HE (^RDEN PRI^iER C GRAGE TABOR Cornell TUnivetslti^ OF THE IRew ^ov\\ State CoUegc of agriculture %M^ nklit 584 Cornell University Library SB 453.T11 The garden primer; a practical handbook o 3 1924 002 846 115 Cornell University Library The original of tliis book is in tine Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924002846115 THE GARDEN PRIMER A really successful garden is well within the reach of any beginner who will try to master the principles of garden- ing as outlined in the following chapters rather than burden his mind with details THE GARDEN PRIMER A PRACTICAL HANDBOOK ON THE ELEMENTS OF GARDENING FOR BEGINNERS NEW EDITION, REVISED AND ENLARGED BY GRACE TABOR NEW YORK McBRIDE, NASI & CO. 1911 S COPYRIGHT 1911, BY MoBRIDE, NAST & COMPANY Ao|.5oi5 PRINTED OCTOBER, 1911 TO THE garden's apprentices THAT THEY MAY SERVE JOYOUSLY AND WELL THE AUTHOR DEDICATES THIS LITTLE BOOK PREFACE TRUE to the name which it bears, this small volume presents only the elementary principles of gar- dening, its aim being to give these simply and, at the same time, completely. To this end it "begins at the beginning," assuming that the student has no knowledge whatsoever of the subject. The tables and formulas included have been care- fully revised and brought up to the last moment of scientific experiment, and the author's indebtedness to the Department of Agriculture at Washington is here- with gratefully acknowledged, particularly for draw- ings of insects, from which the illustrations were re- drawn. The nomenclature of Bailey's "Cyclopedia of American Horticulture" has been adhered to throughout. LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS The beginner's goal Frontispiece FAaNG PAGE The garden as a setting for the house i The decorative power of vines 6 An English door-yard ^ The essentials for starting seeds i8 The garden storehouse ig Seedlings ready for transplanting 24 Transplanting seedlings to pots 25 A well pruned hedge 32 How pruning stimulates the growth of Privet. . . 33 Good and bad tree pruning 36 A specimen of hardy Hydrangea 37 The garden to withstand the enemy 52 The hand atomizer and powder gun 53 A single rose — ^the perfect flower 72 A path in Northcote, a New Hampshire garden. . 73 Frost-resisting vegetables 80 The orderly vegetable garden 81 Feeding the vegetable garden 88 A plant's means of assimilating nitrogen 89 A stock geranium for cuttings 96 Rooting Begonia Rex from the leaf 97 A well kept lawn 104 FACING PAGS The right way to rake grass clippings 105 Spring-blooming bulbs 112 Crocuses and Myrtle where grass will not grow. . 113 A rock garden 120 A water garden 121 Root pruning 150 Transplanting a small tree 151 INTRODUCTORY A GARDEN is alive — is a wonderful manifestation of life in many forms — with the deepest mystery of mysteries lying at its heart. All the miracles of creation are its commonplace, hourly incidents; its still activity holds the secret which alchemist and sage have ever sought and will ever go on seeking, until they find — or until they and the world cease to be. Gjirdening is therefore a wonderful privilege, and should be approached as such. Not only are its most arduous tasks lightened under this view of it, but the garden itself becomes something very different from what it has ever been — ^becomes a great inspiring teacher or the embodiment of a great philosophy, or — a fairy tale come true, according to the temperament of the gardener. A garden is not only alive itself — it i$ the support and sustenance of all life in the world, right up the scale to man. Without vegetation we should perish, promptly and ignominiously, meat eaters and vege- tarians alike. So the garden's importance can hardly be exaggerated, or the need for intelligent study of its THE GARDEN PRIMER many widely diversified factors be too strongly emphasized. The smallest plot of earth affords a field for study and work, even though it does not afford a "field," in the broader sense, for raising crops. And indeed it is far better to begin gardening operations little by little, on a litde space, than to imdertake much at the start. So many problems present themselves at the same time — they come so thick and so fast — that it would take a superhuman energy and nimbleness of wit in the be- ginner to cope with them all successfully. Do there- fore a little, and do it well; next year do a litde more, or do something quite different — then do both these things and add something new, as opportunity presents. This is the way to learn gardening and learn it thoroughly. For a small border anywhere, or for the treatment of isolated small places, a detailed planting diagram of the space is not of course necessary, \mless shrub- bery is to fill it. But such a diagram wiU always help in making successful color and height combina- tions, and in starting things right, even in a small space; so, although herbaceous growth usually be- comes impatient of the limitations which a plan imposes and does pretty jnuch as it pleases after a season or two, I should advise the beginner especially to work out, on paper first, a general pattern from which he will later work out a garden upon the ground. II KINDS OF PLANTS HARDY PERENNIALS are plants that with- stand the winter in the ground and live for years, often indefinitely. They form increasingly large clumps which may be divided from time to time to make new plants, and these may be transplanted as desired, usually in the fall. Perennials may also be raised from seed planted in the spring or in late sum- mer and will bloom the following season. Hardy Pereimials include Trees, Shrubs and Herbs, and do not require a winter covering. Haedy Annuals are plants that are grown from seed in the spring, last through several months of sum- mer, and then die. The seeds may be sown in the open ground in April or in May, or under glass frames or in flat boxes indoors in late February or March. Hardy Biennials are sown one year, bloom the next year, and then die. These should have a light winter protection of straw, or leaves held down with brush. The seeds are sown the same as annuals. Half-haildy Perennials and half-hardy bien- nials are usually started xmder glass, but may be sown 3 THE GARDEN PRIMER in the open ground after May 15. They require winter covering. Half-haedy Anntjais are to be treated in the same way as tender annuals, requiring, as they do, the full time of a long summer in which to develop. They should not be sown out of doors until after Jime I. Tender Perennials require still more care in starting them. Sow imder glass and do not trans- plant to the open groimd vmtil after May 15. Tender Biennials may be treated as tender perennials. Tender Annitals are sown imder glass in early spring and the seedlings protected from both excessive sun and cold. They are transplanted from flats to pots or boxes and finally set out after May 25, by which time they are well grown. Self-sowing plants are those which perpetuate themselves through the seed which they drop upon the groimd around them. They cannot be depended on to come up in just the right place, but they may iisually be transplanted. Poppies, however, are among those self -sowing plants which do not survive transplanting and therefore must be weeded out or allowed to remain where they spring up. . Shrubs and Trees are woody stemmed plants which differ very Kttie, actually, from each other. Usually a shrub has many branches which start at the ground, while a tree has a single trunk. This is not uniformly true of either, however, and there ig really 4 KINDS OF PLANTS only an arbitrary distinction; a small tree is called a tree-like shrub, while a shrub attaining to 30 feet in height is referred to under the same term. The line between the two cannot be sharply defined. Climbers are plants of weak stems, sometimes taU and sometimes low growing, which cannot Kft themselves without the aid of some support. They may be in any one of the classes mentioned above and they may have woody or juicy stems. Those which twine around their support are, strictly speaking, vines; climbers raise themselves by means of tendrils, aerial rootlets or some special device provided for the purpose. Thus aU vines are climbers, but all cKmb- ers are not vines. Nurserymen commonly mean tall growing plants when they use the term climber; lower growing kinds they define as trailers. A difference of a single degree of latitude has a marked effect on many plants, though it is not distance north or south alone that tells. Some regions, for instance, from their topographical pecuharities, may be particularly adapted to the growth of certain things which ordinarily would not be hardy in that latitude; while possibly other localities further south are unfav- orable, by reason of their configuration, to the cultiva- tion of even lustier species. Altitude enters into the matter to a certain degree, likewise the texture of the soil, the proximity of large bodies of water and the direction of the prevailing winter winds. The knowledge that all perennials are not as easily raised from seed as most annuals, and that the latter ! THE GARDEN PRIMER produce an immediate effect instead of delaying a season, makes the latter more popular in one sense. No garden is complete without both, however, though the beginner will do weU to understand only a few of either and those of the simplest and easiest culture. Of course it is apparent that imder suitable climatic conditions the tenderest annual in the world might be perennial — that is, it might live indefinitely from year to year, either from its roots or from self- sown seed; while it is equally apparent that the hardiest perennial of a North American garden would be only an annual if carried sufficiently far north from its native habitat. It is beyond fhe power of any man to know even half the members of the vegetable Islngdom, but what knowledge is possible will more easily be added to if he learns to know each plant by its botanical name Ill NOMENCLATURE AT first, plant nomenclature, or the name classifi- cation of plants, may appear a staggering prop- osition — ^but do not be discouraged. It is not half so bad really as it looks, nor as it sounds when one is beginning. And your enjojonent of every grow- ing thing will be very much keener if you make its acquaintance under its own true name instead of under some dubious nickname which may or may not fit. The true botanical name of a plant has been bestowed upon it for some definite reason, by those who knew what they were about. It fits — and it means something. Learn it; pronounce it in sec- tions, just the way it is spelled; nine times out of ten you wiU have it right — and the tenth time is not going to matter. Of course no one in his right mind will speak of familiar flowers under their Latin names in ordinary conversation. We shall not gather armfuls of solidago Canadensis when we pick goldenrod, nor exclaim at the fragrance of Hemerocallis