Qass^ 
 Book. 
 
 
V 
 
Miniature 
 
 AND 
 
 Window Gardening 
 
Digitized by tine Internet Arcinive 
 in 2010 with funding from 
 Tine Library of Congress 
 
 littp://www.arcliive.org/details/miniaturewindowgOOalle 
 
Miniature 
 
 Window Gardening 
 
 BY 
 
 Phoebe Allen and Dr. Godfrey 
 
 ■> > ; 1 ' J 
 
 NEW YORK 
 
 JAMES POTT & COMPANY 
 
 1902 
 

 Press of J. J. Little & Co. 
 Astor Place, New York 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 CHAP. PAGE 
 
 I. What to Grow ...... 9 
 
 II. How TO Grow Perennials and Annuals 17 
 
 III. On the Sowing and General Arrange- 
 
 ment OF Borders 22 
 
 IV. Bulbs . 28 
 
 V. Rockeries, Arches, Screens, etc. . . 36 
 
 VI. Roses, Creepers, etc 45 
 
 VII. Hedges, Paths, Grassplots . . .51 
 
 VIII. Window Gardening 59 
 
 IX. Window Boxes 6g 
 
 X. On Cuttings, etc 80 
 
 XI. A Few General Hints . . .88 
 
 XII. Of Gardeners' Friends, Foes, etc., and 
 
 OF Tools 95 
 
INTRODUCTION 
 
 *' Gardens were before gardeners, and but Intro- 
 some hours after the earth," says the quaint duction 
 old author of " Medico Religio," and in- 
 deed, from all time, love of gardening, in 
 some form or another, has prevailed amongst 
 men. 
 
 ** The suburban gardener is a latter-day- 
 creation," declares a writer of to-day; we 
 would like to remind him of many and sun- 
 dry Londoners of two centuries ago, who 
 were enthusiastic horticulturists in their 
 ** close-by-town " residences. But whether 
 of ancient or modern creation, there is no 
 class of flower-growers with whom we feel 
 a greater sympathy than with those dwellers 
 in cities and suburbs, to whom a ** plant of 
 my own growing," a ** shrub of my own 
 rearing," mean a whole world of pride and 
 enjoyment. 
 
 5 
 
Intro- > " Sow labor and patience upon stones and 
 duction roses will spring forth," runs the Eastern 
 proverb, and without undertaking to rival 
 this performance quite literally, we do main- 
 tain that with industry and perseverance, 
 not merely roses, but all manner of " faire 
 flowres" may be produced. 
 
 And this, we hold, is possible, even in a 
 miniature garden, where every inch of the 
 soil, every brick of the walls, and every 
 available window of the house must be 
 pressed into the service of horticulture. 
 
 The suburban gardener's greatest external 
 foes are, no doubt, the fogs of winter, the 
 dust and glare of summer, and destructive 
 winds pretty nearly all the year round. As 
 to his minor trials, in the shape of invading 
 dogs and cats, possibly even fowls, all these, 
 and many more, are probably so present to 
 our reader's mind, that we forbear to dwell 
 further upon them. 
 
 But what may be called the ** foes of his 
 own household," are generally the miniature 
 gardener's want of space, coupled frequently 
 with want of knowledge. There is so much 
 he would like to plant and sow, and so little 
 6 
 
room to do it in, and he is so painfully aware Intro- 
 of his ignorance as to how to make the most duction 
 of that little, that it is with a view to help- 
 ing this heavily-handicapped horticulturist, 
 that we have attempted to compile this little 
 book. 
 
 7 
 
Miniature Gardening 
 
 CHAPTER I 
 
 WHAT TO GROW 
 
 " I HAVE a tiny slip of ground — a neighbor "Toy 
 unfeelingly describes it as a * toy garden * — garden" 
 with a small patch of grass and three very 
 narrow borders. With this amount of 'pleas- 
 ure ground ' at my disposal, I am told that 
 I could, with proper treatment, secure a 
 good display of flowers. But I'm so igno- 
 rant, I don't know the very A B C of gar- 
 dening, and so ashamed of my ignorance 
 that I don't want to expose it by asking any 
 foolish questions. Pity such a distressed 
 ignoramus.'* 
 
 The above confession reached us not so 
 long ago, and (lamentable as such a plight 
 
 9 
 
Over- may seem to those who have always enjoyed 
 
 crowding the luxury of a garden as a matter of course) 
 
 it is by no means such a very uncommon 
 
 one amongst dwellers in cities and city 
 
 borders. 
 
 And so it is with the needs of the " dis- 
 tressed ignoramus" very present to our 
 minds that we begin this chapter. 
 
 In every undertaking, it is well to know 
 clearly what object we wish to attain, and 
 then set about discovering the best means 
 of attaining that object. 
 
 Now the great ambition of the miniature 
 ^ gardener is, we take it, to make the utmost 
 of the limited space at his command. 
 
 It is always a great temptation to the 
 amateur to overcrowd his borders, for where 
 room is so precious and so scarce, it seems 
 a sin to allow space for even a caterpillar to 
 walk between the plants. 
 
 But overcrowding is a grievous mistake. 
 
 Plants require light, air, and elbow-room 
 as much as we do. 
 
 Another pitfall, into which the unlearned 
 often stumbles, is in the selection of his 
 plants. He generally soars too high. 
 
 lO 
 
Now the list of both perennials and an- Annuals, 
 nuals include so many lovely and fragrant biennials, 
 blossoms, that to produce an abundance of and per- 
 gay flowers, there is no need to aspire to ennials 
 those plants which cannot be sown in the 
 open ground, and which may require more 
 than quite ordinary care and soil. 
 
 There are several ways of making a gar- 
 den pretty. Besides the cultivation of bulbs 
 — we shall speak of them later — there are 
 what are termed ** bedding-out plants.'* 
 These are Geraniums, Verbenas, Fuchsias, 
 etc., but these are (comparatively speaking) 
 expensive, and though we do not go so far 
 as to place them altogether beyond the reach 
 of our readers, we strongly advise them — at 
 starting, at any rate — to give the preference 
 to perennials, biennials, and annuals. 
 
 ** But what do you mean by perennials 
 and annuals?" we hear our "distressed 
 ignoramus " ask. 
 
 By annuals, we mean those plants that 
 last for one year only. They blossom, seed, 
 and then die down. 
 
 Biennials are plants that last for two years, 
 making leaves the first year, and flowers and 
 
 II 
 
Hardy seed the second. Sweet Williams and Holly- 
 
 and half hocks are biennials. 
 
 hardy Perennials last for many years in succes- 
 
 sion, but, like the biennials, do not flower 
 the same year in which they are sown. 
 
 Again, there are hardy annuals and half- 
 hardy annuals, hardy perennials and half- 
 hardy perennials. 
 
 In garden seed lists, you see the letters 
 h.a. and h.h.a., placed against the two 
 former, and h.p. and h.h.p. against the lat- 
 ter. And these indications are very valu- 
 able to the unlearned, because the seeds of 
 hardy and half-hardy plants require, of 
 course, different treatment. Now hardy an- 
 nuals, such as Mignonette, Larkspur, Pop- 
 pies, and Lupins, Marygolds, Cornflowers, 
 Nasturtiums, and many others — to be men- 
 tioned later — may be sown fearlessly in the 
 open ground in April and May. 
 
 (Some hardy annuals, indeed, as we shall 
 show later, may be sown ** overnight for the 
 summer," as a quaint old gardener used to 
 say, by which he meant might be put in the 
 ground in the late autumn for early spring 
 blooming.) 
 
 12 
 
To the half-hardy annuals belong Asters, Sowing 
 Stocks, Balsams, Lobelias, Phlox, Linum — 
 that pretty scarlet-flowered Flax — and many 
 others. 
 
 The seeds of these, being only half hardy, 
 must never be sown out of doors until the 
 beginning of June, or at any rate, till all 
 fear of frost is over. 
 
 Folks who are the lucky possessors of a 
 tiny hot-bed may sow half-hardy annuals in 
 pots and boxes as early as March, so as to 
 have stout young seedlings for planting out 
 in June. 
 
 Hardy perennials, such as Pansies, Cow- 
 slips, Double Daisies, Pinks, Polyanthus, 
 Lavender, and others, may be sown in the 
 ground any time from March to September, ' 
 whilst the same rules for sowing the seeds 
 of half-hardy annuals apply to those of half- 
 hardy perennials. 
 
 Heliotropes, Petunias, Salvias, Verbenas, 
 Begonias, are some of the latter. 
 
 Now there is no doubt that hardy peren- 
 nials are by far the most satisfactory plants 
 for little gardens. 
 
 In the first place — and this is an important 
 
 13 
 
Grouping consideration with most miniature gardeners 
 — the expense incurred in growing perennials 
 is very small. When the seeds have once 
 been bought (they can mostly be obtained 
 for ten cents a packet), all expense attach- 
 ing to their cultivation is hardly worth the 
 mention. 
 
 Secondly, they are permanent. 
 
 Thirdly, owing to the natural grace of 
 their growth, no class of plant lends itself 
 so well to grouping, and there is scope for 
 grouping even in the smallest slip of ground. 
 
 Fourthly, perennials are better than any 
 other plants for supplying flowers for cutting. 
 
 It has been aptly said that ** Hardy per- 
 ennial gardening is equally open to the mil- 
 lion and the millionaire." 
 
 Still, we would by no means exclude an- 
 nuals. If ** variety is the spice of life," it 
 certainly is needed to make the charm of 
 even little gardens complete. Therefore, 
 where most of the ground is devoted to per- 
 manent plants, a sprinkling of bright an- 
 nuals, here and there, is a very welcome 
 form of variety. 
 
 Where should we be without our gorgeous 
 
 14 
 
Poppies, our flame-colored Nasturtiums, our Variety 
 dainty Sweet Peas, our fragrant Mignonette, 
 and a dozen other favorites ? 
 
 Only let these "annual fireworks '* be used 
 in a much smaller proportion to the peren- 
 nials. And in laying out our little borders, 
 it will be well to regard them in the light 
 of those guests that tarry but a season, and 
 to devote our best attention to the peren- 
 nial residents. 
 
 Now here are the names of some peren- 
 nials that are specially suitable for a town 
 garden border. 
 
 Pansies, Double Daisies, Carnations, Poly- 
 anthus, Stocks, Phlox Drummondi, Asters, 
 Canterbury Bells, Lily of the Valley, Japa- 
 nese Anemones, Iris Germanica, Paeonies, 
 Sweet William, Verbenas, Wallflowers, Snap- 
 dragon, Chrysanthemums. 
 
 As an actual border flower for a town gar- 
 den, none is better than the old-fashioned 
 Pink ; whilst the Double Daisy, either red or 
 white, beloved of cottagers, makes a charm- 
 ing edging to a border, and being perennial, 
 when Daisies have once taken root, they are 
 permanent. 
 
 15 
 
Border The Thrift too, with its pretty heads of 
 
 plants pink blossoms, makes a capital border plant 
 
 for a town garden. 
 
 In almost every town garden the following 
 annuals will do well and give little trouble: 
 Sunflowers, Nasturtiums, both tall and 
 dwarf; Cornflowers, Marygolds, Sweet Peas 
 — if the border be sunny enough — Mignon- 
 ette, Lupins, Nemophilas, etc., etc. 
 i6 
 
CHAPTER II 
 
 HOW TO GROW PERENNIALS AND ANNUALS 
 
 With a view of ensuring a bright spring gar- Prepar- 
 den, it is well to sow, either in September ing the 
 or early in October, those seeds which are border 
 sufficiently hardy to stand wintering in the 
 open ground. 
 
