24 WINDOW GARDENING. 



wheels, so that t*ie whole maybe changed at once, or wheeled away, if the room 

 needs cleaning. Care must be taken to avoid rapid transition from darkness to 

 the light, for sudden and violent changes are as trying to plant life as human life 

 Too much warmth will destroy tender leaves nearly as soon as too much cold. 

 Then again, plants should be placed as near the light as possible ; in rooms far 

 away from the glass window, the plants will be weak, pale and of spindling 

 growth. If they could receive light directly from overhead, they would be bet- 

 ter than from the side. The ordinary variations of day and night have their 

 corresponding effects on plants, since it is said that they inhale under the iuflu- 

 ences of light, and respire in the dark. The glass of the window should also 

 be rubbed or washed clean. The most gaily colored flowers will be produced at 

 a south window, but a north window has its advantage, in that it may be used 

 for plants already in bloom, and will keep them much longer in perfection. For 

 north windows, Camelias, Cytisuses, Primulas and Alpine Auriculas, will find the 

 cool moisture they need, and will bloom in great beauty if properly attended to 

 and kept from frost. Bulbs, if placed in the sunlight, will have their brilliancy 

 of color greatly enhanced, yet if not changed occasionally in position, their 

 flower stems will bend over and have an unsightly appearance. 



Temperature. 



The greatest success will be found to come from a uniform temperature of 45 

 or 50 at night, and 60 to 75 in the day time ; 80 is too hot except for only some 

 plants of semi-tropical character. Under no circumstances should the tempera- 

 ture go below 35. If your living rooms, where your plants are placed must be 

 considerably warmer than this in the former part of the night, then set the plants 

 on the floor, shade from the light until the time of retiring, and then return them 

 to the window sill or flower stand. Perhaps from no other cause than this, too 

 great heat, during the day and long continued at night, our city grown plants 

 grow so sickly and lanky in appearance. Once or twice a week will be suffi- 

 cient for turning pots around. If this little item is not attended to, you cannot 

 grow finely formed plants, and more than half their beauty depends upon their 

 shape. If a closet or small room opening out of the sitting room can be devoted 

 to plants and yet be well lighted, they will flourish far better than in the com- 

 mon room, for they can have a cooler atmosphere and less dust. 



The same object could however be accomplished in a far more tasteful manner 

 by enclosing the window recess with another glass window or partition. The 

 outside glass protects the plants from the cold, the inside ones from undue heat 

 and gas, while between the two there is a happy mean in which plant culture can- 

 not fail to be successful. If however this is not done, and the window panes are 

 made of double glass there will be little danger of their freezing on a cold night. 

 It would be well to have one pane fitted with a hinge, which can be opened to air 

 the plants. But to avoid this a heavy curtain can be placed at the window, and 

 pulled down at night, to protect from cold air, while newspapers may be pinned 

 around the plants to protect them from the bright light of the evening. The 



