Balloon Flower (_Platycodon_); blue, purple, white; July to October.
Phlox, Hardy (_Phlox paniculata_); no blue nor real yellow; June through September.
Golden Glow (_Rudbeckia laciniata_); yellow; August.
Blanket Flower (_Gaillardia aristata_); yellow, red; July to October.
Boltonia (_Boltonia latisquama_); lilac; August to October.
Sunflower (_Helianthus_); yellow; July to October.
[Ill.u.s.tration: KIM AND COLUMBINE]
The fault that I would find with the gentleman"s list is that he has omitted chrysanthemums, which could be subst.i.tuted for sunflowers to most people"s satisfaction,--and which also would bloom as late as November. Also I should prefer columbine to his bleeding hearts,--and the golden-spurred variety will bloom from early May to early August!
Above all, instead of boltonia, I would use the adorable snapdragons, which, although considered a "tender perennial," will survive cold weather if well protected.
But then, as I once heard, "A man"s garden is like his wife, whom he never would think of comparing with anybody else"s." So you don"t have to follow any one"s choice. Just make a list of the flowers that you like, find out when they bloom, and then choose as few or as many as you have room for, remembering to plan for something lovely every month of the blooming season.
One note of warning, however. After you have made your list, consult some friend that is a successful gardener, and make sure that what you have chosen will thrive in your particular locality. If you find it does not, strike it off, and put in something that will.
FLOWERS THAT COME UP EVERY YEAR BY THEMSELVES
A GUIDE TO THE COMMON PERENNIALS
NOTE.--A few of these will blossom the first summer, if started early.
Also, some varieties of the same plant will flower in the spring, others in the fall. Make sure which kind you get.
------------------+--------+-------+-------+--------+-----------+------+----------SOWSOWBLOOMING NAMECOLORHEIGHTINDOORSOUTDOORSGOOD FORPLACESEASON ------------------+--------+-------+-------+--------+-----------+------+---------- Alyssum (_AlyssumRich1 ft.MayRockeryHalfApril, saxatile_)yellowJuneEdgingshadeMayor sunAnemone, j.a.paneseRose2 toMayBorderHalfSept., (_AnemoneWhite4 ft.JuneBedshadeOct.
j.a.ponica_)or sunAster, HardyWhite2 toMayAnywhereShadeAug. to (_Aster Novae-Pink5 ft.Juneor sunOct.
Angliae_)LavenderPurpleBaby"s BreathWhite2 toMayRockerySunJune, (_Gypsophila3 ft.JuneBorderJuly paniculata_)Balloon FlowerWhite1 toMayBorderSunJuly to (_Platycodon_)Blue3 ft.JuneOct.
Begonia, HardyWhite1 toMayBorderSunJune to (_BegoniaPink2 ft.JuneAug.
Evansiana_)RoseBellflowerWhite1 toMayBorderSunJune, (_Campanula_)Blue3 ft.JuneJuly[A]Blanket FlowerRed3 toMayBorderSunJuly to (_GaillardiaYellow5 ft.JuneBedOct.
aristata_)Bleeding HeartPink2 ft.MayBorderLikesMay, (_DicentraJuneBedhalfJune spectabilis_)shadeBoltoniaLilac2 toMayBorderSunAug. to (_Boltonia6 ft.JuneBedOct.
latisquama_)Candytuft, HardyWhite6 toMayBorderSunApril, (_Iberis12 in.JuneEdgingMay sempervirens_)Chrystmas RoseWhite12 toMayBorderHalfDec. to (_h.e.l.leborus15 in.JuneShadeMarch, niger_)_outdoors_Chrysanthemum,No2 toMayBorderSunSept. to Hardyblue3 ft.JuneBedNov.
ColumbineAll2 toMayRockerySunMay to (_Aguilegia_)shades4 ft.JuneBedAug.
CoreopsisYellow1 toMayBorderSunJune to (_Coreopsis2 ft.JuneBedOct.
lanceolata_)Daisy, EnglishPink3 toMayBedSunApril to (_BellisWhite6 in.JuneJune perennis_)DelphiniumBlue2 toMarchMayBorderSunJune, (_Delphiniumto6 ft.JuneBedJuly, Sep.
formosum_,whiteOct. Cut _D. Belladonna_,down after _D. Chinense_)eachfloweringFlag, see Iris[B]Forget-me-not,Blue6 toMayBorderShadeMay to Perennial18 in.Juneor sunfall (_Myosotispal.u.s.tris_)[C]FoxgloveWhite3 toMayBorderHalfJune, (usuallyPurple5 ft.JuneBedshadeJuly biennial)Rose(_Digitalis_)YellowFraxinella,see Gas PlantGaillardia, seeBlanket FlowerGas PlantRose2 ftLongMayBorderSunJune, (_DictamnusWhitelivedJuneBedJuly albus_)Golden GlowYellow6 toMayBack ofSunJuly to (_Rudbeckia8 ft.JuneborderSept.
