Evening Star Newspaper, August 3, 1930, Page 34

-~ THE SUNDAY " THE HOME GARDENER Practical and Seasonal Hints for the Amateur for Beautifying Surroundings of the Home. PLANT BREEDING One of the finest hobbles in which the gardener can indulge his fancies is that of plant breeding. Not necessarily the systematic breeding of the scientific laboratory, which supports its field studies with microscopical examinations of the flowers and seeds, but the com- mon everyday type of breeding which attempts to unite the desirable charac- teristics of two varieties into one. Plant breeding tekes imagination and vision #0 become really absorbing. One has to vision what he hopes to attain and have courage r:':lsaulh to meet with many disappointments. Inp‘:.?x first place, many flowers will not cross pollinate, no ter how care- ful the work of the breeder, and again the percentage of success may be mighty small, And if seed is obtained. it may not grow because the grower does not know how to handle it properly. With certain plants several years are required to bring the young seedlings to li blooming age. Deepite ‘these many handicaps, our locality can boast of many amateur breeders, some of whom have gained wide recognition. J. M. Shull, B. BY J. W. WELLINGTON. Morrison and E. W. Sheets are promi- | nent among the local iris breeders. H. R. Watkins of Somerset and Dr.| White of Kensington are doing some fine work in peony breeding. H. E. Al- lanson, R. G. Plerce and H. Powell are working with lilies. B. Y. Morrison has not restricted energy to irls alone, but has included the narcissus and hemerocallis and other plants. This list is by no means complete, but shows that there is an earnest body of ‘workers in ou: locality who have chosen plant breeding as their garden hobby. “Profit is not the goal except in rare cases. It is the delving into the realm of un- Known possibilities that fascinates the workers. One really superior secdling would reward the worker adequately.| but instead of bringing his labors to an end would only inspire him on to great- er efforts. The thought that any one of his many seedlings may be the long- sought goal spurs the breeder on. ‘What rdener could really ask for & more alluring hobby? The chances of suc- cess are so uncertain and so small that there is no danger of ever attaining a saturation point. Most of the local gar- den clubs encourage amateur breeders by offering special awards for new secdlings. The process of plant breeding is sim- ‘ple in itself, consisting of removing the stamens from one flower, covering It with a sack to prevent natural pollina- tion by bees or the wind, and then, when the female parts, the stigmas, are ripe, applying pollen from the destred maje parent. Most of the amateur ‘bredders keep careful records in order they may know what varieties and what conditions led to success, if this uncertain will-o'-the-wisp is attained. THE ALTHEA In discussing the crape myrtle last week ,mention was made of its supposed Chinese origin. It is interesting to note that the althea, or Rose of Sharon, now in bloom is, according to Bailey's Stendard Cyclopedia, of uncertain nativity but probably from China. Thf phrase, “China, the mother of gardens,” is aptly worded and the fine thing about it is that new plants are still coming from that vast country. Althea, unlike crape myrtle, has no question of hardi- ness attached, being fully hardy in the Northern States. As any one who has noticed the sithea to any extent can readily tes- tify, the plant is exceedingly variable in character of the flowers, but the Jeaves are quite uniform, making it easy to ize the shrub, once that it is known. The flowers are single or dou- ble and range in color from white to blue rple, with a great number of variations. Concerning cultural re- quirements, althea demands very little care, but responds to attention. ~Insect and fungus enemies are of minor im- portance, so_that one rarely thinks of ying. Since the flowers are borne on young shoots in Midsummer, prun- ing ‘in early Spring is possible and de- sirable if one is seeking to keep the plant in hedge form. Without pruning | the althea will become a.large shrub or semi-tree. The Latin name of the althea is given by Dr. Bailey as hibiscus syriacus and is related to the garden mallow, the hollyhock, cotton and other members of thé extensive mallow famil which are characterized by la showy blooms. 