Etched very clearly on my mind is the time I laid eyes on the Christmas rose, some years ago. It was a below-zero day in late December, and bitter winds blew in from Lake Erie, as I walked on the hard frozen ground around an estate in Cleveland, taking notes for a descriptive story.

I was feeling intensely sorry for myself, away from home at the height of preparations for the festive season, and oh! so very cold. I turned away from the shore to walk beneath a pleached alley of beech trees, and stopped short at the almost miraculous sight of white flowers at my feet – so startling in their brave beauty as to make me catch my breath.

The Christmas rose is one of the very few flowers with courage to face the elements in mid-Winter in our gardens. Native of many parts of continental Europe and Asia Minor, Ilellebarus niger – to give the botanical name – adapts itself to our severe Winters and trying Summer conditions. Its common name has no doubt been acquired because of its resemblance to a chaste single or wild rose. The flower is white, sometimes an off-white, with a greenish cast, or flushed with pale rose. The golden stamens add appreciably to its lovely appearance. The palmately divided, dark green leaves are also attractive.

Records indicate that the Christmas rose was introduced into English gardens in 1.596. Later, it was brought to America, and every now and then we come across large clumps in old gardens. But for all its hardiness and willingness to bloom when flowers are a rarity in gardens, it is not frequently seen hereabouts.

The Christmas rose will grow in ordinary soil, but will give best results in sandy loam enriched with rotted cow manure and leaf mold, and should be top-dressed annually. It likes a moist but well-drained location that is shaded at least half of the day. It does remarkably well in the shrub border and under tall deciduous trees. H. niger has even been grown among evergreens, but such shade is inclined to be somewhat too heavy. Once planted, it does not like to be disturbed, though after several years, stock may be increased by division of the clumps in the Spring.

Still another attribute endears the Christmas rose to us, for it is ideal for flower arrangements. One evening last January, I was delightfully surprised to find in the town’s library a pale green bowl filled with the lovely Christmas rose which had been grown locally.

It makes a very stunning arrangement for a Christmas dinner in a low silver bowl, with silver candlesticks holding pale green candles. With this may be used pale green china or white china edged with fine lines of pale green, silver and gold; crystal stemware; or white damask cloth and napkins. Or the Christmas rose may be placed in a light green glass bowl ? so flat it is almost a plate ? with a piece of green glass or slag. Accompanied by pale green candlesticks holding candles of a darker tone of green (the green of the foliage), white Wedgwood china and deep green goblets, it is a dinner setting in a subtle, harmonious color scheme.

Perhaps a suggestion for one less formal, livelier and in a gayer mood for a family gathering would be welcome. Pine or balsam fir or spruce or yew may be inserted in a block of plastic “”snow”" or in holes bored into a piece of wood (a narrow bread board serves the purpose nicely). A spray or two of holly may be added for a touch of color.

In the center of the arrangement of greens, a tall hand-made red candle and at each place setting, a shoulder corsage or boutonniere of greens and berries may be placed. This simple arrangement is effective with a white cloth or red one. Creamy white Lennox or white Wedgwood china completes the picture. Plummer’s famous Christmas tree china could be used ? in doing so, however, be conservative with the evergreens for the centerpiece, as the china is so highly decorative in itself.

A red cloth may serve as a foil for a whitened branch in a simple line arrangement, or for a whitened evergreen bough, hung with tiny Christmas balls or small gifts for the family. White poinsettias make a striking arrangement against a red cloth. But I should point out that they are not available in every florist shop and accordingly may be expected to be more expensive than the red poinsettias.

And now for the hostess whose dining room is in the modern manner and whose table is long and narrow. On three mirrors, spaced at intervals along the length okthe table, little Christmas balls may be grouped as bunches of grapes. The new plastic balls are especially attractive, and there are delightful tear-shaped ones, too. Silver and blue balls are effective on a pale gray cloth; silver and green and gold on a green or gold-colored cloth. The balls may be used alone or in combination with gilded or silvered magnolia, bay or rhododendron leaves.

Anthuriums, with their rich, red, formal-looking blooms, are adaptable for a modern Christmas table. Actually, the “”blooms”" are bracts or colored leaves, as in the case of poinsettias. The flower is the odd spike or spadix. Anthuriums are in the luxury class, but offset their rather high price per flower by their long lasting quality. They can be purchased as pot-plants and, as an aside, I might point out that colorful pot-plants in the hall, living room, sun porch, etc., are bright accents to the decorative plan in the festive season.

Carrying the Christmas spirit from the dining room to the living room, consider the fireplace, or rather the mantel, as that is the part to be treated. The fireplace proper should be left free ? it is really dangerous to decorate it.

For a mantel of colonial lines, painted white, evergreen branches, holly, red candles and “”the stockings all hung by the chimney with care”" carry out the traditional theme. Another idea is to hang a large wreath or horseshoe of evergreens above the center of the mantel, with candelabrum at each side; or to make a simple arrangement of evergreens and figurine candles – angels, choir boys and English carol singers.

Last Christmas, my husband surprised me by mounting little wax angels on stars made from aluminum foil, then suspended them on very fine piano wire above the mantel. An old-fashioned lamp, resting on a base made of balsam fir, bathed the angels in flickering light.

Similar decorations are in keeping with a pine-paneled fireplace. In this case, they may be extended somewhat by hanging graceful sprays in the panels, if they are large, or by suspending small dusters of Christmas balls, if the panels are small. Another suggestion is to place the prettiest of Christmas cards from relatives and friends above the mantel and down the sides. Scotch tape will fasten them.

If there is a mirror above the mantel, whatever the Christmas decorations may be, they will be enhanced by reflection. The colonial mirror may be softly draped by a garland; the Victorian mirror more fancifully trimmed, the garland being caught here and there with balls and other ornaments. The modern mirror is best left unadorned. But if it must be decorated, let it be done simply – perhaps a cluster of plastic balls hanging from the top. Without garland and without any decorative note, such a mirror will show off to best effect a modern decor of gold and silver leaves and tear-shaped balls, wired to a “”whip”" (a branch from which all leaves have been stripped).

Now let us move to the front door on which I have ? and I’m sure my readers have ? seen some weird and dismal, as well as very beautiful, creations in the spirit. of Christmas. For a doorway can be overdone to the point of the ridiculous. There is enough variety in material for wreaths, sprays and garlands, so that decorations can be contrived which are original, without striving to outshine the neighbors.

First of all, look at the door. Is it colonial, Georgian, Victorian, modern French, English, Spanish? Is it white or painted yellow, blue or green? Is it oak or mahogany? Does it open upon the street, or is the house set back upon a spacious lawn? All these are points worthy of consideration.

For a house of New England or Southern colonial architecture, wreaths, sprays or baskets of evergreens are most fitting. Spruce, balsam, fir, pine, hemlock or yew, with or without the inclusion of holly, mistletoe. cones, needles and ribbon, may be employed. The ribbon should, of course, be weatherproof. Blue spruce, by the way, with tiny cones, makes a soft-toned wreath that is especially lovely against the door of a pale-gray Cape Cod house.

