CULTURE OF THE CAMELLIA. 



271 



I now come to another important point 

 in the management of the Camellia. This 

 is the watering, — on the proper manage- 

 ment of which will much depend the health 

 and vigor of the plants. No particular rule 

 can be laid down for watering ; it must de- 

 pend on the practical knowledge of the 

 amateur or gardener. There is, however, 

 no absolute difficulty about it. Good com- 

 mon sense, and due attention are all that 

 are requisite to perform with perfect suc- 

 cess this part of the management. Camel- 

 lias require to be freely watered when they 

 are growing. Partial watering should be 

 avoided. I mean by this, that when they 

 are watered, it should be done thoroughly, 

 so that the water will go through the pot, 

 and not on the surface only ; and hence 

 it is best not to water unless the plant 

 actually needs it; for if kept too wet 

 long, the soil will lose that sweetness which 

 the delicate roots of this genus always re- 

 quire. 



The Camellia delights in a moist atmos- 

 phere; and for that reason, frequent syring- 

 ing of the leaves will greatly promote their 

 growth and vigor. I usually commence 

 syringing the top of the plants once a day 

 in the spring, when the plants begin to 

 grow, and that in the morning, when the 

 heat of the green-house is moderately warm. 

 I increase the syringing as the warm wea- 

 ther advances, so that they have two good 

 syringings every day (night and morning,) 

 in summer, when the weather is very hot 

 and dry. This not only promotes their 

 health, but it keeps off the insects, to which 

 the Camellia is liable, and especially that 

 great enemy and plague of the gardener — 

 the red spider. The syringing should be 

 decreased as the temperature becomes 

 cooler in the autumn, and should be avoid- 

 ed when the weather is very damp or very 

 cold. Light syringing in winter would be 



very beneficial to the plants when the 

 house is sufficiently warm, say about tem- 

 perate (Fahrenheit,) and particularly so, as 

 the fires which are required in cold weather 

 are apt to make the air much too dry for 

 Camellias; but as the syringing would in- 

 jure the flowers, it is avoided during the 

 blooming season. To maintain, in some 

 measure, that moist air which is so conge- 

 nial to the Camellia, and which is lost by 

 the action of the fire, I sprinkle water upon 

 the pipes, flues and floors of the green- 

 house, and that usually in the morning. 

 After the hot fires of the night, the foliage 

 is very susceptible of dryness in the air ; 

 and as syringing cannot be used, on ac- 

 count of spoiling the flowers, the water 

 thrown on the pipes or flues creates a moist 

 air and dew, which, with the genial warmth 

 of the sun, greatly tend to invigorate the 

 plants and make them bloom freely. 



I come now to the heat or temperature, 

 which the Camellia requires to grow and 

 bloom it to perfection. In this case, as in 

 many others, extremes are to be avoided. 

 This plant, in fact, requires uniformity of 

 temperature ; but our climate is so very 

 variable that it is almost impossible com- 

 pletely to define any rule on the subject. 

 In winter — say from the first of October to 

 the first of March — I endeavor, as much as 

 possible, to keep the temperature of the 

 Camellia-house from 48° to 60'^ [Fahren- 

 heit.] It will sometimes cross both lines ; 

 but in no case do I allow the glass to go 

 lower than 40° or higher than 65°. In 

 summer time, (or rather from 1st of March 

 to 1st of October,) the thermometer seldom 

 falls lower than temperate (60° ; ) but our 

 bright summer sun will cause the glass to 

 rise to 90° and upwards, and it cannot be 

 avoided. Some of the Camellias suffer 

 much from this great heat ; but, as a com- 

 pensation, we have flowers much raoiQ 



