AUGUST, 1922 25c A COpy

THE NATIONAL \ .

H,ORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE COPYRIGHT 1922. BY THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. INC.

Published Quarterly and Owned Exclusively by

THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL SOOETY
Office of the ecretary: Henning, Minn.

Volume 1. I-lenning, Minn., August, 1922. Number 1.

NORTH DAKOTA WILD FLOWERS IN CULTIVATION

By FANNIE MAHOOD HE TH
Vice President. National Horticultural SOCiety

My collection of hardy shrub and height. Practically all of them do well a solid border along a fence or near
flowers is large and varied, and contains and grow taller in cultivation. shrubbery where one does not wish to
many of the choicest p lants to be found I wonder if I can describe the various risk choice things. In such a location it
in the average catalog, yet if anyone flowers so that the wild flower enthusiast is desirable. Its deep maroon center and
were to ask me what part of my garden will be able to recognize them when he deep yellow petals, which range from
I enjoy most I would unhe ita tingly sees them near his home. The first to one to two inches in length, will enable
answer "M v wild flowers." There is a bloom in early pring is Anemone patens anyone to distinguish it.
fascination 'about these plants not found or Pulsatilla H irsutissima. The furry. The little Geurn ciliatum, or ciliatum
among the garden vari eties. The study silky blossoms appear on dry, sandy sieversia, is another extra early little
of their requirements and habits and the knolls hortly after the snow disappears. blossom. The little clusters of usually
mystery surrounding their behavior in They are known by various common three red blossoms, which come early in
cultivation is very alluring and leads me names, "Wild Crocus," "Wind Flower," May, look very much like three little
on and on. Then, too, the encroachment "Pasque Flower" and "Prairie Hen" dark red strawberries. Did I say red
of man and hi s plows and herds on the F lower" are some of them. They are blossoms? It is only the calyx that is
wild flowers' domain makes it necessary common ly called "Wild Crocus" owing red as the white petals never open. The
to remove these rare beauties to con- to their many striking similarities to the blossoms are soon followed by plumy,
genial quarters on private grounds wh ere Crocus. The fl owers range in color from reddish seedpods which give it the com-
they will be safe from molestation, and alm ost white through smoky blue to mon name of "Old Man's Whiskers" or
have a chance of survival. bluish purple; usu ally much lighter on "Apache's Plume." It transplants readily
It is truly surprising the waxs in which the inside. They are rather hard to and takes kindly to cultivation if given a
domesticate unless one has conditions sunny location. The Lithospe1'rnums are
the various plants will act in cultivatien.
similar to their native habitat. These very satisfactory plants in c~ltivation.
A few year s ago I found growing in a beautiful w ildlings are fast disappearing Lithospermurn ca:nescens has racemes of
swamp, which was sun-bathed and wind- from many sections of the country. bright 'orange flowers ! incb wide
swept, several clumps of the Novae The dainty little Viola pedatifida or and greyish green foliage which remains
Angliae Asters of the most intense blue Birdfoot V iolet has somewhat larger throughout the summer. Lithosperrnurn
color. ' They were so beautiful and rare blossoms and is of a lighter blue than line'arifolium has larger fringed florets
in this section that I hesitated to disturb the common violet and the leaves are of a light yellow color borne in smaller
them, knowing full well that I could not deeply parted into linear lobes. It thrives clusters. The foliage ' is of a lighter
supply the moi st conditions of their native in cultivation but does not spread so green and much narrower. It has a
habitat. That old adage, "There is noth- rapidly as to become a nuisance as does long, slender, carrot-like root and gro~s
ing like trying" finally won out so I dug Viola rugulosa, the white one. na turally in very sandy soil but WIll
three good clumps with the sod and' roots Anemone canadensis or "Canada Ane- thrive iN any well drained sunny ·loca-
intact. One clump was planted in full mone" is very easily grown. It is very tion. Both bloom in May.
shade where it was rather moist, another abundant in this section of the State. It . Capnoides a.u1·eum or "Golden Cory-
in a low place in half shade, the third at has pure snow white blossoms an inch or dalis" will please the most exacting
the south end of our house, in very sandy more across, which rise from the center o-ardner if given a shaded, somewhat
soil, where it gets the full sweep of the of the deeply cleft palmate leaves which ~lOist location. Its blue-green foliage is
Sun for several hours each day. The last are borne at the top of naked stems. It so dainty and lace-like that one does not
named. to my surprise, is doing best of grows along the ditches and in low places mind if the yellow blossoms are small
all, and has developed into a fine, well- on the open prai.ries it; full sun but and somewhat hidden by the foliage
formed clump which blooms splendidly. ~hrives also in a reasonably moist garden which remains fresh until hard frost.
The one in half shade is doing fairly so il in either sun or shade. When grown in a dry, sunny location it
well, while the one in full shade has The common yellow Ox-Eyed Daisy grows much ranker and is not nearly so
weak, sprawling stems and no blossoms . . (Rudbeekia hirta) is a great favorite of pretty.
There are several other varieties of wild mine as it is so cheery looking as a cut Thalictrurn venu po sum or "Earlv
asters growing here but I cannot name flower, and it will take care of itself in Meadow Rue" has very dainty foliag~
the species at the· pJ)'esent wl"iting. Some any location where ~t is not too wet, and and makes a good substitute for a fern
grow four or five feet high, while others give continuous bloom from early July bed when one cannot h ave fern s, espe-
grow only a · few inches to a foot in until freezing up time. It is best used as (Continued on page 3)
 THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE August,
2
, NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY

OBJECT OF THE SOCIETY THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE

An altruistic and educational society, national in scope, Published quarterly and owned exclusively by The
organized for "the i~creas~ and di~usion . of hort~cultur~l National Horticult ural Society.
knowledge, and the stimulatIOn of ulllversal mterest m horti- All Fellows of the Society are requested to send in for
publication :igned articles on .gardening and allied subjects.
culture." An effort wIll be made to pubhsh as much of this material as
OFFICERS AND BOARD OF TRUSTEES space will permit.
Advertising rates on application . .
Axel A. Tervola, President; Fannie Mahood Heath, Vice
President; Hamilton Traub, Editor-Secretary; Eric B. Mag- Edited bv the Secretarv of the Society-Hamilton
nusson, Treasurer; John F. Traub, General-Counsel. Traub, Henn-ing,
, Minn. -

NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL legal existence on J uiy first of this .standardize plant nomenclature in co-
year. The proposals of federating or operation wit h other organizations;
SOCIETY
unitino- the existing horticultural soci- books, specimens, etc., will be accumu·
Deep down in the human ~reast nhere eties proved to be impracticable, and lated for The National Horticultural
IS a keen desire to possess an Ideal home,
the problem was solved by the crea- Library, Herbarium and Museum, and
but during the past centuries, in our tion of a national society which covers other benefits comprising the remainder
country, however, the colonists from the entire field .of horticulture, and of the program of the society will be
Europe and their descendants had their which rounds out the work now car- provided as opportunity for service
enero-ies severely taxed in the hard ried on by isolated units by paying offers, including The Horticultural Year
struggle of reclaiming a continent from special attention to the odds and ends B oak, a pronouncing dictionary of plant
the wilderness. During this constant that are not sponsored by the existing names, a _color chart, texts on practical
battle with nature for ,the bare necessi- national societies. gardening for each climatic region of the
ties in the frontier sections, many of the continent, and provision for the proper
finer influences in the life of man: were Soc:ety Is Altruistic and Educational
in Scope functioning of local horticultural socie-
necessarily neglected. Happily for us, ties, national chapters for the specialized
with the passing of the Nineteenth Cen-. The National Horticultural Society is
entirely altruistic and educa tional in na- study of horticultural subj ects; local,
tury, the day of the pioneer in America, regional and national horticultural ex-
except in remote districts, pass,ed away ture, and the board of trustees admin-
isters all income wholly in the interests hibitions, and many other worth-while
forever, and with the exit of the bison
of the fellows of the society. No in- activities.
and the nomadic Indian, a stage of de-
velopment has now been reached when rlividual derives any profit from the Ultimate Test Is Practical Applica-
the American is settling- down to a peace- society. tion-"Building Homes for
ful, beautiful, and satisfying home life. Obiect to Stimulate Interest in People to Live In"
Home Is Basic American Institution • Ho.rticulture The scope of The National H ortiCltI-
-Home and Garden Synonymous Th~ object of the society is "the tural Society covers the entire field of
The home is the basic American insti- increase and diffusion of horticultural horticulture: ornamental gardening, in-
tution, and the role of horticulture in the knowledge, and the stimulation of uni- cluding landscape gardening; amateur
building of the home is fundamental. A versal interest in horticulture." The flower gardening; profes ional flower
home without a garden is an anomoly. society offers an economical and effective gardening or floriculture; vegetable gar-
Correct landscaping of the home grounds solution of the various problems con- clening with special emphasis on the
is the chief means' of creating a restful fronting the home gardener in particu- kitchen garden; fruit raising \\"ith special
environment in both the city and coun- l~r, including money outlay, specializa- emphasis on the home orchard, and all
try, and a proper understanding of the tion, regional and local activity, the allied activities. It is the aim of the
art of horticulture will enable all to stan:oordization of horticultural plant society to stimulate a well rounded in-
possess beautiful home surroundings names, and color values; the evaluation terest in horticulture, and the ultimate
thus bringing contentment into their lives of horticultural varieties of plants, and test will be the application of the prin·
through the hourly or daily contact with the building up of a native gardenino- ciples in "the -building of homes for
the reposeful influence of the harmoni- tradition, or practical gardening scienc~ people to live in." As an institption, the
ous home. for each climatic region, society fill a basic and definite need in
Central Clearing H9use Needed- American civilization. Man's love of
The Miracle of Co-operation natural beauty and his dependence for
N a tionlal Society Fills Need
Co-operation on a continental scale sustenance in part upon the products of
Great strides have been made in the paves the way. For a very small outlay
increase of horticultural knowledge, but horticulture is fundamental and in such
annually, the amateur and professional a vast country as ours there is a well
much work in this field still remains to horticulturists may acquire fellowship il]
be done, and popularization is yet in its defined need' for an altruistic central
The , National Horticulturd Societv agency for the collection and dissemina-
infancy. Many are taking an active in- which will eventually unite the gardening
terest in practical horticulture, bVt the tion of horticultural knowledge. The
enthusiasts in one great family, creatino- society will cover its legitimate field
home gardener, as a rule, is greatly in this way a community of interest. I::>
handicapped on account of the lack of thoroughlv and will round out the work
co-operation, and his oU.tlook is one- Modest Beginning to Put Program of the existing horticultural 'societies by
sided in manv instances from too narrow Into Effect working hand in hand with these organi-
specializatio~. There was no central A modest beginning will be made at zations whenever possible.
clearing house for horticultural knowl- once to put part of the great program of Fellowship Open to All
edge in this country that covered the the society into practice. All feHows of
entire field; no altruistic national or- the society will receive the journal of the Fellowship in the society is open to all
~~nization. for the purpose of popular- society, The National Horticu.lt~wal interested in horticulture, and all con-
17111g horticulture, and after a period of M aqazine, which will be enlarged in size cerned are invited to avail themselves of
discussion, a committee of amateur hor- ~nd which will app.ear at more frequent the benefits that the society offers.
h')rticulturists sponsored The National l1ltervals as the SOCIety g-rows in stature. HAMILTON TRAUB,
H o1"tio~ltural Society which came into A modest beginning will be made to -Secretary.
 ,\Ugll st, 1922 THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE 3