Baskets may be suspended from the door knocker or hung beneath the letter box. If the entrance is broad, the fireside wood basket may be filled with greens and placed at one side. Old-fashioned sleigh bells hung on a spray of pine or spruce are charming. Bronze jingle bells are now obtainable. Lacking sleigh bells, others do well.

Bells, snowballs and stars may be made from plastic “”snow,”" which is obtainable at florist supply houses and at some florist shops. This past Christmas, I cut and strung several small stars on bright red, waterproof ribbon against a spray of yew. Flood-lighted, it was particularly effective at night when the “”snow”" stars glistened.

Formal doors of French and Georgian houses lend themselves to more elaborate treatment. They can be garlanded, as well as wreathed, pointing up the delicate pattern of fanlight and sidelights. The heavy door of the English style mansion needs brightening with gilded or silvered leaves, or with a whitened evergreen bough tied with a big ribbon. Huge cones fastened to shellacked magnolia leaves, with or without ribbon, are distinctive.

For an Italian or Spanish villa, what could be more appropriate than a Della Robbia wreath ? a striking and unusual decorative feature of foliage and fruits and also of fir or pine cones. The wreath is constructed as are all Christmas wreaths, with evergreen branches wired to a fairly strong double hoop or frame. Fruits, cones and nuts are introduced as imagination dictates, observing good principles of design and grouping, rather than spotting them. The ornaments are first dipped in a thin solution of shellac to preserve them and also give them a touch of brilliance.

After all, it is not how much, but how well you decorate that will leave a favorable impression upon the guests to your home during the Christmas holidays.

Christmas is a wonderful time of year. As the north wind blows, as snows drift ever deeper, and as the cold strengthens, human hearts beat all the more vigorously. Under the sparkling stars, white, blue, red and yellow, that grim tension we all suffer far too much seems to relax. Gratefully, we push away all ugly and sordid things as being of no importance and enter, for the moment, a world of warmth and brightness.

Thus, this becomes a time when it is permissible to speak freely out of one’s inmost convictions. It is a time when it is not necessary to weigh one’s words, not so much for fear of offending someone or of being found ridiculous, as of being accused of sentimentality.

Perhaps it is the miserable time in which we live that has caused the world to be afraid of sentiment. With things the way they are, we should all of us be on our toes every instant lest something terrible should happen. Personally, I have never been able to understand why it should be bad to be sentimental. If we rule sentiment out, what have we left of the lives of most of us? The wide and pillard avenues of science and philosophy down which I have traveled, somewhat reluctantly and all too often idly, have been chiefly characterized for me by their distressing coldness and emptiness. One smile, one laugh, one hand to hold in the cold and the dark, is worth multitudes of sober facts and solemn pronouncements.

I think it is silly, this business of attempting to be always rational and mathematical – just as if we could be, really. In this absurd world, what have we humans to do with truth? I doubt if we would recognize the thing if we stumbled over it. With things the way they are, I am sure that sentiment is precisely as valid as science with most of us.

What has all this to do with gardening? Everything!

Perhaps I might declare my Christmas message to gardeners very simply in these words; we take gardening too seriously.

Of course you remember the Frenchman who said that all positive statements are false, including this one. That is the trouble when you try to be simple; you cannot be accurate. Thus I do not mean that gardening is not a serious thing. It certainly is! It cannot be done in carefully pressed trousers and a white shirt, or the feminine equivalents thereof. It is a strenuous affair of slacks for the ladies and dungarees for the men, dirty hands, sunburned necks and creaking backbones. What I mean is just that we Americans are all too apt to go to extremes. Who ever in the world first established the idea that the amateur gardener had to be an expert, a specialist?

That way of thinking has done more harm to gardening than all the cutworms that ever wiggled and all the mildew that ever powdered. Certainly there must be landscape architects, and agronomists, and taxonomists and that sort of thing. A man or a woman can touch the fringes of creation by specializing in iris (as I do) or daylilies, or roses or whatever. That is all to the good – wonderful!

What I meant by saying that we arc apt to take gardening too seriously is that we forget to maintain our amateur standing. We need not be professionals unless we seek to earn our livings by and through gardening. That is something else.

I am trying in this Christmas letter to urge the average gardener to forget any feelings of inferiority and to garden as pleasantly as he wishes. In a word, to grow what he wants, the way he wants to do it.

Who has authority to tell anyone that he must garden this way, plant this and plant that? Certainly, information is welcomed by everyone but there is no need of striving for perfection. Instead, gardening should be always carried along for what pleasure there may be found in it – and that is plenty! In a few words, we should stop trying to make a business out of gardening. Leave that for the professionals. Instead, let us enjoy our plants and our plantings.

And to my mind, the best way to enjoy gardening is to be just as sentimental about it as one wishes. If you want to be tenderhearted in your garden, why then be tender-hearted. I mean it! Let your bushes sprawl as they will, if you want it that way. Of course you can prune and transplant and keep your place looking like a public park or an arboretum if you wish. That is your privilege as an American gardener. But, to my mind, a garden should be otherwise – and if you think so, have your plantings the way you want them. Certainly you must learn how to grow things, but let the learning come naturally. Let it be as natural as the growth of the plants themselves and not merely the practice of what someone told you should be done.

Some gardens are as carefully planned as the blueprints for a battleship. That is one way to garden and, a good way, no doubt of that. But gardens can grow through the years too, in a happy: careless, haphazard way – and it is a wiser man than most of us who can say which way is the better. It is a choice you can make, if you so desire.

Then again, authorities will tell you not to have this plant near that; some will say that certain colors will clash with others. Perhaps so. I adore the great heads of Oriental poppies and I have lots of them. Perhaps they do clash with other things; perhaps a knowing person will smile at my ignorance. Let them. That is what I like and it is what I will have.

Probably, in the ultimate analysis, the sentimental gardener finds his greatest enjoyment in the associations his plants have for him alone. For instance, I have a rose bush, it must be fully 50 years old, which was my mother’s. She called it Lady Stuart. I really do not know what it is. It is not available in any present-day catalog. The flowers are small and nothing much compared to what I could be growing but that bush will have its place in my garden as long as I am on deck – because of the memories it supports. Then, I have a certain grouping of wild, blue violets and the narcissus, Horace. It was first established by a certain person and it will be continued as long as I garden.

The nub of the whole matter is this. There are many activities of life where a man must bow to regimentation. There are some activities where he must be as precise and as careful as he may be. But, these are not amateur gardening. We plant and cultivate for pleasure. We have no obligation when we take a piece of ground in our hands and make it bear flowers and fruits. Of course learning to garden better is a pleasure too and we will all enjoy that pleasure, year by year. But above all, garden as you please and in the piece of ground that is your own, indulge your sentiments as you wish. Hither all, it is your garden.

Who would want to celebrate Christmas without the traditional evergreens, holly and mistletoe or the lovely poinsettias and Christmas roses? Without these plants and many others, the season would be stripped of its many gay and pleasant associations.

