The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1922-12-31

some new giants called dailia flow
cred that are particularly desirable.
@. Wnat IS the difference in the
old fashioned garden pink and the
hardy Sweet William? Mrs. W. Syla-
causa, Ala.
A. The individual flower of the
Sweet William resembles the hardy
pink but the flowers are bern in ball
like clusters or heads. while the flow
er of the. pinks is usually born one
to the graceful stem.
@. Some folks tell me that | plant
ponpies too late to bloom long and
dc we'll. What time de you consider
the best and do they need protection
Miss j.. Bloeton, Ala.
A. Perennial poppy seed ought to
be planted right away and would not
need protection. All peoples are SLOW
to make a start and the annual Sorts
it would be safer to afford them
some protection.
@. Does the retinospora evergreen
grow and succeed we'll in this ell
mate and it is hardy? f. D., Hart
selle, Ala.
A. There are two or more species
growing successfully in Birmingham.
the green plume and golden; both
hardy and very desirable eyergreens.
Q. How do you tell the spencer
sweet peas from the regular sort.
called. / believe, grandiflora2 Miss
C. l..
A. The spencer type of sweet peas
is more robust in growth. the vine
coarser, stem and bloom much long
err and Il single stem bears from three
to five flowers which are usually
waved and dclicately frilled like an
orchid. The spencer type don't have
as much odor as the old type but
certainly make up for any deficiency
in grandeur and beauty.
A. Can you tell us how this gov
eminent remedy for killing the peach
tree borers is used? N. Salem, Ala.
A. The U. s. government recon-
mends the chemical sold as para
dichlorobenzene and there can be no
question of its merit but it is neces-
sary to follow explicitly the full
printed instructions that go with the
material. Seed stores and druggists
can supply the powder in cans. No
sprayer is necessary for application.
Q. In pruning shrubs and other
nursery stock that you know is dis
eased, how do you avoid spreading
the disease through the use of the
same pruning knife? A. W., r. f. D. /.
A. It is just as important to ster-
ilize pruning utensils as it is 70
treat surgical tools in any operation.
This is very important and one should
wash the pruning knife before and
after using with a five per cent So
luton of carbolic acid; otherwise the
whole premises may become infected
from a single diseased plant. So
luton of biehloride of mercury fcor
rcsive sublimate), / to 1000 parts
of water, or one tablet to a pint
of water. is very effective.
@. To settle an argument, could
You tell us by whom and when was
the sweet pea discovered? G. and s,
Ensley. Ala.
A. 1t is generally conceded that
the first sweet peas was discovered
on the island OF Sicily in 1895. The
first one was blue and purple. About
GO years later a white one was dis
covered on the island OF Ceylon and
from selection and crossing of the
two We now have tremendous
family OF varieties. The person cred
tied with the first discovery was
Cupani a priest and school teacher.
peas, however, has been made in the
last SO years. The United States
ranks first in development.
". WANT 10 Try q crop OIL lOlnd-
toes again this season but my chief
trouble is rotting on the blossom end
of the fruit. Is there a remedy or
method OF control for this trouble
and will you describe it? r. O., Jas
per, Ala.
A. There is one kind of rot gener-'
ally termed blossom-end rot that
some authorities claim is not a dis
ease and in such cases funeicides
would do no good. 1t is generally
attributed to an irregular water sup
ply, such as sudden drouth or ex-
cessive rains may cause. Too heavy
applications of nitrogen fertilizers
seem to accentuate the trouble. Deep
breaking of the soil apd deep set
ting OF the plants are some measures
to be recommended. In addition.
would advise . well defined campaign
of spraying with fungicides.
@. What 10 the best selling cucum-
Der on the Birmingham market in
season.. T. w. FIT. Payne, Ala.
A. The darker shades of white
spine are popular. such as Early For
tune and Klondike. In larger and
greener sorts. the long green and
Davis Perfect are good.
@. In my plant beds, where / grew
aster plants lost year. are many root
lice that ruined my asters. I want to
use the same bed for asters again.
What can / mix in the soil to kill
the lice and not hurt my asters?
Mrs. NJ. Florence, Ala.
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