THE CARE OF PLANTS IN THE WINDOW, 



79 



sible. Too-great heat forces a weak growth, 

 and has a tendency to blast any buds that 

 may form. 



In a room where the air is warm and dry 

 the red spider will do deadly work. In 

 order to keep him at bay the plants must be 

 g^iven as much moisture as possible. Keep a 

 vessel of water on the stove, to evaporate. 

 Shower the plants daily. If the pots are 

 used without saucers, the table on which 

 they stand, or the shelves, can be covered 

 with an inch of sand which can be kept in 

 place by tacking cleats along the edge of the 

 stand. The sand will take up and retain 

 the water which runs through the pots, and 

 thus a steady moisture will be given off from 

 it, for there will be constant evaporation 

 taking place. Keep the air of the room in 

 which the plants are kept as moist as possi- 

 ble, if you want to grow strong, healthy 

 plants. 



Showering daily helps to keep the foliage 

 clean, and unless the dust, which settles on 

 the plants when sweeping the room, is 

 cleared away, the pores of the leaves be- 

 come clogged and the plant finds it difficult 

 to breath, for the pores of the leaves are 

 really the lungs of the plant. 



In a moist atmosphere many plants can 

 be grown which would die in a dry air, and 

 all plants do so much better where there is 

 plenty of moisture in suspension that the 

 amateur who wants his plants to do their 

 best will aim to supply it. It has often been 

 observed that fine plants are frequently 

 found growing in the kitchen, while those 

 in the parlor are sickly. The explanation 

 of this is : The kitchen air is moist because 

 of the cooking, washing and other work of 

 that kind going on there, while the parlor 

 air has all the moisture extracted from it by 

 intense stove and furnace heat which there 

 is no moisture to modify. 



Stir the soil in the pots at least once a 



week. An old fork is a good tool to do this 

 with. This allows the air to penetrate to 

 the roots, and keeps weeds from getting a 

 start. Keep all dead leaves picked off and 

 remove fading flowers. It is a good plan to 

 cover your plants with a thin sheet, or a 

 newspaper, when sweeping. Another good 

 plan is to remove them to the kitchen at 

 least once in two weeks, and give them a 

 thorough washing. This helps to keep 

 down insects and prevents them from be- 

 coming incrusted with dust. 



Provide yourself with one of the brass 

 syringes or elastic plant sprinklers for sale 

 by dealers in florists' goods. With one of 

 these you can throw a strong stream or a 

 spray of water over and among your plants, 

 and apply it effectively, which you cannot do 

 if you depend on a wisk-broom for a sprink- 

 ler. A "sprinkler" is not what you need, 

 but something that has force enough to take 

 the water in all directions and in such quan- 

 tities with such volume as the case may re- 

 quire. 



Turn your plants at least twice a week 

 so that they will get the sun and light on all 

 sides. This prevents their becoming drawn 

 to one side, as they will be sure to do if not 

 turned frequently. Do not neglect to do 

 this if you want good-shaped specimens. 

 Be sure to give all the light possible ; don't 

 shut it out from the window by curtains. 

 Let your plants furnish the beauty for the 

 window. Some are afraid of letting in the 

 sunshine upon their plants because it wil 

 fade the carpet. If you care more for your 

 carpet than you do for your flowers, give 

 them to someone who is willing to do the 

 fair thing by them, and concentrate your 

 energies on the protection of the precious 

 carpet, but don't attempt to compromise mat- 

 ters between the two, for this will result in 

 failure so far as the plants are concerned. — 

 Exchange. 