when the old day lilies are in bloom. That is not why one is urged to learn THE GARDEN PRIMER them; but there are very many things which we al- ready know commonly under their true names. Why not know all of them? By doing so you will find your- self able to trace relationships among plants and plant families which you have never dreamed of. There is, for example, the gigantic yet delicately lovely moonflower which blossoms only in the even- ing, the ever alluring morning-glory which opens with the simrise, and the lacy foKaged cypress vine which bears its tiny, starry flowers all day, the same as other plants — all members of a family named Ipomoea, and all sharing a peculiar family idiosyncrasy in the shape of a toughened seed which must be soaked or filed before planting, in order to promote free germi- nation. This is a very extensive family by the way, comprising something over three hundred members hving in aU parts of the world, each bearing a dis- tinctly traceable resemblance to its kin. Perhaps it will help to a better imderstanding of the matter if we compare the name of a plant to the name of a person. For instance, a certain individual is named "Brown," let us say; this is equivalent to a certain plant being named "phlox:" it is the Generic, or Family, name. But there are many persons named Brown; which is he? He is John Brown perhaps, or James Brown; this is the same as the Phlox being phlox paniculata or phlox Drummondii, the names being transposed with plants, just as we find per- sonal names in the directory. These names — pan- iculata and Drummondii — are the Species names, 8 NOMENCLATURE corresponding to the Baptismal names John or James. But the identity is not 5'et sufficiently clear, for there may be several John or James Browns. Still further individualization is necessary — so we say the blonde John Brown, or big John Brown — that is we describe him in some way that distinguishes him unmistakably. And this brings us to the final portion of the name — the portion that stands for Variety — and we have phlox paniculata, Coquelicot, or phlox Drummondii, grandiflora. In the first instance it is the color of the flowers that is referred to by the name Coquelicot; in the second it is their very large size that is indicated by grandiflora. You will find Family, Species and Variety names all spelled with both' capital and small initial letters. This is perfectly right though it may look queer, for. the rule is that capitals are used only when a proper name furnishes the root for the plant name — phlox Drum- mondii for instance is a Phlox named for Drummond, who collected its seed — while small letters are used at all other times. Unfortunately many are not as careful in tliis respect as tliey ought to be and mistakes are rather common. There are, of course, many more divisions of plants than the three here given, but the others are of interest and importance to the botanist only. The practical gardener is not keen about marshalling great families into still greater classes, or clans and cohorts, and these again into some still larger group, with a more compre- 9 THE GARDEN PRIMER hensive title — and all things considered, it is probably fortunate that this is so. One cannot but feel that the garden would suffer if it were otherwise, for the subject is absorbing, once it is imdertaken — and proportion- ately exacting in the matter of time. Common or popular names vary in different parts of the coimtry so greatly that they are absolutely unre- liable. Botanical names, on the contrary, are as fixed as the laws of the Medes and Persians; they come easy, once you get started; and you can order the thing you want from practically any dealer under the sun and be sure you are getting it right. ID IV THE SOIL ONE thing essential to a garden, and without which there can hardly be a garden, is proper soil. It is not necessary that the beginner should go into an exhaustive study of the subject, but a general acquaintance with the physical characteristics at least, of the various kinds of soil, is imperative. Nothing can make up for a lack of imderstanding of this. ..a+J In the first place soil is classified in three ways: first, according to its origin, which means according to the rock from which it was derived — whether from limestone, sandstone, or from granitic formations, for example; second, according to its chemical properties — whether calcareous, alkaline and so on; third, accord- ing to its physical or mechanical properties — whether dry, moist, stony, gravelly, clayey, sandy, or loamy. For the present, however, we will overlook the first two classifications, giving attention to the third only, i. e., the mechanical or physical properties. Soil is made up of particles of broken-down rock combined with decomposed organic (or living) matter. The size of these particles, their relation to each otherj ' II THE GARDEN PRIMER the proportion between them and the air and water which they retain in the infinitesimal crevices separat- ing them — these are the things which govern the phys- ical characteristics and the soil textiure; these, clearly understood, make it possible for anyone to follow a line of common-sense reasoning and arrive at the right thing to do to put any soil in the condition most favor- able for supporting vegetation. For soil may be modified almost as one chooses, especially within the area one has at his disposal on the average home grounds. Deep soil means that having a depth of at least eight inches from the siurface to the less productive sub-soil. Light soil is a term that has nothing to do with the actual weight, but means loose or sandy — open textured, the contrary to Heavy Soil. Loam is a soil in which the sand, silt and clay are properly balanced, making it mellow and friable. This is the ideal soil most generally favorable to plant life because, being a combination of sand and clay — of large and small soil particles — ^in about equal propor- tions, it retains moisture in sufficient quantity to sup- ply plant food in solution, and at the same time it is properly aerated. Air is an important factor in soil and needed by the roots of plants quite as much as water. The first thing toward actual garden making for the beginner to do, therefore, is to determine which side of the balance between sand and clay is over- THE SOIL weighted in the soil with which he has to deal, and how much it is overweighted; there is a simple test which will show, approximately and near enough. Go out into the garden or onto the ground where the garden, is to be, and turn up a spadeful of earth there three days after there has been a rainfall. Is it powdery and light? Then sand predominates — and when sand predominates organic matter is what is needed to bind the particles together. Is it sticky and like putty, retaining the imprint of your fingers? Then it lacks sand and has corre- spondingl}- too much clay; so it is sand or some loosening agent that is the thing required. Ordinary manure is as good as anything you can get for supplying the needs of a too sandy soil, while deep plowing, which gives the water a chance to escape from da}", is often all that an ordinarily heavy soil that has lain unworked, reqvdres to make it into a friable loam. If this does not lighten it enough, how- ever, a dressing of lime should follow — and sand may be worked into it, or coal ashes, or both, if it still remains soggy and stiff. Begin your garden by doing this work with the soil. The weathering of it during the winter will help greatly, for the action of the frost and sun has a decided physical effect that should be taken advantage of whenever possible. With a spring beginning there is no time for these to do their portion of the work — but with a start made in the fall there are from six to seven months ahead, during which the elements THE GARDEN PRIMER may have free rein. Turning up the ground in autumn is indeed sometimes recommended, even in old and estabhshed gardens, though the work should not be done at a time when the soil is wet. With outdoors looked after, pay particular atten- tion to all that the catalogues and garden literature have to say about soil. You know what they mean when they talk about sandy loam, or clay loam, or just plain loam, and you know which yours is. What have they to say about your particular kind? Never mind if they do not agree with each other or with what may be said herein; read them. You will find something to think about — you will get ideas — ^you will begin to appreciate how much there is of interest about this very common, ordinary dirt under our feet that we have always taken for granted. Our very lives depend upon it, literally. Isn't it worth studying a little bit? 14 SEEDS AND SOWING AS there can be no successful garden without proper knowledge of the soil, neither can there be a good garden without some knowledge of seeds. The gardener can never hope to know in a lifetime as much about these tiny mysteries as a little honest attention wiU teach him about dirt, to be sure; still there is much to learn; much that may be learned and a little that must. Let us take this last — this neces- sity — ^first into consideration. In planting seeds the inexperienced usually err on the side of thoroughness, burying them beneath a weight of earth that promptly smothers all their aspira- tions. There is a certain amount of energy stored in a seed — enough to reproduce the plant from which it came — but not enough to do more than this; not enough to move many times its own weight of earth aside in order to do its work. Hopelessly they give up the ghost and go the way of aU dead things, instead of the way of the living — and the gardener grumbles, when he has only himself to blame. IS THE GARDEN PRIMER The earth-covering should never be deeper than five times, and usually not more than three times, a seed's greatest diameter, when planting out-of-doors. In frames or flats (shallow boxes) indoors a covering about equal to the seed's own diameter is sufficient, because in the latter situations the moisture and temperature can be artificially regulated. The greater depth out-of-doors is simply to insure against drying out and chilling the seeds where there is no means of governing these factors. Whether you are going to plant indoors or out, water the soil where the seeds are to go thoroughly the day before putting them in. This will bring it to just the right degree of mellowness at the time of sowing. Seeds go into the ground in drills — that is, in continuous rows — ^in hills or clusters, singly, and scat- tered like grass, according to the plant which they will produce. The packet in which each variety comes usually has printed upon it the method to be f oUowed with the seed enclosed; so that part of it is eas)% as these directions may be depended upon if the seedscome from a recognized first-class seedsman. It is a waste of time and money to purchase from any other, by the way. If you have