39G THE GARDENER. [Sept. 



and moisture can be nicely balanced by putting on a chink of air -in 

 the morning, when the thermometer reaches from 55° to 60°, and in- 

 creasing it gradually, shutting up again early in the afternoon with 

 plenty of sun heat, giving them a gentle syringe with tepid water 

 before doing so. 



As soon as the roots reach the sides of the pots they should be 

 shifted into 5- and 6-inch ones, according to the size of the individual 

 plants. After this shift a hotbed is not a necessity, as the plants will 

 do well if placed in a warm house on a shelf or other place near the 

 glass, where they can have abundance of light and air to enable them 

 to make firm short-jointed growths, which should be pinched and regu- 

 lated by tying them to small stakes, so as to make sure of a nice bushy 

 form. We do not give them very large shifts, as they are apt to 

 grow too rampant, and with too much moisture are sometimes shy to 

 flower, so a couple of inches at a time is quite enough, the last shift 

 being into 10- or 12-inch pots, which will be quite large enough to 

 flower them in if extra large specimens are not wanted. The potting 

 material should be used in a rougher state for the two last shifts, and 

 a little bone-meal and some small bits of white sandstone introduced, 

 and the whole made firm round the ball. The pots must also be well 

 drained, and not over-watered until the new soil is fairly occupied 

 with roots, as it is apt to get soured before the roots get at it. To 

 prevent this, we use plenty of charcoal mixed with the compost for 

 all classes of plants, and often dress the surface of the pots with 

 the dust with very beneficial results. 



When it is desirable to get up a specimen plant in a limited time, 

 it is a good plan to prepare a nice border of rich soil in a warm house 

 or pit, and put out a small pot-plant, where, if all other conditions 

 are favourable, it will grow luxuriantly, and form a handsome specimen 

 in much less time than when grown in pots. When lifting it and 

 potting it, care must be taken not to hurt the roots much, and get as 

 good a ball of earth as possible by digging well round and in below 

 it, and syringing the foliage occasionally after potting. Old plants 

 can also be cut back annually after the flowering period, started into 

 growth again, and when fairly broken the old ball should be reduced 

 and a little fresh soil added. A little liquid manure can be used 

 at intervals to plants in full growth and when flowering, which they 

 generally do towards the autumn and winter months, if subjected 

 to a temperature of 50° to 55° by night, with a rise of 10° or 15° 

 in the daytime. Although this plant is easily grown and flowered 

 in pots, it nevertheless succeeds better and is more at home when 

 planted out and grown as a conservatory shrub, or trained to a wall 

 in a warm greenhouse or intermediate house. In both cases the 



