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For Woman’s Work.
THE CALL OF THE SOUTH WIND.
ROSE SEELYE MILLER.
The wind whispered soft to the bare, brown trees,
He whispered low, but they heard his call,
‘‘Awake from your sleep,” called the soft south
breeze
And they heard and heeded him, one, and all.
Their quickened pulses, leaped up and flew,
From the tiniest root, to the top aloft,
And budding leaves, spread beneath the blue—
And the branches brown, wove a covering soft.
The oak stood clad in a royal gown,
Os crimson velvet, a robe for kings ;
The beech and birch wore a soft green crown,
From the elms bare branches plumage springs.
The maple hung on her bare brown limbs
Rich tassels of scarlet, with threads of gold,
And the earth was filled with Nature’s hymns
Os a glad new life, so new, yet old.
For Woman’s Work.
HOW AND WHEN TO SEND
' PLANTS AND BULBS.
BY ROSE SEELYE MILLER.
I have lately received, from John Lewis
Childs, of Floral Park, N. Y., a box of
plants which I had previously ordered. He
of course, as a florist of long experience,
understands thoroughly the method of
packing plants to be sent by mail or ex
press. This knowledge we expect, nay
demand, in one in such a responsible posi
tion; and were it lacking, how soon would
our patronage be transferred to some florist,
who did understand fully the arts of his
profession.
But alas! how wofully at fault is the
amateur on this particular point!
The exchange of plants is a pleasant
thing, but how often is the pleasure all in
the anticipation, instead of the realization!
We think of the floral treasures enroute,
and can hardly await the slow moving of
Uncle Sam’s lightning express, to receive
them. The box arrives, is opened with
swift fingers, and eager look, but how the
fingers slacken their pace, and how the
glad, eager look fades from the face, as
plant after plant is disinterred, only to be
thrown away. This is not an exaggeration,
by any means,but a simple fact. No doubt
the sender meant well, and probably pack
ed the plants with as much knowledge as
he or she possessed, in regard to plant
packing.
Sometimes the plants are put up too wet,
and suffer from rot, or are put up so dry as
to be naught but useless sticks; and again,
when the packer has hit upon the happy
medium regarding moisture, the plants are
packed too tenderly, with too much con
sideration in regard to individual rights—
that is, they are not packed close enough—
and what with much jostling and jolting,
the poor, long-suffering plants, have about
ceased to suffer, and are beyond all hope
of resuscitation. For whatever good effect
a thorough shaking may have upon the
proverbial bad boy, and patent medicine,
the result is quite the contrary when ap
plied to tender plants by the hands of
Uncle Sam’s mail, or railroad officials.
Please bear this in mind.
And now another grievance. Why is it
that amateurs will write neat labels, and
then strangle the plants by tying them on?
There is a far better way. You may not
think you are cutting the plant when you
tie the label on firmly with the thread, but
a damage is done—sometimes utter ruin
accomplished, when everything else has
been done all right—just by this inveterate
mania for tying on labels.
Now mind, I do not advise the non use
IM-
MRS. ROSE SEELYE MILLER.
stove, and that you know is well nigh in
dispensable.
Label the plants you send by mail, but
don’t tie the labels on, unless you want the
plant either to rot under the string, be cut
off by it, or, at the very least, be shrunken
and damaged thereby.
A very simple way is to write the label
cut a little slit in one end, put the label
round the plant stalk, and slip the end not
slit through the one slit. This will do no
harm whatever. I suppose one of the best
things to use for this purpose, is a thin bit
of pliable bark, such as may be secured
from some beech tree. It is as smooth
and beautiful as the most highly finished
paper, though if you happen to be a thou
sand miles from it, as I am, this piece of
information will do little good.
But w’hateveryou use for a label—paper,
birch bark, or stiff muslin, (and paper of a
strong, tenacious texture, is good) attach
it in the manner described.
Now for packing: Thin wooden boxes
are the best thing to pack plants in. A
cigar box would be nice; or, I should think,
a box might be improvised out of four thin
shingles, and put together with brads. Any
woman who can use a hammer, at all,
could construct one or more of these boxes.
A box of this size would hold a great many
plants—more than you would think. The
plants should be packed closely and no
possible chance left for their shaking
around. All empty space in the box should
be filled in with excelsior or soft paper—
even heavier paper, when torn into bits,
makes a good substance.
The roots of the plants should not be dis
turbed much, though the surplus earth may
be removed, as it weighs heavy for mailing.
AVrap the roots ot the plants well in wet
moss, and make it as firm and close as
possible. Place an oiled paper around the
moss, wrapping firmly, and a bit of news
paper or manilia paper may be secured
outside of this, by the judicious use
of mucilage, or, lacking this, I
find that flour simply wet in cold water
makes a most excellent paste. Indeed, I
like it better than I do boiled paste. I think
the former stronger and more tenacious in
its stick-to-it-tiveness.
