Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1883-04-09
Gaaies' GolAmn.
ANNUAL FLOWERS AND BED
DING PLANTS.

The garden must depend chiefly
upon two classes of flowers for its
beauty. ANIMALS and bedders. Where
bedding plants can be afforded they
are preferable to ANIMALS, because
they are of finer colors and habit, as
a general thing, and furnish con-
slant supply of flowers during the
season. Very many ANIMALS will do
this, however, and / will tell you
what kinds / would select, if my
choice was confined to annual flow
ers.
Let me tell you one thing, just
here, that you will do well to bear in
mind: Don't attempt to much, as
most amateur florists do. know
how it is,-you love flowers, and
when you read a catalogue, you see
so many things described there which
you fancy you must have, that your
list grows into large one, and you
don't know how to abridge it without
leaving out perhaps the very finest
flowers of your collection. But this
must be done, if you would have fine
flowers, for an attempt to grow a
large number will almost always re-
suit in comparative failure. But few
women have time TO devote TO the
cultivation of many plants, and to
have good plants one must give them
all the attention they deserve. 1t
follows, therefore, that with a large
number of plants to care for, and but
limited amount of time, there must
be more or less neglect and half-done
work. 1t is better, always, to grow
a few, and grow them auel, than to
have large collection of imperfect
plants.
l would not advise trying more
than a dozen kinds, unless you have
considerable experience with flowers,
for when you get beyond a dozen,
you must include some which require
extra attention. You will find that
the tenderer varieties must be start
ed in the house, and carefully nursed
for some time after being transplant
ed, and with such plants you will be
quite likely to find a good deal of
disappointment. But dozen hardy,
robust kinds can be selected, the
seeds of which can be sowed in the
beds where they are to grow, as soon
as warm weather comes, but not be-
fore. A good many seem to think
they are advancing matters by max
ing flower beds early in the season.
They are really retarding matters
for plants from too early sowing are
generally sufferers from cold nights
and raw, chilly days, and thus they
are checked in growth, if not killed
entirely, while plants which do no
come up until we have really warm
bright weather, grow on without an,
drawback, and come into bloom soon
er than those planted earlier in tn
season.
Spade up your beds some days be
fore you think of sowing seed il
them. Turn up the soil the who'll
depth of the spade, and do this il
the morning so that the sun ma
warm and help dry out the clods o
earth. In a day or two, take a no
and break these clods apart. The
90 over the beds a good many time
with an iron-toothed rake, maxim
the soil as mellow as possible. 70
cannot have it too fine. If you Ell
rich the soil with fertilizers of an
kind see that they are worked in wei
When you SOW your seeds, SOW thel
upon the surface of the bed and si1
earth over them. In this way 70
are not likely to cover fine seeds to
deep, as would probably be the cas-
if you sowed them in little drills an
covered them by scraping dirt owe
them, as the gardener does when /
sows onions.
If the selection of twelve varietit
of ANIMALS were left to me, my choi(
would be like this: Asters, balsam
petunias, phlox, pansies, sweet pea
morning glories, mignonette, stool
verbenas, ageratum and calliopsis.
The asters will not bloom unit
late in the season, therefore the
should occupy some position in tt
rear of arlier-blooming plants. I'll
sweet peas must be planted whe
they can have support given then
They make charming low hedge
screen, and can be used to cover {
unsightly fence. So can the NOR
ing glories, which are most desirab
for training up around the windo'
or between the veranda pillars. T.
sweet peas prefer brush to anythil
else, for support, but the mornil
glories will cling to strips and c.
thus be trained anywhere to suit t
growers fancy. Mignonette, bel
low-growing plant, can be ma
useful as border. Pansies Shot
be given a bed all by themselv'
They never appear to the best 6
vantage when grown among oil
plants. They like shade from
midday sun, and will do the best
any of our flowers in shaded nor
ern exposure, or under trees. l
ageratum is a charming little bor'
plant for a pink and white phlc
The pink, white, and pale lavend
blue colors combine charmingly. ]