FLOWER-GARDENING. 37 



of the perennials may be increased by root offsets detached 

 from the old plants, and planted in spring or autumn ; others 

 by bottom suckers and slips of top shoots, layers, pipings of 

 young shoots, etc. Pinks, Sweet- Williams, Pansies, and dou- 

 ble Violets, also Periwinkle, or running Myrtle, and many 

 other similar plants, may be increased by simply laying their 

 branches an inch or two under the surface, in July and August. 

 After roots have formed, which may be expected in six or 

 eight weeks, each tuft or plant may be transplanted into the 

 borders. 



Many sorts of biennial and perennial flower seeds may be 

 sown in September, or as soon as ripe ; and if the plants get 

 strong before winter sets in, some of them will flower the 

 ensuing summer. 



It may be necessary here to remind the reader of those 

 species of beautiful double-flowering perennial herbaceous 

 plants which do not produce seed ; some of these are in- 

 cluded in our Catalogue ; they may be obtained at the nur- 

 series, and should be introduced into the regular flower-beds 

 either in autumn or early in the spring ; the best mode of 

 increasing these, and all double-flowering perennials raised 

 from seed,' is by layers, cuttings, offsets, etc., detached from 

 the old plants. 



It may here be observed that the most certain method of 

 obtaining double flowers is by propagation from perennial 

 plants. Many seed customers feel disappointed if they do not 

 in every case procure double flowers from seed, which is 

 unreasonable, because, although seed will, under ordinary cir- 

 cumstances, reproduce its species, it will by no means uniformly 

 produce the particular variety by which it was borne. The 

 experience of numerous amateurs will corroborate this fact, 

 who frequently, after saving seed from their most perfect 

 flowers, have the mortification of witnessing such degeneracy 

 the following season as would lead them to doubt its identity, 

 had the seed been obtained from any other source. Seed 

 gathered from double Balsams, or Lady Slippers, for instance, 



