THE NEW CARNATION-GROWING 161 



vital. Sandy soil is desirable, and so is gentle bottom- 

 heat, say 65 to 70. Several cuttings may be put 

 round the edge of a 6-inch pot. 



Propagation may begin in January and continue till 

 April in order to get successive batches of plants. When 

 the little plants begin to grow thay may be put separately 

 in 3 -inch pots. The tips of the shoots should be nipped 

 off to encourage side branches. From mid- April onwards 

 they may be kept in a cold frame till autumn. 



A method of propagating Carnations which is applicable 

 to any plant with several fairly long side shoots growing 

 in a pot is as follows : take each shoot in turn between 

 finger and thumb, strip off the bottom foliage, but leave 

 a cluster of " grass " at the top, twist the stem round so 

 as to lacerate the skin without breaking the shoot off, 

 bend it down to the soil just inside the rim of the pot, 

 and there peg it down. Each one so treated will root, 

 moreover, shoots suitable for cuttings will break from the 

 centre of the plant, and can be taken off and struck 

 when about three inches long. 



Although the modern market-grower cultivates Ameri- 

 can Carnations in beds in the manner described, the 

 amateur who has only one house in which to keep all the 

 different kinds of plants which he grows must necessarily 

 have them in pots, in the same way that he has been 

 accustomed to grow the ordinary Tree varieties. In 

 such cases flower stakes and tying will be needed. Six- 

 inch and 7-inch pots will be suitable sizes, and the soil 

 may consist of fibrous loam with a fourth of leaf-mould 

 and a sprinkling of sand. 



Reverting to Border Carnations, I have remarked that 

 to my view it is an evil that all the year round indoor 

 cultivation should be encouraged. The plants are nomin- 

 ally hardy ; they are summer growers and summer 



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