 Before putting in your seeds, however, 
 you must prepare your border. Set to work 
 to dig it over rather deeply, breaking up all 
 the clods. Pick up every stone and pull up 
 every weed and burn it. Don't follow some 
 folks' advice and dig the pulled-up weed into 
 the soil. If you do, they will most surely pay 
 you out by reappearing to blemish your 
 flowers. Fork in a dressing of manure, either 
 hot-bed manure or decayed leaf-mould, or, if 
 you can get them, road sweepings. These 
 latter are especially good for your purpose, 
 as they contain sand and grit. Beware, how- 
 
 2 17 
 
Over- ever, of overdoing the manure. In many 
 
 manuring cases plants do better in poor rather than rich 
 soil, and the result of over-manuring is seen 
 in too profuse foliage and scanty blossoms. 
 
 In sowing your seeds dont bury them. 
 
 The largest seed should never be put in at 
 a greater depth than one inch, whilst some 
 of the smaller seeds should be merely dusted 
 over. An excellent plan is to have a little 
 soil previously prepared, and, after scatter- 
 ing your seeds on the surface of your border, 
 to sift this soil over them. 
 
 For autumn sowing, here is a list of the 
 seeds we should specially recommend for a 
 town garden : 
 
 Mignonette, Larkspur, Nemophila, Venus* 
 Looking-Glass, Cornflower, Esscholtzia, 
 Candytuft, Erysinium — the well-known 
 orange variety of Candytuft — Sweet Wil- 
 liam, and Virginia Stock. 
 
 This latter is especially valuable for town 
 gardens, as no amount of smoke seems to 
 affect its growth. Moreover, it can be sown 
 at any time in the year, so as to ensure a 
 succession of bloom, and its red-rose or 
 white flowers are very effective. 
 
 i8 
 
All these plants must be so familiar, even Autumn 
 to the ** distressed ignoramus," that it is sowing 
 needless to attempt any description of them. 
 
 (The seeds of all can be obtained at any 
 seedsman's at the rate of ten cents a packet.) 
 
 In addition to the above-mentioned flowers, 
 we recommend the following for autumn 
 sowing, and these having less well-known 
 names, we will give a few particulars with 
 each, so that when sowing their seeds our 
 readers may know what they may expect to 
 be the result in each case : 
 
 Alyssum Compactum — height, 9 inches; 
 flower, bright yellow. 
 
 Godetia — i foot, white or crimson. 
 
 Collinsia Bicolor — i foot, purple and white. 
 
 Viscaria — kind of Corncockle — 9 inches, 
 bright rose. 
 
 Whitlavia Grandiflora — i foot, dark pur- 
 ple. 
 
 Xeranthemum — 2 feet, hardy everlasting, 
 purple and white. 
 
 Ditto — crimson cerise variety, very beau- 
 tiful. 
 
 Scabious — 18 inches, purple, scarlet, or 
 white. 
 
 19 
 
Aspect Calliopsis — 2 feet, yellow, maroon, crim- 
 
 of your son. 
 
 borders Leptosiphon Densiflorous — i foot, rosy 
 
 purple. 
 
 L. Albus — pure white, the most profusely 
 blooming annual. 
 
 Calendula Marigold — i foot, yellow and 
 orange, and pure white. 
 
 Clarkias — i foot, white, rose, red. 
 
 Clarkias are specially suited for autumn 
 sowing. If the seed is put in in September, 
 it flowers quite early in May, and is one of 
 those early growers which never fail to bloom 
 freely. Make the second sowing for succes- 
 sion in April. 
 
 All the other hardy annuals and perennials 
 may be sown, as we have said before, in the 
 open ground, in April and May ; the hardy 
 perennials from March to September; the 
 half-hardy annuals and perennials not till 
 the end of May. 
 
 In sowing your seeds consider tJie aspect 
 of your borders. For, whereas for some 
 flowers a sunny position is almost a neces- 
 sity, others will really only do well in a com- 
 paratively shady one. 
 20 
 
For instance, Sweet Peas love the sun, so Sun and 
 do Cornflowers, Annual Chrysanthemums, shade 
 Scarlet Flax, Sweet Alyssum, Mignonette, 
 and many others. 
 
 On the other hand. Foxgloves, Prince's 
 Feather, Solomon's Seal, Oriental Poppies, 
 Godelias, Marigolds, Love-lies-bleeding, 
 Nasturtiums, and others, do far better if 
 sown in the shadier part of a border. 
 
 We once saw a shady border with a north 
 aspect very successfully treated. No con- 
 dition could be much more unfavorable to 
 flowers, so the owner of that unpromising 
 border was justly proud of his achievements. 
 
 He started by planting ferns, just the 
 hardiest sort, taken from a country hedge, 
 together with the common blue Periwinkle 
 and some Foxgloves, both of these wild re- 
 cruits also from a shady wood. As these did 
 well, he became bolder, and added London 
 Pride, Solomon's Seal, Creeping Jenny, and 
 Musk, until this border, which his friends 
 had assured him was practically useless to 
 cultivate, became quite one of the prettiest 
 little strips in his very tiny garden. 
 
 21 
 
CHAPTER III 
 
 ON THE SOWING AND GENERAL ARRANGEMENT 
 OF BORDERS 
 
 Lines or Now there are two ways generally in use of 
 
 masses sowing a border. 
 
 Seeds are either sown in lines or in masses. 
 Where space is sufficiently abundant to 
 make the possible failure of one border of 
 little account, the sowing of different colored 
 flowers in rows, so as to produce a ribbon 
 border, is a very pretty experiment, and 
 may result in a very good effect. But we 
 would never counsel the owner of tiny gar- 
 dens to attempt it. The lines are so apt to 
 be broken, owing to the failure of some par- 
 ticular seed, or to the ravages of slugs or 
 other garden pests, that the risk of having 
 a spoiled border for a whole season is too 
 great in their case. 
 
 22 
 
A single row of, say, Double Daisies, or Color 
 Clove Pinks, or Thrift, at the edge of a bor- effects 
 der is well enough, and gives a character to 
 the rest of the border, but let the remainder 
 of the seed-sowing be done in masses. 
 
 Dont sow in little dabs. However narrow 
 your border may be, don't let any plot meas- 
 ure less than six inches in diameter (where 
 you can manage it, one foot is the best); 
 and don't repeat the same plant at intervals 
 along your border. If you do, you will 
 probably destroy what is of great importance 
 in grouping flowers, namely, color effect. 
 Even in a miniature garden, good effects, as 
 well as harmony in color, should be aimed 
 at. 
 
 For, just as a room, no matter what its 
 size, may be pretty, or the reverse, by the 
 choice and disposal of its furniture, so the 
 whole beauty of a border may be made or 
 marred by the arrangement of its flowers. 
 Given two people with the same seeds and 
 the same ground at their disposal, one may 
 sow the border so as to make it a perfect 
 little picture, whilst the other may compass 
 such violent contrasts in color that the 
 
 23 
 
Harmony result is either absolutely vulgar or gratingly 
 
 rather hard. 
 
 than con- Again, others, with the object of avoiding 
 
 trasts formality, will sow the seeds more or less at 
 
 haphazard, with the natural result that the 
 border looks, at best, a meaningless jumble. 
 " Monster effects in grouping," and 
 ** splendid harmonies in color," as the land- 
 scape gardeners have it, are, of course, quite 
 out of the question for any ordinary small 
 garden; still, there are certain elementary 
 rules in this direction to which even a " dis- 
 tressed ignoramus " would do well to adhere 
 at starting. 
 
 (Very soon, we feel sure, the knowledge 
 gained by his own experience would be 
 enough to guide him on that point.) 
 
 First of all — though tastes may differ on 
 this point — we would advise our readers to 
 aim at securing harmony in their color ar- 
 rangements rather than contrasts. 
 
 All warm colors, such as the different 
 shades of red, crimson, scarlet, rose, pink, 
 etc., are easy to deal with, such as we find 
 in the Phloxes, which include scarlet, crim- 
 son, rose, and salmon tints; and Sweet Wil- 
 24 
 
liams, Balsams, Poppies, Carnations, Pens- Blending 
 teums, and many others. These all har- colors 
 monize. So are the varying hues of yellow, 
 primrose, sulphur, orange, and creamy- 
 whites. The yellow and orange Daylily; 
 the sulphur and golden Violas ; the orange * 
 and yellow Nasturtiums, Marigolds (both the 
 lemon-colored and the red-gold), the deep 
 yellow and lemon-colored Polyanthus and 
 Auriculas will all group well together. 
 
 All these will blend and mix well. But 
 blue, purple, or lilac tints are best grouped 
 together, or if brought into the neighbor- 
 hood of scarlets or pinks, it is well to inter- 
 pose patches of sulphur or silvery white — 
 the Achillea is excellent for this purpose ; so 
 is the Dwarf Double Bronze Wallflower, or 
 the old-fashioned cream-colored Stock — or 
 a rich bronze between them and the warmer 
 coloring. 
 
 As regards the treatment of blue flowers, 
 the greatest care is needed. The soft azure 
 tint of the Nemophila, and some of the vari- 
 eties of the Forget-me-not, as well as the 
 rich purple blue of the Salvia, may be more 
 fearlessly dealt with ; but it is extraordinary 
 
 25 
 
Whites in what absolutely hideous effects may be pro- 
 the border duced by the use, for instance, of the full 
 blue of the Lobelia. 
 
 Who cannot recall to his mind's eye some 
 border where a mass of glaring scarlet Gera- 
 nium, edged with full blue Lobelia, has made 
 our eyes positively ache with its crude hard- 
 ness ? 
 
 The combination of violet tints with blue, 
 however beautiful the flowers may be in 
 themselves and by themselves, may thus pro- 
 duce quite distressing effects. 
 
 Whereas, mix blue, sky blue, turquoise, 
 full blue, hyacinth blue, with pale yellows, 
 rosy whites, and even faintest pinks, and 
 the result is lovely. To give blue, as artists 
 say, its full value, let it stand by itself with 
 only a setting of rich foliage. 
 
 Dead whites, too, such as the Candytuft 
 and Stocks, require management. One or 
 two, at the most, patches of white are quite 
 enough for a small border. 
 
 We would advise a beginner to settle in 
 
 his own mind exactly what perennials he 
 
 means to have in each border, and having 
 
 made his choice with due regard to the re- 
 
 26 
 
spective seasons for flowering, to proceed Permanent 
 next to the consideration of his annuals that residents 
 he means to intersperse amongst them. Let 
 him regard the perennials as his permanent 
 residents, and group the annuals around and 
 about them. 
 
 27 
 
CHAPTER IV 
 
 BULBS 
 
 Soil It has been truly said that bulbs are the 
 
 citizens' friends. 
 
 They will do equally well in the smokiest 
 town garden as in any country one, and 
 almost any soil will suit them. 
 
 Winter Aconites, Crocuses, Snowdrops, 
 Hyacinths, Daffodils, Anemones, Ranuncu- 
 lus, Narcissus, Tulips, and Scillas will all 
 flourish, provided they be properly planted, 
 and at the right time. 
 
 October and November are on the whole 
 the best months for putting bulbs in the 
 ground. 
 
 (Daffodils may be put in in September.) 
 
 Prepare your border as advised in Chapter 
 II., but in digging in the manure be careful 
 not to allow any particle of it to come 
 actually in contact with the bulbs. 
 
 28 
 
As regards the planting of the bulbs, we Planting 
 reverse the advice that we gave concerning bulbs 
 perennials, for we recommend planting them 
 in rows. In fair-sized beds and wide bor- 
 ders, beautiful color effects can be obtained 
 by forming masses of Crocuses, purple, white, 
 and golden, or by grouping other bulbs to- 
 gether in handsome plots; but the owners 
 of narrow borders do better, in our opinion, 
 to content themselves with the row system. 
 For tiny beds, also, a better display can be 
 made by planting the bulbs in rings or geo- 
 metrical patterns than by clumping them. 
 
 Three great essentials to their future suc- 
 cess must be kept in mind when bulbs are 
 to be planted. 
 
 First, put them in the ground early. Bulbs 
 planted too late in the season are very liable 
 to rot in the ground. 
 
 Secondly, they must be planted closely 
 together. 
 
 Thirdly, the soil below them should be as 
 light as that above them. 
 
