Frederick Leeth

Seeds are produced by plants following the fertilization of the flower, as a means of reproducing the plant. Each seed is a plant embryo, which consists of a minute shoot and root and a store of food. The food reserve enables the embryo to grow before its root is developed to absorb nutrients from the soil and before the leaves emerge above the ground and make sugars by photosynthesis, a complex process. In some seeds, such as those of sunflowers or

Tagetes (Tage’tes) are annuals of great decorative value during the summer and autumn months. They are natives of Mexico and South America and belong to the Daisy family, Compositae. The name is said to have been derived from a mythological deity, Tages. These Marigolds are quite distinct from the Pot Marigold or Calendula. See Calendula

One of the greatest drawbacks to successful gardening is badly drained ground. Wherever water lies in the ground at a depth easily reached by the roots of most cultivated plants they do not thrive, except where the water is constantly on the move, such as the bank of a river, brook or lake; there many plants will flourish. There are some wild plants that succeed in soil that has reached a water logged state, but generally such land is useless for gardening, farming or forestry purposes unless steps are taken to free it from superfluous moisture.

Beans include many types of snap beans, pole beans, and Southern peas, such as black-eyed types. Plant these in spring after all danger of frost has passed. Because they grow so fast, start beans from seed directly in the garden. To speed their sprouting, soak seeds in water overnight before planting.

To extend the time frozen foods taste fresh, package foods in material intended for freezing and keep the freezer’s temperature at 0 degrees F or below. It’s recommended frozen vegetables be eaten within about eight months for the best flavor and to maintain quality.

This is another variety, italica, of Brassica oleracea. Both purple and white sprouting produce a profusion of young shoots invaluable for prolonging the supplies of winter greens. Purple sprouting is the most hardy and will safely overwinter in most open situations.

The herbaceous border, which is a comparative newcomer to the garden scene, is still one of its most popular features. Introduced at the turn of the century by Gertrude Jekyll as a protest against the monotonous formality of Victorian garden design, its popularity has steadily increased until today there are few gardens without some kind of perennial border to enhance their beauty throughout the months of summer and autumn.

This sweet salad vegetable has a high food value. It needs deep soil and is best suited to a place where a previous non-root crop has been grown. Do not add fresh manure, as this is inclined to cause root forking. If instead of growing vegetables in the kitchen garden, they are grown in the old-fashioned cottager’s way interspersed with flowering plants, the beetroot is a most suitable plant since the round or turnip-shaped beet has generally fine decorative crimson leaves. In addition to the round beet, two other forms are obtainable: a long-rooted and an intermediate type, called tankard or canister-shaped. Good named kinds are: ‘Crimson Globe’, ‘Veitch’s Intermediate’, ‘Cheltenham Green Top’ and ‘Nutting’s Red Globe’. All are forms of Beta vulgaris.

An even temperature around the roots and a steady supply of moisture in the soil are all important to growing plants. A mulch, applied in early summer after hot weather begins, tends to maintain these conditions as well as to control harmful weeds.

Trees for shade should be planted only after thoughtful selection, for those that may be very suitable in June may be less so in August. The Linden and the Mulberry are delightful trees when they come into leaf, but in July and August the former may make everything near by dirty with dripping honeydew, and in August and September falling Mulberries stain almost everything with which they come in contact.

One of the most enjoyable aspects of landscaping is reviving the gardens of older properties, where generations have pottered and pruned.

Climbing leaf-losing shrubby plants, from Brazil, which belong to the family Nyctaginaceae. They are cultivated outdoors in the far South and in colder climates in greenhouses. The slender woody stems are furnished with small, ovate to elliptic-lanceolate, green leaves and sharp thorns.

Some people prefer the milder flavor of shallot, Allium ascalonicum, which they grow in place of onions. However, shallots are grown for pickling. When stocks of non-bolting onion sets were not available, many gardeners found shallot growing far easier than onion growing. The soil in which they are to be grown must be well-drained and, unless very large bulbs are required, without manure or fertilizers. A very poor soil is greatly improved by being mulched with garden compost just prior to planting time.

