Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1934-06-10

TINE climbing roses are q WON
derful accession to the garden.
With q succession Of varieties,
L flowers may be had from the
middle Of May to the end of
June. II the new varieties, such as
Blaze, Dawn and Golden Climber,
prove to be as good as advertised, or
even partly as good, the climbing roses
are certain to become increasingly
important in American gardens.
Pauls scarlet climber has within a
very few years become a real favorite
in local gardens. At the recent Ia
koma rose show, vases OF Pauls scar
let and Blaze were compared and to
the casual observe the blooms were
identical in color and form. If Blaze
flowers well In Summer and Autumn,
it is almost certain to depose the old
favorite and the same forecast may
be made for Dawn with relation to its
parent, DR.. w. Van Fleet.
There are actually dozens Of climb
ing roses with more being added each
year. Slowly the old kinds, such as
Tausendschoen, Christine Wright and
Dorothy Perkins, are disappearing
from view. However, some of the newer
climbers, such as Jacotte, didn't en-
dure the past Winter very well and
gardeners should 60 a bit slow in re-
placing all the sturdy old varieties
with those Of unknown qualities. Even
Paups scarlet climber did not prove
fully equal to the Winter and was in
some cases badly damaged. Emily
Gray, a splendid yellow, was killed
to the gorund in most cases.
Those home gardeners who enjoy
roses should partake Of the pilgrimage
of the Potomac Rose Society to the
gardens of DR.. and Mrs. Whitman
Cross on Sunday, June II. Here may
be seen as fine a collection of climb
ing and bush roses as exists in this
part of the country. A fine oppor-
tunity will be afforded to Judge the
Winter hardness of varieties.
The Lawn.
GRAB grass, the lawn weed de luxe,
~ is now rapidly coming into pos
session of bare spots in the grass car
pet and there Is little that can be
done to stop its ingress at this season.
c. r. Enlow, grass specialist Of the
Department of Agriculture, stated be-
fore one of the local garden clubs that
he believed he secured a measure OF
control by not cutting his blue grass
too short If left three or SO inches
tall, the blue grass apparently shaded
the surface to the extent that crab
grass could not thrive. Crab grass is
a sun-loving species, as may be OBJ
served by its absence from beneath
trees.
Another point Of control Of crab
grass is to provide blue grass with
ample plant food to keep it growing
strongly. March and September are
the best months for applying fertilizer
because at these times blue grass is
naturally vegetative. In June and July
the blue grass comes to rest and it is
in this period that the crab grass
gains ascendancy. Watering. such as
occurs from ordinary lawn sprinkling
favors the shallow rooted crab grass
at the expense of the blue and better
species. 1t would appear inadvisable
to water unless sufficient is applied to
soak the soil to a depth of several
inches.
Here and there an enterprising home
gardener attempts to weed out the
crab grass by hand. Obviously this
requires great perseverance and is not
to be recommended in general. 1t
would be more logical to wait until
September, then spade the soil deeply
and thoroughly and reseed to mix
ture consisting principally of blue
grass.
Perennial Plants.
TUNE is the month to SOW seeds Of
= columbine, larkspur, pyrethrum,
hardy pinks geums and other favorite
perennials for the garden. These flow
ers may be purchased as young plants
but the cost of single plant would
provide seed for several dozen home
grown plants. The enthusiastic gar
dener will admit also a little pleasure
in producing his own plants. Many Of
the species commonly grown in the
perennial garden have very small
seeds and the young seedlings are
small and tender. Therefore, there is
no better place to grow these peren-
mails than in a cold frame where the
soil is better than in the general gar
den and there is better opportunity to
water and care for the small plants
The cold frame offers Winter protec-
ton for young plants and the richer
soil accelerates their growth.
Small seeds need very little cover
In fact, nature simply scatters seed:
on the soil surface where some drop
into small crevices and the remaining
terminate directly on the surface
when moisture conditions are favor
able. Presumably large quantities Of
valuable seeds are lost by too deer
covering. The loose soil of the colo
frame is much more likely to give ex-
cellent termination than is the stiff
clay of the open garden.
A Phlox Bulletin.
FROM Cornell University there has
been recently issued a most in
teresting bulletin, No. 588, entitled
History, Culture and Varieties Of
Summer Towering Phloxes. OF the
many species. all except one are said
to be native to North America, a fact
which no doubt accounts for the
adaptability of the phlox to American
gardens. However. the stimulus tc
the improvement of this fire group OF
plants came from abroad. where
French and English gardeners were
quick to appreciate the phlox and
undertook its betterment by hybrid
ization.
Garden Notes.
TULIP tops are ripening and the
bulbs may be dug most any
time now. After drying and sepa-
ration from the old top, the bulb:
should be placed in baskets or sacks
and placed in shaded dry location
such as beneath the porch floor OF
in a well-ventilated cellar Not every
gardener digs his tulips, but it Is
conceded good practice for more than
one reason. If left in the ground
some Of the bulbs decay, particularly
If the soil is wet and soggy for long
periods. Then also there is the mat
ter of grading. Each bulb will have
formed several new bulbs, varying in
size from that of the old bulb tc