158 AROUND THE YEAR IN THE GARDEN 



use them all, the blossoms should be removed as soon as 

 they begin to fade. 



Make a practice of cutting your flowers daily, early in 

 the morning. Those designed for use in the house should 

 be cut just as they are beginning to open. Do not, how- 

 ever, make the mistake of feeling that you must use all the 

 flowers you cut. A massive, crowded, mixed bouquet, 

 containing all kinds of flowers and colors, is not a thing of 

 beauty. 



The Japanese, who have made a distinct art of arranging 

 cut flowers, generally use only two or three blooms of a 

 single variety. Perhaps, according to our taste, this is 

 extreme; but there is a happy medium. The mixed bouquet 

 should be so arranged that it appears natural. 



To keep flowers fresh until they are put into the water 

 after cutting, sprinkle them, wrap the stems in moist paper 

 or a damp cloth, and keep in a tight box in as cold a place 

 as possible. To keep them fresh in the vases cut off a little 

 of the stems daily, and supply with fresh water. To revive 

 wilted flowers, cut the stems, place for ten minutes in water 

 as hot as the hand can bear it, and then in cold water. 

 Freshly cut flowers will keep better if they are placed in 

 fresh cold water, or the stems in a damp cloth, and kept 

 in a cold place, before being used for bouquets or in vases 

 in the living room. 