Although historians disagree, tradition places Jesus’ birth during the Saturnalia, one of the ancient celebrations which closely corresponded with our observance of Christmas. Branches of holly festooning the doorways were a signal for the spontaneous “Io Saturnalia” which carried a spirit of good will similar to our own “Merry Christmas.”

After the death of Christ, the early Christians were forbidden by the fathers of the church to take part in festivities honoring a heathen god. Forbidding, however, was one thing, and enforcing another. A doorway bare of the traditional holly brought the wrath of the Romans down on those within. Many people continued to decorate their doorways with holly even though they took no part in the holidays. Eventually the priests came to the conclusion that it was impossible to eliminate the decorations; hence the custom gradually became associated with the birth of Christ.

Historians were uncertain as to what the crown-of-thorns might have been. Some said it was a euphorbia; others claimed it was a rose or a berry bush. But weren’t the leaves of the holly armed with rather formidable prickles? And weren’t the berries as red as drops of blood? It could have been the crown-of-thorns.

Holly and Ivy

And so the holly became a holy plant, so firmly established as a symbol of Jesus that the early English were direly punished should they even speak disparagingly of it.

An early English carol features a duet between a man (Holly), ands woman (Ivy), another favorite Yuletide , decoration in that country. Since Holly was the more colorful and beloved by the birds, he was taken inside while Ivy must remain the outdoor decoration.

Having been the olden symbol of wine dealers and dedicated to Bacchus, the discoverer of wine, ivy had to undergo a still greater transformation than the holly to become acceptable in the sight of the church as a Christmas decoration. The custom had sprung up among those without means of obtaining more orthodox greenery to content themselves with festoons of the ivy which luxuriantly clothed the walls of old buildings everywhere. Churchmen finally decided it would be better to provide some legitimate reason for its use, rather than forbid it. Its all-embracing tendencies suggested the all-embracing love of the Savior, so ivy became a symbol of love, rather than winebibbing.

A Christmas Herb

Callum serum, a native plant of Palestine, is known as our lady’s bedstraw. Homey and popular flowers in the Old World had a way of acquiring a “love-name” associating them with the madonna. Some writers insist that bedstraw is a corruption of beadstraw. Early peasants used it for the purpose of saying their aves and pater nosters, because the regularly spaced whorls of leaves suggested a rosary.

Merry Christmas is its message

Many prefer, however, to cherish the Christmas legend of the manger in Bethlehem. Since galium grew abundantly even where it was not wanted, some of it found its way into the straw used for bedding in the stables. It was on this harsh though fragrant hay that the Christ Child lay.

Nicholas Poussin is said to have painted a Nativity showing the lifeless hay bursting into fresh bloom. Celestial rays streaming from the Holy Child turn the tiny white blossoms to purest gold. Old World worshippers often gather the fragrant, springy galium for stuffing pillows at Christmas.

Origin of the Christmas Tree

And what would Christmas without a brightly lighted tree be? The spirit of Christmas, personified by Santa Claus, La Befana or some other name can leave gifts in a shoe, stocking or even a pocket, but these things do not shout “Merry Christmas” to everyone who passes by.

Despite recurring legends that “tannenbaum” was originated by Martin Luther to entertain the children in his parish, historians place the use of a lighted tree in pagan festivals long before the birth of Jesus. Holy men in Germany gave the Festival of Lights a Christian meaning, just as the holly was sanctioned by the Roman priests. Immigrants carried the idea to other lands until, like the holly, the lighted tree has become synonymous with Christmas.

And, like the holly, small fir trees once were in danger of extinction from unwise cutting by careless, mercenary-minded peddlers. But no more. Both holly and Douglas firs have become good cash crops. The United States Department of Agriculture reports that in areas favorable to their growth, either may bring the farmer more money than pasturage on the same amount of ground.

A Poinsettia Legend

Another Christmas legend concerns another of our traditional plants, the flamboyant poinsettia. Instead of being associated with His birth, since it is an American, this euphorbia, with insignificant yellow flowers, took pity on Maria, the little Mexican girl. She was on her way to church on Christmas Eve when she realized that she had no gift to lay on the altar. Suddenly the bush beside the road became suffused with scarlet leaves about the flowers. Not only did it become a fitting offering for Maria to lay on the altar, but a pleasant jingle in the tills of florists throughout the land by our own wholehearted acceptance of it as a Christmas plant.

Mistletoe is one Christmas plant that never has received official sanction from the church, although it has been used as a decoration in the home for centuries. There is nothing about this half-parasite to catch the eye as in the case of the holly, Christmas rose, or the flaming poinsettia, yet, for centuries its white, waxy berries have captured the hearts of old and young alike.

Mistletoe

No tree hung with precious jewels could have been more valuable to a landowner in days of old than a tree well-laden with mistletoe. So prosperous were the crops about such a tree that childless women begged for the privilege of sitting under it, believing that it promoted fertility.

Should a divining-rod-shaped branch be found of this child of the sun. its price was above rubies, for the sick were instantly healed as it was waved above their heads.

Because Norsemen dedicated it to Freyja, their goddess of love, maidens who failed to receive a kiss underneath a mistletoe-laden tree would not be married that year. Young men became wary of such maneuvers, so young Nordic maids became as resourceful as Mohammed, and brought the mistletoe indoors. Since a berry was picked off for each kiss, well-filled branches were in great demand. Rosemary entwined with the mistletoe was a double-indemnity insurance policy. Marriages which followed these kissing-bees were said to have been especially blest.

Even today, when kisses are no longer considered a pledge of betrothal, the custom of hanging a sprig of mistletoe in the doorway still persists. Some canny maids have even resorted to pinning a bit of it into their hair!

If you have never set out on a cold wintry day just before Christmas, hatchet strapped to your belt, to cut your own Christmas tree from your own ground, you don’t know what you have missed! This Yuletide harvesting has become part of the holiday tradition for us. Christmas really comes into the house when the newly cut fragrant evergreen is carried rustling through the door. Quite different it is from the trees which are bargained for at a street corner in town. Such are cut months ahead of time and have lost their forest fragrance, and, occasionally, their needles before they are used. And – what’s more – the home grown tree is free for the cutting, something like a present from Santa.

Christmas trees are easy to grow. Besides providing you with a Christmas harvest, they add beauty to your garden Summer and Winter. Once planted and given a good start, they grow rapidly and need no further care. They require no watering during the midsummer heat (or drought) and no protection against the Winter cold. They will grow in almost any soil, but most species do best in a slightly acid (pH 5-6) loam, preferably moist with adequate drainage. They fit into almost any garden plan, whether set out singly or in groups. They can be put close to the house, if you plan to cut them before they grow too tall. Place them alongside a driveway, or form a beautiful fence row or a strong windbreak if you let them grow into tall trees.

Almost any of the numerous varieties of evergreens can be used as Christmas trees.

Fir – Firs make the ideal Christmas trees. The most popular in the northeastern states is the balsam fir, which grows in the great northern forests, but is not so easy to grow in other locations. Firs grow in a conical form, even and straight. The characteristic blunt-pointed short needles are deep green, shiny and smooth to the touch. They keep well in the house and scent the air with the wonderful pungency of balsam. There are many varieties of firs. The Douglas fir (though not a true fir in the botanical sense) is grown successfully on lawns and is available at most nurseries.

