188 :fi3otans 



With the return of mild weather, sun and moisture 

 set at work the perennials ; the root-caps under 

 ground send up stems and leaves. Most self-sown 

 seeds germinate the spring after they ripen ; some 

 require two seasons to develop the embryo ; others 

 will si^rout, sending up plantlets within a few days 

 or weeks after they are buried in the soil. One plant 

 is much slower than another in the growth of stem 

 and leaf, more tardy in unfolding blossoms ; all this 

 assures the succession of the plants, the slow march 

 past us of the beautiful hosts. When plants are 

 crowded or hurried out of their natural time of 

 bloom they seldom give as strong, lasting or fine 

 flowers as when they are allowed to take their natural 

 course. Flowers which constantly blossom in winter 

 must rest in summer. Even those known as " per- 

 petual bloomers " are b}^ no means always in flower. 

 Geraniums for winter flowering must be trimmed and 

 shaded in summer to keep them from budding ; the 

 oxalis and lilies that are destined for house plants, 

 must have their profound rest in summer, being kept 

 nearly dry and not permitted even to form leaves. 



In November the early bulbs are set in w^ell-pre- 

 pared beds and covered with straw or leaves. The 

 gardener bestows upon his charges the attention that 

 nature herself accords to her wdld children. The 

 hardy plants of forest, pond, and field remind one 



