228 on the culture; of camellia?. 



stopping the lead, as also lateral branches, so as to keep the plants 

 bushy. 



Re-potting the plants. — In shifting the plants, I always give a 

 pot two sizes larger, so that there is about an inch clear all round 

 the ball. The balls are left entire, excepting patting them gently 

 with the hand round the sides, so as to loosen the ends of the 

 fibrous roots. An inch deep of drainage is placed at the bottom 

 of each pot j this attention is very essential. 1 have, sometimes, 

 raised moss for the purpose which answers well. The time of 

 potting is always performed when the plants have ceased blooming. 

 The plants are then placed in a stove of about sixty-five degrees 

 of heat by night, and seventy by day. When the new shoots have 

 ceased growing, the heat is increased to seventy-five by night, and 

 eighty by day, this causes the shoots to produce a profusion of 

 flower-buds, which will also be plumper than if not thus attended 

 to. The young shoots are not allowed to grow till they become 

 firm before the heat is increased, but this must be done immedi- 

 ately on perceiving that they have ceased to grow longer. I keep 

 them in this situation for about a month, and then gradually inure 

 them to the greenhouse, and finally to the open air, where they 

 are kept till wanted to flower in the autumn or early winter, or 

 housed in October for blooming at the usual season in spring. 



When I place the plants out of doors, they are put upon a bed 

 of coal-ashes or sand, six inches deep ; this prevents worms enter- 

 ing into the pots. 



The Camellia, like the Orange, likes frequent syringing over 

 the tops. From this a considerable quantity of nutrition is im- 

 bibed, by keeping the pores open. Tn watering the soil, this is 

 never done till it is perceived they are becoming dry ; then a plen- 

 tiful supply is given, the water being about the temperature of the 

 situation in which are the plants. When the plants are in blos- 

 som bud, if they are allowed once to flag, the buds are almost cer- 

 tain to drop, particularly those most advanced to a state of bloom- 

 ing. The bud will not generally fall oil' then, but having received 

 damage at the centre of it, it will be found, on examination, even 

 if it remain on the plant till near expansion, that the centre is 

 decayed. If the plant be kept saturated with water for a short 

 time, this will damage the buds and cause them to drop. This 

 damage is often sustained if there is not a good drainage in the 



