58 THE amateur's geeenhouse 



wonderfully rieb in leaf and flower, in pots so small that, like 

 the king who was puzzled by the apple dumpling, one might 

 wonder how the roots were ever got into so tiny a receptacle. 

 The amateur may take lessons from both, but he is not to follow 

 either, for the market system of plant growing is not adapted 

 in all particulars for the private garden. But if you will pur- 

 chase one of these luxurious plants, you will find that it is in 

 a new pot, and that the soil is sandy, and will not acquire the 

 texture of mud or paste, even when heavily watered. If you 

 turn the plant out of the pot, you will find that the roots form 

 a tough fibrous mass that have touched the pot all round, and, 

 at the bottom, are closely wound round some pieces of broken 

 brick or flower pot that, in the first instance, were carefully 

 packed so as to afford instant escape to every drop of water in 

 excess of what the soil in the pot would retain without being 

 actually wet. The leafy part of a plant must have light and 

 air, and the roots must have air and moisture. The plant that 

 was potted in mud was killed by suff'ocation, for the texture of 

 the soil prevented the access of air to the roots. The beautiful 

 market plant was nourished by air as well as water at the 

 roots, and it was encouraged to make a free growth before 

 coming into flower, which, in the first place, ensured size ; and 

 then it was allowed to get pot-bound, which promoted the 

 production of an abundance of flowers ; and to make amends 

 for the comparatively small amount of soil in the pot, it was 

 supplied from the first and always with soft water slightly 

 charged with some fertilizing agent, and always warm as the 

 air the plant was growing in. There were other circumstances 

 that conduced to its perfection, but these we will not inquire 

 into, because, as remarked above, the amateur cultivator 

 would not be prudent in adopting the practice of the market 

 growers in extenso, even if that were possible, as, generally 

 speaking, it is not. 



It is, therefore, important to master the art of growing plants 

 in pots, and for the practice of this art a certain amount of 

 machinery is necessary, which we shall now hastily describe. 



The Potting Shed is the workshop, storehouse, and tool 

 repository. It is a good plan to place it so as to cover the 

 stoke-hole, and thus make a snug place of it in winter. It may be 

 a quite rough aff'air, but it must be large enough and weather- 

 proof, and quite light. Old window-frames and doors may be 



