110 THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 



teeme simplicity, be content with ties of bast, and choose your pollen 

 and seed parents without rule, taking your risk about results, aud 

 giving up all hope of tracing pedigrees. It may be remembered, 

 however, for the general information of all raisers of seedling Glad- 

 ioli, that, in common with many other subjects, they are rarely self- 

 fertilized by their own pollen. As remarked above, if you leave 

 them alone you will get some seed ; but I will just tell you before- 

 hand, it will be precious little. You must fertilize the flowers 

 artificially, and in so doing it is not of any consequence at ail to 

 remove the stamens for the seed-bearing parents. Make your choice 

 well, and touch the selected seed bearers with the selected pollen 

 when it is dry and powdery, when the air is still and the sun is 

 shining, and very shortly the seed-pods will swell and seed will be 

 produced in abundance. S. H. 



INDOOR GARDENING WITHOUT APPLIANCES. 



BY MISS I. L. HOPE JOHXSTOXE, OF MOFFAT. 



INDING myself again in a part of the Continent where, 

 owing to the usual severity of the climate in winter, 

 all sitting-rooms must be closely shut, aud the air in 

 them consequently becoming very hot and dry, I 

 thought it a good opportunity for making another 

 attempt at invalid gardening without appliances. I again com- 

 menced with the brown basin mentioned in a former paper. For 

 those who may not have read it, it may, perhaps, be as well here to 

 explain that it is just the size of a common wash-hand basin, and 

 of the rich deep chocolate brown ware so much employed on the 

 Continent for cooking purposes. 



I filled this basin with good- sized lumps of charcoal, some 

 stones, and good leaf-loam, to which I liad previously added a little 

 grit, not having any silver-sand by me at the time. The advantage 

 of the stones I am not quite sure about ; many plants like them, as 

 they retain the heat a long time, besides giving a good hold for the 

 roots : but I have since had a doubt in my mind if perhaps charcoal 

 alone would not answer the purpose better.* The change might be 

 worth a trial, as a good deal of weight might thus be saved, which 

 is always an advantage in dealing with flower-stands and tables. 

 This done, and the mould and charcoal settled, a little bushy Ivy, 

 some dwarf reedy grass {Oxycoccus palusfrisf), a few plants of wild 

 Ribbon grass and Moneywort were planted to make an edge. Then 

 came planted at intervals inside these early Van Thol Tulips. Then 

 inside these again. Rex Eubrorum Tulips and Hyacinths, with a 

 fine large bulb of Narcissus in the centre of all. So far all went 

 well. Now I stood the basin in the centre of a flower-stand, lent 

 me for the purpose by a friend. All round the edge of the stand I 

 placed small phials (large mouthed are best) containing a little 



* We think It would. — Ed. 



t O.xycoccus palustris is the common cranberry. — Ed. 



