40 



iiM>ii «. \iM)i:\i\( 



l«»ssil)K>, lu> kfjil out (.f till' ;il|»iiif iranlcii. Imt 

 if a hit «»f jriouiul lonuJVtMl from ihc uiliial rock- 

 uork is avivilnMo. a few yoMii«i silver Itirclics 

 pive a very clmrmin'j cfToct if ]>lantc(l oii the 

 outskirts of a iilantalion of pines. 



The open ])liin!.'e Ik-cIs have heen ;ione over. ;in<l 

 \\here repoltin;.' was not necessary, the jtols were 

 eleaned and the ilraina^e seen to. 



From now <in seeds will lie sown. A hotlted 

 Inis I'oen l>rel'ared. and in if the ]ut\s of seeds 

 SOW11 last year and wliirh ha\e iioi L'eriiiiiiatcd 

 will ho ])hmged. 



In this way many seeds dormant in their jxits all 

 tlie year will jLcerminateina few weeks; any which 

 rcfn.se to answer this treat mi-nt are <,Mven n]) as 

 hojiolcss eases, a rather luisly method of dcalinL,' 

 with aniline seeds. ])erhai)s, which often apiiear 

 when tliey have heen in their ])ots for tiiree 

 years, hnt where seed frame accommodation is 

 not largo it is sometimes necessary to assume 

 the worst. 



At the moment of writing the ali>ine house is 

 looking very hright. some pots of Lithospermum 

 rosmarinifolimn are covered witli tlieir delightful 

 hlue llower.^ (it is not quite hardy liere). and any 

 8axes sliowing hud iji the o])en ]ilunge l)eds have 

 heen brought in and are making a splendid show, 

 amongst them Sax. Grieshachii and 8ax. 

 Frederici Angusti, aiid a group of yellows include 

 Sax. Boydii, Sax. Boj'dii Faldonside, Sax. 

 Haagii, Sax. Pauiin?e and some interesting 

 forms of Sax. Eli7.ahotha\ M. E. 



Tuberous-rooted Begonias. 



In common with the Gladiolus and the Dahlia. 

 Begonias are well suited for the amateur or 

 owiier of a small garden on account of the 

 simplicity of cultivation and the ease with 

 which they can be stored over the dormant 

 ^^^nter season. Moreover, the Begonia has an 

 advantage in the fact that it is suitable for 

 growing in pots or for planting out in summer. 

 As a rule, the single varieties arc best for 

 '• bedding out " ; the flowers, though large in 

 modem varieties, are carried more erect than 

 those of the doubles, and, being less heavy, are 

 not so prone to iiijury by raiji and wind. There 

 are some do\d)lcs, however, which have i:)roved 

 suitable for ]ilanting out, a t\T;)ical variety being 

 Major Hope, light rose in colour and universally 

 admired wherever grown. Begonias have an 

 advantage, too, over " Geraniums '"' for bedding 

 in that they are better wet weather jilants, 

 flowering quite well under such conditions, 

 iniless the temperature proves abnormally low, 

 over a considerable period. In Scotlaiid, where 

 the summer temperature is not ver^- high and 

 the summer season short, Begonias are very 



Miccessfull\ eiiiployed in iiower garden work. 

 ( )n the otiicr hand, they will endure hot weather 

 and liright sun (|uit<' well if kept c:»ol and moist 

 at the roots and lightly sprinkled with a line 

 rose can in the evenings during dry weather. 

 The worst enemy of Begonias outside is a 

 tiraught : the thick (leshy leaves soon become 

 lirown at the edges if e.\po«e<l to a c(»nsti'nt 

 draugiil. which causes them to lose moist lire 

 faster than the roots can supply it. 



( 'l I/ll\ A TKiN. 



liegonias are (juite easily rai.sed from seeds 

 where a warm gn'cidiouse is available, but the 

 hegimu'r will lind it better to obtain dormant 

 one Near old tiihers. as they are less trouhlc- 

 some to manage, ajid with ordinary care jiood 

 results are certain the same sea.soji. 



Ivirly in ]\Iarch the tidiers mtist lie i»laiitcd 

 ill a l)()x which has been well drained and lilied 

 witii a light comiiost of sandy soil and leaf- 

 mould. Tlie tubers slioiild he ]»lanted so that 

 the to)) is about level with tlic surface of the 

 soil. For one year old luhers a spa^e of about 

 three inches apart in the l)oxes will be sulhcient. 

 allowing more for larger tidiers, or according to 

 how long they are to remain in the box. If a 

 warm greenhouse is available, it ])rovides an 

 excellent place in which to start the tubers. If 

 the soil is just moderately moist at first, very 

 little water is required, Init sid)sequently, as the 

 soil dries and the young growths begin to push 

 u]i, Avater must be applied when necessary-, 

 taking care not to allow it to collect on the 

 croAms of the tubers. Towards the eiul of 

 A])ril or early in May. tubers started in a green- 

 house must be tcansferred to a cold frame to 

 get accustomed to a cooler atmosphere before 

 finally planting out in summer quarters. 

 Arrangements must be made to cover the frame 

 at night in case of frost, which often comes 

 suddenly in late spring. It may hajipen that 

 the would-be grower has neither greenhouse nor 

 frame, in Avhich case he may box his tid^ers as 

 described, and allow them to start naturally 

 on a shelf or window-sill, placing some sheets of 

 brown ])aper or new spaper over the box at night 

 until the growths have made some progress, 

 and in case of frost. Towards the middle or 

 end of May the box may be stood outside close 

 mider a wall and covered at night, finally 

 ])lanting out not earlier than the first week in 

 June 



Tu]:)ers started thus will not be so advanced 

 at planting out time as those started in heat, 

 but with the warmer weather they will grow 

 rapidly and soon come into flower. Care must 

 be exercised in removing the tubers from the 

 box, so that the roots are injured as little as 