 Bulbs placed on too firm a basis will fre- 
 quently fail to strike root. Each one will 
 like to arrange his bulbs to his own taste, so 
 
 29 
 
Protection we will only give a few directions as to the 
 from frost actual planting of the different kinds. 
 
 Hyacinths and Tulips should be planted 
 from four to six inches apart, according to 
 size of bulb, and the crown should be put in 
 the soil from two to four inches below the 
 surface. 
 
 Daffodils, Narcissus, and Jonquils should 
 be planted four inches deep, and the same 
 distance apart. 
 
 Crocus, Scillas, and Snowdrops should be 
 put in two inches deep, and Winter Aconites 
 should be planted one inch deep and one- 
 and-a-half apart. 
 
 Plant Anemones and Ranunculuses two 
 inches deep and three inches apart. 
 
 Litter to the depth of two or three inches 
 should be strewn over the surface of the bor- 
 der, after the bulbs have been put in, to 
 serve as a protection from the frost, but 
 should be removed in spring, as soon as the 
 first leaves have pushed their way through 
 the soil. It must be replaced again at night 
 during frosty weather. 
 
 As regards aspect, it must be borne in 
 mind that whilst Snowdrops, Hyacinths, 
 
 30 
 
and Aconites do equally well in sun or shade, Summer 
 Crocus and Tulips must have plenty of sun, display 
 and Daffodils and Narcissus do better on the 
 whole in the shade. 
 
 Besides these bulbs, which are so indis- 
 pensable for spring flowering, there are 
 others, which, when space will allow, may 
 be grown for summer display. 
 
 There are very few town gardens where 
 Lilies will not grow, while the lovely purple 
 German Iris — though, strictly speaking, this 
 is not a bulb — seems positively to thrive and 
 flourish in the smokiest parts of smoky cities. 
 Nor does even a miniature garden seem quite 
 complete without at least one clump of 
 Dahlias. 
 
 As, however, Dahlias raised from seed 
 require to be sown in a hotbed, our readers 
 will have to beg or buy their plants. A 
 great variety of these may be had at fairly 
 moderate prices — fifteen cents a bulb or 
 $1.50 a dozen is, perhaps, the lowest sum. 
 
 Any garden soil will suit Dahlias, but in 
 buying them for spring planting out of doors, 
 be sure to ask for "green plants." What 
 are known in the Dahlia trade as " dry 
 
 31 
 
Lilies roots " are those which must be grown on 
 
 heat. May and June are good times for 
 putting in Dahlias to ensure autumn flower- 
 ing. Place them from three to five feet 
 apart, and, if possible, put a spadeful of 
 manure under each bulb, remembering, how- 
 ever, our caution not to allow it to come in 
 direct contact with the bulb. Water them 
 "well, and as soon as each plant puts out its 
 leading green shoot, tie it to a stake. In 
 November, lift the bulbs out of the soil, cut 
 off all the shoots, and store out of reach of 
 the frost. Don't choose either too damp or 
 too dry a place for storing, as the bulbs must 
 neither be allowed to shrivel or grow mouldy. 
 
 The German Iris is so easy of culture and 
 must be so familiar to every town dweller, 
 that beyond advising our readers to plant 
 the bulbs in November, and to remember 
 that Irises do best in sunny spots, it is need- 
 less to say more. 
 
 We now come to speak of Lilies. 
 
 For stateliness of habit, beauty of form, 
 and variety of coloring, they are without 
 rival among bulbous plants. Many of the 
 species are delightfully fragrant. 
 
 32 
 
Considering to what perfection the hardier Culture 
 kind of Lilies may be brought, even in a 
 tiny back city garden, how, with common 
 care, they will grow and flourish in ordinary 
 soil, and considering, too, what a variety 
 may be found nowadays amongst the ro- 
 buster kind of Lilies, it is really marvellous 
 that their culture is, comparatively speak- 
 ing, so neglected. 
 
 Prepare the soil as already advised for the 
 bulbs, and put them in the ground in the 
 autumn, from September to November is 
 the best time. Be careful to choose dry 
 weather, both for preparing the soil and for 
 planting the Lilies. If possible avoid giving 
 Lilies a full southern aspect, as they do bet- 
 ter if protected from the full mid-day sun. 
 Though they may really be called hardy, it 
 is well to protect them against frost in win- 
 ter by a covering of ashes or litter. They 
 all prefer a partial shade, and the taller 
 sorts must have protection from high 
 winds. 
 
 Put the large bulbs in at a depth of six to 
 eight inches, the smaller ones from four to 
 two, according to size. The distance to be 
 3 33 
 
Slugs and left between the bulbs would also vary from 
 other pests six to twelve inches. 
 
 As a rule medium-sized bulbs, neither too 
 large nor too small, are best for plariting. 
 
 Slugs are mortal enemies to the young 
 green shoots, and will devour them merci- 
 lessly as soon as they appear above ground. 
 At the first sign of these marauders, dust 
 the soil with soot, or put a ring of unslaked 
 lime round the bulbs. It is also wise to stir, 
 not dig, the ground between the bulbs con- 
 tinually, in order to disturb the haunts of 
 these garden pests. 
 
 Here are the names of some Lilies, which 
 we consider the best for town gardens, and 
 which are most likely to prove successful 
 in the hands of a beginner in town or 
 country: 
 
 The Scarlet Martagon Lily. 
 
 The Davuricum — purple, orange, or crim- 
 son. 
 
 The Auratum — white, spotted with ma- 
 roon; fragrant. 
 
 The Panther Lily — scarlet and rich yel- 
 low, spotted with brown and purple. 
 
 Canadense — bright yellow, spotted red. 
 
 34 
 
Longiflorum — large, pure white, trumpet- What to 
 shaped flowers. choose 
 
 Trigrinum Splendens — scarlet, with black 
 spots. 
 
 Harrisii (Bermuda Easter Lily). 
 
 The Candidum — the tall white Lily. 
 
 One last hint to the unlearned in the mat- 
 ter of choosing bulbs. 
 
 Never take dried-up, shriveled, crinkled- 
 looking bulbs; choose only those that are ^ 
 quite firm and plump to the touch. 
 
 35 
 
CHAPTER V 
 
 ROCKERIES, ARCHES, SCREENS, ETC. 
 
 The Even in a miniature garden there is some- 
 
 shaded times a spare spot for a little rockery. It 
 corner may be only an ugly shaded corner in a back 
 yard, or there may be an odd angle in some 
 sunny border, where with a little manage- 
 ment a small colony of rock -loving plants 
 may be established. 
 
 We are, of course, aware that often in the 
 hands of the unlearned, attempts at rockeries 
 prove dismal failures. This is probably be- 
 cause they have not set about making them 
 properly. Some people fancy that to estab- 
 lish a rockery all that is needed is to collect 
 together a confused heap of rubbish, broken 
 pots and pans, smashed crockery — the more 
 disorderly the debris the better — and then 
 sprinkle this unsightly jumble with a little 
 soil. 
 
 36 
 
But here the old, commonplace axiom Ferns 
 that there's a right way and a wrong one for 
 doing everything, holds good. The above 
 method is certainly the wrong one. 
 
 The following plan is what we should ven- 
 ture to advise as being the right one, or at 
 any rate the one that, so far as our experi- 
 ence goes, may lay claim to giving satisfac- 
 tory results : 
 
 If you have only a shady corner at your 
 command, make up your minds to grow only 
 ferns. These will repay you best, not only 
 by always looking green, but they also make 
 a very pretty finish to cut flowers, and thus 
 supply a constant want in a small garden, 
 where suitable foliage for nosegays is gener- 
 ally scarce. (Stonecrop, Primroses, Snow- 
 in-Summer may sometimes succeed tender 
 ferns.) 
 
 However damp and dark a back yard may 
 be, ferns will flourish, but they will also 
 thrive well in the driest and lightest situa- 
 tion. 
 
 To make a rockery, start by forming a 
 mound of soil, the size that your space may 
 allow. Bank the earth up well together, so 
 
How to as to make it as firm as possible. Then, 
 make the and not before, put in your rockery work, 
 rockery As a rule avoid using any burrs, clinkers, 
 fragments of old crockery, or vitrified mate- 
 rials of any sort. Use just a few broken 
 stones, and be careful in arranging those that 
 are to appear on the surface, not to allow 
 any vacuum to exist between the soil and 
 the stones. Let them be firmly fixed in the 
 soil. Also beware of allowing any cracks in 
 your surface. Fill these in with earth as 
 soon as you observe them. When you have 
 embedded all your stones, cover them lightly 
 with a little soil. Then set about putting in 
 your ferns. March is a good time for plant- 
 ing hardy ferns, and we strongly advise our 
 readers to content themselves with the com- 
 mon but very pretty wild sorts, which are 
 easily obtainable. If you have country 
 friends, ask them to send you plants of 
 Hart's Tongue, Lady Fern, Male Fern, 
 Shield Fern, and Buckler Fern. 
 
 You should also have a Boston Fern, one 
 of the most useful and ornamental of the 
 ** Sword Ferns." It is excellent for plant- 
 ing in shady borders, and is also a fine plant 
 
 38 
 
for hanging pots or baskets on the piazza in Flowers 
 summer and window in winter. specially 
 
 To make a fern rockery in a sunny spot, suitable 
 after constructing it on the plan already sug- for rock- 
 gested, sow Rock-roses, Rock-cress, Stone- work 
 crop. The Yellow Stonecrop is a hardy 
 perennial defying all city smoke and dust, 
 the Sedum Fabaria, bearing its blossoms in 
 rose-colored heads, the old-fashioned House- 
 leek, the Wallflower — the yellow and blood- 
 colored make a pretty contrast — the Cowslip, 
 Sweet Alyssum, and the Alyssum Compac- 
 tum, Golddust, beautiful yellow, the Au- 
 bretia, blue rosy lilac and deep purple, are 
 all specially suitable for rockwork. All the 
 Candytufts, crimson, scarlet, and orange, 
 are suitable, besides Hepaticas, and the dear 
 old-fashioned trailing Periwinkle, blue and 
 white, Creeping Jenny, etc. Nor should the 
 London Pride be forgotten; its feathery 
 plume of blossom will thrive everywhere, 
 and is always pretty to see. 
 
 Always be careful in watering rockeries to 
 do so gently ; otherwise, the soil gets washed 
 off the upper stones. 
 
 Another form of garden ornament which 
 
 39 
 
Use of may beautify an ugly little spot is the trunk 
 
 the wire of an old tree, sunk in the ground, and filled 
 
 arch in with soil. A few hardy geraniums planted 
 
 in this look very effective, while Sweet Peas, 
 
 Convolvulus, and Nasturtiums will climb 
 
 and creep over it grandly. 
 
 Another pretty feature maybe introduced 
 into the most limited space, and that is a 
 wire arch. In using galvanized wire it is 
 better to give it a coating of paint, for it is 
 injurious for the young shoots of creepers 
 to come in contact with the galvanized wire 
 unless painted. 
 
 It is wonderful how really beautiful these 
 arches may be made, by sowing a mere hand- 
 ful of seeds of some hardy creeper on each 
 side of it. On the principle of having two 
 strings to one's bow, it is always better to 
 put in at the least two different creepers, on 
 each side of the arch, so that if one fails to 
 grow satisfactorily, the other may be liter- 
 ally ** on the spot " to hide the deficiencies. 
 The common Hop takes very kindly to 
 wire ; so do the Canary creeper, Nasturtium, 
 Convolvulus, and some of the hardier Cle- 
 matis. The Jackmani, with its graceful foli- 
 40 
 
age and rich purple blossoms, makes a very Privacy 
 lovely drapery for arch or arbor. Planted in the 
 at one end of an arch, with a Madame Ber- garden 
 ard rose planted at the other, the Jackmani 
 is very effective. 
 
 If the arch is to be an evergreen one, noth- 
 ing is really prettier or more likely to prove 
 a success in the long run than Ivy or Euony- 
 mus. 
 
 Next to securing a good display of flowers 
 comes the wish to secure as much privacy 
 in our gardens as possible. To enjoy the 
 feeling that we cannot be overlooked each 
 time we step out into our little pleasure 
 ground is a great desideratum. 
 