laciniata_)[B]HollyhockAll4 toMayBack ofSunJuly, (_Althaea rosea_)shades6 ft.JuneborderAugustor bedIrisWhite1 toMayBorderSunMay toPurple3 ft.JuneBedJulyYellowClumpMaroonLarkspur,see DelphiniumLupinWhite2 toMayBorderSun orMay, (_Lupinus_)Blue5 ft.JuneBedhalfJunePinkClumpshadeYellowMadwort,see Alyssum[A]Mallow, MuskWhite1 toMayBorderSun orJuly to (_MalvaRose2 ft.JuneshadeSept.
moschata_)Michaelmas Daisy,see AsterMonk"s-hoodBlue to3 toSlow toMay_Poisonous_Sun orJuly to (_Aconitumwhite5 ft.startJuneshadeSept.
napellus_)Moss Pink, see_Phlox subulata_Mullein PinkWhite1 toMayBorderSunJune, (_LychnisRed3 ft.JuneBedJuly coronaria_)Myosotis, seeForget-me-notMyrtle, seePeriwinklePansyWhite6 toMarchAprilBorderSun orAll (_ViolaBlue8 in.MayBedhalfsummer, tricolor_)YellowshadewithPurplecarePeonyWhite3 ft.SlowMayBorderSun orMay, (_PaeoniaRosegrowerJuneClumpshalfJune officinalis_)CrimsonshadePeriwinkleBlue6 toMarchMayTrailingShadedAll (_Vinca minor_)White10 in.JunevinebaresummerspotsPhlox, PerennialNo blue2 toSlowMayBorderSunAug., (_Phloxor3 ft.JuneBedSept.
paniculata_)yellow(_PhloxWhite2 in.MayCarpetingSunApril, subulata_)PinkJuneBorderMayLavenderPink, Gra.s.sWhite1 ft.MayRockerySunMay, (_DianthusVari-JuneBorderJune plumaris_)coloredPlatycodon,see Bellflower[A]Poppy, IcelandWhite1 ft.AprilBorderSunJune to (_PapaverRedMayBedOct.
nudicaule_YellowPoppy, OrientalScarlet3 ft.MarchBorderSunJune, (_PapaverOrangeAprilBedJuly orientale_)to pinkPyrethrumWhite3 ft.MayBorderSunJune, (_ChrysanthemumRoseJuneBedJuly coccineum_)Crimson[A]Rocket, SweetWhite2 toMayBorderSunJune to (_Hesperis_)to3 ft.JuneClumpAug.
purpleRockmadwort,see AlyssumRose Campion,see Mullein PinkRudbeckia,see Golden GlowSage, see SalviaSalviaWhite2 toMayBorderSunMay to (perennial)Blue4 ft.JuneBedSept.
[F]SnapdragonNo1 toMarchMay 1stBorderSunJune to (_Antirrhinum_)blues3 ft.BedOct.
SunflowerYellow2 toMayBack ofSunSept. to (_Helianthus_)8 ft.JuneborderNov.
[E]Sweet WilliamWhite1 ft.MayBorderSunJune to (_DianthusPinkJuneBedAug.
barbatus_)MaroonTickseed, seeCoreopsis[G]WallflowerYellows1 toMayRockPartMay (_Cheiranthusto2 ft.Junegardenshadecheiri_)brownsorandborderpurplesWindflower,White1 toMayClumpPartApril Snowdrop1 ft.JuneBordershadeto (_Anemoneor sunJuly sylvestris_)------------------+--------+-------+-------+--------+-----------+------+----------
FOOTNOTES:
[E] Will bloom the first year from seed sown in March.
[F] Perennial in the South, but should be grown annually in the North.
[G] Really a biennial.
CHAPTER VI
Flowers that Spring from a Storehouse (Bulbs and Tubers)
Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they toil not, neither do they spin: and yet I say unto you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
--_Matthew_ vi, 28, 29.
IF you are going to be a really-truly gardener, you will want to know something about the plants and flowers that you try to grow, so let"s have a few words right here about the difference between the bulb and tuber families. They can be cla.s.sed together because they both spring from what is in fact a storehouse filled one season with food to help them through the next season"s bloom!
Hyacinths and daffodils, for example, come from BULBS, which are built up, layer on layer, exactly like an onion.
Dahlias and Cannas, however, grow from a TUBER, which is an underground k.n.o.b on the stem, quite a little like a sweet potato, and which sends out the shoots that make new plants.
The crocus and the gladiolus both spring from a CORM, which differs from the bulb in that it is solid (not in layers), and from the tuber in that it is not like a potato in shape but oval.
