POTTING 



POTTING 



2779 



3163. 



Implement 

 for finning 

 the soil in 

 large pots. 



the muslin should be put on, provided the sun is shi- 

 ning brightly. After the second day the period for cover- 

 ing the plants should be shortened by putting shutters 

 and muslin on later and taking them off earlier until 

 the plants are sufficiently established to get along with- 

 out them. An important detail is to have about 3^ 

 inch of sand on the bench to retain moisture 

 and allow for the proper "setting" of the 

 plants. Another very important detail, in 

 case new pots are used, is thoroughly to 

 saturate them with water before filling, allow- 

 ing sufficient time for the water to evapo- 

 rate from the surface before using. It is bad 

 practice to work with wet pots, and worse 

 still with wet soil. A good test of the proper 

 amount of moisture in soil for potting is 

 when it molds in the hand only under strong 

 pressure. Another essential, in case old pots 

 are used, is to see that they are clean inside 

 at all events; they should be clean outside 

 as well, but if any old soil is found adhering 

 to the inside of the pot it should be cleaned 

 out and thrown away. 



Potting large plants from the open ground, 

 such as carnations, roses, geraniums, and 

 shrubs, is an entirely different operation from 

 the foregoing. These all require pots 5 inches 

 in diameter and over, and sufficient pressure 

 cannot be given with the thumbs properly to 

 firm the soil. It is necessary, therefore, to use a stick 

 about an inch wide, and sharpened down to J^ inch at the 

 end. (Fig. 3163.) The handle should be round, and in a 

 large place where much heavy potting and shifting are 

 done it pays to have some of these sticks in regular tool 

 stock. After the plant is placed in the pot and the latter 

 filled with soil, take the stem of the plant at the sur- 

 face between the index fingers and thumbs, the other 

 fingers extended down the sides of the pot, lift the pot 

 about an inch and set it back with a smart shock, at the 

 same time pressing the plant down and steadying it; 

 this settles the soil considerably in the pot. Next take 

 the stick described above and run it around the inside 

 edge of the pot twice or so to pack the soil, add more 

 soil to fill up, finish by pressing evenly and firmly the 

 entire surface with the thumbs, allowing H mc ^ f 

 space between the surface of the soil and the upper edge 

 of the pots to hold water. What has been said about 

 new and clean pots applies with even greater force to 

 large pots. 



The potting of orchids is a radically different opera- 

 tion from the potting of purely terrestrial plants, about 

 which the preceding has been written. Consider cattleyas 

 as an example: being epiphytes, they do not require 

 soil in which to grow; put them in as small pots as pos- 

 sible. The material for potting best suited to these and 

 most orchids is fibrous peat 

 and live sphagnum moss 

 in equal proportions, add- 

 ing a small portion of 

 broken charcoal. If freshly 

 imported pieces are to be 

 potted, cut away all the 

 old dead roots, pseudo- 

 bulbs and leaves. If the 

 formation of the piece is 

 uneven, it should be cut in 

 two, so as to combine the 

 parts thus separated into 

 a more symmetrical whole, 

 with the growths pointing 

 to the center. Have the 

 pot thoroughly clean, fill 

 it about half with clean 

 "crocks" and small pieces 

 of charcoal, adjust the piece 

 in the center of the pot, 



3164. Potting an orchid. The 

 pot is cut in two to show the 

 proper conditions inside. 



distributing eventy any roots which remain; but first 

 spread a layer of moss over the "crocks," then press 

 the preparation of peat and moss evenly and moder- 

 ately firm around the piece and in the interstices 

 between the roots, finishing up high around the center; 

 insert some small-sized stakes at the proper places to 

 support the piece, 

 tie the growth to 

 them, and the job is 

 finished. Fig. 3164 

 will show better 

 than words can des- 

 cribe how the plant 

 should look after it 

 is potted. 



Repotting, when 

 necessary, is almost 

 identical in its 

 details with potting 

 itself. The spring 

 is the best time to 

 do it, even with 

 species which flower 



Ul autumn. Care- 3165. "Shifting" an established plant 

 fully remove all the into a larger pot. 



old crocks and other 



material, so as not to injure the roots, a pointed stick 

 being the best implement for the purpose. Then 

 replace as carefully with new material in a clean pot. 

 The undersigned dwells upon cleanliness repeatedly, 

 for herein lies the great essential in successful plant- 

 growing. Potting orchids in baskets, which sounds 

 paradoxical, is identical with potting them in pots as 

 far as the essential details of manipulation are con- 

 cerned. The potting of bulbs is discussed under Bulb. 



"Shifting" is the technical term used in the florist's 

 trade when plants are transferred to larger pots. (See 

 Fig. 3165.) When the plant exhausts the soil in the 

 small pot it must be put in a larger one to maintain 

 growth. The trained eye detects at a glance by the 

 appearance of the plant when it requires a "shift." 

 Those lacking such training can discover it by turning 

 the plant out of the pot and examining the roots. (See 

 Fig. 3166.) If the outside of 

 the ball of soil on the lower 

 portion is well netted with 

 roots as in Fig. 3167, and 

 particularly if most of them 

 have lost the fresh creamy 

 white color of healthy "work- 

 ing" roots, then the plant 

 must be at once shifted, or it 

 will soon reach that stage 

 which is the bane of the 

 careless plant-grower, viz., 

 "pot-bound." 



"Knocking out" is the 

 technical term used by florists 

 to describe the turning of a 

 plant out of a pot. The best 

 way to do this is to take the 

 pot in the right hand, invert 

 it in passing it to the left, as 

 the plant should be placed 

 between the index and mid- 

 dle fingers of the left hand, 

 give the pot a smart tap on 

 its rim on the edge of the bench and the ball of soil is 

 separated from the pot; place the plant in a flat ready 

 for the purpose, and repeat. One tap is all that is 

 necessary in ninety-nine cases out of a hundred. It is 

 bad practice to get into the habit of giving a series of 

 taps, as it makes slow work. We are considering now 

 the first shift, i. e., from a 2-inch to a 3-inch pot. 



The plants having been knocked out, the next opera- 

 tion is to "shoulder" them. This consists of removing 



3166. A plant may be 

 turned out of its pot to as- 

 certain whether it needs a 

 "shift." 



