VIOLET, NEAPOLITAN. 



546 



VIOLET, NEAPOLITAN. 



it ; this will give them a clean, healthy 

 appearance. The lights may be kept off 

 all night with advantage when there is no 

 appearance of frost, and all dead, decayed, 

 or turning leaves should be removed as 

 soon as they appear. Plants thus treated 

 will yield violets from November to April. 



Forcing in Pols. It is immaterial, pro- 

 vided a succession is maintained by sepa- 

 rating the crowns as soon as they have 

 done blooming, whether the after-culture is 

 on the bed or in pots plunged in the soil. 

 For pot-culture, the best compost is formed 

 of half-turfy loam that has been turned over 

 two or three times during summer, and 

 half-rotten dung and leaf mould, well mixed 

 together ; this should be ready for use by 

 the end of September. At that time the 

 violet plants must be raised from the bed 

 in which they have been growing during 

 the summer with as much earth to their 

 roots as possible. They should then be 

 divested of all their side-shoots or runners. 

 The proper sized pots are 7-inch ones. One 

 strong plant should be put in each pot ; 

 but when they are weak two or three. The 

 pots should be well drained with broken 

 bones instead of potsherds, for the roots of 

 the violets will lay hold of the bones, which 

 give vigour to the plants and make them 

 bloom more profusely. The pots have the 

 advantage of being available for the window 

 garden, or for removal into the drawing- 

 room or hall, as well as for cut flowers. 



Management after Potting, and Protec- 

 tion tinder Glass. Having potted as many 

 as are necessary for the season, a good 

 supply of water should be given to settle 

 the soil well about the roots. A sufficient 

 number of old melon-boxes with the lights 

 belonging to them should be arranged in a 

 southern aspect, placing the boxes in such 

 a manner that the lights will throw off 

 rain quickly, and thereby prevent drip, 

 which in winter not only rots the plants, 

 but causes the flowers to be produced 



sparingly. The boxes being placed in 

 position, a layer of old tan should be put 

 into them 4 inches thick: in this the 

 pots should be plunged up to their rims in 

 rows till the boxes are filled. It will 

 be necessary to leave 3 inches space 

 between the pots, where the plants are 

 large, that air may be allowed to pass 

 freely between and keep off damp, which 

 is apt to destroy the plant. If they are so 

 small as not to cover the top of the pots, 

 they may be placed close together. 



Temperature and Ventilation. When 

 the temperature is above 50, the lights 

 may be removed during the day, and at 

 night they should be tilted up at the back 

 for the admission of air. When the tem- 

 perature is below 50, the lights should be 

 left on ; but even then air should be ad- 

 mitted from behind during the daytime. 

 When the temperature is below 40, the 

 admission of air should be very partial, if 

 it be admitted at all. At no time after the 

 plants begin to bloom should the lights be 

 entirely removed, except for the purpose 

 of watering or cleaning the plants, or 

 gathering the flowers. When the weather 

 is cold, coverings of mats should be ap- 

 plied at night. In hard frosts, two mats 

 should be put on, as well as litter. The 

 earth in the pots must never be allowed to 

 freeze if it is possible to prevent it. The 

 coverings must be removed in fine days. 

 In March and April as much air as possible 

 should be given if the weather is fine. 



Watering, &-Y. The pots should be 

 examined at all times when the weather 

 will permit. Weeds and decayed leaves 

 must be removed, and a little water given 

 when the soil is dry. Care must be taken 

 to wet the leaves as little as possible. In 

 March and April, if the plants have been 

 properly managed, they will produce 

 abundance of flowers, and consequently 

 will require more moisture than winter. 



Where it is desired to have violets in 



