58 FLOWER GARDENING 



then move them to a cool cellar for the winter. 

 If the cellar is dark give a little water two or 

 three times in the course of the winter; if it is 

 light, and quite warm, the plants may be kept near 

 a window and given more water in which event 

 there will be less dying down. 



Plants that know no garden life save within the 

 confines of pots or tubs, including Hydrangea hor- 

 tensis, "marriage bell" (^brugmansia), oleander, 

 agapanthus and amaryllis, require the same treat- 

 ment as to autumn drying off and wintering. When 

 repotting is necessary, this is done in the spring. 



There is also a dry system of storing plants. All 

 the earth is shaken from the roots and the plant 

 is suspended, head down, from the ceiling of a 

 dark, cool cellar. This is the old-fashioned way 

 of treating geraniums after serving a winter as 

 window plants and it is sometimes recommended 

 for the lemon verbena. 



More often than not, autumn's weed troubles 

 are passed on to spring. This is a mistake. The 

 garden, on principle, ought to be put away for 

 the winter clean. But there is another reason; 

 weeds and grass that were so small in summer as 

 to escape the eye may now be maturing seed and 

 doing their level best to make mischief for an- 

 other year. Root them up early. Some of these 

 pests flourish bravely through the autumn, and 

 the sooner they are checked the better. One of 

 the worst offenders is chickweed. A late crop 

 seems to spring from nowhere in August and, if 



