548 



DIANTHUS. 



THE ENGLISH FLOWER GARDEN. 



DIANTHUS. 



each bud a little footstalk to itself when 

 it grows (what is lost by this in quantity 

 will be regained twenty-fold in quality). 

 From this time until the buds are near 

 showing colour, give occasionally a little 

 weak manure-water — a handful of well- 

 rotted stable manure to a large pot of 

 water. As soon as they show colour at 

 the top, tie them round with a little strip i 

 of bass about half-way down. This \ 

 should be done every morning in July, as 

 it saves much trouble as well as the un- 

 sightly peculiarity termed a "split pod." 

 If in spite of this the pods split on one 

 side, carefully open the bud all round at 

 the other segments, using the flat wedge 

 handle of a knife used for layering. Un- 

 less it is intended to save seed, cut off | 

 dead blooms as soon as they wither, and 

 the flower-stems as soon as all the buds 

 have come out, which will be about the 

 end of August or beginning of September. 

 Not later than the last week in July see 

 to layering. As soon as the layers are 

 rooted, which will be early in September, , 

 take them off and lay them in by the 

 heels for a time, while taking up and 

 throwing away the old stools, top-dress 

 and fork over the bed with 2 in. of 

 well-rotted stable litter or cow-house 

 sweepings, replace the layers, and they 

 will be in the same condition as at the 

 beginning. 



Propagation by Seed. — The proper 

 time to sow is about April or May. Pre- 

 pare a compost of equal parts of loam, 

 leaf-mould, and silver sand, sift it fine, 

 and fill a number of 3-in. pots (as many 

 as you have sorts of seed) to within i in. 

 of the rim. Sprinkle each pot with a fine 

 rose, flatten the surface, and with the 

 point of a knife put down the seeds 

 separately about- ^ in. apart. Cover them 

 very lightly with finely sifted compost, 

 and put them in a cold frame or house 

 out of danger of frost. When they show 

 three pairs of leaves, prick them out 

 about 2 in. apart round the edges of s-in. 

 pots filled with the same compost, and 

 keep them still in the cool house till 

 there is no fear of frost. When they are 

 about 3 in. high, prick them out into beds, 

 keeping them about 4 in. apart. The 

 beds may be enriched with a little sand 

 and manure. In the autumn they will be 

 nice little plants, and may be planted 

 where they are to flower, which will be 

 the next year. Keep and name any really 

 good kind, discarding all singles, and 

 using the rest for borders or beds for 

 cutting from. 



By Pipings. — When the plants throw ! 

 up shoots too numerous to layer, or when ' 



the root is attacked by disease, the shoots 

 may be taken off as follows : Take the 

 shoot just above the fourth or fifth joint 

 from the top, and with a sharp pull draw 

 it out from the socket formed by the next 

 joint, which it will pull away with it. Just 

 through the joint make a little upward 

 slit in the cutting, and thrust it firmly into 

 a pot filled to within i in. of the top with 

 the compost described, and the rest with 

 silver sand. Water the pot and plunge it 

 in fibre under a hand-light for three or 

 four weeks, when the pipings will be 

 rooted. They may then be potted off 

 singly or bedded like layers, and will 

 flower the next year. Plants thus struck 

 are never so good as those propagated by 

 layers, but this method is a useful ex- 

 pedient to save a good sort or to get up a 

 good stock. 



By Layers. — This is the best and 

 most generally accepted method of pro- 

 pagating Carnations and Picotees. It 

 should be commenced at latest the last 

 week in July, and finished by the second 

 week in August. It is performed as 

 follows : Scrape away the earth round the 

 plant to the depth of 2 in., and substitute 

 for the earth removed the compost pre- 

 scribed. Strip each shoot up to the top 

 three or four joints, going all round the 

 plant before proceeding farther. Then 

 with a fine sharp knife cut half through a 

 shoot, just below a joint, make a slant- 

 ing cut up through the joint, and bring 

 the knife out just above it ; take a peg 

 with a hook in it and thrust it into the 

 fresh compost just above the tongue, so 

 that as the peg comes down it will catch 

 the tongue and peg it into the earth. Cover 

 it with a little more compost placed firmly. 

 Proceed thus all round the plant, finally 

 watering carefully with a fine rose water- 

 pot to settle the soil around the layers. 

 In about a month the layers will be rooted, 

 and by the second week in October all the 

 young plants ought to be in their winter 

 quarters. 



Several Diseases affect Carnations. 

 Two of the worst are fungoid growths. 

 One of these is a fungus which grows 

 between the membranes of the leaf, and 

 the only method of destroying it is to pick 

 off and burn every infected leaf It 

 appears at first as a small blister which 

 bursts, scattering its spores and leaving a 

 dark-brown scar. A more familiar disease 

 is that known as spot; a damp atmosphere 

 or overcrowding of the plants being the 

 causes. It spreads rapidly, but some kinds 

 enjoy a complete immunity from it. 

 Dusting the plants two or three times with 

 a mixture of soot and sulphur has been 



