i38.-wiiiTE EGG TURNIP. ^^^,^^ spHug, as dlrcctcd for Beets. The best sorts are the varieties known as White and Purple-top Strap-leaved, White Egg (figure 138), and Early Milan (figure 139). If for winter or fall SUCCESSIOXAL CROPS OF VEGETABLES. 357 use, sowing should be deferred until July or August. The Ruta Baga or Swedes are sown in July, and the Fig. 139.— EXTRA EARLY MILAN TrRNIP. earlier winter sorts, such as Yellow Globe or Flat Dutch, in August. 8UCCESSI0NAL CROPS OF VEGETABLES. To get the full benefit of fresh vegetables during the entire season, it is necessary to sow or plant successional crops every two or three weeks, particularly with such crops as Bush Beans, Cabbage, Cauliflower, Sweet Corn, Cress, Cucumber, Lettuce, Peas, Radish, Spinach, and Turnip. Even small areas of ground, if well manured, may double or treble the crop if judiciously sown or planted. For example, the ground first sown in Radishes, Spinach, Turnip, or Lettuce, in April, will have ripened these crops so that the ground can be cleared, dug up, and manured, and again used by the first of June, when such crops as Sweet Corn, Cucumbers, Peas, or Tomatoes can be planted, and so on all through the list, and thus from May to October the table can be daily supplied with fresh vegetables for a moderate sized family, even from a quarter of an acre of ground, if labor is given sufficient to sow one crop after another has been exhausted. 358 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS. In concluding the section of this hook devoted to veg- etable growing, we will add a few goneral instructions that may have been omitted in the details already giveu- In sowing all kinds of seeds, more particularly those of small size, be careful, if the soil is dry, to **firm" or press down the surface of the bed or roWj after sowing, with the feet, or a light roller, or the back of a spade, more especially if tlie weather is beginning to get warm. Crops are often lost through the failure of the seeds to germinate, for the simple reason that the soil is left loose about the tiny seeds, and the dry atmosphere penetrates to them, shrivehng tliem up until all vitality is destroyed. We sow nearly all vegetable crops in rows, and in every casey as soon as the seed is sown, if is pressed down in the drill with the foot, then covered 21 p level by the back of a rake drawn lengthways with the drills, and again firmed by tlie roller or back of a spade. Fur want of this simple precaution, perhaps one-fourth of all seeds sown fail to ger^ninate, and the seedsman is blamed, while the fault is owing entirely to the ignorance or carelessness of the planter. Again, for the same reason, when setting out plants of any kind, be certain that the soil is pressed close to the root. In our large plantings in market gardening, partieukirly in summer, we make it a rule in dry weather to turn back on the row after planting it with the dibber or trowel, and press the earth firmly to each plant with the foot. We iiave seen whole acres of Celery, Cabbage, and Strawberry plants lost solely through neglect of this precaution. Never work the soil while it is so wet as to clog. Better wait a week for it to dry than to stir it if wet. In no work in which men are en2fa£:ed is the adage, ''A stitch in time saves nine," more applicable than to the work of the farm or garden. The instant that weeds GAKDE]S^ IMPLEMENTS. 359 appear, attack them with the hoe or rake. Do not wait for them to get a foot high, or a twelfth part of it, but break every inch of the surface crust of the ground just so soon as a germ of weed growth shows itself. And it will be better to do it even before any weeds shoiu; for by using a small, sharp steel rake, two or three days after your crop is planted or sown, you will kill the weeds just as they are germinating. The newly developed germ of the strongest weed is at that time very tender. In my market garden operations I had one man whose almost exclusive duty it was to work in summer with the steel rake ; and in a few days after a crop was planted the surface was raked over, destroying the thousands of weeds just ready to appear. Had we waited for the weeds to be seen, so that they were too large to be de- stroyed by the raking, four men could not have done with the hoe the work accomplished by this man with the rake. CHAPTER XLYII. GARDEN IMPLEMENTS. The tool shed is an important and necessary appendage to a well-kept garden. The following list iocludes such implements as are generally needed in jjrivate gardens: The Wheelbakuovv (figure 140).— The wheelbarrow Figr. 140. is an important vehicle in the garden, for the moving of soils, carrying manures, and for conveying the products 360 GAEDEi^ING FOR PLEASURE. of the vegetable garden to the house or place of storage, and numerous other purposes. It may be purchased of different sizes and styles, or can be "home-made*' by those possessing a little mechanical skill. Iron barrows are becoming popular where known. They cost only about one-third more than wooden ones, and they are practically indestructible, quite light, and hang well. The Spade (figure 141).— The uses of the spade in a garden are too obvious and general to need description. rig. 141. Fig. 142. Fig. 143. Fig. 144. The best in use are the patent smooth back cast-steel, which are light, strong, and durable, and work clean and bright. The Shovel (figure 142).— The shovel is used for loading, and for mixing and spreading composts and GARDEN IMPLEMEi^TS. 3H1 sliort manures. They are made with long or short han- dles and round or square points. Those with soUd backs and straps on the handle, all in one piece, are the best and strongest, and are much superior to those with riveted backs. The Digging Fork (figure 143), or Forked Spade, is used instead of a spade to dig in manures, to loosen the earth about the roots of trees, or for taking up root crojDS, being less liable to cut or injure them than the spade. It is much easier to handle than the spade, and by its aid the soil can be more readily broken and pul- verized. These sjDades are made with four and five tines, the former being the one generally used. An improved pattern has the tines pointed, so that it can be inserted in hard or clayey ground with more ease. The Maxuke Fork (figure 144). — This is used for mixing, loading, and spreading manure, work which could not be efficiently done without it. They are made with either four or five tines, oval or diamond shaped. The oval tined fork is the light- est, and a careful man can handle it with more speed; but it is more easily broken than the diamond tined. The latter should be given to careless hands or used for heavy work. Rubber Hose (figure 145). — The usual garden size is three- quarter inch (inside diameter of bore), though one inch hose is sometimes used where a large quantity of water is wanted with "^^^^^ little force. A great deal of ro- guery is practised by hose man- ■ -^^si-.r -~^^^^> ufacturers, who put in composi- ^v?- ^45. tion material which easily rots, causing the hose to soon 362 GARDEXIXG FOR PLEASURE. leak in places, though the hose, when new, can hardly be detected from pure fuller, unless examined by an expert. It is therefore advisable to buy only from those that you can depend upon to give you pure, or nearly pure, rubber hose. Although it costs a little more to begin with, it will outlast the other four times over. A recent intro- duction, known as ''Armored Hose," we have used for over a year. It has wire twisted around the hose, thus saving it from friction in dragging. It looks as if it would be six times more durable than common hose. The Hose Eeel (figure 145) will be found useful for transporting the hose to various parts of the garden or lawn. It also drains the hose in winding it up, making it last longer. Hand Cultivators (figure 146). — With these imple- ments a great variety of garden work can be done, such as hoeing, cultivating, weeding, making drills, earthing Hoeing iieiween Rows. Hoeiug Both Sides, Fig. 146. The "Planpt Jr." Double Wheel Hoe, Cultivator, and Plow. up, etc., and with greater speed and more ease than with an ordinary hand hoe. The CoMMOi^ or Draw Hoe (figure 147).— There are several patterns of draw hoes, but the one in general use GARUEJs" I^rPLEMENTS. 363 is the common square hoe, as represented in the figure. Its uses in the garden are manifold, and it has frequently to do duty for several other implements. Its principal Fig. 147 uses are to clean the surface of the grounds from weeds, to open drills for seeds, and to cover them. The Prong Hoe (figure 148). — This is one of the most useful of all garden tools, and is far superior to the blade hoe for stirring and pulverizing the soil. It can- not, it is true, be used where weeds have been allow^ed to grow to any considerable hight ; but then we claim that in all Avell-regulated gar- dens weeds should never be allowed to groAV so large that they cannot be de- stroyed by the prong hoe. The Dutch or Push Hoe (figure 149) is some- times preferred to the preceding for cutting the weeds between the rows of vegetables, a work which can be done very quickly by its aid. It is not so generally useful as the draw hoe, but is better for the special purposes of destroying weeds. The Warrex Hoe (figure 150) is a new pattern of real nierit. The blade is heart-shaped, and slightly Fiff. 148. Fijr. 149. 