THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN" GUIDE. 



281 



Bf«onias and Coleus IX Gbkenhouse. — 

 E G. Gretton. — By means of great care, 

 especially in admiiilsteriu^ water, these 

 plants may be wintered in houses that 

 are only cnoupch heated to keep out 

 frost. But it is not at all a satisfiictory 

 way of manngine; tliem. They are ge- 

 nerally very dilapidated before the 

 return of sprin'^, and some losses may 

 happen through damp. The fact is, both 

 begonias and coleuses ought to be 

 always moist at the root, and this con- 

 dition requires enough warmth to keep 

 them just moving and to prevent mil- 

 dew. In a house so heated as to be 

 never cooler than 40' all winter they 

 may be kept without difficulty, and 

 then should be kept nearly as dry as 

 geraniums. But to do them justice 

 tiiey ouccht to have an average tempera- 

 ture of 50' all winter. Coleus Verschaf- 

 felti never iieSd be kept by those who 

 have not much glass room, because 

 plants can be purchased in spring, at a 

 •cheap rate, and, by a little promptitude 

 in propagating, a large stock may soon 

 be got up by the aid of a good dung 

 bed. It is one of the easiest things 

 known to strike quickly from side-^;hoots 

 one to two inches long. 

 Eenovatino Old Gooseberry Trees. — 

 S. C. M. — Gooseberry trees may be 

 moved at any age, if done with care 

 and early in the season. Some of them 

 may lose a branch or two in conse- 

 quence, and the next summer t!ie fruit 

 will be small. To renovate the tree.=, 

 cut out a few of the leading branches to 

 the base, and at the satne time manure 

 the roots liberally. "We should cut back 

 severely one season and transplant the 

 iiest. In the meantime it would be 

 Avell to cut a trench half round every 

 tree at fifteen inches from the stem and 

 two feet deep, and till it with fresh rich 

 soil. This v>ill cause the formation of 

 new roots on one side of all the trees, 

 which will be a great help the next 

 season in the moving. Another im- 

 portant step with a view to the future 

 should also be taken now, and that is 

 to put in a lot of cuttings so as to get 

 up a stock of young trees, and allow 

 of the destruction of the old ones if they 

 refuse to be renewed. 

 SiLENE Pendui-a. — Having seen a bed of 

 Silene pendula in full flower last season, 

 and being de>irous of liaving a bed another 

 season, I sowed a quantity of seed in 

 August, but got only about thirty plants, 

 and lately have sown twice again, but 

 they do not come up well. Is there any 

 peculiarity about the mode of growing 



them; they are very hardy I under- 

 stand ; please say, and oblige, V. [The 

 Silenes are all hardy, but make a much 

 better show in the garden when treated 

 with a little of the care bestowed upon 

 tender annuals. 8. pendtila is a native 

 of Sicily, where, when growing wild, 

 the seeds have the aid of more warmth 

 in germinating than they can have iu 

 our gardens iu spring or autumn. "W"e 

 advise V. to sow S. pendula in pans in 

 February, and place the pans in a cold 

 frame ; when the seedlings are large 

 enough to handle, prick them out an 

 inch and a half apart, in pans filled with 

 light rich soil, and keep them under 

 glass till they begin to get crowded, then 

 plant them where they are to bloom. 

 The old Silene armeria is one of the 

 prettiest annuals we possess.] 

 Ptrius Scabesula. Wild in Scotland. — ■ 

 Inclosed is the frond of a farn found upon 

 the Gildon Hilts in Roxburghshire, 

 which as yet has not been named by 

 any one who has seen it. Oan you telL 

 us what it is ? One gentleman declares 

 it to be "Pteris scaberula," which I 

 think it certainly is not^ and how could 

 it have been found where tiiis one was? 

 There has been only one plant found, 

 which is now in the fern-house at Floors • 

 Castle, near Kelso, and makes a beau- 

 tiful specimen for pot culture, the light 

 feathery foliage being unlike most 

 ii3ritish ferns. "W"e are at present read- 

 ing several volumes of tlie Floral 

 Would, and deriving much pleasure and 

 profit therefrom ; " Rustic Adornments" 

 has long been a standing favourite here, 

 so that I scarcely feel as if addressing a 

 stranger to-day. — Isahella Bruce, Slo- 

 garle, Lauriestoion, Castle Donglas. [We 

 were not in doivbt one moment as to the 

 name of the fern sent. It is our old friend 

 Pteris scaberula in a somewhat attenu- 

 ated form, as if it had grown in rather a 

 dark place. Our correspondent will, 

 perhaps, be startled when v.'e say that 

 we doubt if it v/as found growing wild 

 anywhere in Britain. We were once 

 conversing with Mr. Sim on curious 

 fern findings, and he said, "I frequently 

 have stove and greenhouse ferns sent to 

 me as having been found growing wild 

 out of doors." If any evidence of the 

 actual finding of this fern can be fur- 

 nished u?, we will gladly publish it ; if 

 the find can be authenticited, it will 

 be a most interesting affair ] 

 Vines in Pots. — I have got some young 

 vines in nine-inch pots, two years old 

 this winter, and I do not know whether 

 to give them vinery or gi-eenhouse treat- 



