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Show I I HORTICULTURE H Thii Departmtfif'is Edited by 'Prof. M I iR,S. Northrop, SUte Agri- M J ; cultural College. I! BACKWARD GARDENS: f j here arc few homcf'iTKilerJIjvir6 h iiayc not at one period or another H come, in contact with that most difli- B, (Uilt -of prBincms the uns1gKtly"b"aelr V yard:, With itapntg.fcncci-itig-; H ntous growth of ccuVahdm&stfre-v H mtcritly its share' :6f rubbis'h a nil HtM- H tcr, Ht -seems-to defy any attempt - H which mightfbcmadc.at its improve- H nrcut. AIorcjtliAn,' PUQ djsqoutjagcd : H matron has Abandoned the back yard H (a its fate, leaving it the one eyesore H arpund an otherwise, attractive "Jiotnc. H Y-etj there is no. reason, why tins' snot H should not he nade, -pleasing wand H even beautiful, if the secret of so do H i"K c possessed by (he owner. 'S, H Jl'llc f,rtJ slcp needs no flTnTctloitt,' ; H for it necessarily consists of clearing H away th, rubbish? and, .ljttct yluch (1 H hayc accumulated through the yeacs; H oft neglect; 'hnd '.which woujd1 prove - H effective obstacles in the ,wayjnof H plants and lowers. When this is H done, however, 'and the space' prc-H prc-H j '.' f'T." r ' . ': Stflf a y- zppGjyyjrtynzc norcr H the rear difficulty presents itself. The H 'rd; isclcan, but it has a bare, unin- H Ming aspect, wluclf 111 access with' H the velvety lawn, with its gay flow- f, iwhich fronts the house. fVegc- ion of some kind must talc "the H phec of-the luxuriant -crop of weeds H recently removed, in order to really H accomplish the reclaiming of the back ' ' fl 'ircl Upon the space, as well as up H 1 tllc amount! 'pf sunlight that if. H gpsj the choice of flowers depend,' H although there is one rule which H njught bc"inv&flably "uscll to gtTvern H t selection. Plant only those how- H cfe which arc hardy, profuse bloom- H -e and easily cared for,. aslacko H tc, perhaps, morel than anything.; H jjse,, is responsibly for the tcondi'tipn H OWthc back 'yard, -A very prkty idVi, H and pile which -cannot fail to give sat- H St-P11 tnc OAvncr, is to mafee of H theacKyard .an old-faihionedg$- ' B dJen, where the flowers popular a ccn- H tury ago may bloom. Petimiaf; niftri- H golds, nasturtiums and a number of M others will adapt: themselves admir- M atfly to the lVak yard garden.' Not H only Wall they bioom' in the 'sha,de, H but from .early $umncr 'urifiliic f frosts-thcy will flower- contniupusly, keeping the garden bright. Then, too, they fit themselves to the space, show- ( jnH0f iul$ atlva"Jage jim itlf;inofst ; diminutiv plat. For a small .space, uulbs arcC nottdtbVpartfcVlarly rcc-l omtnended, unless, of course time, is not an1 object to the maker, as while they promise early bloom llicy last ' b'iit a s1i6rW lime and ;re(luirc',mo"vm,g;, . if'othcrflocrs arc to' lake their place'.- v ' y ' us"' j :':'-' ' t. If space permits, a tiny walk, intersecting in-tersecting the garden and bordered on. cither side by sweet alyssum, or with' any of 'the low) ''prolific Dlodm-crS Dlodm-crS winch adapt 'themselves to this! '!p.urpos.c, shguld;,byv all jinqans' be. jn--. 'Eluded- jn .thcgardcn ,plai1. vBcsides. thc: aiyssumpa rowf'of .tallcV plants with blossomsof;' k Icoiitrasting hue ' , render both, t,hcr border and them selves inqrc. effective, , , , s Thcrcis fiio- reason; vyhy- the ?back, ., door .should be less attractive than Mm ilf;:. .' ; , .,ri, , ) ; . (i J the .front entrance. There arc many ' . ? V V . ' ! : . ways m which its appearance might be improved, but none more effective. than the tiny trellis which shades and ' beautifies' the doorway. " Over it' may '(be 'trained one or more of flic numer- ' ous varieties of vines', which arc particularly par-ticularly adapted to trellises. Clematis Cle-matis Paniculatai a-bcautiful and well known one, .possesses decorative value not only for its glossy, dark green. fo-liagc, fo-liagc, but for its 'fragrant 'whiiVblbs-som, 'whiiVblbs-som, The Mexican or Mandarin vine, known by names as numerous as the .colors, of. Joseph's coat, are rivaled' by 'the humble morning glory, soarlct 'runner and climbing nasturtium vines . in the back yard garden) Harmony . and simplicity arc the combinations . to be sought. aftcr-Jji-lhc garden, .! 