364 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. curved, similar to the mold-board of a plow. It conse- quently always scours bright, and works nearly one-half Fig. 150. easier than the common draw hoe. For makino- drills and covering seeds it cannot be equaled. The Lawn Sprinkler (figure 151) is attached to Fiff. 151. Fiff. 152. three-quarter inch hose, and sprinkles the lawn a dis- tance of from twenty to forty feet in diameter, ac- cording to the kind of sprinkler or the force of the GARDEN IMPLEMENTS. 365 water. It is very valuable in dry weather, as it can be allowed to sprinkle for an hour or more in one place, and then be removed to another portion of the lawn. It is also a pretty ornament as a fountain. The illus- tration shows a small revolving sprinkler called the '^ Perfection," which is simply stuck in the ground. There are larger and more elaborate affairs with arms and ball and basket attachments, which keep a silvered ball continually dancing in the air. The Reel and Line (figure 152) are necessary in every well-regulated garden, enabling us to plant in straight and accurate rows. The best lines are those of braided linen, which will not stretch nor kink. Wind upon the reel when not in use. Pruning and Budding Knives (figure 153) are nec- essary to every gardener. They are of different sizes Fiir. 15:^. and shapes, for the various purposes of grafting, bud- ding, etc., and are made of the best steel. Grape Scissors (figure 154). — These are slender- pointed scissors, used for thinning out the berries of foreign grapes when they are about a quarter grown, so 366 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. that those that are left may have room to develop. This operation should never be neglected if large berries and well-shaped bunches are desired. Flower Gatherers (figure 155). — A very useful article. The scissors cut off, and at the same time hold fast the flower or fruit after it is cut, thus enabling one Fiff. 154. Fisr. 155. to reach much farther to cut flowers or fruits than if both hands had to be used. It is particularly useful in gathering rose-buds, as the stem can be cut off with but little danger from the thorns. The Garden Trowel (figure 156) is used for setting the smaller kinds of plants when transferred from pots Fisr. 156. to the open ground, for transplanting annuals, and for many other uses. It is a very necessary little implement. Lawn Scythe (figure 157). — The lawn scythe is now but little used, the lawn mower taking its place, unless Fig:. 157. on hill-sides or among trees or shrubs, where the lawn mower cannot be worked. Lawn Mowers (figure 158). — The great improve- ments in Lawn Mowers during the past few years, and the low price at which they may now be obtained, have GAUDEN IMPLEMENTS. 367 made their use common in every garden. They are of many sizes, from the small machine that can be easily worked by a boy, and admirably adapted for city garden plots, to the large horse mowers, that may be daily seen in use in our larger parks. In buying a lawn mower, always be sure that it is light running; that it will cut high grass; that all wear can be taken up, and that it is simple. "Side-wheel mowers'* are always to be pre- Fig. 158. ferred on ordinary lawns, as they run much easier than a "roller mower." The latter has one advantage only, and that is in cutting on a narrow border where a side- wheel mower would run off on the side. But the benefit derived by a lawn from the rolling received by a "roller mower" is in theory only, as the roller is not heavy enough to be of any actual benefit, while it is heavy enough to make the machine run hard. If you wish to roll your lawn, get a roller that will weigh not less than three hun- 338 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. dred pounds. Grass Boxes can now be furnished on the new Henderson Lawn Mowers for collecting the cut grass. This is very desirable in some cases, particularly in tennis courts, croquet grounds, etc. ; but I do not advise this in other cases, especially if the lawn is fully exposed to the hot sun. The cut grass in this case acts as a mulch, and prevents the sun from drying the roots out. The Garden Roller (figure 159). — The benefit de- rived from using a roller on the lawn, especially in the spring, is not fully understood. The action of freezing Fig. 159. and thawing causes the ground to heave, and if it is not firmly pressed back with a roller before hot weather the grass is apt to be killed or injured, leaving the lawn full of bare spots. For use on the lawn always take a " tivo or three secfiofi,^^ as they can be turned without injuring the grass. '' 07ie section''' will be preferable for walks, as they leave no mark. Rollers having weights attached to the central shaft, that can be unhooked and removed when lighter weight is desirable, are the best. These weights always keep the handle up from the ground, and out of the way. GARDEN IMPLEMENTS. 369 The Lawn Rake is used for raking off lawns pre- vious to and after using the scythe or lawn mower, and for removing dead leaves and other rubbish. An improvement over the old 22-teeth wooden rake is the Steel Wire Rake (tigure 160). The teeth are so made that they will not catch in the roots. It rides over the grass in place of having to be held up, mak- ing the work easier. The Garden Rake (figure 161) is used to level the surface of the ground after it lias been spaded or hoed, and to prepare it for the reception of seeds or Dlants. Rakes are made of different sizes, for convenience in using between rows of plants, with from six to sixteen teeth. When a crop like cabbages is newly planted, we Fig. 161. use the rake in preference to anything else, as raking over the surface before the weeds start to grow, destroys the germ of the weed, never allowing it to appear at all. One of the best garden rakes made is the '*bow rake" (figure 162), which will not break, like an ordinary garden rake, where the handle is fastened in the center of the head. 370 GAEDElsIi^^G FOK PLEASUKE. The Grass EDGii?"G Kxife (figure 163) is used for cutting the grass edgings of flower beds, its rounded Fig. 163. Fig. 163. edge fitting into curved lines, for which the spade would be unsuitable. The Grass Hook (figure 164). — This is a most useful implement for switching around and trimming off grass under hedges, bushes, fences, etc. Grass Edgij^g or Border Shears (figure 165). — JNo lawn looks finished unless the overhanging grass around the edges of the borders has been trimmed. Fig. 164. The shears here shown are the best for the purpose that we know of. They can be procured with a wheel at the heel of the blade, so that the Fig. 165. shears can be rolled along on the ground ; but old gardeners generally prefer them without. Hedge Shears (figure 166) are better fitted for clip- ping hedges than the Bill Hook sometimes used for the purpose, particularly in inexperienced hands. A line GARDEN IMPLEMENTS. should be set at the bight to which the hedge is to be cut, as a guide to work by. The notch near the heel of the blade of all improved shears is to catch strong branches, which would otherwise slide oirt when an eUort was made to cut them. Hand-Pruning Shears (figures 167 and 1 G8).— These are very efficient and useful, and will cut off a small branch as clean as a knife. They are indispensable in pruning small trees and vines, and for use in grapery and garden. Fi.^-. 166. Fi^. 167. Fig. 168. Lopping or Branch Pruning Shears (figure 169). — These are powerful shears for cutting large branches. They have wooden handles from two to three feet long, which enable the operator to reach up a considerable Fi-. 169. distance. For thinning out and trimming up old shrubs, such as Lilac bushes, they cannot be equaled. Figure 170 shows another style, called the Slide Cut Lopping Shears. These are so made that the cutting blade is drawn through the branch like a knife, which prevents bruising and crushing. 372 GAKDE]S"ING FOR PLEASURE. Pole Tree Pruxer (figures 171 and 172).— With this implement branches of three-quarters of an inch and less in diameter can be trimmed from almost any Fig. 1?2. Fig. 170 part of a tree without the trouble and risk of climbing or standing on a ladder. The newer patterns can be attached to poles of any length, and operated by a rope. A spring throws the knife back after the branch has been cut. Thistle and Weed Cutter (figure 173). — With this tool all sorts of weeds can be cut out of the lawn without breaking the surface of the sod. The projection on the side is to press the foot on for large roots, Fig. 173. and places where the scythe or lawn mower cannot be used, or where the place to be cut is small. Mole Traps (figure 174). — Where moles are prevalent in lawns, flower beds, and bulb beds, they can be effectu- i i GARDEN IMPLEMENTS. 373 ally got rid of by using a first-class trap. The one we here illustrate is, avt believe, the best we have ever used. It is called '' Hale's Perfect Mole Trap." To be success- ful, however, a person should know luliere to set a trap, as any **run" will not always do. Moles go through some '^ runs" regularly, and through others only once. To find a ** regular run," press the ridge down with your foot in various portions of the grounds. An examination next morning will show some depressions that have been raised, and will show where the regular runs are. 