138 The Canadian Horticulturist. 



THE LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 



HAT droll things are to be met with in Gardeners' Gazette^ or in 

 Half-hours with Horticulture, or in Conservatory Chronicles, or 

 in whatever other blue-apron and pruning-knife journal falls 

 under the non technical eye ! Here is a peep into one of them, 

 just to show its fruits of learning and flowers of speech. In it 

 we read of an orchard-home in full swing ; of a stage in a con- 

 servatory; of melons having a collar; of a primula getting a 

 habit ; of gloxinias wanting a shift ; of all plants requiring to be dressed ; of 

 peaches forming elbows ; of potatoes having well-ripened eyes ; of currants 

 having spurs ; of pines wanting hot-water pipes under their beds ; of specimens 

 being starved to rest ; of roses being impatient ; of sap being inclined to rush 

 away ; of azaleas not liking tobacco-smoke ; of figs running riot ; of grapes that 

 can stand sulphur fumes, that are well out of the way, that are no end of 

 trouble, that may not be left to themselves, that will not be hurried, that can 

 get rusty, that are grass-habited, that dislike to be buried, that refuse to be 

 finished off, that rob one another, stone themselves, have warts, and can color, 

 and smell, and bleed, and start ! 



Gardeners also are directed to do dreadful deeds. They are to pinch the 

 vines, to stake the carnations, to strike varonicas, to behead winter-greens, to 

 turn out bonvardias, to reduce climbers, put endive into cold-pits, prick out 

 celery, and stick peas ! The territories in which all this is to be done are as 

 uninviting as possible. They are full, so we read, of red spiders, green-fly, ear- 

 wigs, mealy-bugs, wire-worm, caterpillars, carrot-grubs, onion maggots, mildew, 

 snails, ants, slugs, scale, club and cats. Nor are the weapons with which war 

 is to be waged against these any sweeter to the imagination. Gardeners are 

 to arm themselves with clay, tar, chalk, soot, lime, bran, sulphur, sweet-oil, 

 wood-ashes, gas lime, resin, soap suds, soft soap, nicotine, soap, tobacco dirst, 

 tobacco paper, guano, guassia, paraffin, hellebore powder, fir-tree oil, brewers' 

 grains and red lead. In such perpetual battle against garden pests — as they are 

 called — the one pleasant thought is that all seems to be greatly in favor of the 

 gardener. — Selected by Thos Beall from Chambers' Journal, January, 1887. 



Watering GPOWing* Plants. — During late winter and spring, when 

 indoor plants are making active growth and blooming freely, supply water freely. 

 The soil should not be kept muddy, but just moist. No rule can be given 

 except to water when it is needed, be it twice a day or twice a week. Plants 

 raised in pots without saucers are almost certain to suffer from lack of water. 

 If a plant does not thrive, turn it out of the pot and very likely the lower part 

 of the soil will be dry. Do not water all plants because a few need it, neither 

 let a few suffer for want of water because most of them are wet enough. 



