miSH GARDENING 



71 



Auriculas. 



By T. W. Briscoe. 



The Aiiriciila has long been a favourite in the 

 British Isles, and it is still one of the choicest of 

 what may be termed the old fashioned florist 

 flowers. The most popular section is the Alpine 

 (Primula jnibescens), and then we have the garden 

 Auricula (Primula Auricula), which is sub-divided 

 into four groups — viz., selfs, white-edge, and 

 grey-edge and green-edge All are qviite hardy, 

 bjt to see the rich and vaiied colours of their 

 tlowers at their best, and to preserve the white 

 meal or farina on the leaves ol the edged varieties, 

 a cold frame is necessary. This should face south 

 during the winter, bi't in summer it may be 

 1 laced on the north side of a wall or building. 



Kepotting. — In the month of April the jilants 

 are in full bloom, and as they pass the flowering 

 stage the annual repotting is done. This ojjera- 

 tion should be carried out in May, and large 

 rece])tacles must not ba employed. For full 

 grown examjjles, i)ots from four to four and a half 

 inches in diameter will be needed, and so on in 

 I)ro]Jortion as the i)lants become smaller. Ample 

 drainage must b? provided, and to secure a free 

 outlet for water a thin layer of loam fibre may 

 be laid over the ])otsherds. The soil is made up 

 ot tlie best fibrous loam three parts, and one part 

 leaf niould with a sprinkling of silver sand or 

 crushed oyster shells added. Most of the old 

 soil should be shaken from the roots, and all the 

 woolly ai)his must ba destroyed with methylated 

 spirit or tobacco powder. When the repotting is 

 finished arrange the plants near the glass in a 

 cold frame, and only give sufficient water to 

 prevent them from flagging. With ordinary care 

 they will soon be established, when the lights can 

 be removed hith day and night, ])roviding there 

 are no heavy rains At the end of October the 

 water sup])ly should be slightly decreased, and 

 tlu"ough the winter months very little moisture is 

 needed, but air must be admitted whenever 

 l)Ossible, and all dead leaves should be removed 

 directly they will part readily from the stem. 

 As spring a])])roaches root action will be more 

 vigorous, and the plants will require more water 

 jit the root than at any other period of the year, 

 'when the si)ikes are seen the plants must not 

 on any account be allowed tf) get dry at the 

 root, and when the first flower ojjens a little 

 shade will be necessary during the middle of the 

 day. 



Offsets. — These are taken in February and 

 August, while any that are lai'ge enough for 

 renioval can be taken when re])otting in .May. 

 Those with roots are placed singly in three-inch 

 pots, and a lighter compost may be used, but 

 any without roots are arranged around the sides 

 of pots until rooted. All the offsets should be 

 potted on as they fill their receptacles with roots, 

 when they will soon attain tlowei-ing si/.c. 



Seed Sowing. — Auricula seed may be sown at 

 any tinu', but it is best to sow directly it is ripe, 

 (iermination is slow, and seedlings may ai)i)ear 

 at intervals for twelve months or even longer. 

 It should be sown thinly in well drained ))ans of 

 light soil, and placed in a frame where 1h^ sun 

 will not shine. When they have made two or 

 three tiny leaves they can eithn- be ])otted singly 

 or pricked out in pans one or two iiuhes a]>art. 

 i\s tliev increase in size more i-oot room must be 



afforded, till the flowering stage is reached. 

 Seedlings are more vigorous than many named 

 varieties, and the grower must understand that 

 a large percentage will be greatly inferior to 

 those already in existence, but there is always 

 that element of chance so dear to the heart of a 

 Britisher, of something " out of the ordinarj " 

 turning up. 



Diseases — Damp is the greatest enemy that 

 the Auricrla has to contend with during the cold 

 wet winter months. Everything i)oss'ble mu.st 

 be done to alleviate this, as prevention is imx>os- 

 sible. There should be no drip in the frames, 

 no water allowed to accumulate in the heart of 

 the ]>lant through careless watering, and i)lenty 

 of air admitted whenever the weather is dry. 



The taproot occasionally begins to rot, aiul 

 when this is evident by the plant looking sicklj if 

 must be overhauled, tne decayed ])orti()n cut 

 away, and then drsted over with some powdered 

 charcoal. The taproot ought always to be 

 examined at the time of repotting. 



Insect Pests. — These consist of greenfly and 

 the woolly aphis. The former is easily destroyed 

 by fumigations with " XL All," and the same 

 remarks apply to those of the latter which ha])pen 

 to be above the surface. Those under the soil 

 are dealt with when repotting as stated above. 



Important Factors in Auricula Culture. — 

 Cleanliness must be insisted upon at all times : 

 the plants must be kept cool and never coddled 

 in any way ; careful watering, for Auriculas never 

 thrive in a sodden condition, liquid manure is not 

 required, and the soil should always be in a sweet 

 condition. Treat them as ])lants, and the 

 grower will be rewarded with fine flowering 

 examples. 



Useful Greenhouse Plants* 



In these days there is no lack of material to kcc]! 

 the greenhouses gay throughout the year. l)ut it 

 is always advisable to have as much variety as 

 possible, and to grow a few different plants each 

 year. 



The Boronias constitute an interestmij group 

 of hard-wooded plants which hail from Australia, 

 and the most popular spei-ies is the sweet-scented 

 B. megastigma. It fiu-ms a dense twiggy little 

 shrub, and produces nutuerous bell-sha]»e(l 

 flowers which are yellowish within and chocolate 

 colour on the outside. Another desirable iilant 

 is H. heter()])hylla, while H. elatior. a latei' 

 flowering kind, should also be included. They 

 will thrive in a peaty soil, and must be firmly 

 ])otled. 



Fxacum niacraidhiuu. — This is a b.'autiful 

 plant with rich genliati-bhic tlowers, the gold.'u 

 anthers standing out in b )ld relief. It can b.' 

 raised from seed, and if potted on when reiiuired 

 in the usual compost ii" (liihculty will be ex])eri- 

 enced in regard to its culture. Nice flowei-iiig 

 plants can be had in IH», and they are rather 

 dwarf in stature. 



The following can also be raised from seed : — 

 Torenia Fournieri. a pretty greenhouse annual, 

 with violet blue and white flow<^rs. the various 

 forms of liin)atiens, such as llolstii. Sultani and 

 llolstii hybrids : while the com])aratively new 

 Dimorphotheca aurantiaca hybrids make excel- 

 lent pof plants. B. 



