THE FLORAL TVOELD AND GARDEN GLIDE. 



65 



CRATAEGUS PRUNIFOLIA VARIEGATA. 



[0 the hawthorn the gardener is indebted for some of the 

 neatest ornaments, its judicious employment effecting a 

 finish not otherwise obtainable ; its neat foliage, and 

 profuse and early babit of flowering, render it ex- 

 tremely pleasing in spring, and its bright and various- 

 coloured berries render it equally interesting in autumn and winter. 

 The thorn in age is one of the most grotesque trees we have ; the 

 rigid contortions of its stem and branches are bold and striking, and 

 as single specimens or in scattered groups upon an extensive lawn 

 or park, nothing is more effective. C. oxycantha, the common haw- 

 thorn, is an invaluable hedge plant, and as such is extensively used ; 

 its varieties, the double red and white flowering thorns, are very 

 beautiful, and as short standards in the shrubbery are very desirable, 

 as also is the yellow-berried variety, which in autumn is particularly 

 conspicuous. The subject of our illustration, CprwrifoMa variegata, 

 is perfectly hardy, and its beautiful foliage makes it a great addition 

 to our ornamental foliage plants. Any ordinary soil will suit it, a 

 good loam being preferable for it to a soil highly manured, as the 

 beautiful variegation of the foliage is likely to be affected by too ricb 

 a soil. Propagation may be effected by means of seed and grafting. 

 All but the double-flowering kinds of thorn produce seed in abun- 

 dance, wbich should be collected in autumn, and buried in damp 

 sand till the following February, when it may be sown in beds of 

 light earth. Some of the seeds will germinate the same season, and 

 some not until the year following. The young plants should be 

 transplanted when two years old, and at four years are best for final 

 planting. It may also be propagated by grafting on the common 

 hawthorn, and March is the best month for the operation. 



WINDOW GARDENING. 



BY JOHN E. MOLLISON. 

 (Continued from page 42.) 



SOIL AND DRAINAGE. 



HAT we must now consider is the suitable kinds of soil 

 required, and the proper drainage for a pot before the 

 plant is put in it. A very accommodating mixture suit- 

 able for nearly all kinds of plants in pots is composed of 

 one part of turfy loam, one part of leaf mould, and barely 

 one part of silver-sand, with one half part of dried cow-dung, rubbed 

 down fii e, added. The cow-dung gives a robust healthy consti- 

 tution to soft-wooded plants, such as geraniums, fuchsias, cinerarias, 

 calceolarias, and many others. The manure should be left out, how- 



Miin-li. ** 



