HOW TO PLANT A SMALL PLOT
I am frequently surprised to hear people say, "Oh, a flower garden is
very nice, but such a trouble!" I have heard this expression several
times from friends who employ a number of men and have large places
with extensive lawns, shrubberies and vegetable gardens, but without
flowers, except, perhaps, a few annuals growing among the vegetables.
Yet no one is indifferent to the beauty of garden, or unobservant of
the improvement which even a few flowers can make around the humblest
cottage. Think of the pretty thatched cottages one sees everywhere in
England and France, covered to the eaves with Roses and Clematis, and
surrounded by flowers growing wherever they can find root in the tiny
gardens. Yet all this is the result of only a half hour's daily care
after the long day's work is done.
One should begin with a few plants--perhaps a dozen only--and the
"trouble" will soon become a delight, unless one is devoid of all love
for flowers.
[Illustration: Vase of Peonies
June sixth]
Whenever I hear remarks on the "trouble" of a flower garden, I think of
those peasant homes, and also of a little plot grown and cared for by
a certain tenant farmer's wife I know. She has six children, and must
cook and bake and clean for four men in addition; yet, some time every
day, she finds a few minutes to tend her flowers. She has a border
along the fence four by fifty feet, filled with perennials; a border
across the front of her house with Phlox and Funkias, and a couple of
beds with Asters, Poppies, Balsams, Portulaca and Pinks. The perennials
were given her, a few at a time. She separated the roots, saved the
seeds to raise others, and has been able in this way to increase her
borders. The seeds of the few annuals she buys do not cost more than a
dollar a year. Thus, for a trifling expenditure and a short time every
day, this woman makes her humble surroundings beautiful, while her
soul finds an object upon which to expend its love of beauty, and her
thoughts have a respite from the daily cares of life.
Many people have the mistaken idea that a flower garden, however small,
is an expensive luxury, and are so convinced of this, that they never
venture any attempt at gardening, and pass their lives knowing nothing
of its pleasures.
Let us suppose some one is starting a suburban home in a simple way,
and see how flowers can be had for many months at small cost. If one
has a place in a town or village, the plot of ground not over fifty
by two hundred feet, still the possibilities are great, and the owner
can easily gather flowers for herself and her friends from April until
mid-November. A house or cottage on such a piece of ground generally
stands back from twenty to fifty feet, with a gravel or flagged walk
running to the street. If the owner be a beginner in gardening and
expects to do most of the work herself, let her commence with a few
plants in a small space. As the plants thrive and become beautiful,
the care of them will give an added pleasure to life, and, little by
little, the beds and borders can be increased.
In beginning to plant a small plot, the most natural place first is
a border, say two feet wide, on either side of the walk leading from
the house to the street. Have these borders dug out and made properly.
Then, if the owner wishes to see them continually abloom, bulbs must be
planted, to give the early spring flowers. Tulips can be had for eighty
cents a hundred, _Narcissus Poeticus_ for sixty-five cents a hundred,
and Yellow Daffodils for one dollar and twenty-five cents a hundred.
Hyacinths are more expensive, and cost from four dollars a hundred up.
If a hundred each of the Tulips, Narcissi, Hyacinths and Daffodils
were planted they would make the borders lovely from early in April
until late in May. The Daffodils will bloom first, then the Hyacinths,
followed by the Narcissi, and the Tulips last, if care is taken to buy
a late variety.
There should certainly be three or four Peonies in the borders,--pink,
white, and dark red; good roots of these can be had for about
thirty-five cents each. Once planted, they should not be disturbed for
years; and, although the first season they may not yield more than two
or three blossoms, in each succeeding year the flowers will increase
in number. A friend told me, not long ago, that she had counted sixty
blossoms upon each of several of her plants.
There should also be at least a dozen Columbines (Aquilegias) to bloom
the end of May and the first of June. The roots of these can be bought
for a dollar and a half a dozen, or they can be raised from seed; in
the latter case, however, they would not bloom until the second year,
being perennials.
No border can be complete without Delphiniums (Larkspur). Good-sized
roots of the _Delphinium formosum_, lovely dark blue, are a dollar
and twenty-five cents a dozen. _Formosum Coelistina_, the light blue
variety, is two dollars and a half a dozen. Then, of course, there must
be other perennials,--Phlox, at least a dozen plants in the different
colours, which will cost a dollar and a half.
