378 



PLANT POTTING. 



sand, charcoal, &c. Charcoal is both a 

 chemical and a mechanical agent. Its 

 value as a manure is derived from its pro- 

 perty of absorbing moisture and various 

 gases — particularly ammonia. A celebrated 

 chemist says — " charcoal is capable of being 

 used with advantage in abstracting the am- 

 moniacal and other salts, which gives its 

 value to the liquid of farm-yards. Experi- 

 ment has shown, that when filtered through 

 a bed of charcoal the liquid escapes with- 

 out colour, and almost without taste, while 

 the charcoal is itself converted into ferti- 

 lizing manure." Such is the theory of its 

 action ; and its practical efficacy has been 

 sufficiently proved to rank it as a valuable 

 ingredient in soils. 



The heap should be frequently turned 

 over, to expose every part of it to the influ- 

 ence of the weather, and preserve it in a 

 healthy state ; and that it may be of easy 

 access during winter, it should be kept 

 under cover, and always used in as rough 

 a state as the size of the pots will conve- 

 niently allow. 



Preparing the Pots. — In the first place, 

 these should be thoroughly clean and dry ; 

 and as complete and efficient drainage is 

 indispensable, the material used for this 

 purpose should be in quantity correspond- 

 ing to the size of the pot, Broken pots, or 

 crocks, as they are generally termed, are 

 most in use ; but charcoal, bones, bricks — 

 broken up — or small stones, will answer 

 this purpose equally as well. When the 

 pots are large, a good system is to invert 

 a small pot in the bottom, filling the space 

 between it and the side of the pot with the 

 drainage. In ordinary cases, a large piece 

 of crock is laid over the hole in the bottom 

 of the pot. This should be placed with its 

 rounded or convex side downwards, to pre- 

 vent the ingress of insects or worms. A 

 still better method is to cover it with a 



small piece of perforated zinc, as it offers 

 no resistance to the egress of water, and 

 effectually prevents any intruders. Above 

 these, place a sufficient quantity of the 

 broken material, and cover the whole with 

 a layer of moss, or the roughest parts of the 

 soil. Moss is preferable, as it parts freely 

 with superabundant moisture, still holding 

 in suspension a sufficient portion to be of 

 service to the roots, and of which they will 

 gladly avail themselves in any emergency. 

 It was a long established and deeply 

 rooted opinion, that plants could not be cul- 

 tivated with any degree of success in hard 

 burned (or glazed) pots; and even yet, we 

 occasionally meet with some who tenacious- 

 ly cling to the idea. The objection to them 

 is, that the soil next the pot is always in a 

 cold, damp state, and apt to destroy the 

 roots. That this would be the case when 

 the drainage is imperfect, the soil not pro- 

 perly prepared, and water given in excess, 

 might be expected. And as a porous pot, 

 by absorbing and giving off moisture, ren- 

 ders this unskilful management less appa- 

 rent, it is preferred. But this is no argu- 

 ment in its favor. When that indefatiga- 

 ble horticulturist, Mr. Beck, Isleworth, Eng- 

 land, first brought his slate pots into notice, 

 they met with a very unfavorable reception, 

 But when he subsequently carried off prizes 

 at the London horticultural exhibitions, with 

 plants cultivated in these pots, un successful 

 competitors were fain to acknowledge the 

 advantages which he possessed ; and what 

 they before condemned, they now looked 

 upon as a necessary accompaniment of suc- 

 cess. The advantages that slate and hard 

 burned pots have over those that are soft 

 and porous, are, that the soil is kept equally 

 moist, and less water is requisite ; as porous 

 pots rapidly absorb the moisture from the 

 soil, especially in hot, dry weather. 



It would be a decided improvement upon 



