January^] rooms — watering, etc. 289 



to the tribe of Cactii, wliicli are varied, beautiful, and truly 

 interesting, and grow admirably in dry rooms, with or with- 

 out full exposure to the sun, and in any temperature from 

 45° to 85°, requiring only small portions of water once 

 a-week in winter, and twice or thrice a-week during summer : 

 they also only require fresh soil once a-year, or even once 

 in two years for large plants will be found sufficient. The 

 variety now cultivatedis truly astonishing, and we doubt not 

 but in a few years large horticultural buildings will be 

 erected for their express culture ; and, to the inexperienced 

 amateur, there is not a family of plants that will give more 

 satisfaction, or, when properly studied, will afford greater 

 interest and amusement. 



JANUARY. 



Plants that are kept in rooms generally are such as re- 

 quire a medium temperature, say from 40° to 60°. Sitting- 

 rooms or parlors, about this season, are, for the most part, 

 heated from 60° to 70°, and very seldom has the air any 

 admittance into these apartments; thus keeping the tempera- 

 ture from 10° to 15° higher than the nature of the plants 

 requires, and excluding that fresh air which is requisite to 

 support a vegetative principle. Therefore, as far as practica- 

 ble, let the plants be kept in a room adjoining to one where 

 there is fire heat, and the intervening door can be opened 

 when desirable. They will admit sometimes of being as low 

 as 38°. 



If they be constantly kept where there is fire, let the 

 window be open some inches, once a-day, for a few minutes, 

 thereby making the air of the apartment more congenial, 

 both for animal and vegetable nature. 



WATERING, &c. 



All that is necessary is merely to keep the soil in a moist 

 state, that is, do not let it get so dry that you can divide the 

 particles of earth, nor so wet that they could be beat to clay. 



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