December: Third Week 



THE CARE OF GIFT PLANTS AFTER CHRISTMAS: 

 HOW TO KEEP THEM IN GOOD CONDITION 

 AND SAVE THEM FOR ANOTHER YEAR. 

 PICK OUT SHRUBS FOR WINTER BEAUTY 

 NOW 



It would be an interesting job for an energetic statis- 

 tician to figure out how many thousand dollars' worth of 

 potted plants and flowers annually find their way from the 

 florists' shops to the ash barrels during the brief holiday 

 period. Part of this loss is due to the fact that the plants 

 used are unsuitable for saving for further use; but by far 

 the greater part is due to the recipients' lack of knowledge 

 as to how the plants should be cared for. If you yourself 

 give plants as presents select the more substantial sorts, 

 which may be kept for a season or for several years. Many 

 of the plants that the florists display at Christmas have 

 been in preparation for a year or more, and with proper 

 care most of them can be kept in good condition. 



Azaleas are perhaps the most beautiful of all the many 

 beautiful holiday plants, but since their requirements are 

 different from those of ordinary house plants, most of them 

 perish immediately. A good azalea costs the person who 

 gives it to you several dollars; it is worth saving, especially 

 since, with proper care, it may be made to increase in beauty 

 for several years. 



After you have removed the florist's careful wrappings 

 and examined the little card dangling from a lower branch, 

 do not leave your azalea in the superheated atmosphere 

 of the living-room, to be forgotten during the excitements 

 of the following days. The little tree may be covered 

 with blooms, and you will probably find that it also con- 



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