NOTABLE WILD FLOWERS OF ber they brighten the bleak prairie with fern bed the flower stems of both should
NORTHWESTERN NORTH bewildering variety and color from violet be cut away.
DAKOTA through blue and lavender to white. Alsine longifolia with its small, white
By A. L. TRUAX The foregoing constitute the principal blossoms and steely blue-green foliage,
Charter Fellow National Horticultural pageant of the seasons from spring to when grown among my rare A lpines, has
Society done as well and received as much admi-
autumn, but any list wou ld not be com-
The flora of thi region is a rather plete which failed to mention a few of ration as any of them. It takes kindly
peculiar proposition as it is an ov.er- the choicer and rarer wildlings which to cultivation.
lapping of that of the entra l Regwn seem to elect their chosen spots in which Mimulus ringens, which grows natur-
and the Rocky Mountain. Part only of to grow and bloom. On the sides of rail- ally in very wet places, has done well
the plant- indigenous here can be found road cuttings and on clayey and gravelly for me when planted in a wooden bucket
in Brittoll and B rowlI or Cray; the rest :;lope where little or nothing. else can . unk in the ground. If one has plenty of
must be sought in Coulter's or some find a foothold, grows M ent.r:eLLa ornata, water it is well worth g;rowing in a par-
other Rocky Mountain botany. In this which looks habby and depres ed by tially shaded location.
short article I . hall name only a few of day, but towards evening opens its ten· Pelalos/eman p~£rpttre~£1n or "Prairie
the most profuse and striking of the petalled, fragrant white flowers like the Clover" is very abundant here. It seems
flowering plants which ().re native here, . . Tight Blooming Cereus. On .the top~ of to like a moist, well drained location, in
in the order in which they hold the high buttes and on the summits of fiver fun un. It comes in many shades of
stage. blufYs call be found in June and July the yiolaceus red, rose, and several shades of
Fir, t of all in spring comes A Jlell/Olle l~r al flowered I'ent"temon (Prllis/ellloll purple. Petaloslemon candidwn is pure
patells, r·ar. 11l1ttallialla. \\'hich literally
gralldiflorulII) \\ ilh it great, pikes of \\ hite. .\11 are worthy of cultivation as
carpets the ground (m sanely upland..; and libe purple belb. It i . one of thr are also the Lacil1arias or Liatris, known
;:lopes with it. \\ hiti"h or lay el~dei' blos-
grande.t of our northern wild flo\\'er . a10 as "(Jay Feather" and "Blazing
• 0111S as soon as the sno\\ dIsappear. ()n sanely and "teriie places can often 'Jc Star." (v"hat resemblance to a star any-
Thi. charming harbinger of spring I found tile Tufted l~\'ening Primrosc:, one can see in their rather ragged, rosy-
yulO'arh' called "Crocu " by nearly e\'er~ (Oc1Io/hcra cacspitosa). Its spreading purple, round, tassel-like blo soms grow-
one bu't it bears no relation ",hate\'er to ,uhterranean roots seems to defy drouth ing along the erect stems to a height of
the' Crocus and it. tribe. The C01111110n and heat; it blo som., 4 to 6 inches three feet, i beyond my comprehen-
name hould be the " \\'ind-flo\\'er," and acruss, are ",hite a. the driven snow, as sion.) They are ea ily grown in cultiva-
I wonder \\'lw we cannot ha\'e a little fraO'rant as the magnolia, and open only tion and will repay you if given a good,
nature study in our chooL. 0 that the at night. I kno\\' of no fairer ight in rich soil of rotted sod and a warm,
oncoming generation might learn to un- nature than thi s man el of lhe de. en sunny 10cati(JU.
der tand and kno\\' the bird and flo\\ ers lifting its perfumed chalice to the e\'e- llI;/-i'Qs/ro111 coccineum or "False Mal-
