THE CANARY FLOWER. 19 



distinct amongst the fast-growing- trellis and bower plants 

 that love to climb high and toss gay garlands in the air. 

 The canary creeper may be used with effect to clothe low- 

 growing trees of spare habit, as it will soon run up into 

 the midst of them and make them gay with golden 

 streamers. Care should be taken never to carry this 

 sort of gardening too far, because a valueless creeper, that 

 lives but a few months at the most, should not be allowed 

 to injure a tree that has perhaps a lease of a century to 

 honour by profitable occupation of the ground. 



The plant before us is a half-hardy annual, and is 

 therefore grown from seeds that are, in the first instance, 

 protected from the weather, and afterwards planted out. 

 The best way to raise all such plants is to sow the seed 

 in the spring on a gentle hotbed in light, rich, and rather 

 fine soil, and when the plants are large enough to handle, 

 to prick them out two or three inches apart in boxes filled 

 with similar mellow soil, or to pot them separately in 

 small pots. In any case, when thus transferred from the 

 seed-pan they should be nursed under glass for a time in a 

 greenhouse or frame, and be gradually hardened by ex- 

 posure to the air, to prepare them for planting out. The 

 time of sowing and the details of management must, in 

 some degree, be determined by .the nature of the plant. It 

 is not too early to sow seed in February in some cases, but 

 in others March and April are early enough. In the case of 

 the canary creeper, it is folly to sow before April, because 

 the plant grows rapidly when put out, and it is troublesome 

 if it grows to some size previously. For filling the seed- 

 pans and the boxes in this preliminary culture, a mixture 

 of mellow loam, old hotbecl dung rotted to powder, equal 

 parts, with a half part of silver sand, will answer perfectly. 



