TIMELY TOPICS FOR THE AMATEUR. 



199 



ruptly to outdoor life. Stand the plants 

 outside for a week or two if possible, to 

 harden, before planting them out in the 

 ground, and don't hurry the plants out of 

 the greenhouse unless the weather is favor- 

 able, especially coleus and tender plants. 

 Weather conditions, and not the calendar, 

 must govern these and similar operations in 

 the garden at all times, for often 



" Undue haste brings woeful waste." 



The Greenhouse — Shading must be put 

 on much heavier now than before for palms, 

 ferns and similar plants. Palms, cordylines, 

 etc., succeed best stood out of doors on the 

 north side of a building during the hot sum- 

 mer months; stand on a piece of slate or shin- 

 gle, this will prevent worms getting into 

 the pot and choking the drainage. This ap- 

 plies to all plants stood outside. 



Exotic ferns should be kept in the green- 

 house during summer, keep them well wa- 

 tered and the floor well dampened. Tree 

 ferns, especially the Australian varieties, do 

 well stood outside during July and August, 

 but they must have a well shaded, sheltered 

 position, and an occasional spraying. 



Top ventilators may perhaps be left open 

 slightly at night if the weather is warm, it 

 will help to harden oflF the bedding plants. 

 The hardier class of bedding plants, such as 

 geraniums, petunias, verbenas, etc., may be 

 stood outside toward the end of the month, 

 previous to being planted out later on. 

 Coleus and tender plants are safer in the 

 house for a week or so. 



Hydrangeas, oleanders, and similar half- 

 hardy plants may be stood outside. Water 

 must be given liberally to all growing plants. 

 Syringe in the afternoon, and close ventil- 

 ators early, if the weather is cool ; early af- 

 ternoon syringing and closing keeps down 

 red spider. Syringe lightly, heavy syringing 

 damages the bloom, fancy pelargoniums 

 being particularly opposed to syringing ; 

 these latter like a cool temperature and 



Fig. 18! I. Carnation. 



plenty of air, day and night if possible, and 

 plenty of water at the roots. 



Gloxinias and tuberous begonias should 

 be well started by now, and when well 

 rooted they will require plenty of water ; 

 shade well, but syringe them verj- seldom, 

 if at all. A moist atmosphere, caused by 

 damping the floors often, is better than 

 syringing. Early morning is the best time 

 for watering plants at this season of the 

 year, late evening watering is not advisable 

 just yet, as chilly nights, with oftentimes no 

 fire heat, induces mildew, damping ofl^ and 

 other evils, if late watering is indulged in. 



Chrj-santhemums in pots that are to be 

 grown outside during summer, may be stood 

 outside now ; it may apparently check them 

 some, but less growth is much better than 

 weak, spindled growth, induced by a high 

 temperature. These plants may have their 

 final potting as early as possible into the 

 pots they are to flower in ; use a rich loam 

 and pot firmly ; if bushy plants are required 

 pinch the tips of the shoots off every week 

 or two until July. 



Carnations may be planted outside in the 

 borders early in June, or even earlier than 

 that, if fall and winter flower is« required ; 