Pine – The pine is one of the most important timber producers of our country. There are a great many varieties and they all can be easily recognized by their characteristic long thin needles which grow in sprays around the twig, something like bristles on a brush. Pines grow lofty but not so even and slim and conical as the fir or spruce. Older trees, unless close together, often take picturesque irregular shapes. They rarely appear on the market as Christmas trees in the north east, but their branches and ornate cones are popular for decoration. We once dug out some young trees from a cow pasture where they were “not wanted” and we were happy to have them for our Christmas trees before our own garden grown spruces were ready for cutting.

Spruce – In popularity the spruce is close to the fir as a Christmas tree. Of the same cone-like shape, it also grows rigid and even. Its needles are sharp and pointed, arranged spirally around the rough barked twig. The best known types are the white spruce and the Norway spruce, also the blue spruce, which are so often seen on lawns and in parks. The Norway spruce has become our favorite. Its aroma is superior to that of the native white spruce, and this beautiful evergreen thrives on our ground, and so we use it to bring Christmas cheer into our home.

We started eight years ago, when we set out four-year-old transplants. Two-year-old seedlings may be bought for as little as a few cents apiece. For quick results we recommend six-year-old transplants. Commercial Christmas tree growers, who expect to have marketable trees in about four years, prefer to use these. The trees can also be raised from seeds – if time is no factor.

We set out 36 four-year-old transplants in various places, one long double row 3M feet apart to the north side of our lawn to form a windbreak. From this row we have now been taking Christmas trees for several years, gradually thinning out every second tree. We also placed some singles and pairs near the house and on the lawn. Two years later, we set out another 25 trees along the garden fence and also a large group at one side of our uphill driveway. They were all planted during April before they begin to form new shoots and while the ground holds sufficient moisture. With a spade we drove a wedge into the sod and inserted the ten-inch transplants, roots pointed straight downward, and then the gap was firmly closed. They were never watered, but we did sprinkle some superphosphate around every tree each Spring, which accelerates their growth considerably.

Growth has been far from even. This we don’t mind because it stretches the harvesting over a greater span of years. At some favorable spots where the soil is rich and moist, trees reached the height of 10 to 12 feet within eight years. During the same period of time, others never grew higher than 14 to 18 inches. They were on a slope where the soil is poor, almost sterile. Here nature pointed out to us the importance of environment. But we found good use for our dwarfed under-privileged trees. Since a future as Christmas trees or windbreaks seemed doubtful, we transplanted some into a windowbox. There we keep them well watered, even during warm spells in Winter, and enjoy their refreshing green as we look out our city apartment window.

The only insect pest which we encountered one season was the white pine weevil which also affects Norway spruce by destroying the topshoot. Cutting the affected tops and burning them in July stops it and a shoot next to the top will take the lead without impairing the shape of the tree.

If your garden space is big enough to grow lilac bushes and other shrubs, you may grow your own Christmas trees. If you should, however, own a sizable piece of idle land which might be suitable for reforestation, then you could give commercial Christmas tree growing a thought.

It will soon be time to sharpen the hatchet and set out to bring in the Christmas harvest, the fragrant spruce which is marked for thinning the row along the garden fence. There may be several more this season and they will make welcome presents for friends. Our white pine is in need of some trimming and its bushy branches will be put to use as a handsome door spray and also to give additional touches of green about the house.

And so we grow all we need to decorate the house indoors for the holidays, and then there are the lush evergreens just outside the door which are handsome touches of green on the dormant Winter landscape.

Question: What can we put in our coldframe at this time of year (August) it seems a shame not to use it. Brooke, Williamsport, Pennsylvania

Answer: Brooke, if garden space is scarce, vegetable seeds can be sown in the coldframe and transplanted later. In the colder sections, lettuce, endive and Chinese cabbage can be brought to maturity within the frame.

Spring-flowering biennials – pansies, English daisies, forget-me-nots and Siberian wallflowers – are best started in the coldframe. Use considerable peat-moss or leafmold in the soil mixture, and because the seeds germinate better if kept cool, shade the glass heavily and provide a slight opening for ventilation.

You can still root cuttings of the shrubs suggested in last month’s Pointers. You can also take root cuttings of oriental poppy varieties now. Pieces 3 inches long, the thickness of a pencil or much thicker, root readily in sandy soil. Make sure that the right end is up when the pieces are inserted in the medium, and merely cover them, don’t bury them too deep in the soil.

Time For Layering

This month (August) is a good time to propagate trees and shrubs by the simple art of layering. Layering, as most gardeners know, is the rooting of branches of woody plants while they are still attached to the parent plant. It’s probably the most economical way of increasing stock. Layering is practiced heavily in the foliage trade in southern Florida and Central America. The reason for the sure success of this method is that during the rooting process, the new plant is attached to the mother plant.

Practically any shrub, including roses, can be propagated thus – also most evergreens. Indeed, layering is practiced extensively on evergreens, especially rhododendrons, although a longer period is required to root evergreens than most flowering shrubs. The latter will usually root sufficiently by the spring following layering to be transplanted at that time. Evergreens may require 18 months to two years to develop adequate roots.

Best Results In Layering

To achieve best results in layering, careful soil preparation is needed. The ground around the mother plant should be loosened up, the soil made fine, some peatmoss and sand added, and the mixture moderately firmed. No fertilizer should be used.

Watering and Fertilizing

August heat is giving plants a difficult time as always. With the moisture reserve in the soil generally low, artificial watering (irrigation) is necessary. For vegetables and flowers, fertilizing is also necessary. And when both are needed, the two should always be applied together, for fertilizer without plenty of water is not only useless but can do harm.

Watering plants properly is an art. It certainly is not a matter of pouring water on the soil. Applied under pressure, water injures the soil structure. When churned by a stream of water, the clay particles at first separate from the mass, then become liquid. When watering stops, these ultra-fine particles settle into the mass but only to form an impervious layer – almost like liquid cement – which shuts out the air from the soil around the roots.

Before watering, first open the soil by cultivation. When hand watering use a water breaker on the hose nozzle so that the water will “rain” out and sink into the soil gently. Or you can apply water gradually with a fine-mist sprinkler. After a day or two (the exact interval depending upon the consistency of the soil), loosen the soil surface an inch or so deep. This dust mulch, as it is called, conserves moisture. Other coverings – such as hay, leaves, grass or weeds – will perform the same service.

The Food Garden

Now is the time to sow or plant lettuce, endive, Chinese cabbage, curled or upland cress, radishes, turnips and kohlrabi for late fall harvesting. This imposing list for the late month of August may surprise all but seasoned gardeners. But even other vegetables can be started now. As far north as southern Connecticut, snap beans are still a possibility, and plants of an early cabbage variety will mature by late fall if put in now. But it’s too late to start cabbage from seed.