'And the last-naincd vines Jiarmonizc perfectly with tl annual which are most suited to the back yard garden. Tndgjti)ttfl,Jfcfnce or ?the ,f side of the "house, the 'vines make a' pretty background to the bitfgf gay , coloring of the flowers. ." a Salem back "yard, where the "tWapMi airottedrcltvd the name, the treatment used was worthy of notice.. No front piazza was had, and no room. for the building build-ing of one wins available. Therefore, the bit of yard hemmed in on cither .ifle'was given a flooring qf ibjpards agaiht ftliQ' wall -wer'd arairied'mof riiri'g glory and bean vi les, so aslo gi?o a bit of greenery, and here, on w!anm afternoons, the sewing basket anfi J fir k r "4 j rockersj w.cref boitglig the building on cither side shading the spm throughout the day. It was a unique . plan, . which utilized a space whene ''even -flowers of thq' hardiest nature rfwquld "have found existence difficult. Another unique little garden, whose principal plants were vines, lay'.be- twecnan old-foshioncd- garrison house jand tp newer neighbors, separated .llrom-jthc lattcrjby a, high broad) fencjt jFjOr its .planting, scarlet and white ...beans were chosen,. -and tbough,.s,carcc , pjl , .enough ,cpuld be had to cover rthc beans, at, thcirj plantjng, the owner .perscvcrcd in her tas.k,- and ilatcr, on in the season was rewarded forihcr 'labor by a fine flb'tTof hardy flowcrina 1 Vines, whicli obs'curcd tlic' Wltl board fence and which, crept round the wiig" llowVantl d'oors. ! 1 Ilt isin such places as these, where there seems scarce soil enough to i 'plant a mustard seed, where long; use as a dumping pla'cc for ashes has cfi factually taken all lertility from tlfc ,60il, that the wpuld-bc gardener js taxed to the utmost of her ingenuity. One consolation remains, howevctjj for the plants which will grow in sucb places arc those which require almost t ? . . f rnb cai-c whatsoever. Vines arc ' tlic test choice under such circumstance!; and "the simpler the selection, the bet tcr.' -Morning' glories and scarlet run acts arc primal favorites, and there' ere several others which arc available for just this purpose. ' Tljc unsightly spot in the angles of the house are unsightly no more, if covered by the broad leaves of the Dutchman's pipe, and the eyesore which has been a worry and vexation is removed When space and light' -pcrmitr-by all means, include sweet peas; in the vines they will cover an otherwise ungamly fence, and it is impossible to have too many of them or uftingi The ground which would be impossible to plant in vegetables iwUl ; furnish .bouqji'cts through the summer, and brighten the house a V6H'asthcgardcnr - -J U. Ecbnomy is one of the "clTi"efj1olleYts gained in the back yard garden. A package of seeds purchased for 5 cents at any store will plent nine squaVc.fcet of ground, or will cover a watll ten feet in length with vines. I'nlJvfcw pf thisy there fis all reason In saying that the garden is within reach of all, both in time and money two of the most important of the many considerations to be reckoned with. Give your gardjen a chance to prove what can be accomplished there. Start in the .early spring time to plan for the arrangement of the little garden gar-den spot, choosing the flowers which seem 'best adapted to it, and wlicn danger of frosts is over, prepare the ground for the reception of seeds. If the space is large, have it dug for you, though if possible, take the time outdoors amd accomplish the work yourself. You will enjoy it, and it will pay ypu a thousand times in ' health and strength. Do not try clab- 1 orate designs, for it will mean en- I largcd expense, besides taking more I time, and the chances arc ten to one I that, it will disappoint you after al!. . Instead make the flower -arrangements as simple as possible, blending two or three pretty flowers and vines, and giving them plenty of room to grow and spread themselves. This will aid in counterbalancing the disadvantages dis-advantages of shade and poor soil. Give your back yard garden a fair chance, and sec if it docs not repay 1 all your care of it, by filling your summer days with brightness. From Floral Life. |