'mr-' 'J J Fig. 174. Fig- 1^5. The {pruning Saw (figure 175) is used for cutting off branches that are too large for the knife, for removing dead ones, etc. It can be had of various sizes, from six- teen to twenty inches in length, and can be attached to a pole, so that the higher limbs can be reached. 374 GARDEKING FOR PLEASURE. Garden- Syringe (figures 176 and 177). — The syringe is indispensable, and is in daily use in the greenhouse, conservatory, and garden. Syringing is necessary to keep ijongth of Barrel, 19 in, j diameter, IJ^. Fig. 176. the plants in a flourishing and healthy condition, and pre- A'ent the attacks of red spider, and with it fluid insecti- cides can be applied. They are made of several sizes and Leugth of Barrel, 18 in.; diameter, 1%. Fig. 177. patterns, and fitted with roses for dispersing water with varying force and fine or coarse sprays. The Water Barrel and Truck (figure 178). — A very useful combination for carrying water and other fluids. The barrel can be instantly detached, so that the truck can be used for conveying other barrels for various purposes. The barrel is exactly balanced over the axle, Fig. 178. and therefore no lifting or down pressure on the handles is needed in transportation. It is sometimes rigged up with a sprinkling attachment for sprinkling lawns, and a portable hand pump can be attached to throw water and insecticides over shrubs, plants, etc. The tires are GARDEN" IMPLEMENTS. 375 two and a half inches broad, to prevent cutting into soft ground. A box can also be attached after the barrel has been removed, making a very convenient hand -cart. The G-arden Engine (figure 179) is an important adjunct to the garden. It is especially valuable for pre- venting the ravages of insects on trees where they can not be reached with an implement less powerful. The rapid increase of insects, worms, etc., in some portions of the country, whereby fruit is destroyed and trees injured, renders it necessary to wage continual war iig. 179. against them, and it can be successfully done by spray- ing with solutions of Paris green, London purple, kero- sene, and other mixtures, without injury to the fruit. The Garden Engine holds forty gallons of water, and will throw a stream sixty feet high or a spray forty feet high. It can be procured with a suction attachment, whereby it can fill its own box from a pond or cistern. 376 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. Watering-Pots. — A watering-pot is indispensable in the greenhouse or conservatory, where it is daily needed. It is made of yarions sizes, from one to five gallons (the two-gallon size is convenient), wdth a rose for sprinkling, which may be detached at will. The new French pattern (figure 180) is much superior to the old style for ease of handling, especially for greenhouse work, as its flat shape allows it to be carried readily between the benches ; but its great merit is the handle, whereby it can be held in any position without straining the wrist. The Portable Hand Force Pump (figure 181) is a very compact and useful implement for greenhouse and Fig. 180. Fig. 181. garden work. It is easily operated, and throws a con- tinuous stream forty or fifty feet. It is very effective for watering shrubbery, gardens, or lawns, and especially valuable for applying fluid insecticides, such as Paris green water, to trees and bushes that are being ravaged by insects. Powder Bellows (figure 182).— For applying insect GARDEN niPLEMENTS. 377 powders, such as hellebore, Persian insect powder, to- bacco dust, etc., to bushes and plants infested with insects, or sulphur to rose bushes and grape vines to Fi£?. 182. prevent and cnre mildew. The powders can be bettor applied with this than by any other metliod, as the force given it causes it to reach all crevices where insects hide. A Fluid Bellows or Vaporizer (figure 183) is sim- J Fig. 183. Fig. 184. ilar in construction to the above, the receptacle holding fluids in place of powder, which is distributed in a fine mist over a large surface. It is valuable for applying 378 GARDEI^ING FOR PLEASURE. such solutions as kerosene, fir tree oil, etc., to plants, etc., rendering their use perfectly safe. We also find it useful for spraying the foliage of plants before we dust powders on them. Plai^-t Sprinkler (figure 184). — Tliis is a very useful rubber ball, holding from half a pint to a pint of water, according to the size. By pressing the ball with the hand a very fine spray is forced out, suitable for watering cut flowers, bouquets, seedlings, etc. FuMiGATORS. — Figure 185 shows one of the most com- plete implements that I know of for smoking green- houses, conservatories, etc., without danger of fire, and without leaving a lot of litter behind, as is the case in the old way. This fumigator is arranged so that a handful of shavings or paper can be put on the grate, and on these the dampened tobacco stems. A Fig. 185. Fig- 1S6. sliding door in front regulates the draught, and a pan underneath catches the ashes and dirt. They come in various sizes. Ladies' and Children's Garden Tools (figure 186).— In all flower gardens there is a great deal of hand-work to be done. This lot of small implements, consisting of a trowel, fork, rake, and hoe, will be found very useful in working on small flower borders. There are various sizes of these tools. Those with handles about three to four feet long are really very practical. GARDEN IMPLEMEXTS. 379 Hand Weeders. — Indispensable little tools for garden work, such as weeding, loosening the soil around plants, etc. They save the fingers and work with great rapidity. There are now several styles, all of which are good. We give illustrations of the best. Figure 187, Hazeltine's ; Fig. 187. Fig. 188. Fig. 189. Fig. 190. Fig. 191. figure 188, Onion; figure 189, Noyes's; figure 190, Ex- celsior; figure 191, Allan's. Hakd Glasses (figure 192). — These have been men- tioned under Cauliflower, Cucumber, etc. Tliey are invaluable for starting and forcing young plants, protect- ing them from insects and frosts, and save much annoy- ance and care. Home-made hand glasses, being simply a small frame covered with a pane of glass, are very use- ful; but as they exclude some li^ht they are not equal to that shown in the illustration, wliich is a simple galvanized iron frame hinged at the top, so that it can be folded together, and a number packed away safely and in a small compass. The ends are of cloth, which admits sufiBcient air to keep the plants healthy and prevent burning. The glass is slipped in from 3S0 GAEDEXIXG FOR PLEASURE. the top. so that if one is broken it can be quickly ani cheaply repaired. Trellises, or supports f-r plants, are needed in the flower a::d ve^retuble 2-arden r.o: only for climbers, but ior keeping p.anrs v,-:,icn have weak stems within proper lis. 192. Fi-. i; bounds. Trellises for pots may be purchased ready made, as may those for climbing Rose- and such plants. They are nsnally made of rattan npun a frame of light wooden stakes, and some are made entirely of wire. A person of a mechanical tnm can readilv make all that will be needed. A few engravings are given here as suggestions. Figure 1&3 shows a useful support made with a barrel hoop ar- : ^v-.ves. The same plan may be carried out with Ga£DE>» Li£PT.F.¥£yiS. SSI two or more hoops, and laths, if staTCS are too Iieavy. This win answer for Tomatoes, Baepbenies, and Tarioos other plants. A more permanent tomato trdlts is shown in figure 19-1:, in which slats are snpported bv \ ^ixped uprights. If pnt together with screws, snch a trellis may be carefully pat away in the fall and made to last several years. A rustic trellis, like that in figure 195, is often useful in the flower garden, or it may serve, when covered with climbers, to divide the flower from the vegetable garden. It is made of sticks of cedar or other durable wood, set as shown in the engraving, and tied, where the bars across one another, with strong tarred twine. With these examples as suggestions, one will find no difficulty in making more elaborate supports and with other materials. The White's Trellis (figure 196), before referred to in other parts of this work, I consider to be one of the most valuable of garden requisites. It is of simple construc- tion, so that it can be sold very cheaply, the price being from six to fifteen cents per running foot, according to size. Its original design was, that it should be used as a substitute for the ordinary pea brush or pea stakes; and 382 qardeki:ng for pleasure. though for such purposes it will be mainly employed, yet it should be used for all plants requiring support, such as Lima Beans, Tomatoes, etc., and when space is limited, Cucumbers and Melons could be trained to fruit on it with little trouble; besides, there are scores of climbing flowering plants, both perennial and annual, which can be trained with the best results on the Pea vine trellis. We used this new trellis extensively in our trial grounds last season, and found it an admirable substitute for brush or strings in staking Peas, Toruatoes, etc. Its construction is such that the cultivator is enabled to pass freely between the rows. Fig. 196. Fiff. 197. thus simplifying the work of cleaning and picking; and, besides, it is at all times a neat and ornamental feature in the garden. These trellises are strongly made of galvanized wire, with staunch wooden uprights, neatly painted, and, with care, will last for a dozen years. They are so made that, after they are through with in the garden, they can be rolled up into a small compass and put away. GARDEN IMPLEMENTS. 