AUGUST. 



0*5 



AUGUST. 



It is a good time to strike the winter stock 

 of bedding plants, for raising cinerarias, 

 &c., for which purpose the bed described 

 last month will be useful. 



Cuff ings that may be Struck. Cuttings 

 of pelargoniums, fuchsias, petunias, ver- 

 benas, anagallis, ageratums, centaureas, 

 coleuses, &c. , may be struck in frames now 

 and potted off when rooted. 



Pelargotwtvis. Plants that have finished 

 flowering should be placed out of doors for 

 a few weeks to ripen their wood. They 

 should then be cut back to within an inch 

 or two of the old wood, and placed in 

 cool frame in order to induce them to break. 

 They must then be repotted, and the pit 

 kept pretty close and moist until the plants 

 begin to grow. 



Pelargoniums, Repotting. The following 

 is the process to be adopted in repotting. 

 First shake away all the earth from among 

 the roots, and remove the soil which still 

 clings to them with a pointed stick. Cut 

 all bruised, broken, and decaying roots 

 away, and shorten those that remain by at 

 least one-third, and repot each plant in a 

 pot one size less than that in which it has 

 been flowering. A suitable compost is com- 

 posed of 1 6 parts of turfy loam, to 4 of 

 peat, 4 of leaf mould, and I of sharp silver 

 sand. Water the plant immediately after 

 repotting, and then withhold water from 

 the plant itself, until it begins to grow, 

 although the pit must be kept moist. 



Shifting and Repotting. Seedling plants 

 of auriculas, calceolarias, Chinese prim- 

 roses, cinerarias, pansies, polyanthuses, &c., 

 may now be shifted into larger pots, using 

 12 parts of loam to 6 of good farmyard 

 manure and I of sharp sand. 



2. FRUITS AND VEGETABLES. Carrots, 

 Early Horn. Seed sown now in the 

 manner described in January that is, 

 without making a new hotbed for them, 

 but renewing the soil on an old one will 

 b* useful in the winter. Heat is unneces- 



sary to raise them, but may be applied with 

 advantage in the winter by means of fresh 

 lining. 



Cauliflowers. Seed is often sown in a 

 frame, to save it from birds, &c. ; but it is 

 necessary to uncover the young plants a* 

 soon as the seed is up, to prevent a spind- 

 ling growth. It is advisable to look for- 

 ward to the winter, and sow everything in 

 time to allow of making sufficient growth 

 before winter. 



Cucumbers. These, as the nights get 

 colder, may have a slight covering, and the 

 bottom heat, if declining, should be re- 

 newed. Keep down mildew with sulphur;, 

 the covering by night, and the increased 

 bottom heat, will, however, help to keep 

 this in check. These directions are appli- 

 cable to plants in houses as well as in hot- 

 | beds. Cucumbers that have been carefully 

 | stopped, trained, and pegged down, will 

 continue in bearing. If mildew appears, 

 sprinkle the leaves, and dust with sulphur \. 

 but if very bad it is better to start new 

 plants. If started on new beds now, they 

 will continue bearing until Christmas, and 

 with care all the winter ; but they should 

 be on good 4-foot beds, so that good linings 

 may be applied ; for, as the season wanes, 

 and the weather becomes colder, heat must 

 be provided accordingly. Give fruiting 

 plants the benefit of watering, either by 

 gentle showers or by artificial sprinkling. 



Melons. The late crop will be advancing, 

 and as light is decreasing, keep the vines 

 further apart, that the leaves, as they are 

 formed, may not crowd each other. Attend 

 carefully to bottom heat, which must not 

 be allowed to decline. Red spider must be 

 kept in check, by now and then washing 

 the interior walls with lime and sulphur. 

 Water cautiously, but do not allow the 

 growing plants to get dry, which would 

 check them and induce the attacks of 

 spider. To grow melons in perfection, 

 they should progress regularly ; hence the 



