ANNUALS. 



37 



son, with the exception of the vernal months, and this deficiency 

 may be supplied by having- a choice collection of perennials, 

 grown in pots, which can be plunged in the ground, and thus 

 removed at any time when it is necessary to change the resi- 

 dence. 



No collection of plants can be perfect without an abundance 

 of annuals, as they can be disposed of in such a way as to suc- 

 ceed the perennials, and keep up a continuous bloom in all 

 parts of the garden through the season. 



Annuals may be divided as follows : hardy, half-hardy, 

 and tender. 



Hardy annuals are such as may be sown in autumn or very 

 early in the spring, as all the Larkspurs, Chriseis, Clarkea, 

 Asters, Candytufts, &c. Half-hardy are those which will not 

 bear a hard frost, and therefore not proper to plant in the open 

 ground before the middle or last, of May, as the Balsam, Cocks- 

 comb, Marigold, &c. Tender annuals can hardly be brought 

 to perfection without starting them in artificial heat, in a hot- 

 bed or otherwise, and are very sensitive of cold, as the Cypress 

 vine, Thunbergia, Ice Plant, Sensitive Plant, &c. Many of 

 these, in a very warm season, will succeed tolerably well if 

 planted about the 1st of June; but to have them in perfection 

 they should be raised in a hot-bed, in pots, and turned out in 

 the ground the middle of June. 



Before sowing annuals, the soil in which they are to be 

 grown should be made light and rich, and very finely pulver- 

 ized, as many of the seeds are very small, and require every 

 advantage and care to get them up. The small seeds must 

 receive but little covering, and that of the finest earth. In 

 sowing these, my practice is to sow them in patches six or 

 eight inches square. The soil having been well prepared, I 

 settle the ground gently with the foot or a small piece of board, 

 so as to make an even, somewhat firm, surface. The seeds are 

 then evenly strewed over the surface. Then take some very 

 fine soil and sift or strew over them, covering the seed not 

 more than one eighth of an inch deep, after which press the 

 4 



