28 THE FLORAL WOELD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 



generous soil may be used, rather rouph, turfy, and quite siiveet. Fill in round 

 tile roots with fine sandy mixture. Keep close till they make fresh mots. If 

 convenient, liave all the liglits cleaned inside, t.nd be on the look-out for slugs and 

 woodlice, which are now coming out hungrj' from their winter retreats, and v.-ill do 

 great havoc among pans of seedlings and tender vegetation of all kinds. 



Kitchen Garden. — There should be no dehiy in getting ready every inch of 

 ground intended for summer crops. Get all plots requiring manure ready at once, 

 as it is much better to have the ground prepared in advance, that the manure may 

 be more completely incorporated with the soil, than to sow or plant immediately 

 after manuring. Ground for peas, beans, onions, cauliflowers, and broccoli must be 

 liberally manured and deeply stirred. 



Melons for a first crop to be sown at once. The seeds to be put singly in 

 small pots. 



Mignonette is one of the most useful annuals to sow notv, as it will come into 

 bloom by the time the weather is sufficiently genial to allow of the pots being placed 

 in windows. 



MuSHUooM Beds for an early supply should now be coinmenced. Save for the 

 purpose fre--h horse droppings, spread tliinly on in very small heaps. 



Change Tkees should be well cleaned now, to remove scale ; and the tubs and 

 pots have a fresh surfacing of rich soil. "When starting plants of this kind, keep up 

 a mnderately-moist atmosphere. 



Ohchids f-howing signs of growth to be potted or shifted into larger baskets 

 according to requirements, and be at once pl.iced in the warmest end of rlie house. 

 The geneial stock to have no more water than will suffice to prevent shrivelling. 

 At this time of year take espi cial care to guard against lodgments of water among 

 the bulbs, or on the surface of tlie soil in pots where the drainage is defective. 



Potatoes may be planted in frames, where they can be covered with mats or 

 calico lights. Clioose bard tubers, and let them sprout in full daylight first ; the 

 sprouts i^hould be dark coloured, firm, ami plump. 



Saladings. — On warm sloping borders under walls facing south, sow early 

 short-top raiiish. Hammersmith iind Paris cos lettuce, two-bladed onion, mustard, and 

 golden and Normandy cress. Sow but small breadths at first, as some of the 

 sowings may be lost : and at the same time sow a few boxes of lettuce, to be 

 placed in a gentle heat for planting out hereafter. 



Sow IX hkat tomatoes, capsicums, melons, cucumbers ; out of doors, on warm 

 slopes, dwai-f-beans, early peas, early horn carrot, short-top radish, cabbage, and 

 llammersmith lettuce. 



Stove. — The temperature msy be increased now with advantage. Achimenes 

 and Gloxinias, pushing briskly, to be potted to succeed the first batch. These 

 require lull light while growing, though their flowers must be shaded. 



Vines well started to have all superfluous buds rubbed off', aud the young 

 shoots to be stopped as soon as they have made growth enough to allow of the 

 removal of the joint one bud above the bunch. A full development of leaf surface 

 is most important, and every leaf should have its proper share of liglit. Vines to 

 !'e started with fire-heat mnst have the assistance of atmospheric moisture by 

 copious syringings, and the use of troughs on the pipes or flues. 



BorssiNGATJLTiA BAssEiLOiDES, One of the most beautiful plants from the 

 Quitian Andes, may be considered one of the finest climbers for cool conservatories 

 in cultivation. A specimen planted on one of the mounds in the conservatory of 

 tlie Royal Botanic Society in the Regent's Park, makes annually a most vigorous 

 growth, and during the month of September produces an abundance of flowers. It 

 has a slender twining growth which, with the assistance of a trellis, or a few wires, 

 soon mounts to the roof, and in the autumn blooms very freely. The flowers, 

 which are borne in clusters, are pure white and highly fragrant. It was intro- 

 duced as a stove climber, but subsequent experience has shown that it is not only 

 adapted for cool conservatories but will al~o grow sufficiently to produce a good 

 display of flowers when planted out of doors in a favourable situation. It has, 

 indeed, been recommended as a hardy climber, but it is too tender for planting out 

 of doors, excepting in a kind climate, and even then it is killed outright by a sharp 

 Irost. 