seeds to sow in driUs, lay a board down upon the proposed bed or wherever the seeds are to go, for a "ruler"; draw a Hne along its edge with a pointed stake for a "pencil," dragging it deep into the soil or lightly along its surface according to the depth of drill the diameter of the seed demands; scatter the seeds into this little trough and brush the earth that was pushed i6 SEEDS AND SOWING out of it, back over them. Then pat it lightly down with a float — a "flatiron" contrivance of wood, 6x9 inches or thereabouts and an inch or two thick, with a small piece nailed upon its upper side for a handle. It can be made of any old pieces of wood that happen to be available. Seeds sown siagly in rows should have the same long drills marked for them, the seeds themselves being dropped in at regular intervals instead of continuously. Hills are just shallow, saucer-shaped depressions into which the requisite number of seeds are dropped, sep- arated so that they will not touch each other. The earth is drawn over them and as the seedlings shoot up, gaining in height, more earth is drawn up from the sides until the hill is formed which supports the Httle plants and deepens their roots. Scattered or broadcast sowing is like the sifting of pepper from a shaker, and the earth over the seeds is sifted on in the same Hght fashion if any at all is used to cover them. Usually seeds that are scattered are simply firmed into the ground by pressing with the float, the idea being always to bring the grains of soil close against the seed on every side, keeping it evenly moist by capillary action and allowing no ir- regular spaces for air to intervene and shut off this moisture. Air is essential, to be sure, but not an excess of it on one side and none on tlie other. The begumer is apt, however, to give an excess of ivater rather than of air. Many a garden has been drowned, under a simple faith that it is being thor- 17 THE GARDEN PRIMER oughly watered. The amount of water a garden re- quires is just enough to maintain the soil at a condi- tion of slowly cnunbling apart in the hand after being squeezed — and this proportion should be constantly maintained. Too dry a soil or a soil that is too wet even, is not so bad as the alternations between the two extremes which careless gardening permits. Seeds vary greatly in the time required for germi- nation. Some sprout as soon as the earth closes around them, seemingly, while others lie dormant for so long that the novice at last gives up hope, growing so thor- oughly resigned to his disappointment that he forgets them completely, when lo! up comes the Uving green one day, quite a year perhaps, from the planting time. But happily such procrastination is found only among the slow growing plants, with which the begin- ner is seldom tempted to experiment — the perennials which furnish our trees and shrubs and hardiest vege- tation generally. Flowers and vegetables ordinarily spring quickly into activity, in a very satisfactory and obKging manner, rewarding the beginner's labors usu- ally within a fortnight — sometimes much sooner. So much for the practical details of seed handling; and now for one or two things about seeds themselves that ought to be xmderstood — ^and that are interesting to know. A seed is the case in which, carefully folded and ingeniously packed away, Kes an embryonic plant, with the food necessary to sustain it for a certain period of its life above groxmd. In some seeds this plant is i8 The necessary equipment for raising plants from seed consists of shallow boxes called flats, a sieve for sifting the soil and a watering can with a fine rose — not forgetting the chief essential, a light sandy loam The man who has had a garden for two or three years will tell you that few things are so con- ducive to rapid and effective work as some sort of a tool house where everything may be kept in its place SEEDS AND SOWING developed enough for microscopic dissection to reveal it plainly, in others it is very rudimentary. Usu4Uy it has two plump divisions called cotyle- dons — four syllables, cot-y-le-dons, with the accent on the first ; there are, however, plants which have more or only one, but they wiU come later; the cotyledons, if they push their way up through the earth — some do not — spread apart and look to us like leaves. Conse- quently we usually speak of them as the first or seed leaves, although they aren't leaves at all. It is be- tween them and protected by them that the actual growing point of the plant waits — the plumule or true leaf-bud whence the real plant is to arise, with the plant's true leaves. The cotyledons are only caretakers — the nurse- maids of the baby plant itself — which feed and guard it imtil it has grown big enough to draw its own susten- ance, through its true leaves and the little roots that have been keeping pace underground with the leaves' growth, from the elements about. Until a true leaf is formed, every plant lives on the food stored away with it in the seed, no matter how miscroscopic that seed may be. Not imtil the true leaves have developed, generally speaking, are seedlings strong enough to bear handling and transplanting. Some of your seed packets will tell you to transplant when the third leaf appears, or to thin out when the true leaves appear, which means of course the third leaf after the cotyledons in the first instance, the first pair of leaves in the second — for 19 THE GARDEN PRIMER sometimes the true leaves appear in pairs, opposite on their stalk, while others come out singly, one on one side, the next on the other. Always foUow such directions carefully and do not anticipate, nor wait beyond, the stipulated time. Once you have watched a seedling — any seedling — through its rudimentary growth from funny, roimd or oval, sturdy little cotyledons to two or three true leaves and noted the marked difference in the appear- ance of the latter from the former, you will wonder why you never noticed it before — ^if you have not. Seed germination is one of the most interesting things in this very interesting world, though it is coromon — almost as common as the dirt, 20 VI SEEDLINGS AND TRANSPLANTING SEEDLINGS are little plants just from the seed, raised indoors or out, wherever convenient. Their removal to better places — the process of trans- planting — ^is a part of gardening extremely important for the garden beginner to understand, inasmuch as he may often make almost his entire garden this way, in the first season, buying seedlings from a florist if he has been late in making a start with garden operations. The soil into which seedlings are to be moved from their seed bed should be ia about the same condition, as regards moisture, as the soil in which seeds are sown — that is, as moist as a previous day's watering will make it. And the soil from which they are taken will, of course, be about the same, and will yield their roots readily, without tearing. At this stage of operations comes in the dibble — a most useful affair which, thrust an inch or so into the earth half an inch from the seedling, is twisted and worked and tilted this way and that gently until the soil is loosened enough to let the little plant be picked lightly from it. For very tiny plantlets a toothpick 21 THE GARDEN PRIMER makes as good a dibble as may be had, but there are occasions when a section of broom handle, sharpened like a long pointed pencil, is not a bit too big. A httle practice with the tool wUl quickly teach you the size appropriate for any particular plant. Lift the seedling by taking one of its leaves care- fully between the soft ball of the thumb and index finger — ^you will be surprised at the ease with which you wDl handle mere atoms of plants this way — ^not touch- ing the body of the plant at all, nor allowing its roots to come in contact with anything. Thrust the dibble into the earth at the spot the plant is to occupy, making a hole as deep or a little deeper than its longest root; lower the seedling into this hole until it is as deep as it originally grew, then thrust the dibble down once more, half an inch from it this time, and by tilting the handle over towards it gently press earth against and around its roots. If the hole seems insufficiently filled after this, leaving the plant unsteady and loosely set, thrust the dibble down at another spot, or lay its point flat onto the soil along- side the plant's stem and press down until the earth falls into place, filling the hole completely. Do not pack the dirt, but make it firm and water moderately. Bear in mind that the plant which is frequently transplanted endures the operation with much more grace than one which is left long in one place. Fre- quent transplanting tends to the development of a more compact root system which will be made up of many fine and hair-like short feeding roots instead SEEDLINGS AND TRANSPLANTING of the long, tenacious growth which the imdisturbed plant is able to put forth — and naturally the former are less liable to injury and breakage when lifted than the latter. There are probably no plants which cannot be transplanted by a skilled operator, but there are many which certainly will not tolerate the treatment of any but an expert — and some that even the expert shrinks from handling. Usually these are species or varieties which send straight down, deep into the earth, a long, trunk-like root which is called a tap-root. This simply win not yield to removal without breakage. Whenever the instructions on a seed packet direct that the seed be sown where it is wanted in the garden, and say nothing about transplanting, it is very likely that the plant is one of those which puts forth such a root — and the direction should be literally foUowed, else there will be failure. Good-sized, growing plants with a mass of roots large enough to need some earth removed to make room to set them, may be firmed into place by filling with water, gently poured, a depression left around their crown. After this has settled, the rest of the earth is thrown into place — and thus the whole operation is accomplished with comparatively no violence or shock to even the tenderest rootlets. 