mi BEA
rs aivd SKrubK
TKeir Care ai\d Giltivatioiv
Specimen Polypodium Mandaianum.
THE WINDOW GARDEN
By EBEN E. REXFORD.
It may not seem reasonable to the
reader to treat of winter window gar
dens in midsummer, but a careful con
sideration of the subject from my
point of view will convince the flower
loving person, 1 feel quite sure, that
this article is "timely.”
Look over the window gardens of
your neighbors, in winter, when they
ought to be at their best to give the
fullest degree of satisfaction, and I
think you will find the majority of
them far from satisfactory.
The plants will be small, much too
small to be ornamental; and if you
keep an eye on them throughout the
season you will find that few of them
reach the flowering stage before
March, which is to say that most
specimens in the ordinary house col
lection of plants give few or no flow
ers at the period when a window gar
den should afford us the greatest
amount of pleasure.
What we aim at is flowers in winter
■—not in the spring, when the blossoms
of the outdoor garden are at hand.
Said a woman to me, not long since:
“I don't see why it is that 1 can't have
flowers in the winter. Some of my
friends have, and they don’t take half
as good care of their plants as I do.
Why, some of them don't repot their
plants at all, still I notice they have
flowers from them; and I go over all
my plants just before winter sets in,
and repot them and cut them back or
start new ones and lake pains to give
them the best soil and am so careful
about watering, and fertilizing, and
airing, but most of the 1 will not blos
som for me. They look healthy and
they grow well, but one doesn’t care
for just leaves.
Now, this woman's failure to obtain
flowers from her plants was explained
by three words she made use of—"just
before winter.” The attention she
gave the plants at that period came
several months too late.
The fact is, as anyone will readily
see when they come to think the mat
ter over, a plant cannot be satisfac
torily developed in two or three
months. Not much can be expected
from a plant that is not made ready
for winter until that season is about
upon us.
In order to secure a good collection
of good-sized plants for the winter,
one must begin to get ready during the
rummer. Ily the term "good-sized,” I
do not mean large plants in the usual
sense of the word, but rather plants
of sufficient development to justify one
In expecting flowers from them for the
holidays.
Age is often a more important factor
in plant culture than mere size. Young
plants seldom bloom while develop
ment is taking place most rapidly
They must “get their growth” so to
speak, before- we ca.i expect them to
bend their energies to the production
of flowers.
Therefore, I advise the owner of a
collection of house plants from which
she wishes to secure flowers all
through the winter season to get the
plants under way now. If some of
them are large, cut them back and al
low them to renew themselves wholly,
as to branches, during the months be
tween now and winter.
Report now, if necessary, and Bhift
such as seem to need la-ger pots. If
young plants are to be used, procure
them at once and keep them going
ahead steadily.
Do not be so anxious to secure rapid
development that you fall into the
error of overfeeding. Simply aim to
bring about a strong, healthy growth,
and as long as a plant seems to be
making such growth do not make use
of the fertilizers.
It is one of the hardest things I
know of to make an enthusiastic ama
teur plant grower satisfied to "let well
enough alone.” She is constantly
wanting to urge her pets on a little
faster, and in her efforts to do this
she gives them more food than they
can digest, and the consequence is
a breakdown from overstimulation
nine times out of ten.
A plant that does not get as much
food as it can make good use of, will
give vastly greater satisfaction in the
long run, than the plant that gets so
much food that it doesn't know what
to do with it.
Some persons are under the impres
sion that all plants for winter use must
be young ones. Such is not the case,
however. Year-old plants, as a gen
eral thing, are much preferable to the
young ones.
There are exceptions as in the case
of Chinese primroses, Primula obconi
ca and others of a habit similar, in
some respects to our annuals; hut for
the majority of plants adapted to
house culture like geraniums, helio
tropes, begonias, abutilons, asparagus
in variety and carnations, older plants
should always be chosen.
This summer I start the geraniums
which I intend to depend upon for win
ter flowers a year from the coming
winter. These will bloom some this
winter if 1 let them, but I shall hold
them in check to a great extent for
future service.
The person who preaches “young
plants for winter flowering” to you
does not take Into consideration the
fact that a plant started this season
from a cutting will have but few
branches by winter, and a plant that
has but few branches cannot give
many flowers because ample flowering
surface means many branches.
Therefore, instead of letting the ge
raniums you start this summer blos
som in the winter, keep pinching them
back to produce a sufficient number
of branches to give the desired
amount of flowering surface.
The more branches there are the
more flowers you may expect.
Cut your ferns apart now and use
each division of the roots that has a
piece of crown attached as the basis
of a new plant. Use leaf mold or
turfy loam for this class of plants, if
obtainable.
Hanging baskets should receive at
tention at once.
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Autumn
Signs
Browning and falling
leaves again call our at
tention to the promise
that summer and win
ter shall not cease.
Prudent people pre
pare. Are you ready
with your autumn
dress? If not, why
not?
We can help you.
Thomas
Kilpatrick & Co.
EMERSON LAUNDRY
F. S. MOREY, Proprietor
1303-05 North 24th Street
Phone Webster 820
H. GROSS
LUMBER AND
WRECKING
21st and Paul Streets
Sow
Grass
Seed
Now!
STEWART SEED STORE
119 North 16th Street
(Opposite Post Office)
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One modern desirable, furnished
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Harney 4822.
Nicely furnished rooms, with hot
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2417 Caldwell street. Webster 5434.
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Nicely furnished roms; modern; for
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Clean, modern furnished room, close
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Clean, modern, furnished rooms,
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Webster 1713.
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