6 



THE FARM AND GARDEN. 



OUi^Flowbi^ 

 Gai^dbn. 



Winter Blooming RrLns. 



Wo imagine tliat by lliis time mauy of our new 

 subscribers who recdiveii bulljs from us are enjoy- 

 ing a beautiful feast of flowers, and be the envy 

 of their neighbors. Of eourse all now wish 

 they had bought some, and fully intend to do so 

 next season. The roots that are now showing 

 flower spikes must now be brought into a warmer 

 plaee, and close to tile glass. Watering must be 

 attended to regularly, and a little manure water 

 now and then will give them strength and large 

 flower spikes. Do not bring them all in at onee, 

 but prolong the show of flowers as long as i)ossi- 

 ble. Crocus, if planted in pots or boxes, will 

 need a much cooler place, and will require more 

 air as well, or else they will not bloom. 



Lilies, 

 If placed in the cellar, may also be brought 

 forward and forced a little, no doubt Ijy this time 

 the pots are full of roots. Small pots are best 

 for Lilies to liegin with, ami wlien the leaf stalk 

 is well aliove tlu* sf>il tbey may be shifted into a 

 larger pot, setting llie ball of earth way down, 

 and covering the bulli witli as much .soil as possi- 

 ble, roots generally form first aliove the crown of 

 the bulb, and tbey liclp tlie flowering very much. 

 BEi)i)i>(i Pl.\nts from Seeds. 



It is not everyone wlio has the sjiace or means 

 to provide and winter a large number of Gera- 

 niums and other tender bedding jdants. No 

 matter how favorably om; may be situated, the 

 keeping of a large stock of such plants involves 

 a good deal of trouble, and takes up space that 

 might be more profitably occupied. Moreover, 



it is quite practicable to make a garden very gay 

 in summer and autumn with seedlings alone, 

 without keeping or purcliasing a single plant, 

 and a eomjiaratively small amount will buy the 

 seeds required. There will, of course, in some 

 cases be a difference in habit, and some variation 

 in color, as in those particulars a certain natural 

 freedom, involving some departure from the 

 normal type, is nearly always perceiitible in 

 seedlings, and must be expected ; but to many 

 people this will not be an objection. There are, 

 however, a few plants which come true from 

 seed through many generations ; among these 

 are the Verbenas, which are of the Ijest and 

 pleasing bedding or border plants. Another 

 jilant which comes true from seeds is 



Salvia Patens, 

 But both this and the preceeding should be 

 sown in a hot-bed early in spring, in order 

 to get them into flower early. Can any- 

 thing au'ain, as a mi.\ed bed, be more 

 slu'Wy than amass of seedling Petunias? 

 Tlie colors are not harsh and irritating, 

 but soft and pleasing. Verbenas make 

 a handsome bed, little inferior to the 

 Petunia, and for a large bed, where 

 the soil is good, few things are supe- 

 rior to the double Zinnias, which 

 can be had in various colors, sepa- 

 rately if desired. Balsams, again, 

 are not half so much used as they 

 deserve to be. Those who have 

 only seen them starving in jiots 

 cannot form any idea how beautiful 

 they arc wlien jilanted out in good 

 soil, in an open situation, away 

 IVoni trees. Among yellow flow- 

 "■ring plants, the small, single 

 Tayetes Signata Pumila is as use- 

 In), liut it is not equal, to the 

 double variety. Tlie yellow and 

 orange varieties of the African Mari- 

 gold are very lasting and sh<>wy. The 

 dwarf kinds of Agcratum, if selected 

 and save<l witli care, may be raised 

 wllli but little troul)le,and, with little 

 majrigemcnt in summer, verv ef- 

 leetive ma.sses may easily be 

 liad. The Tuberous Begonias 

 form a prime feature in shel- 

 tered positions, they will grow 

 i". all colors of Pelargoniums. 

 We said imthing aijont tlie 

 large nuinliiT nf perfectly 

 hardy plants, well suited for 

 niiussing, and llial cost nothing 

 to keep. Take, for instance, the 

 large family of Violas, in almost 

 all shades oi'innple, yellow, and 

 white. Varieties which formerly 

 took two years to e^ime to per- 

 fection may, now that s<>lection and 

 rlilization have so much imiiroved 

 1, be raised in the early s)»ring for bed- 

 tlie same summer. This applies es- 

 sneh |ilants as the Verbena, Viola, 

 allium, (ioldeii Feather, Salvia Patens, 

 Salvia .\rgenta. Heliotrope, Dwarf Antirrhinums, 

 which shi>uld be sown in January, also, tlie Peui- 

 nias, Phlox Drummondi, Bianthus Ileddewigi, 

 Indian Pinks, etc. Ageratums and Lobelias, 

 which may be sown in a warm place in Feb- 

 ruary, and if kept growing will be ready for 

 planting out in May. Begonias for bedding 

 may be grown from seed in the same year, but 

 are much more eflfective if raLied the preceeding 

 vear, and selected according to color, and stored 

 in the winter ready for bedding out in early 

 summer. The same system may be employed for 

 indoor decoration, for Gloxinias begin to flower 

 in .Tune, if sown in January or February ; 

 Begonias in July, and then they last throughout 

 the autumn, when last year's bulbs are overblown 

 indoors. Fuchsias sown in January flower well 

 in August, and many other plants, also. Of fine 

 foliage plants adajited lor bedding, which can be 

 raised from seed, there are the useful Amaran- 

 thus Melancolicus, and the drooping Amaranthus 

 Salicifolius, Celosia Huttonia, with its fine habit 

 and effective coloring, all of the Centaureas 

 Cineraria Maritima, and Hnmea I'^legans. 



