Horticultural Society

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the condition of their chickens, & we are glad to know the sick ones rallied at once after using potassium [permanganate?] in the drinking water.

Questions.

Is it so there is a blight on oak trees? Ingleside has some. Black walnuts & locusts at some places have blight.

There was a judas tree very much killed in Roland Park - it was trimmed down, & came up wonderfully after the treatment.

Katherine Janney told us to take a carving knife & run the whole row of the celery plants & cut off the tap root, this has helped the bed greatly - she also said to scatter wood ashes on rose bushes & currants in the early spring, it keeps off the slug.

Must you cut sage now, & [gather?] again? Yes it will be all right to make thin cuttings.

Are any ones tomato plants blighting? Mary Hulton's look like they are drooping, & very soon the plants die - she is using [pyrox?], & has lost two plants. No one knew of any cure.

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When must currant bushes be trimmed? Try trimming as soon as bearing is over.

Why is Edgewood strawberry bed not doing better? It is thought the ground is not rich enough. We were advised to clean them out thoroughly & fertilize.

The potatoes at Tanglewood are not doing well, they are under size & have spots on them. Wet weather may be the cause of the spots, but it was thought best not to dig them yet.

Should a bed of two dozen tomato plants be tied up? Some favor tying them, though others think there is a larger yield when they are let run.

Clarence Gilpin has a blight on the lower leaves of his lima beans, no one else has had the trouble.

[Some?] bought verbena plants have stopped blooming - what is the cause? They were grown to sell, not to bloom, one said, but it is thought they will bloom later.

When must you transplant columbine plants? We were told you could move anything any time you want, if you do it right.

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What does any one know of the improved lilacs? They are not considered as popular as the old.

Clarence Gilpin has fine sweet potato plants to give away - the Nancy Hall variety.

We were very much entertained by a charming letter from [Margaret?] Brooke, read by her mother.

The readers appointed for the next meeting were Anna Farquhar & Mary Brooke. We adjourned to Della Brooke.

When we took our walk into the garden, we found it spotless, so free of weeds & everything looking fine.

The garden to the left of the house seemed large enough for the family use - but when the sec. inspected the truck patch on the other side, she felt sure the Ex. Pres. was preparing to supply the Hospital for the next year at least.

Everything in profusion - & all done under very trying circumstances. Of course, the grounds looked lovely - they always do.

Lillie B. Stabler. Secy.

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Harwood Oct. 5^th 1920 August

We had a beautiful afternoon for the Aug. meeting of the Horticultural held at Della Brooke.

Alban Thomas presided over the meeting in the absence of the Pres. When calling us to order, he said we were all grown ups & ought to be quick - the Pres. had asked him to serve in his place, & Cousin Al said he expected he was more comfortable than Charles F. Brooke - as the latter was on the briny deep, & that as we know is not always conducise to comfort. The Vice. Pres. also told us that Judge Peter had informed him the ground upon which we were on (the [Mahlon Chandler?] property) does not belong to any body - people hold it by possession, as a little can not be gotten for it. This information was quite interesting, & was new to many of us.

The minutes of the last meeting were read and accepted after a slight alteration.

The first article read by Mary Brooke was "Beauty in the Farm Home" - it proved

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that "beauty & pride of home does not have to be reserved for the rich or people of leisure" - Dr. [I?itchell?] gave an account of how he had beautified his bungalow in Maine - & added that he "cannot understand why so many farm houses stand bleak and desolate without shrub, vine, or tree."

Mary then read a wonderful [rat?] story - (but it sounded "fishy") that fifteen dozen eggs stored in a box in a cellar had been moved quite a distance by rats - the story was referred, by letter, to John Burroughs - & his reply, in part, was that the way of a rath with an egg is to him past finding out. That it is a mystery to him how rats can transport eggs and not break them.

Cousin Gene Fawcett, who was one of our guests, then told us how rats had been seen - at his home - by lying down to make a basked of [?] carrying an egg & the other rat pulled him along by his tail - This all sounds very much like a fairy tale, but it makes

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a good story at any rate.