A few weeks ago, I went to the garden center to buy some pansies to put in decorative pots by my front porch. In my experience, pansies hold up even after the mums bite the dust, and they provide color just about as long as anyone has a right to expect color from a garden plant.

From the Latin salveo, meaning save or heal, used by Pliny with reference to the medicinal qualities of some species (Labiatae). A large genus of over 700 species of hardy, half-hardy and tender annual, biennial, perennial plants and shrubs, some with aromatic leaves, widely distributed in the temperate and warmer zones. It includes the common sage, S. officinalis, a valuable culinary plant, as well as many colourful summer and autumn flowering border plants.

Sooner or later, every gardener falls in love with a few select perennials. Perennials are flowering plants that live many years, but die back during their dormant season which is usually winter. When planted under the right conditions, perennials grow and prosper for years, often with little attention. Each perennial has a peak season of bloom, usually lasting from one to three months. After the blooms fade, the foliage remains so the plant can renew its energy stores for repeating the show again next year. The tops of most perennials are killed back by frost, but they do return in the spring.

The cabbage family includes the following vegetables that grow best in cool weather: cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, brussels sprouts, kale, collards, and a delicious, yet little-known vegetable, called kohlrabi. Most of these vegetables are sold as transplants in the spring and again in late summer for planting in the fall garden. They are not difficult to grow if you give them plenty of space, ample moisture, and keep them well fed at all times.

From the Greek dolphin, a dolphin, the flowerbuds having some resemblance to that sea creature (Ranunculaceae). Larkspur. The genus consists of annual, biennial and herbaceous perennial plants, mostly hardy and showy plants for border cultivation, with some dwarf species suitable for the rock garden.

Over the course of 130 years, spanning from 1893 to 2023, the cultivation of giant pumpkins has undergone a remarkable evolution. In 1893, the exploration of oversized pumpkins was in its nascent stages, marked by growers experimenting with novel approaches. Fast forward to 2023, and the quest for world records in giant pumpkin weights has burgeoned into a global phenomenon. Contemporary growers leverage advanced cultivation techniques, innovative fertilizers, and meticulous care to foster giant pumpkins, consistently shattering previous records.

Placing trees of these colors needs great care, but their colors mingled with the multitude of others in autumn are effective and of great beauty; they do not blend well with the normal greens, particularly if used in quantity. They should, therefore, be used sparingly in isolation at points where they will inevitably catch the eye.

No water garden is complete without a bog garden as some of the most beautiful and interesting plants thrive in such situations. Many ponds and lakes have a natural perennially damp surround which requires no more attention before introducing plants than to remove unwanted weeds.

In their quest for the world’s heavyweight champion, some pumpkin growers will do almost anything.

African violet is perhaps the only full-blown paradox that can survive on a windowsill. On one hand, it is a celebrated show plant, with new cultivars eagerly sought after by collectors and enthusiasts. It has its own organization, the African Violet Society of America, and its own magazine, African Violet. A quick Internet search reveals that there are almost as many African violet sites as there are pages for sex and dieting. And yet, these plants are mass-produced by the hundreds of thousands and are readily available for a minuscule price from mom and pop garden centers, enormous mega-merchandisers, and a host of medium-size vendors.

Every gardener is familiar with the extraordinary effectiveness of vines in a proper setting, but most of us become discouraged after bad luck. The daintier vines have a habit of developing some unknown illness and dying back unexpectedly, while those which thrive usually do too good a job of it. Many a porch has collapsed under the weight of a husky vine, and many a fence has eventually been relinquished to the stranglehold of some plant which was merely intended to decorate and drape it . . . not to take possession. The lusty vines, which are coarse in growth and bloom, may have a definite place in our gardens, but they are just about as subtle as Niagara Falls.

Possibly from the Latin barba, a beard, many species have a hairy or downy look (Scrophulariaceae). Mullein. A genus of 300 species of hardy herbaceous plants, mostly biennials or short-lived perennials, from temperate parts of Europe and Asia.

Named for Karl August von Bergen, 1704-60, German botanist (Saxifragaceae). These hardy perennial herbaceous plants with large evergreen leaves were at one time called megasea, and were at another time included with the saxifrages. The flowers which come in early spring are showy in white, pink or red-purple, borne in large heads on long stems. The large leathery, glossy leaves are also decorative, especially as in some kinds the foliage is suffused with reddish color in winter.