of their native region ' by their proper ning -ta r. lo\\''' is a good, little plant that takes
names. N ow a few \\orc! a. to the tran , plant- readily to cultivation and improves
With the disappearance of the Ane- greatly. The keleton-like greyish leaves
ing and naturalizing of the e :'high
mone come the "vVild Sweet Pea" plains" \\'ildling. Fe\\' of them wdl do round out to a wonderful degree in cul-
(Thenl1opsis 1·h0111bifolia.), which forms \';ell br Ea. t. r.lIlCl1lQlIe patens nuttal- tivation. The orange- carlet little blos-
great ma. se of yellow, perfuming the liana is an incorrigible \\'ildling which soms are like tiny single hollyhocks,
air with its fragrance. About the ame refu"e to O'row in gardens anywhere, about one inch across, borne in terminal
time, or a little later, appears the "Prairie and seem. 10 require the protection of c 1u. ters which keep grow ing and bloom-
Bluebell" (Mertensia laMeolala), a the tOl1gh prair.ie . ad . M erteJ/sia lanceo- ing for six weeks or more. Give it a
charming plant and profuse bloomer, so lata will g-row quite well in common gar- sunny, sandy location.
dainty that it seems almost out of place den soil rf given a warm unny location. Oenothera caespitosa w ill reward you
on the windswept prairie, and should TherJ1lopsis rhombifolia ha long leathery with its great white blooms if given a
rather be hiding itself in some woodland roots and seems difficult to transplant; well drained place in full sun .
nook of the farther East. once transplanted, it comes up where, No native plant received more praise
With the "Pr air ie Bluebell" and the and on ly where, it chooses. Pentstem.on in my"garden than did M ertensia lanceo-
"Wild Sweet Pea" also aBpears the gmndiflon£J1I, thrives splendidly under lata or "Pr airie B luebell." It is such an
"Creeping P hl ox" (P hlo:c H oodi), a cultivation, and is listed by many intense blue. Tt blooms for a long time
channing gray-leaved, white-flowered nurserymen and fl orists. 0 enD t hera and increases in size under favorable
dwarf, loving the sun and heat. Then caespitosa w ill thrive in a ' hot dry loca- conditions.
come the Milk V etches or Astragalus in tion, but on ce established it is hard to Pentstemon grandiflora grew over
bewildering variety, from the little tufted control and should be confined to waste three feet in height and was loaded with
A. lotiflorus with its pale yellow flo wer s spots or the wild flower garden, its large, lavender-purple trumpets. Many
in sheets and patches, to the tall tufted persons thought it was Digitalis.
clumps of A . bisulcatus. It takes a bet- Other desirable plants which do well
ter botanist than I to classify and name Editorial Note: Mr. Truax writes that in cultivation but which space forbid s my
them all. he is unfortunately so situa ted that he describing, are: Alli~£m steUatum and
With June, everywhere the month of 'cannot consider any flora l exchanges. A. reticu,latum, Lilium ~£mbe llat~£m,
roses, comes the Prairie Rose (Rosa He states further tha-t many Rocky Sisyrinchi~bm angustifoli~£m, Chrysopsis
Arkansana or pratincola) , -growing every- Mountains nurserymen already list many villosa., H eli(J;nthus scaberr'im~£s, 0 :calis
where, and varying in habit ' from a or .most of the plants mentioned in his violacea, H euchera hispida, Aq~£ilegia
'dwarf to a bush. article above. canadensis, H eracleum lana'tum, Cali",£m
Then with the heat of July come the ---e--- aparine ("Bed Straw"), Campanulai ro-
Prairie Sunflowers, the most profuse and NORTH DAKOTA WILD tundifolia., Pentstemon gracilis and P .
notable of which are H elianthus sub· acaulis, Artemisia canadensis, Linum,
FLOWERS IN CULTIV A-
rhomboidens with its snowy heads of L epac hys, Astragalus (several varieties).