When each individual plant has been
treated in this way, pack them closely in
the box designed for them; fill in empty
spaces; put the cover on, and fasten with
brads; wrap in manilia paper; address it
plainly,and if sent by mail, stamp properly,
and I’ll warrant the plants will find a safe
transportation. Large boxes are better
sent by express.
Since writing the above I have just run
across some body else’s method of sending
plants, which I will quote verbatim:
“For long distances we use cigar boxes
topack them in” (meaning plants of course).
“After the plants are labeled, we cover the
roots with damp moss, lay down a sheet of
oiled paper large enough to line the box
and fold over the whole; lay the plants on
evenly, the roots one way, and then dip
one hand in water and sprinklethe foliage;
enclose them in the paper snugly; put in
the box, and fill in the space with dry
moss. Do not allow even a bare possibility
of their moving. This is for ordinary
carriage. Supposing they were to be
twelve days in reaching their destination,
I should cover the whole with damp moss
inside the oiled paper.
“Sometimes when they are to reach their
journey’s end in one or two days we use
strong paste-board boxes, but put in dry
moss at the bottom and top, outside the
oiled paper, to prevent being jammed.
“It does not injure cuttifigs to dry a little,
so we do not use wet moss, but sprinkle
and wrap in paper, and these too may be
carried in paper boxes on short routes.
of labels. A plant with
a name is very much to be
desired. Names are of in
calculable value, and what
confusion this world would
be in without them! If
women were only women,
men only men, and boys
and girls, only boys and
girls, how could we ever
manage to make one under
stand which one of the
many we wish to distin
guish? For instance, it I
should say, that woman in
Georgia is an excellent
editor, how would you
know which one I meant?
But if I should say Kate
Garland of Georgia is an
excellent editor, you would
readily know just which
one of the man, Georgia
women I meant.
By all means label your
plants. Names are as con
venient as a handle to a
“Occasionally we send small plants and
cuttings in tin cans, but do not use damp
moss, for the cans being air tight, they will
keep fresh several days. They may be
wrapped in common paper to keep them
steady, but if water is used thef are apt to
decay.”
TREATMENT OF PLANTS AFTER A JOURNEY.
When your plants come to hand, remove
from the box with all due care, and place
them in a pan of water which is slightly
warm. The water must be deep enough to
cover the roots of the plants. Do not float
them on the water or let them lie hori
zontally in it,but after removing the moss,
lean them against the side of the pan, and
let them rest and drink their fill for three
or four hours. This should be long enough
for them to freshen-up unless very much
exhausted.
POTTING PLANTS.
Put a few bits of broken crockery in the
bottom of the pot, to facilitate drainage,
and fill the pot perhaps one-half or two
thirds full, with the right kind of soil,
which depends some upon the plant to be
nourished by it.
Leave plenty of room for the roots of
the plant to be spread out in a natural
way, instead of forcing them into a round
cavity in the center. Hold the plant with
the left hand in the pot, and fill in carefully
around the roots with firm soil. When
nearly full, press the earth firmly around
the roots, and water well. Set in a shady
place for a few days, until the roots have
had an opportunity to become established.
When new growth begins, you may know
all is well, and place the plants in their
destined position, and whether that be in
sunshine or shadow should depend upon
the needs'of the plant in question.
If plants are budded when received (no
matter how great the temptation to let
them blossom) remove every bud carefully.
A plant, after being uprooted, and trans
planted from one place to another, is in a
very weak condition, and it requires
strength to transform buds into blossoms.
You will lose nothing by removing the buds.
A debilitated plant cannot bring forth per
fect flowers, and the very effort to blossom
at all, might be fatal to the plant.
Patience is a very sweet grace, and plant
culture gives one an opportunity for culti
vating and practicing patience to a great
degree.
Another thing in regard to the matter of
sending plants: If plants are sent from
the south to the north, the time of sending
is of great importance. Bulbs orplantsfor
fall setting, should not be sent later than
October,else the ground may be frozen and
they must lie dormant through the winter:
while plants or bulbs for spring planting,
shouldnot come to hand earlier than April,
and even then sometimes very cold nights
ensue. It is not always convenient to
procure oiled paper. It can be made very
well at home. Use common manilia or
tissue paper; brush it over with linseed oil,
and hang it up for eight or ten days before
using. Now, dear sisters, if any of you in
tend sending plants to friends, try and
send them so that they will give pleasure
when they reach their destination.
It is very disappointing to open a box of
plants, to find them utterly demolished,
through loose packing, or decayed, through
the use of too much water. It is better to
take more trouble, than to have the little
care taken prove fruitless.
For Woman’s Work.
BEAUTIFY YOUR HOME.
There are few things more beautiful and
ornamental than thrifty, hardy vines; even
a tumble down wall, or an unpainted fence
may be made into a thing of beauty,if vines
are placed in a position to clamber over
these unsightly objects. I once saw a very
tall tree stump, on a very handsome lawn,
so covered with ivy as to make it one of
the finest ornaments of which the lawn
boasted.
Vines are like the mantle of charity,
which hides that which cannot be beauti
fied, and beautifies what it cannot hide.
