May 1926

What a Difference It Makes!

Awnings Improve the Home

AWNINGS-- they have such possibilities, such delightful possibilities, that foolish indeed is a house to go without them, if they can be afforded. Nor is expense such a bar to this gay adornment of a house, for one can now procure them at almost any price up, while awnings noted for the durability of their fabric, the non-fading of their oil-painted stripes and designs, their non-rusting galvanized frames, are to be had for under $5 a window.

The House My Neighbor Built

THIS is the house my neighbor built. These are the folks who live in the house my neighbor built. And this is the story of the folks who live in the house my neighbor built-- the same old story that Better Homes and, Gardens loves to tell of the home-hunger of a man and a woman and of the hardships endured to satisfy that hunger.

Why You Will Like Purple Martins

CHESTER E. BRYAN, of London, Ohio, former Ohio state treasurer and for many years owner and editor of The Madison County Democrat at London, is one of the most expert birdmen and gardeners in his section of the country.

Grow Your Own Winter Bouquets

IN plant language the word "everlasting" refers to various kinds of flowers which have a peculiar make-up enabling them to hold their form and color indefinitely after drying. The French people call these flowers "immortelles," while in democratic America the simple term "straw-flower" seems to identify these plants in a way satisfactory to all.

Homes of Famous Americans

TWICE in the past year I have been to the Old Dominion viewing the scenes so long familiar thru the printed page to those who love "the good old days" and cherish the great events which they produced. In Fredericksburg, it seemed to me that I got closer to Washington, the man, than I have anywhere else, because I visited the home of his mother.

Cucumbers in the Home Garden

THE raising of cucumbers in the home garden is an accomplishment. Mostly it is a failure. The few who successfully bring this delightful fruit to maturity and thru a more or less lengthened bearing season, these few are plant wizards as backlot gardeners go. We know of but few vegetables that are more difficult to handle, in the small, sun-baked backlot garden, than the cucumber.

How to Succeed with Perennial Phlox

THE grandmother with whom I spent my early life had no interest in flowers except in the garden or porch boxes and strictly forbade me to pick a flower either for personal adornment or for my room. With the well-known tendency of youth to reaction I have always since then gone to the other extreme and have loaded my house with flowers. Hence until I proved to myself that phlox is a wonderful cut flower it did not appeal to me, but now I cannot get enough of them.

How our Small Fruits are Propagated

THIS is not a plea for more home propagation of horticultural plants. In a majority of cases the most satisfactory way to secure well-grown plants of most of our small fruits is to purchase them directly from some reliable nursery.

Making a Pleasing Garden Path

IS there anything more seductive than a little path that rambles? Stolid indeed is the person who would not go gipsying along it, or passionately regret that such gentle roving is denied him. A footway that swings out of sight promises treasure as precious as rainbow gold. If at the end of the way no more than a flowering bush is beheld, the green thing assumes a glamor beyond all reason. Contentedly is retraced the path that, now lacking that first tang of adventure, has about it a quality of peace.

The American Gladiolus Society and its Work

IN the history of the flora world there have been very few varieties or species which have gained the popularity of the gladiolus within the same space of time. Within a few years it has risen from obscurity until at the present time it is universally grown and admired by millions.

How to Make a Simple Flower Border

THIS garden, tiny and simple as it is, shows what careful study every garden requires. It suggests that each garden is shaped by limitations, formed by desires and molded by requirements. This little garden had to be planned so that it could be taken care of easily by one who, fond of flowers, had little time or energy for the sometimes arduous toil of gardening.

The Advantage of Paneled Walls

IT will come as good news to many who are planning their dream homes, that paneled walls are no longer the rich man's luxury they have heretofore been considered. There are very few who do not admire paneled walls. Just now, too, there is a noticeable revival of this manner of finishing interiors.

Adding Comfort to the Porch

THERE is no particular objection to formality in an entrance hall: nor is a certain amount of formality entirely out of place in living rooms and dining rooms. In bedrooms, tho, formality is decidedly illogical, simply on account of the intimate and informal use which sleeping rooms inevitably receive. It is apparent, then, that the purpose of any room rightfully controls, or at least suggests, the proper mode of furnishing.

A Plot Plan

Nature Lore for Youthful Headers

AGES ago, when there were more fishes and other sea creatures than land animals on the earth, the first flowers are said to have been born. They were not marvelous roses or lilies or tulips like the garden flowers of today. In fact, you may never have thought of them as blossoms at all, altho some of these same ancient flowers bloom in the springtime every year.

Under the Library Lamb

DURING these four months in an editorial chair "under the library lamp," I have been busy learning things-- interesting things, thought-provoking things-- about books and the people who read them. I already knew the busy mother yearning to give her youngsters the "right books" (one of her sits right here in my own chair) and I already felt fairly well acquainted with the clubwoman having to write a paper in a hurry and needing a little help.

Waging War On Garden Pests

WOULDN'T it be a pleasant dream to dream of planting a garden of vegetables and not have it necessary to wage war on the unwelcome invaders, insects and diseases? Of course, this is one of the "things that never happen" and it is brought before each gardener as a problem to cope with just as certain as the seeds are sown.

