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PRACTICAL FLORICULTURE. 



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ered into pits after they fall by the action of frost, and left until they decay ; but the 

 mold is found more abundantly in the woods, particularly in hollows where the winter's 

 wind has drifted the leaves, and where they lie in the damp and perish. Only think of 

 gathering into a flower-pot, to nourish a new plant, what has been the shade of perhaps a 

 hundred years, with all its vanished glories of crimson and gold! 



Tlll'f, or grass-sods, is another article much recommended for potting plants, and 

 should be cut about three inches thick. This of course must have time given it to rot 

 before it is fit for use. Spring or summer is the best time for cutting, when the grass is 

 growing, as there is more nutriment in it. The sods should be packed in a heap, the 

 gi-assy surfaces toward each other. In this state fermentation commences, and the vege- 

 table portions decay. When this process begins, the heap should be turned and stirred 

 repeatedly with a fork, until it finall)^ becomes a pulverized or crumbled mass. It mav 

 then be mixed with about an equal proportion of manure and of leaf-mold, when it is fit 

 for growing most kinds of plants. 



Peat is a soil of vegetable origin, found mostly in low lands, especially in swamps or 

 what are known as bogs. It is a black mold consisting of roots, wood and kindred sub- 

 stances in an entirely decomposed condition, or undergoing the process of decay, and is 

 more or less saturated with water. Some few plants, like the Venus's Flytrap, Pitcher 

 Plant, Heath, and many varieties of Ferns and young Azaleas, require this soil in its 

 normal condition or slightly mixed with sand; or, what is still better, as well as more 

 definite, a soil composed of four parts peat, two of sand, one of garden-loam, and one 

 of leaf-mold. In the greenhouse and hothouse it is mixed in smaller proportions for 

 numerous plants. 



MANURES. 



Manure should be entirely decomposed, and from two to three years old, and if 

 still older it will be all the better. Cow-manure is far superior for most uses, as it is finer 

 and a more gentle stimulant. The coarser manure from the stables answers well for cov- 

 ering flower-beds in fall and putting around shrubs to keep them from frost, roses rejoicing 

 particularly in its great strength. In using any solid manure for the stimulation of plant 

 growth, especial care should be taken to incorporate it thoroughly with the various other 

 elements of the prepared soil. Manure-water is prepared by placing the manure in a tub 

 or other vessel and pouring boiling water thereon. After letting it stand until it cools, it 

 can be drawn oflT for use, reducing its strength by the admixture of two parts pure water 

 to one of manure-water; it is better to apply it "weak and often." Manure-water, or 

 liquid manure, may be made from most of the domestic manures or cattle-droppings, as 

 well as from guano, phosphate of lime, etc. Sheep-droppings also produce excellent 

 liquid manure for many plants. 



It may seem troublesome to think of using so many ingredients for the cultivation of 

 flowers, but they are necessary to form the different requisites for various plants if one 

 proposes to keep many. Country amateurs can find most of them close at hand ; and 

 persons living in the city, if they keep only a few plants, will find it more convenient to 

 go to some florist and purchase a sufficient quantity ah^eady prepared, always naming 

 the plants they wish to raise. The florist's experience is of great value to the amateur. 



