95 

 GARDEN GUIDE FOR MARCH. 



Kitchen Garden. — The work of this month will in great measure determine the 

 quantity and quality of the crops in the kitchen garden all the season through^ 

 therefore it should be well done, and in good time, so far as weather will allow! 

 Seeds of all the hardy subjects may be sown, such as peas, beans, cabbages, salad- 

 ings, lettuces, etc. The earliest possible opportunity must be taken to sow a little 

 celery, capsicum, tomato, vegetable marrow, and other subjects that require to be 

 forwarded under glass. Where there is plenty of convenience, it is a good plan to 

 sow early London cauUflower under glass now, and push the plants along gently ; 

 as they will come in useful in the latter part of the summer and early in autumn' 

 if planted out on rich land. 



Floioer Gardeyi.—'H.ardj annuals sown now will flower almost as early as those 

 sown in Febnaary. Hardy herbaceous plants and roses may be planted ; but it is late 

 for planting standard roses, and too early to plant dwarf roses that have been wintered 

 in pots under glass. Next month wiirbe time enough for them. Eoses must be 

 forward now, except in very exposed districts, where it would be well to wait till 

 the beginning of next month. 



Greenhouse and Conservatory.— One of the most important items of this month's 

 work is to prune and repot (if required) pelargoniums of all kinds, and especially 

 the zonal kinds. Such as have been in the saace pots for a year or more should 

 now, be carefully pruned, and a week or ten days afterwards should be turned out 

 and be repotted with fresh soil, consisting in great part of gcod loam and leaf- 

 mould with about a fifth part added of well-rotted manure. A great many good 

 greenhouse plants will be in bloom now, and must not suffer for want of water. 

 Secure as much light in the houses as possible, by removing every obstruction ; 

 clean the glass within and without, if needful ; within it is sure to need it, but the 

 outside gets pretty well cleansed with rain. 



For full particulars of the work of the season, we refer to past volumes of the 

 Floral World, and to the Garden Oracle for 1868. 



TO CORRESPONDENTS. 



PaopAGATTXG Yerbexas AND Calceglarl^s.— i2. W. B. — As we cannot write 

 an essay in reply to a question of this kind, we must direct attention to a few 

 important points. The condition cf the plants to be cut from, and the nature of the 

 cuttings, are matters of the very first importance. Many beginners fail through 

 taking old hard shoots of the previous year, which none but a professional propagat'or 

 could strike. First, then, get the plants into a nice free growth bristling "with 

 young shoots, and when these shoots are an inch and a half to two inches long, 

 remove them by cutting close under a joint ; take the leaves from that joint, and 

 dibble them into pans of silver-sand close together and quite firm, pressing the sand 

 between them with the finger. Never trifle with a batch of nice fresh cuttings. 

 Give them heat enough— 6-5^ to 70' ; dew them frequently, and keep them close. 

 Remember, the more heat, the more moisture, and vice versa. If any mildew 

 appears, sprinkle dry peat-dust among the cuttings, and raise the heat. They ought 

 to be well rooted in ten days, but beginners may reckon on getting roots in a fort- 

 night. Calceolarias may be rooted in a lower temperature than required by ver- 

 benas— in fact, they may be rooted without the aid of artificial heat, if kept close 

 and damp. The most certain and easy way to get up a spring stock of calceolarias 

 is to use frames or boxes which can be covered close with glass ; place these on a 

 mild hotbed, and over the dung spread a foot depth of cocoa-nut refuse, or clean 

 moss or peat ; water it Avell, and dibble the cuttings in firm three inches apart all 

 over. Cuttings of two joints will be enough, especially if from nice soft shoots of 

 plants growing freely. They will every one root, and will require to be pretty freely 

 aired from the time ihey begin to grow, and by planting-out time they will be stocky 

 plants, touching each other all over the bed. Eut they will never equal plants 

 struck in autumn. If calceolaria cuttings are taken from large old plants, the 

 propagator must be careful to avoid thosel>hoots which are pushing for bloom, and 

 which may be known by the extra length of the wood between the joints. 



