HOW TO FORCE FLOWERS IN WINTER. 215 



have now plenty of plants, each about six inches in 

 diameter. If we do not have them, they can be obtained 

 of any florist for about a dollar a dozen. 



Prepare a bed the size of your frame, of rich, decom- 

 posed manure and leaf mould, and plant the violets in 

 clumps, as many as the bed will hold, about six inches 

 between each clump. This bed may be below the surface 

 of the surrounding soil, or on a level. Allow the plants 

 to grow in the bed thus prepared until about the first of 

 November, when the nights get frosty ; then put your frame 

 over the bed ; fill in over the plants with dry leaves, and 

 put on the sash. The bed should be in a place where no 

 standing water will settle in winter ; and, in the prepara- 

 tion, if the soil be naturally wet, it may be better to fill in 

 a few inches of the bottom with small stones, to secure 

 drainage. The earth should be banked up around the 

 frame before the ground freezes, as thus the inside of the 

 bed will be warmer. Care should be taken that the frame 

 is tight and well banked, or you may have provided a 

 winter domicil for field mice, to the destruction of your 

 violets. About a week before the violets are wanted, open 

 the frame, remove the leaves, and expose the plants 

 to full light. The bed should face the south that 