23 vn PLANTS AND CULTIVATION WHEN plants have reached maturity or approach it, whether flower, fruit or vegetable, watch them closely, and do not withdraw constant care from them. Volumes written about them could not cover, comprehensively, all their little queemesses and strange freaks. Each one seems almost a problem by itself, sprung up from the groimd to show some new phase of Mother Nature's ingenuity, and each gardener must learn by his own experience how to meet the par- ticular emergencies arising from the combination of soU, weather and plant with which he has to deal. But while maturing plants differ in their require- ments greatly and each must be studied by itself, there is one thing that is appreciated by all alike, and that is tillage. The man with the hoe, and the rake, and the cultivator, is the being they hail as friend, be siu"e of that. Indeed this stirring of the soil is so great a bene- fit that one of the most ancient garden maxims says "tillage is manure." It is not alone to keep the weeds down, however, that this stirring of the surface must be kept up, surprising as it may seem and contrary to popular 24 A flat of seedlings in the proper condition for transplanting. They should not be handled until they have developed true leaves K you sow seeds indoors in flats you will be able to give them the regular attention they require and, incidentally, you will not miss the keen enjoyment of seeing them come up through the soil and develop If a flat of seedlings ready to transplant is watered the day before they are to be moved the soil will be in the best condition for this work. The soil in the flats or pots to which the seedlings are moved should be in the same condition as regards moisture PLANTS AND CULTIVATION notions. Incidentally it does prevent them from gaining a foothold of course, but its great merit lies in its action on the soil itself. Moisture is carried through soil by capillary attrac- tion. When rain or dew falls on the groimd it penetrates to plant roots by means of this action, going down and down until it is equalized in the soil or finds a way through into still deeper fissures and drains out into rivers or sp ings. With the coming of fair weather after a rain, how- ever, this downward action is immediately reversed on the sm-face, where the water particles first yield themselves to the air and heat of the sun and pass from the groimd completely. Gradually the pull upward of this same capillary force draws the fluid from deeper down imtil all that the thirsty earth has absorbed is relentlessly taken from it and scattered in the air again as vapor. But tillage is the interrupter of this robbery of the sun. It interposes a little, thin blanket of soil particles which are too widely separated from each other for capillary pxill to be efficacious, and the soil beneath it is thus enabled to retain the precious drops for a much longer period, even in decided drought. Then, too, this finely pulverized, blanketing soil absorbs moisture more readily than a hard-baked, imstiired surface, and even the light precipitation of dew, night after night, is greedily drunk by it. So the importance of tilling rests not in its merit as a weed eradicator, you see. But happily it does 25 THE GARDEN PRIMER eradicate them thoroughly — for weeds are gluttons and by virtue of this spirit in them are able to take the best of everything from a piece of ground, starving out its rightful tenants. Go over a garden — or a bed, or whatever you are tending — at least twice a week with this gentle siniace "scratching." That is all that it need amount to, really; the stirring need not be deep — an inch of loose soil is enough — ^but it must be frequent, and only heavy rain should be allowed to interfere with the semi- weekly repetition of it. For small surfaces one of the small hand weeders is excellent. For larger spaces a hand cultivator, made purposely for tilling and used like a hoe, is better. There is, too, a wheel-hoe, which is excellent in gar- den rows, though it is not adapted to every sort of location as the hand cultivator is. Deeper stirring of the ground has more marked physical effects on the soil, hastening chemical activities and making the stores of plant food available. Very often soil contains aU the elements necessary to support plant life richly, but not in such form that the plants can consume them. Therefore they go hungry in the midst of plenty, even as a man might in the midst of quantities of those elements which science has found out compose man — if they were not present in forms available to his teeth, appetite and digestive appa- ratus. Remember always, however, that deep tillage is not a conserver of moisture. On the contrary it lightens 26 PLANTS AND CULTIVATION stiflF and heavy soils by draining them. Thus they be- come "deeper," warmer, finer and consequently more easily penetrated by the tiny hairlike rootlets that are the actual feeders. Plants growing as specimens — that is shrubs or flowers set by themselves and not in a bed or border — need this same treatment and respond to it with grati- tude almost as marked as the humbler garden stuff shows. Even trees appreciate the loosening of the earth around their trunks. Indoor pot plants, too, should be included. In fact one should cultivate the habit of disturbing the surface soil aroimd practically everything that grows, for tillage is a requisite first, last, and aU the time, to which everything else is sec- ondaiy. 27 VIII PRUNING SOUND knowledge of a plant's manner of growth should precede any attempt to direct that growth by pruning or otherwise training it, just as soimd knowl- edge of anatomy must precede the successful sturgeon's work on the human subject. The intelligent direction of the tiny plant's development which such knowledge makes possible, will make pruning unnecessary when the esedling has matured into a tree — and this is a con- siunmation devoutly to be wished. We are accustomed to think and speak of buds as embryonic flowers, but they are a great deal more than that. There are flower buds, leaf buds, and mixed buds — that is, flower-and-leaf buds — and every branch and limb of the sturdiest tree, and even the tree itself, has had its beginning in a bud. They are the source of all growth after a plant is out of the seed. Indeed the little plant springs from the seed, broadly speaking, by means of its terminal bud. Each year its growth proceeds upward by the formation, during the summer, of another terminal bud which crowns the season's work, and opens into leaves, possibly flowers, and a further growth of stem the succeeding year. 28 PRUNING On either side of this main stem at regular intervals, lateral buds are formed, from which, in due season, branches develop. As these commonly rise between the leaf stalks and the main stems — that is, in the axils fo the leaves — they are called axillary buds. They are, however, the terminal buds of those branches which ultimately spring from them; so growth is actually always carried on by a terminal bud. ThisJeaJtes a lot of apparently useless buds along every stem under each leaf stalk, for a very small per- centage of these develop and grow into shoots; and of those that do, many die quickly, choked out in one way or another — else there would be as many branches in any given season as there were leaves the season before. But these seemingly useless buds are Nature's wonder- ful reserve, held back for weeks or months or perhaps years, as the case may be, yet always in readiness to spring to the rescue when the plant's normal leaf surface is taken away, either by accident or design. For this leaf surface cannot be reduced; the leaves, which spread to the light and air certain substances which the roots have taken from the ground, are as necessary to the plant's life as its roots, and the propor- tion of leaf sxirface to root surface must be maintained. With wonderful intelligence and patience therefore they wait, these reserve buds, until injury comes to the ter- minal bud; then they fairly leap into activity in their haste to supply the loss. The strongest gain the lead and keep it usually, and thus, the original stem having ceased its growth, those branches which spring from the 29 THE GARDEN PRIMER strongest buds become, in their turn, leaders. Some- times there are several of these, sometimes only one. There is a third kind of bud which some trees and shrubs produce in great abundance, following injury. These, rising from anywhere on old branches or out of the trunk itself, are called adventitious buds. They simply supplement the work of the dormant axillary buds, and hasten foliage renewal when large limbs have been sacrificed and there has consequently been great loss. Generally speaking the most virile strength of any branch is nearest its tip. Growth proceeds at the apex, with branching growths usually springing from the axillary buds nearest the apex — the upper buds these are called. Removing the terminal bud stimulates the growth of these upper axillary buds — or the branches which these have formed — ^because the supply of nour- ishment to that particular stem has then to be divided between only two buds, while before it supplied three. It is seldom, however, that the removal of the terminal bud alone will induce branching further down a stem — otherwise that form of growth characterized as bushy — though it may sometimes. The severe cutting back of privet in hedges is an excellent example of what must be done to secure dense branching low down on a plant; and it is also an ex- cellent example of what will happen to a plant that is pruned to excess. Privet branches are opposite each other always, and two will appear immediately below where a stalk is cut, while a third, lower down, will very 30 PRUNING often develop, or even another pair. To secure these branches near the ground it is therefore necessary to cut it first to within a few inches of the ground, and then to cut down the shoots which come in consequence of this cut, close to the parent stem, and so on. This forces the growth of stiff, stocky plants: — just what one does not want in flowering shrubs, though it is highly desirable in a hedge. Removing the first pair of axillary buds below the terminal bud will start the next lower pair into growth usually, while the removal of buds or small branches all down along a stem will stimulate the growth at its apex. In this way a plant's general growth may be directed towards a certain ideal form from its infancy, with never a bit of waste in its vitality or in the time required to arrive at the ideal. Never be in a hurry to prune branches from any- thing, either old or new, until much experience has been your teacher; but when spring warmth awakens sleep- ing buds and they bestir themselves and come forth, if their intentions do not seem to be in accord with the plant's best form and its best interest, wipe them gently out of existence with a gloved thumb — ^if the naked thumb is too tender. Nowhere is the struggle for existence keener and fiercer than in the vegetable king- dom. Always aim to reduce this struggle as much as possible, as early as possible — to nip it in the bud, literally. This is the chief reason for pruning, ordinarily; the principle of it is always to relieve the plant by 31 THE GARDEN PRIMER reducing this struggle. For, of course, when its best efforts are constantly strained to the utmost in just keeping alive, it cannot produce flowers nor fruits in abundance, nor of a very high quality. When there are too many branches, or many that are old and weak, none can be as strong and leafy as they should, for all are insufficiently nourished; it is a desperate struggle for life between them constantly. A little pruning every year is the