essary to get conclusive results, the plants were taken up and their con- 

 dition was correlated with the treatment they had received. This treat- 

 ment was determined by means of questionnaires filled out at the time 

 plants were taken up. Below is a copy of the questionnaire used in this 

 study: 



QUESTIONNAIRE 



Name of Plant 



Name of Person 



I. Window exposure — 



II. Watering practices — 



How watered — 



Frequency — 



III. Temperature — 

 Night — 

 Day — 



IV. Were plants washed — 



Remarks : 



Date picked up 



Date distributed 



V. Type of heating system 

 VI. Type of container 

 VII. Feeding practices 

 VIII. General condition of plant 

 when taken up 



(a) Insects 



(b) Disease 



(c) Gas injury 



(It is interesting to note that some of the most valuable information 

 was obtained under the section of remarks.) 



SOILS USED 



No attempt was made to compare different soils or soil mixtures 

 for any given plant. In each case, a soil mixture that was believed to be 

 optimum for the plant studied was used. Leaf mold was used freely 

 with good results. This material is available to all who will take the 

 trouble to collect it. By raking away the litter in any wooded area, one 

 can obtain black, well-rotted leaf mold. The material from deciduous 

 trees is preferable to that from evergreens. Leaf mold will seldom give 

 good results alone but is excellent for use in soil mixtures, when as much 

 as half of the mixture may be of this material. 



The use of well-rotted manures is another help in soil mixtures. 

 One of the reasons farm women are so successful with house plants is 

 because manures are easilv accessible to them. 



CONTAINERS 



Glazed, porous, and painted pots and jardinieres were used through- 

 out this study. Glazed pots are of distinct value in growing plants with 

 a high water requirement, such as gardenia. Fewer waterings are re- 

 quired when plants are growing in glazed pots or are kept in jardinieres. 

 (The jardiniere is of special value when growing plants in small pots.) 



FEEDING 



Throughout this study a large majority of the successful plants 

 were fed regularly. Average growers used chemical garden fertilizer 

 at the rate of about one level teaspoon to a quart of water and watered 

 plants with this solution about once in two weeks. Other growers used 

 plant food purchased in tablet or liquid form. There are many plant 

 foods available but care should be taken to use them according to the 

 packagers' directions. 



Four 