Os vines that grow from seed, the Coboae
Scandens is one of the finest. Its flowers
are bell-shaped and of dull purple hue, and
its foliage attractive. Our country
homes might be beautified almost beyond
recognition, by the wise use of vines. A
plain little cottage, covered by an aris
tocratic looking vine, like Cobose Scandens,
would make an attractive spot in an other
wise dull landscape. A wigwam might be
constructed of poles, and hardy vines plant
ed in a position to entirely screen the
interior from the rays of the sun. Such a
place would be a pleasant one for the tired
wife and mother to resort to for rest, or
reading, or sewing, in warm summer after
noons.
Coboae Scandens, might be used for such
a summer-house, or Manrandya vines—
plenty of them—could be used; or the
beautiful feathery cypress vine, with its
star-shaped blossoms of scarlet and white;
or even morning glories could be adapted
to this purpose. The chief thing in the
construction of such a place would be to
have the poles sit firmly. The soil would
need to be well-mellowed at the outside for
a seed bed (leave the turf unbroken inside)
and plenty—plenty—of seed sown. The
vines might need some training—but this
would be pleasant work, and not require
much time.
Beauty pays, so does comfort, and I
heartily wish that every one might be sur
rounded with these two things; and when I
say beauty and comfort, I do not necessari
ly mean the beauty and comfort that wealth
can give—but the beauty which all or
nearly all can havej and the comfort
brought by a contented mind—and this too
may be possessed by those who earnestly
set about to attain it.
For Woman’s Work.
THE GLORIES OF THE MORNING
—MORNING GLORIES.
Some old-fashioned flowers, like old
time hymns, are the sweetest, or at least
have so much in their favor that we re
luctantly give their place to some new fa
vorite, with a high sounding name.
Morning glories ( Convolvulus) are so
well known as to need no introduction
from my pen. But, after all,l will speak a
word in favorof this old-fashioned climber.
It grows so magnificently with almost no
care; it blossoms so profusely and with
such variety of colors, shadings and strip
ings, that we with any eye for beauty, can
not but admire its many tinted flower cups,
diamonded with dew, and lifted each morn
ing for the sun’s first kiss; which he, wan
ton lover, willingly bestows, not one, but
many, and of such an ardent nature, that
the fair morning glory droops her head for
very shame.
Morning glories should have an eastern
situation if practicable; and if shaded par
tially from the sun, they will remain open
for some time. Don’t make your seed-sow
ing niggardly. Let it be plentiful—not in
one single straight row, but make a whole
bed. Have several rows, or sow promis
cuously in a bed of well-mellowed soil, and
keep them watered. Train up with strings
or on a trellis, and my word for it, you will
think they are rightly named, giving to
the morning a glory you have not dreamed
of hitherto. Watch them a little; it will
not hurt you, whether you are a
J wife or city bred. Go out in
dewiness of the
cups of glory; yes. you will bew
pick a few. There! see that
deep blue one with its velvety trfm3?wSß
of a darker hue. There! see, a little far
ther, those red ones, almost crimson. We
must have those! And so on until several
are gathered. What shall you do with
them? They fade so quickly you think
they have no value as a cut flower. Well,
they haven’t, except for a brief time.
Fleeting joys are sometimes sweetest,
and evanescent treasures are longest re
membered.
Put your gathered morning glories into
a vase or pretty bowl, with some of the
vines trailing loosely over the sides; this
is a pretty center piece for your breakfast
table. Too aesthetic for common people ?
Not a bit. I wish common people were
more aesthetic; had more of an eye for the
beauty of common things. If it were so,
their lives would be enriched immeasurably.
Because blessings are common should
not detract, but rather add to their value.
They are something that cannot be mon
opolized by the rich or by capitalists. They
are freely given for all to enjoy, and if we
are rich or poor, there is enough in this
wide world of beauty, for every beauty
loving soul to drink its fill, and still leave a
supply. God’s rich treasure house of nature
will be undiminished. By allmeans have a
good bed of morning glories and enjoy
them. Let them adorn your table; they will
add grace to thecommotest napery and ta
ble-ware; and they certainly will not de
tract from the beauty of the most elegant
table appurtenances.
Flowers give added grace and refine
ment to their surroundings, whatever these
may be; and they help very materially to
wards keeping the spirit sweet and in com
munion with the Great Spirit that we rec
ognize in nature, see through nature, and
yet know is immeasurably beyond all that
we know nature to be.
Let us lay aside some of the affectation
of these over-affected times. Come a little
nearer to nature’s heart and thro’ the beat
ing of this great mother-heart, learn to
know a little something of another great
er Heart, full of Infinite love, Infinite ten
derness, even the heart of our Father, God,
our Brother, Christ, His Son.
■■■mEUBMZ&UaUI
Mrs. J. R. Allen, Wilson, N, C., says:
When I feel the slightest tendency to
headache, I immediately take a dose of
Bradycrotine, and in a very short time am
entirely relieved.