July, 191 1 



THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST 



161 



House and Window Plants in Summer 



Wm. Hunt, O.IA. C, Guclph.^Ont. 



weeks during- the summer 



House plants should have a season of 

 partial rest during the hot days of sum- 

 mer. This can be given them by stand- 

 ing them out of doors in a partially 

 shaded position where they get very 

 little sun. Two or three hours' sun in 

 the early morning or late evening is 

 beneficial to them, but there are very 

 few pot plants that are benefited by be- 

 ing exposed to the hot sun of mid-day in 

 summer. 



The north side of a fence or building 

 is a good place for house and window 

 plants during hot weather. The plants 

 should not be stood on ordinary soil or 

 even on gravel. The best plan is 10 

 stand them on coal ashes spread an inch 

 or two in depth so as to form a bed of 

 ashes. This will prevent earth worms 

 from getting into the pots, as worms 

 will not work up through the covering of 

 ashes. A sprinkling of air slaked lime 

 on top of the soil where the plants are 

 to stand will also keep away earth 

 worms. Standing each pot on a piece of 

 slate or flat stone will answer the pur- 

 pose if coal ashes or lime cannot be had. 



EAETH WOEMS 



Earth worms are very injurious to pot 

 plants. They are often the cause of the 

 drainage choking up, causing the soil 

 to become sour and waterlogged, a con- 

 dition that will soon kill the plants if not 

 remedied by re-potting and giving the 

 plants fresh drainage. 



Earth worms are sure to congregate 

 where the soil is kept moist, as it would 

 be by watering the plants every day or 

 two. A good remedy for earth worms in 

 flower pots is to slake about half a pound 

 of fresh lime with about a quart of warm 

 water, then add cold water sufficient to 

 make a gallon. Allow the solution to 

 settle and 'clear. Enough of the solu- 

 tion can be given each plant to just 

 moisten all the soil. This will drive out 

 the worms, when they can be easily 

 destroyed. The only plants, usually 

 grown by amateurs, that are injured by 

 the application of the lime solution are 

 azaleas and rhododendrons. The lime 

 ' solution should not be applied to these 

 plants. 



POT PLANTS 



Plunging the pots in a bed of coai 

 ashes several inches in depth is a good 

 plan to adopt with pot plants in summer. 

 The pots should be plunged or sunk into 

 the ashes at least two-thirds of the depth 

 of the pot, or even deep enough so that 

 only about an inch of the top of the pot 

 is above the surface of the ashes. By 

 plunging them in this way they require 

 far less attention in watering, as the 

 water docs not evaporate as quickly as 

 when the plants are stood on the sur- 

 face of the ashes. The latter is an im- 

 portant point, especially as the owners 

 of the plants are sometimes away from 



home for 

 months. 



A collection of plants plunged in ashes 

 or even in soil with some ashes placed 

 at the bottom of each pot will require 

 very little attention. They will almost 

 take care of themselves in summer if 



mentioned during the hot months of sum- 

 mer than kept in the house. An occa- 

 sional spraying with clean water in addi- 

 tion to the rains will benefit the plants 

 and keep down insects. 



Another plan that can be adopted with 

 a small collection of plants is to stand 

 the pots in a window box and pack them 

 around with moss, or even sawdust or 

 excelsior packing material. If the two 



A Profusion of Asters in the Garden of Mr. Wm. Robinson, Barrie, Ont. 



placed in a partially shaded place. There 

 are very few house or window plants 

 that would not be benefited by this 

 method of treatment during the hot 

 months of summer. Such plants as 

 palms, aspidistras, ficus elastica, be- 

 gonias, calla lilies, hydrangeas, fuchsias, 

 and pelargoniums, and summer plants 

 are much better put outside in the way 



last-named materials are used, a layer 

 of moss should be placed on top so as to 

 produce a more natural appearance. If 

 a box of plants treated in this way is 

 placed outside in a north window, or 

 where it is shaded from the hot sun, it 

 will not only be useful as a decoration, 

 but the plants will be materially bene- 

 fited by treating them in this way. 



Sun\mer Care of Last Winter's Plants 



Mrs. Annie L. Jack, Chateauguay Basin, Que. 



WHEN the windows must be shaded 

 from _the fierce sunlight, and the 

 rooms darkened for comfort, the 

 plants that have been such a source of 

 pleasure through the winter months be- 

 come rather a white elephant on our 

 hands. It is quite likely, too, that in 

 spite of care the mealy bug and aphis 

 have found a home on some of them, and 

 lack of sufficient water has afTected 

 their growth. 



If we are so fortunate as to have a 

 garden we go out with a pan of coal 

 ashes ,and make holes in which to plunge 

 some of the pots to rest, putting the 

 ashes at the bottom to prevent worms 

 from crawling into the draining hole. 

 Here can rest the Chinese primroses, 

 the spent azalea, the poinsettia, and any 

 other plant that has had its season of 



blossoming, and requires to recuperate 

 and grow fresh buds for another win- 

 ter. But they must not be forsaken al- 

 together. Sufficient water should be 

 supplied to keep them in health. 



A heliotrope that has been in flower 

 should be cut back and given two 

 months' rest in a shaded place. The 

 same method will answer for the pelar- 

 gonium. There is no window plant that 

 has so many varieties of treatment as 

 the calla in summer. One authority will 

 advise to turn the pots on their side out 

 of doors through the hot months, paying 

 no attention to them, lifting up in Sep- 

 tember, and giving warm water. This 

 plan has proved successful with some 

 amateurs. Another authority lets the 

 leaves die down by simply withholding 

 water, and repots the next month. AH 



