February, 1916. 



THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST 



The Care of House Plants 



2» 



AT this season of the year, when 

 the garden is garbed in a 

 mantle of white, our thoughts 

 naturally turn to the window garden, 

 where every green leaf is doubly ap- 

 preciated. With what lender af- 

 fection we enjoy such plants as have 

 been reserved for beautifying the home 

 during these dark and often dreary 

 days. 



When we consider the extent to 

 which flowers are grown in the home, 

 and the pleasure that is derived from 

 them, not to mention the tender and 

 affectionate regard many people have 

 for them, it is surprising that the 

 study of their habits and needs is not 

 more thorough and general. 



The most essential need of house 

 plants is light; direct sunlight if pos- 

 sible ; but daylight and plenty of it. 

 The importance of plenty of light can- 

 not be overestimated. If this one con- 

 dition can be complied with, all others 

 can be so easily provided as to assure 

 success with but little effort. This is 

 worth remembering in every phase of 

 gardening experience. It will cause you 

 to pull aside the curtains, and roll up 

 the shades in the early morning so that 

 the plants will get the first gleams of 

 daylight. 



Many householders, having become 

 disappointed at their inability to grow 

 plants and flowers in the living rooms, 

 have improvised plant rooms made out 

 of existing sun parlours, enclosed 

 piazzas, or they have built a small ad- 

 dition to the house for this particular 

 purpose. These, when properly de- 

 signed, prove most successful, not only 

 .as conservatories but as delightful 

 sitting-roonis. Indeed the combination 

 of sitting-room and conservatory is the 

 principle of an arrangement that is 

 likely to prove a feature of the build- 

 ing operations of the future among the 

 more enthusiastic amateur gardeners. 



In those homes where only the liv- 

 ing-room is available it is possible to 

 keep a variety of plants in a com- 

 iparatively healthj^ condition in rooms 

 ,on the south-east or south-west corners 

 that have good-sized windows on both 

 sides, provided that one is prepared to 

 consider their needs as of prime im- 

 portance and is willing to give them 

 the constant attention that every liv- 

 ing thing requires. 



During the day allow the window to 

 perform its one essential function, 

 which is to admit daylight to the room. 

 With the room thus flooded with light 

 manj' foliage plants will thrive even 

 at considerable distance from the 

 window; in fact some plants have a 

 ninrvnlliiu* capacity for adapting 



Henry Gibson 



themselves to conditions that are far 

 from ideal. On the other hand flower- 

 ing plants are most exacting and will 

 tolerate no position short of the im- 

 mediate window-sill. 



Proper watering is important. Hoav 

 much water should this plant have, 

 and how often should it be given? is a 

 question that has been asked over and 

 over again, and as many times answer- 

 ed with but little satisfaction to the 

 enquirer. The watering of plants is 

 one phase of home-culture that is the 

 least understood by the average 

 amateur, yet when one comes to give it 

 a little careful thought there is noth- 

 ing mysterious about it. It is very dif- 

 ficult for any one to lay down hard 

 And fast rules as to Hvhen a plant 

 should be watered, because the amount 

 of foliage that a plant may have, the 

 atmosphere in which it is growing, and 

 the effectiveness of the drainage to 

 carry away all superfluous water are 

 factors that have to be taken into con- 

 .sideration 



A plant with a relatively large 

 amount of foliage and blossoms in a 

 small pot will need water more fre- 

 (juently than a plant with less foliage 

 in a comparatively larger pot. The 

 plant with considerable foliage will 

 lose more moisture through the leaves 

 than one with less foliage. In addition 

 to this the former has less soil about 

 its roots to retain moisture for any 

 length of time, whereas the plant with 

 the larger amount of soil to hold the 

 water, and less leaves to evaporate it, 

 will eventually die if adequate drain- 

 age is not provided at the roots to 

 carry off the excess water. 



A plant growing in a dry atmosphere 



will demand more water than one 

 growing in cooler and more moist 

 quarters. Plants do not like a dry, 

 arid atmosphere. The greater demand 

 made by the leaves upon the roots for 

 water is very trying to even the most 

 vigorous, and few survive this con- 

 dition long. There is no royal road to 

 tell when a plant should be watered. 

 The successful professional grower re- 

 lies entirely on his daily observation 

 of conditions as to the frequency of 

 watering. 



Plants in the li^dng room have to put 

 •up with what heating and ventilating 

 they can get, but even these con- 

 ditions can, to a large extent, be made 

 ,more favorable by the exercise of a 

 Jittle care. As already mentioned, 

 icxcessive heat, and a dry atmosphere 

 are not desirable. This condition is 

 frequently aggravated by the other 

 extreme of throwing open the doors 

 and windows to air the room, and by 

 poorly fitting sash that allow direct 

 drafts to strike the plants. Rooms 

 heated up to seventy-five and eighty 

 degrees, by steam, hot-air, or hot 

 water, are not really healthy for human 

 beings to say nothing of plants. A 

 certain amount of humidity in the 

 atmosphere is necessary for our health, 

 (ind so it is with plants. The kitchen 

 is bad enough, with the cooking range 

 and the intense heat that radiates 

 therefrom, yet here we do get some 

 moisture in the air from the boiling 

 water, and steam that escapes from the 

 kettles and pans. 



To offset the dryness in the atmos- 

 phere of the living-room at least one 

 receptacle containing water should be 

 set in each room. A good place to set 



An altra-ctive border on the .sloping edse of the lawn of Geo. Viekers. H:irrie, Ont. 



