166 



WINDOW GARDENING- 



round, should have a small door to reach the plants without lifting the glass top. 

 The soil for fern cases, should be carefully attended to ; no common garden 

 earth will answer; get it from the most reliable florist if possible, — and even 

 some of these may not know exactly the needs of the plant. For ferns, choose 

 leaf mould one pari:, silver saud one part, dry friable peat two parts. Avoid that 

 })eat which conies from wet unhealthy situations. Wherever you see ferns groov- 

 ing near the edge of woods or running streams, you can be safe in taking some 

 of the same soil, if you cannot get a good compost anywhere else. English florists, 

 who have access to special materials, make up a particular compost of the fol- 



Fig. 46.— Heated Fern Case. 



lowing materials which is described as perfect. Mix equal parts of silver sand, 

 good loam, powdered charcoal, refuse of cocoanut fibre. If you wish, you may 

 cover the bottom of the pan with a layer of powdered charcoal, or bricks or gravel 

 broken to the size of hazel nuts, to a depth of one inch, if pan is four inches 

 deep ; or one and one-half inches if 6 inches deep. Do not take the advice of those 

 who recommend filling the pan half full with small charcoal; such a proportion 

 is unnecessary. When the soil has been placed in the pan press firmlj^ that 

 all the plants may be set solidly. 



Location for fern cases. They will do well awjwherc, and that is just what the 



