HENDERSON'S HANDBOOK OF PLANTS. 



PLE 



ing in pots, there is perhaps not so much 

 necessity, as the roots are not mutilated, 

 and hence make a quicker start; still cir- 

 cumstances must be the guide in the 

 operation; and if the soil is very dry and 

 the weather warm, a moderate amount of 

 pressure around the ball of earth will be 

 necessary. Sometimes, in planting out 

 plants from pots, the ball is so hard as to 

 prevent the inner roots getting easily to 

 the surface: in such cases the ball should 

 be crushed or beaten, so as to render it 

 partially loose, which greatly conduces to 

 the growth of the plant. 

 Plenus, Plena. Double, as in double flowers. 

 Plicate, Plicative. Plaited or folded to- 

 gether lengthwise, like a closed fan. 

 Plowing. Many gardeners yet ignore the 

 plow in the garden, even where it is per- 

 fectly practicable to use it. We have 

 used the plow and harrow for pulveriz- 

 ing on every foot that it was possible to 

 use them in, in all our operations in the 

 ground, whether for fruit, flowers, or 

 vegetables, for the past thirty years, and 

 feel convinced that their use for that pur- 

 pose is far better than the spade or dig- 

 ging fork, besides the immense saving in 

 labor. 



Plumose. Feathery, resembling feathers. 

 Plumule. The bud of a seed; the youngest 

 bud in a plant; the bud or growing point 

 of the embryo. 



Pod. The capsule or seed-case of legumi- 

 nous and cruciferous plants, those of the 

 former (Pease, Beans, etc.) being called 

 legumes, and those of the latter (Cab- 

 bage, Turnip, etc.) siliques and silicules, 

 which see. 



Pollen. The powdery or other matter 

 usually contained in the cells of an an- 

 ther, by whose action on the stigma the 

 fertilization of the ovules is accomplished. 



POT 



Polyadelphous. Having many parcels of 

 stamens. 



Polyandrous. A flower having more than 

 twenty stamens inserted in the recepta- 

 cle. 



Polyanthemus. Bearing many flowers. 



Polycotyledonous. Having more than two 

 cotyledons. 



Polygamous. Having on the same plant 

 some flowers that are male, others that 

 are female, and others hermaphrodite or 

 perfect. 



Polygynous. Having many styles. 



Polymorphous. Where a part or an entire 

 species are subject to considerable diver- 

 sity of form; assuming various forms. 



Polypetalous. Having many separate or 

 distinct petals. 



Polypodiacece. See Filices. 



Polysephaloua. Having many separate se- 



Pome. An inferior fleshy, many-celled 

 fruit, like that of the Apple. 



Pores. Small, often roundish holes or aper- 

 tures. 



Potting. The first operation of potting is 

 when the rooted cutting is transferred 

 from the cutting bed, or the seedling 

 from the seed box to the pot. 



Almost without exception, cuttings or 

 seedlings should be placed in pots not 

 exceeding two and a half inches in diam- 

 eter. We, in our own practice, invaria- 

 bly use pots two and a quarter inches in, 

 diameter at the top and of the same 

 depth. Rooted cuttings do much better 

 in this smaller size, for the reason that 

 the small amount of soil in the 2^-inch 

 pot allows the moisture to pass off quick- 

 ly, and thus prevents the soil from be- 

 coming sadden for want of air, which 

 would be the case if the cutting had 

 been potted in a 3 or 4-inch pot, as ama- 



