76 



Tim HortkuUund and Journal 



Plants in Hanging Baskets. 



BY HOKTICOLA. 



IN my trips among my horticultural friends, 

 I have often been surprised at the strik- 

 ing similarity in the selection and arrange- 

 ment of plants in hanging baskets ; and now 

 wish to enter a plea for some of our more 

 common plants — not with a view to the ex- 

 clusion of many of the half hardy ones now 

 used, but as an encouragement to many who 

 have only attained partial success with the 

 usual selection. I have more than once en- 

 joyed the wonder of some of our celebrated 

 florists over baskets which, on more careful 

 inspection, are found to contain only very 

 common plants. One of the more promi- 

 nent of these cases was with a basket which 

 contained one plant each of Trailing Morn- 

 ing Glory (Convolvulus Mauritanicus), Nas- 

 turtium, Honeysuckle, Strawberry, Convol- 

 vulus Minor (white), Partridge Berry (Mit- 

 chella repens), and common field Cinquefoil. 

 Those who have never tried it, can hardly 

 imagino how much the character of some 

 of the more common vines of trailing or 

 climbing growth may be changed, by sys- 

 tematic crowding in a hanging basket, when 

 it is accompanied with proper pinching back 

 of both main and lateral shoots ; not only 

 is the habit of growth very much dwarfed, 

 but the natural scattered bloom of such 

 runners as the Nasturtium and Convolvulus, 

 is concentrated upon a small amount of 

 vine ; and the superficial observer is often 

 deceived as to the identity of well known 

 specimens. Even such notorious stragglers 

 as the Convolvulus major maybe reduced to 

 order, and behave themselves with becoming 

 dignity in the hanging basket. 



By proper treatment, the Nasturtium may 

 be kept down to a length of two feet, and 

 add very much to the beauty of the collec- 

 tion. The Trailing Morning Glory (C. Mau- 

 ritanicus), may be pinched back until its 



numerous side shoots are covered with a 

 profusion of light blue flowers — -or, if space 

 will permit, it may be carried ofi" in any 

 direction. One spray of common Honey- 

 suckle will do much to relieve the back 

 ground of the basket : and although it rare- 

 ly blooms under such cramped conditions, 

 yet its foliage is an advantage. 



Some speak highly of the Sedum Siebol- 

 dii, but I do not find that it does well in the 

 changeable temperature of a common sitting 

 room, but seems to have its proper room in 

 the more equable air of the conservatory. 



A plant or two of the common strawberry 

 will do much to improve the beauty of the 

 basket, and, like my humble communication, 

 adding nothing of beauty of themselves, 

 they serve to show the bright colors of their 

 companions. 



The Ivy for Tn-door Decoration, 



We do not know a single vine so suitable 

 for growing in the ordinary air of living- 

 rooms and will stand so much hard usage 

 as the Ivy. The only point on which culti- 

 vators err by neglect is the failure to keep 

 its leaves well washed and clean. If this is 

 done two or three times a week, and the 

 soil watered as often, it will grow for weeks, 

 and even years, without danger from change 

 of temperature. Josiah Hoopes also recom- 

 mends in The Tribune this vine, in answer 

 to the inquiry of a lady who wanted some- 

 thing not too troublesome nor too tender. 

 He says : 



" Ivy will succeed better in our dry, warm 

 rooms than almost any plant with which I 

 am acquainted, and all that is needed to 

 make it attractive is the exercise of a little 

 ingenuity in the appliances for its home. 

 A vase, not necessarily costly, by any means, 

 will answer a good purpose: and this re- 

 minds me of an excellent idea I lately 

 noticed in a foreign periodical for growing 

 this very plant. Long shoots of the Ivy 

 were procured, with the young and tender 

 aerial roots very abundant. The lower ends 

 were wrapped in moss, and then some five 

 or six of these were tightly tied together at 

 the bottom and placed in the vase. Fill the 

 vase within a few inches of the top, and 



