Evening star., 1936-03-14

reliable Information. There are books
in the Public Library and the Shaw
Water Gardens at Kenilworth. D. c..
In its catalogue presents some valuable
suggestions on the construction Of
pools. A little planning in the begin
ming may prevent q lot Of harm and
disappointment later on.
Buying Fertilizers.
THE soils In this vicinity are not
fertile enough 10 grow fiowers,
fruits and vegetables to any degree Of
success without adding nutritive ma
terials, such as animal manures or
mineral fertilizers. When one sees
the magnificent white oaks and tulip
poplar trees growing in local soils, it
is difficult to realize that there is not
usually enough available nutrients for
small garden plants. The tree grows
deep and wide into the soil and has
abundant time to gather food, where
as most garden plants have small root
systems and, In the case Of ANIMALS,
have to make their growth rapidly.
Sometimes for q year or two after q
new garden is developed. there Is
suficient residue Of old decaying
leaves and grass to support q fair
growth. This is especially true in
valleys or depressions where leaves
had collected.
Commercial fertilizer or manure?
Pound for pound Of plant food, the
former Is generally less costly and,
If used In the so-called complete form,
that is, mixtures containing nitro
gen, phosphorus and potash, Is highly
effective in producing good garden
plants and crops. Possibly well rotted
manure Is the finest garden fertilizer
Of all but it is difficult to get this ma
terial these days. except in shredded
form in sacks at comparatively high
cost. The garden, after plowing and
before final setting. should receive
broadcast application of two to two
and one-half pounds of complete fer
tilizer for each 100 feet of surface.
Home gardeners are handicapped by
small requirements. Anything less
than 100 pounds is distinctly retail
and costs accordingly. Often two or
more neighboring gardeners could
club together to mutual advantage
and purchase an entire sack. 1t is
often surprising. however, how a 100
pound sack will disappear during a
single gardening season, even in a
small home garden, because the same
material that is good for the garden
Is also good for the lawn.
The most expensive form of fertilizer
Of all is that sold in tablet form, which
all goes to show that economical buy
ing must be based on rather sizable
purchases. Most materials can be
readily conserved from year to year.
Until the frost leaves the soil and
nightly freezing ceases, there is little
that can be done in the garden area
except cleanup operations, and in
the small garden this task Is soon done.
There were lot of labels tipped out
of soil by the Winter vagaries and the
the sooner these are restored to position
the less chance for confusion. This
instability Of labels is one reason why
many gardeners maintain a map of
their paintings. noting carefully new
accessions to the perennial plants.
Mapping the annual garden Is often
advisable to avoid the poor placement
of species with reference to color,
height or size. Every gardener con-
sciously or unconsciously prepares
such a map. For example, in the
vegetable garden, one almost without
thought groups the tall species, such
as sweet corn, pole beans and staked
tomato vines by themselves and so
also the low-growing carrots, parsnips
and lettuce. The situation Is more
complex in the flower garden. where
color of the flowers is even more i'm
portant than size of plants. Color
harmony is an entire subject in itself
and one to which there have been de-
voted several books and articles. As
a rule, woman gardeners are much
more successful in color arrange
ment than are the men.
The rust-resistant snapdragons de-
veloped by the University Of California
received well deserved recognition last
season by being awarded the highest
acclaim by the All-American Board of
Judges in 1885. The university breed.
ers succeeded in combining complete
rust resistance with fine color and
form. These stocks are being rapidly
increased and will soon be available
to home gardeners through different
flower seedsmen. It Is interesting to
note that the investigator who de-
veloped these fine snapdragons Is now