THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 245 



A word as to its cultivation. We will presume that you have 

 now a young plant ; if so, grow it on as fast as you can for some 

 months to come, training the shoots as they grow. In the autumn, 

 when you consider that it has completed its season of growth, 

 gradually lessen the supply of water, and have an eye to the 

 thorough ripening of the shoots of the season. I would say, treat 

 it somewhat as you would a vine when you are anxious to obtain a 

 crop of fruit the following season. Exactly so with the pruning of 

 it ; the side or lateral shoots can be shortened to one or two eyes, 

 according to their respective strength. The blooming season can 

 be retarded or otherwise, by subjecting it to a higher or lower 

 temperature, not forgetting that its proper element is the stove. 

 At the present time I have a plant treated as recommended 

 above ; its shoots are trained over a flat surface about a yard in 

 height, and the same in width, and I may say three-fourths of it is 

 covered with its beautiful clusters of flowers. Its eflect is truly 

 glorious ; but the continuous succession and lengthened duration of 

 the flowers, not forgetting its beauty, make it one of the most 

 valuable additions to tiie list of flowering plants for the stove. It 

 likes plenty of pot-room, and a soil consisting principally of peat 

 and silver sand. 



THE CULTIVATION OF ENDIVE. 



BY W. GARDINER. 



it is difiicult to prepare a first class salad during the 

 winter and spring season without nicely blanched endive, 

 and as it is not usually grown so well as it should be, I 

 have thought it desirable to ofter a few remarks on its 

 cultivation. For summer and early autumn supplies, 

 sowings must be made at intervals during May, June, and July, but 

 for the main winter crops a sowing must be made in the first week 

 in August. As regards sowing the seed, it must be said that the best 

 results are insured by sowing thinly in tolerably rich soil ; it is 

 simply necessary to mark out a bed where the soil is tolerably rich, 

 make the surface smooth with the rake, and then sow the seed 

 thinly. This enables the plants to remain in the seed-bed long 

 enough for them to become strong before they are transplanted. 

 When the seed is sown thick the plants must of necessity be either 

 thinned out, and transplanted when they are young and tender and 

 ill able to bear the removal. If they remain crowded in the seed- 

 bed they run up and soon become worthless. The bed will I'equire 

 watering, if we have a continuance of dry weather, to assist the seed 

 to germinate quickly, and thus avoid any waste of time. 



A deep holding loam is, without doubt, the best for growing first- 

 rate endive, and it is next to impossible to have it too rich with 

 manure. I should prefer ground from which an early crop of potatoes 

 had been taken, and which was deeply stirred and liberally manured 



August. 



