JanuaiT 16, 1S66. ] 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



41 



ACHIMENES CULTURE. 



'■ A Constant Readeu " in- 

 formation is soufjht on this 

 snliject, and the i'dllowing. 

 in answer to his inquiries, 

 may be of service to others 

 as well. 



The Aeliimene.s is a plant easily cultivated, and, thonsli 

 requirhif; a higher temperature than that of a gi-eenhouse, 

 will, nevertheless, do well there after .June, when, for the 

 most part, tliere is a deliciency of bloominf; plants in 

 such structures. Achimenes also succeed well in a heated 

 vinery. 



Early in February the bulbs are taken out of the pots 

 in which tlii'V have been grown tlie season before, and are 

 laid pretty thickly on the surface of a pan tilled to witliin 

 an inch of the rhu with a compost of two-thirds light turfy 

 loam. and one-thu-d leaf mould. They ai'e then covered 

 with half ;ui inch of tine sod. If the soil is in a moderately 

 moist state no water is given, but if dry a little is ati'ordod 

 to bring it mto a moist condition. The pans are then 

 placed in a hotbed of about 7.'>°, and a top heat of CO" or (15" 

 by night. Here they remain until the shoots are an inch 

 long, when the plants are i)la<-ed in their blooming pans. 



Achimenes never look so well as A\hen grown in pans. 

 The sizes \\'hicli I think most eligible are !■> and 1^ inches 

 ill diameter, and n inches deep. The first size allows of 

 nice spei-imens being grown, and the second of \-ery line 

 ones. Tlie pans sliould be clean, and have good-sized 

 crocks placed over the holes, whicli sliould be live in num- 

 ber, and not less than half an inch in diameter. Above 

 these crocks lay an inch of brolceu pots, then an inch of 

 tlie riddUngs of llic compost, and fdl up to within an inch 

 of the rim with a compost of two-tbu'ds loam from rotted 

 tiu'ves a year old, cut -'l inches thick, [daced in alternate 

 layers witli fresh horsedung, turned over tmce, and, pre- 

 \'ions to use, chopped tine with a spade, but not sifted; 

 oiie-thiixl leaf mould, three parts reduced, sifted to free it 

 of sticks, &<•„ and well mixed with the loam : and ime-sixth 

 of silver sand. The plants are then taken up with a stick, 

 and a row of tlie smallest placed around the pan half an 

 inch from the rim, and exactly an inch apart : put in 

 another row 1} inch from tlie first, and an inch apart, and 

 so on to the centre of the pan, which shoidd be a little 

 liigher than the sides, say an incli for an If^-uich pan. 

 The sniiiUcst plants are put at the outside, the next largest 

 in the next row, and so in order to tlio largest hi the 

 centre. .V gentle watering is tlien given, and the pans are 

 placed in a bouse with a moist atmosphere (as that of a 

 vinery at w orki, and with a night temperature of (\(f. bear- 

 ing in mind that the nearer the plants are to the glass and 

 light the stronger they wdl grow, and, milesB they are 

 No. 251.— VcL. X., New Series, 



stiff and strong, it is vain to expect a good blcom. 'Water 

 sufficiently to keep the soil moist, but do not deluge iheni, 

 nor, on the other hand, allow them to suffer for want of it. 

 Ne\-er give water unless the,v seem in want of it ; the leaves 

 are not to be allowed to Hag, but when the soil appears 

 drv, and is so to the feel, give a good watering. Gently 

 syringing with water of the temperatr.re of the house will 

 be of advantage up to the time of the blooms expiuiding: 

 but avoid syringmg in dull weather, and let the leaves be 

 di-y before the sun" shines po^^•erfully upon them, other^vise 

 they may spot. If drip from the roof fall upon the pan, 

 either stop the leak or remo\e the pan at once. Should 

 green fly make its appearance, fumigate with tobacco when 

 the plants are diw. Tluips -vvill not intei-fere, unless tlic 

 atmosphere is much too dry : if they do, tobacco smoke 

 will destroy them. 



A\nien the plants are from .'i to (i inches in height they 

 will need tying : the sticks should be small and neat, made 

 of laths, and painted green. They ought to be not less 

 than 18 inches long, wliilst for some kinds -.i feet will he 

 better. A space of an inch or so ■\\-as left belpw the rim at 

 the time of potting ; this should now be tilled up with a 

 mixtm-e of eijual f|uantities of the previous compost, passed 

 Uirough a half-inch sieve, and cowdung one year old beaten 

 and also passed through the sieve, with the addition of one- 

 sixth of silver sand well mixed in. This, placed upon the 

 sm-face between the plants to a depth of three-quarters of 

 an inch or an inch, will, after ;•. time, show its effects in 

 the strength of the plants and the bloom. Commencing 

 Avith tlie centre, one stalce is to be put to each plant, and 

 the plant looselj' fastened to it in an erect position Axith a. 

 thin strip of bast matting. Continue the upright staking 

 until the second row frcjin the rim is reached, then every 

 alternate plant of that row should be staked upright, and 

 the others inclined from the perpendicular towards the 

 rim of the pan. Every second plant in the outer row 

 shoidd be staked with an inclination correspoudi:ig to 

 those staked upright in the second row, and at an angle 

 of 4.')'' from the perpendicular of the pan's rim. Side 

 shoots \rill be produced: do not tie them, but let them 

 gi-ow loosely, but, if the}- become as strong as the main 

 shoots, and are straggling, they should be staked. Con- 

 tinue to keep the shoots tied up as they grow, and, when 

 the buds show, eveiy alternate watering may be of weak 

 liquid manm-e until the plants are fairly in bloom, when 

 they reiiuii-e a plentiful supply of water. 



The plants will be in bloom in the end of June and in 

 ■July ; those in IH-uich pans will 1)C fine masses of bloom 

 from l',i to 18 inches high, and from i feet to 2i feet 

 through. Their beauty will be prolonged by placing them 

 in a drier and cooler atmosphere, \-\'liere tliey can be 

 slightly slnided, as in a greenhouse or conservatory not 

 highly ventilated. When the bloom is over they sliould 

 still liiive a light .situation, and the supply of water ought 

 to be diminished, and, when the foliage becomes brown, it 

 may be cut away, and the pans placed on a damp floor in 

 a di-y place, as under tlie shelves of a house, having a tem- 

 perature of not less tiian 40° nor exceeding iT)" from iii-e 

 lieat. 



No. 903.— Vol. SXXY., Old Series, 