ideal. The de- struction of an ambitious shoot as soon as it starts — ^the destruction of it as a bud — ^is far easier on the tree, and the gardener too, than the laborious task of sawing through a good sized limb after it has been allowed several years in which to grow. But when large limbs must be cut away, the loss to the tree is far less and the operation is less likely to be disastrous if the work is properly done. The right way is simple enough, but everywhere wrong ways are in evidence, and for one person who understands such pruning it seems there must be a score who do not. All large limbs should be cut as close to the main trunk from which they rise as it is possible to lay a saw, and the cut which severs them must always be parallel with the main trunk and not at right angles to the branch which is being taken away. No way but this is right, no matter who practices itl In the case of large and heavy limbs — ^which ought never to be cut down unless there is an absolutely imperative reason — ^it is best to remove the limb first 32 One of the chief reasons for pruning is to induce lower growth. This is well shown in the privet hedge, which must be cut back nearly to the ground and gradually allowed to attain height with a bushy growth A branch of privet, showing how the cutting of a stalk induces the growth of two branches opposite each other below the cut PRUNING with two preliminary cuts, as shown in the diagram, trimming the stub down to the proper level of the trunk afterwards. The first of these two cuts is made from the under side of the limb up, and about five or six inches away from the trunk from which the limb rises; this cut should extend a little more than halfway through the limb. Then, half an inch nearer the tree trunk, the second cut is made, from the upper side of the limb down. The branch will fall to the ground without splintering or tearing in the least as this cut is completed. Then the saw is laid flat against the main trunk as before directed, and the stub taken off. This levels the surface and prepares for the healing process which Nature im- mediately takes up. Never leave any stub extending out from the trunk or the trunk branch, for the bark of the tree cannot draw together over such a stub, and the stub is bound therefore to die, then to rot away, and then to carry decay straight down into the heart of the tree. The drawing illus- trates this. Shoots and small branches should be removed just The Right Way to Cut off a Heavy Branch. 33 THE GARDEN PRIMER a b c d a — Right way; b— Wrong way, showing a stub that bark cannot cover; c — Section showing rise of branch; d — Channel of decay to heart of tree along branch. above a bud, as near to it as possible and yet far enough away to avoid injuring it. In plants on which the buds alternate, an outward setting bud should be the one left at the top of a pruned branch. This assures an out- ward growing new shoot and an open center, which is the ideal form to promote healthy and lux- Pruning Twigs, "^^^^t growth. The Right Too Long Too Close There are two Way. above Bud to Bud. things r^axding 34 PRUNING the form which growth takes that should be remem- bered when pruning. One, applying to trees especially, is that leading branches must never be allowed to spring from the same point on the tnmk — or from opposite the same point is perhaps a clearer way to put it — while the other, applicable to every sort of plant, is that, generally speaking, the outer shoots or branches should be left and the inner ones cut away. In the first instance the tree is weakened structur- ally and will split more readily under stress of wind or ice — or fruit — ^when its branches diverge at just the same level, forming a sharp crotch or Y; in the second, a plant becomes choked and top-heavy if inner growth is constantly encouraged, and the branches suffer injury from rubbing against each other. Next in importance to these, to be equally carefully remembered, is the fact that every tree or shrub or vine has its own little personal peculiarity about flowers and the manner of producing them — and produces them only on wood of a certain age — sometimes one year old, sometimes two, sometimes still more. So it is always necessary to know the peculiarity of any plant in question in this respect, before ventxuiig to lop off a branch, else an entire season's product may be destroyed. Of fruit trees, the apple and pear bear on " spurs" of old wood that may be anywhere along the branches, but peaches are always borne on wood of the previous season's growth. Trimming off the annual shoots will therefore sacrifice the fruit of the latter but not of the former, while " heading in" — that is removing the ends 35 THE GARDEN PRIMER of thfi branches with their growing terminal buds, — being a process that encotirages the growth of lateral buds (that are waiting for just this to happen) into shoots or young branches, of course increases the amount of new, therefore of fruit-producing, wood. Among flowering shrubs the lilac and hydrangea afford much the same contrast as the apple and peach among fruit trees. Hydrangeas bloom on wood of the season's growth, lilac on wood of the previous season. The former may therefore be pnmed very early in the spring without danger of destroying the blossoms, but the latter should only be gone over with the knife imme- diately after flowering. This gives the plants a chance to grow branches for the next season and to stow them with flower buds before frost interferes. Always keep in mind that pruning at the ends of branches stimulates excessive growth of shoots, up to a certain point — of course it is possible to overdo the mat- ter and kill a plant altogether by never giving it an opportunity to recover from its many wounds — and that the way to thin shrubs therefore, is to look beyond the branches that are too numerous down to the stalk whence they spring, and cut them off at their very beginnings or cut out the stalk at the groimd. Other- wise they will produce shoots themselves, and double the nimiber that is choking the bush, instead of reduc- ing it. But the final word is always "restraint." Dead wood and weak wood should be cut from shrubs, super- fluous branches which crowd a tree should be taken 36 An example of both good and bad pruning. Branches have been cut off close to the trunk as they should be, but so many have been taken near one point that the tree as a fruit tree is headed too high A splendid specimen of hydrangea which by judicious pruning has been developed into a fairly large tree PRUNING away— but only a little should ever need doing at any one time or season. And only a little will need to be done at one time, if that little is attended to as each year brings it. It is not of course possible to give here a complete list of trees and shrubs, with their peculiarities in regard to bloom, but some of the most commonly planted are included below, with directions as to time for pruning. FRUITS Apple. Fruit borne on old spurs — ^prune in spring, or after the fruit is gathered. Pear. Fruit borne on old spurs — ^prime sparingly in spring, or after the fruit is gathered. Plum. Fruit mostly on spurs, but in some varie- ties on both spurs and annual growth — prime in spring. Cherry. Similar to plum — prune in spring or after harvest. Peach. Fruit borne near base of previous year's shoots — ^prune after harvest. Blackberry. Fruit borne on canes of previous season's growth — cut old canes out after fruiting, cut young canes back as soon as two feet high — cut lateralis on these sparingly at tip in spring, or not at all. Raspberry. Same as blackberry; spring pruning is only to thin the fruit; all cutting back should be done the previous season. Currant. Fruit- borne on both old and yoimg wood — the best on base of i year shoots springing from I year spurs; have no wood over three years old. Grapes. Borne on wood of present season which 27 THE GARDEN PRIMER rises from wood of previous season; fall or winter pruning is best. FLOWERING SHRUBS Roses. Flowers borne on new wood — ^pnme out old wood and weak shoots after flowering — or cut back before life shows in spring from ^ to ^ of bush. ForsytMa. Flowers borne on old wood — ^prune immediately after flowering. Hibiscus. On the season's shoots — ^prime fall or early spring. Honeysuckle. See Lonicera. Hydrangea. Borne on the season's shoots — prune fall or early spring. Lilac. See S3Tringa. Lonicera. Usually on season's shoots — safest to prime immediately after flowering however, as some varieties bloom \iery early. Philadelpkus. (Coromonly called Syringa.) Borne on old wood — ^prune immediately after flow- ering. Spirceu. (Shrubby varieties.) On old wood — prune sparingly after flowering. Syringa. On last year's wood — ^prune imme- diately after flowering. Viburnum. On old wood — ^prune after flowering. Weigela. On old wood — ^prune after flowering. Clematis. On season's shoots — cut down in winter or early spring. Evergreen hedges. Prune in June, trimming just enough to keep the chosen form. 38 IX GARDEN PESTS THE gardener's hereditary enemies are of two sorts: the insects, which feed upon leaf and flower, fruit and plant juices; and the fungi. The former work in the open, as it were, and are not there- fore quite so difficult to deal with as the latter, though they are provokingly persistent. The fungi are subtle and more insidious, the spores which pro- duce them being invisible and therefore able to estab- lish themselves in spite of the greatest watchfulness directed against them. With these, prevention is the only "cure"; once a plant falls a victim to the disease which they produce, it is usually fatally stricken. Hence they are more to be dreaded than insects, in a way, and fungicides should be constantly used. It is absolutely useless to undertake the battle against insect hordes without first knowing definitely what kind of an army it is that has invaded. For insects that live upon plants are divided into two great classes, according to their method of feeding; theman- dibulate or biting insects, and the haustellate or suck- ing insects. A campaign to rout them must positively 39 THE GARDEN PRIMER Mouth Parts of the Larva from be laid out according to their position imder this classi- fication. The essential thing to be learned therefore about any small depredator, right at the start, is whether he is chewing pieces out of the plant which he has chosen and actually consuming its solid substance, or whether he is extracting its juices. This is not difficult to find out The biting creatures have big, strong mandibles which are plainly visible if the insect is watched quietly for a few minutes; and of course these fellows leave telltale holes behind them where they have helped themselves in dining. Many beetles, all true locusts, weevils, grasshoppers, slugs and most larval forms — _j/-i-?