When autumn comes, you have a hundred ways to improve your garden… its looks, its health, its prospects for next spring. Cool weather makes it easy to get things done, there is less rush than when you are doing spring chores. Here is a check list of fall gardening ideas to make it easy to be sure that everything is done. Take out your pen or pencil and mark the ideas that fit your garden, just as you make a list of things to order for fall planting.

Lawns

Seeding and feeding are best done now. There is less weed competition and grass grows best, most places, in autumn. Cut and remove crabgrass before it sheds its seeds. Clean out other weeds too. Loosen the soil in bare patches, work in grass fertilizer or a complete plant food, then sow with a grass mixture suited to your conditions. If fall planted grass gets an early, strong start, it stand the late fall raking of leaves without damage.

Even on a good lawn, plant food and extra seed are advisable. For such “extra” growth use 3 pounds plant food and 1/4 pound grass seed to 100 square feet.

In making a new lawn in the fall, dig the area and mix peat moss and plant food with the surface soil. If extra topsoil is needed put on at least 2 inches. Rake and roll two or three times to get an even, firm surface. Sow 1/2 pound grass seed per 100 square feet. Rake and finally roll using a 200 pound roller.

Read these articles on Lawn Making:

• 10 Questions on Lawn Making
• 5 Steps to Lawn Making

Houseplants

It’s time to take in house plan and to dig up and pot others to be us indoors. Geraniums, actively growing petunias, and dwarf salvia are suitable. Cut away a third of the tops before digging: pot firmly, water, and keep in a warm place. Read ==> When You House Plant Steps Outside!

Planting Trees & Shrubs

Transplant evergreens any time in September or early October. This applies to conifers, pine, spruce, hemlock and the like and the broadleaved kinds: rhododendrons, mountain laurel, azaleas and similar plants. All growth has matured. The plants come with a ball of soil. Set the plants at same depth they were in the nursery. Their roots are near the surface and will be injured if buried deeply. All must be watered thoroughly and the soil packed against the ball. Mix good soil with peat moss or humus plus a handful of 5-10-5 fertilizer per plant.

Late September and October is also time for a ring and transplanting the deciduous (leaf dropping) trees and shrubs. The few possible exceptions are magnolia, birch, cherry and dogwood, although when dug from the nursery dogwood is safe.

Unless the trees or shrubs are large. a ball of soil is not necessary. Most shade and flowering trees up to 10 feet high can be transplanted bareroot. However, keep the roots moistened until planted. Pack screened soil between the roots and flood with water. Single stemmed trees planted this way should be secured to two stakes.

The Late Flowers

Dahlias, chrysanthemums, and roses need water now, but no fertilizer. Overfeeding may result in soft p!ants that may be injured by winter freezing. Dahlia roots may become too soft for storage. Dust them or spray with sulphur or an all-purpose chemical to prevent mildew. Stake and tie tall plants against September winds.

Lilies

Madonna, canadense, martagon, superbum and the Washington lily, all known as base rooting, are planted in early autumn.

The other, or stem-rooting kinds, are planted either in late autumn or early Spring. Base rooting kinds start growing immediately. Cover the bulb top with no more than 3 inches of soil. The soil must be well drained.

Peonies, Iris Other Perennials

Peonies are also lifted, divided and replanted in autumn. The whole plant is carefully raised, the soil washed out from the roots and the plant separated into sections – each section or pie with no less than three eyes (buds); five seven are better for there is more chance of flowering the next year. Peonies planted in fall get a good spring start.

Peonies need a rich deep soil. They should last for 25 years. Dried cattle manure, 4 parts, mixed with 1 part bone meal and worked in before planting will help, if the regular rotted manure is not available. When planting bury the buds no more than 2 inches deep. Peonies must have full sunshine for best results. Read our article ==>> How To Plant and Grow Peonies here!

Roots of bleedingheart are handled similarly. Exceptionally brittle, they are more easily separated if allowed to dry somewhat in the sun.

Iris clumps can be separated too, at this time. If the sections are not too small, three to four roots (rhizomes), they will flower next year.

Perennials of all kinds can he lifted, divided and replanted October to early November. Prepare the soil and incorporate manure or compost with bone meal and superphosphate before replanting.

Harvest – Bulbs & Roots

Cut the tops of dahlias, cannas, and tuberous begonias soon after the first frost. Leave 6 inches of a stub for handling dahlias. Begonias and cannas are stored with all possible soil on the roots to keep them from drying out. Ordinary cellar conditions are suitable.

Dahlia roots must dry slowly. Leave in a place out of the sun. When the soil dries on the roots, clean them off, reduce the old stem stub still more and store in peatmoss, ashes, or sawdust in a cool cellar or garage where they will not freeze.

Gladiolus can be lifted before frost, or as soon as the leaves turn brown. Dig with the leaves attached. Dry as soon as possible, then cut off the leaves, remove the paper-like covering from around the bulbs (corms) and, before storing, dust with an insecticide. Discard spotted and diseased corms, and the old shriveled corms. Store in shallow boxes or mesh onion bags. Old stockings do well too.

Vegetable Storage

Beets, carrots, parsnips, potatoes (late) must be stored in a cool place. All except the potatoes could stay outdoors for a longer time by ridging soil over the rows in the garden. Other means of storage are pits dug in the ground and the vegetables covered with boards and hay. For small lots bushel baskets, or boxes submerged in the ground will do. Celery can be kept by covering with soil in the row. Cabbage is best dug and put in a cold cellar or pit.

Eggplant, peppers, and pumpkins must be stored where the temperature is mild. Tomatoes picked before frost and individually wrapped in newspaper will ripen in 2 weeks.

Radishes, lettuce, endive and other greens can be carried along in the garden for some time by covering each evening with cardboard, burlap, or the more enduring plastic sheeting.

Compost & Humus

All but diseased and insect-infested material can be composted. Destroy all questionable material.

Leaves can be put in a separate heap if there is space, or all materials mixed in one pile.

Begin with a bottom layer of coarse leaves, corn stalks, or dried stems. Next spread layer of the mixed materials 6 inches deep. Sprinkle a pound or more of any fertilizer, compost activator, or dried cow or chicken manure over 4-x 5-foot surface, then a thin layer of soil. Wet thoroughly.

Repeat layer by layer to build the pile. A 5 foot height is enough. The pile can he as long as desired. Keep the width to 6 feet. Mulching attachments for power tools are handy for fall work.

The humus supply in the soil is increased too, by sowing rye, or rye grass seed on areas left vacant by removal of crops in the garden. Three pounds per 1,000 square feet is ample. Rake the seed in, as in lawn making. Rolling is not necessary.

More Tips on Composting can be found here:

Soil Improvement

Before hard frost threatens, dig the soil and leave rough over winter. Where manure or compost is available, spread and dig in. Stiff soil is especially benefited. If soil needs lime, this is applied as ground. or pulverized limestone, 3 pounds per 100 square feet. It is merely spread over the surface after digging.

Soil on sloping ground must be covered to prevent washing. A cover crop of rye, a layer of compost, leaves, hay or the like will prevent erosion. Fall is a good time to dig in soil conditioners.

