Nature displays the colour of the spirit. Magnificence just isn’t confined to a season nor to area. The gardens of Georgia or Florida are perpetually in bloom, however are they extra lovely than northern gardens in winter, the place creativeness types the gorgeous tracery of tree branches into designs that few artists have approached of their delineation of nature? Are the Alps grander than the Rockies? Who can decide?
Studying about gardens is the subsequent neatest thing to working in them. Tulips now bloom within the Holland of our books; the perennial borders are what we hoped they’d be all summer season; the gardens of the seed catalogs anticipate all types of recent flowers which are bigger, extra aromatic, and with colours of superior brilliance. Allow us to work to make our winter visions come true subsequent yr, studying, seeing and planning.
The North
WATERING crops in winter is a somewhat exacting operation. These rising actively ought to have probably the most water, whereas these that are resting can get together with little or no.
Humidity. Crops like a excessive relative humidity, and there are various methods to realize it. The house gardener who aspires to good home crops ought to have some type of humidifier put in.
Glazed Pots. Massachusetts State School, has discovered that the peculiar clay flower pot absorbs a fantastic share of the moisture which we give to our crops, in order that the soil within the pot is sort of dry on the backside, the very place the place the feeding roots must be positioned.
He tells us that the outdated notion that the crops get air by means of the pores of the pot is inaccurate. His experiments present that crops develop a lot better when grown in glazed pots, pots which are given a thick coating of paint, or paper pots which have been handled with some substance. The same old paper pot decays readily and takes an excellent share of nitrogen from the soil. Consequently, the paper must be handled with varnish, lacquer, or bakelite, and the crops must be are given extra nitrogen within the type of ammonium sulfate (1 ounce to 1 gallon of water), nitrate of soda, or some related substance.
Home-Crops You’ll Like: Philodendron is a vine that grows in both solar or shade and with too little or an excessive amount of water. English Ivy is nearly as tolerant because the Philodendron and sleek when educated over a window; it can be grown in an peculiar vase of water with out soil. Dracaenas could also be bought from the florist and are present in so many alternative varieties and species. All of them like free soil, containing sand and charcoal. Ferns develop finest in soil comprised of decayed sod or good backyard soil with leaf mould added. They take pleasure in plentiful water, however make sure they don’t have moist toes and don’t develop them in full solar.
Poinsettia crops acquired at Christmas could also be saved in cheap situation by sustaining a relentless temperature. By no means place them in a room the place there’s a breeze. Because the crops seem shabby, water might be withheld in order that the pots turn into fairly dry, after which they are often positioned within the basement till Might or June and grown one other yr after they’ve been pruned and planted within the spring.
Bulbs. Convey as much as a light-weight, cool place of about 50 levels such bulbs as early tulips, hyacinths, and narcissus for rising bulbs indoors.
To power rhubarb, dig some clumps of roots, plant them in a field, and retailer them in a heat cellar with some mild.
Chicory, generally known as French Endive, might be pressured into good progress in a heat cellar. Did you ever strive maintaining a pot of parsley in the home?
Within the storage. Have a look at saved tubers and bulbs to make sure they’re in correct situation and never too dry. Most of the roots when not saved in soil or peatmoss turn into very dry, and it could be properly even at this late date to position them in moist, however not moist, sand, peatmoss, or soil. If, alternatively, you be aware decay in these bulbs, it’s little doubt attributable to too moist situations, and it’s properly to take away the bulbs and retailer them in drier situations, maybe slicing out the rot and dusting the lower floor with dusting sulphur or among the new formaldehyde mud which has just lately come in the marketplace.
Instruments. Go over all instruments. Paint all steel components to assist forestall rust. Some individuals prior to now have used a deep field full of sand over which outdated crankcase oil is poured. Instruments are thrust into this oily sand, thereby cleansing them and stopping rust.
Books. Many authors put the expertise of a lifetime in a guide. And a few of them promote their souls for a 20 {dollars}. Don’t neglect to learn a number of good backyard books throughout January.
Ebook of the Month is the seed catalog. Now’s the time for all good males, girls, and youngsters to ship for his or her seed catalogs and to start making out and sending off lists of seeds.
Backyard Plans. You don’t have to have the ability to draw a fairly image to make backyard plans. A very good a lot of them must be in your thoughts, with merely a number of notes jotted down, however when you have the issue of landscaping your house grounds for the primary time, go to our design part one left.
Spraying fruit bushes and shrubs for scale must be finished someday this winter.
Timber and Evergreens. It’s enjoyable to have the ability to name evergreens and bushes appropriate names. We wish to name our neighbors by their names and never consult with them because the neighbors who dwell subsequent door.
Pruning Timber. Research the structure of your bushes. Now’s the time to prune out such branches as are going within the mistaken route, in addition to these that are diseased or useless. Parasols vs. overcoats. Let’s make sure we keep in mind why we defend crops. We don’t defend them to stop them from freezing.
Hardwood cuttings of shrubs could also be made this month. Choose lengthy, willowy branches out of your goldenbells, weigela, deutzia, privet, mockorange, and tamarix. Lower them into 8-inch lengths and bury them in a field of moist sand or peatmoss. When spring arrives a lot of them could have rooted.