 As a rule the judicious use of wire netting 
 covered with hardy creepers will achieve this. 
 
 Here, again, if an evergreen screen is de- 
 sired, nothing beats ivy. It will grow in 
 any soil and adapt itself equally well to a 
 damp or dry situation. The best adapted 
 for screen purposes is the Irish Ivy. It is 
 a self-climber and requires very little atten- 
 tion. 
 
 The Giant Ivy is also good. 
 
 The propagation of common Ivy is a sim- 
 
 41 
 
Ivy pie process, and for those wishing to practise 
 
 it we give a few plain directions elsewhere. 
 But if the screen to be covered is a fairly- 
 large one, the most satisfactory way, cer- 
 tainly the quickest, of starting it, is to buy 
 a stout young plant and set it in the ground 
 at the foot of the screen. 
 
 Provided the weather be fairly favorable, 
 any time in the early spring will do for plant- 
 ing ivy. It pays well for manure, and if 
 watered plentifully in dry weather will make 
 prodigious growth. 
 
 In trimming ivy, April is the best time ; 
 cut the straggling shoots off close to the 
 main stem, where it is attached to the wall, 
 or screen. For the making of merely sum- 
 mer screens the same creepers that we ad- 
 vised for arches are suitable. Sweet Peas, 
 if the situation be sunny, may be reckoned 
 on for producing a lovely effect ; the Com- 
 mon Clematis — "Old Man's Beard" — also 
 answers splendidly. You may purchase 
 strong plants of this at any nursery for 25 
 cents a piece, but if you have a country 
 friend who will send you some good rooted 
 plants from a hedge, so much the better. 
 
 42 
 
The Canary creeper makes an excellent Creepers 
 screen plant. Though it does prefer the for screen 
 sun, it will also thrive in the shade. April 
 is a good time for sowing the seed. Any 
 ordinary soil will suit it, and you may always 
 depend upon it for being a very rapid grower. 
 In good soil it will sometimes reach a height 
 of fifteen feet. In its earliest stages of 
 growth it requires a little care in the way of 
 tying and training the young shoots. If 
 these are neglected, their very luxuriance 
 will stifle their development, for they will 
 run into tangled masses, with the result that 
 you will see bunches of foliage in some 
 places and a length of bare stems in others. 
 
 If you have to suit a north aspect, sow 
 the Tropoelum Speciosum, the fire-colored 
 variety of the Canariensis — this does ad- 
 mirably if given plenty of water. 
 
 The Convolvulus Major is also good as a 
 screen plant, and often grows ten or twelve 
 feet high. 
 
 Our concluding suggestion for a good 
 screen creeper for a town garden will sound, 
 no doubt, very homely ; namely, the common 
 Scarlet Runner bean. And yet there is 
 
 43 
 
Small cost nothing, perhaps, which is grown so exten- 
 of seeds sively, because so successfully. 
 
 And no wonder ! 
 
 For not only does its fresh green foliage, 
 its brilliant blossoms, and its peculiarly effec- 
 tive habit of growth make the Scarlet Run- 
 ner most ornamental, but it can also be made 
 very useful. 
 
 Give the Scarlet Runner only a little good 
 soil and a position where it can enjoy a little 
 sunshine during some part of the day, and 
 it will yield a plentiful supply of beans as 
 well as blossoms in the most unfavorable 
 surroundings. 
 
 Note. — The seeds of all the creepers we 
 have mentioned in this chapter are very 
 cheap. Most of them can be bought for 
 five cents a packet, and a packet is an ample 
 allowance for one season's sowing. 
 
 44 
 
CHAPTER VI 
 
 ROSES, CREEPERS, ETC. 
 
 No one would consider even a ** toy-gar- What sort 
 den * ' worthy of its name if it did not hold to select 
 at least some roses. 
 
 Roses, of one kind or another, if rightly 
 selected, will lend themselves to most situ- 
 ations and treatment. The great point is 
 to know what sort to select, especially for 
 a town garden and a beginner's cultivation. 
 
 For though there are many beautiful vari- 
 eties that will do well in or near a town, 
 there are also many that will not. 
 
 Here are the names of some that are 
 known to thrive in town gardens. They 
 are all hybrid perpetuals, which do well 
 planted in the open ground, and need no 
 protection in the winter. They also possess 
 the great advantage of blooming freely from 
 June to November: 
 
 45 
 
When and Jules Margolin, a bright cherry red ; Marie 
 how to Baumann, a h'ght crimson ; Prince Camille 
 plant de Rohan, a deep crimson ; Magna Charta, 
 
 a bright pink; Madame Lang, pure white; 
 Marquis de Castellani, an exquisite rose, 
 pure pink, very large ; Mdlle. Vercier, a car- 
 mine; General Jacqueminot, a rich crimson, 
 of fine shape and exquisite fragrance ; Mad- 
 ame Plantier, a pure white ; Augustine Gui- 
 noisseau, a unique shade of flesh white; 
 John Hopper, a bright rose with carmine 
 centre. 
 
 Any of these may be had for about fifteen 
 cents apiece as dwarf standards, which we 
 should advise for growing in a little garden. 
 
 Standards and half standards are more 
 expensive. 
 
 Roses should be put in the ground from 
 \ October to March, the earlier in the autumn 
 the better. 
 
 Dig the ground to the depth of eighteen 
 inches, and fork in manure with the same 
 precautions as already advised with respect 
 to bulbs. 
 
 Moss Roses generally do well in town gar- 
 dens. Three lovely varieties are Blanche 
 
 46 
 
Moreau, a pure white ; Marie de Blois, bright Climbing 
 rose; and Luxembourg, a dark crimson, roses 
 They flower during May, June, and July, 
 and are very fragrant. They like close prun- 
 ing and are the better for plenty of manure. 
 They cost about 15 cents each. 
 
 For climbing roses to cover walls, the vari- 
 ous Tea Roses are undoubtedly the best. 
 They require no protection during the win- 
 ter, and are really the true perpetuals 
 amongst roses. 
 
 Here are some of those we recommend 
 for a town or suburban garden : 
 
 Gloire de Dijon, too well known to need 
 description; Madame Berard, clear pink; 
 Belle Lyonnaise, lemon; Cheshunt, cherry, 
 carmine, a grand autumn climber. 
 
 To cover an east porch or wall, Madame 
 Berard is excellent. The Gloire de Dijon 
 does well on a north wall. 
 
 Amongst other climbing roses, not Tea 
 Roses, we should recommend Lord Pen- 
 zance's Briar, perfectly hardy, with very 
 fragrant foliage and brilliant fruit, which 
 makes it very lovely in autumn ; it does well 
 on a N.E. wall. 
 
 47 
 
pruning For a S.E. wall, nothing could be better 
 
 than the Crimson Rambler, the Amadis, a 
 deep purple crimson ; or the Ayrshire Rose, 
 either white or pink. 
 
 Cheshunt answers well on the east wall, 
 whilst for a west wall. Noisette Roses, 
 either pale pink or deep crimson, are good. 
 
 February and March are good months for 
 pruning roses ; the weaker shoots should be 
 cut back rather closely, and the stronger 
 ones left longer. 
 
 In very dry weather roses should be wa- 
 tered. 
 
 As regards other creepers, very much can 
 be done in the way of beautifying the walls 
 of a town house or garden by sowing a few 
 suitable seeds. A mere handful of the Cana- 
 riensis seed sown yearly at the foot of a 
 wall, some tall growing Nasturtiums as well, 
 will do admirably together, and make a most 
 pleasing effect. 
 
 Virginian Creeper will grow where every- 
 thing else fails. No amount of impurity in 
 the atmosphere seems to hurt it or affect the 
 permanence or abundance of its growth. It 
 does well on the same wall as a Clematis, or 
 
 48 
 
climbing rose, but care must be taken that Varieties 
 it is not allowed to smother either. suitable 
 
 Besides the Virginian Creeper, the Am- for walls 
 pelopsis Hedera and most ivies may be fear- 
 lessly planted against a north wall, and being 
 self-clinging climbers, are to be specially 
 recommended. Pyrocanthus and Coton- 
 easter Microphylla are also suitable for a 
 north wall, both being evergreen and bear- 
 ing red berries in winter. They should be 
 put in in February. 
 
 For a N.W. wall, Ampelopsis Veitchi and 
 Raegner's Ivy are good. 
 
 Clematis, Jackmani, and C. Montana do 
 well on a south wall ; whilst for a S. E. wall 
 Jasmine Nudiflorum is a most charming 
 climber for winter, as it flowers freely, and 
 is a very rapid grower. 
 
 For a shady aspect, the Crataegus Lae- 
 landi, bearing red berries in winter, is very 
 effective. 
 
 For a whitewashed wall, either variegated 
 ivy or the Escallonia Macrantha, with its 
 pink wax blossoms and glossy foliage, are 
 excellent. 
 
 The American Allspice, with its fragrant 
 4 49 
 
Training, deep maroon flowers, will sometimes do well 
 
 tying, and on a north wall. 
 
 thinning For porches, nothing equals the graceful 
 
 climbers drapery and rich coloring of the Clematis 
 Jackmani. A passion-flower — the P. Caeru- 
 lea — will sometimes do on a south wall or 
 porch, but it needs a warm atmosphere. 
 
 The Common Honeysuckle, flowering from 
 spring to autumn^ and the sweet White Jes- 
 samine are too well known to need descrip- 
 tion. (One drawback to the former is its 
 fatal liability to green-fly. In Germany it 
 is called the * * green-fly's sanctuary. ' ') Both 
 these, as well as ** Old Man's Beard," do 
 well in an exposed position. 
 
 The shoots of Clematis and other climbers 
 need much attention in June, in the way of 
 thinning and tying, so as to prevent them from 
 growing in tangles. June is also the right 
 time for nailing Clematis and Honeysuckle. 
 Again in September they should be care- 
 fully trained. 
 
 One last bit of advice. If you are plant- 
 ing climbers in a shady position, choose only 
 those which are good for foliage, and leave 
 the flowering ones alone. 
 
 50 
 
CHAPTER VII 
 
 Although a very few remarks on each of Garden 
 these subjects will suffice for our present boundaries 
 purpose, yet we feel that our volume on 
 miniature gardening would be incomplete 
 without some allusion to them. 
 
 To begin with hedges. 
 
 Every garden must be bounded either by 
 wall or fencing of some kind, either of which 
 can be improved, sometimes even super- 
 seded, by a good evergreen hedge. 
 
 In small town gardens, nothing answers 
 so well as Evergreen Privet. It is very 
 hardy, will lend itself to any soil or situa- 
 tion, and is a very rapid grower. Moreover 
 — and this is a great point where space is 
 limited — its growth can be easily restrained 
 by clipping. The young plants of Ever- 
 
 51 
 
Evergreen green Privet can be put in the ground at any 
 hedge time between September and April. Plant 
 
 them about a foot away from the wall or 
 railing, and leave six inches between each. 
 
 Don't prune them for the first year, and 
 don't over-manure them. If, in your zeal 
 to hasten their growth, you neglect the lat- 
 ter caution, your young plants will sicken 
 and die. The best time for clipping Privet, 
 after the first year's growth, is April and 
 May. 
 
 Young plants of Evergreen Privet cost 
 about 50 cents a dozen. 
 
 If you want to secure a high evergreen 
 hedge in the shortest possible time, plant 
 Thuia Lobbi. 
 
 Not only is its foliage extremely pleasing, 
 being a rich green in summer and showing 
 beautiful bronze tints in autumn and winter, 
 but it is a very rapid grower, and will stand 
 any amount of pruning to suit the size of 
 either a broad or narrow border. 
 
 Get some good young plants, about three 
 feet high, and after preparing your ground 
 with a little manure, put them in eighteen 
 inches apart. They frequently make a 
 
 52 
 
growth of three feet in one year, and their Paths 
 increase in denseness is equally satisfactory. 
 February and March are good months for 
 planting Thuia Lobbi. 
 