383 Thermometers (figure 197). — There are many kinds of these that are useful, but none that can equal the one illustrated, which is known under the peculiar name of ** sixes," or, jn'operly, **' self- registering." It will regis- ter both heat and cold, and is set by using a magnet to draw the steel needles down to the mercury. With this thermometer one can tell the coldest and hottest degree reached in the greenhouse during the night. Step Ladders (figure 198). — The step ladder is always useful in a garden and orchard, especially during Fiff. 198. the fruiting season. It is made in different sizes, vary- ing from four to twelve feet high. The illustration shows an improved pattern with extension top for hold- ing a basket for fruit. 384 GARDEJfING FOR PLEASURE. Tree Scrapers (figure 190).— A handy little tool for scraping rough or diseased bark from trees, thereby pre- venting insects from hiding and breeding, and making Fiff. 199. Fig. 200. applications of whale oil soap or other solutions very effective. Bill Hook (figure 200), useful for trimming hedges, cutting brush, etc. Aphis Brush (figure 201).— xi splendid little brush for cleaning the leaves of plants infested with green fly and other insects. Gardej^er's Gloves (figure 202) of heavy tanned goat Fi^. 201. FijT. 202. or sheep skin. They enable one to work among thorny bushes without danger of having the hands scratched. Asparagus Knife (figure 203). — For cutting Aspar- agus below the surface of the soil. The saw-tooth edge Fig. 203. is to use where there is danger of injuring the knife edge |by cutting against stones. MONTHLY CALENDAR OF OPERATIONS. 385 MONTHLY CALENDAR OF OPERATIONS. Although I have endeavored throughout the foregoing pages to be particular in stating the season or date at which each gar- dening operation should be done, still it may save time to the novice, and be otherwise of advantage, to briefly suggest what work should be done each month. JANUARY. Greenhouse and Flower Garden.— But little need now be done in either. In the greenhouse care must be exercised with the fires to protect against frost, as this is usually the coldest month of the year ; it is also that in which there is the least sunshine. But little ventilating need be done; but when it does become necessary to do it, caution must be used. Be careful to raise the ventilating sash only so high that the heated air from the greenhouse will be able to drive back the outer air to such an extent as not to chill the plants. For example, occasionally, after a very cold night, where severe firing has been necessary to keep up the required temperature, say to sixty degrees, it happens that the sun comes out bright during the following day, so that by noon, or before, the temperature may be at a hundred degrees inside the greenhouse, though outside it may be nearly at zero. In such case the raising of the sashes an inch or two will rapidly lower the temperature of the green- house, so that an hour or so of such ventilating would be all that is required. If the greenhouse is heated by flue, or even by hot water or steam, examine nightly, that no combustible material is laid on tiie flue or thrown against the chimney of the boiler. As little fresh air can be given, insects are to be watched this month closely. By the use of fire heat a dry at- mosphere will be created, in which the red spider luxuriates. Nothing answers so well for its destruction as copiously syring- ing the plants at night, and splashing the paths with water, as it cannot exist to an injurious extent in a moist atmosphere. The Aphis, or "green fly," must also be destroyed, or it will soon cause great injury to the plants. Tobacco in almost any form is death to it, and may be either used by burning the 386 GARDEKIXG FOR PLEASURE. stems or dusted on as snuff, or syringed on in liquid form. For full directions see body of the work. Hyacinths and other bulbs that have been kept in the cellar or other dark, cool place, may now be brought into the light of the greenhouse, provided they have filled the pots with roots. If not well rooted, let them remain until they are so, or select such of them as are best, and leave the others until ready. In the outside flower garden little can be done, except that shrubs may be pruned, or new work pushed on, such as making walks or grading, if weather permits. Fruit Garden. — Pruning, staking up, or mulching can be done if the weather is such that the workman can stand out. No plant is injured by being pruned in cold weather, though the pruner may be. Vegetable Garden. — Nothing can be clone this month in the northern states except to prepare manure, and get sashes, tools, etc., in working order; but in sections of the country where there is but little or no frost, the hardier kinds of seeds and plants may be sown and planted, such as Asparagus, Cabbage, Cauliflower, Carrot, Leek, Lettuce, Oaion, Parsnip, Peas, Spinach, Turnip, etc. In any section where these seeds can be sown in the open ground, it is an indication that hot-beds may be begun for the sowing of such tender vegetables as Tomatoes, Egg and Pepper Plants, etc., though, unless in the extreme southern states, hot-beds had better not be started before the first of February. FEBRUARY. Greenhouse and Flower Garden. — The directions for Jan- uary will in the main apply to this month, except that now some of the hardier annuals maybe sown, and also the propaga- tion of plants by cuttings may be done rather better now than in January. For instructions in such matters, see chapter on " Propagation." Fruit Garden. — But little can be done in most of the northern states as yet, and in sections where there is no frost in the gi-ound, it is likely to be too wet to work ; but in many southern states this will be the best month for planting fruit trees and plants of all kinds, particiilarly Strawberries, Raspberries, Blackberries, Pear, and Apple, while Grape-vines will do quite a month later. One of the greatest wants, in many parts of the MONTHLY CALENDAR OF OPERATIONS. 387 south, is reliable nurseries, where such things can be procured ; and as all such plants are at this season frozen solid in nurseries at the nortli, orders for such things cannot usually be shipped before April. Still, though something may be lost by this cir- cumstance, if proper attention is given to planting, watering, and shading (when practicable), good results may be obtained by planting trees from the north, as it is always better to take plants of any kind from a cold climate to a hot one, than from a hot to a cold. Vegetable Garden. — Horse manure, leaves from the woods, or refuse hop;? from the breweries, when they can be obtained, ma}' be got together towards the latter part of the month, and mixed and turned to get "sweetened" preparatory to forming hot-beds. For detailed instructions see article on " Hot-beds." Manure that is to be used for the crops should be turned and broken up as fine as possible ; for it sliould be known that the more completely manure of any kind can be mixed with the soil, the better will be the crop, and, of course, if it is dug or plowed in in large, unbroken lumps, it cannot be properly com- mingled. Cauliflower, Cabbage, and Lettuce seeds for early- crops should be sown in hot-bed or greenhouse this month. MARCH. Greenhouse and Flower Garden.— Brighter sunshine and longer days will now begin to show their effects by a rapid growth of plants in the gi'eenliouse, and also in those of the parlor or window garden. Examine all plants that are grow- ing vigorously and are healthy, and if the roots have struck to the sides of the pot and matted the "baU" of earth, then they must be shifted into larger sized pots. If this is long neglected the plants are certain to suffer in consequence. For details of operations see chapter on "Potting." The plants propagated last month may now need shifting also, and propagation should continue of all plants that are likely to be wonted. If propaga- tion is put off much later, most plants would not be large enough if needed for bedding purposes in the flower garden in summer. The hardier kinds of annuals may now be sown. It is best done in boxes, as recommended in chapter on "Propagation by Seeds." Lawns may now be raked off and top-dressed (if it was not done in the fall) with short manure or rich garden 388 GARDENII^rG FOR PLEASURE. earth mixed with one-tenth part of bone dust or similar fertil- izer, where manure is not obtainable, and on light soils flower beds may be dug up so as to forward the work preparatory to the coming of the busy season. Fruit Garden.