dark purp1e ...disked flowers, and H . TrOIN All of these are to be found within six
strumosus with both disk and rays of a (Continued frOID page 1) or eight miles of my home. Besides
uniform yellow, .... cially if planted with Achillea mult{flora, these I have a -goodly number of wood
In August the wild asters < hold the "Wild Yarrow" or "Milfoil," which also plants from Minnesota and a djoining
~tage and on until t~efrosts of Septem- has very pretty foliage. When used as a states of which I will tell later.
 THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MA,GAZINE August, 1922
4
prove of interest to the fell?ws of Ithe , INFORMATION BUREAU
HORTICULTURAL FORUM
society. There is probably httle danger In this department questions pertaining
This departm ent is open to the Fellows to horticulture and allied subjects will be
of the Society for an exchange of ideas. that the bill will be enacted into law, but answered.
the question of a national flower will not
Fo.rest Tent Caterpillar down. Sooner or later, such legislation Pressillig Herbarium Material
will be enacted and the fellows of the To the Secretary, National Horticultural
The Forest Tent Caterpillar in this societv should make their contributions
section (Central Minnesota) has been Society: .
towar-d the final result by 'discussing the Will you please describe the method
very destructive. It starts on the bass- subject freely in the columns of their
woods where the moth has deposited the of pressing herbarium material?
magazine.-Editor. -J. E. G.
eggs the previous season. A large bass-
wood in front of the house was enveloped Congressman Kissel's bill is quoted in Ans. : Mrs. Fannie Mahood Heath
in a very fine silken web which reminded full : gives the foHowing instructions which
one of the habits of some snakes that "Sixty-seventh Congress, Second Ses- will prove valuable in preparing your
cover the body of their prey with saliva sion; H. R. 11902. herbarium: "Gather specimens when as
before swallowing it. The caterpillars free from moisture. as possible, and use
eat every leaf on the tree, and migrate to In the House of Representatives, June unglazed newspaper for pressing. If
other trees, ·going through the orchard 5 1922 Mr. Kissel introduced the fol- convenient, it is well to-lay the papers in
and taking every leaf. After the cater- l~wing 'bill, which was referrea to the a warm, sunny place for a time before
pillars are gone, the trees leaf out again, Committee on the Library and ordered· using. Several thicknesses of paper
but of course there is no fruit. Mr. to be printed: should be at the bottom, and alternate
Ruggles, .our State EntomoJogist, says layers of flowers and paper should be
that this can be stopped by spraying, but A BILL spread on this base with several layers
that would hardly be possible with forest Designating the daisy as the national of papers on top. The press should then
trees. be made effective by using a board the
flower of the United States.
W. M. STONE, size of the papers weighted down with
Charter Fellow National Horticultural Be it enacted by the Senate and House a heavy weight of some kind. It is well
Society. of Representatives of the United S'tates to change the papers after about a week
of America in Congress assembled, That as this insures that the specimens will
Pr.oposed National Flower keep their natural colors much better.
Representative Kissel's bill, requesting the daisy (Bellis perennis) is hereby In the case of thick-stemmed plants it is
Congress to make Bellis per.ennis the na- made and declared to be the national well to spread a layer of cotton batting
tional flower of the United States, will flower of the United States of America." next to the specimen material."-Editor.

