66 THE FLORIST. 



ON THE CULTIVATION OF ACIIIMENES. 



Few plants are more interesting than Achimenes, and few better 

 reward the cultivator for his care and skill. We first had A. cocci- 

 nea, which still keeps a firm hold of our affections ; and, indeed, how 

 can it be otherwise, — for who could look on a specimen of it, four 

 feet in diameter, quite round, and covered with little scarlet flowers, 

 and not admire it ? 



Then came A. longiflora, an equally valuable species ; and, if my 

 memory serves me rightly, this was succeeded by A. grandiflora, 

 rosea, some recently introduced species, and hybrids, altogether form- 

 ing one of the most handsome tribes of plants with which we have 

 to deal. 



My mode of cultivating the different species is as follows. As 

 soon as they have done flowering, they are placed under cover in 

 some convenient corner, and watered two or three times, with a view 

 to aid the swelling of the tubers ; for they grow for some time after 

 they have done blossoming. They are then allowed to become quite 

 dry, previously to being cut down ; the pots are laid on their sides, 

 and piled up one above the other in any snug corner below a stage ; 

 but they should not be exposed to a lower temperature than 35° ; 

 40° minimum would be safer. Tliey winter better in the pots they 

 were flowered in, than if taken out and placed in drawers, as under 

 such circumstances they are apt to rot. 



With a view to keep up the best series of successions, the first 

 batch of tubers should be started in the beginning of February, the 

 second in the beginning of April, and the third in the latter end of 

 May, or at any time between these periods, according to circum- 

 stances ; but if excited later than this, they would do little service 

 to the amateur who has not the assistance of a stove. 



I'he tubers (before starting them) should be shaken out of the 

 pots in which they have flowered, placed in small shallow pans, with 

 a little fine earth about them, and transferred to a cucumber or melon 

 frame, in which a temperature of between 70° and 80° is kept up. 

 13ut if a heat of this kind cannot be obtained, then 60°, with rather 

 an abundance of atmospheric moisture, will suit them equally well. 

 Move the plants from the pans in which they were excited when 

 they are an inch or two in height, and put them into their flowering 

 pots at once. In doing this, the requisite number of tubers is placed 

 at equal distances over the pot, — five is the number we employ for 

 a wide-mouthed 6 -inch pot ; we prefer this pot to the more upright 

 kind, for it contains a greater surface, and the roots of Achimenes 

 run rather shallow. For growing fine specimens, pans should be 

 used a foot over, and six inches deep, ten plants being employed to 

 fill the pan. 



The soil I use is a mixture of turfy loam and peat, with a little 

 well- decomposed cow-dung and silver-sand, all in rather a rough 



