Hii^YiT, wiiumum.: 



JOSIAH HOOPES, 



COieltESfOKDIKG £I)irOKS : 



JAMES TAPLIN, 



MARK MILLER. 



VOL. 29. 



APEIL, 18T4. 



]S"0. 334. 



I0IIKS 



i^ 



G-reenh-Ouse for April. 



NO time must now be lost in propagating 

 and potting any plants which may yet be 

 short for » planting outside during the month 

 of May;, for small plants but recently re- 

 moved from the close, moist air of the propa- 

 gating house are very unsatisfactory plants to 

 expose to the hot sun and drying winds we 

 generally experience at that season ; and well 

 established plants will not only give a more 

 immediate good effect, but will usually re- 

 quire less attention during the summer. 



Verbenas. — Keep Verbenas as cool as 

 possible, with abundance of air, be careful the 

 plants never suffer from want of water ; it is 

 often necessary to water them more than once 

 a day at this season ; neglect in this matter we 

 believe is often the cause of rust, about which 

 many growers complain. We give our verbe- 

 nas a moderate fumigating with tobacco once 

 each week as a preventive to green fly ; if this 

 has been neglected and the fly has established 

 7 



itself, give the house a fumigating three nights 

 in succession, to insure the death of every 

 one, for if a few escape the plants will be 

 smothered in a few days after planting out, 

 and be so much checked that a satisfactory 

 growth cannot be expected. There is no ad- 

 vantage in having very large plants of verbe- 

 nas for bedding out if they are stiff and well 

 rooted. We prefer a plant of about four inches 

 in height, from which the point has been 

 pinched a week or two previous to planting 

 out. As regards varieties, they are so numer- 

 ous that it is impossible to describe them ; 

 we usually add a number of the so-called new 

 varieties to our collection, annually, for trial, 

 but usually find by the end of the season 

 very few standard improvements to add to 

 our list. The main points required in bedding 

 verbenas are, clear and decided color, large, 

 full truss of bloom, free bloomers and growers, 

 and good habit of growth. Many excellent 

 varieties for cutting for show flowers are not 

 at all suitable for flower garden decoration. 



Coleus. — Now is a good time to propagate 

 Coleus for bedding ; the cuttings will root in a 

 few days and make good plants by the time 



