JANUARY. 



11 



there is a little bottom-heat at command, plunging about three parts 

 of the depth of the pot. When all are plunged, give a nice sprinkling 

 of water through a very fine rose, taking off all the glasses ; when 

 done, replace the glasses, and shut down close. Little more will be 

 required until they are ready to be potted off (which will be in about 

 six weeks), with the exception of supplying them with water occa- 

 sionally, taking off the glasses and wiping the condensed moisture 

 out of them every second or third day, and keeping them shaded 

 from the hot rays of the sun. 



When they begin to make growth, you may conclude they are 

 rooting ; and as soon as this is the case, prepare for potting off, for 

 which purpose select some of the same kind of peat as before, but 

 put less sand in it. Get some thumb-pots well drained, and insert 

 the handle of your budding-knife into the sand of the cutting-pot ; 

 lift the plants up, and allow all the sand and mould that adheres to 

 the roots to remain ; introduce this into your prepared pots ; when 

 done, press slightly down with the fingers, and place them in a hot- 

 bed, either of fermenting manure, fresh leaves, or tanners' bark, all 

 of which will answer : be careful not to have the horse-manure too 

 rank ; it will require turning and watering to make it sweet, before 

 it is formed into a bed, on the top of which, when built, place some 

 nice sweet saw-dust, being careful not to get any from green timber, 

 but that from good seasoned deal ; place about three inches of this 

 over the surface of the bed, and then your plants, as you pot them 

 off, plunging them about half into the sawdust ; if tanners' bark, or 

 good sweet leaves are employed, the sawdust will not be required. 

 When this is accomplished, water slightly, shut down close, and keep 

 them shaded for a few days, until they begin to root, which will be 

 indicated by their becoming stiff, and standing upright, when their 

 tops should be pinched off with the thumb and finger. This will 

 cause them to break well from the bottom, and be the means of 

 establishing a dwarf, robust, sturdy, handsome plant ; keep up a 

 nice brisk heat, by applying fresh manure, in the shape of linings, 

 if you discover your heat declining ; for it will be found that the 

 Azalea delights 'in a brisk, moist heat, in which it can be grown 

 more in one year than in any ordinary place in two. When they 

 have broken from stopping about two inches, top them again, and 

 continue this practice throughout the season. Under this treatment 

 you will find in eighteen months that you are in possession of such 

 plants as are rarely to be met with ; attention must, however, be 

 paid to re-potting, which can be performed as soon as the plants 

 have filled their present pots with roots. As they advance, I intro- 

 duce into the soil, at every shift, some broken potsherds, commencing 

 with the size of large peas, and increasing every time they are potted, 

 until they arrive at their final shift, when I introduce pieces as large 

 as pigeons' eggs ; these will be found of the greatest importance in 

 keeping the soil well drained, pure, and healthy : the Azalea does not 

 like heavy close compost to grow in ; such soon decays the roots, and 

 brings the plant into an unhealthy condition. 



As soon as the plants become too large to be grown any longer 

 in dung or other frames, they should be transferred to a glass house 



