;oo 



CALENDAR OF OPERATIONS FOR FEBRUARY. 



and any rambling; shoots lliat seem 

 inclined to destroy tlie general 

 uniformity sliould be shortened, 

 even shorter than all the rest, 

 that the younger shoots, caused by 

 the check given to the main one, 

 may fill up the space instead of 

 the stunted end of the branches 

 shortened. 



Hnrd-wondcd, or Botany Bay 

 planis, wliich will generally be 

 rapidly advancing towards bloom, 

 Avill require careful watering. 

 They must on no account suffer 

 from any deficiency in the supply, 

 or their blooms will be cast off or j 

 imperlectly developed. On the | 

 other hand, they must not be con- | 

 stantly wet. They should have { 

 a thorough watering when neces- 

 sary, and then the soil should get 

 almost dry before any more is ap- 

 plied, when it should have another 

 thorough watering. There is some 

 difficulty in ascertaining the actual 

 state, whether of wetness or dry- 

 ness, of the soil in a flower-pot, 

 particularly in the case of these 

 hard- wooded) which are fine- 

 rooted) subjects, and are always 

 grown in a large proportion of 

 peat earth. The state of the 

 surface soil is veiy deceptive : 



a great deal depends on experience, 

 'i'his is one of the great recom- 

 mendations of the West Kent 

 tiower-y»ot for all large plants, 

 which is made so that the mass of 

 earth may be readily lifted up out 

 of the pot, and examined. Tap- 

 ping the sides of the pot with the 

 knuckles becomes, by experience, 

 a useful aid in ascertaining the wet- 

 ness or dryness of the soil. There 

 is a deadness in the sound if the 

 soil is wet, and a kind of ring if it 

 is dry ; but it is only by large 

 practice and experience that this 

 test can be relied on. 



Routine. — Pot off, or prick out, 

 all sti'uck cuttings of greenhouse 

 plants, change the pots of those 

 plants which have filled them with 

 roots for pots a size larger, and 

 stir the surface of the soil of those 

 which do not want shifting. Keep 

 seedlings clear of weeds, and when 

 large enough prick them out 

 round the edges of pots until t\\9>f 

 get to a proper size to be potted 

 separately. Keep everything clean 

 and dry, and if the house exhibit 

 signs of dampness light fires, and 

 give air at the same time : these 

 will dry the house without hurting 

 the plants. 



