The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1903-11-28
Notes from a North Caro-
lima Garden.

The most snowy thing in the flower
garden now CNovember 2nd) is a bed of
Pompone chrysanthemums. They grow
dwarf and bushy and make a wonderful
profusion of their little flowers: and as
the bed mentioned has in it 25 varieties,
each plant of uniform height and each
with hundreds of blooms, the show is fine,
for the colors run from pure white,
through golden yellow bronze and purple
to the richest crimson, and the bed makes
finer show than the big ones that have
been disbudded to increase the size of the
flowers. Then, too, the little Pompones are
hardy in the North, though both stand our
winters very WELL
1 received today from the Agricultural
Department in Washington, a lot of bulbs
of tulips, hyacinths and narcissus grown
in the State of Washington. The tulip
bulbs are the largest 1 ever saw. many of
them being as large as the largest Dutch
hyacinth bulb. The Department is put
ting them in the hands of Station inves-
tigators to note the difference that CHI
mate may make. The hyacinths compare
very well with the imported Dutch bulbs,
while the narcissus are about equal to
what we grow here. The tulips and the
narcissus have been planted in the gar
den, but as there were but Is CT the hya-
.cinth bulbs we potted them for the house
and placed them in the cellar in total
darkness to make roots, and will bring
them In a month or more later to decor
ate the bay window in our dining room.
We have planted some thousands of our
own narcissus bulbs and will be interest
ed in noting the difference between them
and the Washington bulbs. The moist and
equable climate of the North Pacific
Coast should be a fine place for the culture
and perfection of the hardy bulbs, and
for the more tender ones we feel conf
dent that Eastern North Carolina will
soon be growing the Bermuda lilies to
perfection, as we are gradually learning
their needs in this climate. Our Bermuda
lilies went in the ground today. The soil
had been heavily MANFRED with well rot
ted compost and we will now place on
the top dressing of Lobos Peruvian
guano.
November came in with warm sunshine
and the mercury climbing up near so, and
today the cicadas began to sing in the
trees like midsummer. The LETTUCE In
the frames is starting off nicely, but the
glass is kept off till the nights threaten
to get cold. We were scarce of plants Of
the Big Boston. and were compelled to use
some Grand Rapids and Wonderful. The
Grand Rapids we will value for home use,
though our market does not care for It.
More the pity, for it is a great deal bet
ter than the cabbage sorts. What the
Wonderful will do as mid-winter let.
tuce we are in doubt about. 1t is fine in
spring. but we have never used it before
for the mid-winter crop, and are, as the
darkies say, "jubous'' about it. But as
an experiment it will be of value The
big white oaks that adorn our grounds in
front of the dwelling make it difficult to
grow flowers there In summer, by reason
not only of the shade, but the drying OF
the soil by the mass of roots. But while
they are dormant and leafless we can
grow the finest of beds of tulips and hya-
cinths, and have about come to the con-
clusion to use the beds in summer for
the odd looking succulent plants, such as
cactus and agaves, and to plant some Of
them permanently in Yucca Filamentosa,
which we can collect by the thousands in
the old fields around us. On one of our
streets a gentleman has planted a row OF
Yucca Gloriosa on the grass strip be-
tween the brick pavement and the curb,
ly been in bloom. We have another Of
the so-called Spanish bayonet trees, Yuc
ca Treculeana. about seven feet high,
intrusion. The yuccas are an interesting
class of plants and valuable here on our
dry hills where drought often makes other
things risky. circular bed in our
grounds is gradually being filled with a
bo- ,r-hin IShp
in the centre and planted around with
narcissus By this time next year there
will be no more room for the bulbs. and
we will have an evergreen mass of foliage
that will be very attractive. Our native
bamboo, Arundinaria Tecta, makes fine
bed on high ground and shows much bet
ter than along the ditch banks in the bot
toms. where it browns up a great deal in
winter Persimmons are ripe, and there
fore the Joy of the darkIes, the possum,
is getting fat, for he thrives on persim-
mons, and the darkey knows where to
look for him at night.
Most of the books advise horse stable
manure for the garden, and on the heavier
soils it doubtless has a more mellowlng eff
feet than that from the COW stable. I
have a variety of soils in my garden, from
sandy to the stiffest red clay. Of course
the sandy part, lying to the south, is for
my earliest things, and for this soil US
clear cow manure. / buy this from dali
ryman on the edge of the city, who sells
milk made from purchased food and
grows no crops AS he is always short
of bedding he throws out the manure
clear of straw, and it rots in heaps. OF
course there is some loss in this, but it IS
not my loss, for l never buy the manure
| till it is fine and rotted. Then 1T IS the
very thing needed on my sandy spots and
in the cold frames for the soil retains
moisture far better than where horse sta
| bic manure is used on similar ground, and
as l get this fine rotted manure for less
| than a dollar ton, it is the cheapest
! fertilizer 1 can get. For my stiff soil ]
always try to get the toughest strawy
horse manure that 1 can find to supple
ment a similar material from my own
stable find that there is as much in
varying the manure to meet the condi-
lions of the soil as there is in the chemi-
cal composition of the fertilizers used.
The Northern people usually have the
advantage of us. in the fall in the brilliant
coloring of the trees. Here they often