66 



THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST. 



to forms with the corolla almost regular and 

 nearly erect, the latter pecularity havings 

 this recommendation, that the border and 

 throat of the corolla, to which parts much 

 of the beauty of the flower is owing, are 

 presented to the eye. Permit me to advise 

 all lovers of flowers to visit the greenhouses 

 of our florist Mr. Maxsom, who will, doubt- 

 less, find pleasure in showing- the Gloxinia 

 in all its beauty, and blushing" with bloom. 



Cuttings— They may be propagated by 

 cuttings of three kinds. First, the young 

 shoots, as soon as they are three inches 

 long, springing from the old tubers ; these 

 are the best. Second, leaves taken oflf with 

 a bud at the base. Third, by the leaves 

 only, without a bud. The first mode may 

 be used only when the kinds or variety is 

 plentiful, and the bush so strong as to send 

 out more shoots than are wanted for flower- 

 ing ; the second mode, when the variety is 

 new and more scarce ; and the last, when it 

 is more rare still. 



There is an advantage in the first and 

 second mode, that the cuttings, if struck 

 early in the year, will, with moderate 

 care and attention to repotting, flower the 

 same year, whereas, those struck from 

 leaves or parts of leaves, will only form 

 small tubers that season. Each kind of 

 cutting requires to be put in sand, under a 

 hand or bell glass, in bottom heat, to strike 

 them quickly. A moist, warm heat is neces- 

 sary; a moist, cold place would rot the cut- 

 tings immediately. Such species as do not 

 make bulbs must be propagated by the first 

 kind of cuttings. 



Seed — To raise new varieties it is neces- 

 sary to save seed. Choose the finest and 

 brightest colored, to save it from. As soon 

 as it is ripe, gather it and dry it, keep it 

 very dry till the March following, then sow 

 the seed on the surface of shallow pots, and 

 let them grow there during the summer ; 

 the compost should be of a light sandy sub- 

 stance. Place the pots in a warm moist 

 atmosphere, and as soon as the seeds are 



up, and the plants have attained a leaf or 

 two, transplant them thinly on the surface 

 of shallow pots, and let them grow there 

 during the summer. Allow to go to rest in 

 the autumn, and keep them in the same pots 

 through the winter, giving but little water. 

 As soon as life appears again in the spring, 

 pot them off singly into small pots, watering 

 and repotting the same as the cuttings, but 

 it is more than probable they will not flower 

 till the second year. 



Soil — The best soil is light fibrous loam, 

 turfy peat, half-decayed leaves, in equal 

 parts, with a due portion of sand, well 

 mixed, but not sifted. 



Summer Culture — To have a succession 

 of bloom, pot a portion of the bulbs in Jan- 

 uary, and place them in heat, giving a little 

 water ; temperature, 60 to 80 degrees. Pot 

 a second batch about the middle of February 

 and another towards the end of March. 

 These will supply flowers for several months. 

 Put them in pots, according to the size of 

 the bulbs, keep them regularly watered, but 

 never very wet. They may be syringed 

 occasionally previously to flowering, but 

 not much. When the blooming season is 

 over they may be set out of doors during 

 summer, but should be sheltered from heavy 

 rains. They will then gradually go to rest. 



Winter Culture — All that they require 

 is to be kept in their pots in a place where 

 neither frost nor wet can reach them ; yet 

 the place should never be below 45 degrees, 

 nor above 55 degrees. If the cold is much 

 lower they will be apt to rot, and if higher, 

 to start into growth. 



Diseases — The only disease that these 

 plants are subject to is a kind of dry rot in 

 the bulbs, which changes the substance into 

 a soft pulp, destroying the buds, and so 

 causing them to perish. There is no cure 

 for it. Like many other incurable diseases 

 attacking plant life, it makes us feel disap- 

 pointed and sorry, but we have only to 

 "grin and bear it." Wm. Foley, 



Before Lindsay Horticultural Sdciety. 