More on Improving so in this article: Your Soil Needs Humus

Winter Protection

In winter protection of outdoor hardy and semi-hardy plants. no covering is applied until all growth has ceased. Growth is ended by frost which opens tissue and prepares the plants for winter. Roses can be covered after several frosts, by .mounding the soil up and around the base of the stems. Not all northern rose growers agree on covering, but I prefer it. The pink spires (caryopteris), shrubs like the crapemyrtle of the South, and those of similar tenderness are also covered.

The stems are tied loosely together with soft twine or burlap strips and wrapped with burlap. Where winters are severe, hay is used inside first, then burlap, or chicken wire surrounding the shrub. Fill with dry leaves and top with a piece of canvas. An inverted bushel basket stuffed with leaves is the best for low plants.

Climbing roses are protected where the winter temperatures go below zero. The stems are taken down from their supports, tied together, laid on the ground and covered with 3 inches of soil.

It’s a practice in extremely cold sections to loosen the roots on one side and tip the whole plant over into a trench. No bending can be done when the stems are frozen. They will snap off. So do it early. Pansies and English daisies are covered with marsh (salt) hay.

Evergreens

These are protected in a different way and for a different reason. Exposed to winds, the leaves dry out, especially if the roots are in frozen soil. Protection consists in covering the root

area with a mulch of leaves, and using a wind barrier of some sort. Burlap attached to stakes, branches of pines pushed into the ground, or smaller ones tied to several stems of the plants serve to break the wind.

Perennial Protection

Last to be covered are strawberries, hardy perennials, and rock garden plants. This is best done when ground is frozen. Covered while still soft, the plants will rot.

Soft crowned plants: delphinium, columbine, liatris, anchusa, are best covered with a cone of coal ashes, or 3 parts of soil mixed with one part of sand.

Others are covered with a light layer of marsh hay held in place with light twiggy branches. Provision must be made for water to drain off and not collect around the plants in prolonged wet weather.

Beds of spring flowering bulbs must also wait until they are thoroughly frozen before being covered else mice may harbor there for the winter.

Snow Protection

Bushy evergreens are, in regions of heavy snows, prone to injury when deep snow collects in the interior splitting them apart. Strips of burlap wound spirally around will give some protection. Tying the stems to each other in the interior is still better.

Tree Protection

The stems of fruit trees, especially those newly planted, are in danger of having the bark peeled off by rabbits and mice during winter. Surround these with a band of close meshed chicken wire 2 feet high. Newly planted shade and flowering tree stems are wrapped with burlap strips, or the special craft paper used by tree men. This is protection against frost injury and the action of freezing winds.

by J McClain – 63485

Frost are due again soon. We can expect them in September in upper New York State, throughout a great part of New England, in many parts of the Great Lakes states and throughout the northern Great Plains. Generally, the more prolonged the low temperatures of winter, the earlier frost comes. It takes a series of frosts to ripen and harden plant tissues in preparation for the more intense cold of winter. Frost puts an end to the activities of the more tender plants; these must be given winter protection.

Dig and Store Roots

Soon after the first frost, cut the tops of dahlias to within 6 inches of the ground. When digging a clump of large roots, use a spading fork to loosen the soil all around the clump; then pry it loose and lift it out. Dahlia roots are brittle, thin-skinned and easily injured.

Roots broken off from the crown are useless, as the buds, or eyes, from which the new shoots will grow are located at the base of the old stem where the root is joined to it. Turn the clumps upside down to drain off excess moisture. This would cause rot if the roots were stored without drying. After drying in the sun, store the tubers in a cool place, or pack them in sawdust, coal ashes or sand.

Gladiolus should be dug as soon as the foliage turns yellow. Use a fork to pry up the plants. Lift them out by the tops and place in containers to dry, taking care not to shake off too many cormlets. When the tops are dry cut them off and store the corms in shallow boxes. Loose cormlets should be stored separately. If thrips were troublesome during the Summer, dust the corms with malathion.

Cannas should be dug and stored with the soil attached to the roots. Dig tuberous begonias and let the tops dry in storage. Allow as much soil to remain on the roots as possible. If tubers be- come detached, store in damp peatmoss. Let pumpkins and squash ripen on the vine thoroughly before storing them in a place that is not too cool.

House Plants

Bring your house plants inside now. If they were kept in their pots and well tended all summer, they should be in excellent shape. Give them a sunny window or a well-lighted porch with plenty of air. Make their transition to a new environment as easy us possible. Those which are to be lifted and potted should be well watered a day or two before.

In lifting geraniums, impatiens and begonias, use a spade to cut around the plants. Try to lift them with a ball of soil around the roots. You can trim some of the soil off before potting them in a mixture of 2 parts loam, 1 to 2 parts sand, depending upon the heaviness of the loam, and 1 part peatmoss. To 1/2 bushel of this mixture, add a 5-inch potful of dried cow manure and a 3-inch potful of bonemeal. The geraniums should he potted firmly, the others less so.

Lawn Stimulation

Make the most of your opportunity now to stimulate the grass. Fall growth is root growth; this means a thick sod. Top-dress the lawn with a good lawn fertilizer. Follow the labeled application amounts on the bag. But first eliminate any crabgrass, which will soon be scattering its seed for next year.

Fertilize and seed any bare areas. Do a good job of soil preparation. If you make a new lawn, work peatmoss or humus into the top 6 inches of soil. After you obtain a good, firm, well-graded surface, seed and roll. Good seed is an absolute must. Anything else will defeat your aim. A good coverage is 4 to 5 pounds per 1,000 square feet. Consult a lawn seedsman for advice on your specific location and soil, especially if your lawn is situated in a shady location.

Plant or replant peonies now. Old plants that seem to be loosing their vitality are best lifted and divided. Save the more vigorous roots and discard those with thin stems and small buds, or eyes. Each division should have at least three good eyes; five to eight will give better results.

The soil should be deeply worked and plenty of organic matter and bonemeal or superphosphate dug into it. Firm well before planting and set the eyes 2 inches below the surface. The new plants will need sun and perfect drainage. Find room for at least one tree peony; they last for years and increase in value and beauty. Prepare the soil in the same way, but add some lime. The tree peonies must have full sun, too.

==>> Click Here to Read – How To Plant And Grow Peonies

Eremurus, or foxtail lily, is worth a place in your garden. too. The roots radiate from the thick bud like the spokes of a wheel and should be planted 6 inches below the surface. The soil may be any good garden soil. Later, mulch the ground with leaves.

Alstroemeria aurantiaca, or Peruvian lily, is another good subject. It is hardy in all but the more northerly regions. Bulbs planted now will bloom next July when the long stems are topped with clusters of golden yellow lilylike flowers. Set the bulbs 6 inches deep.

Japanese and Siberian iris can now be divided and replanted. These are heavy feeders, so enrich the soil. When the foliage of the true lilies turns brown, these, too, should lie dug and divided.

Their seasonal growth having ripened, conifers and broad-leaved evergreens can now he transplanted with a hall of soil around the roots. Conifers need full sun. although American arborvitae and Douglas fir can stand some shade. Arborvitae will grow in much heavier soil than will the others. Use plenty of leaftmold, partly decayed leaves or peat-moss mixed with the soil for the broad-leaved evergreens. The soil is best firmed around the roots with copious supplies of water.