A few Lilies will add greatly to the beauty of the borders. Tiger
Lilies, which are only sixty cents a dozen; Auratums, which can be had
from eighty-five cents a dozen up, according to the size of the bulbs;
_Speciosum rubrum_ from eighty-five cents a dozen up, and Candidums,
or Madonna Lilies, a dollar and a half a dozen. German Iris, a dollar
a dozen, and Japanese Iris, at a dollar and a quarter a dozen, should
also have a place.
[Illustration: _Lilium speciosum rubrum_
September fifteenth]
Excellent Gladioli can be bought for a dollar and fifty cents a
hundred, and these will be most satisfactory if planted in the border
about May fifteenth in groups of six to ten.
A dozen Chrysanthemums of the hardiest varieties to be obtained, and
costing a dollar and a half a dozen, will, with the other plants
mentioned, about fill two borders two feet wide by thirty long. It
would also be well to sow the seeds of some Calendulas, Nasturtiums
and Asters wherever there may be a vacant place. Or better, perhaps,
sow the seeds in boxes in mid-April, and transplant to the border the
early part of June. The first cost will be the only expense for these
borders, except in the case of the Auratum Lilies, which will die out
in about three years, and of the few flower seeds. The only care needed
is to keep the borders free from weeds, to stir the soil every week,
and to water after sunset in dry weather.
It will be seen, from the following list, that such borders can easily
be made and planted at a cost of less than thirty dollars. This can be
reduced by omitting the Hyacinths. Directions for planting are given
elsewhere.
PRICE
Tulips $0 80
Narcissi 65
Daffodils 1 25
Hyacinths 4 00
Peonies 1 40
Columbines 1 50
_Delphinium Formosum_ 1 25
_Delphinium Coelestina_ 2 50
Phlox 1 50
Tiger Lilies 60
Auratum 85
_Lilium rubrum_ 85
_Lilium candidum_ 1 50
Japanese Iris 1 25
_Iris Germanica_ 1 00
Chrysanthemums 1 50
Flower seeds 1 00
Three days' work, at $1.50 per day 4 50
Manure 1 50
------
Total $29 40
After a year or two, the owner of the cottage may want to increase the
flower garden, and the next place to plant is close about the house. It
is to be taken for granted that the house and piazzas have the proper
gutters. This is necessary, of course, for the preservation of the
house, and without gutters the drip from the eaves would be such that
nothing could grow directly against the house.
The bed might be three feet wide and run across the front of the house
on either side of the steps. The owner would probably wish to plant
vines over the porch or piazza, in case it has not already been done.
The best for this purpose are mentioned elsewhere.
Should the house front the south, east or west, nearly everything
can be grown; but should it face the north, nothing but Ferns and
Rhododendrons would be successful on the front. Dahlias of the Cactus
variety, in different colours, could be planted at the back of the bed
on one side of the steps. Get good-sized roots, plant them two feet
apart. They will grow against the house like a tall hedge. If planted
the third week in April quite deep, say eight inches, they will begin
to bloom about the sixth of July, and continue to be covered with
flowers until killed by frost. In front of the Dahlias, plant white
Phlox. In front of the Phlox sow a row of _Centaurea_ or Cornflowers,
the Emperor William variety. These should be sown early in April, will
begin to bloom by June tenth, and, if they are not allowed to go to
seed, will blossom all summer. Sow in front of the Cornflowers, at
the same time, a row of white Candytuft, of the Empress variety. This
also will bloom continuously if the flowers are cut as soon as they
wither. On the other side of the steps, at the back of the bed, plant
Rudbeckia (Golden Glow) two feet apart. The roots should be bought and
planted, preferably in October, otherwise as soon as the frost is out
of the ground in the spring, as they start very early. In front of the
Rudbeckias plant Cannas--the Tarrytown, of most vivid scarlet hue, I
have found the best and freest-flowering of all. The roots should be
planted about May fifteenth.
On the edge of the bed, sow by April fifteenth a row of salmon-pink
Zinnias, and when they are well up, thin out to six inches apart. They
begin to blossom when very small, and will stand considerable frost.
The expense of these beds will be trifling. Rudbeckias of the Golden
Glow variety, one dollar a dozen; the Tarrytown Canna, two dollars and
a half a dozen; Cactus Dahlias, two dollars a dozen; Phlox, one dollar
and a half a dozen. The small quantity of flower seeds required will
cost less than a dollar. A man can easily make the beds in three days.
Therefore, the cost with manure will be less than fifteen dollars.