The iris, though, grows from a RHIZOME, a thickened root running along the ground (often half exposed), which throws up the new plants as it spreads.
The bulb and tuber families are treated very much alike. Some of each are left in the ground year after year, like the daffodils and the lilies, while others, like the cannas and dahlias, have to be dug up, allowed to dry a little in the open air, and then stored in a cool, dark place for the winter. The rhizomes do not have to be "lifted," but are increased generally by root division,--cutting off a piece of the root soon after flowering, and planting where it will get a good start before next season"s time to bloom.
Some people today would follow Mohammed"s advice: "He that hath two cakes of bread, let him sell one of them--for bread is only food for the body, but the narcissus is food for the soul;" but few individuals--let alone a nation--would grow so wildly enthusiastic as once did the Dutch, as to spend every last possession to buy tulips! But we dearly love all of these groups, and are using them in increasing numbers every season.
The fascinating work of growing certain kinds indoors during the winter I tell you about in the chapter on "The Care of House Plants," so here we will consider the outdoor culture.
The delicate snowdrop is the very earliest of these visitors, and planted in groups in half-shady places,--like under trees,--where they will not be disturbed, will thereafter take care of themselves. Then quickly follow the lovely crocuses, white, yellow, lavender, purple, and the varigated, which often are planted right where they fall after being scattered broadcast over the lawn,--though if the head of the house cuts the gra.s.s before the middle of April they should be set in a bed where they will not be touched.
Hyacinths are beautiful, but personally I do not care much about them in the garden, as they generally have to be planted in ma.s.ses to get any effect, and need, therefore, to be used in large numbers, are more expensive than the other bulbs, and should be taken out of the ground soon after blooming and stored in a cool place until fall. However, one enthusiast that I know plants in rings of 6, and leaves them in the ground!
The daffodil, jonquil and narcissus are three types of the narcissus family, the daffodils usually being distinguished by their long trumpets, while the jonquils and narcissi have the little cup-like centers, and, moreover, are fragrant. They should be planted in the late fall, 4 in. below the surface, in soil that has been enriched 8 in.
below the bulb. They increase rapidly, and do not have to be taken up, or even divided for years. If set in a border where their room is needed after they bloom, simply turn the tops down under the soil, and sow over them any low-growing annual, such as candytuft or poppies. My friend of the tiny "handkerchief" garden described in Chapter II, has--think of it!--over 1500 of these various spring-flowering bulbs in her border that are treated this way, and never taken up! Yet a few weeks after they have bloomed, the s.p.a.ce they occupied is filled with new beauties.
Tulips--but as I told you, they once drove a whole country mad! Today we have probably far more beautiful ones,--and many can be bought in the fall at planting time, for $1.00 per hundred! Some bloom early, some late; some are short, some tall; some are cheap, some expensive. They will grow in partial shade or sun, and can be planted in groups in the border, or in marginal rows for edging. By carefully choosing from both the early and late varieties, you can enjoy your tulips for nearly two months; and by as carefully choosing your colors, have all sorts of artistic combinations. They should be planted 3 or 4 in. deep if the soil is heavy, and an inch deeper in soil that is light, and set 6 in.
apart. They will prove a joy to your heart.
Tuberous-rooted begonias supply a much-felt want for lovely flowers in half-shady or shady places. If the bulbs are started in the house in sand in February, they will be in full leaf when ready to set out in May, and will bloom from June until frost. Don"t, please don"t, plant them upside down, but be sure that the rounded part rests on the soil.
They require light, rich earth, with plenty of water, given after sundown.
Cannas only too often are planted in big, showy beds where they break our rule of "open lawn centers." In fact, they are a little hard to place, but look well in a corner, in beds along a drive, or outlining a boundary. The ground should be spaded 2 ft. deep, well fertilized, and then kept watered. Set plants 2 ft. apart.
The iris is one of the most beautiful and most satisfactory of all the hardy plants. It grows in almost any soil, and any situation, but does best in rich ground, with plenty of water. It may be planted either in early spring or after August. The dwarf varieties, from 6 to 18 in.
high, bloom during March, April and May; the German iris, standing often 3 ft. high, in May; and the marvelous j.a.panese kinds, sometimes 4 ft., with blossoms 8 to 10 in. across, closing the season in July! (In heavy soil they are not so tall.) When used alone in beds, one prominent grower suggests that the German iris be combined with hardy asters (set in between), and the j.a.panese with gladioli, to keep a succession of bloom until late fall.
Lilies for the garden are of many varieties, requiring different kinds of treatment. As a general rule, however, when the soil is heavy, set your bulb in a nice little nest of sand, and give a blanket of the same before filling in with the ordinary earth.