— In light, diy soils planting may be safely done in many sections, but we again caution the inexperienced not to get impatient and begin to plant before tlie ground is dry. It is bad to do so even in hght, sandy soils, but in stiff and clayey ones it will be utter destruction. Again at this season, kltbough a tree or plant will receive no injury when its roots are in the soil, should a frost come after planting, yet the same amount of freezing would greatly injure the plant if the roots were uncovered and exposed. Thousands of trees and plants fail every year from this cause. Thoy are exposed for sale in our markets with no protection to the roots, and even the experienced purchaser rarely has sufficient knowledge to be certain whether the roots of a tree have been injured by bemg frozen or dried up b> the cold winds of March. It is always best, when it can be done, to purchase direct from the nearest reliable nurserymen. They well know the importance of hav- ing the roots properly protected, while in two cases out of three the market huckster neither knows nor cares. Vegetable Garden.— This is a busy month. Hot-beds must now be all started, and all the seeds of the hardier vegetables may be sown in the open ground in locations where the frost is out and the ground dry. The list given for the southern states in January may now be used at the north, while for most of the southern states the tender kinds of vegetables may now be sown and planted, such as Egg-Plant, Okra, Melon, Sweet Po- tatoes, Squash, Tomatoes, Potatoes, etc. For early crops north, all these tender vegetables shoUd now be sown in the hot-bed or the greenhouse. APRIL. Greenhouse and Flower Garden.— Plants, whether grown in the greenhouse or in windows, will require increased ventila- tion and water this month ; and as they will now be growing rapidly, due attention must be paid to shifting into larger pots when necessary, and also increase the space, if possible, by put- ting the hardier sorts out in frames. If plants are crowded at this season in the greenhouse, they will grow spindling and MONTHLY CALENDAR OF OPERATIOMS. 389 weak. It is better to throw away the common or coarser plants if there is not room for the finer sorts to develop properly. Towards the end of the month it may be necessary to partly shade the glass of the greenhouse. This may be done either by sheeting hung on rollers from the top, or, more simply and cheaply, by making a very thin whitewash of lime. This may be spattered over the glass very lightly at first, just to mark the glass with white spots as thick as if a slight shower should leave the marks of its drops. The wash is to be spattered on thicker every week or two, as the season advances. The planting of all kinds of hardy herbaceous plants and shrubs may now be done in the flower garden. Bulbs and all tender plants that have been covered for protection in winter may now be stripped, and the beds slightly forked and raked. Sow tender annual flower seeds in boxes in the greenhouse, hot- bed, or sitting-room, and the hardier kinds in the open border. Fruit Garden. — Strawberries that have been covered up by straw or leaves, should now be relieved around the plant, only leaving the covering between the plants. See chapter on •' Strawberries." Raspberries, Grape-vines, etc., that have been laid down may now be uncovered and tied up to stakes or trellises, and all new plantations of these and other fruits should now be made. Vegetable Garden. — The covering of Asparagus, Rhubarb, Spinach, etc., should now be removed, and the beds hoed or dug lightly. The hardier sorts of vegetable seeds and plants, such as Beets, Cabbage, Cauliflower. Celery, Lettuce, Onions, Pars- ley, Parsnip, Peas, Potatoes, Radishes, Spinach, Turnip, etc., should all be sown or planted by the middle of the month, if the soil is dry and warm, and in all cases where practicable be- fore the end of the month; for if these varieties of vegetables are delayed until the hot weather in May, they will not be so early, and in most cases will not produce so fine a crop. It is quite a common practice with many amateurs to delay garden operations of all kinds until May, but all the hardier sorts of vegetables arc likely to be later and inferior in conse- quence. Any one expecting to get fine eavJij Cabbage, Cauli- flower, Lettuce, or Radishes, if planting or sowing is delayed until the time of planting Tomato and Egg-Plants m May, is certain to be disappointed. 390 GAllDEXII^G FOR PLEASURE. MAT. Greenhouse and Flower Garden.— The majority of plants in the greenhouse or window garden should now be in their finest bloom. Firing may now be entirely dispensed with in the greenhouse, though care must yet be exercised in ventilating in the first part of the month, as we still have cold winds in this section. By the end of the month all of the plants that are wanted for the summer decoration of the flower borders may be planted out. In doing so, when the ball of earth has been com- pletely matted with roots, it will be better to bruise it slightly between the hands, so that, after being planted, the water will pass freely through the "ball," as it often happens that it is so hard and dry as to prevent the water from penetrat- ing it, and the growth is impeded in consequence. Water once copiously after planting if the weather is dry. When the greenhouse is not to be used during the summer months, Camellias, Azaleas, and plants of that character should be set out-doors under some shade ; but most of the other plants usually kept in the greenhouse or window garden in winter, may be set in the open border, where the pots should be plunged to the rim in ashes or sand, kecpmg them slightly apart from each other, to prevent crowding. Where there are indications that the pot has become filled with roots, the plant should be shifted into a size larger, just as it is done inside the greenhouse. As the plants make growth, they, with few exceptions, should be pinched back to cause a stout and branching form. Lawns should now be mown and edgings trimmed nicely, and all flower beds hoed and raked ; for if weeds are not kept down as they first appear, treble the labor will be required to eradicate them next month. Annuals that have been sown in the greenhouse or hot-bed may now be planted out, and seeds of such sorts as Mignonette, Sweet Alyssum, Phlox Drummoudii, Portulaca, etc., may be sown in the borders. Cuttings or young plants of Chrysanthemums, if started now, will give fine plants for fall flowering. Fruit Garden. — Where it has not been convenient before, most of the smaller fruits may yet be planted the first part of the month. Ply the hoe or cultivator vigorously to keep down weeds. If any of the numerous varieties of caterpihars, slugs, or worms make their appearance on the young shoots of vines or trees, a free application of tobacco dust mixed with Pyrethrum MOXTHLY CALENDAR OF OPERATIONS. . 391 or Persian insect powder will dislodge most of them. It is best to use it as a preventive; for if they once get a foothold, the crop may be ruined. Vegetable Garden. — Thin out all crops sown last month, that are now large enough, and hoe deeply all planted crops, such as Cabbage, Cauliflower, Lettuce, etc. Plant out all tender vegetables, viz. : Tomatoes, Egg and Pepper Plants, Sweet Potatoes, etc. Plant seeds of Lima Beans, Corn, Melons, Okra, Cucumbers, etc., and successional crops of Peas, Spinach, Let- tuce, Beans, etc, JUNE. Greenhouse and Flower Garden. — ^The greenhouse may now be used for hot-house or tropical plants, if such are desired during the summer months. It sliould be well shaded, and fine specimens of fancy Caladiums, Dracaenas, Palms, Ferns, and such plants as are grown for the beauty of their foliage, will make it very attractive. Hyacinths, Tulips, and other spring bulbs may now be dug up, dried, and placed away for next fall's planting, and their places fJled with such plants as Geraniums, Coleus, Achyranthes, and the various "white-leaved plants" that are suited for late bedding. Lawns will now require to be mowed weekly in all well-kept places. It is as much an indi- cation of slovenliness to see a door-yard that has any preten- sions to be called a lawn wiih the grass uncut, as it would be to sea a dust-begrimed carpet in the parlor. Fruit Garden.— If Strawberries have not been mulched with hay or straw in winter, the cut grass from the lawn is a convenient thing to place between the rows to keep the fruit from getting sanded by dashing rains. Nearly all the small fruits, such as Gooseberries, Raspb'rries, etc., are much improved by having a mulching of some sort placed around the roots, which should be done this month. For such fmits as require to be thinned, see instructions for next month. Vegetable Garden.— This is usually the busiest month in the garden. Crops mature and have to be gathered, and while doing so weeds are apt to steal a march on you, and may de- stroy entirely some of your hard work of former months, unless you attack them in their embryo stage, that is, just when breaking through the soil. A man will hoe and rake over six times the surface of soil when the weeds are in this stage that 392 GARDE]!TIls"G FOR PLEASURE. he would if the weeds were six inches high, and in this matter, more than anything else I know of in gardening, does a ' ' stitch in time save nine." Beans, Peas, Beets, Corn, Cucumbers, Let- tuce, etc., may still be sown for successional crops, and late plantings of Irish Potatoes and Sweet Potatoes will yet do well in suitable soils. Tomatoes should be tied up to trellises or stakes, if fine-flavored and handsome fruit is desired. JULY. Greenhouse and Flower Garden.