1931 FRUIT BUD! Practically all fruits lay down fruit buds for the next year’s crop some time during the preceding Summer and early Autumn, thus making the care of the trees very important at this season of the ar. lo{: of leaves from insect or disease attacks are bad at any season, but par- ticularly bad during the season of fruit bud formation. Buds may form under such unfavorable conditions, but if they do so they will be weak and easily Win- ter killed if unfavorable conditions arise. Potentially every leaf bud lo- cated on normally fruit-bearing shoots may become a fruit bud if the tree is of bearing age and if nutritional con- ditions are right. Healthy leaves sup- ply the type of food needed to make the conditions right and the foliage should, therefore, be kept in a vigorous condition up to normal time of leaf fall if one expects the tree, vine or bush to go on from year to year yielding sat- isfactory crops of fruit. This is a diffi- cult season for fruit trees but thanks to their deep. penetrating roots, they have apparently not suffered as badly as annuals and shallow rooted peren- nials. With a favorable break in con- ditions there would seem no doubt of rmanent injury to fruit trees unless ated on very thin soil. PROPAGATION Any of the readers who may be fnterested in budding or in propaga- tion of woody plants by softwood cut- tings would do well to secure a copy of Farmers' Bulletion No. 1567, en- titled “Propagation of Trees and Shrubs” This paper is prepared from the practical viewpoint and describes .the principal methods employed in the propagating of fruit trees, evergreens and shrubbery. Request for copies most of | | | Tlustrating the use of the althea, —Photo by courtesy o or Rose of Sharon, as a part of the foundation shrubbery about a home. Banked with petunias in the foreground, there is certain to be an abundance of color throughout the Summer. f the U. S. Department of Agriculture. | DISEASE C( Dr. R. J. Haskell, plant pathologist in the Department of Agriculture, is credited in one of the recent press re- leases of the department with the state- ment that the average annual loss from plant disease injury amounts to $1,500,~ /000,000 in the United States alone. This is & tremendous loss, and much of | it avoidable if proper control measures | were carried out. When the loss from| destructive work of insects is added to| this sum, the total is tremendous. No| wonder that Dr. L. O. Howard prophe- sies that one of the great wars of the future will be man against insects. He might very well have added diseases. At this stage of the Nation's exist-| ence losses in food production are not| as serious to the Nation as a whole as| they will become in the future. Never- theless, the economic loss of $1,500,000,- 000 from plant disease alone is a serious toll. Just what it might cost properly to safeguard this large amount of prop- erty is not stated, but it is reasonable to expect that there \would be a wide margin of profit from such protection. | Dr. Haskell is well known to many local home gardeners, having served for two years as president of the Wood- ridge Garden Club and for several years as vice president of the National Capital Federation of Garden Clubs. l GARDEN ITEMS It is heart-breaking to see the gardens go down under the onslaught of the dry weather, but it is just one of the breaks of the game, and although dis- couraging to the home gardener is in no way as serious as for the farmers and| truck gardeners whose living depends on their crops. Those home gardeners who have water to use on their plants are indeed fortunate, but even the hose has its limitations in such a drought as| ‘we are now enduring. Planting of coveri crops and any other plants will simply have to be delayed until rains finally come again. There will undoubtedly be heavy losses in young trees, shrubbery and perennials planted this year unless a change in the weather comes shortly. Grass mowing has become an obso- lete practice in- many of the suburbs ‘where the water shortage is most acute. The appears killed, but without question will come back strong again when cool weather and rains arrive| once again. | The nectarine is nothing more nor less than a fuzzless peach, sometimes arising ply as a variation right in a peach tree. One limb will suddenly bear nectarines instead of peaches, and | young trees budded from this limb will | all be nectarines. For some reason or other, the