56 BEDDING PLANTS. 



if tied afterward with string will help to secure the plants in an upright 

 position against storms. 



COTYLEDON (Echeveria)— Frequently used for carpet bedding. 

 Some of the best for this purpose are C. atropurpurea, C. californica, C. 

 clavifolia, C. fascicularis, C. gibbifiora var. metallica, C. secunda var. 

 glanca,C.imbricata, C. Pachyphytum, C. mirabilis,C.globosa var. exten- 

 sa, and C. eximia. The narrow-leaved kinds are raised in quantity from 

 leaves; others from seed, offsets and from cuttings. November and De- 

 cember are the best months for propagation. Pull the leaves from the 

 plants, taking care during the operation that the bud in the axil of the 

 leaf is preserved. Make a depression, say 2 inches deep and 4 or 5 inches 

 wide, across the sand bed of a warm house; lay two rows of leaves in 

 this with their bases touching; keep dry until the little growths start. 

 When large enough they sliould be pricked off close together in boxes. 

 Old plants should be lifted in Autumn and placed as thickly as they will 

 go in boxes, without adding much soil and keeping them without water 

 in a cool house. 



CUPHEA PLATYCENTRA and C. LLAV^— A few plants Wintered 

 over in a moderately warm house will give cuttings in March. C. Llavae 

 has large and handsome flowers, but they are not freely produced until 

 the plants have made considerable growth. 



DAHLIAS — The Dahlia delights in a cool and humid atmosphere, but 

 immediately the mercury gets anywhere near the freezing point that is 

 the end of the plant's usefulness for the season. Old plants are cut back 

 to within 6 inches of the soil, dug up, and the soil removed from the 

 fleshy tuber-like roots; they are then stored for the Winter in a dry and 

 frost-proof structure. 



Propagation— Although the kinds are perpetuated by division, graft- 

 ing and cuttings, the latter method is the one best suited for raising 

 large quantities of young plants. The roots are brought into heat 

 about the 1st of March, covered over with some light soil, and encour- 

 aged to make growth by frequent syringing. As soon as the shoots are 

 3 or 1: inches long, separate from the parent, taking them with a heel. 

 They can then either be put singly in small pots and kept close and 

 warm until rooted, or put in an ordinary propagating bed with a bot- 

 tom heat of 75 degrees. The sand need not be kept very moist, but the 

 atmosphere should contain enough moisture to prevent wilting. As 

 soon as weather permits the plants should be put out in a frame to 

 harden. 



Varieties— The large and perfectly symmetrical flowers are rather 

 stiff and artiticial looking for cutting purposes. The cactus-flowered 

 section do not have this fault; nearly all of them are well worth grow- 

 ing. The Pompons, especially those with white flowers, can be utilized 

 for various purposes. The single-flowered varieties can all be used for 

 cutting; this section seeds freely, and some of the strains offered by 

 European seedsmen come remarkably true, but good kinds should be 

 perpetuated from cuttings. 



