26 4 THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 



lished, tbe point of the shoots should he pinched out, and they will 

 require to be stopped occasionally as they progress in growth, if a 

 bushy habit is to be secured ; but this is of no importance in the 

 case of small plants, as if allowed to grow in the form of a single 

 shoot this can be coiled round stakes, which, with stopping, will 

 cause the production of numerous shoots. Young plants should 

 not be kept growing too late in autumn, for, unless they are afforded 

 a period of rest, in order to thoroughly mature tbe wood, they will 

 not break so freely the following spring. As soon as the object is 

 to ripen tbe wood, the plants should be placed near the glass in a 

 rather dry atmosphere, where they will be exposed to light and air 

 on favourable occasions, and where they may remain for the winter, 

 giving very little water to the soil. Except an occasional wipe, to 

 clear the foliage of dust, tbe syringe should not be used ; and at 

 this season the temperature should not fall below 50°, nor rise above 

 60° without a circulation of air. Towards the middle or end of 

 January the plants should be placed in a growing temperature, such 

 as directed above, giving sufficient water to tbe soil to thoroughly 

 moisten it, and repotting them as soon as the roots make a start. 

 But before inducing growth, tbe shoots should be stopped and 

 brought down, to cause them to break freely and assume a bushy 

 habit. If well attended to, affording them a moist warm tempera- 

 ture, with a moderate bottom-heat, nice little specimens may be 

 obtained by the end of the second season, and they will grow more 

 freely if the flowers are picked off as they make their appearance, 

 for these will be produced from the axil of almost every leaf on the 

 young wood. Attend to stopping and training as may be necessary 

 during the growing season, giving a second shift if requisite, and 

 winter them as already directed. Plants for flowering will require 

 exactly similar treatment to that recommended for growing them; 

 and if they are placed in bottom-beat early iu spring, and otherwise 

 properly cared for, they will be in flower in May ; and if kept in 

 bottom-heat, etc., will go on growing and flowering till late in 

 autumn. Or if desirable to remove them to a cooler place, this may 

 be done, and the blossoms will last long in a cool dry atmosphere, 

 but others will not be produced to succeed them, as is the case when 

 the plant is retained in heat. See to getting the wood well ripened 

 annually before winter, and cut back and trim the specimens as may 

 be necessary before inducing growth in spring, and immense bushes 

 will be obtained in the course of a few years. As this Cyrtoceras 

 is impatient of any excess of moisture at the root, a hard fibrous 

 peat should be used, such as water will pass through freely ; this 

 should be broken up into small lumpy pieces, rejecting the fine, and 

 mixed with about one-third its bulk of charcoal, broken small, and 

 a moderate quantity of sharp white sand. In potting, avoid large 

 shifts, and secure efficient drainage by using plenty of potsherds, 

 and covering them with some fibry pieces of soil. 