— But little need be said of the greenhouse this month. Watering, ventilating, and fu- migating (or the use of tobacco in other forms for destruction of Aphis), must be attended to. Keep tho atmosphere of the green- house moist. The plants from the greenhouse that may have been plunged out-doors, must be watched when they require repottmg ; and where the roots have run through the pots, tliey should also be occasionally turned round, to break them off; for if this is not done now, it would seriously injure the plant in the fall when the roots have run through the pot and deep into the soil, as they often do. Plants such as Dahlias, Roses, Gladio- luses, as well as many herbaceous perennial and annual plants, will now require staking. Be careful to proportion the size of the stake to that of the plant, and do not tie it too tightly. Stakes painted green look best, and the square are nearly as good as the round ones, and much cheaper. Carnations and other plants that are throwing up flower stem?, if wanted to flower in winter, should be cut back. Top Chrysanthemums to make them bushy. Fruit Garden. — If there are any signs of mildew on the grape-vine leaves, dust them over with dry sulphur, choosing a still, warm day. The fruit will now be gathered from the Strawberries ; and if new beds are to be formed, the system recommended of layering the plants in small pots is the best. See "Strawberries." Where Apples, Pears, Peaches, etc., have set fruit thickly, thin out one-half or two-thirds of the young fruit, as by doing so you will get at least an equal weight and much finer fruit. The same is true of grape-vines and ail other fruits that have set thickly. Where thinning out is prac- ticable, it will always be beneficial to practise it. Vegetable Garden.— Plants of Cabbages, Cauliflowers, Cel- MONTHLY CALENDAR OF OPERATIONS. 393 ery, and all similar varieties of vegetables wanted for fall or winter use, are best planted this month, though in some sec- tions they will do if left until next. See directions given under these separate heaJs. Sweet Corn, Beans, Cucumbers, and Lettuce may yet be sown for late crops, and in some sections Ruta-baga Turnips for the main winter crop. Tomatoes should be kept tied up to stakes or trellises, and Sweet Potatoes must be hoed or moved to prevent the vines from rooting at the joints, AUGUST. Greenhouse and Flower Garden. — The instructions for July apply with but little variation in these departments this month. Fruit Garden. — Strawberries that were planted in spring, and also those that have fiTiited, will now be making "run- ners '' or young plants freely. All runners should be kept cut off close to the old plant, so that the full force of the roots is expended in maturing the " crowus'' or fruit buds for the next season's crop. New plantations of Strawberry plants should now be made from pot layers, though they will do as late as the end of September ; but the sooner they are planted after they are rooted in the pots, the heavier will be the crop. If plants are wanted for fresh plantations, about the required number can be allowed to run, but should be layered in pots, as recommended under "Strawberries." Cut away the old stems of Raspberries and Blackberries that have borne their fruit, and thin out the young shoots to three or four canes to each hill or plant. If tied to stakes and topped when four or five feet high, they will make stronger canes for fruiting next year. Vegetable Garden. — Planted crops, such as Cabbage, Cauli- flower, and Celery, should be hood deeply. AVe do not recrm- mend the earthing up of Celery this month. Onions will in many sections now be ready for harvesting. This condition will bo known by the tops becoming yellow and falling down. They are best dried by placing them in some dry shed in thin layers. For Sweet Potatoes, see directions of last month. Spinach may be sown for early fall use, but it is yet too early to sow for the winter crop. Red-top, White Globe, and Yellow Aberdeen Turnips should now be sown. Ruta-baga Turnips sown last month will need thinning. 394 gaedeni:n^g for pleasure. september. Greenhouse and Flower Garden. — Towards the end of the month, in many sections, the more tender plants will require to be put in the greenhouse, or housed in some way ; but be care- ful to keep them as cool as possible during the day. They would be better outside yet if it were safe to risk them. Cut- tings of all bedding plants may now be made freely, if wanted for next season, as the young cuttings rooted in fall make better plants for next spring's use than the old plants. This is true of what is known as bedding plants, such as Geraniums, Fuchsias, Verbenas, Heliotropes, etc. ; but with Roses and other plants of a woody nature, larger plants are usually the best. Holland bulbs, such as Hyacinths, Tulips, etc., and most of the varieties of Lilies may be planted this month. See detailed in- structions under " Holland Bulbs." Violets that are wanted for winter will now be growing freely, and the runners should be trimmed off as recommended for Strawberries last month. Seeds of Pansies, Daisies, Mignonette, Sweet Alyssum, Candy- tuft, etc., should now be sown in the early part of the monih. The early part of this month is as late as Chrysanthemums should be pinched back. Fruit Garden. — New plantations of Strawberry plants may still be made from the runners that have been layered in pots. The sooner in the month they are planted, the stronger they will be for next season. These plants will soon make runners, which must be trimmed off to throw the strength into the crowns for next season's fruiting. Attend to Raspberries and Blackberries as advised last month, if not then done. Vegetable Garden. — Seeds of Cabbage, Cauliflower, and Lettuce, to raise plants to be placed in cold frames, should be sown in this latitude from the tenth to the twentieth of this month. The main crop of Spinach or Sprouts that is wanted for winter or spring use, should be sown about the same dates. Celery may now have the earth drawn to it with the hoe pre- paratory to earthing up by the spade. Onions that were not dried ani harvested last month must be done this, or it will be too late. The early or fiat sorts of Turnips may yet be sown the first week of this month. OCTOBER. Greenhouse and Flower Garden. — In almost all northern localities, tender plants yet outside should be got under cover MONTHLY CALENDAR OF OPERATIONS. 395 the early pan of this month. Avoid the use of fire heat as long as possible. Unless the nights become cold enough to chill the plants inside of the house, they are better without fire heat, though the greenhouse at this season should never be allowed to fall below fifty degrees at night. When there is indication that the night is likely to be cold, let down the sashes that have been raised for ventilation, early in the afternoon, and thus shut up the heated air until next day. If there is a cold frame or pit at hand, the hardier sorts of plants, such as Roses, Carnations, Camellias, Azaleas, etc., will do better if placed there until the middle of November, than in the ordinary greenhouse. Treated in this manner they make strong, healthy roots, that enable them to withstand the forcing process better when placed in the greenhouse. Look out for and destroy insects. See methods already given in chapter on ** Insects." The planting of fall bulbs of all kinds, such as Hya- cinths, Tulips, etc., may continue during this month. Dahlias, Tuberoses, Gladiolus, Cannas, Caladiums, Tigridias, and all ten- der bulbs or tubers that are planted in spring, should be taken up before the end of the month, dried, and stowed away in some dry place free from frost during winter. Fruit Garden. — Strawberries that have been layered in pots may yet be planted early this month. Great care should be taken to trim off runners from early plantings. All kinds of fruit-trees and shrubs may be set out. If planting is deferred to the last of the month, the ground around the roots should be mulched to the thickness of three or four inches with leaves, straw, or rough manure, as a protection to the roots against frost. Vegetable Garden. — This is one of the busiest fall months in the kitchen garden. Celery will now be in full growth, and will require close attention to earthing-up, and during the last part of the month the first lot may be stored away in trenches for winter. See Celery. Beets, Carrots, Parsnips, Squash, Sweet Potatoes, and all other roots not designed to be left in the ground during winter, should be dug by the end of the month. The Cabbage, Cauliflower, and Lettuce plants from the seed sown about the middle of last month, should now be pricked out in cold frames. If Lettuce is wanted for winter use, it may be Qow planted in the greenhouse or cold frames, and will be ready for use by Christmas. Rhubarb and Asparagus, if wanted for use in winter, should be taken up in large clumps and 396 GARDEXIXG FOR PLEASURE. stowed away in pit, frame, shed, or cellar for a month or two, when it may be taken into the greenhouse and packed closely together under the stage, and will be fit for use from January to March, according to the temperature of the house. NOVEMBER. Greenhouse and Flower Garden. — All plants should now be in-doors. A sharp lookout must be kept for cold snaps. These often come very unexpectedly in November, and as many plants are injured by frost in this as there are in the colder months, when the enemy is more closely watched for. "When fire heat is freely used, be careful to keep up the proper supply of moisture by syringing, sprinkling