 Plants of about three feet high cost about 
 $i.oo the dozen. 
 
 The Euonymus Jap. forms a capital hedge 
 near the railings of a town garden, but it is 
 a very slow grower, though most satisfac- 
 tory when grown. 
 
 Whilst we are on the subject of shrubs, 
 Persian Lilac, the Ribes, the White and 
 Yellow Broom, the Weigelias, and the hardy 
 Ghent Azaleas are all suitable flowering 
 shrubs for little gardens in or near towns. 
 They are very ornamental, are easy of cul- 
 ture, and not costly to buy in the first in- 
 stance. Good-sized plants of each may be 
 had for about 25 cents apiece. 
 
 We now come to paths. 
 
 When a gravel walk is once made, it is 
 easily kept in order. But to keep it in order 
 is very necessary. 
 
 No matter if the path be on such a small 
 scale that it only shows like a tiny thread, 
 yet the single gravel walk in a miniature 
 
 53 
 
Eradica- garden is a very important feature. If it is 
 tion of ill-kept, sloppy, or weedy, it is enough to 
 weeds spoil the effect of your garden. 
 
 The old axiom that the first trouble is al- 
 ways the least, applies to the treatment of 
 weeds on gravel. Pull up every weed you 
 see. 
 
 Never leave a weed long enough to flower 
 in your pathway. If you do, seed is formed 
 as a natural consequence, and in the place 
 of the one weed of to-day, you will shortly 
 have a whole colony. 
 
 Many gardeners confidently recommend 
 the use of patent weed killers, to be easily 
 obtained at any druggist's. 
 
 But in the hands of the amateur they may 
 do more harm than good, if they are not 
 very carefully applied ; if, for instance, they 
 are suffered to come in contact with flower 
 borders or turf, destruction to either is cer- 
 tain. To the owner, therefore, of a minia- 
 ture garden we should recommend the sys- 
 tematic and merciless eradication of every 
 weed. 
 
 Sprinkling salt on paths answers well some- 
 times as a weed killer ; but if your path is 
 
 54 
 
liable to be damp or sticky, avoid salt— it Mending 
 will make it ten times worse. An applica- and keep- 
 tion of salt is really advisable only where the ingingood 
 paths are very dry, and, even then, it should condition 
 only be used in quite dry weather, for ap- 
 plied in rainy seasons, salt acts like manure 
 upon weeds. 
 
 There is a troublesome little moss, which 
 IS often apt to invade paths and disfigure 
 them. To get rid of this it is a good plan, 
 during the severe frost, to scrub the path 
 violently with a hard broom. 
 
 If you want to mend a gravel path be 
 careful to choose wet weather, and, after 
 adding a little fresh gravel to the worn place, 
 beat it firmly down with the back of your 
 spade, and roll it well. 
 
 To avoid those puddles which are caused 
 by the settling of rain water, be sure that 
 your path slopes upwards on each side 
 towards the centre. 
 
 For a back yard or garden, where appear- 
 ance may be sacrificed to comfort, there is 
 nothing like a good cinder path for ensuring 
 a dry and pleasant walk. 
 
 These are made easily enough, at very 
 
 55 
 
Preparing little cost. They are composed of Macadam 
 the lawn and ashes, with a coating of hot tar. Once 
 made, they will last for years, will always re- 
 main dry, and never be weedy. In severe 
 frost the surface should be looked to, and if 
 cracks are found in it, a fresh application of 
 tar, with a little sand or grit, should be 
 made. 
 
 Grassplots. — Some owners of even quite 
 small gardens prefer the enjoyment of turf 
 to flowers, and are content to turn all the 
 tiny space at their command into what we 
 should call, perhaps, a grassplot, rather than 
 by the ambitious word ** lawn." 
 
 Here are a few hints which may prove 
 useful to this class of ** lovers of the turf." 
 
 If you wish to make your grassplot in 
 the cheapest and easiest way, sow grass 
 seeds. March is the best time for this 
 operation. 
 
 Before sowing your seeds, however, dig 
 over the ground deeply, breaking the soil 
 thoroughly, and getting your surface per- 
 fectly smooth and even. The soil ought 
 not to be too rich, as a rapid growth is not 
 wanted in the grasses of a lawn; but the 
 
 ' 56 
 
surface should be as much alike in quality How to 
 as possible. Choose a dry day for sowing sow the 
 your seed, and, above all, a calm one. seed 
 Otherwise the seeds, being very light, are 
 liable to be blown far afield. The seeds 
 should be raked in, and then lightly rolled. 
 
 After sowing them, the next point is to 
 protect your seeds from sparrows and other 
 feathered marauders. This is best done by 
 tying threads across the freshly sown ground, 
 with scraps of paper or rag attached to serve 
 as scarecrows. 
 
 As soon as the first blades appear, roll 
 constantly to keep down the worm casts. 
 When the grass is rather older, frequent 
 sweeping with a hard birch broom is also 
 good for the same object. 
 
 Whenever you detect a bare place, gently 
 loosen the soil with a rake and put in fresh 
 seed. 
 
 For a miniature lawn you would probably 
 require at the most one quart of seed, which 
 is usually sold for 25 cents a quart. 
 
 A sprinkling of soot, or sand and cinders, 
 in the spring, is good for checking worms 
 and destroying weeds. 
 
 57 
 
Cutting All turf-forming grasses are improved, 
 
 both in vigor of root-growth and in fineness 
 of texture, by frequent mowings. It is im- 
 possible to say just how often the grass 
 should be mown, as that depends upon the 
 rate at which it grows. Too close cutting 
 should be guarded against, however, espe- 
 cially during the hot summer months, when 
 the roots require some top-growth to pro- 
 tect them from the burning sun. A good 
 top-growth is also necessary to protect the 
 roots from severe winter frosts. Mowing 
 should therefore be discontinued in time to 
 let the grass grow pretty long before winter 
 sets in. 
 
 58 
 
CHAPTER VIII 
 
 WINDOW GARDENING 
 
 It has been said that every one who can call Of remote 
 a window-sill his own may be a gardener. antiquity 
 
 And that people have found this to be the 
 case in various times and places, one cannot 
 deny, for there is ample proof that the taste 
 for window gardening is both universal and 
 of very remote antiquity. 
 
 In his " Gleanings from Old Gardens," 
 Mr. Hazlett reminds us of a story in " Pas- 
 quile's Jests" (1604), where a landlady of 
 a country inn tells her customers of a new 
 art that a stranger in London had taught to 
 the citizens ** of taking in their gardens every 
 night at their windows, and letting them out 
 again in the morning." 
 
 These rustics agreed to go up to town 
 to judge for themselves of the truth of this 
 
 59 
 
marvellous tale, and after traversing divers 
 parts of the city, the story goes on to tell 
 how at last in a little lane they did see a 
 widow putting out of a garret casement a 
 box, in which she arranged pots of Gilly- 
 flowers, Carnations, and herbs. 
 
 Now that our choice of window plants is 
 so far more extensive than was that worthy 
 widow*s of nearly three centuries ago, it is 
 marvellous what can be done by flower lovers 
 in the way of window gardening to brighten 
 their homes, both inside and out. 
 
 For window gardening means literally the 
 growing of plants in rooms, on window-sills, 
 in window boxes, and plant cases, either 
 inside or outside. 
 
 To be successful in this line must involve a 
 certain amount of constant care and trouble, 
 but it need not necessarily involve much 
 expense. 
 
 To ensure the welfare of pot plants, we 
 must be careful to select those that are 
 specially suitable to that form of cultivation, 
 and we must also learn what is specially 
 beneficial to them, and what the reverse. 
 
 One great essential to their success is to 
 
 60 
 
avoid using over large pots. Plants never Great 
 flower so freely as when their roots are some- essentials 
 what cramped. to success 
 
 Another is to be careful to have the 
 soil well pressed down round the roots of 
 the plants ; a third is to give them regular 
 and systematic treatment. By this we mean 
 avoid violent changes from heat to cold, 
 from light to darkness, water them regu- 
 larly, not by fits and starts, and don't starve 
 them of air. Plants kept without air grow 
 tall and weakly. The majority of indoor 
 plants are the better for being in a room 
 where the window is kept open about an 
 inch from the top. 
 
 An easy and very effectual way of pro- 
 tecting window plants from frost is to put a 
 sheet of brown paper between the pots and 
 the glass. 
 
 Another great point is to keep the leaves 
 clean with soap and water. Sunlight soap 
 answers well, being a good insecticide. 
 
 The pots should each one be turned a little 
 every day, so as to allow every part of the 
 plant an equal share of light and sun. 
 
 The culture of bulbs in pots and glasses 
 
 6i 
 
Bulbs IS so simple that many directions on this 
 
 grown in subject will be needless, 
 fibre Perhaps some of our readers may not 
 
 know how excellently well bulbs answer 
 when grown in cocoa-nut fibre refuse. 
 
 Cocoa-nut fibre can be obtained from any 
 seedsman for about 30 cents a bushel. 
 
 Any ordinary jardiniere or bowl filled with 
 the fibre will answer the purpose. Indeed, 
 bulbs grown in this way require no drainage, 
 and as the cocoa-nut fibre makes no stain, 
 a china bowl may be used fearlessly. 
 
 Ordinary flowering bulbs, notably Hya- 
 cinths, Narcissi, and Tulips, do remarkably 
 well under this treatment. 
 
 Put the bulbs into the fibre in the autumn 
 and keep them in the dark, being careful to 
 push the bulbs down firmly as soon as the 
 roots show signs of growth. When they 
 have grown about an inch, they may be ex- 
 posed to the light, but very little water should 
 be given until the flower stems appear. 
 Then give as much as the fibre will absorb. 
 
 Very pretty effects may be obtained by 
 planting Crocuses in shallow saucers filled 
 with cocoa-nut fibre. 
 
 62 
 
To secure a display of Roman Hyacinths Varieties 
 for Christmas, put the bulbs, in September, specially 
 in six-inch pots — not more than six bulbs in recom- 
 each — and cover them over either with fibre mended 
 or ashes. Keep them in the dark for a 
 month. 
 
 After that, they can be brought into the 
 room, but it is well to shade them for a few 
 days at first, by keeping a reversed pot over 
 them till they have become accustomed to 
 the light. 
 
 Besides the ordinary bulbs, such as Crocus, 
 Snowdrop, etc., those we should specially 
 recommend to our readers are the following : 
 
 Early double white Tulip, and scarlet 
 ditto ; these are very hardy and most orna- 
 mental. 
 
 Scilla Sibirica; beautiful blue flower. 
 
 Glory, of the Snow; also blue and white. 
 
 Winter Aconite ; bright golden. 
 
 When the bulbs have done flowering, if 
 there is no spare space in your gardens 
 where they can be temporarily placed, keep 
 them in a box filled with mould till their 
 growth is quite finished. Water them as 
 long as their leaves last, but as soon as these 
 
 63 
 
Window die down, take the bulbs up, dry them, and 
 plants. stow them away in some cool dry place till 
 
 Cactus the autumn. 
 
 Amongst the flowering window plants, 
 those that last the longest and require the 
 least attention, are Geraniums, Fuchsias, 
 Balsams, Begonias, Primulas, Myrtles, Cac- 
 tus, and Musk. 
 
 All of these, with rare exceptions, will do 
 well if the commonest care is bestowed upon 
 them. 
 
 The increasing of Geraniums and Fuchsias 
 by cuttings is a very interesting branch of 
 window gardening. 
 
 We refer our readers on this subject to 
 Chapter X. 
 
 As regards the cultivation of the Cactus, 
 few indoor plants are so ornamental or so 
 easily grown. Being dormant during the 
 winter, all that they need is protection dur- 
 ing the frost. From November to March 
 they should be kept very dry. From that 
 time onwards, however, they require just 
 the reverse treatment. Water them plenti- 
 fully with tepid water, and place them as 
 near the glass as possible, so that they may 
 
 64 
 
have abundance of light. They will then The 
 develop buds quickly and will soon show a hanging 
 magnificent display of their lovely scarlet or basket 
 creamy tassel-like blooms. 
 
