172 



THE FLORAL WOELD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 



Daphne Indica. — A favourite with 

 everybody — is best grafted on the 

 wood laurel. Place established plants 

 in the warmest end of the greenhouse 

 to make their new growth after 

 flowering in the spring, to be repotted, 

 if requiring it, at the same time ; soil, 

 peat and loam. To be placed out of 

 doors in August for lour or five 

 weeks. 



Heliotrope, or " cherry pie." — - 

 Strike cuttings in August; the fol- 

 lowing spring select the strongest 

 plants and pot into five-inch pots, 

 and as they grow pinch back the 

 shoots most determiuedly to lay the 

 foundation for well-shaped plants. 

 In June pot into nine-inch pots ; 

 place out of doors and frequently 

 water overhead. By beginning of 

 September they will be good speci- 

 mens to take in for flowering all the 

 autumn and spring. Old plants, if 

 cut back and watered with liquid 

 manure, will produce several crops of 

 flowers during the season. 



Aloysia citriodora, or sweet ver- 

 bena. — Treat as heliotrope. Too 

 much water cannot be used upon this 

 with the syringe in summer, as it is 

 much subject to the red spider. 



Lmum Jlavam and L. triginum. — 

 Treat exactly as above, with the ex- 

 ception of the stopping the shoots ; 

 these being more compact in their 

 habit, will not require it. 



Petunias. — The double and other 

 choice varieties make fine objects in 

 spring when well grown. Strike in 

 June, pot out as soon as struck, pinch 

 back, and tie the shoots out, con- 

 tinuing to shift until they are, in Sep- 

 tember, placed in nine-inch pots, in 

 which they will flower. They must 

 be grown in the greenhouse with 

 plenty of light, and air, and liquid 

 manure. 



Nerium splendens, or oleander, 

 may be stuck in a phial of water, 

 suspended in a sunny window, and 

 when so struck, may be potted in 

 soil. These are thirsty plants, and 

 require to stand in a pan of water 

 through the summer; and as they 

 flower at the points of the strongest 

 shoots, pruning should be used only to 

 thin out weak shoots, and occasionally 

 cut back any ill-placed branches. 



Many other greenhouse plants 

 may be classed under one head, and 

 amongst these are some of the finest 

 ornaments of the greenhouse, such 

 as acacias, cytisuses, veronicas, abu- 

 tilons, coromllas, myrtles, etc. Cut- 

 tings of all these may be put in in 

 July and August. Take pieces of the 

 young, unripened wood, cut to a joint, 

 as roots are emitted more readily 

 from a joint than from any other part 

 of the stem. In spring they may be 

 potted off into pots no larger than 

 their roots really require, for until 

 the roots of a young plant touch the 

 sides of the pots they are placed in, 

 their progress is often slow, and there 

 is also danger of a large mass of soil 

 becoming sour before the plmt can 

 appropriate it ; it is better, there- 

 fore, to put into small pots at first, 

 and to shift into larger as they require 

 it. Once in a year is generally suffi- 

 cient to shift this class of plants, and 

 when once they have attained to the 

 size which it is desirable they should 

 not exceed, their branches may be cut 

 back, immediately alter the flowering 

 period, and the plant taken out of its 

 put, the exhausted soil partly shaken 

 out, and its roots pruned back ; the 

 plant may then be placed again in the 

 same size pot to that it came out of. 

 observing in repotting to fill up all 

 interstices, and press the soil very 

 firm. Syringe the plants to encou- 

 rage a fresh growth, and in July or 

 August place out of doors to ripen 

 wood. 



Hyacinths, and other Dutch bulbs, 

 should be potted in September, and 

 should be covered six inches deep 

 with cinder-ashes, until they have 

 filled the pots with roots ; if grown 

 in glasses, they should be placed in a 

 dark closet until they have filled 

 the glass with roots, it being of 

 importance to get the roots in ad- 

 vance of the flower-stem ; they may 

 then be brought forward in the 

 warmest end of the greenhouse. 



Richardia JEthiopica, a plant 

 much grown by amateur gardeners, 

 is a half aquatic, and therefore de- 

 lights to stand in a pan of water, 

 which, however, should be withdrawn 

 when the plant has done flowering, 

 and shows symptoms of shedding its 



