BROWALLIA 



6S 



BRUSSELS SPROUTS. 



to render this part of the broom, which has 

 been already bound Uj> . tightly as possible, 

 still more tight, is the best for all garden 

 purposes, as it is useful in all its stages 

 from its first state to its last. When new, 

 the fine ends of the twigs render it an 

 excellent implement for sweeping turf and 

 gravel walks, and when these ends are 

 worn away and the broom has become stiff 

 and stubby, it is still useful for scattering 

 worm casts on grass and for sweeping up 

 paths and courts paved with small blocks 

 of stone, cobble stones, or pebbles. For 

 hothouses, greenhouses, and structures in 

 which flat paving or tiles is used as flooring, 

 a, broom of whalebone or bast, inserted in 

 small bundles, in a rectangular piece of 

 wood, and fastened in with wire after the 

 manner of a brush, is most suitable. In- 

 ferior brooms of this sort are made by 

 putting the bast into the holes made for its 

 reception, and fastening it in with hot 

 pitch ; these may do good service for a 

 short time, but they are by no means 

 durable, and therefore are not cheap. 

 Brooms of iron of copper wire are some- 

 times used for mossy lawns, paths over- 

 grown with moss, and for clearing moss 

 from the trunks of trees, but they are 

 seldom if ever seen now. A birch broom 

 costs from 3d. to 6d., and a good bast 

 broom from is. 6d. to 2s. 



Browal'lia (nat. ord. Scrophu- 



laria'cese). 



Very handsome, profuse-blooming, half- 

 hardy annuals, covered with beautiful 

 flowers during the summer and autumn 

 months ; growing freely in any -rich soil. 

 The best known varieties are 



Browallia demissa, light blue, yellow and 



orange centre, ij ft. 

 Browallia elata alba, white, 15 ft. 

 Biowallia elata cserulea, sky-blue ij ft. 

 Browallia grandiflora, pale yellow, large and 



handsome, ij ft. 

 Browallia speciosa, purple, very pretty, i ft. 



BROWALLIA. 



Brmgman'sia (not. ord. Solona'cese). 



These plants are now included with the 

 Datures, which are the annual species, 

 while the Brugmansias are the shrubby 

 species. The latter are magnificent con- 

 servatcry plants, with a profusion of large 

 trumpet-shaped highly odoriferous flowers ; 

 growing freely out of doors during summer ; 

 in the centres of beds, mixed borders, or 

 against south walls, they are very orna- 

 mental. They require rich soil and plenty 

 of space for their roots, and should be 

 placed in large pots. 'The chief varieties 

 are 



Brugmansia Knightii, white, splendid for 



winter decoration, 2 ft. 

 Bragmansia suaveolens, white; flowers i ft. 



or more in length. 



Brussels Sprouts. 



Brussels Sprouts should have the same 

 treatment in the seed-beds as other mem- 

 bers of the cabbage tribe (see Cabbage Tribe, 

 Seed-beds, for], early in April being the best 

 time for sowing in the open ground. Mr. 

 Cuthill thinks March sowing would be 

 better. " When thus sown," he adds, " I 

 have had them three feet high, each stem 

 producing a peck of large close sprouts." 

 The after-treatment Mr. Cuthill recom- 

 mends, is to " select a rich stiff" loam, and 

 plant them in rows 2 feet or 1 8 inches 