^>^'S^^ the latter being what we com- ^ I J^ monly designate as worms, grubs or maggots — are in this class. These may all be de- stroyed therefore by what are called direct poisons— that is, poisons applied to the plant, hence swallowed by the insect. All the arsenicals or compounds of arsenic are di- rect poisons — decidedly. They must be very carefully handled because they are so direct — such deadly poison, 40 True Beetle. Chewing or Mandibulate. Head of Rose Chafer. GARDEN PESTS Head of Clover- leaf Weevil. folks and careless The Department of Agricul- ture assures us that the poison disappears almost completely from the plants in from 20 to 25 days, and that even if it did not, it would be impossible to con- simie enough of the fruit or vegetable to get a really poison- ous dose. Even if an entire apple, core and all, were eaten, it would be But they are applied to the plants in such dilute forms that no danger attends their use, after they are on. It is before they are used that they are dangerous, the danger lying in not taking every precau- tion with them in the concentrated state. Be sure that they are la- belled conspicuously "poison" and that they are put and kept care- fully out of the reach of little folks. M ^ i 1- ' fr "■ y ^ y Head of larva, Clover-leaf Weevil. Jaws of larva, Clover-leaf Weevil. necessary to devour sever- al barrels of the fruit at a single sitting, to make the poison effect- ive. Nevertheless if one is nerv- ous about the chance of consum- ing any poison at all, it is better 41 THE GARDEN PRIMER to use something else on plants that are soon to be eaten. The powder made from the roots of white helle- bore is the best substitute for an arsenical insecticide. It poisons insects in the same way that the arsenicals do but is less dangerous to man, although it is distinctly poisonous and will cause death if enough of it is taken. In some instances poisonous gases or fumes are prefer- able to any direct application, but these are special cases. The haustel- late insects are provided with a haustelliun or pro- boscis — ^a sucking beak — ^which they thrust down into the soft inner tis- sues of a plant, whence they extract the juice. All of the true bugs belong in this class, all of ibs scale insects, and the plant lice or aphids. The injury which they do is not so imme- diately noticeable as that done by the mandibulates, but it is quite as serious. Indeed, because it is not so apparent it may very easily be much more serious, be- cause undiscovered for a time. Sucking or Haustellate. Head of Aphid — a Green Pea Louse. 42 GARDEN PESTS This class are less easily handled too than the greedy, chewing, devouring kind, because poisons on the plant do not affect them in the least. The only sure death to them is contact poison— which means that every insect must actually be located and treated. Poisonous fiunes are available sometimes, but ordi- narily a spray is the accepted method of dealing with them — a spray applied so thoroughly that every twig and leaf and branch is reached, on every side. Halfway measures are time wasted. Not all of the insects that must be dealt with are obliging enough to live in the open, or above ground. Root maggots, root lice and grubs work underground, hence are classified as subterranean; borers keep within the bark or wood of a plant or in its stem, gall insects conceal themselves within the galls which their presence has caused, and leaf miners "mine" the leaves. All of these are termed internal feeders; and the destruction of both these classes of concealed insects requires special methods, although they do of course belong to one or the other of the two great divisions first explained. Borers are mandibulate, also grubs and "miners;" some form of louse is generally responsible for the forma- 43 The True Bug. Head of Squash Bug. Haustellate Class. THE GARDEN PRIMER tion of galls, and lice always belong to the haustellate class; but whichever the class, they must be suffocated usually when they are subterranean or internal feeders. Spraying, or what the experts call the wet method of applying insecticides, is not a difficult undertaking but it demands suitable apparatus. It is the one way of making applications thorough. The dry method — application of poison in powder form — ^is useful in the case of low growing plants sometimes, but is advisable only when they are not to be used for food in the near future. A third method of destruction is the use of poisoned bait; this is used for cutworms and s imil ar insects that advance along the ground, like the grass- hopper or locust. The size of a place and the consequent amount of work to be done vrill of course determine the kind of apparatus to be provided. There are many kinds of small hand sprayers, as good a one as any being a small brass or tin affair called an atomizer spray syringe. This has a tank holding a quart of fluid; for use around a small garden it is very satisfactory because it may be timied in any position without spilling its contents. Thus leaves may be reached from underneath as readily as from above. A bucket pump is of course better where there are many shrubs or bushes; the ideal, suitable for every- thing, is a spray outfit on wheels that may be moved to any part of the groimds easily. And then there is a knapsack spray which may be carried on the shoulders of the operator; this is very much liked by some. 44 GARDEN PESTS Many insecticides require to be constantly agitated to keep the mixture in proper condition, and the best pumps are therefore equipped with an arrangement for doing this, called an agitator. Some solutions re- quire special nozzles; these are indicated in the list. Powders are applied more evenly perhaps with a powder gun or bellows, but a powder duster, which is really nothing but a tin pail with a cover, perforated all over the bottom like a huge saltshaker, is usually per- fectly satisfactory. A bag of coarse and open cloth, like scrim, is also practical, though this does not insure sprinkling the powder only down upon the plant, as the tin shaker does. The time of applying insecticides is of the greatest importance, neglect of even two or three days being sufficient to make all the work futile sometimes. Re- member always that it has been planned with the greatest care and after years of scientific investigation and patient study, to meet certain periods in the life cycle of the insect in question, which may be vulnerable only at such period. Too soon or too late, either one therefore, will not do. Do the work just at the time specified, when it is actually specified. If the direc- tions say "when the petals fall," that is the time; if they say "four days after the petals have fallen," thai is the time. Consult the Spraying Table when you wish to know what to do with a certain kind of tree; consult the Spraying Calendar for the work of each month. 45 THE GARDEN PRIMER INSECTICIDES Direct Poisons for Chewing or Biting Insects 1. Arsenite of Copper, Green Arsenoid or Green Arsenite (a) Strong Mixture: i ounce to 6 gallons of water. Use this only on very strong and hardy vegetation such as potato plants, or for insects very hard to kill, such as the cankerworm. (6) Medium Mixture: i ounce to 9 gallons of water. "Use this for all general spraying; do not use on extremely delicate and ten- der plants. (c) Dilute Mixture: i ounce to 15 gallons of water. Use this on peach, apricot, tender plums and all tender vegetation. Mix the poison into a thin paste and add twice as much quicklime as poison — more will do no harm, even up to three times as much. The lime takes up the "free arsenic" which is the substance that scalds the plants. After mixing, strain into the spray tank, rinsing and pulverizing all of the solid matter through the strainer thoroughly; then add the necessary amount of water. This is advised instead of Paris Green. 46 GARDEN PESTS 2. Arsenate of Lead (known in the trade as Disparene). Formula: 3 ounces of crystallized Arsenate of Soda. 7 ounces of crystallized Acetate of Lead. 10 gallons of water. Dissolve the crystals, each kind separately, in a small amount of water — the lead will dissolve more readily if the water is warmed — ^unite them, and reduce by adding the remainder of the water. A milky mixture will result; straining is not necessary if the poison is thoroughly dissolved and thor- oughly stirred with the water. A prepared paste or dust of this combina- tion may be purchased but it is better to mix as needed. Keep always the propor- tion of I ounce of poison to i gallon of water. It may be used stronger without harming the plants, but this is a safe general strength, effective and not risky. Arsenate of Lead remains suspended in water better than any other poison, is less likely to burn foliage, and sticks to all that the spray reaches. The filmy coating which it deposits shows consequently just what has been sprayed. Of all the arsenicals it is the safest for tender foliage; and it may be combined with Bordeaux Mixture, using THE GARDEN PRIMER the latter in place of the water, and making one sprayiQg do the work of two, when the Bordeaux is required. 3. Hellebore (non-poisonous to man). Use I ounce to i gallon of water, as a spray. For use dry, mix i part with 5 to 10 parts of flour and let stand in a closely covered vessel for twenty-four hours be- fore using. At the end of that time the flour will be as efficacious a poison as the pure hellebore. Sprinkle on leaves, on under sides as well as upper, while the dew is still on the plants or after wetting by rain or a watering pot. Contact Poisons for Sucking Insects 4. Kerosene Emulsion Soap Formula: J pound of hard soap (i qaaxt of soft). 2 gallons of kerosene. I gallon of rain water ("break" hard water with lye). Dissolve the soap in the water by boiling. Take from the fire and add to the kerosene immediately, while boiling hot, churning the mixture violently by pimaping it back upon itself through an open nozzle throwing a 48 GARDEN PESTS strong stream. Five minutes or less of this violent churning will bring it to the emulsion stage, when it will have increased in bulk one-third to one-half and be as thick as rich cream. This will keep indefinitely as stock. Milk Formula: 2 gallons of kerosene. I gallon of sour milk. Unite these without heating, and chum with pump. Three to five minutes are necessary to make the emulsion, the change coming very suddenly when it does come. The mixture becomes much thicker than the soap emulsion. It should be prepared only as needed, for it will not keep unless sealed in airtight jars. Winter Spray (a) Dilute i part of stock with 5 parts of water for use on apple and pear trees. (6) Dilute I part of stock with 7 parts of water for use on peach and plum trees. (c) Dilute I part of stock with 8 parts of water for use on apricot trees. Summer Spray (d) Dilute I part of stock with 10 parts of water for apple and pear trees. 