CAMELLIA CULTURE. 129 



The only way to prevent this tendency is to select 

 for the cuttings, grafts and marchings, only the most per- 

 fect and healthy plants. 



One diseased plant thus used, and its progeny in turn 

 used for cuttings, may communicate disease and deteriora- 

 tion to others, and thus infect a whole bench. 



We value the Camellia for its perfect flowers, coming 

 as they do at a season of the year when other white flow- 

 ers of equal beauty are not plenty; but a diseased or im- 

 perfect plant or cutting can never produce perfect flowers. 



Some florists have been either careless or lacking in 

 knowledge on this point, and their neglect has resulted 

 badly for themselves, and has given the impression in some 

 quarters that the Camellia must give place to other 

 flowers. 



If the directions I have given, in the preceding chap- 

 ters are carefully followed, we shall not hear so much 

 about sickly Camellia plants, with no flower buds; but 

 they will improve, and we may yet improve them so mucL 

 that we may have a constant succession of large double 

 white flowers from October to May, not all of one variety 

 but of several, all blooming at different times. 



This must not be attempted by forcing the plants, as I 

 have said before, because that will ruin them in a very few 

 years, but by propagating earlier and later varieties which 

 possess all the best characteristics of the alba plena and 

 the free-flowering candidissima. 

 6* 