nectarine never has been as| popular as the peach, despite its many | admirable qualities. It has to be mighty dry to cause grapes to suffer, yet that condition is| being reached in many localities near| the city. Leaves are beginning to drop| from the vines, and the berries are| drying and withering under the worst| conditions. The sad thing is that there is nothing to be done about it. Planning for next Spring’s garden is more alluring just now for suburbanites than figuring just where the garden is | going this Autumn. Another year will | bring back the gardens in all their glory, and with them the enthusiasm that cannot help but wane in the most | redoubtable heart just at present. Gar- den magazines and catalogues are now | presenting lists of tulips, narcissuses | and crocuses for Autumn planting. It is a good plan to order early, not that the supply is short, but frequently the early | orders contain the finest bulbs. The bulbs can be laid away in the cellar until planting time arrives, the exact date of which will depend on the weather rather than the calendar. Often the impression occurs in the gardener's mind that whereas cultivated | plants differ markedly into distinct va- | rieties, wild plants are highly uniform | Two Rooms, Kitchen and Porch, $37.50 The Wilson 412 First Street S.E. Baby Scratched and show no such variability. To a certain extent this may be true, because gardeners have selected plants of great- est differences from their fellows. But on the other hand close observation of a species, such as black raspberry, growing wild over a-considerable range, will reveal great differences betwgen plants. It is the keenness of observa- tion in the garden as compared with that used in the open field that gives rise to some of the supposed differences in uniformity. Fertilizers are of no value in very dry soil, and are more apt to be harm- ful, particularly the concentrated mate- rials. It is sensible to leave these materials in the sack until normal con- ditions return again. Old rotted ma- nure, on the contrary, may be applied at any time, and if used as mulch on the surface will be distinctly helpful, if no more than to aid in keeping the soll cool. In looking about for a plant to sup- ply a green, leafy vegetable during the heat of Midsummer, gardeners hit on the New Zealand spinach, which pos- Corner STAR, WASHINGTON, sesses unusual heat and drought re- sisting qualities. No one would say that New Zealand spinach is as good as well own common spinach, but it eertainly a fair substitute. It is of the cut- and-come-again type of plant, the ten- der shoots being taken and the main body of the plant being allowed to stand for further growth. Ordinarily, at this time of year, large quantities of this vegetable are brought into local markets and sold, usually simply as spinach. The vegetable is an oddity, since it traces its home to New Zea- land, and as far as known is the only vegetable which that far-away country has supplied civilized tables. Maintaining its busy schedule of meeting every two weeks throughout the growing season, the Community Garden Club of Rockville met Friday of last week at the home of Mrs. Ford E. Young, at Alta Vista, Md. Members brought many flowers, including water lilies, gladioluses, petunias, zinnias and other species arranged as floral pieces for table decoration and in baskets. Mrs. W. E. Yocum of Chevy Chase judged the exhibits. Mrs. Benjamin T. Elmore of Alta Vista described the flow- ers and scenery.of Canada as gleaned in a recent journey, and there was an informal discussion by members of their experiences in controlling garden Eesr.s, The next meeting of the Rockville Club i5 to be held at Olney, on August 8, at the home of Mrs. L. C. Probert. Y. W. C. A. News A group of 18 foreign students will be the guests of the board of directors and the World Fellowship Committee August 5 at a luncheon on the roof at Seventeenth and K streets. They are sponsored by the English-Speaking Union in their visit to Washington. The Y. M. and Y. W. Recreational Committee will sponsor another dance on the roof of the Y. W. C. A. at Seventeenth and K streets, August 8, from 9 to 12 o'clock. Miss Helen Courtney of Lamont, Okla., has taken a position as assistant secretary in the business and profes- sional women’s department, of which Miss Bertha Pabst is executive. She will attend the conference for professional women at Kiskiminetas August 