THE FLOEAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 11 



THE CONSTRUCTION OF ROCKWORK. 



|N constructing elevated mouuds for ferns and alpines, the 

 base should be of building rubbish, faced with burrs 

 from the brick-kilns, or with large blocks of stone or 

 flint, if such are plentiful in the district. The soil in 

 the lower parts should be a mixture of sandy loam, leaf- 

 mould, and peat for ferns and flowering plants ; and in the wet 

 hollows, for marsh ferns, rotten wood should be used plentifully. The 

 higher portions should be built up with additional tiers of brick 

 rubbish, and with a soil composed of sandy loam, old mortar, and 

 loaf-mould in the interstices, as in these higher portions most 

 alpines do well. The summit may be a bed of rich loam, resting on 

 a bottom of rubbish, for ornamental plants of large growth ; but a 

 mere mound, the summit of which is below the eye, should be faced 

 all over with large rough blocks of stone or vitrified blocks, with 

 suitable soil between for the plants. To imitate stratified rocks, 

 regular courses of brickwork are the best, to be builc up in cliffs and 

 caves, as may be desired, and then the whole faced with Roman 

 cement an eighth of an inch thick, and the stratifications marked as 

 the work proceeds. When weather-stained and suitably planted, 

 rockwork of such a kind, if on a somewhat large scale, has a natural 

 and imposing effect ; but for small mouuds and banks, vitrified bricks 

 or flints, roughly arranged in a few bold curves, are by far the best. 

 A north aspect is the best for most ferns and alpines. 



Artificial coral for rockwork can be made as fullows — Take four 

 parts of yellow rosin and one part of vermilion, and melt them 

 together ; dip twigs, cinders, or stones in this mixture, and it will 

 give them the appearance of coral, and they become applicable to 

 rockwork-, grotto, or any fancy work, as a substitute for that costly 

 article. 



MANAGEMENT OF PLANTS IN ROOMS. 



E*jj*g B *s*feO treat of the proper management of plants in houses is 

 QPvJ 0| a subject attended with considerable difficulty, every 

 J&3Q |v|]} genus requiring some variation, both in soil and general 

 treatment. If the room where the plants are intended 

 ' m ^* atm to be placed is dark and close, but few will ever thrive 

 in it ; if, on the contrary, it is light and airy, with the windows in a 

 suitable aspect to receive the sun, plants will do nearly as well as in 

 a greenhouse. But if tiny are observed to suffer, the effects may 

 generally be traced to one of the four following causes : — Want of 

 proper light and air, injudicious watering, dust or dirt collected on 

 the leaves, or being potted in unsuitable soil. 



Want of proper light and air is, perhaps, the most essential point 

 of any to be considered ; for, however well all other requisites are 

 attended to, a deficiency in either of these will cause the plants to 

 grow weak and sickly. Let them always be placed as near the light 



January. 



