72 POPULAR GARDEN FLOWERS 



pleted in one operation, but must be done at intervals 

 as the stem extends. Continue hoeing. If the soil is 

 shallow and dry, a mulching of cocoanut fibre refuse or 

 short manure may be spread round the plants. Seed- 

 lings may be planted out from the boxes about the end 

 of the month. Winter bloomers should have free 

 ventilation in fine weather, and freshly struck plants 

 may be put into frames about the middle of the month 

 if the weather is mild. Give full exposure to air except 

 in bad weather. Old plants may be stood on a bed of 

 ashes in a sunny, sheltered place outdoors, and will 

 flower again in autumn. 



June. Continue the hoeing and staking of outdoor 

 plants. Green-fly, the cuckoo spittle, and earwigs may 

 now become troublesome. Vigorous syringing once or 

 twice a week will harry the two first, and prevent them 

 from doing serious damage ; it will also benefit the 

 plants. If earwigs do damage, place hay in some small 

 flower-pots, invert them on sticks among the plants, and 

 examine them daily. Tying the flower stems will need 

 regular attention. If the grower intends to exhibit, he 

 should restrict each plant to one stem, and the buds 

 may be thinned to three at the most when they appear. 

 Some varieties are thinned more severely than others, 

 only two, or in some cases even one, bud being left ; 

 experience of the peculiarities of each sort will guide 

 him. He should guard against severe disbudding at 

 first ; to restrict a plant to one bud might mean a coarse 

 bloom. The exhibitor will also prepare his show boxes. 

 A stand for six blooms may be 13^ inches long (from 

 back to front), 8J inches wide, 4! inches high at the 

 back, and 2\ inches high at the front. It should be 

 perforated with holes large enough to contain the metal 

 tubes which hold the stems of the flowers, and should be 



