Winter Flo^vcring Plants 



IT is rather surprising how few people 

 make any effort to grow flowers dur- 

 ing the winter. Yet there are quite 

 a large number of plants which naturally 

 blossom at this season. With a little 

 care it is possible to have the house gay 

 with flowering plants, the bulbs to pro- 

 duce them being all easily obtainable 

 and at small cost. 



In most years we have long, spells of 

 wintry weather, when outdoor work in 

 the garden is necessarily suspended, but 

 that should instil in us a greater desire 

 to carry on gardening work within 

 doors. Of course, indoor flowering 

 plants, except for those who possess hot- 

 houses, are limited to those kinds which 

 lend themselves to indoor culture in pots 

 and which moreover do not need a great 

 amount of artificial heat. But apart 

 from flowering plants, there are a large 

 number of other plants, such as palms, 

 ferns, and those plants which although 

 having no flowers possess charms in the 

 way of ornamental foliage throughout 

 the year. 



Among the many flowering plants 

 which can be successfully cultivated in 

 rooms and which will flower during the 

 winter and early spring months the fol- 

 lowing are favorites, I think, with most 

 of us : Lily of the valley, hyacinths, 

 primulas, cyclamen, daffodils, freesias, 

 wallflower, and geraniums. 



The lily of the valley, with its delicate 



B. C. Tillett, Hamilton, Ont. 



little white bell-shaped flowers and its 

 exquisite and unique perfume, /claims 

 first attention. This plant is a per;- 

 ennial, that is, it is not a plant which 

 requires to be raised every year, but one 

 which will, with care, flower year after 

 year. It is one of the easiest to force, 

 and can be grown in pots, in flat, wood- 

 en boxes such as nurserymen use, or in 

 bowls. The plants are raised from' 

 bulbs, or "crowns," as they are usually 

 called, and these should be set in some 

 good soil containing leaf mould, about 

 two inches deep and about two inches 

 apart. If retarded crowns can be ob- 

 tained ; these will come into bloom in 

 two or three weeks. For table decora- 

 tion the bulbs should be planted in a 

 bowl and then once the shoots are well 

 out of the soil, this can be covered 

 over with either moss or grass, which 

 greatly improves the effect. A tempera- 

 ture of 55 degrees is all that is needed, 

 and is preferable to a greater heat, as 

 the blooms will be stronger and will last 

 longer. 



HYACINTHS 



There are several ways of growing 

 hyacinths. Some people merely place 

 the bulbs in a vase containing water, 

 and made for the purpose, which is an 

 easy way of growing them ; but there is 

 nothing very ornamental about this me- 

 thod of cultivation, nor is it the plant's 

 natural way of growing. It can be 



A Prize Winning Perennial Border in St. Thomas, Ont. 



In the Uttle space here shown some 75 varictiea of perennials were erown. The (Tardea won a 

 second prize in a irarden competition. It is owned by Mrs. Waterbuxy- 



262 



much more effectively grown by plant- 

 ing a few bulbs of different colors, say 

 white, pink, and deep blue, in a good- 

 sized bowl filled with fine gravel or peb- 

 bles. If the bulbs are set firmly in a 

 little hollow three or four inches apart, 

 the one in the centre being raised a little 

 above the others, and the bowl filled 

 with water until it touches the bulbs, a 

 very pretty effect will be had when the 

 plants burst into flower. The bulbs 

 should be kept constantly in the water, 

 and here too, a natural touch may be 

 added by putting moss or grass about 

 the bulbs. 



PEIMUIiAS 



There is an advantage in cultivating 

 primulas owing to their continual suc- 

 cession of flowers, for if the plants re- 

 ceive proper care and attention they will 

 flower for several months. One of the 

 most beautiful kinds is, I think, the 

 giant white — Primula Alba Magnifica, to 

 give it its proper and well-merited title. 

 To preserve the flowers in good condi- 

 tion they should be kept in a moderately 

 dry atmosphere, but primulas like a 

 damp bottom to stand on, and 't is a 

 good plan to keep the pots in flower 

 pans, though in the winter season they 

 do not require quite so much feeding as 

 during the dry summer months. 



CYCLAMEN 



Cyclamen like a good mixture of sand 

 loam and leaf mould, and as with prim- 

 ulas, unless one has a small glass house 

 in which to place seedlings, it is more 

 satisfactory to purchase plants in the 

 first instance. However, there are some 

 who have glass, and when purchasing 

 cyclamen tubers they will bear in mind 

 the necessity of pressing them well into 

 the soil so that not more than half the 

 tuber is under the soil. Give the tubers 

 a slight watering only until they com- 

 mence growing. Cyclamen and primu- 

 las, too, -are the better for a little liquid 

 manure. 



DAFFODILS AND NARCISSUS 



Daffodils and narcissus can be grown 

 with excellent results in a window box 

 if of sufllcient depth to permit of the 

 bulbs being planted at least three inches 

 below the surface. The plants do well 

 in loamy soil, and the bulbs may be 

 placed about four inches apart. Al- 

 though more suited to outdoor culture 

 scattered in grass, they make a good 

 show in a room, especially the long, 

 trumpet-like varieties. 



All growing bulbs should be watered 

 fairly freely when in active growth, and 

 plants in warm rooms sometimes need 

 daily waterings to prevent the soil be- 

 coming too dry. 



No indoor flowering plant is more 

 easily forced than the freesia. They are 

 excellent plants for our little greenhouses 



