THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 



85 



heat, having the same treatment and 

 being often in company with cuttings 

 of verbenas, petunias, and other bed- 

 ding; plants. When rooted, they are 

 potted into large thumbs, in light 

 rich compost, and again placed in a 

 gentle heat. When established in 

 these pot3, they are removed to a 

 greenhouse or pit, and they remain 

 there till the end of May or beginning 

 of June, according to the weather 

 and the strength of the plants. 



When removed to the pit, a cer- 

 tain number of the forwardest should 

 be selected to push on for early bloom. 

 These, if carefully dealt with, will 

 begin to bloom in November, and will 

 continue blooming several weeks. 

 None of these should be stopped. 

 The rest should be stopped, both to 

 ensure a later bloom and to make 

 finer plants of them. The process of 

 stopping consists in nipping out the 

 point of the shoot so as to cause the 

 plant to throw out side shoots. 



Towards the end of their term of 

 residence in the pit they must have 

 air night and day, to render them 

 hardy. In the first week of June 

 they must be shifted into 6-inch pots, 

 the soil being two parts turfy loam 

 and one part thoroughly decomposed 

 manure, with a fair sprinkling of 

 sand, according to the quality of the 

 loam. The best material to drain the 

 pots is broken oyster shells. When 

 potted, they are plunged in coal ashes, 

 in the open air, in a sheltered spot, 

 and are never allowed to want water. 



In the first week of July the for- 

 wardest and strongest plants are 

 selected and shifted into 8 or 10-inch 

 pots, the same compost being used as 

 before. Afterwards a few others of 

 the forwardest arc shifted on to make 

 specimens to bloom in February. 

 Those intended to bloom in Novem- 

 ber should have every encourage- 

 ment ; give them a sheltered position, 

 plenty of water, and do not shift them 

 late or into pots too large, or they 

 may not bloom as early as desired. 



In the latter part of September 

 they must all be housed, but must 

 have plenty of air and be regularly 

 watered. In October begin to assist 

 them with weak liquid manure 

 water if the pots are full of roots. 



But if the pots are not full of roots, 

 they must not have manure water. 

 It only remains to see that they are 

 securely and neatly staked so that 

 when in bloom they will be handsome, 

 and the weight of the blooms will 

 not break the stems. 



Old plants are comparatively 

 valueless. But if people prefer to 

 keep them, they should be pruned 

 back in March, and be placed in a 

 warm pit or greenhouse to induce 

 new growth. About three weeks 

 after tne pruning, shake them out of 

 the pots, cut back the roots, and re- 

 pot them with fresh soil in the same 

 pots, and place them on a very mild 

 bottom-heat. At the end of May 

 these should be plunged in coal ashes 

 in an open quarter, and have the same 

 attention as already described for the 

 stock of yearling piauts. 



Another mode of disposing of old 

 plants is to let them remain in their 

 pots without pruning, and to plant 

 them out against a south wall in 

 June. Give them plenty of water, 

 and they will flower finely in Sep- 

 tember and October, and if protected 

 with a mat in severe weather, may 

 survive the winter. 



The following are eighteen varie- 

 ties that may be relied upon to pro- 

 duce noble flowers in great plenty : — 

 Archimede, yellow fringed, tipped red. 

 Ariadne, orange yellow ground, crim- 

 son flake, fine form. 

 Beauty, pure white, pink stripe. 

 Charles Baltet, red striped crimson. 

 Delicata, pure white, margined pink. 

 Evening Star, scarletand crimsonflake. 

 Garibaldi, purple, very sweet. 

 Gloire de Permillieux, scarlet, dwarf. 

 Hope, scarlet and crimson flake. 

 Jupiter, scarlet. 

 La Geante, blood red. 

 Mayna coccinea, crimson clove. 

 Oscar, canary yellow, striped ro3e. 

 Perfection, white, with bizarre flakes 



of purple and crimson, equal to a 



show carnation. 

 Queen of Whiles, the best white and 



a true clove. 

 Souvenir de la Malmaison, rosy flesh, 



very fragrant. 

 Vandael, yellow self. 

 Victor Emmanuel, pure yellow-rosy 



crimson flakes. 



