Pennsylvania School of Horticulture for Women - Wise Acres Yearbook (Ambler, PA)

Text from Pages 1 - 28 of the 1923 volume:

Suburban Homes Country Estates Farms—Building Sites In every part of the suburban section north of Philadelphia we • have to offer an attractive list of most desirable properties—it will be to your interest to consult with us if you are looking for a high-grade home, country seat or a farm near Philadelphia H. J. DAGER AMBLER. PA. Hell Telephone, Ambler 137 Beds, Springs, Mattresses, Rugs All Sizes A. Lapetina, Ambler, Pa. American Star Cleaners and Dyers Pressing, Altering and Repairing 5 So. Main St., Ambler HEISS’S Dry Goods, Notions, Millinery Men’s Furnishings 303-305 Butler Ave. Ambler, Pa. We Sell Most Everything 5 and 10 and Variety Store Our Motto—Rock Bottom Prices 405 Butler Avenue, Ambler, Pa. J. W. CRAFT SONS Ambler, Pa. Manufacturers and Dealers in Scratch and Mash Feed Building Material Fencing Materials Lehigh Coal R. M. Hallowell, Inc. Ford and Lincoln Sales and Service Both Phones AMBLER, PA. THE PUBLIC BE—SERVED YOST’S TAXI Butler and Ridge Avenues AMBLER, PA. Bell Phone 350w Keystone 25 ENTRANCE DOORWAY 1923 DIPLOMA COURSE School of Horticulture for Women Ambler, Pennsylvania 19 2 3 SPRING COURSE—12 Week April 3rd—June 23rd SUBJ ECTS Fruit Growing Floriculture Canning and Preserving Lansdscape Gardening Poultry-Bees Vegetable Gardening Woody Ornamental Plants Farm Crops and Animals SUMMER COURSE July 31st to August 25th SUBJECTS Floriculture. Vegetable Gardening, Fruit Growing, Canning and Preserving Two Years of 40 Weeks Each. Subjects Entrance in January and September Floriculture Fruit Growing Vegetable Gardening Botany Woody Ornamental Plants Rural Economy School Gardening Poultry, Bees, ■Practical curriculum. Soils and Fertilizers Landscape Gardening (Elementary) Zoology, Economic Carpentry Farm Crops The Farm Woodland Business Methods Electives Canning and Preserving, work out of doors and Day Students are admitted to all Junior Classes, to classes which extend only through one year, and to Senior Classes upon passing an examination. Care of Animals. in the greenhouse forms a large part of the FEES—Tuition per year of 40 weeks .....................$200.00 Board and single room 40 weeks ................. 475.00 Board and double room 40 weeks ................. 450.00 Registration Fee, $10.00 Registration fees are deducted upon first payment of tuition. Fees for day students $10 for 20 lecture-hour periods. For further information address MISS ELIZABETH LEIGHTON LEE. Director. CONTENTS FOR FEBRUARY “The Old Order Changeth” ............................. 5 Meet Our Farm Manager ................................. 6 In Appreciation ....................................... 7 Commencement .......................................... 7 Trees in Winter ....................................... 9 Hardy Vegetables .......................................n Mr. McCann’s Modern Poultry Plant .....................13 Just a Chicken ........................................13 Plan for Growth .......................................14 An Afternoon With Orchids .............................17 Gardens of Roses ..................................... 17 Gleanings .............................................19 Our Alumnae ..........:............................... 20 The Compost Pile ......................................21 I 1923 SCHOOL OF HORTICULTURE FOR WOMEN Ambler, Penna. INVITATION LECTURES BY MEMBERS OF THE FACULTY OF THE SCHOOL March 6th—What We Should Know About the Potato. By Raymond C. Dikeman, B. S., M. S., Cornell April 3rd—Unusual Glimpses of Italian Gardens. By Miss Emily Exley, Graduate School of Horticulture. April 17—An Egg a Day. By Raymond T. Kuhrt. May 1st—Marked Characteristics of Some of our Shrubs and Trees. By George B. Kaiser. June 5th—Insect Pests of the Garden and their Remedies. By Harry W. Schlehner, B. S., A. M., U. of P. Train leaves Reading Terminal 1.55 P. M., arriving Ambler 2.28. Trains returning leave Ambler 4.51 and 6.05 P. M. School Bus will meet trains. Automobiles from Philadelphia pass through Chestnut Hill to Bethlehem Pike to Butler Pike, .turn to right (N. E.) on Butler Pike, take first turn to right, one-quarter mile to school. T uesdays 3 P. M. Calendar of Short Courses Spring Course—April 3d to Jun 23d. ' Summer Course—July 31st to August 25th. Write for list of subjects and terms. Boarding and Day Students. WISE-ACRES Vol.'VII February, 1923 • No. 1 Published Quarterly by the Students of the School of Horticulture for Women, Ambler, Pa.—Elizabeth Leighton Lee, Director Entered at Ambler P. O. as Second-Class Matter Under Act of March 3,1879. STAFF Editor-in-Chief, Elizabeth C. Hall Asst. Editor, Margaret England Adv. Mgr., Florence Miller Asst. Adv. Mgr., M. Eloise Torrens Business Manager, Sarah B. Fogg One Dollar a Year Single Copy, Twenty-five Cents THE OLD ORDER CHANGETH, YIELDING PLACE TO NEW” Another class has stepped forth from the School of Horticulture full of the spirit of achievement in its chosen work. Their chance for service has come. Let them keep that same enthusiasm in their work that they have displayed here at school and may the future have great things in store for them! Another class has entered, keen with the anticipation of what the next two years will reveal to them. WISE-ACRES extends a warm welcome to these new students. We, too, are beginning a new year, with a new staff, and we, also, are full of anticipation and enthusiasm. We shall devote a section of each issue to the Alumnae and we ask for their co-operation in submitting any articles or bits of news which would be of interest to them or their former classmates. Recent happenings at the school will be duly recorded and a bit of a humorous page may creep in if we are not too sober. We hope to increase the number of exchanges and make WISE-ACRES an active organ of the School of Iioriticulture. Finally, we shall aim to continue that standard of our predecessors in presenting articles on those subjects of interest, help, and enjoyment to all. 5 MEET OUR FARM MANAGER! Raymond T. Kuhrt comes from Chautauqua County, New York, the home of grapes, small fruits, milk, cheese, and poultry. His school days were spent at a district school, after which he at tended Forestville Free Academy and High School, from which he graduated as President of the Class of 1912. From High School he entered the Training Class and taught one year in a country school. During this time Mr. Kuhrt had the opportunity of organizing and instilling community spirit into the district. Great sorrow was felt when he left to enter Cortland Normal. Just a word may be said of his home life. The Kuhrt farms at present, though fruit predominates, boast of a herd of fifteen Line-bred Holstein cattle and a herd of about forty pure-bred Duroc Jersey swine. His home borders a brook and as a small boy he might have been seen any day with a pole and line fishing in summer or with a string of traps trapping in winter, studying Nature's ways at first hand. His early experience came in dealing in pigeons, chickens and rabbits. This gave him the incentive to go deeper into the poultry field and he specialized at Cortland Normal in this phase of Animal Husbandry. After graduating from Normal, Mr. Kuhrt taught High School Agriculture at Ellington, Sherman and Forestville. While there he maintained a pen of White Leghorns as a side issue. Two years ago Mr. Kuhrt gave up teaching to devote more time to his poultry business. He has had a splendid selection of Barron strain White Leghorns at his home for several years, still maintans a flock of five hundred and is directing the management. He has incubating equipment with a capacity of three thousand eggs and has orders booked for five hatches for this season. Mr. Kuhrt comes to the School of Horticulture with practical experience in farm managing, care of animals, growing of general farm crops, and as a poultry specialist. The most hearty welcome to our midst is extended to Mr. Kuhrt. R C. D. 6 IN APPRECIATION For somewhat over two years it has been our good fortune to have Miss Edna C. Thomas as an instructor in subjects of poultry, farm animals and farm crops. Her knowledge was both scientific and practical, her method of imparting it exceedingly interesting, and a touch of humor added spontaneity to her words. Courses in both American Colleges and European Schools gave her excellent scientific training, and her own place of thirty acres, “Cheeryneuk Farm, in Eliot, Maine, had given her ample experience for ten years. Miss Louise Metzger, her able assistant, threw her whole en-ergy into her work. Her ideals of accomplishment were high, and she was a happy exponent of the dignity and joy of manual labor. We understand that Miss Thomas and Miss Metzger expect to unite their fortunes in a farming or poultry project. We wish them all good luck and hope that the name of “Cheeryneuk Farm” may follow them to their new home and be a good omen for the future. E. L. L. COMMENCEMENT The mid-winter commencement of the School of Horticulture was held Friday afternoon, December fifteenth. There were over a hundred people present to enjoy the address given by Dr. Maurice Francis Egan, late Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary of the United States to Denmark. In speaking of agriculture and horticulture as taught in the Danish Schools, Dr. Egan stressed our need for a return to simplicity and the right use of our leisure hours. He said: “The real aristocracy of any country is made up of people who are in love with simplicity. Who, then, are the real makers of our nation ? If you think they are the men you send to Congress, you are mistaken. The real builders of the prosperity of our country are those who, like the graduates and students of this school, are learning to revere the elements of life, to learn the value of well-ordered leisure and the worth of simplicity. A garden, for instance, even the little garden of the city, is an excuse for leisure, and for leisurely thought. N’obody can be greatly bored or really unintelligent who cultivates a garden. The advantages of the simple life are not always seen in our country because we devote ourselves too much to instruction and too little to education. “Just as culture does not depend upon wealth, so intelligence, which includes the quality of seeing life clearly, is not the result of instruction, but of judicious education. Our young folks go abroad to finish an education that was never even begun over here. The 7 students of this school are living examples of those virtues which are the best corrective of extravagance, of the illusions of luxury, and of that feverish activity which soon wears out body and soul.” It tfas also a great pleasure to have Miss Beatrice Williams, a graduate of this school in June, 1918, with us. She is now connected with the American Committee for Devastated France and is in this country on a mission to Washington. She gave a most interesting and vivid talk on the splendid undertaking in which she is active in France. Upon the completion of her mission to the United States Miss Williams will return to France to continue this worthy work. White Leghorns at his home for several years, still maintains a flock Clark’s Green, and Miss Elizabeth Swing, of Coatesville, Pennsylvania, were presented with diplomas by the President of the Board of Directors, and one of the founders of the school, Miss Jane B. Haines. . After the presentation of diplomas and congratulatory remarks Miss Haines announced that Miss Sarah B. Fogg, of Greensburg, Pennsylvania, editor of “Wise-Acres” during her Junior year, had earned the Honor Scholarship for her Senior year, which is offered annually by Miss Marion Reilly—a member of the Board of Directors—for her excellent school average. Miss Irene Geiser, of Waynesboro. Miss Elinor Matthews, oi tors—for her excellent school average. Miss Haines also announced that a debt approximating $27,000.00 had been most generously cancelled by those who made the- loans; that these loans in large measure were made at the time that the dormitory, cottage, farm house and greenhouses were built; and that no interest had ever been charged upon them. She expressed the gratitude of the Board of Directors and the School for this cancellation which amounts to a large gift. WISE-ACRES congratulates the School upon the possession of such friends and wishes to express its own warm appreciation to those who have thus made the future of the School assured. In closing the exercises, Miss Elizabeth Leighton Lee, Director, expressed the appreciation of the school to the graduating class for their gift of dogwood trees. Then, upon her invitation, the gathering enjoyed a social hour of tea before the school formally closed for the winter holidays. H. F. 8 TREES IN WINTER To really know a tree we should be familiar with its winter aspect. When deprived of leaves the characteristic framework of our deciduous species is best revealed. We should choose the cold months, then, to accurately study the buds, branches, and trunk. If we walk leisurely from Rose Valley to the School of Horticulture, as the writer has many times done, we may pleasantly note the trees of the wayside. Several species of the ailanthus greet us on the right as we leave the trolley. The outline is bold and rather coarse against the sky and the smooth trunks present a suggestion of strength which is belied, however, by the soft wood. This tree is called the 'Free of Heaven by the Chinese, who cultivate it about their temples. The ailanthus occurs again at Susquehanna Road, where the suckering habit is shown by the many saplings growing around the parent tree. To the left, along Butler Pike, just after leaving the car, is seen a row of sugar maples, with many upright branches, slender buds and seamy, rather deeply furrowed bark. They grow beside the silver maple, which is distinguished from the sugar maple by branchlets turning slightly upward at their ends, clusters of accessory buds, and grayish flaky trunk. The Norway maple grows just opposite, with head tending to roundness, larger reddish buds, and closer grained, darker bark, and beyond, on the left, at the edge of an old private property, we may contrast the ash-leaved maple or box elder, with the sycamore maple growing beside it. The former always presents green or greenish branchlets, while the latter is characterized by larger green buds and fruit in drooping racemes, held most of the winter. As if arranged to aid the student of maples, the red maple, too, may be observed standing out prominently south of the gravel pits, with lighter bark becoming smooth upward and even whitish, sometimes, rather simulating the trunk of the beech. Again, on the right, just after leaving Rose Valley, appear two young sweet gums. This charming tree, of grayish bark, often smooth above, shows corky ridges along the branches and almost through the winter on fertile specimens retains the collective fruits hanging like prickly balls. North of the gravel pits there is a small grove of straggling and scraggly black locusts and a fine isolated black locust with grayish, deeply furrowed bark and thin pods held far aloft on the irregular branches, grows beside the road south of the cemetery. The hemlock offers a touch of feathery green at Susquehanna Road, and, after the long open stretch beyond, we pass a line of mazzard cherry trees on the left, showing the dark glossy bark stripping off in horizontal layers, and followed by a fine row of pin oaks holding many of their leaves throughout most of the winter. The pin oaks end with a graceful specimen tree representing a form of the European white birch of exquisite trunk and habit and, paus- 9 ing here a little, we look over the meadow upon the splendid white willows beside the stream and upon the background of woodland where we may easily distinguish the picturesque trunks of the white oak and beech mingling with red oak, pignut hickory, tulip tree, and red maple, as they do in so much of our low-lying forest. After we turn right on the old Limekiln Road, a small sour gum stands on our left, and, a little further on, beside a private lane on our right, stands a large sour gum with gray, irregular branches and fine spray of branchlets, although neither tree exhibits as much as usual the horizontality of branches characteristic of the species. After we have crossed the brooklet we may see to the right an elm, displaying her delicate bouquet or fan of branches, and beyond, to the left, a second, older elm, developed into the form of an Etruscan vase and reminding one of the loveliness that this tree possesses throughout the States of New England. Reside the second elm stands A large and vigorous tulip tree—considered by some an emblem of dignity—and the straw-colored chandelier-like fruit shines bright in the winter sun, above the dark and graceful branches. Opposite, in the field, the black walnut is noted with those characteristics of closel r furrowed bark and forking of branches and, in an easterly direction from it. in the next field, proudly reigns a well-developed shell-bark hickory, oval in shape and showing that bark peeling off in thin places so familiar to many of us. The pignut hickory, dark, rather coarse in outline, with large, scaly buds, grows alone on the left of the road, beyond and over the rise of the ground, we see appearing tops of that sturdy pin oak and majestic white oak of the meadow opposite our school, and, still a few rods further on, silver maple, symmetrical horse chestnut, and buttonwood with mottled trunk and branches; we make a quick turn to the left; we are arrived! Salutations to the School of Horticulture for Women, so happily located amid fragrant fields and stately trees! Let us propose the toast of Rip Van Winkle, so endeared to many of us through the impersonation of the late Joseph Jefferson: “Here’s to you and yours! May you live long and prosper!” GEORGE B. KAISER. 10 HARDY VEGETABLES There are several vegetables that live from year to year. These afe asparagus, rhubarb, sea kale, Jerusalem artichokes, chives, mint, sage, tarragon, horse radish, and one that lives over a year, or is good for part of two years—parsley. Asparagus can be grown from seed or you can buy roots. One year old roots are as good as two year old. This plant wants plenty of humus in the bottom of the row where it is to grow. 1'he part of the asparagus plant which we eat is the stem and leaf bud before it opens, cutting these stems as soon as they are a few inches above the ground ; then the roots must send up more stems. We must not cut when the plant is too young, so we allow it two years to grow strong and large before we begin cutting. Let us say you are going to start some asparagus next spring, either sowing seed or setting out plants. It will grow all next summer, then in the fall, when the leaves turn brown, cut off the tops and burn them to destroy the eggs of the asparagus beetle. The following year do the same, but the third spring you can cut the stalks every day as they appear for six weeks;—every year after that for eight weeks. You will have to watch for the asparagus beetles, which attack the stalks and eat them. Their babies, slug-like creatures, also eat the plants, so they must be poisoned. Spray the plants the first two years with Arsenate of Lead, 2 teaspoon to a quart of water. The third year, when you begin to cut the stalks to eat, allow one plant at each end of the row to grow up and keep it spra' ed with the poison; we call these trap plants, for the insects will gather upon them and be killed by the poison. Do not forget that asparagus requires humus. Either plant a legume, like soy beans, beside the asparagus to feed it, or cover the bed with humus in the fall and fork it under in the spring. I like soy beans for an asparagus care taker rather than anything else. Sow the soy beans when the ground becomes very warm. Cut the asparagus tops in the fall, but allow the soy beans to remain. The best varieties are Mary Washington and Reading Giant. Rhubarb can also be grown from seed or you can plant roots. It requires even more humus than asparagus. I would advise growing seedlings in a seed bed, transplanting them to a permanent position when several inches high. • Dig a large hole and fill the bottom with humus before you set out the seedling; this will give it food under the roots for many years to come. Three plants of Myatt's Linnaeus rhubarb will supply a small family; set the plants four feet apart, as they grow very large. Do not take any stalks from the plant the first year if you sow seed, but you may if you plant roots. Do not allow the plant to blossom ; cut all the buds as fast as they appear, because we want all the strength to go to the root, so it will keep sending up more stalks. Sea kale is a plant very little known, but it is such an early spring vegetable, you should know it. Sow the seeds sparingly; thin the seedlings to four inches, and let them grow all one summer. In the fall transplant to a new place, setting them two feet 11 apart; when the frost comes, cover with litter or leaves. Early the next spring you will see them poking up their heads. I have seen them lift clumps of frozen earth. Now we must remove the litter and crown them up—cover the shoots with earth and as they push through, cover repeatedly until you have a mound about a foot high, then dig in and cut the shoots off near the root. It is the leaf stalk, nicely blanched, which we eat. You can let them grow up and cut several times, then uncover and allow the plants to grow all summer. Every year follow the same practice. This vegetable is ready to eat earlier than any other that I know of. Cook it the same as asparagus. Jerusalem artichokes are nothing new to some of my Western and Southern friends, but they are little known in the East. The plant is a sunflower, but the roots are like small knobby potatoes. We plant these roots in the spring, and allow them to grow all summer. When frost kills the stalks thev should l e cut down. You may then d:g the roots or leave them until early spring. Save enough roots to plant again and use the rest for cooking and eating. One root planted in the spring will have increased to many when von dig it in the fall. . Chives are onion grass, the grasslike leaves of which are used for flavoring. The plan! increases in size from year to year and you can cut the root into pieces and so increase your number of plants. You can sow seeds of chives or buy plants. One or two is plenty for a family unless they are very fond of it. Mint is considered an herb. It grows wild in many places, but it is extremely nice to have in the garden. It multiplies year after year, because the roots send out runners under ground, which in turn send up new plants every few inches. The leaves and stems are used for flavoring. Sage is another herb; the leaves are used for flavoring. The plant is a small bush and lives for many years. Tarragon leaves are used for flavoring salad and vinegars, and are much sought after by salad lovers. The plants live from year to year and increase in size. You can grow it from seed, but I should advise buying one or two plants. Horseradish is a well-known condiment. The roots are grated fine and mixed with vinegar. The plant is coarse leaved, and when we dig the roots in the fall we save a small piece and set it back in the same place to make a new plant for next year. “Maliner Kren” is the best horseradish I know. Parsley lives over a year and if covered with, leaves and straw can be gathered nearly all winter. The next spring it is also good to use, but toward midsummer it begins to blossom, then the leaves become small and bitter and are not good to use. Plant a little parsley seed each year, and keep it coming along fresh all the time, for when the new plants are large enough to have their leaves gathered the old will be ready to pull out. If you did not save the old plants over the winter there would be many weeks when you could not gather parsley at all. 12 All hardy vegetables do much better if they have a dressing of well-rotted manure or soil from the compost heap-spread upon them each fall. It keeps the soil from blowing away from the roots, adds humus to the soil for the plants to feed upon and prevents the freezing and thawing, which occur in many sections, from lifting the roots out of the soil. Compost should be put on just as soon as the ground is frozen or before it freezes. This will keep the frost in or hold it out so the lifting process cannot take place. EDITH L. FULLERTON. MR. McCANN’S MODERN POULTRY PLANT The Poultry Class recently took a trip to visit Mr. McCann’s poultry plant. Mr. McCann’s place is very interesting and is situated on Bethlehem Pike, in Ambler, where a variety of poultry is kept under up-to-date methods. The main feature of the trip was to see the mammoth six thou-san egg Newtown incubator which was in operation at the time. It was a worth-while trip to see a standard make of mammoth incubator in operation and the growth of the place testifies to the success Mr. McCann is having with it. A part of the success may be attributed to the management and also to the model incubator cellar in which it is installed. _ A well-planned brooder house with steam heat is located above the incubator cellar. In another part of the place a new modern poultry plant is under construction. In connection with the poultry, Mr. McCann also carries a full line of poultry feeds and supplies. Everyone felt very grateful to Mr. McCann for the opportunity to visit his establishment and for the courtesy in conducting us in person about the place. JUST A CHICKEN “All things considered from beginning to ending, Hatching and catching and feeding and tending, Chasing and killing and scalding and pickin’, There’s a great deal of work about raising a chicken. Watching the hen while she’s doing the hatching. Watching her, too, while she’s eating and scratching, Guarding ’gainst hawks and ’possums and rats, Driving off crows and dogs and cats, Ready all day to give something a lickin’, There’s a great deal of work about raising a chicken.” (Selected). 13 PLAN FOR GROWTH On December seventh we had the pleasure of listening to an extremely interesting ta)k by Mr. Bates, of Lord Burnham Company, Philadelphia, on the construction of greenhouses. Mr. Bates drew attention to the fact in the beginning of his talk that a business career might depend on the first lavout of a greenhouse, commercial as well as private, which 'present two different problems, but the fundamentals are the same. Take a commercial project. You have limited means, are just starting out; in putting up a greenhouse, do it with the thought of an addition later on. It is cheaper to tear down, nine cases out of ten, than to fix up old houses. In laying out houses, lay out straight lines. In planning your greenhouse, think over what you want to grow, how much you want to grow, and design the whole layout along that line. A greenhouse roof carries 22 to 24 pounds to the square inch. Add to that your wind load, dead load and other stresses, sometimes causing it to rise as high as 150 pounds, there will be five, ten, fifteen or twenty times the amount it was intended to carry. In time of shortage of coal, look ahead and lay in coal. Greenhouses should be kept with heat in them in winter. They will depreciate at least five years in one winter under normal conditions if left without heat. During the war there were many small greenhouses wiped out of existence through lack of good business methods and not having foresight to lay in coal enough to carry them through. Others foresaw and ordered enough coal to last them during the shortage. These men made enormous amounts of money. Suppose you intended growing a general line of stock in a small, medium-sized city, retail trade, and you had a limited amount of money, and you wanted to take in a general line of business, you had to grow everything—heat with water. Never build less in width than a twenty-five foot house, four benches. Your benches and your heating will cost you the same for an eighteen foot house, approximately, as it will for a twenty-five foot house, and you have gained one bench. Your labor in the erection of a twenty-five foot house is very little over that for an eighteen foot house. Do not, by any means, consider anything less than an eighteen foot house unless it is a passage or lean-to. In designing a range of glass, when you can, and when everything is equal, have it fifteen degrees South. In designing service building, get cellar deep enough; go eight feet if you can ; never less than seven. Give plenty of room to take care of coal and boiler in cellar. You can run two hundred feet with a water main successfully, but not over. The shorter you have mains for water, the better success you will have. Devote one house to a certain kind of plant after you have commenced to enlarge the number of your greenhouses. Increase boiler space as you increase house space. After you have twenty thousand or twenty-five thousand feet of glass, you have to change water for steam. It is always a good policy to have two boilers. 14 especially if they are cast iron, as you might have a break in a section at some time when it would seriously inconvenience you, which is what generally happens in the coldest weather. You can either run both boilers or else cut one off. Roses are mostly grown in solid beds. When you have beds, ‘the only way you can heat them is to put heating pipes on the side, which causes red spider. A number of commercial growers are swinging their heating pipes underneath, so that they are not so close to the roses. 9 You can force plants raised in benches very much faster than in solid beds. Beds can be built of concrete or boarding. Benches should be built of No. 2 cypress. Benches will cost one-third of what entire structure costs. In constructing concrete benches, make legs of concrete; look out that you have plenty of drainage and place for water to run out. In regard to ventilation, never run over fifty feet if possible (you might possibly go as high as seventy-five). It gives you a better control of your crop. Your sunshine, your heat, and your ventilation are what make your stock sell better. If you do not keep your greenhouses in good repair, you will have trouble with glass breaking or cracking and things will not grow well. There should be one-eighth inch of putty between the glass and bar. A second coat of paint should be given after the structure is erected before the glass is set. When the glass is in, give it a third coat, and then you have given all laps a second coat and your putty a coat, which seals it. Do this every two years and you will never have a house with slipping glass or broken glass from vibration. If you putty with carbolic acid or a tar base the bar deteriorates and you cannot paint over it. The temperatures of houses will run as high as .130 deg. in summer, so the putty must be made to withstand this, while in winter you must reckon with temperatures below zero. Side ventilators can run one hundred feet. Vegetable house ventilators may run one hundred fifty feet, but in houses where you have to be careful of your temperature, like cut-flower houses, do not go over fifty feet. Cast iron boilers are cheaper for little houses. They are cheaper to install and will run from six o’clock at night to six or seven in the morning, provided you get a boiler that has sufficient coal area. For one thousand to two thousand feet of radiation, put in a square boiler. You can put on coal enough to carry heat for thirteen hours with a square boiler, but you can not do that with a round one. It is better to put in steam boilers if you grow to a size where there would be a requirement for five cast iron boilers. Hot bed ashes are not used as much as they used to be. People are specializing on one thing; therefore, beds and frames are not needed to such a degree as in private lines. In a commercial place you can start a large amount of your spring or Easter stock in your frames, and then give them a place in your greenhouse or else harden them off in your cold frame. In private places most of the vegetables are grown in cold frames. Suppose you enter the commercial field and intend to retail 15 your own stock, it is nice to have a conservatory in connection with your own store. It will not take a large amount of money and will increase your sales. (A good size is seventeen by thirty-five or forty feet long.) At the close of Mr. Bates' talk an opportunity was given to ask the following questions: Question—What would be the cost of building a greenhouse 25x100? Answer—Keep to standard sizes; you can get your materials from ten to fifteen per cent, less than if you go into special sizes. I would say $1.12 a square foot of ground covered, taking in your service building, masonry work, heating, benches, etc., would be an average estimate. Distance of hauling and other items may vary this figure. Q.—Is it more expensive to build a private greenhouse than a commercial one? A.—Yes, because it costs just as much to get your men from the factory and materials as it does for a big one. Q.—Do you install oil burners very much? A.—No. They are not successful as yet. So far they have not saved a dollar and have not cost any more. Q.—Have you many orders for overhead irrigating in greenhouses? A.—Only in vegetable houses. Overhead system is not appropriate for cut flowers. The growers say if you can go over their houses once a week and water, that is all the personal attention they need to give the place. If you water by the Skinner System one plant is the same as another and you cannot keep track of their condition as well. Q.—Do you install sub-irrigation benches? A.—No. Q.—Do you install many steam boilers suitable to be used in connection with sterilization. A.—Fifteen pounds for sterilization. Q.—What would you suggest in the way of greenhouses to keep a small retail trade going? A.—Two twenty by fifty Ridge and Furrow and then buy your roses and carnations from a wholesale house and raise the rest of the stock yourself, such as greens, sweet peas, snap-dragons, violets, etc. Q.—Do you build more semi-iron or iron houses? A.—At the present time we are building more iron, as you can buy them as cheap as semi-iron frames. P. M. 16 AN AFTERNOON WITH ORCHIDS The Seniors recently visited some orchid houses which contained several rare orchids and tropical plants. They were very cordially met and taken around by the manager, who answered the questions showered on him about the many unusual plants, both as to their Latin as well as to their common names. He took them through the Phalaenopsis house, where the Philippine orchids were found and then the Cattleya house, where many hybrids were in a fine display of bloom. The Cyprepedium were in the intermediate house. These are of less conspicuous color, brown and yellow. The Oncidium have long sp'kes with dainty butterfly-like blossoms. The Dendrobium orchids have elongated pseudo bulbs. The Vanda Coerulea is a heavenly blue orchid which blooms in November and December and was not in bloom at this time. In the stove house (which is kept at the highest temperature) he showed them some tropical plants which were brought from all over the world. Then he took them into the propagating house, where the benches were filled with many cuttings, especially the evergreen cuttings, which take from six weeks to sometimes eight months to callous over and to form roots. These houses are considered to have the best collection of orchids in this country. The Senior Class was glad of the opportu-nitv of having an insight into such an interesting place. M. E. T. GARDENS OF ROSES On Tuesday, February 5, we had our first Tuesday afternoon lecture of spring, 1923. It was an illustrated lantern-slide lecture obtained from the J. Horace McFarland Co., Mount Pleasant Press, Slide Department, Harrisburg, Pa., which, appropriate to its title, “In American Rose Gardens,” took us through some of the famous rose gardens of this country. It showed how the rose, the finest of all flowers, will thrive in the northern climate of New England as well as in the mild and sunny South—in the changeable climate of the Middle Western States as well as in the soft and balmy air of California and in the favorable climate of the Northern Pacific coast. The artistically colored pictures did justice to the beauty of the rose in all its forms and shades, no matter whether growing in a well-planned garden or in a plain back-yard, whether adorning the porch of a home or clambering gracefully over arbors, fences or stone walls, serving as a beautiful and distinctive boundary line or framing a beautiful view into the open country. The composer of the slides and the lecture was not satisfied to show just the perfected results of continued hybridization, the 17 highly developed modern rose. The original single types—native of America and Asia, like Rosa setigera or Prairie rose, Rosa multiflora, Rosa rugosa, the Damask rose, the Persian yellow, the Bank sian rose as growing in gardens and parks of New England, the Cherokee rose as growing profusely in the woods and gardens of the South, the Wichuraiana hybrid—all were given just as much prominence with their simplicity and abundance of blooms, as members of the Hybrid Tea class, or roses belonging to the Tea Rpses or the Hybrid Perpetuals. Caroline Testout, a hybrid tea rose, was shown brightening up the streets of Portland, Oregon, in showy solid beds of lustrous pink blooms. Marechal Neal roses grown to perfection over an arbor at Thomasville, Ga., undisturbed by the chilling winds of the North, Bridesmaid roses and Brides, both of the Tea rose type, effectively grown as standards. Lady Ashtown, a hybrid Tea rose with its glowing pink, Gloire de Dijon, cheering up homes in'Portland, Oregon, Gruss and Teplitz, the well-known hybrid tea rose with its bright red flowers—all could be seen. The Rambler roses in the various pictures rivaled each other in color and sturdiness of growth: The Dorothy Perkins, the Yellow Rambler, the Crimson Rambler, American Pillar, Tausend-schoen, Pink Roamer, each in turn took our eye and suggested new ways of using them in the garden, around sun-dials, as screen or for flanking the driveway. The Baby Ramblers were not left out in this gay array of roses. Their dwarf habit of growth and their ever-blooming quality during the summer makes them suitable for . planting in borders and around the house, serving the double purpose of tying the house to the ground and to brighten up the surroundings with their profusion of bloom. Roses of more recent date were shown in the last slides. There were the following climbers which attracted our attention: Dr. W. Van Fleet, Rose Alida Lovett, also a seedling of Dr. Van Fleet introduced by J. T. Lovett in 1917, Paul’s Scarlet Climber. Evangeline, with large single white flower with tips of petals pink, Rose Moyesii, introduced from China in 1910. Of the new hybrid tea roses the following were seen: Pilgrim, a bright rose pink rose, introduced in 1920; Rose Premier, a seedling of Ophelia and Russell, introduced in 1918; Los Angeles, Radiance and Red Radiance. Rosa Hugonis, the attractive single yellow briar rose, which was originated in Kew, England, in 1899, and lends charm to any garden where it grows, was also shown. The lecture was rendered by Miss Seamann, our instructor in Floriculture. Miss Seamann called attention to the interesting-chapter, “The Story of the Modern Rose,’’ in the book by Ernest H. Wilson, in which the reader is taken to the native places of the various original types of the rose and is told about their characteristics and their history of distribution over the world. The privileges of an American Rose Society membership were also pointed out. Every member of this society receives the annual American Rose Manual, which contains valuable information on latest experiments with roses with regard to culture and new va- 18 rieties. It also entitles to free admission to any exhibition in which the American Rose Society directly participates. A valuable book on outdoor roses is written by G. C. Thomas, Jr., entitled “Practical Book on Outdoor Roses.” GLEANINGS New officers have been elected in both Senior and Junior classes. We are proud to say that Miss Sarah Fogg and Miss Eloise Torrens performed the duties of their respective offices so well that they have been unanimously re-elected. Miss Sarah Fogg fills the office of president and Miss Eloise Torrens is our competent secretary. As to the Junior class, Miss Hester Fogg will preside as president and Miss Julia Clark will act as secretary. Miss Julia Clark gave us a very interesting lecture with lantern slides on Yellowstone Park. Our first “Get-together” meeting was held January 25. Miss Pearl Martin rendered several vocal selections. Then we were supplied with a “Hit or Miss” entertainment by Vera Green and Ima Oldone. The humor afforded gave evidence of the extemporaneousness of the performance. Refreshments came to top this and, believe me, they touched the spot. “The Florist Shop,” a one-act comedy, was given on December 13, for the Senior Class, following the banquet. The plants from our greenhouse gave an appropriate setting to the play. This play was repeated February 17 at the second “Get-together” meeting. Some very clever living pictures completed the program of entertainment. Delightful refreshments wound up the evening. High Juniors! Take Notice! The Honor Scholarship offered annually by Miss Marion Reilly, a member of the Board of Directors, will be awarded September 1923, for excellent average in studies, to a member of the Junior Class who entered September 1922. Only such hens as make regular contributions to the egg basket have any show for their lives under the new regime. Martha Twining is again with us and you can imagine how glad we are. Mr. and Mrs. Raymond C. Dikeman are receiving congratulations on the birth of a daughter, Elinor Louise. 