THE VALUE OF WHITE FLOWERS 361 



to stand alone when the weight of soaking rain is added 

 to their flowers and the wind comes whirling to chal- 

 lenge them to a dizzy dance, which they cannot 

 refuse, and it inevitably turns their heavy heads and 

 leaves them prone. 



Besides these there are the lower, slender, but top- 

 heavy lilies, gladioli, carnations, and the like, that 

 must not be allowed to soil their pretty faces in 

 the mud. A little thinking must be done and stakes 

 suitable to the height and girth of each plant chosen. 

 If the purse allows, green- painted stakes of sizes vary- 

 ing from eighteen inches for carnations to six feet for 

 Dahlias are the most convenient; but lacking these, the 

 natural bamboos, that may be bought in bundles by 

 the hundred, in canes of eight feet or more, and after- 

 ward cut in lengths to suit, are very useful, being light, 

 tough, and inconspicuous. 



In supporting a plant, remember that the object is 

 as nearly as possible to supplement its natural stem. 

 Therefore cut the stake a little shorter than the top 

 of the foliage and drive it firmly at the back of the 

 plant, fastening the main stem to the stake by loosely 

 woven florist's string. 



If, on the other hand, the plant to be supported is a 

 maze of side branches, like the cosmos, or individual 