 The surface of the soil in the pots should 
 be stirred occasionally with a stick, and a 
 little fresh soil added. A periodical water- 
 ing with thin soot water is also good. 
 
 Of the simplest possible culture also is the 
 dear old-fashioned Musk. 
 
 All it needs is ordinary soil and abundance 
 of light and water. 
 
 Cuttings are easily rooted in spring, and 
 will do splendidly if planted in the bowls of 
 cocoa-nut fibre, when the winter bulbs are 
 taken out of it. 
 
 The Scarlet Musk and tall Orange ditto 
 are very handsome varieties, and do well in 
 pots, but they have no fragrance. 
 
 Walnuts may be easily grown in pots 
 placed in a sunny window, and their rich 
 colored foliage make them very handsome 
 ornamental table plants. 
 
 A hanging basket makes a very pretty 
 ornament suspended in a window. 
 
 It may be filled with bulbs for the winter, 
 5 65 
 
The and afterwards planted with ivy-leaved Pelar- 
 
 India- goniums, Creeping Jenny, and Lobelias, 
 
 rubber The Fuchsia Procumbens, bearing large ma- 
 plant genta crimson berries through the winter, is 
 good for baskets, if the room be kept fairly 
 warm. 
 
 Also the Alba Campanula, pure white, 
 trailing, is good. 
 
 Do not attempt ferns ; they rarely answer 
 in a basket. 
 
 In order to keep the soil moist, dip the 
 basket bodily into tepid water about every 
 third day. 
 
 Of course, under the head of window 
 plants, we should mention the well-known 
 Indiarubber plant, the Aspidistra — the par- 
 lor palm — a grand foliage plant for rooms, 
 as it needs very little attention, and is in- 
 jured, apparently, neither by gas nor drafts. 
 
 They may be had for about 25 cents each. 
 
 The New Zealand Aloe, with its zebra- 
 striped sword-shaped leaves, the Dracenias, 
 all ornamental foliage plants, are excellent 
 for rooms. 
 
 The Indiarubber plant is more often 
 wrecked by carelessness in watering than 
 
 66 
 
from any other cause. In winter, it should Palms 
 be kept fairly dry, and never at any time 
 allowed to stand in water. 
 
 The Aralia Sieboldi Var — called some- 
 times, but wrongly, the Castor Oil plant — 
 is well suited for indoors* culture. 
 
 The foliage of the true Castor Oil plant is 
 far more handsome than the Aralia, and is 
 sometimes grown indoors with success ; but 
 it should never be exposed to gas, or it will 
 languish at once. 
 
 For those who may wish to aspire to 
 palms, the Kentia Belmoreana, Kentia Fos- 
 teriana, and Latania Borbonica we would 
 recommend as being most useful half-hardy 
 palms, and all very effective ones. 
 
 In conclusion, we repeat our advice to 
 keep indoor plants scrupulously clean. Be- 
 sides keeping the foliage well washed with 
 warm — not hot — soap and water, pick off 
 every dead leaf, and suffer not an insect to 
 live! 
 
 ** Don't be persuaded,** says a writer in 
 the Amateur Gardenings ** to water your 
 plants with cold tea, coffee, beer-dregs, or 
 any other nastiness. By so doing you make 
 
 67 
 
Care of your soil sour, and as a natural consequence 
 the foliage your plants become unhealthy." 
 
 To make the foliage look glossy, it is 
 sometimes good to sponge the leaves over 
 with milk and water; but we do not person- 
 ally commend the use of lamp rags — impreg- 
 nated with paraffine — for the same purpose. 
 No doubt it may make the foliage glossy, 
 but we leave it to our readers to decide as 
 to the fragrance which must result from this 
 proceeding ! 
 
 When pot plants look pale and sickly, a 
 rusty nail put in the water of the saucer is 
 good. 
 
 68 
 
CHAPTER IX 
 
 WINDOW BOXES 
 
 We come now to outside window-sill gar- Yhe fur- 
 dening. nishing 
 
 The furnishing and subsequent maintain- and main- 
 ing of window boxes requires care and con- taining of 
 sideration, but will repay all trouble amply. 
 
 Here again the choice of suitable plants 
 for different aspects is of the first impor- 
 tance. 
 
 In a window facing either due south or 
 south-westerly, the heat in summer — owing 
 to the masonry surrounding the window — is 
 often so great as to prove fatal to some 
 plants, whilst for the sill of a window facing 
 north, sunshine is so scarce all the year 
 round, that flowers are far better left alone, 
 and only foliage plants cultivated. 
 
 But first, as regards the actual boxes. 
 
 69 
 
Simpller Of these there are a great variety, some 
 
 ones pre- being very decorative. 
 
 ferred For our own taste, we prefer the simpler 
 
 ones. Those faced with virgin cork are 
 nice, or painted with some sober color, which 
 will preserve it against weather, and will not 
 offend the eye. 
 
 We once remember seeing the houses of 
 a tiny Dutch village decorated with window 
 boxes of a flaming red color, and a more 
 hideous effect it would have been hard to 
 produce. 
 
 The least ambitious form of window box 
 we have ever seen, and which, we are bound 
 to say, answered its purpose perfectly, was 
 constructed out of an old wooden box ob- 
 tained from the grocer's, and faced with 
 pieces of rough bark. These — * * tell it not 
 in Gath '* — the owner had annexed to him- 
 self, to use no stronger term, during certain 
 predatory excursions amongst the trees of 
 a neighboring wood. 
 
 The whole cost of this box was under lo 
 cents. 
 
 But this was altogether an unorthodox 
 way of proceeding. Indeed, we only men- 
 70 
 
tion it for the encouragement of those of Drainage 
 our readers who may not, perhaps, be in the 
 way of getting anything better in the shape 
 of a sill garden. 
 
 A good plan for securing drainage for the 
 plants, and, at the same time, securing a 
 due amount of moisture, is to line the 
 wooden box with zinc, and then to have an 
 inner zinc tray, perforated, to fit in at the 
 top. This allows the water to filter through, 
 but keeps a damp subsoil for the plant. 
 
 Window boxes should always be movable. 
 
 Another plan, recommended in Amateur 
 Gardenings is to fix rough cork on to the 
 boxes — this keeps the roots cool — and to 
 cover the surface soil with moss. This should 
 be kept continually damp by watering with 
 a rosed watering-pot. 
 
 For winter, that being the time when, of 
 all others, we appreciate greenery, window 
 boxes are specially valuable. 
 
 Even in smoky towns, hardy wallflowers 
 will make a brave show along with various 
 Conifers, Euonymus, and Variegated Ivies. 
 Beside these, such shrubs as the Aucuba 
 Japonica, with its large carmine fruit, and 
 
 71 
 
Good soil, broad, handsome foliage ; the Japanese 
 
 Necessary Cypress, and the Skimmias and Pernettyas, 
 
 watering both bearing bright berries, and costing each 
 
 about 25 cents, are all suitable for winter 
 
 window boxes. 
 
 But these shrubs should not be turned 
 out of their pots for the winter. It is bet- 
 ter, in putting them into the box, to sink 
 them either in sand or soil up to the rim, 
 and cover over the surface with moss. 
 
 A very pretty effect may be produced by 
 putting in small, hardy bulbs, such as Snow- 
 drops, Crocus, etc., in the intervals between 
 the pots, which often come into flower about 
 Christmas time. Roots of primroses, planted 
 between the pots to flower in early spring, 
 also look charming, their pale, silky petals 
 showing well against their mossy setting. 
 
 Good soil is necessary, but judgment must 
 be used as to the amount of watering neces- 
 sary. If window boxes are kept too moist, 
 they are sure to suffer from the frost, so 
 that, on the whole, it is safer to keep them 
 too dry in winter than the reverse. 
 
 In very severe weather it is well to lift the 
 boxes indoors for the night, or, at any rate, 
 72 
 
to give them protection by covering them Winter 
 with brown paper or matting of some sort, shrubs in 
 
 Do not neglect your winter shrubs in the the sum- 
 summer. Put them out of doors in a fairly mer 
 sunny position, so that they may harden 
 their wood, and whilst the buds are forming 
 give them plenty of manure. 
 
 For spring planting, nothing is more effec- 
 tive than bulbs. 
 
 They should be planted very thickly in 
 October and November ; and here the arrange- 
 ment affords grand scope for the display of 
 taste. Exquisite effects can be produced 
 by the mingling of Snowdrops and scarlet 
 Tulips, and golden-flowered Daffodils, toned 
 down into a harmony of color by the intro- 
 duction of the different shades of Hyacinth, 
 which contribute nearly every imaginable hue. 
 
 When the glory of the bulbs decline— you 
 will remember the directions already given 
 for treatment of bulbs after flowering— it is 
 time to think of summer flowers. 
 
 Here there is such a wide field for choice 
 that we shall mention but a few of the very 
 many plants that our readers might safely 
 cultivate. 
 
 73 
 
Suitable For town windows in the summer, noth- 
 
 for sum- ing, perhaps, answers better than the ivy- 
 mer boxes leafed Pelargonium. Not only do their suc- 
 culent leaves defy heat, but the habit of 
 their foliage being to hang well over the 
 box, they keep the latter cool, and thus 
 serve as a protection to the roots. The 
 semi-double blossom is the most effective 
 of the many varieties. 
 
 For a house with gray walls, Madame 
 Thibaut's clear rose blooms very well; the 
 white variety of Joan D'Arc suits red bricks ; 
 whilst Gordon's Glory, a deep red, looks 
 magnificent against stone walls. 
 
 The middle of May is a good time for 
 putting them into the boxes. It is well to 
 syringe them frequently before they actually 
 come into flower. 
 
 Lobelias, blue and white ; Musk, Mignon- 
 ette, Calceolaria, ten-week Stocks, Petunias, 
 dwarf Asters, and Mimulus Tigrioides — 
 monkey flower — are all most suitable for 
 summer boxes. So also are the very bril- 
 liant blossoms of the crimson Jacobaea, the 
 American groundsel. 
 
 The French Marguerite — the pure white 
 
 74 
 
and the rich yellow — are most effective, Shady 
 especially when mixed with the Henry Ja- windows 
 coby, which latter is the only zonal Pelar- 
 gonium which we would advise beginners to 
 grow. (Geraniums love the sun, remember, 
 so that a window which only gets the morn- 
 ing sun is not suitable for Geraniums.) 
 
 The Salvia Patens, with its exquisite blue 
 blossoms, and the Salvia Coconiea, with its 
 brilliant scarlet bloom, are both good for 
 boxes. The latter is a half-hardy annual, 
 the former a half-hardy perennial. 
 
 For a window where there is not much 
 sun we recommend Fuchsias. 
 
 Like Musk, Fuchsias always last longest 
 in bloom in the shade. f 
 
 Fuchsias have been rightly called " every- 
 body's flower," for they are so easily raised, 
 either by cuttings or by seed. Zonal Pelar- 
 goniums may also be raised by seed. 
 
 To raise Fuchsias by seed, fill a shallow 
 box or well-drained pot of good, light mould, 
 moisten well with tepid water ; the temper- 
 ature of an ordinary living room will do, say 
 from 55 to 65 degrees. 
 
 March is a good time for putting in the 
 
 75 
 
 ir 
 
Fuchsias seed, so that by the summer the plants may 
 and flower freely. A good plan for producing 
 
 Begonias those long, trailing sprays of Fuchsia which 
 produce such a pretty effect, drooping down 
 from boxes, is to procure an old plant and 
 cut it down almost to the soil in February, 
 and then, directly the first new shoots show, 
 re-pot it in good soil. 
 
 The best kinds for window boxes are, we 
 have found, "Aurora Superba," "Elm 
 City," " Charming," " Avalanche," " Abun- 
 dance," " Frau Emma Topfey," and " Er- 
 nest Renan." 
 
