ON THE CULTURE OF THE RANUNCULUS. 27 



of any unfortunately start, my practice is to thrust a trowel diagonally 

 into the soil, cutting the fibres of the plant a few inches below the 

 surface, and gently raising the ball a little above the level of the bed. 

 This practice I generally find successful ; but should the plant thus 

 treated continue to grow, ray next resource is to take up the ball 

 and put it into a Carnation pot, among some dry soil, and put it under 

 glass. Should this fail, and the root is valuable, let it grow on, but 

 put it into a greenhouse or frame where it can be protected from 

 the risk of frost till the root attains to maturity. 



Taking up the Roots. 

 Cultivators who have valuable collections should never wait till 

 the foliage of the whole are withered before they commence taking 

 up ; my advice is to look over the plants every day, and take up all 

 whose foliage is withered, and continue doing so till the whole are 

 secured. Clean the roots from soil ; cut off the flower-stems and 

 foliage with a pair of stout scissors close to the crown ; shorten the 

 fibres and place the roots in the bags or boxes appropriated for keep- 

 ing them in, in a dry airy situation out of the sun. In the course of two 

 or three davs after taking up, look over the roots, they will then be in 

 a soft and partially shrivelled state ; then is the proper time for sepa- 

 rating the roots without danger of breaking them. Moodiness must 

 be guarded against, by turning the roots occasionally till they are 

 perfectly dry. Keep them in a dry place till planting-time comes 



round again. 



Raising Seedling Ranunculus. 



The soil I use is rich maiden loam ; in summer it is exposed to sun 

 and air till it is quite dry ; it is then broken fine by hand, and all 

 worms and extraneous matter removed ; it is then kept in a warm dry 

 place till wanted. About the beginning of January I begin to 

 prepare my boxes for sowing. I do this by mixing some finely sifted 

 leaf-mould, also in a dry state, with the prepared loam, searching 

 carefully for worms. This mixture is placed in the lower part of the 

 box. On the upper the fine loam alone is placed so as to be in 

 contact with the seed. Fill the box within half an inch of the top, 

 then press the surface level with a piece of smooth board. The best 

 time for sowing is about the end of January. Previous to doing so, 

 moderately saturate the soil with tepid water through a very fine 



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