11 to 19, accompanying the delegates, Miss Catherine English, Miss Lillian Frizzell and Miss Louise Kirchgessner. The second week of the “Pirate” theme for Kamp Kahlert activities has been carried out. Capt. Kidd and his crew went for a cruise down the river | on Monday, when guilty pirates from the previous week were made to “walk the plank” and swim ashore. Initia- | tions of new campers into the Pirate Band were held Tuesday. Mrs. Morse, dramatic counselor, gave the campers {an account of present-day pirates in | the Philippines and their origin, and of | her contact with them as a child. |~ Advanced Camper Pirates went on a | 24-hour cruise down the river, where | an_uncharted island was discovered nd preparations were made to receive he entire pirate erew on Saturday. |~ Wednesday evening a program of a campfire, games and singing was given, followed by star stories by Lois De La Hunt, as part of the worship program. The choir also sang. * Thursday campers hiked to Camp Battea on the Bay, where stories and The “Kenville” Frame - With Solid —Exquisitely engraved Gold Pads high-bridge frame of the newest style, with solid white gold pads, assuring comfort. Your own lenses inserted without charge. Have Your Eyes Examined —OQur registered Optom eyes without charge or etrists will examine your obligation. Kann's—Street Floor. Let THE STAR follow you into - Vacationland e The simplest way to Washington . nd all is to have THE STAR Summér address. e know what's going on in the other worthwhile news delivered by mail to your . D. C, AUGUST 3, poems around a campfire supper took up most of the evening, and a moon- light straw ride home closed the pro- gram, The campers from the Baltimore Y. W. C. A, Camp Pawatinikia on South River paid a visit to Kahlert on Satur- day. In the afternoon a base ball game between the rival camp teams was held and a picnic supper served. The visit~ ors were entertained in the evening by a presentation of the Gilbert and Sul- livan operetta, “The Pirates of Pen- zance,” presented by all Kahlert camp- 1930—PART TWO. and folk dancing lessons under Miss Latham. The Arts and Crafts students are centering this week on soap sculp- turing and clay modeling. A service of worship will be held Kamp this morning and in the after- noon there will be a discussion of “Vo- cational Guidance.” The evening will close with a ceremonial celebrating Capt. Kidd's departure. A class in single and double overarm swimming is being held Tuesday and Thursday mornings at 11 o'clock in the K street pool. A class is also being held in the same grade (third) starting Tuesday evening, which will meet regu-~ ers. The Seniors, with Miss Saida Hart- | larly on Tu assisted Owensville, with_their supper and ba- zaar Tuesday. impersonated and told fortunes to some | noons, 50 TPhltl'tl!nx. s e interes ou] are carrying on the “Kahlert Kfi’er?szhmugh zrge j'our- ( | nalism group, which is also keeping the | and 9, entire camp through the bulletin board. Boating and tennis instruction periods are held and progress is being shown by the begin- ners, while a group is taking tap, clog St. Mary's Church, | o'clock. when private posted on daily events | day. day and Thursday at 6:30 During August there will be a few “Madame Queen” was | hours in the mornings and in the after- mstruction in swimming can be given those The available hours are Tuesday and Thursday afternoons :30 and 10 a.m. except Satur- London is to have a new $1 PENN. AVENUE—EIGHTH AND D STS. DOLLAR SALE OF ART GOODS! Attractive Summer Pillows 4 for $1.00 —A colorful array of pillows, with cotton print Good centers and plain-colored ruffled edge. size for porches, canoes and homes. Crash Shopping Bags, 4 for —Ready-made bags for shopping or fancy work—tinted in colors. Stamped Tea Towels, 4 for —Linen towels in red, green, yellow and white block patterns. Simple designs. . Children’s Garments, 2 for —Stamped and ready-made dresses and aprons of voile, linene and unbleached ma- terial. Sizes 2 to 6 years. New Flapper Dolls, 2 for —Choice of white, black and blond halr. Stamped Bedspreads, at —With bolster attached. Basket and Co- lonial Girl designs stamped on unbleached material. ) Stamped Luncheon Sets —Linen sets, with 43-inch cover and four napkins—white with colored borders. Two simple designs. Child’s Stamped Crib Sets —Cover and pillow of unbleached material. Simple designs. . Stamped Curtains, 4 pairs —=Sheer white