 Any soil is good for Fuchsias, but they 
 should be taken indoors and stored before 
 the frost comes on. 
 
 Fibrous-rooted Begonias, Nasturtiums, 
 Convolvuluses, and Canadensis do all well 
 in boxes. 
 
 The Begonia, however, with its pink blos- 
 soms and very handsome foliage, requires 
 shading in great heat, otherwise its flower 
 becomes quite pale. Nasturtiums answer 
 well, if a few seeds are put in at the end of 
 each box, to climb up the sides of a window 
 and form a miniature archway. 
 
 76 
 
Here are some simple directions for pro- Window 
 ducing a very effective window drapery: drapery. 
 
 Sow the seeds at either end of the box, Chrysan- 
 then train the creeper up a stout string, themums 
 which should be fastened to the wall with 
 rather long nails, so as to keep it a fair dis- 
 tance off the wall. A nail should also be 
 put into the centre of the stonework over the 
 window, two nails on either side, about a 
 foot from the top of the window, and two 
 more nails on either side of the stonework, 
 just above the box. 
 
 When the summer flowers are going over, 
 Asters, Chrysanthemums, and the Helich- 
 rysums — everlasting flowers, golden, white, 
 and crimson — come in very well. 
 
 The double white and double yellow Chry- 
 santhemums are both hardy annuals, and, 
 with Asters — these require treatment as half- 
 hardy annuals — do excellently for autumn 
 boxes. The Chrysanthemum Burridgi is 
 very beautiful, having white petals with 
 bright crimson ring. It is quite hardy. The 
 Chry. Carinatum is also a capital dwarf an- 
 nual for box culture. 
 
 For quite late autumn boxes, when we 
 
Fertilizers, are on the threshold of winter, nothing is 
 Insect prettier for town windows than the Laures- 
 
 extermi- tinus, with its pretty bunches of pink and 
 nators white blossoms, or the Barbaris Darwini, 
 
 with its scarlet berries. We add a few gen- 
 eral remarks in conclusion. 
 
 Remember that however much rain may- 
 fall, very little usually reaches the window 
 boxes; consequently, they must be always 
 well watered. 
 
 Good soil is also necessary for the main- 
 tenance of so many plants in such a limited 
 space. The plants last longer in flower if 
 some stimulant, such as soot water, is ap- 
 plied to their roots about twice a week. We 
 give directions for this most valuable and 
 easiest home-made fertilizer elsewhere. 
 Ready prepared fertilizer can be obtained, 
 however, at little cost, of any seedsman. 
 
 Beware of allowing any insect pests to 
 establish themselves in your boxes. In spite 
 of all the many and much-vaunted insecti- 
 cides, we have found that pure water is as 
 effectual an insect exterminator, when prop- 
 erly applied, Le., with a syringe, as any- 
 thing else. 
 
 78 
 
Where this fails, however, soft soap, dis- Jadoo 
 solved in water — about two ounces to half- 
 a-gallon of tepid water — and applied with a 
 syringe for several days in succession, will 
 answer well. 
 
 Smoking over plants will destroy the 
 green-fly, and the old-fashioned dusting with 
 snuff is also a good remedy. 
 
 Where rich soil is not easy to obtain, 
 jadoo, tightly stuffed into window boxes, is 
 an admirable substitute. 
 
 It can be purchased at any seedsman*s at 
 the rate of about 25 cents per box. 
 
 79 
 
CHAPTER X 
 
 ON CUTTINGS, ETC. 
 
 Usual Geraniums, Fuchsias, Carnations, Pansies, 
 
 method and many other plants are usually propa- 
 gated by cuttings. 
 
 As the name implies, a cutting is a shoot 
 or twig cut off from the parent plant to be 
 grown as a separate individual. 
 
 Though taking cuttings is reckoned by 
 gardeners a comparatively easy operation, 
 yet to do so successfully demands a certain 
 amount of skill and painstaking. 
 
 We will suppose that you are going to 
 take cuttings from an old plant of Geran- 
 ium, which after having bloomed freely has 
 become straggling and what gardeners call 
 leggy. 
 
 In this condition the plant will furnish a 
 number of shoots for cuttings. (The old 
 
 80 
 
plant will be all the better for being closely Propagat- 
 pruned.) With a sharp knife sever the long- ing box 
 est shoots from the plant and then proceed 
 to divide each of them into cuttings of about 
 three to five inches in length. Be careful 
 to trim each one to a joint. 
 
 After making your cuttings you will do 
 well to let them rest for half a day before 
 putting them into soil, so as to allow them 
 to get rid of all superfluous moisture. 
 
 If the cuttings are made in, say, August, 
 you may fearlessly dibble them into some 
 sunny border, watering them well with a fine 
 rosed can. After they have rooted, take 
 them up and put them into pots before there 
 is any chance of frosts. 
 
 If, however, the cuttings should be made 
 at the close of the winter, you will be obliged 
 to have recourse to a propagating box. 
 
 As we take it for granted that our readers 
 have no greenhouse, and only a window at 
 their disposal, we are suggesting the sim- . 
 plest method of plant propagation to be 
 employed under such conditions. 
 
 Provide yourself with a common deal box, 
 not less than twelve inches deep and about 
 6 8 1 
 
Manage- eight or nine inches wide. Procure also 
 ment of some pieces of glass to lay over the top. 
 the pots You need not be particular about these fit- 
 ting very closely, as a small aperture at the 
 corners is very desirable, in order to allow 
 the steam to escape from the box. 
 
 Fill in the bottom of your box to the 
 depth of about three inches with a layer of 
 well-sifted coal ashes. These ashes must be 
 kept damp, so as to promote an artificially 
 moist atmosphere. 
 
 A little experience will soon teach you 
 how to maintain this by watering enough 
 and yet not too much. And remember to 
 use tepid water. 
 
 The next point is the management of the 
 pots. 
 
 Select pots about five inches in diameter, 
 and fill with sandy loam. These should 
 hold four or five cuttings. Insert them in 
 the soil with the help of a blunt-pointed 
 stick, and arrange round the edge of the 
 pot. For the first few days very little air 
 should be allowed to reach the cuttings, but 
 the glass covering them should be carefully 
 wiped every morning, otherwise the steam 
 
 82 
 
formed during the night will run off and Light and 
 drop on the young plants, thereby produc- air 
 ing mildew. 
 
 Directly you observe that the cuttings are 
 beginning to grow, you may feel sure that 
 they are making roots, and you must then 
 give them a gradual increase of light and air. 
 
 If your window is very sunny you must 
 give them shading during the first few weeks. 
 A sheet of newspaper spread above the box 
 will be quite sufficient protection. 
 
 As your cuttings grow stronger the glass 
 may be dispensed with altogether. You 
 may begin to pot them singly about April. 
 
 As regards the culture of Geraniums for 
 pot plants, you must bear in mind that they 
 do better in comparatively small pots, and 
 do not require rich manure. 
 
 Fuchsia cuttings can be taken from the 
 parent plant when the young shoots are 
 about three or four inches long. 
 
 Put about nine such cuttings into a four- 
 inch pot and treat as advised for Geranium 
 cuttings. As soon as they have rooted, pot 
 them off into small pots, with good loam, 
 mixed with a little leaf-mould and silver sand. 
 
 83 
 
Cuttings During their growth keep them near 
 
 from the glass, in order to make them what is 
 
 Pinks and termed short-jointed, a desirable feature 
 Pansies in Fuchsias. 
 
 Keep the soil fairly moist, and recollect 
 that young Fuchsias require plenty of air 
 and light to promote their growth. 
 
 They are all the better for having their 
 main stem trained to a stake. 
 
 In taking cuttings from Pinks and Pansies 
 — July is a good month for this — be careful, 
 in the case of Pinks, to select the bottom 
 shoots from the old plants, cutting them at 
 the third or fourth joints. 
 
 For Pansy cuttings, take the young shoots 
 also that spring from the base of the old 
 plants. 
 
 Remove all their lowest leaves, choose a 
 shady spot in your garden, and prepare your 
 soil by sprinkling a thin layer of silver sand 
 on the surface. 
 
 Put the cuttings in, fairly closely together, 
 water freely, and cover with a hand-light. 
 
 They will need little more attention until 
 they are rooted, when they can be trans- 
 planted. 
 
 84 
 
Pansies, raised from cuttings, make the Layering 
 best plants for pot culture. 
 
 Carnations can be raised by cuttings, and 
 also by the process known as layering. 
 
 Cuttings should be made early in July, 
 but as they require considerable attention 
 when rooting, we are inclined to recommend 
 our readers to try layering in preference. 
 
 This operation, which should be under- 
 taken during August, or thereabouts, is per- 
 formed as follows : 
 
 With a sharp knife remove the lowest 
 leaves, then cut the stem half through from 
 the lower joint, upwards for about an inch. 
 Then bend the stem downwards to the soil. 
 
 (Before beginning the layering, you must 
 sprinkle a little light soil round and under- 
 neath the plants, as this will promote the 
 quick rooting of the layers.) 
 
 After bending your stem down, insert the 
 kind of little tongue, which was formed by 
 your upward incision in the stem, into the 
 soil, and pin it down with a crooked peg. 
 
 (Pegs made from the common bracken are 
 excellent for this purpose.) 
 
 Care must be taken to avoid two dangers 
 
 85 
 
Dangers which may beset the beginner in performing 
 to avoid this operation. 
 
 One is to cut the stem too deeply; the 
 second is to break the joints in bending them 
 downwards. 
 
 The layers should be watered through a 
 rosed can, so as to settle the soil around 
 them, and in dry weather you should water 
 them every evening until they have rooted. 
 
 If your layering is successful the shoots 
 should be sufficiently rooted at the end of 
 about five or six weeks to make it safe to 
 detach them from the parent plants. This 
 should be done close to the joint from which 
 the layering started. 
 
 Be careful to take them up with plenty of 
 soil hanging to their roots. If your border 
 is fairly sheltered you may transplant them 
 to some open border at once, giving them 
 protection during frosts in winter; but if 
 your climate is a cold one, you will, perhaps, 
 do better to keep them indoors till the spring. 
 
 Carnation cuttings should not be more 
 than two inches long, and should be dibbled 
 into the ground about two inches apart from 
 each other every way. 
 
 86 
 
They will require to be kept under hand- Division 
 lights, and need more care and attention in of roots 
 the matter of watering and shading from 
 light than we think that many of our readers 
 may be able to give, so we repeat our advice 
 as to the wisdom of selecting the layering as 
 the simplest process for beginners. 
 
 In the case of most perennials the easiest 
 and best method of propagation is by the 
 division of the roots. 
 
 Christmas Roses, Autumn Daisies, Peren- 
 nial Sunflowers, Doronicums, and Perennial 
 Phlox specially lend themselves to root 
 division. 
 
 It should be done as soon after they have 
 done flowering as the weather will permit. 
 
 A sharp knife is as good a tool as any for 
 the operation, but a new tool that we have 
 lately come across, known as the " Cham- 
 pion Weed-killer,*' is very handy for this 
 purpose. 
 
 Except for the sake of dividing their roots, 
 Christmas Roses should never be disturbed 
 when they have once been planted. 
 
 87 
 
CHAPTER XI 
 
 A FEW GENERAL HINTS 
 
 Pot-bound In putting in plants, be always careful to 
 plants tread down the soil firmly round them. 
 
 When you are moving a plant from a pot to 
 a border, see if the plant has become pot- 
 bound. By this is meant the case of a plant 
 whose roots, owing to lack of room, have 
 been unable to spread themselves out, and 
 have therefore become curled and hopelessly 
 entangled. 
 
 When this is the case, proceed as follows: 
 Start with the main root. Uncurl and 
 straighten this out as much as possible, 
 grudging neither time nor patience in the 
 operation. Then the fibrous side roots 
 must be dealt with. Sometimes one's own 
 fingers are the only effectual tools ; but if 
 not a very desperate case, a blunt-pointed 
 stick will be of much service in disentangling 
 SS 
 
the network of fibres, and combing them out, Treatment 
 so to speak. for new 
 
 If you neglect these precautions and trans- plants 
 fer a pot-bound plant in that condition to 
 the soil, it will certainly never thrive. 
 