Against a backdrop of gently swaying tall Grasses, this garden recreates the look of a prairie wildflower meadow. Make sure you have enough room for the Saccharum Grass-it gets huge! If space is limited, you may want to use Calamagrostis `Karl Foerster’ in its place. Give this garden a full day’s sun and average soil. Before planting, clear the area of existing grass or weeds. After you have installed the perennials, sow seeds of a nonaggressive Grass, such as Little Bluestem, between them. These will grow into tufts of pretty meadow Grass, lending even more of a naturalistic look while helping to suppress weeds. Just a late-winter cutting of the dried Grasses and stalks is all the maintenance you’ll need to do. Since all of these wildflowers are from sturdy stock, they’ll need supplemental watering only during periods of drought. From midsummer through fall, this little piece of prairie will sing with color.

From the Greek pyr, fire, probably with reference to fever, since the plant was used medicinally to assuage fever (Compositae). These hardy plants are admirable for a sunny border and last well as cut flowers. Long known as pyrethrum they are botanically classified under Chrysanthemum.

Gardening jobs are just like any other job; sometimes, they seem daunting. Where to start? What is more daunting than starting with a weed-filled field?

The students have returned to school, your mailbox is crammed with a new crop of seed catalogs, the leaves are falling, and the days are getting shorter. Drive by your local garden center or roadside stand and the displays are filled with ornamental kales and cabbages. Autumn has arrived.

Weekly, remove dead plant material from plants and soil. Watch for slugs and other pests on plants, in pots, under trays, in corners, and beneath benches. Sterilize pots and flats with Physan 20 (#7620) before reusing them.

We plant trees for their beauty of leaf, whether green in Summer or red in the Autumn; for their bark which becomes particularly fascinating. We plant trees because we love them. Some trees linger in our memories as old friends, from whose branches we have swung and “skinned-the-cat”; under whose cool shade we have rested from play or work. Some trees seem to have moods, changing from day to day, season to season, and from youth to old age.

Vinca minor is, as my father used to say, neat but not gaudy. Sometimes known as periwinkle or myrtle, this creeping perennial appears everywhere. Like a good soldier, vinca hits the ground running, and does its task efficiently, even under adverse conditions. Parts of the suburbs are virtually upholstered with it, but you can even find this undemanding evergreen stalwart keeping vigil among neglected monuments in long-abandoned cemeteries.

Fragrance in flowers is such a desirable attribute that it’s a perennial complaint of many gardeners that modern varieties of various plants, particularly roses, lack all or most of the fragrance of the older varieties. This is demonstrably untrue of many varieties, of course, yet there is a good deal of truth in the generalization. Some varieties are certainly much less fragrant than the ‘old-fashioned’ roses and a few seem to lack detectable fragrance, but, on the whole, a good modern variety will number fragrance among its qualities. Much depends, of course, upon the individual sense of smell, coupled with the ‘scent memory’ which all of us possess to some degree. It is, in fact, usually well developed and most of us are readily and instantaneously reminded by present scents of past incidents, places, and persons, and although the actual vocabulary of scent is limited, it is usually possible for us to describe a scent fairly accurately by comparing it with another. Thus it is quite usual for us to say that a flower has a lily-like fragrance, or that it smells like new-mown hay.

Soil tests done in a lab are one way to check the health of your soil. However, the ultimate test is how well your plants are doing. By carefully observing your plants, you can tell which nutrient your plants are lacking. With this information, you can choose which amendments should be added to the soil to maximize the soil health.

This is the application of nutrients to the aerial parts of plants. It can be used for the treatment of all deficiencies for all types of growing plants. But you can only spray very small amounts of nutrients onto the leaves at a time, otherwise, leaf scorch or even defoliation may follow. If foliar spraying is to be successful there must be sufficient foliage to hold the applied nutrients, and plants cannot develop to a stage of growth when foliar treatment, would be effective unless the soil has been prepared properly before sowing or planting. So, although foliar feeding cannot take the place of the traditional method of applying fertilizers and manures to the soil, it is a useful supplement, for the following purposes: