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

Page 19 text:

time. But we did have to impress a couple of passers-by into service when lifting the leggy beasties into the bus. They would be limp for a while, and then suddenly all their legs would fly out in as many directions. But the deed was finally accomplished, and with Miss Carter’s excellent piloting, we reached home with no untoward events. The eleven cows, the bull and the two babies are now well-filled-out, and show no sig is of their long, hard journey, which was broken only by “time out” for the dipping of them all, even the calves, for the tick eradication, according to the latest rulings of the State of Florida. As Mr. Cleaver was still laid up and there was no one on the place with both the time and knowledge of how to make the cows most comfortable, Miss Carter told her difficulties to Martha Twining, and Martha came over immediately to help out. It has eventuated that Martha has been doing the work in her usual energetic and able fashion, and the rest of us have done the helping out to the extent of our feeble abilities. It has seemed like old times to have Martha with us again, and we are doubly glad the cows came. Hints From “ Better Plants ” This is a good time to take out 6 inches of soil around trees and fill in with equal proportions of mixed soil and manure. You do not expect even the short-lived vegetables to get along without fertilizer. How can you expect a long-lived tree to do well without some nutrition? Clean the grounds and gardens thoroughly this month. Garden pests and their offspring do not like cleanliness. Save all the furnace ashes. Apply them heavily to trees and shrubs. Sprinkle them on the lawn. They sweeten the soil. Save all leaves. Do not burn them. Use as a top-dressing, and for the compost pile. There is nothing better than rotted leaves to break up a heavy soil. Azaleas and Rhododendrons appreciate leaf mulch. For storage, keep the leaves in a pit. We believe it is a mistake to collect or rake grass when mowing the lawn. The cut grass affords nutrition. See that all plants go into winter with plenty of moisture around their roots. Newly planted trees and shrubs should be particularly well soaked down with water until the ground freezes. Most winter-killing, or failure of evergreens during the winter, is due to the ground freezing dry. This is an important pointer. Don’t forget that roses, weigelas, buddleias, magnolias, Japanese maples, flowering almonds, etc., will winter-kill severely unless mounded with earth and given a top-dressing of leaves or straw. 17

Page 18 text:

derful hold over her patients. They all love to work for her, and that form of “labor” seems to be of the greatest assistance in helping those poor people to get their balance. I thought you would like to hear this, as she belongs to your School.” (We are so delighted to hear from one not closely in touch with either our School or with the Hospital that our “Tom's” work is so well appreciated. We only wish there were room to repeat some of Tom's own interesting tales of the life and efforts at the Hospital. Her well-known enthusiasm runs true to form, and she recounts her adventures with her usual vivacity, and we learn some intensely enlightening bits about the present-day methods of the medical profession.) Our Latest Bovine Adventures These always seem to occur during some holiday period, so that some of us miss the excitement and entertainment. But this time, the end of the Thanksgiving vacation, there were more to enjoy it than when Jasmine, Wonder-Heart and Princess arrived on July 4th. On Monday morning we received word that the long-expected consignment of Ayrshires, coming all the way from Florida, had at last reached Ambler. Miss Carter hurried down to the freight yard immediately—and spent the day! At noon, Dickie drove five of us down to see what we could do to assist. We passed the two men, each with two cows, on their way up to the School. When we reached the yard, we found the cattle eagerly appreciative of such attention as buckets of water, and later an opportunity to walk a bit around the enclosure near the car. In a little while, Pet, Pinky, Trip and Bunny started back to the School, each with a cow “under her arm,” as it were. The cows seemed glad to be exercising, as the difference between Florida temperature, and the 15 deg. being blown at them by our famous northwest wind was obviously uncomfortably. They reached the barns here safely, and later still “Grandee” and the three cows intended for us, were led out by the men. That left us with five big animals and five babies in the car. We sat and cuddled our feet in the hay, trying to pretend we were not cold until after 5:00, waiting for the other consignee to come for the other animals. He came just after we had given up in despair and were prepared to leave. Miss Carter had braved the terrors of our noble “bus,” and brought it over near the car. Two babies were coming with us. It was like leading refractory goats, to get those infants down the runway, across the trolley tracks and the road, and into the bus. We were ably assisted, however, by the extreme hunger of the little heifers. If we gave them each a hand to suck, they could be inveigled along quite easily most of the 16

Page 20 text:

Apply top dressing or mulch after the ground freezes, and not before then. The real purpose of mulching is to protect the plants from sudden changes of temperature in spring. Use only loose-textured material so as not to smother the plants. Cut back one-third of all trees and shrubs when planting this fall. This does not include evergreens or shrubs already cut back by the nursery before shipping. Exchanges THE TORCH, West Philadelphia High School for Girls. THE MILESTONE, The Baldwin School, Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania. ONAS, William Penn High School, Philadelphia. THE SHIELD, Haddonfield High School, Haddonfield, N. J. THE PENN FARMER, Pennsylvania State College. THE RADIATOR, New Haven High School, New Haven, Conn. SPICE, Norristown High School, Norristown, Penna. THE SARGENT QUARTERLY, Sargent School of Physical Education, Cambridge, Mass. SIMMONS COLLEGE REVIEW, Simmons College, Boston, Mass. THE GARNET AND WHITE, West Chester High School, West Chester, Penna. THE TECH OWL, Westinghouse Technical Night School, East Pittsburgh, Penna. SCHOOL LIFE, Melrose High School, Melrose, Massachusetts. THE CALDRON, Friends' Select School, Philadelphia. THE HORTICULTURAL COLLEGE MAGAZINE, Horticultural College, Swanley, Kent, England. NEWS ABOUT THE GUILD, Studley, Warwickshire, England. Gleanings Miss Seeman and Miss Barber very considerately had birthdays so near together, that we could plan a party to celebrate, and include them both. We surely had a gay time on the evening of October 3. Games, such as “Going to Jerusalem,” and 18