NERIUM. 
Greenhouse and Stove Plants. 
261 
the fact of the place they deserve being 
occupied by inferior subjects. The indi- 
vidual flowers are not unlike those of a 
small Carnation, and are produced in large 
bunches on the points of the mature growth. 
Neriums are plants of very easy culture, 
erowing freely in almost any kind of soil, 
either loam or peat; in the latter their 
handsome shining leaves attain a larger 
size and deeper hue; in loam, the disposition 
to make growth is not so great, which is 
rather an advantage, as they flower more 
freely. There is one thing that especially 
commends them to the notice of those who 
require decorative flowering plants in 
quantities : that they can either be grown 
into large specimens or be managed so as 
to bloom in a small state. Nothing in the 
way of flowering plants in 6 or 7 inch pots 
an be more beautiful than are these 
Neriums when well grown, in which state 
they can be used for conservatory decora- 
tion, or in any place where there happens 
to be so little light as would cause death or 
serious injury to most things. 
The propagation of Neriums is as easy 
as their after growth. About the end of 
March take off the points of the shoots, 
consisting of three joints or so, remove the 
leaves from the lowest one and trim the 
base at the joint ; put the cuttings singly 
in 3-inch pots filled with half loam and 
sand, with a little sand on the top, stand 
in a moderate heat, keep close and moist, 
with a little shade when necessary. They 
will root in a few weeks, when gradually 
inure to more air, and after they are fairly 
established give still more, and pinch out 
the points. By June move them into 6 or 
7 inch pots, using soil similar to that in 
which they were struck, but containing 
less sand ; as soon as they have begun to 
root freely in the new soil they will do 
best with ordinary greenhouse treatment, 
giving plenty of water to the roots, and 
syringing through the summer daily. In 
autumn admit more air and keep the soil 
drier ; winter at about 45° in the night, 
and when the object is to grow them on 
into large specimens they should, about 
the middle of March, be moved into pots 
4 inches larger than those they have occu- 
pied. As they are not impatient of having 
their roots interfered with they should be 
gently loosened and spread out a little in 
the new soil, which ought to consist of 
good fibrous loam, broken not too fine, to 
which has been added a moderate quantity 
of sand. Use the potting lath, so as to make 
. the soil solid, place the plants where they 
can be kept a little close, and syringe over- 
head every afternoon, closing the house 
early enough to cause the temperature to 
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7 
rise considerably. They require a plentiful 
supply of water when growing, and must 
not be allowed to become dry—they will 
need even immediately after potting a 
good deal more than most things, and 
when the roots have fairly commenced 
growth they want over double the quantity 
requisite for many hardwooded plants. If 
the shoots have made 8 or 9 inches of 
erowth beyond where they have previously 
been stopped back to, they should at the 
time of potting have their points again 
pinched. Encourage growth as much as 
possible, and as the shoots extend in length 
use a few sticks to keep them open, but 
no support will be needed, as the growth 
is strong enough to do without it. 
Neriums are particularly light-loving 
plants, consequently no shade must be 
given. Syringe freely every afternoon ; 
by the middle of July they will have made 
considerable growth, and should be turned 
out-of-doors in the full light, with a piece 
of mat or canvas round the pots to ward 
off the force of the sun, which will other- 
wise have an injurious effect upon the 
roots that will now lie thickly against the 
inner surface of the pots ; supply them 
plentifully with water, and continue the 
use of the syringe. 
About the beginning of September the 
growth will be well ripened, and_ the 
flower-heads be about forming. | They 
should now be taken indoors, and kept 
through the autumn and winter in a tem- 
perature of from 40° to 45° in the night; 
they should be given much less water, but 
do not allow the soil to become too dry, or 
the bloom-buds that are formed will be in 
danger of falling off. If the plants are 
wanted in flower earlier than they will 
come in by the influence of solar heat, they 
may, about the middle of March, be placed 
in a night temperature of 55°, with 8° or 
10° of a rise in the daytime—this will con- 
siderably hasten their blooming, but too 
much heat and moisture must not be used, 
or it will cause the buds to fall off. After 
flowering, put them in pots 4 inches larger, 
and encourage growth in the same way as 
the preceding season ; they will not require 
stopping, as they will make a number of 
shoots from the base of where the flowers 
were produced ; again expose them to the 
full sun in the open air. Keep through 
the winter as previously ; in the spring after 
blooming they will in all probability be 
getting taller than required. If such is 
the case, cut the strongest shoots well back, 
give them another shift, and encourage 
growth as before, submitting them to open- 
air treatment in the latter part of the 
summer. After the next spring flowering, 
