SUNSHINE OE SHADE FOE FLOWEES 



PLANTS DIFFER-SOME WILL SUCCEED IN AN EAST 

 OR WEST, SOME IN THE SOUTH AND A FEW 

 IN THE NORTH WINDOW— WHAT MR. E. E. REX- 

 FORD SAYS ABOUT IT IN HOME AND FLOWERS. 



AS all plants are not alike in their re- 

 quirements as to sunshine and 

 light, it naturally follows that the 

 plants grown should be adapted to the par- 

 ticular place in which they are kept. Those 

 liking a little sunshine, such as the begonia, 

 fuchsia and calla, are satisfied with an east- 

 ern exposure, where they get the benefit of 

 the sun early in the morning. The ger- 

 anium, carnation, rose, heliotrope, and, in 

 fact, the majority ot flowering plants, which 

 must have plenty of sunshine in order to 

 fully develop their colors, find no other ex- 

 posure so satisfactory as that aff^orded by 

 a south window. A western window 

 answers very well for many plants in winter, 

 when the sun is not strong, but it is a poor 

 place for them in summer, unless something 

 can be done to greatly modify the intensity 

 of the afternoon heat. Northern windows 

 are not adapted to flowering plants, but 

 shade-loving plants can be grown in them 

 very satisfactorily. It will therefore be seen 

 that all the windows of a house can be 

 utilized for plant growing, provided we are 

 careful in our selections and adapt the plant 

 to the window it is to grow in. 



It is safe to say that, as a general rule, 

 light-colored flowers are best adapted to 

 windows having an eastern outlook. But 

 there are many exceptions, and the only 

 way to make absolutely sure of the best 

 exposure to give a plant is to experiment 

 with it, and thus find out what conditions 

 of light it does best in. If I were asked to 

 give a list of plants adapted to the several 

 exposures mentioned, it would be some- 

 thing like this : For eastern windows — 



fuchsias, begonias, callas, Chinese prim- 

 roses, Primula obconica, azaleas, plum- 

 bago, stevias, lobelias, and all kinds of 

 bulbous plants. For southern windows — 

 geraniums, roses, chrysanthemums, carna- 

 tions, lantanas, oxalis, oleanders, abuti- 

 lons, hibiscus, marguerites, and most of the 

 plants having richly colored foliage. For 

 western windows — bright leaved plants and 

 a few of the more "accommodating" 

 plants like the geranium, provided the eff"ect 

 of too strong sunshine is modified some- 

 what. For northern windows — ferns, arau- 

 carias, English ivies, palms, aspidistra, 

 ficuses and seliganellas. Roman hyacinths, 

 Primula obconica and Chinese primroses 

 will often bloom well in sunless windows. 



But the above lists are subject to great 

 modification, because the florist who has 

 "the knack" of flower-growing will con- 

 trive to so control conditions that he can 

 grow almost any plant in almost any ex- 

 posure. The sun can be tempered by 

 shades and screens. Heat can be regu- 

 lated, and water used in quantities to fit 

 the losses by evaporation which will be 

 diff"erent in different exposures. These 

 things can not be put down on paper in such 

 a manner as to make them plain to the 

 reader, but they will come to the amateur 

 florist by personal work among the flowers 

 he grows. 



We read a great deal about shade-loving- 

 plants. Now, "shade-loving" is a com- 

 parative term. It does not mean actual 

 shade, in the sense ordinarily given the 

 word, but it means an absence of sunshine. 

 A fern is called a shade-loving plant, but it 



