OCR Text |
Show PLANTING THE XEAV PLACE Winter is the proper season 'or making the plans for the planting you expect to do this spring. It may seen rather absuri to star: outdoor plants, while we are still warming our hands before the glowing glow-ing logs and shivering at the glimpses glimp-ses of frozen ground or snow beneath be-neath the living room windows. N"ev- er the less, this is the very best sea- son of the year in which to really think over and make plans for our home place before it is possible to actually start work on the grounds. System in every undertaking Is necessary for successful achievement and beautifying the home graunds is no exception to this rule. Therefore, do not commit the usual blunder ot the amateur landscape gardner next spring when planting time arrives starting in to "spruce up" ana to plant your place in careless "hit o miss" fashion. Long before you can put a space In the ground, you should have made all your decisions in regard to the spring planting, and by that time you should know definitely just how you are going to improve the place this year, how much money the family fam-ily "budget" will allow for this purpose, pur-pose, and the means you will use to obtain desired results. Even bleak February can boast or occasional sunny, springlike flays, when the home grounds seem to smile in the sunshine at the promise and hope of spring. Seize that day when it comes, and devote at least a few of its hours to taking a leisurely leis-urely stroll about your grounds with tape measure, marking sticks and a note book. In your note book make a rough sketch of your place boundaries, walks, drives, hedges house, barn, garage, trees, etc. It makes no difference dif-ference how foolish the completed sketch may seem no one need look at it but yourself and if it is at all suggestive sug-gestive to you, that is all that Is necessary. nec-essary. With your tape measure, by just "pacing off" the distances, allowing three feet to each stride, measure oO that part of your grounds which Is to be devoted to the vegetable garden, gar-den, small orchard, flower garden, berry patch, flower border or shrubbery. shrub-bery. In going over the part of your grounds that has been previously planted, you will be surprised at the amount of "repairing" which will be necessary for a good start in the spring. There will be new planting ' 'to be set out in the old strawberry bed; that" old apple tree in the orchard or-chard must be cut down and two nev-ones nev-ones planted in its place; a few new-perennials new-perennials must be added to the perennial per-ennial border where the moles work- 1 ed such havoc last year; a nut tree or two may replace the old cherry-tree cherry-tree that has been dying by degrees; and a new shade tree to replace the one that was growing so nicely when the coal truck ran over It this winter. And after this really necessary planting has been jotted down in your note book comes the real pleasure plea-sure and fun of letting your imagination imagin-ation assist you in picturing the var ious planting improvements you have long dreamed of and now may hope to see this summer as actualities. One of the two extra shade trees before the side porch which always gets the direct summer sun, a grape arbor leading from the kitchen to the garage, some tall shrubs at the corner of the house foundations, an ornamental tree at either side of the front steps, some strong, hardy vines to cover the garage, chicken house or front piazza, a new hedge to surround sur-round the lower garden, or at least that longed for rose garden which you have put off from year to year mostly because you did not. plan for it in advance, and have your rose bushes ordered ahead. Write down what you would like and where you would like it on your diagram, and then when the sun goes down take your note book indoors in-doors with you, and after your invigorating in-vigorating walk, settle yourself in your arm chair for a few happy hours with pencil paper and catalogues. But first, before opening the catalogues cata-logues figure about how much of your budget should go for necessary improvement and how much will then be left for new plantings. Your final enjoyment will be found In browsing through the catalogues and deciding just which varieties of fruit ! trees, vines, plants or shrubs will be best fitted to the requirements whlcn are sketched on your plan. It may take several evening excursions to the catalogues where the entire ram-ily ram-ily has "a finger in the home beau-I beau-I tifying pie," before you can arrive !at an amicable agreement as to jus-1 jus-1 which varieties are best adapted to your purpose. |