 On receiving plants by mail, or indeed any 
 that have been out of the ground for any 
 time, lay them in tepid water for an hour at 
 least, before attempting to plant them, for 
 
 tu must remember that they require to 
 
 plenish their evaporated moisture. 
 
 Above all things, in the case of planting 
 sewly removed plants, avoid the fatal mis- 
 take of dosing them with fertilizers or ma- 
 nures of any sort. Being more or less in an 
 exhausted condition, and having no roothold 
 in the ground, they only require water, and 
 if given such rich food before they have re- 
 covered their powers of assimilation, will 
 probably die outright. 
 
 As a cardinal rule, never give sickly plants 
 manure. It will ensure their destruction as 
 certainly as if you fed a much enfeebled in- 
 valid on alderman's diet. 
 
 Never attempt to plant anything when 
 the soil is either very wet or frozen. 
 
 89 
 
Frost After a long frost, look well to your out- 
 
 door plan-ts. You will probably find the soil 
 in such a loose condition that it will require 
 careful treading round the roots of your 
 plants. If you neglect to do this you run a 
 good chance of losing them. 
 
 " For the frost," says a quaint old gar- 
 dening chronicle of the last century, **by 
 separating the particles of soil, doth open 
 doorways and passages for the entrance of 
 cold air to the tender roots." 
 
 If you happen to have a plant frozen in 
 a pot, beware of putting it near heat. Give 
 it a cool dark position, and sprinkle it with 
 hot water. 
 
 Wait till it is quite thawed before you 
 bring it into the warmth. 
 
 Keep weeds under at all costs. 
 
 Our old calendar of 1758 declares that 
 June is the best month for extirpating 
 weeds, for ** each weed that ripens then will 
 breed one thousand." 
 
 In small gardens we recommend weeding 
 by hand, or with a small weeding fork. 
 
 If you wish to save seeds from any of your 
 plants, say Wallflower, as soon as you see 
 
 90 
 
the pods are inclined to burst, cut them off Saving the 
 and lay them on a sheet of newspaper to seeds, 
 ripen on some sunny window-sill. Clipping 
 
 If you have no window available for this 
 purpose, put the pods into a bag, and hang 
 them up in some sunny place. 
 
 In planting Canary-Creepers, Petunias, 
 and Verbenas, be careful to peg them as 
 you plant them. 
 
 Otherwise, the wind will make havoc of 
 your young plants. 
 
 In staking and tying up the stem of plants, 
 remember to allow sufficient room for their 
 stem to swell, as they generally increase 
 rapidly. 
 
 To protect Snowdrops from being eaten 
 by slugs, dust the plants well with soot 
 before the flowers open. 
 
 You may clip Box, Yew, Privet, and Ivy 
 with hand-shears, but use a knife to trim 
 your Laurels. 
 
 Ivy, growing against walls, should be 
 clipped back quite close to the stems, dur- 
 ing April, to ensure a heavy foliage later. 
 
 In planting Ivy, dig a hole eighteen inches 
 deep and three feet wide for each plant; 
 
 91 
 
Home- mix old mortar and well-decayed manure 
 made freely with the soil. 
 
 fertilizer. In staking Sweet Peas, place your sticks 
 Cinders perpendicularly; don't follow the usual plan 
 of slanting them inwards. The stakes placed 
 perpendicularly give the pea shoots a better 
 chance of developing, and also afford greater 
 scope for air and light to the plants. 
 
 The cheapest and most effectual home- 
 made fertilizer is soot water. 
 
 Put a quart of soot into a coarse canvas 
 bag, and steep it for three days in a pail of 
 water. Put a heavy stone into the bag to 
 keep it at the bottom of the pail. At the 
 end of three days, throw away the bag, and 
 use the soot water as you would ordinary 
 water. 
 
 Before applying it to your soil, however, 
 it is well to make sure that it is moderately 
 damp, by giving the soil a thorough soaking 
 with fresh water. 
 
 Make use of your cinders. If properly sifted 
 they are most valuable even for a small gar- 
 den. 
 
 For protecting dehcate roots during the 
 winter, dry, clean ashes are invaluable. 
 
 92 
 
Moreover, there are very few soils that Flower 
 are not the better for having ashes dug into pots, 
 them. And even a tiny ash-pit in a small Over- 
 back garden is a veritable treasure for receiv- watering 
 ing the winter flowering plants during the 
 summer. 
 
 And here are a few hints about pots and 
 pot plants : 
 
 Always use small pots for small plants, for 
 if a plant cannot imbibe all the water poured 
 on it, the surrounding soil becomes stagnant 
 and sour, and the plant does not thrive 
 well. 
 
 Remember that all pots required for use 
 must be carefully washed and dried before 
 using. 
 
 New pots should be soaked some time be- 
 fore filling, otherwise they will absorb all 
 the moisture of the soil. 
 
 Overwatering plants in rooms is a com- 
 mon and very great mistake. 
 
 To ascertain whether a plant requires 
 water, tap the outside of the pot, and only 
 if it emits a clear, ringing sound, give water. 
 
 Do not water in dribbles ; give enough to 
 soak through the pots. 
 
 93 
 
Treat- Never leave water standing under pots in 
 
 ment for saucers. 
 
 dropping Rain water is, of course, the best for 
 
 petals plants, but where this cannot be had, water 
 
 that has been exposed for some time to the 
 air is the next best substitute. 
 
 In watering Cyclamen in pots, pour the 
 water at the sides of the pot, never over the 
 corm, and the water should never be left in 
 the saucer. 
 
 Single-flowered Geraniums have the great 
 drawback as a window plant of dropping 
 their petals so quickly. 
 
 To obviate this, it is a good plan to drop 
 a little liquid gum at the end of a pointed 
 stick in the centre of each single flower 
 directly it is opened. 
 
 We have found this plan answers admira- 
 bly, also, in the case of cut flowers. These 
 will last twice as long in water under this 
 treatment. 
 94 
 
CHAPTER XII 
 OF gardeners' friends, foes, etc., and 
 
 OF TOOLS 
 
 Remember that large garden spiders, as Slugs and 
 well as a certain yellowish slug that always beetles 
 carries a small shell, are both to be reckoned 
 as the friends of gardeners, and to be re- 
 spected accordingly. They prey upon some 
 of the most destructive insect pests. 
 
 The spotted Lady-bird is also a valuable 
 ally, for she makes war upon the aphides or 
 green-fly, so hurtful to roses. 
 
 Again, there is a certain longish, very 
 sooty kind of black beetle, popularly known 
 as the ** devil's coach-horse "—the Ocypu 
 Olems—vf\io renders good service by feeding 
 chiefly on earwigs. 
 
 These latter are very troublesome pests. 
 They can, however, be caught by trapping 
 
 95 
 
The best them in inverted pots filled with straw or 
 insecticide paper. 
 
 Wood lice may be caught by placing bits 
 of boiled potatoes about your flower borders. 
 
 The larvae of the Crane-fly, commonly 
 known as Daddy-Long-Legs, are very trou- 
 blesome foes. They are about an inch-and- 
 a-half when fully grown, and wriggle rather 
 than crawl along the soil. 
 
 The best insecticide for these pests is lime. 
 
 A mixture of strong ammonia, containing 
 not more than one tablespoonful to a quart 
 of water is a very good remedy for slugs on 
 flower borders. Not only does it prove fatal 
 to all slugs with which it comes in contact, 
 but it also serves as a manure. 
 
 Amateurs, however, had better begin with 
 a very weak solution, as we have found from 
 experience that ammonia as supplied by 
 the ordinary druggist varies very much in 
 strength. 
 
 Above all other foes make war on the wire- 
 worm. It is most mischievous to seedlings. 
 It is easy to recognize, being of a yellowish- 
 white color, and having three pairs of legs 
 near its head. 
 
 96 
 
It should be trapped by scraps of carrot Other 
 or potato put on the end of a stick, which trouble- 
 should be inserted just under the soil where some pests 
 its presence is suspected. 
 
 Beware also of the red spider — that is, the 
 real red one. 
 
 This insect is exceedingly small, to the 
 naked eye only measuring one-sixtieth of 
 an inch. 
 
 They attack leaves of almost any plant. 
 Their presence may be suspected when the 
 foliage of a plant becomes pale and seared. 
 As a rule they prefer the under-side of leaves, 
 and should be hunted for in that position. 
 
 Water, freely applied, will be very effec- 
 tual in putting them to flight, but where 
 Roses, Carnations, and other flowering plants 
 are attacked we have found great benefit by 
 dusting the under-side of the leaves with 
 flowers of sulphur. 
 
 To get rid of another troublesome pest, 
 which besets Fuchsias especially, namely, 
 thrips, we have found sponging the leaves 
 and stems with fir tree oil most successful. 
 It destroys all plant insects without injuring 
 the plant. 
 
 97 
 
Getting In the case of pot plants the earthworm 
 
 rid of is a terrible foe. Their casts on the surface 
 
 earth- of the mould always betray their where- 
 
 worms abouts. 
 
 As soon as you detect them, you must 
 get rid of them, for they are most destruc- 
 tive. 
 
 Amateur Gardening gives the following 
 directions for achieving this : 
 
 ** Make lime water by pouring four gal- 
 lons of water on two pounds of fresh lime, 
 then stir well, and let the liquid stand forty- 
 eight hours. 
 
 '* When ready for use, stop up the hole 
 at the bottom of the pot with clay or putty, 
 and then soak the soil thoroughly with the 
 clear lime water only. 
 
 '* The worms will come to the surface, 
 and should all be removed. 
 
 ** After six or eight hours the putty may 
 be removed, but if the worms have been 
 working in the soil for any time the plant 
 should be turned out of the pot to allow the 
 drainage to be cleared and put right." 
 
 To come to foes on a larger scale than in- 
 sect pests, but often quite as much or more 
 
 98 
 
destructive, namely, cats, it is said that Tools 
 orange peel thrown on the beds and borders 
 will effectually drive them away. Possibly, 
 but it is at best a very unsightly remedy, 
 and we have found from personal experience 
 that a sprinkling of chloride of lime answers 
 perfectly, and acts, moreover, as a scare to 
 rats and mice. 
 
 And now one last word about tools. 
 
 For window gardening, a trowel, a minia- 
 ture hoe, a small three-pronged fork, and a 
 pair of garden scissors are all the tools re- 
 quired. 
 
 A fine-rosed watering pot is, of course, 
 indispensable. 
 
 For outdoor work, besides the spade, rake 
 and hoe, and trowel, we recommend the 
 Dutch hoe as very useful for working within 
 borders and lightening soil, as well as the 
 ** champion weed-killer " already mentioned. 
 Its divided points, with their sharply bev- 
 elled edges, are excellent for stirring the sur- 
 face soil in planted beds and borders as well 
 as, as its name denotes, for spudding up 
 weeds. An edging iron is also useful. 
 
 Besides watering cans, a hand-light is al- 
 LofC. 99 
 
"Neat, most a necessity, if you have any intention 
 clean, and of pursuing plant-propagation and rearing 
 orderly " rather delicate seedlings. 
 
 One about two-and-a-half feet square, and 
 costing about a dollar, would be quite large 
 enough for your purpose. 
 
 In conclusion, let us remind our readers 
 that to be a successful gardener, even on a 
 miniature scale, you must be neat, clean, 
 and orderly. Never work with dirty tools, for 
 you will never do good or satisfactory work 
 with them. To avoid this, never put them 
 away without cleaning them ; and when op- 
 portunity occurs, say a wet day, when no 
 work can be done out of doors, it will be 
 well spent time if you devote this enforced 
 leisure to burnishing up your tools. Rust 
 should never be tolerated to settle on them. 
 Keep your borders tidy, and never suffer 
 dead leaves to remain amongst your pot 
 plants. 
 lOO 
 
MAY 23 1902 
 
 -n