42 Notes and Glea7iings. 



Growing Mignonette in Pots. — For early flowering, sow the seed in 

 June or July, in pans in a compost of equal parts loam and leaf-mould ; place the 

 pans out of doors in an open situation, and keep the soil moist. When about 

 two inches high, prick off the young plants singly into small pots in the same 

 compost, with the addition of one-third well-reduced hot-bed manure ; place them 

 in a cold frame, and keep them close and shaded until established ; then expose 

 them to air and light ; and, to insure growth, choose a place shaded from the sun 

 between nine, a.m., and four, p.m. An occasional watering is all that will be 

 necessary up to August ; and, until then, the flowers should be pinched off" as they 

 appear. In August, shift into six-inch pots; and, if the shoots are close together, 

 peg them down and out so as to keep them open. The plants will now grow 

 rapidly, and require frequent stopping, and occasional waterings. Early in Octo- 

 ber, shift them into eight or nine inch pots ; but still keep them out of doors, and 

 continue stopping. House the plants when it becomes unsafe to leave them out 

 longer, and then place them as near the glass as possible, and where they can 

 have plenty of fresh air. They do best in a cool, dry, airy greenhouse. Stop 

 them up to December, and then allow them to go to bloom. Avoid keeping the 

 soil wet, and give air abundantly. In midwinter, you will have nice compact 

 specimens covered with bloom, and in a convenient size of pot. If you wish 

 for later-blooming plants, though these will continue in flower for a long time, 

 you may sow the seed towards the end of July, as before, in pans, placing them 

 on an airy shelf in the greenhouse, where they are to remain until the plants are 

 two inches high ; then prick them off in eight-inch pots, four plants in each, in 

 the compost already mentioned. The plants must be kept on the shelf until 

 they show flower, when they may be removed to the brackets or stands where 

 they can have an abundance of light and air. At this stage, clear and weak liquid 

 manure may be given at every alternate watering ; remembering always that it 

 and all water should be of the same temperature as the house. As the flowers 

 begin to develop themselves, liquid manure is given whenever moisture is re- 

 quired by the roots. Afterwards the plants are not further potted if the drainage 

 acts well, and watering is not necessary so long as the soil retains sufficient 

 moisture to prevent flagging. It is essential to keep the plants near the 

 glass. 



Azalea Cuttings. — Take cuttings three or four inches in length from the 

 growing points when the wood is about half ripe. Cut them transversely below 

 a joint, and remove the leaves from the lower two-thirds of the cutting. Prepare 

 a pot by filling it to two-thirds of its depth with crocks ; on these place a thin 

 layer of moss, and then such a quantity of sandy peat, that, when the cuttings 

 are inserted, their base will be the least possible distance above it. Fill the pot 

 to the rim with silver sand, and then insert the cuttings around the sides, putting 

 them in up to the leaves. Give a gentle watering, and plunge in moss, sawdust, 

 sifted tan, or some such material, over a mild bottom-heat of 75°. A close 

 frame is best, and the cuttings are better inserted singly in pots. If there is not 

 the convenience of a close frame, the cutting-pot may be placed in one of larger 

 size, and the interval between the pots filled to within an inch of the rim with 



