THE BULB BOOK 



imperfect. The water, instead of passing through the soil 

 readily, will remain for hours on the upper surface, waiting to be 

 evaporated by the heat of the atmosphere. Unless the bad 

 drainage is soon rectified, the plants show signs of suffering, and 

 if they could only speak, we should hear constant wailing from 

 many badly watered plant-houses in the Kingdom. The lower 

 leaves being the oldest, soon begin to assume a yellowish tint, and 

 later on they drop off one by one until the youngest leaves and 

 buds only are left. These too will soon give up the struggle if 

 the drainage is not put right. 



Watering. The question of drainage is naturally bound up 

 with that of watering. In the open air, as a rule, plants have to be 

 satisfied with the moisture obtained from the clouds, and this may 

 vary according to the district from twenty-five hundred tons to 

 eighty hundred tons of water per acre in the course of the year, as 

 stated at p. 31. 



With indoor plants, however, the case is different. The rain 

 cannot fall upon them or upon the soil; moisture must therefore 

 be supplied in other ways. Water-tanks are usually built in the 

 glass-houses, and the water is either laid on, or pumped from wells 

 by windmills, or gas or oil engines. The actual application of water 

 to the plants is usually by means of water-pots, although hose- 

 pipes are often used in large commercial establishments, and are 

 a great saving of time, labour, and money. Watering plants with 

 the hose has the drawback that individual plants may be over- 

 looked now and again, or if water-logged are apt to get more than 

 is good for them. 



When water-pots, however, are used, it takes much longer to 

 get through with the work. The careful gardener looks at every 

 plant, and his experienced eye will enable him to judge at once 

 whether water is required or not. If he is not quite sure, he will 

 either feel the surface soil with his fingers, or ring the pot with 

 his knuckles. A more or less clear and hollow sound will indicate 

 a dry soil, while a dull and less audible sound will denote that 

 the soil is already moist enough for the time being. Generally 

 speaking, when the soil is inclined to be dry it is given a good 

 supply of water right up to the rim of the pot, pan, tub, or other 

 receptacle holding the plant. If the gardener judges the soil to 

 be wet enough to last until the next time the operation is due, 

 no water is given to the plant. Picking out the wet and dry 

 plants in this way necessitates care, attention, and keen observation 



14 