49 THE GARDEN PRIMER (e) Dilute i part of stock with 15 parts of water for use on plum, peach, apricot and other tender foliage. The emulsion may be used undiluted in winter, to destroy scale on tnmks and large branches of trees that are badly infested. It cannot be sprayed however, but must be applied with a brush or sponge and this should only be done when a tree is in a very bad state. Never use the emulsion any stronger than directed, for it is extremely dangerous to a tree unless handled with caution. Always follow the table as to time of using it also. The weakest solution is quite strong enough for any plant infested with plant lice; such soft-bodied insects succumb easily anyway. It is simply a matter of reaching them all. 5. Lime, Sulphur and Salt Wash Formula : 3 pounds of unslaked lime. 2 pounds of sulphur (flowers). I J pounds of salt. 3 gallons of water. Slake the lime in a small quantity of the water; mix the sulphur into a stiff paste and add at once to the slaking lime; add the salt to the water, then the lime and sulphur so GARDEN PESTS and boil all together, in an iron vessel, for from two to three hours. Dilute after boil- ing until the total amount of mixture mea- sures 6 gallons, and apply at once, while hot. This is a valuable fungicide as well as an insecticide. It should be strained into the spray tank through an iron screen or strainer, and should be agitated contuiually while being used. It must never be applied to plants when they are in leaf; it is a winter spray only, to be used on dormant vegetation. Soap Wash Formula: 2 pounds of whale oil soap (get a potash soap). I gallon of water. Dissolve the soap in the water by heating and apply the spray hot, undiluted, in spring before growth starts, for scale insects. Dilute I part with 5 parts of water for sum- mer use against plant lice. Cocamon laimdry or Ivory soap, either one, will make an effective summer wash for soft-bodied aphids, J of a cake to 4 gallons of hot water being a good proportion. Use hot. 51 THE GARDEN PRIMER Fungicides 7. Bordeaux Mixture This is made by combining a solution of Copper Sulphate with Milk of Lime and reducing the mixture with the proper amount of water. Copper Sulphate Stock: dissolve copper sulphate (blue vitriol) in hot water, using i poimd of the bluestone to i gallon of water. Milk of Lime: Slake the lime slowly and add water enough to make a thick paste. Use wooden or porcelain vessels for both of these stock preparations and keep both covered to exclude the air. They may be kept any length of time. (a) For dormant vegetation compound the mixture in this proportion: I pound copper sulphate (i gallon of stock). I pound lime (dry weight before slaking). 9 gallons of water. (b) For plants in leaf compound as follows: I pound copper sulphate (i gallon of stock). i| poxmds of lime (dry weight before slaking). 13 gallons of water. 52 An encouraging fact in connection with the accompanying long Ust of insecticides is that a garden that is well tilled and well fed develops plants that will resist most pests of their own accord b. . ,Ttfc J "1 g li ^^k^^^B L--— -i ■^--^ *I&! *-^^^S^*'*^J^T^ ^|^^^v^^^[||^^*^^iir^^^l| One of the most fascinating phases of gardening is the study of the self-pollination and cross-pollination that is being carried on throughout the flowering season by Nature's various agencies FLOWERS AND- POLLINATION Alone this bears excellent fruit, but planted with its proper variety, it bears fruit that is finer still. Self-sterility is not always constant, a variety that has shown it in one place sometimes not developing it in another. This is owing to climatic and soil con- ditions probably, the plant doubtless being better adapted to those conditions which do not develop it. A self-sterile variety sometimes sets fruit which it fails to mature. Thus a whole orchard that is in per- fect health and well cared for, may blossom freely, set fruit, arid then drop it' when it is not more than half grown. New trees of the same variety added to the orchard will not improve the situation, but trees of some other variety — and it must be the right one — will bring the whole orchard into vigorous bearing. There must be an affinity between the two however, as well as sim- ultaneous ripening of anthers and pistils so that cross- pollination may take place. Just what this actual aflSnity is for any given variety, only experiment will determine, ordinarily; the Department of Agriculture is the best help, in this as in all other knotty problems. Some varieties of ornamental flowers — if we may so distinguish the garden favorites — hybridize so freely that experienced gardeners keep them strictly isolated if they are desirous of keeping the strain pure. Colum- bines are one of these, separate species mixing and varying constantly if planted together. Flowers of variegated colors are probably the result of cross- pollination — and of course the beautiful hybrids of plant breeders are produced by this method. 73 THE GARDEN PRIMER It is a subject not only of deepest interest but of boundless possibilities. Only a suggestion of these can be given in a work of this nature of course, but the wise gardener vrill pursue the matter further, for it is so far-reaching that no amount of study will be wasted. Seed is the starting point of plant life; the end and aim of a plant is the reproduction of its species, hence the end and aim of the flower of a plant is the seed. Unless seeds are formed therefore, the whole purpose of the plant is thwarted; which is the reason why many plants will go on in the effort to produce seed — to re- produce their kind — ^by blossoming again and again when deprived of their blossoms. This is at the bottom of the rule never to let a flowering plant go to seed, but always to cut the fading flowers away before seeds have formed, thus encouraging further bloom. Perhaps we are cruel to do this; certainly it does seem hard, the patient, persevering struggle that the helpless things carry on to fulfil their destiny. Up they come bravely in spite of greedy shears, in spite of re- peated discouragement, just as sweet and just as beau- tiful as ever — and just as hopeful, bless them! Heigho! Who can a gardener be and not fall to philosophizing ? Double flowers are monstrous man-made forms, unnatural and abhorred by Nature! Sounds dreadful, does it not ? — ^but it is all true. For double flowers are "double" at the expense of the reproducing organs; they have been selected and inbred and restrained and cajoled until they have twenty or fifty or any nimiber of times their normal number of petals, at the expense 74 FLOWERS AND POLLINATION of their stamens — and they cannot therefore fulfil the purpose of a flower and produce seed. They are actu- ally sterile flowers — and the only flowers that ought ever to be called that. The name is applied to the non- fruiting male or staminate flower very often, but this application is not the proper one, double flowers alone being sterile, strictly speaking; ray flowers, also called sterile sometimes, are actually neuter. These, by-the-way, are understood to appear with the small inconspicuous flowers which they encircle, for the purpose of attracting insects. They are the plant's banner, flung out to signal its tiny allies and invite them to the nectar feast which the little chalices of the hardly noticeable true flowers hold. As the insects, thus attracted, make the rounds, their bodies gather pollen in one place and carry it on to another, and the highly desired cross-pollination is accomplished. The small, flat, white "flowers" — really nothing but clusters of petals — which encircle the cymes of the high-bush cranberry are an example of these, while the old-fashioned snowball or guelder rose — the cran- berry's closest relative, for both are viburmuns — shows a doubling of these neuter flowers at the expense of every one of the tiny perfect flowers which make up the body of the bush cranberry cyme. Examine these two shrubs and compare the flower clusters of the one with the other; compare especially the ray flowers with the center, smaller flowers of the cluster from the cran- berry, and then compare them with the " flowers" that make up the snowball. The difference and the THE GARDEN PRIMER likeness is instantly apparent, even to an untrained observer. In passing let us note that all vegetation does not produce flowers. Rushes, ferns, mosses, certain aqua- tics, and mud-loving plants reproduce by spores; but this class is of little practical value in the garden, so need not be more than mentioned. 76 XII VEGETABLES THE word "vegetable" unquestionably means sometiiing very definite to everyone who comes upon it, anywhere at all — but to define just what a vegetable is, is not so simple a matter as it would seem. Indeed it is likely to become very involved, the deeper one gets into it, yet to cultivate them intelligentiy we should know pretty accurately what they are. Suppose that a start is made with the declaration that a vegetable is an edible plant; here is the common- est vegetable of them all — the potato — to prove at once that the statement is wholly inadequate, for the potato is not a plant at all, but only the root of a plant. And squash is actually a fruit, while green corn is a seed! It is amusing, by-the-way, to note that the law has taken a fling at this puzzling question, and declared solemnly that a "vegetable" is one of the plants eaten, either raw or cooked, diiring the principal part of a meal, while a " fruit" is one eaten as dessert. In which event cranberry sauce, coming with the roast, must be a vegetable, while rhubarb, served in delectable pie form, is a fruit. 