CHAP. Ill VILLA GARDEXIXa 157 



breadth to the scene. The night temperatiu'e need not exceed 

 from 40° to 45°, and in frosty weather with fire it may drop to 

 38° without doing any harm. The phxnts will be healthier and 

 more robust iinder comparatively cool treatment. 



The Heath House. — A good many years ago I knew an 

 amateur wliose hobby was the cidture of Heaths. He had mounds 

 of hardy Heaths in his back garden, and beds and borders of 

 bright pink Heather adorned his front one. Into his gTeenhouse no 

 other plant was admitted. He had a low pit fidl of young plants 

 that had been propagated with his own hands, and which, in 

 course of time, would be promoted to the greenhouse stage. 

 Heaths adorned his sitting-room -window, and I verily believe he 

 had Ericas on the brain. At any rate. Heaths in many varieties 

 formed his hobby and had become a part of his existence ; and, let 

 me ask, where can a better, brighter, or cheaper hobby be found ? 

 If the conditions which Heaths require are present, there is no 

 difficidty in their culture, and these requirements are exceedingly 

 simple — pm'e ah', free from damp and stagnation, peaty soil freely 

 intermixed with sand to keep it porous. In the case of the hard- 

 wooded kinds, bits of sandstone intermixed are valuable for keeping 

 the soil in an equable state as to moistm-e ; free di'aiuage, so that 

 no stagnant moistm'e can remain neai" the roots, and fii-m potting 

 in all stages of their growth, which for the most part shoidd be 

 done eaiiy in the season, are details it will be well to remember. 

 If a plant is potted in autumn, it shoidd only be on the principle 

 of choosing tlie least of two evils, and when a pot-bound plant 

 might sufler if left till sj^ring. Just enough artificial heat to kee}) 

 out frost and expel stagnant damp and no more ; a thin shade 

 over those plants in blossom dming bright weather ; a light house, 

 with the stages not too far from the glass ; pure soft water, enough 

 being given to moisten each plant thoroughly when it is required, 

 and then leaving them -n-ithout till the ball is becoming dry again — 

 are items which shoidd not be lost sight of. In winter no more 

 water should be spilled on the paths or stages than can be helped, 

 but at the same time each plant should have enough water given, 

 when it is necessary to water at all, to run out at the bottom. 

 These constitute the chief of the requii'ements of the Erica family, 

 and scarcely anything can have simpler or quieter wants, for the 

 labour needed is a mere notliing. The reason wliy so many people 

 fail to grow Heaths well is, that they keep them in stufty 

 houses mixed up with a lot of soft-wooded rubbish. For the most 

 part, gardeners are heavily handicapped in the culture of this class 

 of plants. At times eveiy bit of blossom has to be taken to the 

 conservatory, and the Ericas must yield to the same conditions as 



