weoks after their seasonal growth is completed. To grow many of them well, they should 

 be kept constantly under cover. This is the only way to grow good heaths, provided tliat 

 they are planted in good, turfy, well-drained, loamji soil. Bog earth will soon Guish them ; 

 rather use a little leaf mould that has beeu well decomjwsed. 



Cactuses. — As soon as they are past blooming, give them a shift into good, turfy, rich 

 soil, keep them in the house, and give abundance of water, both at roots and top, by syring- 

 ing. When they have made good growth, gradually withhold water, and ultimately place 

 them in the suu, on a hard gravel-walk if possible ; keep dry and cool during winter, and 

 they will llower profusely. Avoid the common practice of growing them iu brick-dust and 

 coal ashes, if you wish to see them flower in perfection. 



Begonias are a valuable class for winter and spring flowering ; shift now, and get a good 

 growth before winter. Put in cuttings of heliotropes, salvias, cupheas, torenias, &c., for 

 winter flowering, and sow mignonette and pansy seed for the same object. 



The house should now be a mass of flowers ; achimenes, gloxinias, and fuchsias, will be 

 in perfection. Keep a moist atmosphere, and shade sliglitly during the hottest portion of 

 the day. Exclude currents of dry air from passing over the plants, and keep the top lights 

 oiKjn constantly, except, of course, during heavy rains. Trop;eolum bulbs should be kept 

 perfectly dry ; shake them out of the soil, and hang up in a basket in an open shed. 



Flower Garden. — Cut the faded flowers of rose bushes, and make cuttings of the stems ; 

 they root readily at this season, in a shaded spot, if well-ripened cuttings arc chosen. China 

 roses, and their hybrids, that are going out of bloom, should be pruned well down ; they will 

 flower again in the autumn. An occasional watering with manure water will extend the 

 flowering season, as Avell as enhance the beauty of the flowers individually. 



Hollyhocks and dahlias must be securely, but neatly staked ; remove lateral and weak 

 shoots from the latter, and propagate choice sorts, by inserting cuttings singly in small 

 pots ; they will root well in the shade. Plants procured in this manner will be dried off, 

 and the roots kept iu the pots all winter. Such roots are more to be depended on next 

 sprinir, and will grow more vigorously than those lifted in the usual manner out of the 

 borders. 



The coral-tree, Erythrina crystagalli, is a beautiful plant as a single specimen. The roots 

 can be annually lifted, and wintered in a dry cellar. 



Flower beds and borders should be kept scrupulously neat and clean ; hoe all vacant 

 spaces, but do not rake the ground. Stake all plants that absolutely require it, and let it 

 be done neatly, using as few and as short stakes as possible, and tie loosely. Give constant 

 attention to the removal of dead plants, withered leaves and flowers, and remove seed-pods, 

 unless specially required to perpetuate choice varieties. • 



Keep box edgings neatly clipped and repaired ; it can be transplanted at any season, 

 therefore, there is no excuse for imperfections. 



Lawns. — Constant attention must be given to mowing, sweeping, and rolling. There are 

 machines which perfonn the three operations at one time, which might be very profitably 

 introduced into extensive pleasure grounds. 



Shrubbery and Pleasure Grounds. — The application of water to recently planted trees, 

 requires discrimination. Where the soil has been prepared as formerly recommended, there 

 will be no necessity for watering deciduous trees, unless they are growing luxuriantly, and 

 the weather prove very dry. Evergreens have a greater extent of active foliage, and, in 

 consequence, require a more regialar and constant supply of moisture to meet the continued 

 evaporation by the leaves. When water is applied, draw a little of the soil from the base 

 of the plant, so as to form a small basin, and give a good soaking ; then return the soil 

 loosely into its former position. Mulching with stones is a good practice in deep soils ; the 

 heat they absorb draws up the moisture from below by capillary contraction, producing a 

 somewhat different eS'ect from a mulching of loose matter, as manure, &c., which acts rather 

 as a preventive from surface evaporation than furnishing the contained water in this 

 available manner. The latter practice is perhaps the best in shallow ground. 



Now is a good time to observe and take notes of the various effects of grouping trees and 

 shrubs, and marking those for removal where they are crowded. Defects are more apparent 

 now than when planting season arrives. Live fences, hedges of Osage orange, honey locust, 

 &c., should be cut frequently during growth, if well established. The greatest fault of these 

 fences, especially with the Osage orange, is its excessive growth. Summer pruning is the 

 best means of counteracting this ; if allowed to grow at random, and pruned only in win- 

 ter, it will be impossible to keep a neat and satisfactory hedge. This will prove to be its 

 greatest drawback as a fence for general farming purposes. All farmers cannot give proper 

 attention to these matters while they are busily engaged with their crops. 



