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PAGE 4, WEDNESDAY, MARCH 27,1974, .WHITBY FREE PRESS Consumer Centré atý Home Show This year, l'or tlie first tiiuie, thiere will Lbc a Con- suiner Centre for food sliop- ,-,ers anmong the exhiibits at the National Homnc Show in the Coliseuni, Exhlibition Park. April 5 th to I 3thi. The Miracle Food Mart -Hclcn Gagen Consumer Centre is designed to provide a place wvhere conisuîniers can get advice, on buying food f'or both dollar aînd nutrition value. Helpful shopping inits and answers to the most often asked consumer -questions will be avaitable thirough an audio/visual presenitation bookiets. rec ipes. informa- tional posters and discussions with home economist' Helen Gagen and lier assistants., Miss Gagen, consumer ad- visor to Miracle Foqd Mart, is well qualified ilii the, field of consumnerism. Prior to assuming her present duties three years ago, she was Food Editor of the Toronto Tele- grain flor ifiie \ears. Shie secs hiersell I as an onibuds- mian t reading ant objective linoe bctween nmanagemen t policies anid consumer coin- "My goal is to tîy and discover in what way nieal planners can best be served,"' slae explaitîs, "and more ot'ten thiat not I find inysel f siding with the consumer because of' the rapidly-changing con- suiners îtee ds in today's Sa r ke tpl ace. 'I To augment other con- surner informiation. the-re wil be regular rneat cutting dern- onstrations by Arthur Buck, meat specialist fromi George Brown College of' Applied Arts and Technolog0Y. The staff of the -lelcen Gagen Consumer, Centre wflI àlso include students from 'ile Dietary Seri ' ces Management course at George Brown Col- lege who will conduct a Coni- surner survey on nutrition and eating habits. South Ontarlio County 4-H The organizatioflal meet- the Community Hall in Brook- ing for the South Ontario lin on Monday March 18 County 4-H Comnrity Club at 2: 00 p.m. Mr. Paul Ruth and the South Ontario Coun- (assistant Agricultural Rep- ty 4-H Dairy and Field Crops resentative) gave a few words Club of 1974 was held In on the purpose of the 4-H Beta Sigma Phi sorority held thieir "Annual Spring a two nighit packed house succcss. Ail proceeds froni the Fashion Show" last week featuring the latest fashions fromn shows wilI go to the Vicki Knox Nursing Scholarship. De Paul Fashions for Wornen, and Doug Wilson's Mens - Free Press Photo Wear. Thie show, lbeld at Eastdale C.V.. auditorium, wasI programi and its increasing arnount of recognition. He also introduced us to the idea of having a Veterinarian Science Club along with the present tractor. snowînobile, pony, field crops, dairy. laet' and a number of other inter- esting clubs. The two clubs thon split up and thc individ- ual clubs carried on the elec- tion of officers. The execu- tive for this year for the South Ontario Couinty 4-H Community Club are as follIows: President: Nancy Richard- son. Vice-President: J ohnr Green thumbs sh6iîtJ be i*tching for action Well neighbours, it's that time of year again when the green and flot so green thumbs sfart itching f0 gel back at the garden. And ihis year there wvi1I be more of you than ever bel ore, because in 19 73, the highest increase in the number of home gardens -was registered. Over one h undred thousand more gardens wvere added f0 the nation's garden inventory. Another interesting factor is that the young rnarried segment of our population is starting their gardens the first year of marriage instead of waiting until the third year, and the gardens they are planting are 60 percent larger than their counterparts planted a decade ago. Another new group of enthusiasts cornes from the thousands of homeowners who cancelled their plans to move into new homes because of higher rnortgage rates. They decided to keep their homes and make thern more livable with greater emphasis on gardeninL2. Lawn Debris As soon as the weather per- mits, start remnoving the winter debris from the lawn areas. If you can walk on your lawn without Ieaving foot prirts, then it is ready to be raksed with a "spring-type" or bamboo rake. It sc7atches the grass blades 4àd helps to waken them, You'il also get the par-rs, twigs, and other debris off t1Le lawn area and in this way, more or Iess, you'll be preparing it for the fertilizer you'll bc applying any day now. Use a specialized prod- uct like Golden Vigoro and apply it accorcling to the rianufact.urer's airections or eIse in 5-6 weeks you'Il find yourself behind the spreader again. New Techniques If you are a gardeningen thusiast or if you just like to have attractive plantings around your home, you proba- bly wish you had more of some of your favorite flowers and shrubs. Here's an idea on how to grow new pliants sim- ply and very inexpensively. For a number of ycars plant scientists have been expanding the number of experimental plants by rooting cuttings un- der sheets of plastic. Home gardeners and school children can do the same thing with an ordinary plastic freezer bag. In effect, you can make your own greenhouse! However, for best results, you should know when to root specific plants. Most house plants can be rooted at any time of year. This groupý would include Chinese evergreen, pothos and philodendron. Garden flowers, such'as