Mrs. Davis favored us with three short articles, the first of which was "What Hoeing & Weeding Does." She told us "Indiscrimintate hoeing is sometimes worse than no hoeing at all - Decide what you want to accomplish, then pick out your weapons intelligently." A description of the various implements suitable for using, then followed. She next read about planting out lilies-of-the-valley - and the last article was a poem entitled Conservative Substitution.

Cousin Elizabeth Iddings entertained us with "an account of their visit to the six acre lily farm, near Washington.

Mrs. Fowler, the hostess, was very kind, she gave them some buds, and from all accounts we feel sure a trip to the farm is well worth taking.

Mrs. Davis read an article on Peonies - they are considered a very easy flower to raise, you can just let them have their own way and good results follow.

The Forethought gave us a very fine report. It seems there was nothing left out.

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If you are troubled with mice in your bulb beds, she told us to place old tin buckets or lard cans in the ground & plant the bulbs in them.

Your sec. wonders if every one had their compost pile ready from which to draw potting soil - as she suggested.

Rose Gilpin told us of wonderful succss she had with a fruit & vegetable drier - she brought the drier in for inspection & said it could be bought from the Home Demonstration Agent at Rockville.

Mary M. Stabler acted as assist. sec. for this afternoon, & she read us a wonderful list of exhibits, and when we looked at the display later, it spoke for itself. A very fine collection was before us - each family present had surely brought of their best, and a remarkable showing it made.

Questions.

Our host reminded us of the approaching Fair, & said he wanted very much to see exhibits there from every one.

Rose Gilpin wanted us to look at

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the holly tree & give advice.

It is reported walnuts, hickory nuts, & shell barks are dropping off - they have black spots on them. 'Tis the idea they have [been?] stung, & Mr. Downey says he expects another year to try spraying his trees.

The Neighborhood House in Washington wants anything you can take them, in the line of fruits or vegetables, Annie Miller reported having taken apples to them, & they were much appreciated.

What is the price of lard? Twenty-three cents a pound in Washington. [?] best pure white lard.

Mrs. Janney told us of ther apricot tree that had born well this year - it is an old tree.

It was the general complaint that tomatoes were slow in ripening this year. So much rainy weather, consequently heavy foliage, is likely the cause.

The Cedars reported few pods on the late snap beans & lima beans, the hard rains having knocked off the

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blooms preventing their forming.

The question was asked how many had gardens without weeds - no volunteer answer - but one remarked it was very hard to keep them back.

Have any sen tracks of moles this season? Some saw dead moles on the road last winter. It is supposed they were frozen out. Brooke Grove says they have had lots, but then every thing seems to thrive at Brooke Grove.

Want nut bearing trees must you plant? English walnuts, Stablers' black walnuts, & pecans. Albert Stabler has been very successful in raising nut trees, he told us to get the northern variety to have budded stock, or grafted nut trees do not bear very early. Mr. Littlepage is the best authority on the subject.

What variety of late peas must one plant? Plant the early variety about the middle of Aug.

How do you raise egg plants? Keep them well sprayed with [pyrox?].

Mrs. Downey has had good success

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with them, she sprayed two or three times a week. Emma Stabler has sprinkled sulphur on them & found it beneficial.

Alban Thomas has a fine lot of parsnip seed to give away.

How can you save onion seeds? Let them stand until dry & pick off.

Cornelia Bentley and Emma Stabler were appointed readers for next time.

Adjourned to Harewood.

It was indeed a great pleasure to the members of the Horticultural to meet at Della Brooke for their first meeting. In walking around we found the vegetable garden was in fine order - they had no reason to complain of lack of tomatoes - the vines were loaded, and everything in profusion.

The flower garden off the right of the house was a small beauty spot, and the grounds were immaculate. The view across the fields & meadows made one long to borrow it for keeps; it looked its best that glorious afternoon, perhaps just for us to feast