Then we have the t.'annas, Chamaepeuce, Nico- 

 tianas, Ricinus, S<ilanums, and Wigandia ; these 

 are all large growing plants which iirodnce a fine 

 eflect on the lawn and are much admired. In 

 fact, if we were not so much accustomed to de- 

 pend on cutting plants stored over the winter, we 

 eouhl make a display on needling plants alone. 

 If Fuchsias may be grown to the flowering stage 

 ilnring the current year, there can scarcely be 

 any difficulty in getting a large stock of plants 

 for the open garden in the same way. The 

 cleanliness resulting from this plan would be a 

 gain in itself, because the tendency of old jiropa- 

 gatiiig plants is to harbor the eggs of vermin 

 through the winter, which are always ready to 



eat up the collection if neglected for a week. 

 But, starting with thoroughly clean boxes, if an 

 amateurj or houses and frames, if a florist, and 

 good reliable seeds, one cannot fail to be success- 

 ful. For .many rea.sons, the raising of bedding 

 plants from seed Ls preferable to growing from 

 cuttings, and yet the latter way is most desirable 

 when only a limited number of plants is neces- 

 sary. We know well that everybody raises 

 plants from seeds; but, the early thinning, the 

 perfect exposure to light, the sturdy growth, the 

 unchecked culture that seedlings require, are 

 seldom given them, owing to the little space and 

 little thought they usually occupy. 

 • Akums. 



Several of these are very beautiful plants as 

 regards to foliage, and interesting when in ri(twer. 

 They are mostly from tropical countries, while 

 others, like A. Italica and Dracunculus are 

 hardy. The foliage of A. Italica is very hand- 

 some indeed in winter and spring, and rivals 

 many of the Marantas and other plants that are 

 raised only for the beauty of their foliage. When 

 several roots are i)lanted in a pot of soil, com- 

 posed of turfy peat mixed with a little fresh 

 moss, they will soon fill it with magnificent 

 leaves, attaining their lull development very 

 early. If planted out, they form a very attrac- 

 tive feature in the flower border. In the autumn, 

 when the leaves have died away, the groups of 

 scarlet berries sujiported on foot stalks, ten or 

 twelve inches long, have a very attractive ajipear- 

 ance, which they retain for a considerable time. 

 Arum Cki'nitum. (Dragon's iVmitli.) 



The appearance of this plant when in flower is 

 very grotesque, from the singular shape of its 

 broad s|ieckled spathe. The leaves are divided 

 into five or seven deep segments, the centre divi- 

 sion being iiuich broader than the others, and 

 the leaf-stalks overlapping each other, form a 

 sort of spurious stem one foot or fourteen inches 

 high, marbled and spotted with purplish black. 

 The treatment of this jdant is similar to that 

 given for A. Dracunculus, but it is ratlier more 

 tender, it will require a little more care and 

 shelter in winter ; a mild situation will suit it 

 best. The appearance of the flower is rather 

 repulsive, the disagreeable odor being strong 

 enough to attract the larger flies in quest of a 

 suitable place wherein to deposit their eggs. It 

 is a strange plant, seen in a group of fine-leaved 

 subjects, or holding its blossoms from out a mass 

 of low shrubs. 



Tulips. 

 The varieties of Tulips are so valuable that no 

 garden or window sill should be without them, 

 as indeed very few are, jiarticularly as their 

 culture, described before in these pages, is so 

 simple. The blooming season is not so short aa 

 is generally supposed, for between the earliest 

 and the latest flowering kinds a considerable 

 time intervenes. Beds of Tulips may be carpe- 

 ted with tufts and clumps of small creeping 

 plants suited for the purpose. The White llock 

 Cress (Arabis Atbida), t<igether with it variega- 

 ted form, the Aubrietas, Hei>aticas, Primroses, 

 Cowslips, Pansies, early flowering Violas, Sedum 

 Acre Aureum, the pretty creeping Ajuga Rep- 

 tans Rubra, and many others make pretty carpets 

 for beds of bulbs. When a collection of Tulips 

 is siiflSciently large to admit of its being done, it 

 is a good plan to rest the bulbs every third year, 

 by preventing them from blooming. They occupy 

 but a small space in the reserve garden, and can' 

 be planted quite thickly. In order to growj 

 Tulips to perfection, a light, rich, well-drained^ 

 soil is rtquired, yet, almost any soil will give 

 astonishing results. They shonld be jilanted 

 with from three to four inches of soil above the 

 crowns of the bulb ; if planted nearer the .surface 

 and a severe winter follows they are liable to 

 injury. 



