Mimulus Myosotis 



house annuals, they will flower in the first year. It is easy to raise 

 a large number of plants in a cold frame, and they make a rich dis- 

 play in borders and beds later in the year. Sowings in the open 

 ground during summer will supply plants for blooming in the follow- 

 ing season, but the most satisfactory course is to grow them as 

 annuals, and at the end of the summer consign them to the waste 

 heap. The Mimulus is quite hardy, and the most ordinary care will 

 suffice for it. Water in plenty it must have, or the flowering period 

 will be curtailed. 



The well-known Musk is a Mimulus (M. moschatus), and is as 

 easily grown from seed as other varieties. It makes a valuable pot 

 plant. 



MYOSOTIS 



Forget-me-not. Perennials, hardy and half-hardy 



AN impression prevails that all the varieties of Myosotis are semi- 

 aquatic, and can only be grown satisfactorily in very damp shady places. 

 And it is quite true that most of them bloom for a longer period in 

 a moist than in a dry soil. Still, they will all flower freely, and last 

 a considerable time in any garden border. When grown in pots, 

 the most simple frame or greenhouse treatment will insure success. 

 In the open border Myosotis can be employed in the same manner 

 as half-hardy annuals. If required to bloom in spring or early 

 summer, sow in the preceding July or August in a rather light 

 compost. Prick off the seedlings into boxes or pans about an 

 inch apart, and winter them in a cold frame by plunging in ashes 

 or cocoa-nut fibre. Free exposure whenever practicable will pro- 

 mote a sturdy growth. In March the plants should be transferred 

 to fresh soil, still using pans or boxes, but allowing a little more 

 space between the seedlings, and in May they should be planted in 

 flowering positions. Sowings in February and March will produce a 

 display of bloom from July to September. These sowings must be 

 made in gentle heat, and will require nursing under glass until all 

 danger of frost is over. 



All the hardy varieties may be sown from June to August for 

 a brilliant- display in the following spring. The seed should be 

 put into a prepared seed-bed under the shelter of a wall or hedge ; 

 and when winter is over, the plants should be transferred to blooming 

 quarters at the earliest opportunity. 



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