After a hard frost has killed the tops, the Dahlias, Cannas and
Gladioli should be taken up, the tops cut off, the roots well dried,
and then stored in a cellar that does not freeze. The Canna and Dahlia
roots will have grown so large that they can be divided and it will
be found that there are enough to plant, the following spring, nearly
twice the space they occupied before.
It is impossible, if successful with the borders already planned, for
the owner not to wish for more garden. She sees the neighbors' gardens
with newly opened eyes; flowers and their treatment become an absorbing
topic of conversation, and the exchange of plants a delightful
transaction.
[Illustration: Vase of Altheas
September sixteenth]
It will be seen that the next places to plant are along the boundary
lines of the property. Even if one side only be laid out at a time,
a large number of plants will be required. The owner will find great
pleasure in raising as many of these herself as possible. To accomplish
this, somewhere at the back of the place, a seed-bed should be made,
and in April the seeds of perennials and annuals sown. The border
must be made by September the twentieth and should be at least four
feet wide. Either a hedge can be placed at the back of the border, or
tall-growing flowering shrubs, such as white and purple Lilacs (not the
Persian), Mock Oranges (Syringa), Deutzia and Roses of Sharon (Althea).
These shrubs will grow about equally high, yield an abundance of
flowers, the Altheas in August, the others in May or June, and in four
or five years will form a complete screen from the neighboring grounds.
In front of the shrubs perennials can be planted, taller ones at the
back, lower-growing ones in front, and annuals along the edge. Such a
border, if from fifty to a hundred feet in length, will be a garden by
itself. The plants will do best if closely set, and every vacant space
filled in June with annuals. Weeds then have little chance to grow, and
a short time every day will keep such a border in order. The border
can be of any width from four to twelve feet, but when more than four
feet, the front edge should be made with irregular curves to avoid a
stiff appearance.
Shrubs should be set out not later than October tenth, and, as they or
the hedge would be at the back of the bed, the planting of them will
not interfere with the perennials that have already been transplanted
from the seed-bed. Hedges are so much more beautiful than any fence
that ever was built that, in towns or villages where cattle are not
allowed to run at large, hedges should, wherever possible, be used in
place of fences.
To prepare the ground for a hedge, make a trench eighteen inches deep,
put a good layer of well-rotted manure in the bottom and fill up with
earth. When the hedge is planted give it a good top-dressing of manure,
and continue this top-dressing, with a little bone-meal sown on the
surface of the ground, every spring.
[Illustration: Planting on the edge of lawn
August second]
The best and hardiest evergreen hedge is of Hemlock Spruce. Plants of
this can be bought for fifteen dollars a hundred, and should be set
eighteen inches apart.
The Privet is a favorite hedge in this country. It keeps green until
December, and leafs out early in the spring. It is hardy and of rapid
growth. Good plants are six dollars a hundred, and should be planted a
foot apart. Catalogues say that if planted in rich soil one foot apart,
a hedge five feet high can be grown in three seasons. Common Privet is
more hardy than California Privet. _Hydrangea paniculata grandiflora_
makes a beautiful low-growing hedge; good plants can be bought for six
dollars a hundred. _Berberis Thunbergii_, or Barberry, makes a fine
hedge, on account of its beautiful foliage and scarlet fruit. It is,
however, slow-growing.
The owner of a small place should avoid the temptation to scatter
flower beds about the lawn. Keep all the planting along the edges
of the property and around the house, and leave the lawn unbroken
by flower beds. The years when gardening consisted only of beds of
Coleus, Geraniums, Verbenas and bedding plants have passed away, like
the black walnut period of furniture. And even as the mahogany of our
grandfathers is now brought forth from garrets and unused rooms, and
antiquity shops and farm-houses are searched for the good old-time
furniture, so we are learning to take the old gardens for our models,
and the old-fashioned flowers to fill our borders.
The nurseryman of to-day has greatly improved the size and colour
of the old varieties of perennials, so that they are far more
beautiful than formerly, and offer a much greater choice. By skilful
hybridization a hundred or more kinds of Phlox have been developed.
In the same way, numerous varieties of Delphiniums, Iris, Peonies,
Columbines, Canterbury Bells and Foxgloves have been produced. The
old-fashioned annuals also appear in many new forms. In addition to
the pink and white "Painted Lady," the pure white and the dark purple
Sweet Peas of our mothers' time, we may now cultivate some eighty
varieties of this delicate flower. Thus the garden of hardy perennials,
annuals and bulbs will give us a continual sequence of flowers in
every form and colour from April until November, if properly made and
tended.
[Illustration: Asters in rows for picking
August twenty-fifth]
THE SEED-BED