QUALIFICATIONS FOR CHARTER FELLOWSHIP IN THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY

Article III, 'Section 5, By-Laws .of the S.ociety, provides that "charter fellows shall be pers.ons who were admitted
to fello\\."<ship in the Society between July 1, 1922, and December 31 , 1922, bo th dat es incltlsive ; and charter fellows
shall bear their titles for the duration of their fellowship in the Society. In accordance with this proV'ision a com-
plete directory of the Charter Fellows of The National H orti <: ultural Society will be published in the January, 1923,
issue of THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE.
Annual fellowship dues in the United States and Can acta, $1.00: abroact, $3.00 ; life fellowship , $100.00. The
fellowship dues include subscription to THE NATIONAL HO~TICULTURAL MAGAZINE. Make checks pay-
able to NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY.

APPLICATION FOR CH~RTER FELL~\ySHIP IN THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY

........................................ 192 ....

To the Secretary, The National Horticultural Society, Henning, Minn . .. Those who are not at present Fel-
lows of the Society, and who desire
I hereby apply for Charter Fellowship in The National Horticultural to apply for fellow-ship, should either
Society. use the blank at the left, or apply by
N ar-ne (please print) ...................... . .................... . letter to the Secretary of the Society.
"- Send in your application now.
Address (please print) ............ , ............................ .
.................... ................................................ .
" ,"

NOMINATION FOR CHARTE:R FELLOWSHIP IN THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY

........................ : ............... 192 ... .

All Fe lllOw s of the Society are To the Secretary, The National Horticultural Society, Henning, Minn.
pri vileged to nominate as many I nominate ............................................................ .
eligible friends as they desire. Fel- . (Print name of nominee)
lows may use either the nomination ......... .................. , ............................................. .
,
blank provided at the right, or send (Print address of nominee on above lines)
in their nominations by letter to the for Charter Fellowship in the Society.
Secretary of the Society. Send in
your nominations now. . ............................................................................ .
••••••••• L ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
(Name and address of nominating Fellow)