346 



CALENDAR OF OrEWATlONS FOR AUGUST. 



shoots of the stock remain on, lor 

 tliey would weaken the bntls ; 

 secondly, to see if the buds have 

 united. The tie may be very 

 gently and carefully untied ; and if 

 tlie bud he green and plump the.\ 

 have taken, and the stock that is 

 beyond the bud in ay be cut off 

 close. Cuttings of China Roses 

 may be taken off, and planted in 

 the open ground in the shade, 

 under a hand-glass. If you shade 

 the glass it matters not where 

 they are put. Tlie Roses in flower 

 sh(juld be, every two or three days 

 at the most, cleared of the de- 

 cayed flowers ; it promotes the 

 continuance of the bloom. Re- 

 move all suckers from the roots ; 

 prune judiciously by cutting out 

 all weakly shoots, and occasionally 

 by making shorter that which is 

 growing too strong. Cuttings 

 that have struck may be potted 

 off or bedded out: they make ex- 

 cellent autumnal flowering groups, 

 may be bedded out in different- 

 coloured patches, or with the 

 colours mixed. The crimson China 

 for tlie outside row of a basket, 

 and the common China inside, 

 and to finish, makes a very effect 

 ive appenrance ; but tliere is an 

 abundance of choice for your pur- 

 pose. The buds of lare Roses may 

 siill be inserted if the bark of tli£ 

 stock will rise ; but if not, iursefl" 

 them in common China stocks, 

 which will always rise, and whether 

 they agree or not, the bud will 

 grow enough to make sure of saving 

 the sort ; but generally the fancy 

 Roses do well on China stocks. 

 Roses in pots may be shifted if at 

 all pot- bound, but watering with 

 a little manure water is almost as 

 good as a shift. Small kinds of 

 Roses are best on their own roots. 

 Use the knife to rank-growing 

 Roses, and judiciously prune all; 



that is. so fai- as the removal of weak 

 spindly shoots and superfluous 

 branches goes. Go over all the Rose 

 nurseries, to see if you can pick up 

 anything new and good as an im- 

 provement to your own collections, 

 but buy nothing without really 

 admiring it. 



THE GREENHOUSE. 



It is requisite to turn pretty 

 well everything out of the green- 

 house into the 0{)en air, and as 

 much as possible in the si)ade, far 

 enough to keep off the mid-day 

 sun. Cactuses may be excepted, 

 for they may have as much sun as 

 possible after they have flowered ; 

 nor will they require to come back 

 to the greenhouse until November. 

 Botany Bay plants, and hard- 

 wooded plants generall}^ are ra- 

 pidly finishing their growth. The 

 Camellias have set their blooms ; 

 Azaleas have completed their 

 growth : be careful that none of 

 the roots grow through the botttora 

 of the pot, and root into the ground. 

 The pots must be examined occa- 

 sionally to see that the drainage 

 is free, and at leisure you may 

 begin to put sticks and regulate 

 their figure, preparatory to going 

 into the houses. The greenhouse 

 being more empty now than at any 

 other season, should be cleared 

 of its plants, and well washed in- 

 side, and, if required, painted out- 

 side: neglect in these particulars 

 is fatal. Neglecting cleanliness 

 inside is ruin to the plants, and 

 neglecting to paint as often as 

 wanted outside is fatal to the 

 woodwork, which soon decays if 

 the wet soak into the work. 



CameliidS. — 'J'ake cuttings for 

 stocks, and prepare the pots as 

 last directed. Some like the cut- 

 tings large, but one eye below 

 the surface and one above is long 