the paths, etc. In the flower garden nothing is now to be done except to clean off dead stalks and straw up tender Roses, vines, etc., and wherever there is time, to dig up and rake the borders, as it will greatly facilitate spring work. All beds where Hyacinths or other fall bulbs have been planted, had better be covered with rough litter or leaves to the depth of two or three inches. If short, thoroughly decayed manure can be spared, a good sprinkling spread over the law^n will help it to a finer growth in spring. Fruit Garden. — In cold sections the hay or straw mulching recommended in the chapter on the "Strawberry" may be put on during: the last of this month. Grape-vines and fruit-trees generally should be pruned ; and if wood of the vine is wanted for cuttings, or cions of fruit trees for grafts, they should be tied in small neat bunches, and buried in the ground until spring. Vegetable Garden. — All Celery that is to be stored for winter use should be put away before the end of the month in all places north of Richmond, Va. South of that it may be left, in most places, in the rows where grown, if covered up. Direc- tions for storing Celery for winter are given under "Celery." The stalks of Asparagus beds should be cut off; and as Aspara- gus sometimes becomes a w^eed by the seeds dropping, it is bet- ter to burn the stems if there are berries on them. Spread a heavy dressing of rough manure three or four inches thick on the beds. All roots that are yet in the ground, and not de- signed to b3 left there all Avinter, must be dug up in this lat- itude before the middle of the month, or they may be frozen in until spring. Onions, Spinach, Sprouts, Cabbage, or Lettuce MONTHLY CALENDAR OF OPERATIONS. 397 plants that are outside should be covered with two or three inches of leaves, salt hay, or straw, to protect them during winter. Cabbages that have headed may be usually preserved against injury by frost until the middle of next month, by simply pulling them up, and packing them close together in a dry spot in the open field with the heads down and roots up. On the approach of cold weather in December they should bo covered up with leaves as high as the tops of the roots ; or, if the soil is light, it may be thrown over them if leaves are not convenient. Cabbages so packed will keep until March, if the covering has not been put on too early. Where small lots only are grown, these and Cauliflower may be hung up in a cool cellar, and will keep for months. Whenever it is practi- cable, all empty ground should be dug or plowed this month, trenching or subsoiling, whenever time will permit. All such operations, when performed in the fall, not only benefit the soil, but greatly facilitate work at the hurried season in the spring. The cold frames where Cabbage, Lettuce, or Caul- iflower plants have been planted will now require regular ventilation by lifting up the sashes in warm days, and on the approach of very cold weather, straw mats or shutters would be a great protection to the plants. For the CauU- flower this protection is absolutely necessary here. DECEMBER. Greenhouse and Flower Garden. — We are now fairly into winter, and close attention must be given to protecting all tender plants. It is one of the commonest complaints, es- pecially from ladies, that their plants "looked so nice until one cold night in December " defeated the whole care of the year by killing or wounding hundreds of the cherished favorites of the greenhouse or windo%v garden. There is no rule but vigilance ; and as extra strong fires will be kept up, look out again nightly for all combustible matter near the flue or chimney. If, by sundown, you find the thermometer in the greenhouse or parlor where your plants are kept, falling down to thirty-four or thirty-fi^e degrees, the chances are that there will be frost in the house before morning unless the fires are kept up. If there are not sufiicient heating arrangements, the best pro- tection, in such cases, is either to set the plants under the benches or on the walk if in the greenhouse, or move them from 398 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. the cold point if in the parlor. If the plants are low and uni- form in hight, covering them with paper or sheeting will usually save them from injury, even if the thermometer falls to twenty- six or twenty-eight degrees. Another plan, where the heating apparatus is not sufficient, is to dash water on the pipes or flue in the greenhouse on cold nights, when the steam, rising to the glass, freezes there, and stops up all crevices. All mulching, strawing up, or other modes of protecting against frost in use in the flower garden, must be fmished this month. Fruit Garden. — Grape-vines, Raspberries, etc., in sections where protection from severe frost is of advantage, should be attended to this month, by laying them down as near the ground as possible, and covering them with rough Utter or leaveS; or with a few inches of soil, and Strawberries mulched. Vegetable Garden. — The final covering of Celery in trenches or roots in pits ; the Spinach crop in the ground, or any other plant in need of protection, must have it done before the end of this month. Manure and compost heaps should now be for- warded as rapidly as possible, and turned and mixed so as to be in proper condition for spring. Snow that accumulates on cold frames or other glass structures should be removed, particularly if the soil that the glass covers was not frozen before the snow fell. If frozen, it may remain on the sashes longer ; for the plants if frozen are, of course, dormant, and would not be injured by being deprived of light for eight or ten days. INDEX. Amaryllis, Plantiug 58 Angle Worm 206 Anuual Seeds, How to Sow 110 Flowers, List of 109, 1 10 Ants.. 204 Aphis, How to Destroy .202 Ground or Blue .20;3 Apple, Culture of.. .293 Varieties of.. 291 Apricot, Culture of 292 Varieties of 293 Aquatic Plants. See ''Water Lily" 118 Aquatic Plants, Hardy. .111 Articholie, Globe 307 Artidioke, Jerusalem. .308 Asparagus 301 Culture of-. ..305 Varieties of .807 Beetle 307 B Baskets, Hanging 112 Baskets, Hanging, Plants for.. 113 Bean, Bush, Snap, or Kidney.. 309 Bush, Culture of .309 Bush, Varieties of 309 Pole or Running, and Lima-309 Pole or Running, and Lima, Culture of ...309 Pole or Running, and Lima, Varieties of ...310 Bedding, " Caii)et Style " of .32, 35 Bedding Plants 33, 34 Beet, Culture of ..311 Varieties of 311 Spinach ..351 Bermuda Easter Lily 47 Blackberry 276 Blackberrj', Varieties of 276 Black Cap Raspberry 275 Black Cap Raspbeny, Varieties of... 276 Blind Shoots 66 Blood and Bone 19 Bone Dust 17 Bone Flour 19 Borecole or Kale. '.311 Borecole or Kale, Varieties of .311 3r;9 Boxes for Seeds 62 Broccoli, Culture of ..312 Broccoli, Varieties of 313 Brussels Sprouts 313 Bryant's Plant Protector 327 Budding C9 Budding, Various Methods of. 79 Bulbs, Fall or Holland 44 How to Grow in Pots 44 How to Grow in Moss 45 Tropical 80 Bush Bean .309 C Cabbage, Culture of 316 Varieties of.. 317 Turnip-rooted 332 Caladiums 81 Calendar, IMonthlv. See"Month- ly Calendar". ...383 Calla, or Lily of the Nile 55 Camellias, Crafting.. _. 74 Propagating 66 Carpet Style of Bedding 32 Carrot " 317 Culture of 318 Varieties of .317 Cauliflower, Culture of 314 Varieties of 315 Celeriac 324 Celery 318 Culture of 319 Raising Young Plants 318 HandUng 320 Varieties of. ;i22 Tuniip-rooted 324 Cellar and Greenhouse Com- bined 186 Chard, Swiss 351 Cherry, Culture of 286 Varieties of 286 Chives.. 325 Chiysanthemura 147 Culture of 148 House Culture. 149 Pinching and Disbudding. 150 Early Varieties 151 Late Varieties. .151 Climbers, Hardy, List of 191 Cold Grapery 247 Color in Flowers, La^^of 215 400 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. Cordon Trainins: of Pear Trees .296 Corn, Culture of .825 Varieties of 326 Salad or Fetticus 324 Conservatories attached to Dwellin": 164 Cottage Gardeuii]g 301 Cress or Pepper Grass 325 Indian. -'. 340 Water 325 Crocuses, Planting 44 Cucumber, Culture of 327 Forcing 328 Varieties of 329 Curculio or Plum Weevil 287 Currant, Culture of - . -280 Varieties of 282 Worm 280 Cuttings, Propagating Plants by 64 Proper Condition for 65 Cyclamen, Planting 59 » Deciduous Shrubs, Hardy, List of 189 Designs for Gardens .27-30 Dewberry 279 Drain, Board 12 For Road Bed 16 Rubble 11 Tile---- 11 Drainage for Garden .-- 10 Methods of 10 Drive . - - - 15 Width of .--- 15 E Egg Plant, Culture of 330 Varieties of 330 Endive, Culture of 330 Varieties of 331 Evergi-een Shi-ubs, Hai-dy, List of 190 Trees, Hardy, List of 191 Feraeries 159 Fertilizers, Adulteration of 20 Concentrated 18 Cost of --- 19 Special.-.. - - 20 Fetticus or Com Salad -324 Figs---. ---284 Culture of-... 285 Varieties of 285 "Fii-ming" the Soil. Its Im- portance - - 358 Flower Beds, Planting 31 Flower Beds, " Carpet Style" 32-35 Designs for 31-43 Ribbon Lines 38 Massing in Colors 38 Flower Stand 157 Flowers, Annual 109 Annual, List, of 110 Law of Color in 215 That Grow in the Shade.- -199 Flues, Heating by - 179 Folding Plant Stand 157 Forcing or Hot Grapeiy .253 Frozen Plants, Treatment of ..208 O Garden Culture of the Rose . . - 91 Designs 27-30 Drainage of 10 Implements. .359 Location and Soil 9 Prepai*ation of Ground for. 13 Protection by Hedges 9 Shelter Important 9 Vegetable -303 Vegetable, Plan for - 304 Veranda 115 Walks, How to Malie 14 Gardening, Cottage -301 Parlor.