17 THE GARDEN PRIMER Classes of Vegetables Below thb Grotjnd Above the Ground Roots and Tubers Stem or part of plant Fruit Seed Beets Celery Cucumber Green com Carrots Endive Egg-plant Beans Kohlrabi Lettuce Tomato Peas Onions Com salad Pepper Parsnips Cress String beans Potatoes Chicory Dandelion Sugar peas Radishes Squash Salsify Mustard Pumpkin Turnips Sorrel Muskmelon Celeriac Leek Asparagus Cabbaee Watermelon ScoTzonera •Cauliflower Kale Mushrooms Spinach Swiss chard ♦Artichoke •Broccoli CoUards Okra Rhubard Parsley Cheviil Nasturtium Martynia * Flower heads. But the definition is simple enough after all, evolving from our first statement by the addition of only a word — or, to be strictly accxirate, two words. A vegetable is an edible plant, or part; that covers the entire field. Vegetables classify imder four distinct heads, and it is well always to think of them according to these divisions, for many things about their culture and requirements depend upon which class they fall into. The proportions are interesting too, as well as the fact VEGETABLES that two of our favorite fruits find themselves in the list — the muskmelon or cantaloupe, and the watermelon. The list of fifty given will be useful to refer to when the question of fertilizing is under consideration. All of those plants whose edible portions grow below the ground — all root vegetables — should have light, mellow, rich soil. All stones and even small pebbles should be worked out of it, if perfect roots are to be produced, smooth and clean on their surfaces. Some gardeners, growing specimens for exhibition, go so far as to sift earth, well mixed with pulverized rotted manure, into holes previously dug out, but this is more trouble than many will care to take, and not necessary excepting on unusually stony soil or hard clay banks. For the benefit of those who may wish to try this, or who have land demanding such preparation, however, it may be said that for the deepest-rooted vegetables, like salsify and long beets, the holes must be two feet or more deep and three to four inches broad. The earth must of course be taken out, and the sifted earth put in place of it. Sow three or four seeds in the space, but leave only one strong seedling to mature finally. Thinning must always be done before vege- tables crowd each other at all, to be effective. All vegetables that are used during the summer — all green vegetables — are better if not allowed to ma- ture fully. This is one advantage of having a garden, for unless such vegetables are home grown, they are practically unattainable. Market gardeners grow for appearance and size, naturally, and must therefore 79 THE GARDEN PRIMER bring their products to full maturity before harvesting them. The home garden, on the contrary, should yield its summer foods while they are yoimg, not fully grown, and consequently juicy, tender and sweet. The table which is appended gives planting dates for the latitude of New York. A hundred miles north or south means always a week's difference in time — south being earlier of comrse and north later. The several dates given for some of the vegetables axe for succession crops, and do not mean that sowings must be made as often, nor as many times, as the table shows. They may be, however, the latest date being early enough to allow for the maturing of the crop before severe weather nips it. Special cultural directions cannot be given here, for these require volmnes in them- selves and are distinctly beyond the province of a primer. 80 H a •4-1 d as ■i-i (U > 1 s ii III English bush e almost as peas, and may d very early, are more ten- soially limaa. in hills. drills and thin is when there or foiu* leaves; ps for greens. jD IP 10 seeds to a to 3 or 4 plants I started. 1^ o la? AOS Oi ■^ 1 ja j3 HMHQ a s .s d -' N '^ ^ (N •H iaaj 001 atM ?. i o 8 s aaag ,io I i 1 •a « •^ N r+* -^ ^ * ^l ^ ■* ^ r^ N -* w HaaiYjn V t A 4 =!. V OJ, Bxaa^ f^ i i OS d> ciA iH Q O O O r> iO O OI Biva N A i ol, <^ ^ Jo :£ z s s P ^ : 1 & S$ s $ .3 .a s s «N « Tjt ^ w ■^ -* s s S ^ s s 9 ua J S S ££ .a £ .3 m d .5 O rtrH CO CO ■* -* 00 -<* BSHIUOS r.1 Oi C4 <© c^ CO lO »o ao aasna^ 1 1010 >nu3 o§ kO ^ o T) 1 9§S§ , .-HOi-li-liH »o o»o«»o « § 5 s =E-'H mi II ■. 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(3 a Si s 1 « V ■si ^a sis lis S.a ■a fS-il W gj ffi P ■l3S -'■1 a S5 1! .2 II a J5 K 3 3 D. f 3 3 3 3 4^ 3 ^ k •^■a 3 S "^ 'S 'S § ■s 1 'S o > > GQ a ^ tHK > > > > m >• ■4^ he g s >! S g 8 § o 2 8 § 8 ■4 O 8 I !>. >. >. i >. >. >> 1 >, >« 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 fe i-» >-s >-3 1-5 i-j >-> It. P4 >^ ^ « S s s S s S S S s ^^ ji ja ja ja ^ 43 o u .s .a § .3 .a cd d .a ^< o « o "^ N IN « Q M i-t H s S "■^ « s n ja ■rS .a -♦3 -*3 .g o OJ R.^ .a .a .a y, s v M o 89 t-l (M N i-i w » iH IM CO a 1 Ml ^ ;►, >, ;», !>, 2 >> Pk, >. >, o O S 1 1 1 S 5 s 1 i 1 S i •I, i § .3 a 1 a If .3 8 II I I ll |s i-i 3-' J O n I-) a s; Ih Q^ m a> m 133 d a pq 1 6 1 .o ■si 1 s 1 i % 1 ■ t-4 ^ ll i| si ■si |.a 1-1 "1. II! If! n 1 1 ■3 ^1 5 8 ll If J o s 9 o i ^ 2 i 4 a h 1 2 s 3 s g . a "S ■zs, II ■g t> tH Is > P3 :#3 > isa P o g 1| 5 o 1 s 1 II § h II 1 ■-s ll §H s 3 s . . . J3 •s lO s g .3 a o.d ,3 ^ as ^ S3 CO 2 o Cl te. 15 OCTOBER Kake up bare spots in lawn; dress with sheep manure and seed liberty. Keep the grass cut as regularly as in midsummer, up to the last minute. Fall planting should be done this month ; order shrubs and trees now. Cut down the tops of per^mials fJiat have died, except 'where this is advised against. 15 to 31 Get the winter dressings ready or arranged for, in good season. Set out bulbs as directed in the chapter dealing with them. Clean up everywhere, spread manure over the vegetable garden, plough or spade it and leave it for the winter. Tiansp^^jit the plants to the coldframe that are to be wintered there. 1 to 15 NOVEMBER Pile everything in the shape of rakings into a heap, mix a little Hme throu^ it or not, and thus prepare compost for epiing. Root vegetables are now to be stored for the winter. Seed of com salad, kale and spinach may be broadcasted over patches of the garden for early spring use. Give rhubarb and peonies a heavy dressing of manure. 15 to 30 Take up tender bulbs and tubers, shake the earth froni them and handle as directed in the bulb chapter. 31 DECEMBER As soon as the ground freeses, mulch everything with leaves or straw. Salt grass is often used and has the advantage of not being full of Hold mulch in place by some shovelfuls of earth tiirown over it. Cover coldframes at night with straw mats and wooden .shutters. Gather all cocoons and everything that looks suspicious, from every tree and shrub, and bum them. Trim out dead branches and prune generally, except spring-flow- ering shrubs. .158 INDEX INDEX Agriculture, Department of, 41, 73- 85, 90, 91. Agricultural Experiment Sta- tion, 90, 91. air, in soil, 12, 17. altitude, 5. annuals, 3, 4, 5, 6, 122, 132, 133. aimuals, planting table of, 132, 133- annual shoots, 35. aphids, 42, 140. apple, 35. 37. 56, 57. 60, 61, 62, 72. apricot, 57, 58, 60, 61. April in the garden, 57, 58, 60, 81, 82, 83, 106, 154, 155. arid jjlaces, plants for, 127. arsenical poisons, 40, 42, 46, 47. August in the garden, 62, 81, 82, 83, 100, 124, 157. bees, 64, 65, 67. beetles, 40, 64, 67. biennials, 3, 4. bittersweet, 71. blackberry, 37. bog, 120. bog plants, table of, 126. Bordeaux mixture, 47, 52. borers, 43. broadcast sowing, 17. bud, 28, 29, 30, 31. bulbs, 109, no. III, 112, 113, 114. 115- storing, 113. bulb plating table, 116. calycanthus, 101. carbolic emulsion, 54. carbon bistilphide, 54. ceanothus, 102. cherry, 37, 57, 60, 61. clay soil, 11, 12, 13, 104. climbers, 5. codling moth (see Spraying Table and Calendar), coldframe, 140. corm, 109. comus, 102. cotyledon, 19. crocus, 112 (see Bulbs), crown imperial, 1 12 (see Bulbs), cultivation, 24. cultivator, 24. curculio (see Spraying Table and Calendar), currant, 37. cuttings, 92, 97, 98, 99, ICO, 102. cutworm, 55, 67. cydonia, 102. cypress vine, 8. daffodil, 112. Dahlia, 113. December in the garden, 158. deep soil, 12. Deutzia, 102. dibble, 21. Diervilla, 102. dog's tooth violet, 112. drills, 16. dry soil, 11. exochorda, loi. evergreens, 150. February in the garden, 57, 60, 81, 82, 153, 154. fertilizers, 84, 104, in. fertilizing, 70, 84. 161 flats, i6, 100. float, 17. flowers, 18, 27, 28, 69, 72, 75. Forsythia, 38, loi. form of growth, 34, 35. formulae, 46 to 55. fragrant flowers, table of, 130, 131- frames, 16. frost, 36. fruit, 37, 38, 57, 58, 60, 61, 62, 78, 89. fruit tree, 35, 37, 56. fungi, 39 (see Spraying Table and Calendar), fungicides, 52, 53, 54, 55. garden, flower, 118. general garden talk, i, 147. germination of seed, 8, 18, 20. grapes, 38, 72. grass seed, 105. grasshopper, 40, 55. gravelly soil, 11. grubs, 40. heading in, 35, 97. hedge, 30, 151. hellebore, 42, 48. hibiscus, 38. hills, plants to be set in, 16, 17. hillsides, 121. honey locust, 71. honeysuckle, 38, 96. horsechestnut, 71. hotbed, 136, 140. hyacinth, 112 (see Bulbs). hydrangea, 36, 38, 102.; insects, 39 to 45." helpers, 63. insecticides, 40 to 55. Ipomcea, 8. iris, 112 (see Bulbs). January in the garden, 60, 153. June in the garden, 57, 61, 81, 82, 83, 156. July in the garden, 61, 81, 82, 83, 100, 124, 156, 157. kerosene emulsion, 48. Kerria, loi. ladybug, 63, 64. Latin names of plants, 7, 8, 9, 10. latitude, 5. lawn, 103 to 108. layering, 92, 93, 94, 95, 96, 97, loi. leaves, 19, 28, 29, 86, 112. light soil, 12. lilac, 36, 38, 147. lily, 112 (see Bulbs), lime, 87. lime, sulphur and salt wash, 50. loam, II, 12. locusts, 40 (see Insects). Lonicera, 38. louse, plant, 42, 43, 44. maggots, 40, 43 (see Insects). manm-e, 13, 104, 108, iii. 136, iSi. maple, 71. March in the garden, 57, 58, 60, 81, 82, 83, III, 154. mature plants, care of, 24. May in the garden, 57, 58, 61, 81, 82, 83, 104, 106, 155, 156. melons, 16. moonflower, 8. morning-glory, 8. moisture, d^ree of, 25. mulch. III. names of plants, 7, 8, 9, 10. Narcissus, 112 (see Bulbs), nitrogen, 87, 88. nomenclature, 7, 8, 9, 10. November in the garden, no, 117. 158- oak, 70, 71. October in the garden, 106, no, 116, 117, 158. 162 peach, 37, 57, 58, 60, 61. pear, 35, 37, 57, 60, 61, 72. perennials, 3, 4, 5, 6, 122, 125 to 129, 134, 135. pests, 39. petunias, 16. phosphoric acid, 87, 88. pistil, 70. plant names, 7, 8, 9, 10. plant tables, 116, 125, 126, 127 128, 129, 130, 132 to 135. plum, 37, 57, 58, 60, 61, 72. plumule, 19. poison, 40 to 55. poppies, 4, 16. poUen, 65, 72, 75. pollination, 65, 69, 72, 75. potash, 87, 88. potassium sulphide, 53. privet, 30. propagation, 92. pruning, 28 to 38. psylla, 67 (see Spraying Table and Calendar). Philadelphus, 38, loi. ] pussy willow, 70, 71. rain, 25. raspberry, 37. rhizome, 109, 114. rockery, 120. rock plants, 125. rose, 38, 58, 59, 61, 62, 70, 102. rose bug (see Spraying Table and Calendar), rhus, loi. ribes, loi. sand, II, 12, 13, 104. sandy places, plants for, 121, 127. scab (see Spraying Table and Calendar), scale (see Spraying Table and Calendar), sambucus, 102. sassafras, 71. seed, 5, 15, 18, 19, 28, 74, 79, 92 seedlings, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 92. self sowing, 4. self sterility, 72, 73. September in the garden, 83, 106, 116, 117, 157, 158. sex in flowers, 70 to 74. shady places, plants for, 128. shrubs, 4, 27, 35, 36, 37, 38, 57, 58, 60, 61, 62, 96, lOI. shoots, 35, 36. slugs (see Spraying Table and Calendar), snowdrop, 112, 113. soil, 5, II, 12, 13, 14, 18, 21 to 27. 79. 84. 85, 86, 89, 90, 103, no. soil binder, 129. soajj wash, 51. sowing, 15, 105, 106. spiraea, 38, 102. spray, 44. sprayers, 44. Spraying Calendar, 60 to 62. Spraying Table, 57 to 59. spores, 76. stamen, 69, 70. star-of-Bethlehem, 112 (see Bulbs). squiUs, 112 (see Bulbs), stolon, 92. stony soil, 11. subterranean insects, 43, 54. sumach, 71. sweet peas, 16. summer spray, 49, 57. syringa, 38, 102. taproot, 23. tillage, 24, 25, 26, 27. tools, 143 to 146. trailers, 5. transplanting, 21, 22, 23, 147. trees, 4, 27, 32 to 36, 57, 58, 60, 61, 62, 96, 151. trillium, 112 (see Bulbs), tubers, 109. tulip, 112 (see Bulbs). vegetables, 18, 77, 78, 79. vegetable table, 78. 163 vegetable planting, 8i, 82 '^es, 5, 35. viburnum, 75, loi. water, 5, 12, 16, 18, 25, 86, 123, 139- weeds, 24, 35, 2^, 108. weeder, 26. weevils, 40. wet soil, u, 126. wheel hoe, 143. wind, prevailmg winter, 5. winter spray, 49, 57. worm, 40, 55, 68. 164