HOUSE PLANTS. 377 



' treatment is tlie same. In this way we yearly produce tbe Lily of the Valley at 

 Christmas, and keep up a supply of their lovely flowers all through the winter. 



Alstroemeria is a genus of tuberous-rooted plants, with beautiful flowers, na-' 

 tives of South America, and capable of being grown to a high degree of per- 

 fection in the stove greenhouse, or open air, according to the species. The 

 soil, which suits all the Alstroemerias, is a mixtiire of sandy loam and leaf 

 mould, or well-rotted dung. Of all the stove species, A. ligtu, with white and 

 scarlet blossoms, is most difficult to flower; but by giving it abundance of water 

 during summer, and a strong heat in December, it will flower in February, 

 and one plant Avill scent a whole room with fragrance like that of mignonette. 

 After flowering, the plants ought to be allowed to rest for three months, during 

 which time very little water need be given them. After this they should be 

 repotted and encouraged to grow by giving them plenty of moisture. 



The Blue African Lily deserves a notice among house plants, for it retains 

 its leaves all winter. It requires a loamy soil enriched by manure from an old 

 hotbed; this should be loosely shaken doAvn in the pot, but not pressed. The 

 plant wants full exposure to the light, and plenty of water when in a growing 

 state. Shift repeatedly into larger pots, taking the off"shoots aM^ay every time 

 of repotting, till the flower buds are formed. The plants are always very 

 large before they flower, and, when the buds form, should be so placed as to 

 have plenty of room and moisture ; take care not to let water remain in a 

 stagnant state about the roots. Thus treated and kept in a green-bouse or 

 living-room, or even under a veranda, this plant will frequently send up a 

 flower stalk three feet high crowned with tAventy or thirty heads of flowers 

 which will come into blossom in succession. When in flower it may be placed 

 in the open air, and forms a beautiful ornament for the teri'ace or the lawn. 

 If it is desired to have the Agapanthus flower when of comparatively small 

 size, it should not be shifted often, and Avhen it is in the pots need not be so 

 nearly of a size ; the bulbs may be divided and the strongest of the fibrous 

 roots cut ofi' without injuring the plant or preA-enting its flowering. 



The Cape Aster is a pretty and showy plant for stand or windoAV. The 

 whole genus is easy of culture, hybridize freely Avith each other, and, Avhen it 

 is added that they produce a great abundance of flowers, it is not Avonderful 

 that they should be held in such general estimation. They are nearly hardy, 

 but are ahvays groAA'n in pots, as they floM'er so early that in tbe open ground 

 the buds would be liable to be nipped by the frost. They are groAvn in light, 

 rich soil, and only require ordinary care in Avatering. This plant is propagated 

 by dividing the roots in August by cuttings struck in autumn, or by seeds 

 which they ripen in abundance. The seed should be sown in May on a slight 

 hotbed, and the young plants pricked out into small pots and shifted frequently 

 during the summer. If they are Avanted to floAver in December, they should 

 be kept in the green-house all the year, and will begin to throAv up their floAver 

 stalks in October ; but if floAvers are not Avauted before April, the usual time, 

 they may stand in the open air and need not be sbifted more than three or 

 four times during the summer ; in October they may be put in a cold pit, 

 where they must remain just protected from the frost till March, Avhen they 

 will begin to send up their floAver stalks. Nearly all the beautiful purple kinds 

 are varieties of hybrids. 



There are tAvo kinds of mesembryanthemum Avhich are called the ice plant ; 

 one an annual, the other biennial, and they take their English name from the 

 little globular blisters, which botanists call papulae, filled Avith a soft watery 

 matter, Avhich glistens over the AA^hole plant and makes it look as though it 

 were coA^ered Avith ice. The floAvers of these plants are white, but there are 

 others with pink or purple flowers. One of the annuals has clusters of a bright 

 yellow. Tlie seeds of these annuals should be soAvn in a hotbed and the 

 young plants transferred to the open ground in May ; they should alAA-ays be 