- -153 Window 116 Garlic 331 Gas Tar on Pipes Injurious 177 Gladiolus, Planting 57 Glass and Glazing"-- --.169 Glasses for Hyacinths . - 47 Globe Artichoke 307 Gooseberry 282 Culture at Paterson, N. J. -284 Varieties of 283 Grafting and Budding 69 Grafting, Cleft ". 76 Side 77 Whip 77 The Camellia 78 Wax . - . - 77 Grape Cuttings -- 243 Grapes, Hardv- .-- 238 Hardy, Planting - .239 Hardy, Covering 241 Hardy, Pruning and Train- ing 239-241 Hardy, How to Propagate. 243 Hardy, Varieties of 244 Hot-house, Pruning ._251 Mildew on 243 Grapery, Cold 247 Hot-house or Forcing 253 INDEX. 401 Grapery, Lean-to ...249 Grasses, Hardy Oruamental ...198 Grass Seed for Lawu 24 Gieenliouse and Cellar Com- bined.. 187 Greenhouse Plants, List of 155 Greenhouses Attached to Dwell- ing 161 Detached 165 or Pits Without Artificial Heat 184 Green Flv or Aphis, How to Destroy 202 Ground Not to be Worked when Wet 13 Guano, How to Use 17 Mixing: with Earth 18 Peruvian 17 Quantity to Apply 19 H HanG:inQ: Baskets 112 JFilliuo: .-114 Hardy Aquatics. See Water Lilies... .141 Shrubs, Climbers, and Trees .... 189 "Hay Seed" for Lawn ^ Heating by Flues 179 by Hotbeds 182 by Hot Water ..176 by Steam 176 Hedges for Protecting Gardens . 9 Herbaceous Perennials, Hardy 19 J Perennials, Hardy, List oif-196 Herbs, Sweet o31 Hoiticultm-e, Humbugs in 216 Horseradish 331 Hotbeds, Heating by 182 Hotbeds, Covering and Venti- lating .183 Hothouse or Forcing Grapery. 253 Plants 87 Plants, General Treatment. 81 House, Approach to 15 Humbugs in Horticulture 216 Hy acin ths in Pots 44 in Glasses 47 in Moss 45 Planting 55 I Implements, Garden 359 AUan's Hand Weeder 379 Aphis Brush 384 Asparagus Knife 384 Bill Hook 384 Budding Knives.. 365 Implements, Carder), Coniinwcl. Children's Gai-den Tools.. 378 Digging Fork 361 Draw Hoe 363 Dutch or Push Hoe 363 Excelsior Hand Weeder... 379 Flower Gatherer .366 Fluid Bellows or Vaporizer 377 Fumigator 378 Garden Engiue 375 Garden Rake 369 Garden Holler 368 Garden Syringe. 374 Garden Trowel 366 Gardener's Gloves b84 Grape Scissors 365 Grass Edging or Border Shears. .\. ....370 Grass Edging Knife . 370 Grass Hook 370 Hand Cultivators 362 Hand Glasses .379 Hand Pruning Shears 371 Hand Weeders 379 Hazeltine's Hand Weeder. 379 Hedge Shears ..370 Hose Reel 362 Ladies' Garden Tools 378 Lawn Mowci-s 266 Lawn Rake 369 Lawn Scythes . . 366 La^vn Sprinkler 364 Lopping or Branch Pruning Shears 371 Manure Fork ..361 Mole Traps 372 Noyes's Hand Weeder 379 Onion Weeder 379 Pea Vine or White's Trellis '^m Plant Protector 327 Plant Sprinkler 378 Pole Tree Prunor 372 Portable Hand Force Pump 376 Powder Bellows 376 Prong Hoe 363 Pruning Knives 365 Pruning Saw - .373 Push Hoe 363 Heel and Line 3(>5 Rubber Hose 361 Shovel 860 Sickle 370 Spade - 360 Step Ladder :^3 Thermometers 383 Thistle and Weed Cutter.. 3?2 Tree Scraper 384 Trellises 380 Warren Hoe 363 402 GAKDEKING FOR PL EA.SURE. Implements, Garden, Continued. Water Barrel and Truck. .-374 Watering Pot 376 WheelbaiTOAv 359 White's Trellis 381 Indian Cress 'i^ Insects, Angle Worm 206 Ants...^ 204 Asparagus Beetle 307 Brown and White Scale 205 Curculio or Plum Weevil- -287 Green Fly or Aphis 202 Ground or Blue Aphis 203 Injurious to Plants 200 Mealy Bug 205 Eed Spider 204 Eose Bug IOC, 201 Eose Chafer 201 Eose Slug 201 Thrips 205 Instructions, General S58 J Japan Persimmon 289 Jardinieres 159 Jerasalem Artichoke H08 Jonquils, Planting 44 K Kale or Borecole 311 Kohlrabi or Tm-nip-rooted Cab-^ bage 332 Kidney Bean 309 Lath Screens 212 Law of Color in Flowers 215 Lawn 22 Ants on 26 How to Prepare a 23 How to Eenovate 26 Grass Seeds for a 24 Sodding a 23 Weeds in ^26 Mowers £66 Lawns on Sloping Banks 25 Planting 31 LaTering, Propagatino: by 68 Leek..::.— .r. 3o2 Lettuce ^32 Culture of 333 Varieties of 333 Lilies, Planting 44-54 Water. See "Water Lil- ies" ----118 Lily, Berumda Easter, Forcing- 47 of the Nile or Calla 55 of the Valley, Forcing 50 Lima Bean 309 Location of Garden 9 in Manures, See also "Fertiliz- ers" 17 Manure, Stable 17 Martynia 833 Mealy Bug 2C5 Melon, Musk, Culture of Sc3 Musk, Vaiieties of .034 Water, Culture of 3^ 5 Water, Varieties of 335 Mildew 206 on Grapes 243 on Roses 99 Monthly Calendar of Opera- tions 385 January £85 February £86 March 387 April 388 May 390 June 391 July 393 August £93 September. £94 October 394 November 896 December 397 Mulching, its Objects and Meth- ods 209 Mushi'oom, Culture of c36 Forcing in Cellars, etc 338 Musk Melon 333 Mustard . . .. 335 IS Narcissus, Planting 44 Nasturtium 340 Nectarine, Culture of '*i92 Varieties of. 292 O Okra .340 Onion, Cultm-e of £40 Insect Enemies of 104 Varieties of 341 Potato 341 Orchids, Culture of 101 Select Lists of . 101-102 Oi-namental -leaved Plsnts 107 Parlor Gardening Accessories. .157 Conditions "Necessai-y fur Success 153 List of Plants for 155-156 IIs^DEX. 403 Parsley 343 Parsnip .34:i Pea, Culture of 342 Grovvn ou Pea Vine Trellis-345 Variotic's of .344 Viue Trellis .;J44 Peach 293 Culture of .201 Varieties of 291 Pear-. '^94 Culture aud Traiuiug 294 Varieties of .293 Pear Trees, Cordon Training ..2-X Pepi)er 346 Pepper Grass or Cress. .325 Perennials, Hardy Herbaceous. 193 Hardy Hei-baceous, List of. 196 Winter-flowering 85 Perpetual Spinach 351 Pershnmon, Japanese 289 Peruvian Guano 17 Pit, Sunken ._ 185 Pits or Greenhouses Without Artiilcial Heat 184 Plant Protector, Bryant's 327 Plant Stand, Folding 157 Plants, Bedding 33-34 by "Saucer System" 66 for Sninmer Decoration ...106 for Wardian Cases 160 for Shady Places 199 Frozen 208 from Cuttings 64 from Seed 5 61 from Layers 68 Greenhouse 86 Hothouse or Tr.jpical 87 How to Pot 83 in Ivooais... 153 i'l Rooms Not Unhealthy .155 Ornamcntal-luaved 107 •Potting from the Open Ground 154 Repotting 84 Temperature for 156 Unhealthy 104 Planting in Circles 32 Flower Beds 31 Lawns 31 Plum 287 Culture of 288 Varieties of 288 Plum Weevil or Curculio 287 Pole Beans 309 Potato, Culture of 3-16 Varieties of 346 Potato, Sweet :]53 Potato Onion 341 Pots, Draining 89 Pots, Plunging 154 Proper Size for Plants 89 Potting Plants 83 Propagating by Layering- 08 by Cuttings 64 by "Saucer System" iiij by Seeds 61 ^v'oody Plants 66 "Protecting Cloth" 185 Prunmg 233 V/iiere to Cut 235 For Shape 237 Grajje \ mes 239-242 Hotiiouse Grapes 251 Spur.. 240, 251 Pumpidu 346 Q Quince 285 Culture of-.. 286 Varieties of 286 R Radish. C alture of 347 Varieties of 347 RasiDberry 270 Time to Plant. ..270 Pruning 2?'0 Winter Covering .271 Varieties of- 273 Black Cap or Thimbleberry 275 Varieties of 276 Red Spider 204 Re-pottlng Plants 84 Rhubarb, Culture of 317 Varieties of 348 Road Drain 16 Room Plants, How to Grow.. .153 Not Unhealthy 158 Rose Bug 100,201 Chafer 201 Slug 201 Rose, Garden Culture of. 91 Rose Growing in Winter 94 Soil aud Benches 95 Distance to Plant 95 Ventilation 96 Watering and Mulching... 96 Pruning 98 Varieties to Force 98 Mildew 99 Bug. - 100 Roses, Propagation of 06 T a or Monthly 93 Hybrid Tea 92 Perpetual 93 Soil and Cultivation in the Garden 93 Running Bean 309 404 GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. S Salsify or Oyster Plant 349 Black, or iScorzouera 849 Saucers for Pots 157 Scale, Brown and White -205 Scorzonera 349 Screens for Plants 212 Sea Kale, Cultui*e of 349 Seed Boxes 62 Seeds, Annual, How to Sow 109,110 Propagating Plants from.. 61 Tropical , 82 Seedlings, Damping off 63 Shade, Flowers adapted for 199 Shadmg 211 With "Protecting Cloth ".185 Different Kinds of 215 Shallots 350 Shelter for Garden 9 Shingles for Shading 211 Shoots, Bhnd ". 66 Shrubs, Hardy, List of 189 Side Grafting 77 Snap Beans-- 309 Snowdi'ops, Planting 44 Smoke Flue 179 Soil for Potting 83 For Seeds- 62 Importance of " Firming " 358 Must not be Worked when Wet S58 Special Fertilizers 20 Spinach 350 Culture of 351 New Zealand 351 Peii^etual 351 Substitutes for 351 Squash, Culture of- - .352 Varieties of 352 Strawberry 256 Forcing 266 [Manures for 257 Runners in Pots 258 Soil for 256 Varieties of 261 Strawberries. When to Plant- --257 Successioual Crops of Vegeta- bles 357 Sunken Pit 185 Sweet Herbs, List of 331 Sweet Potato 353 Best Vaiiety 355 Pi-opagation and Culture- -353 Swiss Chard - 351 X Temperature for Growing Plants 86, 156 Thimbleberry- - - -275 Thrips- - 205 Tobacco for Destroying Insects 202 Tomato 355 Culture of 356 Time to Sow Seed 356 Varieties of 856 Trees, List of Evergreen 191 Pruning Fruit-" 2c3 Tropical Bulbs 80 Plants 87 Seeds 82 Tuberose, Planting and Forc- ing 53 Tulips, Planting 44 Turnip 356 Time to Sow Seed 356 Varieties of 356 Tumip-rooted Cabbage or Kohl- rabi 832 r Unhealthy Plants, Treatment of 104 V Vegetable Garden -303 Plan for 304 Vegetables, Successional Crops " of-.! 357 Veranda Garden 115 W Walks, Garden, How to Make . 14 Wardian Cases 159 Watering Potted Plants 85 Water Cress 325 Water Lilies US Enemies of 126 Hardy, List of 141-147 In Central Park 124 In Tubs and Basins 125 Soil for 125 Tropical, List of 12^141 Water Lily Bed 126 Garden 121 Tank, How to Make 118 Tank, What to GroAV in It, .... 118-119 Water Melon 335 Wax, Grafting 77 Weeds, W^hen to Kill 359 Whip Grafting T7 Whitewash for Shading Glass. .214 Window Boxes 116-117 Gardening 116 Winter-flowering Plants 85 Temperature for 86-156 Woody Plants, Propagation of. 66 Worm, Angle - . - 206 Currant 280 Alphabetical Catalogue -♦ ® B -V — yw 0. 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