Birds are singing neighbors.
Pie Crust. The meat-eating birds will take pleasure in pie-crust crumbs greater than peculiar bread crumbs as a result of they include fat. Religiously save your discarded pie crusts for the feathered associates.
For winter bouquets, lower branches of Forsythia, Pussy Willow, deutzia, wisteria, lilac, apple, peach, or pear and produce them into the home. Hold the branches dampened by frequent spraying and place the ends in water.
Backyard Stroll. Stroll around the backyard at this time. You might be certain to seek out some perennials which should be pushed again into the soil, some spot the place the mulch has blown away, some small tree that wants staking, in addition to one thing to please you.
Snow is among the finest winter safety. The French all the time name it “poor man’s manure” as a result of it takes nitrogen from the air and provides it to the soil. Heavy snow completely injures some forms of evergreens. Earlier than the snow has an opportunity to show to ice, shake it from the evergreens.
Frozen Floor. Now that the bottom is frozen, you might be able to get sure giant rocks in your rock backyard which are tough to get in spring if you can not drive upon the soggy soil.
The West Coast
ROSES. Subject-grown roses with naked roots must be planted within the Los Angeles territory from January to March. A very good software of dry lime and sulfur in January, whereas roses are dormant, is an efficient management for mildew.
Gladiolus. For a succession of bloom, proceed to plant gladiolus each few weeks from now till June.
Greens. For the house backyard, vegetable seeds could also be planted this month. It’s an excellent time to set out rhubarb roots. Sow this month your final planting of Winter Flowering Candy Peas, wild-flowers, Ranunculus, annual poppies, California poppies, Candy Alyssum, snapdragons, Scabiosa, larkspur, calendula, mignonette, annual chrysanthemums, Nigella, calliopsis, candytuft, Centaureas, Cinerarias, and garden grasses.
Transplanting Perennials. Quite a lot of perennials might be transplanted into the border this month, together with pansies, foxgloves, Canterbury bells, Columbine, and Shasta Daisy.
Plant Bulbs. Many cape bulbs might be transplanted.
Timber and Shrubs. Deciduous shrubs and bushes and in addition evergreens, dug from the open floor, might be transplanted anytime now. Wait till late spring or early summer season to maneuver palms and bamboos.
Be sure you embody the Candy Broom (Cytisus fragrans), which will probably be coated with white bloom in early spring and summer season; the Grevillea thelemanniana, an Australian plant with scarlet flowers and fine-cut foliage; Plumbago capensis, which is all the time admired for its clear blue flowers. It may be educated as a low bush, or as a climber.
Lilies. Round San Diego, the Japanese Lilies—Lilium rubrum, tigrinum, and auratum—do notably properly in soils that are properly drained. Do not forget that these three lilies produce roots above the bulbs and will due to this fact be planted at the very least 8 inches deep.
The South
SEE the notes of the West Coast, as a lot of the similar instructions apply.
Perennial Phlox. This can be a good time to transplant and divide the perennial phlox, for clumps greater than 4 years outdated are seldom profitable.
Greens. You possibly can set out hardy types. Tomatoes could also be sown within the hotbed with just a bit warmth.
Candy Potatoes. Set out Candy Potatoes in a coldframe, utilizing sandy soil.
Spading. The New Orleans Backyard Society means that the beds be spaded in order that the frost could mellow the clods. For conquering a cussed soil.
Cuttings. You may make cuttings of crapemyrtle, butterflybush (Buddleia), skyflower (Duranta), Shrub-althea (Hibiscus) field, roses, privet, and hydrangea.
Blooming in January. Within the neighborhood of New Orleans, the next crops are in bloom: Camellia, Candy Olive (Osmanthus fragrans), peaches, snowflake (Leucojum), flowering quince, larkspur, phlox, and Candy Alyssum.
Roses. The American Rose Society suggests the next listing: Alexander Hill Grey, Angele Pernet, Climbing Radiance, Dame Edith Helen, Dr. Huey, Dr. W. Van Fleet, Emily Grey, Excelsa, Frau Karl Druschki, Normal Jacqueminot, Hermosa, Mme. Butterfly, Mermaid, Ophelia, Paul’s Scarlet Climber, Rev. F. Web page-Roberts, Scorcher, Candy Sixteen.
Layer Roses. The best approach to improve your roses is to bend the branches down; make a deep lower into the department, and canopy the wounded portion with soil. To carry the department down it could be needed to make use of a robust wire like a hairpin, or a stone.
Demossing. Earlier than the buds on the deciduous bushes start to swell, it will be properly to take away a great deal of southern moss, as will probably be simpler to take away it this season of the yr.
Figs. Prune figs this month after a heavy frost. They’re normally pruned fairly severely, and the injuries ought to all the time handled with the correct substance. Plant meals wealthy in phosphoric acid prevents the fruits from dropping earlier than they’re ripe, improves the flavour, and makes the meat extra agency. The plant meals is finest utilized about 2 toes from the tree. Circle it with a shallow trench, and apply 1 pound of superphosphate for every year of the tree’s progress. It’s gradual to turn into accessible, in order that it’s properly to make functions in January, wherein case the meals will nonetheless be helpful as late as Might.