Beware Late Stimulation

The over-use of fertilizers, unnecessary watering and pruning can result now in forcing a soft growth that may succumb to the first heavy frost. This is particularly true of woody plants like shrubs. Evergreens can be watered, even fed, but not sheared. Roses should be allowed to flower as they may. A dry period will help ripen the tissues. Many rock garden plants of the shrubby kind – candytuft, daphne, sun rose, heather, potentilla – are affected by late stimulation.

Rock Garden Plants

Mat-forming plants will benefit from a top-dressing of a mixture of sand and leafmold with a little dried cow manure and bonemeal added. Restrain over-vigorous plants by digging out those which have overrun their allotted areas. Old plants of alyssum, armeria (sea pink) and others which have become unsightly should be discarded. Pot up rosettes of saxifrage, androsace, sempervivum and choice sedums. Place in a coldframe or in a well sheltered spot.

Propagation

Many perennials can be increased by root cuttings, among them plume poppy, Oriental poppy, bleeding heart. Anchusa italica, yucca and solomon’s-seal. Cut roots the thickness of a pencil and about 4 inches in length. Set these right end up in pots of sandy soil or in deep flats. Cover them 1/4 inch deep. Root cuttings of summer phlox, verhascum and stokesia- are made by clipping the fine roots into 1-inch pieces with a scissors, scattering them over a sandy soil in a flat or in a coldframe and covering them 14 inch deep. These will be young plants by spring.

Among the more tender plants, stem cuttings can be taken now from coleus, geraniums, ageratum, fuchsias and lantana and rooted indoors in sand.

Lilacs, too, may be propagated from root cuttings. You must be sure, however, that the plant is on its own roots and not grafted on price[ or the common lilac.

Coldframe Uses

More on ColdFrame Gardening Here

Cuttings previously rooted in the cold-frame are now ready for moving out into the garden. Shrubs may be set outdoors in rows a foot apart with 9 to 12 inches of space between the plants. Geraniums and other soft-stemmed plants should be potted in 3-inch pots in the potting mixture suggested on page 46 and either brought indoors or set in the coldframe until later. Space available in the coldframe can now be devoted to a sowing of Scarlet Globe radishes. Oakleaf and Mignonette lettuce, pepper grass and Upland cress, much of which you will be able to use at Thanksgiving. Or you could transplant from the garden young plants of lettuce. Chinese cabbage and endive. Celery and leeks could also he stored in a coldframe and used as needed.

Seeds of perennials and biennials can still be sown. but transplanting is hardly possible until spring.

Care of Chrysanthemums

The early chrysanthemum plants are now in bloom. Most of the other types are showing buds. if you have bare places in your flower garden. dig up several plants that have buds and transplant them. If you are growing some of the greenhouse-type chrysanthemums outdoors and training them to a definite number of stems, keep all the side shoots trimmed off. Watch out for the caterpillar that eats the undersides of the foliage about this time of year. Dust with Sevin. Do not overfeed your chrysanthemums; the safest food now is light liquid fertilizer. With many varieties, select the bud that looks as if it will make the best flower, pinching the others off.

Greenhouse Tips

If you are lucky enough to possess a home greenhouse, put it to rights now by making any repairs necessary. removing all accumulated useless material and painting spots which need it. Potted primulas. begonias, Christmas cherries, ferns and others should be brought in. If you have not sown any seed for later bloom, you can stilt sow such plants us calendula, cineraria, snapdragon, stock and schizanthus.

Bulb Planting

It’s time to begin ordering hardy bulbs, tulips. daffodils, hyacinths and others for planting out or potting up for winter flowering. Lily bulbs should be ordered now. too. Narcissus bulbs. which are all the better for early planting, can go into the soil any time through September. Read the article on Bulb Planting. Get acquainted with some of the smaller types of narcissus such as the varieties of N. jonquilla, the triandrus hybrids and some of the species narcissus. also that interesting class known as botanical tulips. You will derive no end of pleasure front these bulbs next spring.

by J McKean – 62935

Question: This is our first fall growing in the south. Growing down here is a a lot different than in Massachusetts where I grew up. What do we need to plant now for fall and to get ready for spring color? I cannot wait to see the Azaleas in bloom! Nancy, Mobile, Alabama

Answer: Nancy, planting iris, lilies and bulbs is the first step in the fall gardening program down south. Iris come first. Old rhizomes should be taken up, cleaned and replanted at once. Cut off any diseased parts and soak cleaned pieces in multi-purpose fungicide. Let the rhizomes stand in this bath for two hours then remove them to a sunny place for about 24 hours, until thoroughly dry. Replanting these rhizomes will give you an idea of how many of the new iris you will have room for. Along with the blues, purples, yellows and whites, order rose pinks and deeper shades.

Daffodils Follow

Daffodils should be considered next. It is advisable to buy ten bulbs each of ten different kinds. These will soon multiply and in a few years will require lifting and dividing.

Lilies – Regals Madonnas

Lilies are musts! Among the Madonnas, the Cascade strain is best of all. The centifoliums are never failing and come up year after year increasing the size of the clump. The regals are also effective and worth while. Give them a place where the roots are shaded by other plants like verbenas or petunias. Follow the directions for planting sent by the grower and you will have your just reward in beauty and fragrance at lily time.

Order Seed

Seed for fall planting must be ordered: You will need the varicolored and rich velvety Phlox drummondi to use along with the bulbs. The Covent Garden Market strain of gypsophila is best. This babysbreath is a wonderful asset to the bulb planting. Along with this broadcast seed of dainty blue Nemophila insignis, baby blue-eyes, on the outer edges of the planting. Vary it with linaria (Fairy Bouquet) and for an added low touch of radiance use Virginia stock. Sow these seeds as soon as you get your bulbs in.

Perennials for spring-flowering can be sown in flats now. Dust seeds with a fungicide before planting and keep flats covered with cloth until seedlings show. Don’t let them dry out, but never overwater. Try some of the long-spurred aquilegias. Dianthus of many kinds are available and easy to grow. The fragrance is so pleasing that they are needed in the garden as well as the house. Some of the hybrid kinds are striking and beautiful but are characterized by lack of fragrance.

Preparing for spring’s harvest of beauty is the task that will occupy Southern gardeners in September. Bulbs of all kinds should be put in now and iris beds refurbished. Don’t forget to sow seeds of annuals to hide the fading bulb foliage after your narcissus and hyacinths have bloomed next spring.

NARCISSUS will bloom in all parts of this section. Select those needed to fill out your borders and put them in now. Don’t put them on the edges of borders; thin lines are not nearly as effective as groups of narcissus here and there through other plantings to give masses of brilliance as they flower.

==>> Click Here Learn about Small Treasures in the Garden

Plant series of ten of a kindÑlarge trumpets, barri, incontparabilis, poetazand poeticus narcissusÑto make your garden gay for weeks on end. If the narcissus clumps have become crowded, you will need to lift them and replant them before putting in any new stock. Some of the clumps planted in my small garden in 1938 have given me wonderful gifts of color through the succeeding years.

