THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 271 



root, or in the old balls, saturated with the excrementitious matter 

 just alluded to. 



In such cases it may be proper, on shifting them, to shake the 

 earth in the ball entirely away, or even to wash it off in water of not 

 too cold a temperature, in order to examine the roots, and to trim 

 and dress them as the case may require. These must, of course, be 

 replanted in fresh earth. 



When larger pots are required for shifting the plants, these 

 ought to be provided of suitable sizes, according to the sorts of 

 plants, and the whole placed ready, together with the necessary 

 quantity of potting compost, containing due proportions of sand, 

 loam, or peat, and some well-rotted dung. 



The chief danger to plants in pots during winter, is having 

 the roots chilled with too much moisture, and, therefore, more 

 sand may be used in the compost than for the spring shifting. For 

 a similar reason, the pots should have a very efficient draining, not 

 only by placing an oyster-shell or a bit of tile over the hole, but 

 also by an inch depth or so, or even more, according to the size of 

 the pot, of broken potsherds or cinders, about the size of hazel-nuts. 

 This drainage both prevents the earth in the pot from ever re- 

 maining too wet, and likewise, by allowing the water to run freely 

 off, washes away the excrementitious matter which the plants are 

 constantly discharging in a similar way to the excremeDtitious 

 discharges of animals. 



Particular sorts of plants, indeed, owing to the deterioration of 

 the earth by the discharges just mentioned, as well as by the exhaus- 

 tion of nutritive matter, require shifting, more for the advantage of 

 having fresh earth, than for the want of new or larger pots ; and as 

 in this case some of the same pots may be still of an eligible size to 

 repot them in, these pots should be well cleaned from all adhering 

 parts of the old deteriorated earth, and be replenished with fresh 

 composts, when the plants are repotted. When the pots intended 

 for the reception of the plants are prepared, by making the drainage, 

 as already directed, let the fresh compost be filled in from two to 

 four inches deep, according to the size of the pots, and let the plants 

 be set in them with their balls of earth, or their trimmed roots, as 

 the case may be. Fresh compost must then be added all round and 

 above, so that it may stand at least an inch, if not more, above the 

 surface of the old ball, or the crown of the root, when the ball has 

 been reduced. A moderate watering; must then be given to settle 

 the earth and refresh the roots. When the ball has not been 

 reduced, or at least only on the outer surface, it may be proper, 

 previously to the watering, to loosen it all round, by means of a thin 

 piece of stick, or a two-pronged table-fork, to guard against injuring 

 the roots, which might be occasioned by using a knife for this 

 purpose, as is sometimes done. 



If the leaves of the plants be dusty or foul, water should be 

 thrown over them from a watering-pot, with a very fine rose, or 

 what is preferable, they should be exposed to a good shower of rain 

 if it be not very heavy, to clean them ; for nothing is more injurious 

 to the healthy growth of plants, than extraneous matter adhering 



September. 



