704 PELARGONIUM. 



THE ENGLISH FLOWER GARDEN. 



PELARGONIUM. 



and under glass during winter and spring. 

 The principal stock of plants is, how- 

 ever, generally got by cuttings inserted 

 in pots, pans, or boxes in the open air 

 during the early autumn, such cuttings 

 making the best plants. During winter 

 the protection of glass and the exclusion 

 of frost are essential. 



ZONAL PELARGONIUMS FROM SEED 

 may also be treated as annuals, and will 

 bloom in less than ten months from the 

 time of sowing ; but the seed should be 

 sown as soon as it is ripe, say during 

 August. Enough seed can always be had 

 by retaining a few plants for the purpose, 

 in front of a greenhouse, in any light, airy 

 spot. If new varieties are sought, re- 

 course must be had to artificial fertilisa- 

 tion ; but this is unnecessary if the plants 

 are merely for planting out in the parterre. 



be potted singly into 3-in. pots and placed 

 in a cold pit, or a similar structure where 

 frost is excluded, until the time arrives 

 when they may be safely planted in the 

 flower garden or wherever they are re- 

 quired. During the early part of the 

 season such plants may bloom less pro- 

 fusely than those from cuttings, but their 

 neat habit and healthy foliage will com- 

 pensate for this. 



Many sorts remarkable for the beauty 

 of their blooms, are, nevertheless, by their 

 habit, unsuited for bedding-out ; and few 

 of the many beautiful double varieties of 

 Zonals can be recommended for outdoor 

 culture, unless as standards, with clean 

 stems, 2^ or 3 ft. in length. In this form 

 they are" sometimes effective ; for being 

 compelled to draw sustenance through a 

 slender stem, induces a very free-flowering 



Pelargonium Dr. Andre. 



If the plants used for seed be all of the 

 same sort, the seedlings may be expected 

 to prove tolerably true i.e. the same 

 variety as the plants. The pots should 

 be of convenient size (say 6 in. in dia- 

 meter), and filled to within \ in. of the ! 

 rims with light turfy soil ; the seed may 

 be sown rather thickly, gently pressed 

 into the soil, and slightly covered with it. 

 Water with a fine rose, cover the pots j 

 with a piece of glass, and place them in j 

 a temperature of about 65 ; the seeds will ! 

 soon vegetate, and the piece of glass 

 should then be removed ; the plants when 

 large enough should be pricked off into 

 seed-pans and kept near the glass in a 

 reduced temperature during the winter. 

 Early in the following March they should 



habit. Strong stakes are needed to sup- 

 port the heavy heads, and the principal 

 branches should be secured to circular 

 hoops. Single varieties may with equal 

 facility be formed into standards, and in 

 their carse seedlings are likely to form 

 specimens sooner than plants from cut- 

 tings. Before frost, all standards should 

 be well cut back, taken up, and repotted 

 in pots not larger than may contain the 

 roots ; they should be staked and after- 

 wards placed in a temperature not under 

 60 until they root. Treated thus annually, 

 such plants are often in perfect health, 

 even when twelve or fourteen years old. 



Next in importance to the Zonals for 

 outdoor culture are the Ivy-leaved kinds 

 or the varieties of P. lateripes. More 



