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WINBOW GARDENING. 



A very desirable feature of the Chrysanthemum as a winter blooming plant, 

 is that the blossoms are finely formed, of brilliant colors, keep well, and are pro- 

 duced in great abundance. The dwarf or Pompone varieties are x\ov the most 

 used in consequence of their beauty of form, with diminutive habit of growth. 

 Any florists' catalogue will give a good list of varieties. 



The Ch. Laciniatum has a novel and elegant appearance. The flowers are 

 double, nearly three inches in diameter, delicately fringed, and of the purest 

 white. It is especially a plant for winter flowers. By pinching off the flower 

 buds as they show, it can be had in flower from December to March. 



The Salvia. 



Another splendid flowering plant, which has been supposed, until recently, to 

 expend all its energies during the autumnal months, and to require the open air 

 for the perfection of its beauty, is the Salvia. Salvia angicstifolia, with its ele- 

 gant foliage and long spikes of clear blue flowers, is particularly fine ; so is S. 

 patens, bearing blossoms of a still more "heavenly hue;" yet none are so 

 attractive, nor so hardy, as S. splendens, with its plumes of dazzling scarlet. 

 Any of the Salvias are easily raised from cuttings; trim all the foliage from 

 these slips and set them in damp sand to root. Start them in May. When 

 rooted set them in the garden, but keep them shaded from the sun with a paper 

 screen till the new leaves are well developed. Water freely. In September pot 

 those you wish for the house, and pinch out the buds. If then left to themselves 

 they will store up strength for the winter. But before the frosts come, be sure 

 to take them within doors, and give the fertilizer once a week till in bloom. Cut 

 them to the root in Maj^ and set the root in the garden. It is best to start new 

 plants every year for the house. Salvias need a light loamy soil, and a tempera- 

 ture of 60° by day, and 45° by night. 



The Mimulus. 

 The Mimulus — its seeds resemble the face of a monkey, and hence its name, 

 which comes from the Latin — is a very thirsty plant, does best in a mixture of 

 leaf mould and garden earth, with just enough sand to keep the soil from being 

 heavy, and frequently needs watering twice a day ; but it thrives in the atmos- 

 phere of any family room, and with its gorgeous blossoms of gold spotted with 

 maroon and crimson, is a great addition to any collection. Propagate it from 

 cuttings rooted in water. The young plants should be kept in the shade all sum- 

 mer out of doors. 



Pinks. 

 Pinks — Dianthus Chinensis, the China Pink, and Dianthus caryophillus, the 

 Carnation — are well known parlor plants. The China Pink, though not fra- 

 grant, is so beautiful and so easy to manage, no collection should be considered 

 complete without it. Plant seed in June in good garden soil ; pinch out all 

 flower buds till September ; then take them, with a ball of earth about their 