19 Miss Florence Miller entertained in honor of our three new students, Miss Marguerite Meyers, Miss Florence Slayton and Miss Hester Fogg, and the new member of our faculty, Mr. Kulirt, at tea, Sunday afternoon, January twenty-first. The better half of the Cool House has been devoted to annual cut flowers. Lettuce is brightening the corner on the “east side.” Miss Anna Harris a Senior at State College, is spending six weeks at our school, supplementing her course by observing our methods of work. The Fruit Department has cleared out the forest and now we can, at last, find the fruit trees. We had a radio demonstration Saturday evening, February third, the set being installed temporarily by R. M. Hallowell, Inc., of Ambler. We were very glad to have the opportunity of hearing it. Mr. Hallowell also furnished entertainment by giving us several moving pictures. The retiring staff of WISE-ACRES voted to give the sum of two hundred fifty dollars to the school, this amount to be used as a scholarship. OUR ALUMNAE K. Irene Geiser is with Pennocks, Philadelphia. She has taken a position as a stenographer with the State Forestry Department at Mifflinburg, Pa., and she also plans to have cold frames and raise cut flowers. R. Elizabeth S. Swing is starting in business for herself at her home in Coatesville, Pa. She plans to raise annual plants and cut flowers and has already started in with some cold frames. Jessie Elinor Matthews has a position with the Logan Nurseries under Miss Mary Wright, a sister of Miss Letitia E. Wright. Jr., our instructor in bee keeping. “Silas” is going in for rock garden plants and perennials. Isobel Marquedant is assisting in the Pomology Department in the Illinois State College of Agriculture. Virginia de Sternack is married to Mr. Oliver P. Morton and is living at Wellesley, Mass. Dora Van Horn is taking some special courses at Columbia. Helen Kille is running her father’s greenhouse at Vineland, N. J., during his illness. She hopes to finish her course here later. Miss Irene B. Nicolson, former instructor in Floriculture, and Miss Amy Thurston, a graduate of the school, are building a greenhouse and going into the florist business at Litchfield, Conn. Eleanor Fullerton is married to Donald Van Dyck Fergeson. She is going into business with her husband. They plan to specialize in tomatoes and small bush fruits. 20 THE COMPOST PILE 0 Who smelled a rat?? We had Ground Hog on the fourth of February! NOTICE!—New York has moved to the Middle West. (Latest bulletin from Boston.) (When Mr. S. was giving out the pamphlets)—“What did I have last. Hog Lice?” Information Wanted Just whereabouts in Missouri is that Kaw River? (Perhaps that’s where the homesteads are.) We are reminded every once in a while that we have an “Over Seas” nurse in our midst—Rube—since when has the Streptosolen been a Streptococcus? Suggestions From the Late Senior Class JANUARY and FEBRUARY—Prepare spray tank for dormant spray. Select a freezing cold day. Wash carefully and oil all parts. Request students to wear overalls and galoshes. (This is an ancient custom at the school which must not die out.) Each student is required to become proficient at cranking the engine of the spray tank. Forty cranks are necessary for passing. MARCH and APRIL—The special object of the course is to become familiar with all kinds of fruits. During the spring months import tropical fruits and spend three-quarters of all fruit time tasting. MAY—Sample strawberries two hours daily. Each student manages pickers five minutes a week. JUNE—Sample gooseberries and currants two hours daily (Into eacli life some rain must fall; some days must be dark and dreary.”) ' JULY—Sample raspberries, blackberries, wineberries, dewberries and earliest peaches, two hours daily. SEPTEMBER—Eat remainder of peach crop. Do a little promiscuous budding, now and then, especially patch-budding on pecans. OCTOBER—Sample grapes two hours daily. NOVEMBER—Eat apple crop, saving a few perfect specimens for the fairs. 21 DECEMBER—Eat Kieffer pears with what strength you have left. All sampling must be clone regularly and systematically. No cuts allowed. For make-up time, hoe strawberries, spray orchards, apply para-di-chlorobenzene, plant peach trees after sighting and stakng row’s (row's must be straight from all angles), and prune on windy days. Raw Material J. R. Floward, president of the American Farm Bureau Federation, told a gathering in Minneapolis recently of the farmer to whom the Minnesota Farm Bureau had sold a membership. After vainly waiting a month or more for the results he expected, the farmer took his case to higher authorities, to the Department of Agriculture at Washington. He wrrote: “Why don’t T get my bureau? I ordered it over a month ago and it hasn’t come yet. My wrife has the school-teacher staying with us and she wants the bureau for the teacher’s room. Send it along. I can’t stand any more delay.” The department answered, according to Mr. Howard: “Sorry, but we haven’t a single bureau not in use. However, we have a very fine farm bloc here in Washington, and just as soon as the W'ork can be done wre shall have it sawed up into bureaus and one sent to you.”—The Country Gentleman. 22 N Stillwagon’s Drug Store Good Printing For Service That’s All BDTLER AVENUE Johnson The Printer AMBLER, PA S. R. McVaugh ICE DEALER Patronize 105 Spring Garden St., Ambler “Wise - Acres” W. A. CLARKE Sporting Goods Hardware and Auto Supplies Both Phones Advertisers “We Pay You to Save” THE FIRST NATIONAL BANK AMBLER, PA. Progressive Efficient Safe Courteous In deciding your Banking connection, consider the advantages of a Trust Company; there are several, and we will gladly explain them. AMBLER TRUST COMPANY Ambler, Pa. 3 I -2 per cent, paid on savings funds 2 per cent, paid on checking account School of Horticulture f V • Ambler, Penna. Advertising Rates for “Wise Acres” Full page Half page Quarter page Eighth page Sixteenth page 4 Issues For 3 Issues For 2 Issues For 1 Issue $4° $30 50 $22 50 Ji2 75 24 18 50 12 75 6 75 12 75 10 50 6 75 3 75 8 6 4 2 5 3 75 2 50 I 25