THE FLORAL, WOULD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 223 



flowers. "When done blooming, cut back the branches, in order to 

 induce the plant to acquire a bushy habit ; and when the young 

 shoots have just made their appearance, turn it out of the pot, and 

 reduce the ball of soil and roots ; when repotted, let it be placed in 

 a frame until it has made fresh roots, treating it in the same manner 

 as plants from cuttings. If a few plants were placed along with 

 early-forcing pelargoniums, etc., the treatment which suits them 

 would forward the blooming of Sparmannia ; and if placed in the 

 conservatory, or where flowering plants are required, it would form 

 no mean ornament in the collection. 



Sparmannia is an old and much-neglected plant, but it neverthe- 

 less deserves a place amongst our spring flowers. 



EEMINDERS FOR GARDEN WORK IN" JULY. 



AHL1AS. — Never trim off a single branch, unless it is in the way of 

 others ; train them out of each other's way, and take the neighbour- 

 ing buds off any branch that has a promising flower on it opening for 

 show ; but a plant is as much distressed by the loss of its leaves and 

 branches as it is benefited by the reduction of its flowers. The 

 instant you see a (lower will not do for a show, remove it ; most of the early 

 flowers should come off. 



Geraniums may be cut down and the cuttings put in, if you want young 

 ones ; a common border and a hand-glass are sufficient. 



Heabtsease. — Propagate from small side-shoots whenever you can take 

 them, 1 hey make better plants than older cutting?, though the latter will do. 

 Plant out seedliDgs that are large enough in rich aDd strong soil, but not too 

 heavy. 



Caenatioks and Picottees. — Regulate the number of buds and tie up the 

 advanced ones, as directed for pinks, only that when you have tied them you 

 may tear down the calyx from the top to the tie, and thus release the petuls 

 all round alike ; prepare the card also, and regulate the petals as they perfect 

 themselves. The shoots at the bottom may be either layered, if they are long 

 enough to bend down under the soil, or pulled off and piped, like pinks, if they 

 are short, only that they must be struck with a slight bottom-heat under a hand- 

 glass, instead of in the cold open ground. They are thus layered ; cut off the 

 leaves, all but those on the three upper joints, about a third of an inch below 

 the second knot or joint under tho«e leaves, which would be three inches from 

 the top. and on the bottom side of the Btem cut a slit sloping upwards towards 

 the middle of it, passing the knife through the joint, but carefully abstain from 

 coming more than half way ; then, as carefully, cut off the piece that is below 

 the joint so as to cut close up to ir, ; this done, stir up the eoil in the pot, and 

 mix some sand with it ; peg this layer down into the soil below the surface, so 

 that the plant will, with the split joint attached to it, bo exactly upright, and 

 the split will be open ; press the earth gently about it, and so proceed with 

 more ; water, and lay them by, to finish their bloom, and till these layers 

 strike root. 



Chuysahthmeums, the mo9t untidy of all our flowers, can only be grown 

 dwarf by taking off cuttings now; prepare a little bottom-heat, take off the 

 strongest tops three inches long, cot them close under a joint, take the leaves off 

 one inch high, and let this inch be set ia rich sandy soil, in a pan or pot plunged 

 into the heat, the glasses covered close over arid wiped every day, occasionally re- 

 freshed with water; they will soon ttrike with good management, and should be 

 potted off into forty-eight sized pots, and after a few deya to establish them in 

 the shado they i hould bo placed in an open situation where they will have all the 



