250 THE CULTURE OF FLOWERS FROM SEEDS 



first year. Sowings in the open ground during summer will supply 

 plants for blooming in the following season. The Mirnulus is quite 

 hardy, and the most ordinary care will suffice for it. Water in plenty 

 it must have, or the flowering period will be curtailed. 



The well-known Musk is a Mimulus (M. moschatus\ and is as 

 easily grown from seed as other varieties. It makes a valuable pot 

 plant. 



MYOSOTIS 



Forget-me-not. Perennials^ hardy and half-hardy 



AN impression prevails that all the varieties of Myosotis are semi- 

 aquatic, and can only be grown satisfactorily in very damp shady places. 

 Now, it is quite true that most of them bloom for a longer period 

 in a moist than in a dry soil. Still they will all flower freely, and 

 last a considerable time in any garden border, and M. azorica 

 requires no special degree of moisture to bring it to perfection. 

 This plant is scarcely hardy, and perhaps the fact is not entirely 

 to be regretted, for it possesses a high value for indoor decoration, 

 both on the score of its habit and of its beauty. When grown in 

 pots, the most simple frame or greenhouse treatment will insure 

 success. In the open border it can be employed in the same 

 manner as half-hardy annuals. If required to bloom in spring or 

 early summer, sow in the preceding July or August in a rather 

 light compost. Prick off the seedlings into boxes or pans about 

 an inch apart, and winter them in a cold frame by plunging in 

 ashes or cocoa-nut fibre. Free exposure whenever practicable will 

 promote a sturdy growth. In March the plants should be transferred 

 to fresh soil, still using pans or boxes, but allowing a little more 

 space between the seedlings, and in May they should be planted 

 in flowering positions. Sowings in February and March will produce 

 a display of bloom from July to September. These sowings must be 

 made in gentle heat, and will require nursing under glass until all 

 danger of frost is over. 



All the hardy varieties may be sown from June to August for 

 a brilliant display in the following spring. The seed should be 

 put into a prepared seed-bed under the shelter of a wall or hedge ; 

 and when winter is over, the plants should be transferred to blooming 

 quarters at the earliest opportunity. 



