THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 101 



moisture from the air around them, and give out the excess of 

 moisture to the air again. You would hardly believe what a great 

 amount of moisture a plant gives out in a day : some plants giving 

 out more than their own weight. You will understand, then, how 

 necessary it is to keep your plants clean, so that the pores in their 

 foliage may not be stopped up and impeded in their action. Wash 

 your plants, therefore, every now and then, and whenever there is a 

 warm shower during summer, turn them outside, and let them have 

 the benefit of it. They delight in a summer shower. It does one's 

 heart good to see how thankfully they bathe in the welcome rain- 

 drops, coming back when the shower is over with their faces perfectly 

 shining. 



When you wash your plants, use tepid water, with a little soap 

 dissolved in it, and a bit of sponge or flannel. The operation 

 requires to be gently done, especially with ferns. Keep the stalk 

 of the leaf between your fingers, and the leaf lying on the palm of 

 your hand, washing outwards to the point. Don't rub the leaf, but 

 just draw the sponge gently over it leaf by leaf. Water overhead 

 with a rose, after you have finished, to wash off any aoap or dirt left. 

 Do not water overhead if the plant is in bloom, but just contrive to 

 water the foliage only. Always choose a dull day, or the morning 

 or evening, to wash your plants. A warm sun is so apt to blister 

 the foliage, if dripping wet when the sun shines on them. 



Light and air are absolutely necessary for the health and well- 

 being of your plants. You may as well expect a prisoner, shut up 

 in a cell, to grow fat and rosy, as expect a plant to thrive in a dark 

 corner, where it never gets the warm sunshine or breathes the free 

 air of heaven. As soon as daylight comes in, place your plants as 

 close to the window as you can manage without crushing them. 

 Expose them freely to the light, shading only when the sun is very 

 warm. Geraniums, for instance, never need any shade. Cinerarias, 

 calceolarias, and some other soft-wooded plants, require shading from 

 a very warm sun. Ferns and mosses again always succeed best if 

 so placed that the sun never reaches them, but still near enough to 

 the light, A window that the sun does not shine on suits them to 

 a nicety. When plants are kept at a distance from the light, they 

 get weak and sickly, throwing out lean, unhealthy branches, and 

 turning their leaves all one way, as if supplicating the approach of 

 the light they cannot do without. And if at the same time they are 

 denied a breath of fresh air, they lead a wretched existence, and 

 ultimately die of sheer neglect. I do not believe any of my readers 

 would allow their pretty plants to come to such an untimely end. 

 No, no ; give the poor plants what is so necessary to their existence 

 — plenty of light and air, sunshine, and shower. Keep them clean 

 and tidy, and they will show their gratitude in many ways ; and 

 never forget to turn your plants round every two or three days, or 

 else they will be sure to grow one-sided. Give them plenty of air, 

 by opening the window every day when not too cold. Open the 

 window from the top, never from the bottom, which causes a cold 

 draught. They do not like a cold draught any more than we do 

 ourselves. On fine days, during a warm shower, place them outside. 



April. 



