158 VILLA GARDENING part ii 



the denizens of the stove and other phTnts, and so the Heaths, in 

 coiu'se of time, dwindle and die. 



There is no class of plants capable of inspiring so much interest 

 as the one under consideration. If they are given a nice light 

 house, and permitted to remain in it, carrying out the rules of 

 treatment I have laid down above, with a good collection some 

 will always be in flower; and though they can only be used 

 sparingly as cut flowers, yet they will fiu-nish very choice button- 

 hole bouquets all the year round with little sprays of IMaiden-hair 

 Fern for greenery, and the latter may be grown under the stages 

 so as to be always available. All through the simimer, and as far 

 into the autumn as possible, night ventilation must be given, 

 avoiding cold draughts or chills. A damp stagnant atmosphere 

 will generate mildew, which is about the only disease Heaths are 

 subject to ; and all through the dark dull days a watch must be 

 kept for the appearance of the pest, and the moment discoloration 

 of the bright green foliage appears, apply the usual remedy — 

 sulphiu- — and follow it up till the mildew is destroyed. Mildew, 

 when left to work its will upon a plant, quickly destroys the 

 foliage, and, in the case of Heaths, death rapidly ensues. 



Pruning and Training. — The hard-wooded slow-growing 

 kinds require but little priming ; indeed the tricoloiu-s and a 

 few others had better not be touched at all with the knife, but the 

 soft kinds should be cut back regularly after blooming to keep them 

 well furnished. As regards training, a certain amount of staking is 

 necessary after the plants get large to keep them in proper order. 

 The soft-wooded kinds, such as hyemalis, Willmoreana, etc., do 

 not require staking ; in fact they look better -snthout it. Secure 

 a good healthy bottom by stoj^ping the plants freely when young, 

 and the gi-owth they make afterwards in spring will flower in 

 winter and be sturdy and strong enough to be self-supporting. 

 The habit of growth of all the Ericas is so neat, and there is 

 so much variety in the shade and tints of their foliage, that 

 the plants even when not in flower are ornamental. The dead 

 flowers must be picked oS" as soon as they fade, unless we wish to 

 save seeds from any particular variety ; and there is an opportunity 

 for any persevering cultivator to hand his name down to posterity, 

 as others have done Ijefore him ; for a really good seedling Heath 

 will have something more than the ephemeral duration which 

 is attached to the majority of new things annually introduced. 

 After the plants have been cut back, which should be done as soon 

 as the flowering is over, those so operated upon should be placed at 

 one end of the house and kept a little closer till the yoimg growth 

 breaks away, when, if repotting is necessary, it should be done. If 



