Do not fail to adopt some system of pruning, for that is the most essential part of the secret to grow good grapes.  Other necessary information will no doubt be furnished by any reliable nurseryman with whom you are dealing.  I wish to say in conclusion that so far I have had no trouble from any insects attacking the vines or fruit, and I have always been able to produce fruit that commands the first premium wherever exhibited.

Protect the Garden against Winter Weather.

U.S.  DEPT.  OF AGRICULTURE.

At this season many inquiries come to the United States Department of Agriculture regarding the protection of garden plants and shrubs during the winter.  Such flowers as peonies and hollyhocks will come up again the following year if they are properly protected during the winter, while others, like cannas and dahlias, which are more accustomed to warm climes, must have their roots or bulbs dug up and stored in a cellar.  The department’s specialists give the following suggestions for “putting the garden to bed”: 

Hardy Perennials.—­Cover hardy perennials, such as peonies, larkspur, hollyhocks, columbines, iris, platycodons and perennial poppies, with a good coating of manure or other litter to a depth of 3 or 4 inches.  In more southern localities this will hold the frost in the ground and keep the plant from alternately freezing and thawing; in more northern regions the manure will protect the plant from freezing to a depth that will cut off its water supply.

Cannas and Dahlias.—­As soon as the tops of cannas, dahlias, gladiolus, caladiums and similar plants are killed by frost, dig up the roots or bulbs and store them in a cellar where the temperature will remain at 55 degrees, and should never go below 50 or above 60 degrees.  Do not shake any more earth from the clumps of cannas and dahlias than is necessary in removing them from the ground.  Place the plants on racks or in slat boxes so the air may circulate freely through them.  No frost must reach the roots nor must they become too warm or dry.

Shrubs.—­As a rule shrubs should not be trimmed in the fall.  This process is timely immediately after the blooming period, if this is in the spring, as in the case of the snowball.  If the shrubs bloom in the fall, as do some hydrangeas, the rose of Sharon, and some lilacs, they should not be cut directly after blooming but in the spring of the following year.  Lilacs, snowballs and mock orange should be let alone during the winter, being neither trimmed nor covered with straw and manure.

Roses.—­Almost all kinds of roses are hardy in the vicinities of Washington, D.C., and St. Louis and to the south of a line drawn between these points.  From Washington northward local conditions influence the successful cultivation of certain varieties.  Some roses, as the brier and rugosa, need no protection, but other varieties, such as the hybrid perpetuals, teas and hybrid-teas, need