SNOWDROPS, or galanthus. are the first of the small bulbs to bloom. Long-lasting and charming, they make a quiet note of beauty in late winter, often showing their white blossoms in February. Soon afterward come the brodiaeas and crocus. Scilla hispanica and S. sibirica, or Scilla campanulata, are other choice bulbs. Their soft pink, blue and white flowers are welcome anywhere. As soon as the flower stalks fade, the foliage dies and disappears. to return next season.

Annuals to Grow with Bulbs the South seeds of these colorful annuals may be sown now to cover bulb beds; the flowers will make an attractive screen when bulb foliage fades. For a lovely color medley, blend some of these in your garden – California poppies in shades of yellow, orange, white, soft pink and deep rose; Phlox drummondi, varying from white, buff, pink and red to purple; larkspur and cornflowers for blue; baby snapdragons in rose, red, purple, yellow and white; and blue or white nemophila.

IRIS PLANTINGS are next on our list of September jobs. Old clumps which have become overcrowded and uneven should be lifted, the rhizomes cleaned and the stalks cut into fans; then the clumps should be replanted for better and stronger bloom next season. The old white and purple Iris ilorentina is the first to show its stalks of color in the spring. The listings of I. germanica, the bearded iris, grow longer and better year by year. Use iris as you can afford them and as your garden space offers room. They thrive and bloom in every section, in sand, clay or loam.

Japanese Iris are the Attention Grabbers

THE SMALLER IRIS. I. reticulata and moisture-loving I. sibirica, are well worth including. L ochroIcuca, a tall, late-blooming yellow iris and the Louisiana or Delta iris. which grows well alongside pools, are not as spectacular as I. germanica, but they give flowers over a long season and extend the iris bloom. Japanese iris make an outstanding show and are favorites of many iris-lovers. Where the soil is swampy and water can be sluiced in freely, I. kaempfcri make an amazing pageant of color.

ROMAN HYACINTHS, which bloom through the years, regularly offering small, fragrant plumes of white, blue and rose. are ready to put out too, also the not-too-hardy Dutch and Spanish iris. All of these bulbs should he planted from 4 to 6 inches deep in well-drained soil.

LILIES ARE MUSTS. Lilium candidum, L. centifolium and the Croft and Regale hybrids should be planted now. L tigrinum is good and spreads rapidly. All these lilies grow in sun with shade on their feet.

Don’t forget zephyranthes. This lily, commonly called the rain and thunder lily because it blooms after every rain, is not the same as the prarie lily or rain lily. The foliage of zephyrantlies is finely cut, dies down in winter and comes up thicker each year with lovely, soft, bell-shaped flowers. This flower grows from the mountains to the sea all up and down the South. The native zephyranthes is the white atamasco lily of the swamps.

LAWNS should be seeded now with Italian rye grass seed to keep them green through the winter. Rake and cut the lawns now showing Bermuda, carpet grass or centipede grass, and soon they will give you a green carpet. By keeping the winter grass cut regularly, you not only have a better lawn picture but do riot injure the grasses that show in summer. Carpet grass is so coarse. and grows so heavily that it is hard to cut it close enough to allow the winter rye room to show its beauty. Sustitute centipede stolons; then put on rye seed and all will be well for the winter and the rest of the year.

by D Julia – 62923

The planting of bulbs and iris constitutes the main work for September. The bearded iris that had grown through the years were or should have been lifted and reset last month, and the new varieties are now on hand and need planting at once.

None of our garden plants are more satisfactory and permanent than the various iris. Good gardens do not confine themselves to any one kind but use a variety to extend the season of bloom and enhance the beauty of the plantings.

The bearded iris varieties listed by growers give a wide assortment from which to select. Choose carefully and put in as many as the budget allows.

Iris ochroleuca, has tall stems and stately blooms of pure white with yellow markings, and the Golden Standard is just what its name implies. These, as well as Iris sibirica in many tones, the Louisiana iris and the gorgeous Iris kaempferi, require a moist situation and multiply like the loaves and fishes. This is the secret of the spectacular iris gardens of the Orient, where the blooms are shown literally by thousands. They should he lifted, divided and transplanted at this time each year.

Iris kaempferi can be grown in small gardens if the water supply is adequate and the soil is rieh in humus. Just be sure you can give them plenty of water when the buds begin to swell and see that the clumps are separated each year in the early fall. White, lavenders, pink, blue, violet, mauve – in fact every color except yellow – are found in these marvelous plants.

The miniature iris are not used as much as they should be. They are so dependable, so rich in color, take up so little room and need so little care! The native Iris cristata is a delicate light blue that grows only 3 inches and sprays its flowers all around. Pumila in both spring and fall varieties is charming anywhere. But the best of the lot is I. reticulata with clear blue petals strongly marked with deep blue lines that make the color an unusual deep rich sapphire.

The history of my own reticulata is a story to tell. Ten years ago a friend brought from the garden of her great-grandmother in Greenville, S. C., a clump of these roots for my garden spot. Here they have multiplied and grown beautifully with and without care. Many clumps have been given to friends and each one has been a source of delight and beauty. Be sure to plant some of these this year.

The Dutch and English iris are bulbs and should be planted now also. Set them deep and forget them until the foliage appears in the spring with the buds and flowers right on the heels of the leaves. After the flowers fade the foliage dies down immediately and there is no aftermath of yellowing, faded leaves. The English type is harder to grow in the South than the Dutch, which is permanent and always good.

Plant daffodils early and give them a place in the sun and are fine bulbs for massing and extending the season of bloom.

Annuals to be planted over the bulb beds should follow at once. The California poppies in white, carmine and rose, along with older orange and yellow, are good at any time. Phlox drummondi in creamy white, soft yellow, rich scarlet and clear salmon rose, with lavender and violet to round out the spectrum, will give you bloom from February to June and sometimes into July. Get your seeds in early.

Baby blue eyes (Nemophila insignis or N. menziesi) and Virginian stocks are 3-inch edging plants which bloom with the bulbs and make soft lines of beauty. The baby snapdragons, grow a little taller, about 8 inches, and give a longer season of flowering with soft and rich tones.

Over these plantings, broadcast annual baby’s-breath (Gypsophila alba grandiflora). The Covent Garden Market strain is best. Saponaria vacearia is a soft pink flower that is much like baby’s-breath in form but lasts longer. Larkspurs and cornflowers will give strong background accents.

Elder daisies and anthemis with the asters frikarti and Star of Wartburg must be transplanted this month.

Feed and spray your roses and pinch back your dahlias and chrysanthemums, and get ready to make your winter lawns.

Early chrysanthemums are showing, Shasta daisies linger on, blue salvias are abloom again and lilies are now radiant. The early Camellia sasanqua comes into flower now and everywhere is the fragrance of the Russian olives, Elaeagnus pungens, and the loquat or medlar, Eriohotrya japonica. Tea roses are blooming again, and again there is the rieh fall glory of Franklinia alatamaha, that storied tree of history.

by D Julia – 62890