curtains, stamped with simple designs for colored embroidery. Stamped Pillows, 4 for —Top and back of lawn in blue, green and peach. Stamped Aprons, 4 for —Women's aprons, of unbleached material. Choice of several designs. New Rayon Satin Pillows —Bright colored pillows in damask patterns. Stamped Covers, 3 for . —Card table covers of unbleached material. Finished with tape. Stamped Centerpieces, 4 for —-18-inch linen centerpieces, stamped for simple embroidery. Stamped Pillowcases, 2 prs. —Hemstitched or plain hem styles. Stamped for simple embroidery. Stamped Linen Scarfs, 2 for —Choice of several attractive designs. All with hemstitched hems. Kann's—Fourth Floor. 22 sSSP LT T Buy Them Now—Use Them All the Year ’Round “EMPECO” Radiator Covers WITH HUMIDIFIER! $1.49 ea. —Now is the time to buy them at this special Summer price. They come complete with humidifying pan to provide healthful heat. They are convenient shelves in the Summer, . and they protect your walls and draperies in the Winter. No tools, nuts or bolts necessary to attach to radiator. They are 9'; inches wide, extend from 17; to 31'; inches long, and are in an attractive mahogany finish. Priced to enable you to have covers for all radiators in your home at a small cost. Kann's—Third Floor. Special This Week, at Kann’s This $112 Westinghouse Electrified Console Sewing Machine —A beautiful console model of American Walnut, equipped with the Westinghouse motor and full set of attachments, one this week and save $43.00. Convenient Terms —During the month of August we will allow you $50.00 for your old sewing machine toward the pur- chase of any Free-Westinghouse Cabinet Model Machine. Kann's—Fourth Filoor. Pealar. For This New Frigidaire! Porcelain Inside and Out! Select should be addressed to the Department | ! of Agriculture. Almost Constantly Cuticura Healed “‘The trouble began on my baby’s face when he was about -lx,mo:(,h- old. I thought it was only a baby rash but it became worse. His skin was very sore and dry, almost to the point of breaking. The breaking out was very red and itched and burned so that he scratched his face| Simply leave your address or itinerary at the Business office and you will receive THE STAR with the same dispatch as if you were in your own home in Washington. —A ‘strikingly beautiful new Frigidaire, finished in glacier-gray Porcelain-on-steel—durable and easy to clean. It has shelves that are elevated to a convenient height. It has rounded corners and roomy food storage space. Most important of all, the mechanical unit is comdpletel enclosed—the design that has made Frigidaire famous for effi- _ ciency, long life and low operating cost. T . . Special Price for ' Made-to-Order —E{iulfped with the “Cold Control,” now conven- iently located on front of cabinet, this Frigidaire T . freezes ice and desserts with incredible speed. It is extra powerful yet remarkably quiet. In every waY, a refrigerator worthy of the name R Usually $29.50 and $32.50 —These covers will be cut, made and fitted to any three-piece suite of living room furniture, including the five separate cushions. All work is guavanteed, and all covers will be made of genuine Belgian linen. Choice of several striped patterns. A VENERABLE TREE Given freedom from its arch enemy, fire blight, the pear tree is capable of growing to & fine old age. There stands near Danvers, Mass, an old tree which was planted in 1832 Gov. John Efldfifiolbte‘wd which ston rs assert ring a crop f{“}nfltp}l‘rthh year 1930. The tree has now such a reputation that it is properly protected by an iron fence, but for many years it simply stood in an open pasture, buffeted by animals and Zenerally abused. fruit of this Rates by Mail—Postage Paid ; A able in Advance Maryland and Virginia— Evening an Sunday. Evening. Sunday. One month.....cocceennninn.. 85c o 40c One week........cocevnvene.. 25¢ 1Sc 10¢ All Other States— One month $1.00 75¢ 500 One week . 30c 25¢ 15¢ The Star THE GREAT NEWSPAPER OF THE NATION'S CAPITAL Convenient Terms i5, described as small and sugary, Third Floar. pear vipening early and presumably not un- w?: the sugar pear found so common in old New England orchards. Three hundred years is a long time for & fruit tree to survive. The thou- sands of orchards that have come into being and disappeared since this ven- completely healed.” (Signed) Mrs. E. E. Weidner, Eaton, Ohio. Li that regularly s 69¢c at 45¢c a yard. Kann's—Third Floor.