geraniums and roses, should be rooted from late May to September. Flowering shrubs, broadleaved ever- greens, vines, forsythia, camn- ellia and ivy should be rooted from mid-June to mid-August. Rooting Use a two quart plastic freezer bag. This wiI be large enough to hold four to six cuttings. Next assemble the folîowing: peat moss, the fib- rous kind that is offered by Vigoro and sand, dlean and TALKING GARDENING 'DOC'HARTNOLL free of saIt. SaIt will kilI the cuttings, s0 neighbours, don't use sand from the beach or, in fact, sand from the kids' sandipile. It's best to buy sev- eral pounds of sterilized sand at your favorite garden centre, nursery or department store. The hardware shops have it, too. I like to use a root start- ing hormone because it quick- ens growth and shortens the time it takes to root cuttings. The next step is to screen the peat moss, pick out any large particles or twigs that may be in the peat moss, and then combine, by volume, two parts of peat moss with one part sand. Mix .well, then sift again. Now add water, not too much, just enough so that when you squeeze a handful of the sand-peat mixture, a fcw drops of water wiIl squeeze out. Put the mixture into the plastic bag-about three inches Rutledge. Secretary: John Cosway, Press Reporter: Hea- ther Richardson. The leaders for tbis club are Mr. Glen Squire and Mr. Arthur Richardson. The re wvcre 10 eager and enthus- îastic miemnbers present. The deep and tac sure iere are NO holes in the bag or the water will evaporate and the cuttings will dry out. Firm the mix wîh your hands and you are ready for the cuttings. BE SURE the cutting is new growth. You cain tell this by the colour. It will be a lighter green than the rest of the plant. You can give it the snap test. A fresh twig will sound àike a snapped bcan when broken off. Use garden shears or a sharp knifc to remove cuttings from the plant and cut off a 4 to 6 inch piece. Strip the leaves from the Iower one-third to one-haîf of the cutting and then re-cut the base of it, straight across. A sharp, fresh cut wil take up water more easily and root more readily. Next, cut a very, thin sliver of bark off the side of the cutting, about one inch long. Now dip the bottomn inch of the cutting into the root starting hormone and be sure that aIl exposed parts of the cuttings pick up the hormone s0 the cutting wîll get maxi- mum benefit. Tap excess root- ing powder off the stem. Now you are ready for planti-ng. Using your thumb next meeting is to be field eligible to join, if they 50 on Thursday April 4 at 8:00 desire. If you do wish to do p.mi. at tie farmn of Mr. S. Cosway of R.R. 1 Oshiawa. SO contact the Department Anybody wbio was 12 by Janluary I st, 1 974, and will not reach thieir 2 1 st birtbiday by Decernber 3lst, 1974, is and tînger, stick the cuttîngs mbt the sand and peat mix. About one-third to one-haîf of the length of the cutting should be inserted. You should be able to put four to six cut- tings in one bag, but DONTr crowd themn. Space cuttings so that leaves barely touch each other. If there is too much overlapping, the leaves will rot. Sprinkle the cuttings light- ly with just enough water to wet the foliage. Then draw together the top of the bag and fasten it tightly with the rubber band, twist-em, pipe cleaner or clothes pin. Where To Put It The best place to make it produce roots is right on your window sill where the cuttings will get lots of light but no direct sunlight. No additional water will be rcquired and the cutting should root in six to ten weeks. To test whether the cLttings have rooted, tug themn gently. If they stay put, you know you'vc got roots on tbern. If not, re-seal the bag and wait for another two weeks or so. When the plants are rooted. gradually open the bag a littIe more each day for five to seven .1~ 'W0 'g i i * 70;l of Agriculture and Food, Box 309 Uxbridge as soon as possible so as not to miss ou't on this great opportunity. days. This is to get the cut- tings used to the drier atmos- phere of the roomn. You'll have to water them now because the moisture once contained in the bag will escape when the bag is opened. You've corne a long way since taking the original cuttings. You've got a plant growing for you, and the next step is just about the last one. Transplant your cut- tings to clay pots containing a rich potting soul. Then, bury the pots in a protected area in your garden. Cuttings mnade in the faIt and winter should be kept in- doors in a cool roomn until spring. .After the plants have had a winter in the ground in pots, remove the pots and re- plant themn in a permanent spot in the spring. Now you should have enough plants to make your home attractive, and when a neighbour gives you a cutting, you'll be able to grow it on, as a Friendship Plant. If you have any gardening questions, write to me at the Garden Information Centre, 165 University Avenue, To- ronto, Ontario, M5H 3B8 en- closing a stamped and self- addressed envelope. Ze~ COSMETI CS FRANK & GLENDA PERRY DISTRI BUTORS NEW LOCATION 133 TAUNTON RD. W. UNIT E 728-2301 RES. 725-2615 CAN YOU QUALIFY? Thiere is an opening ini your area for Fashion 220 consultants [ui or part-timie. No inivestrnents - complete training. -j iý - - -- - - Fý 1 MwmMý IL Felt,4 44»