STIRRING THE SOIL. 



305 



STRAMONIUM. 



cui'iously bent at the tip, and large 

 umbels of delightfully fragrant white 

 flowers. It should he grown in peat ' 

 and loam, and it produces its flowers ! 

 in spring and early summer. ■ 



Stercu'lia. — Byttneriacece. — j 

 Stove shrubs and low trees from the 

 East and W'^est Indies, with greenish ' 

 or whitish flowers. They should be | 

 grown in peat and loam, and they are 1 

 propagated by cuttings of the ripe j 

 wood, not deprived of their leaves, I 

 which should be struck in sand, under \ 

 a bell-glass with bottom-heat. j 



Ste'via. — ComjiositcB. — Mexican I 

 perennials, with tufts of very pretty | 

 white or pinkish flowers, which should 

 be grown in sandy peat, and which 

 require a little protection during win- 

 ter. *S'. Eupdtbria is a very pretty 

 plant for filling a bed in a geometric 

 flower-garden, from its compact habit 

 of growth, and the abundance of its 

 flowers. 



Sti'pa. — Gramlnece. — Stlpa joen - 

 ndta, the Feather-grass, is an ex- 

 tremely elegant plant which grows 

 freely in light rich soil, and is in- 

 creased by seed, or by division of the 

 root. 



Stirring the soil is an operation 

 of considerable importance in the case 

 of all plants in a high state of culture, 

 and especially of young plants. \Vhen 

 soil is loosened to the depth of even 

 two or three inches, it admits the air 

 and the rain beneath the surface, and 

 both, in this manner, convey their 

 temperature to the soil, as well as 

 their nutritive qualities to the roots. 

 It is also remarkable that though soil, 

 when loosened, is advantageous in 

 communicating a warmer tempera- 

 ture and moisture to what is below 

 by admitting the air and the rain, yet 

 that in the heat of summer, plants 

 growing in a soil the surface of which 

 is kept loose, sufl"er less either from 

 excess of heat or the want of rain 

 than plants in a soil which is kept 



firm. This will also apply to a cer 

 tain extent to plants in pots, though 

 stirring the soil is of far less import- 

 ance to them than to plants in the 

 open ground ; as the heat of the 

 surrounding atmosphere, whether it 

 be advantageous or injurious, pene- 

 trates readily through the sides of 

 the pots, and the superfluous moisture 

 is exhaled in the same manner. In 

 stirring tlie soil among plants in the 

 open ground, it must, however, be 

 always remembered that the soil is 

 full of roots, and therefore that the 

 stirring must not be carried to more 

 than a few inches in depth. It 

 should also be performed with a fork 

 rather than a spade, in order that 

 none of the roots may be cut. The 

 soil should never be stirred, except 

 when it is in a dry state, and when 

 rain is not expected ; becai;se should 

 the soil be in a wet state when it is 

 moved, or should rain occur imme- ■■ 

 diately afterwards, it will defeat the 

 end in view, viz. that of forming a 

 porous surface layer, readily per- , 

 meable by air and water. j 



Stitchwort. — See Stella'ria. 



Stock, — See IVIatthi'dla, } 



Stokesia. — Comjjositce. — One of 

 the handsomest plants which can ; 

 be grown in the flower-beds of a 

 garden ; from its large bluish lilac 

 flowers. It bears considerable re- 

 semblance to a China Aster, but is 

 much handsomer. It is a native of I 

 South Carolina, whence it was intro- \ 

 duced nearly a hundred years ago, j 

 but it is very little known. 



Stone-crop, — See Se'dum. 



Stool, — A tree or shrub which 

 has its branches pi-essed down to 

 make layers. — See /(/. 53, 



Storax. — See Sty'rax. 



Stove. — The name given the 

 plant-houses used for keeping tropical 

 plants. — See Hothouses. 



Stramo'nium. — Solandcece. — 

 The Thorn Apple. — Large showy 



