Harvesting Tools
Of implements for harvesting, beside the spade, prong-hoe and spading- fork, very few are used in the small garden, as most of them need not only long rows to be economical, but horse-power as well.

The onion harvester attachment for the double wheel hoe, may be used with advantage in loosening onions, beets, turnips, etc., from the soil or for cutting spinach.

Running the hand-plow close on either side of carrots, parsnips and other deep-growing vegetables will aid materially in getting them out.

For fruit picking, with tall trees, the wire-fingered fruit-picker, secured to the end of a long handle, will be of great assistance, but with the modern method of using low-headed trees it will not be needed.

Pruning Tools
Another class of garden implements are those used in pruning but where this is attended to properly from the start, a good sharp jack-knife and a pair of pruning shears will easily handle all the work of the kind necessary.

Some Advice
As a final word to the intending purchaser of garden tools, I would say: first thoroughly investigate the different sorts available, and when buying, do not forget that a good tool or a well-made machine will be giving you satisfactory use long, long after the price is forgotten, while a poor one is a constant source of discomfort and aggravation.

Get good tools, and take good care of them. And let me repeat that a few dollars a year, judiciously spent, for tools afterward well cared for, will soon give you a very complete set, and add to your gardening pleasure.

The Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) is the best known and most popular butterfly. This is because it is the most commonly found and it also offers the most striking design you will find on a species of butterfly.

The Monarch is commonly called the milkweed butterfly because they are commonly found eating this variety of plant. This is also the location where most Monarch butterfly eggs are laid. In fact, many people choose to plant them in their garden just to attract beautiful Monarch butterflies. The majority of Monarch butterflies are found in North America.

Many people do not realize that Monarch butterflies migrate, following the same pattern year after year. They move to warm climates including Florida, Texas, and Mexico during the winter months. You will see them doing so in very large groups. You will have to look close though as you can easily mistake them for a bunch of autumn leaves! This is because the Monarch butterfly adapts to the environment and blends in for protection.

Generally the Monarch butterfly doesn’t have to worry too much about predators because they are known for being a very toxic meal. This has to do with the milkweed they so frequently eat, which is toxic to mammals.

Monarch butterflies are known for their bright colors and are the most popular species of butterfly. You will commonly find them in warmer climates and it areas where there is plenty of milkweed. If you enjoy these beautiful creatures, then you can create a butterfly garden very easily. This is because they will return to the same location year after year. Since they commonly eat and lay their eggs on the milkweed plant, this is the most successful way of attracting them.

This particular butterfly is the state symbol for Alabama, Idaho, Illinois, Texas, Minnesota, and West Virginia. Since 1989 it has been the National insect of the United States. It also holds that title in Canada.

For more information about the Monarch butterfly, visit these resources:

Animal Facts: The Monarch ButterflyMonarch Butterfly from Enchanted LearningMonarch Butterfly

Flowers may well go along the side of the building, or bordering a walk. In general, though, keep the front lawn space open and unbroken by beds.

What lovelier in early spring than a bed of daffodils close to the house? Hyacinths and tulips, too, form a blaze of glory. These are little or no bother, and start the spring aright. One may make of some bulbs an exception to the rule of unbroken front lawn. Snowdrops and crocuses planted through the lawn are beautiful. They do not disturb the general effect, but just blend with the whole.

One expert bulb gardener says to take a basketful of bulbs in the fall, walk about your grounds, and just drop bulbs out here and there. Wherever the bulbs drop, plant them. Such small bulbs as those we plant in lawns should be in groups of four to six. Daffodils may be thus planted, too.

The place for a flower garden is generally at the side or rear of the house. The backyard garden is a lovely idea, is it not? Who wishes to leave a beautiful looking front yard, turn the corner of a house, and find a dump heap? Not I. The flower garden may be laid out formally in neat little beds, or it may be more of a careless, hit-or-miss sort. Both have their good points. Great masses of bloom are attractive.

You should have in mind some notion of the blending of colour. Nature appears not to consider this at all, and still gets wondrous effects. This is because of the tremendous amount of her perfect background of green, and the limitlessness of her space, while we are confined at the best to relatively small areas.

So we should endeavour not to blind people’s eyes with clashes of colors which do not at close range blend well. In order to break up extremes of colors you can always use masses of white flowers, or something like mignonette, which is in effect green.

A building often needs the help of vines or flowers or both to tie it to the grounds in such a way as to form a harmonious whole. Vines lend themselves well to this work. It is better to plant a perennial vine, and so let it form a permanent part of your landscape scheme. The Virginia creeper, wistaria, honeysuckle, a climbing rose, the clematis and trumpet vine are all good choices.

Of course, the morning-glory is an annual vine, as is the moon-vine and wild cucumber. Now, these have their special function. For often, it is necessary to cover an ugly thing for just a time, until the better things and better times come. The annual is go-to plant for this work.

Along an old fence a hop vine is a thing of beauty. One might try to rival the woods’ landscape work. For often one sees festooned from one rotted tree to another the ampelopsis vine.

Landscape gardening may follow along very formal lines or along informal lines. The first would have straight paths, straight rows in stiff beds, everything, as the name tells, perfectly formal. The other method is, of course, the exact opposite. There are danger points in each. The formal arrangement is likely to look too stiff; the informal, too fussy, too wiggly.

As far as paths go, keep this in mind: a path should always lead somewhere. That is its business to direct one to a definite place. Now, straight, even paths are not unpleasing if the effect is to be that of a formal garden. The danger in the curved path is an abrupt curve, a whirligig effect. It is far better for you to stick to straight paths unless you can make a really beautiful curve. No one can tell you how to do this.

Garden paths may be of gravel, of dirt, or of grass. One sees grass paths in some very lovely gardens. I doubt, however, if they would serve as well in your small gardens. Your garden areas are so limited that they should be re-spaded each season, and the grass paths are a great bother in this work. Of course, a gravel path makes a fine appearance, but again you may not have gravel at your command. It is possible for any of you to dig out the path for two feet. Then put in six inches of stone or clinker. Over this, pack in the dirt, rounding it slightly toward the centre of the path.

There should never be depressions through the central part of paths, since these form convenient places for water to stand. The under layer of stone makes a natural drainage system.