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PAGE 6, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 24, 1974, WHITBY FREE PRESS BIRD'S EVE --JP. OUA IL A& Littie Bit'of 0f Knowledge As a kid 1 rernember reading something about a certain topie becoming an instant expert and then my father warning me that a lîttie bit of knowledgc was a dangerous thing. The lesson bas coîne home. to bear again- and this time it had to do with some of my sick house plants. The whole thing started not too long ago when 1 decided to do some- thing about learning more on how to care for houseplants and how to be a whiz around the garden. Well the upshot of ail that knowlcdge is that 1 can whiz around the garden as fast as 1 like but rny green thumb îs still the black kiss of death to plants. 1 arn beginningto suspect that you don't develop a green thumb but rather it must be inherited from the preceeding generation. 1 wouldn't feel too bad about missing the green thumb bus- iness but irniissed out 'on the good looks and brains as well. You're probably wondering wbat 1 did inherit. Weil, it was gray hair - when i was 19. Whoopee! Big Car Comfort True Economy SmalI Car Economy Motor Tre'nd Magazine Reports Over 30 m.p.g.0 c &C MOTOR 160 SIMCOE OSHAWA. O/RENAULT SALES LTD. STREET S. 728-0051 I 'IL. S HA 4 WARDEN ERVI( Spring White Birch Clumps $5000 Off Any Clump 100 to choose f rom. These Items are on a f lrst corneftirg AIL ITEMS ARE CA ;j CONLIN RD. z TAUNTON RD. ROSSLAND RD. In order to improve my knowledge about plants and such. green thingsl1jo.ned a horticultural society and started going out to the meetings fairly regularly so 1 could learn some tips from the pros. The first couple of meetings were fruitless because I spent the rest of the week after both meetings looking in the dictionary ail the terms I had written down. 1 remember a fellow classmate of rninein college catch- ing the devil because he handed in work with terrible spelling. The teacher told him jf he didn't know how to spell the word to look it up and my classinate brought up a good point. He said if he couldn't speil the word and didn't have a dlue about the origin then he sure didn't stand much of a chance looking it up in the dictionary. 1 didn't have much sympathy at the time for my classmate but since then I have tried to look up some of the terrns these horticulturalists fling around and 1 have not had a great amount of success. So armed with the lit tic bit of knowledgc I gained from going to the meetings 1 startcd nursing my house plants back to health. Or so i thought. If a bouse plant is supp- oscd to bc brown and withcred then mine are hcalthy. Cactus grow in places like Death Valley with little or no water and they neyer sec a man let alone have one fuss over themn and thc damn things thrivc. I just walk past mine and they keel over to lay there roots up and looking like they had been beaten with a plastic plant tic. Ail these years 1 have had a fcw plants around and ail I did waswater them and hope for the best. The hiorticultur- alist's said 1 had to do rnuch more to get a green and healthy plant. They said i had to repot themn now and again and they asked what kind of fertilizer 1 used. 1 said, "Fertilizer?" They said the elements is the soul would not support the plant indefinitely so 1 should add tiquid fertilizer from timne to time and they said I should also "rnist" the plants and "talk" to themn and generally fuss witb thlen. Naturally I was suspicious that 1 was being put on but like a fool 1 vcnt home and talked to my plants at the risk of being whisked away to the nut farm. I also misted the heck out of ail the plants and watcred tberm alI withi liquid fertilizer. 1 had a beautiful lvy that looked like it ne.eded repotting and the soul was terrible so 1 bought some potting soil and repotted it to a larger container with fresh new soul. I don't have to tell you what happened to that lvy do P? Well l'Il tell you anyway because i'm still mad about it. Before 1 touched it the plant was iovely and green wîth lots of leaves. Since it has been rcpotted it was withcred and droppcd most of its leaves and from a lush, green and bushy plant it went to a straggly, brown spindly looking L6ARNT41O' for bu*siness or pleasure Oshawa Fl ying Club <rovt approved school for botti commercial and private pilot training lat Lesson: $&.00 and this ad OSHAWA AIRPORT ..JIMYUOQU j IRN--U "THE CENTENNIAL GARDEN CENTRE"Y I I I I I I I I. weed. I used to negiect watering my plants, 1 neyer* taiked t( themn unless it was a curse for getting poked, in the ear witt a stray stem. and they neyer got fertilizer. Since I gaineé ahl this new knowiedge my plants have iooked worse thar the locust plagued crops on the prairies so I arn going back to my old method of water when 1 rememnber and ignor- ance is bliss. Maybe 1 can taik the editor into starting a new columfl, "Dear Greenthumb". I've got enough letters ready to keep the writer of that coiumn busy for a couple of months. j PI. The Whitby Jaycees held Town Clerk Bill Wallace, and a 'Millionaires Night' Friday Coun. Joy Thompson wbo night at Heydenshore Pav- hiad the players convinced ilion complete witb games thpt they had taken speciaÎ of chance, and a Chinese courses in 'Vegas'! Now if auction. Whitby Councillors we can only legaize gamb- and town staff belped the ling in Whitby we might be iaycees man thc 'wheels of able to abolish taxes. fortune'. Pictured hiere are- Free Press Phioto t'[ IF IT'S SERVICE YOU LIKE, DEAL WITH NIEUWENDYK Formerly Wilson's Cycle & Sports under new mana'gement GORD NIEUWENDYK'S SPORT CENTRE I Sales & Service Look For Grand Opening (Grey Coach Station at samne Location) 106 COLBORNE ST. EAST WHITBY, ONTARIO 668-3746 THICKSON OADN RTH RRNo Th rd y i Fm ly Day At. LOCATED 44MLS NORTH 0F HWY. NO. 2 PH JE653331 -SpecialsRe dGh. PRIVET HEDGING R d10 r . 2411-301" - Reg. 7011 each Spécial 501 each Kentucly tle CIileeAn ,s srvd asshlie they lasi Value $509«5 for $495s ýSH AND CARRY Fai0yPckCice W. aryeacomplote lUno of A-i nursory F1Y Pclck C stc a relateadnad.Oo (12 golden brown pieces and family pack wedge-fries). 5000 trees and shrubs ta chooso f rom. Lage ~re contre and nurserles lnLY EVA L Y LOOK FOR WEEKLY SPECIALS FROM 0.6-.. TAKE DD _______ MICHAEL ILVII. WHITBY EANDSCAPE ONTARIC Ci-71 r MUM-40