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THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 



of using ; but, if it is not, do not 

 press it too firmly in the pots, as 

 Prench beans like a free, open soil, 

 through which they can receive plenty 

 of water, and yet not have it stagnant 

 in the pots. When the soil in the 

 pots gets full of roots, fill the remain- 

 ing portion. Tnis will be about the 

 time the plants are in bloom, and will 

 add very materially to the SAelling 

 of the produce. With beans in boxes 

 much the same treatment is pursued 

 as to draining, soiling, etc. Some 

 persons use boxes of large size, nine 

 to ten inches square ; but I have 

 found boxes six to seven inches wide 

 and deep, and three to five feet long, 

 the most convenient for general use, 

 and, with a judicious supply of liquid 

 manure, quite large enough for the 

 purpose. Now, a more expeditious 

 plan is to take the full-sized pols or 

 boxes, drain and fill them two-thirds 

 full with manure and soil, and sow 

 the beans at once where they are to 

 stand, using plenty of seed, so that 

 the strongest plants may be selected 

 and the others destroyed. Another 

 plan is to sow a quantity of beans 

 thickly in a pot or box, and trans- 

 plant them when of sufficient size ; 

 and this is not a bad plan. 



The treatment which the plants 

 require is, first, that the temperature 

 should not fall much below 55' during 

 the night ; neither is it desirable that 

 it should much exceed 60'; therefore, 

 from 55' to 60' may be considered a 

 suitable night temperature. Through 

 the day, in dull weather, the heat 

 may rise to 65^ or 70', and with the 

 sun heat to 80' or 90', taking care to 

 keep the atmosphere moist, and, ex- 

 cept in the two darkest months, to 

 syringe copiously both in the morn- 

 ing and evening. Some persons object 

 to syringing while the plants are in 

 bloom ; but that is nonsense, for I 

 never found daily syringing interfere 

 with a good crop of beans ; but you 

 frequently see the want of the sjriuge 

 result m a troublesome crop of thrips 

 or red spider. As the beans progress 

 in growth, it sometimes happens that 



a part of the shoots will become 

 spindly and long-jointed ; should such 

 be the case, stop them at once to the 

 lowermost joint — indeed, an occa- 

 sional regulating with the finger and 

 thumb will add materially to the pro- 

 duce. Water, as we have remarked 

 before, must be plentifully supplied, 

 and weak manure water, especially 

 while the crop is swelling. Ventila- 

 tion cannot be too copious, either by 

 night or day, so long as cold draughts 

 are avoided ; but it must be recol- 

 lected French beans are scarcely more 

 hardy than cucumbers, and therefore 

 the air giving must be regulated with 

 caution. 



Should insects be likely to become 

 troublesome, add some sulphur to the 

 water you syringe with, and for thrips 

 or fly some tobacco-water ; for, after 

 all, I find these old-fashioned remedies 

 both cheaper and more certain in 

 their efi'ect than the " Gishurst Com- 

 pound," which is not to be trusted 

 with tender-foliaged plants. From 

 the preceding remarks, it will be per- 

 ceived the chief requisite in the suc- 

 cessful cultivation of the French bean 

 as a forcing plant is a rich soil, brisk, 

 moist heat, and a free circulation of 

 air. With these healthy foliage is 

 a necessity, and free-growing plants 

 are rarely much troubled with insects. 

 On the score of soil it may be re- 

 marked, it should be fresh maiden 

 loam. Sometimes the soil of cucum- 

 ber or melon beds is used ; but that 

 is not to be recommended, as in it the 

 plants get full of insects, possibly 

 from ova deposited in the soil ; neither 

 do they gro«v so freely, as in some 

 cases we have seen them refuse to 

 grow in old soil at all, and in one 

 particular instance crop after crop 

 was tried with the same result. A 

 friend of the writer's used to collect 

 mole-hiUs, and mix the earth with 

 old mushroom soil; indeed, two parts 

 fresh loam and one part the dung of 

 an old mushroom bed, is as good a 

 mixture as can be used for growing 

 this esculent. P. 



