

IN MY LADY'S GARDEN 



box of light soil, and scarcely covered with soil ; they must 

 not be over-watered, but should be covered with a pane of 

 glass (admitting air at the corners, for all seeds need the 

 oxygen it contains), and slightly shaded with a piece of 

 paper, whilst standing on a greenhouse shelf. The box 

 should not be a large one, for it is necessary to hold it in a 

 tank of tepid water when moisture is needed until the water 

 appears at the corners of the box without flooding the surface. 

 The moisture will soon permeate the whole of the soil with- 

 out disturbing the seeds on the surface, and this is, of 

 course, much to be avoided. When the seedlings have four 

 leaves they should be pricked out into a deeper box of 

 slightly richer soil, and from that they may be potted up 

 singly when they need it. These autumn-sown plants will 

 start away well in the spring, and make a far better show 

 than any which are sown at that time ; they must, however, 

 be kept under glass and free from frost during the winter, 

 when they will not require much water. If potted on in 

 February with rich soil, each plant will be ready for use in 

 May, having already started its long growths. The same 

 cultivation will suit the maurandyas, which also come from 

 Mexico ; the purple variety (M. Barclay ana) is rather hardier 

 than the white one (M. alba), which is more fitted for con- 

 servatory work than the open air ; whilst the snapdragon- 

 shaped mauve flowers of the first-named variety can be 

 trusted to survive any but a very severe winter in a Devon- 

 shire garden if planted against a sunny wall in a well-drained 

 position. But for this purpose it is necessary to put in 

 autumn-sown plants in the spring, which thus escape the 

 winter until they have attained their full strength, and in 

 cold districts it will be safer to hang a mat in front of these 

 plants from December until March if in the open air ; or 

 the roots may be potted up and taken into the greenhouse 

 for that time, cutting their growths back gradually, for the 

 sudden loss of all their foliage at one time sometimes kills 

 them. 



Cobaea scandens, too, the rapid climber with deep purple 

 bells which open in a pale green tint, should now be sown, 



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