Camping from a Woman's Viewpoint

OUR first trip camping nail remain ever in my memory. Being still in our honeymoon stage we felt that nothing mattered except the fact that we had each other. And one early cloudy morning we sallied west in our light coupe with a rented tent-- the kind that flaps at both ends unless well staked down and even then the mosquitoes would sneak thru.

How and When to Spray Fruits

IT is practically impossible, nowadays, to grow fruit that is free from insect and disease blemishes without proper and thoro spraying. It is not enough simply to apply some spray material to the free or the bush. We must choose the proper kinds of materials and apply them at times when they will be most effective against the various insect and disease enemies of each fruit.

Garden Reminders

MAY in the garden! It is spring, real spring, now from South to North. Even in those sections of the country where tender little plants are not yet to be trusted out of doors, as well as in those where the season is well advanced, spring is in the air and in the garden.

Cherry Leaf Spot

CHERRIES are afflicted with a disease which in some respects is not unlike the shot-hole disease of peach and plum. The cherry leaves are covered with small dark brown dead spots whose centers become dislodged causing the shot-hole effect.

Spring Care of Strawberries

PROFITS from strawberries depend, to a large extent, upon the care given the beds during the spring. This is true both in new and old beds.

Dad's Practical Pointers

THIS is the month for flower boxes. Perhaps your home was built with them. Perhaps you have since added a box or two to the front of the house.

Success With Lima Beans

UNTIL recently my attempts to grow dwarf lima beans have been disappointing. The failures have not been due to carelessness in sowing the seeds; for I have carefully, almost prayerfully, placed each one "eye down." Yet the stands were always poor. The trouble has generally been due to heavy soil which puddled so seriously that the beans literally broke their necks trying to push thru.

The Veronica, Queen of Perennials

Attractive Vines for the Home

PROBABLY no other type of landscape plants will produce as striking effects as vines. They lend themselves readily to the personal likes and dislikes of the user. Vines can be made to completely conceal undesirable buildings or views, or by covering a portion of a wall they can be arranged so as to enhance the real beauty of the building material.

Thrift for Every Home

THE story of how we built our home without any accumulated capital should be an inspiration to every married couple who have not yet mastered the courage to start on that interesting and profitable adventure.

Our System of Financing

I BELIEVE there are any number of folks like myself who have tried some kind of budget plan and found that it was too irksome or that there was too much detail and work connected with it to pay for the time spent.

Our Steps In Home Owning

Who has Musical Talent?

OF all the questions confronting parents regarding the education of their children perhaps no one question has become more of a real problem than that of the child's musical education. The great majority of parents desire that their children should study music in some form or another and make all possible progress in the most subtle of the arts, and yet they, as well as the other individuals who are contemplating the serious study of music, are constantly confronted by the question, "Does my child have real talent?" or "Do I have talent enough to justify the effort which the serious study of music would require?"

Strawberries &l Asparagus are in Season

WHEN May comes round the corner the housewife feels a distinct ease-up of the menu problem. The home garden now begins to yield and the display of vegetables and fruits in the markets become more and more alluring; so much so that, in passing, it is hard to keep the purse in one's pocket.

How to Set the Table Correctly

RULES for setting the table vary somewhat from time to time as new ideas in decoration come into being. The up-to-date home woman enjoys "laying the cover" correctly for family meals, just as much as she does on the occasions when she is hostess.

Needlework Directions

COLORS come and colors go, but white embroidery is always in the best of taste because of its chaste and restrained elegance. Besides, one never tires of it and it is appropriate for any demand, from the simplest function to the most austere state occasion.

Growing Better Onions

THREE years ago I failed dismally with onions started from seed. Doubtless this was due partly to the wet season but the chief trouble was the stiff clay soil deficient in humus. The rains cemented the little seedlings in a living tomb which baked hard as summer advanced. From seventy-five feet of row I gathered only a few quarts of onions, and these only a little above pickling size.

Good Yields From Brussels Sprouts

MANY people fail to get good Brussels sprouts. Doubtless the trouble is more often soil than anything else. This should be as rich as for cabbage, if not richer. But more important, it should be naturally moist or kept so by artificial means. Frequent surface cultivation, especially if shallow, will do more than anything else to hold moisture in the soil; but should it be necessary to irrigate, the water should be allowed to drench the bed to the depth of at least a foot, and after the surface has become dry enough to cultivate it should be made loose and no more water applied until the plants seem to be suffering.

Along the Garden Path

WELL, we are right up to the threshold of another garden season! Indeed, what we do now will determine to a large extent just the kind of garden we will have when summer comes. We are all bound to forget or neglect to do some things now that we will regret all season.

This Month in the Garden

MORE and more pressing waxes the work as the spring advances. May is the month for planting the tender vegetables and the corn, and for transplanting the tomatoes from the coldframe or from the grocer's-- according to circumstances. Tomato seeds may be planted in the open, but as they have an unlimited season of hearing it is well worth our while to get them in as early as possible.

ACROSS THE EDITOR'S DESK

HOW do you like our new dress this month? We feel as "dressed up" and fresh and pretty as the apple trees, with our new hand-lettered titles and improved layouts. And isn't the cover the prettiest and daintiest you have ever seen? Everyone in the office thinks it is one of the two or three "best covers" we have used. I am sure you will like it, too.