The Weekly Kansas chief. [volume] (Troy, Kan.) 1872-1918, 1881-06-30
for the farlner.
THE FLOWER GARDEN.
Til, p.,uuia. BrowaIIia. BaI-am and A

For decoration Of lawn and garden there is no
kind Of plants that exceeds the petunia in con
slant succession of flowers, rapid growth, aha
gay eolorS while its culture Is of the easiest, as
II will adapt itself TO any soil. yet shows ais APP
pr,.,iafion of good food by greater quantity OF
brilliant flowers and larger branches. The seeds
eau I've sown in the open border Mt this season OF
tie year. and transplanfed from six TO eight
inches apart or thnned out To that distance
When the plants are in bloom pull ont all that
are inferior in flower, and allow only the hand
somest varieties TO go 10 seed. By this method
Won can improve the qualities of your pteunIas
every year: and by letting the bed remain I'M
Disturbed until the seedlings are well advanced
n.xt Nav Won will have line bed Of self-sown
plants and enough to supply the neighborhood
aso.
The florists have improved the petunia vastly
in the mast few years. in the beauty of its hines,
and the peculiar blending of its colors, while ITS
size, and the texture Of its petals, have also
been greatly increased. The famons florist,
James Wick. of Rochester, has produced a yarie-
~ with fringed petals which is much sought
The first double petunias also the product of
this country; and 50 popular have they become
that the florists sell millions of plants every
year The single varieties seed plentifully, and
when hylridized with the double varieties pro-
dnce many new varieties Iut the quickest
way to grow double petunias is by cuttings,
which should he taken from fresh shoots when
they break easily from the plant, and single va
slip off just below joint, and remove the lower
leaves. then set the shoot firmly into wet sand /;
do not let more than four leaves remain upon
the slip, and nip of all ineipient buds 80 rs TO
make two shoots grow from the top. Keep it
shaded from the sun for three four days. As
soon as the roOtlcts are well developed take it
frnm the sand and plant, either in the border, or
in pot where it will bloom all winter.
Among the novelties in petunias, would
Recommend peiHI'id fBiLridfa fopIeHo, which has
ly fringed. 1t is a very snowy plant, and can be
had in pure white, shaded white, purple and
crimson and white, in solid colors. PeiHRid
grdndiiOrd mdrgindfG is a large double variety
with each petal borlered with green. The in
imitable dwarf petWnia is the most recent ac-
QUESTION. Its iowrs are bright cherry color,
spotted with white, and it grows in shaIe Of a
small brush. Sandy soil is the natural home of
the petunia, but il takes kindly to richer food,
and its cOlors are brighter, its Towels arge- If il
is occasionally treated To little soluble guano
or very weak liquid manure (made from the
stable or hen roost) greatly diluted with water.
4 halfhOgshead filled with this decOctiOn could
he sunk in an out of the way part in the garden
and kept full Of water, which should be given to
all kinds of Towering plants twice week.
The browallia, lovely little flower, grows
wild in South America, and was named by Lin
naus "BrOwalls Beauty" because a friend by
that name gave him the seed. But after few
years il was called brOwallia. Ii terminates
II the Towering branches are picked when the
frost threatens and kept in vases of water, they
will continue to bloom for weeks, and viii also
throw ont tiny roots, 50 that they can. be plant
ed and kept during the winter. The blue flow
erins varieties are preferable TO the white be-
cause blue flowers much rarer. Although
the flowers are quite small, they are,peculiar in
shape and unsurpassed for and bouquets.
Ii is an essential in every flower garden.
Originally the aster was an ordinary single
Hover, hut under the careful treatment of the
florist II has developed into as double q flower
as the dahlia, and its blossoms are produced in
great abundance late in the season, after many
of the handsOmest ANIMALS past and gone.
IL is not handsome flower for the lawn or par
tTo, but is better suited for beds in the general
collection of flowers 1t is Il valuable flower for
table and house decoration, as it does not fade
quickly, but will continue in beauty for several
days after it has been gathered and arranged in
vases or baskets.
The tall growing varieties, such as Truffant's
paOny-tOwered, giant emperor, rOse-fiOwered
Victoria aud Washington, need to be tied to
small stakes, as they are so loaded with bios
SONS that heavy storm is apt TO break them
down. Asters bloom in every shade of color but
yellow and bright blue. New Victoria Vermil-
ion aster, claims to show a dazzling shade of red
hitherto unknown. The dwarf chry millennium
astcr or BOltze's New Bouquet are very desira-
bic for cdgings to beds, rs they grow from eight
TO ten inches in height, and show n mass of
double flowers of the richest hues. Asters need
very rich soil and should he mulched in July,
The balsam is an annual which can he made
one of the most ornamental in the gard N, if il is
given proper care, and is duly trained and
pinched of its superilnous growth. To have
them i'll perfection, the plait should be set
twelve inches apart and trained to three stalks.
which will be as thickly laden with flowers as
the hyacinth; or the plants he set five or six
inches apart, and trained to only one stalk by
nipping off every other branch hut the centre
one, and keeping every struggling shoot down.
Tins trained, alth siren 9TH of the roots is con-
centratcd INTO a small space, and the flowers
will he very large and double The soil should
be very rich and lOamy, and the plants will
grow better if mulched with strawy litter in
July, or with grass from the lawn-mower.-
Springfield RcpHJIicdR.