224 THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 



Vallota purpurea. — E. — This beautiful lily will grow well out of doors- 

 through the summer. We make a rule of placing our plants out of doors from as 

 early in the spring as the danger from frost will permit. Place them in a partially 

 shaded position, and let them remain there until they begin to throw up the flower- 

 spikes. You will find your plant do better treated this way than stived up indoors 

 all the summer. 



Cerastium Edging. — Ihid. — This can be easily kept in its place if cut back 

 with a knife, or clipped with a pair of shears ; either way will do. The short time 

 this takes to do is far better than letting it grow wild, and mixing with the other 

 plants. 



Melons Ripening. — Amateur Groiver. — You are wrong in supposing there to 

 be such a great difficulty in distinguishing a melon when ripe. Nearly all the 

 melons change to various shades of yellow — some brighter than the others, according 

 to the kinds ; and all emit a grateful odour as soon as they begin to change. The 

 commencement of the footstalk beginning to part from the fruit is another sign of 

 approaching maturity. No melon should be left on the plant until it is dead ripe. 

 The flavour gets flat and dead, and loses its piquancy. Melons ougat to be cut a 

 couple of days before they are thoroughly ripe, and kept in a cool, dry, airy place, 

 until they are wanted for tabls. Some little practice is necessary to find out the 

 right moment for cutting, more especially as most kinds vary in showing symptoms 

 of ripening. You must watch them attentively, and if you bring an ordinary 

 amount of common sense to bear upon the subject, you will soon be able to judge 

 for yourself. But do not do the same as we knew a gardener, who was occupying 

 a good position, with half a dozen men under him, did — cut a slice out of the fruit 

 to see whether it is ripe, and fit it back in its place, and then examine it every 

 morning until it was fit to eat ! Possibly this might be supposed to be a flight of 

 fancy, but it is nothing of the kind, for we can assure you that it is a positive fact. 



Mignonette Seed. — Amicus will experience no difficulty in saving mignonette 

 if he cuts the flower-spikes directly the seed-pods towards the bottom of the spike 

 begin to ripen, and lays them on a piece of newspaper, and places it on the green- 

 house shelf until thoroughly ripe. The chances are that, if he leaves it until, the 

 pods are quite ripe before he gathers it, he will lose three parts of the best seed. 

 These remarks are equally applicable to the delphinium seed. 



Camellias Out of Docks. — S. S. — These require no other attention now but 

 to keep them properly watered. Many failures in the way of the buds dropping 

 by and by can be traced to want of attention now. Some people set them out of 

 doors, and fancy they can take care of themselves. Keep them properly watered 

 now, and you will not have any cause to fear that the buds will drop. The best 

 place to keep these plants when out of doors is on the north side of a wall, where 

 they get a glimpse of the sun morning and evening, but are shaded through the 

 middle of the day. 



Earwig Traps. — Senry. — It is entirely your own fault if you allow these pests 

 to spoil your wall-fruit. They are easily destroyed. We catch them with ripe 

 bean-stalks, cut up into six-inch lengths, and stuck between the wall and branches 

 to keep them in their place. The earwigs congregate in these through the day, 

 when we go along, and blow them into a pail of water. 



Cocoa-nut Fibre Dust. — J. J. — This material can be mixed with almost any 

 soil with advantage if used in small quantities. It keeps the soil open, and assists 

 the free development of the roots. It has none of the nutritive qualities of manure. 



Abutilon Propagating. — A. B. S. — Cuttings of the young wood, taken off 

 just as it begins to get firm, inserted in light sandj- soil, and kept close for a time, 

 will root freely. 



Inarching Vines. — JE.A.W. is anxious to know whether any harm would 

 occur by inarching a white vine upon a black one, a Sweetwater upon a Muscat, 

 and vice versa. We do not see that inarching would do any harm, provided a judi- 

 cious selection of stock and scion is made, which is not likely to be the case if a 

 Sweetwater is inarched upon a Muscat, for the Muscats are too tender for the 

 purpose, and generally do best in cold damp localities when grafted or inarched 

 upon free-growing black kinds, such as Black Hamburgh, Trebbiano, and Lady 

 Downes. The black ones should not be inarched upon the Muscats when black 

 grapes are required ; it would be better to remove the muscats and plant black 

 varieties in their place. 



