62 THE BOOK OF THE GREENHOUSE 



lessened supply towards winter, but never let them be 

 quite dry. In potting keep the plants low down in the 

 pots. It was customary years ago to keep the short 

 stem under the leaves above the soil, but this was a 

 mistake and a cause of trouble. Move to the green- 

 house before the dull and humid weather of late autumn 

 comes on, and give a temperature of about 50 deg. There 

 are many other valuable Primulas to be raised from seeds 

 which can only have mention here. Their treatment is 

 to some extent similar, except that they will do with a 

 lower temperature in winter. Among the best are P. 

 verticillata (the Abyssinian primrose), P. obconica, P. 

 floribunda, and the new hybrid between the first and 

 last of these, named P. Keivensis. 



Schizanthus. For flowering in pots early in summer 

 the schizanthuses are very bright and light-looking. 

 They give but little trouble to grow, and the butterfly- 

 like flowers of 5. retusas are very interesting in 

 form. Seeds should be sown in August, either in 

 the six-inch pots in which they are to flower or in an 

 ordinary seed pan which should be put in a cold frame. 

 If the former method is practised, soil composed of 

 loam, leaf mould and decayed manure should be used, 

 and the seedlings simply thinned out eventually to about 

 three in a pot. Soil without the manure will do for seed- 

 lings to be re-potted into, and this is perhaps the better 

 way, providing they are not allowed to get big before 

 removing them from the seed pot. In any case the soil 

 for the flowering pots should be fairly rich. Grow on 

 in the cool frame till the nights get cold, then move to a 

 light shelf in the coldest part of the greenhouse, as it 

 will not do to tempt the flower spikes to run up too 

 soon. Grow on as slowly as possible and water 

 carefully until the pots are filled with roots, after 

 which a little manure water will be helpful. 



