ON FLOWERS. 143 



spring, seeds of the best double Balsams and China Asters, in 

 varieties. These will give you a beautiful show of flowers 

 through the summer and fall. Forget not the double Holyhocks. 



In the middle of your beds, and about the first of June, put 

 out your Dahlias, and the lists annually published, will sup- 

 ply you with some beautiful plants. The Dahlia needs a soil 

 of, say, one part sand, one part good loam, and one part old 

 rotten manure. Dig holes about a foot deep and a foot square, 

 and into these put the above soil and the bulbs. As the plants 

 grow, tie them to stakes, to secure them against being broken 

 down by the wind. The stalks are very tender. When the 

 frost shall have killed the tops, cut them to within six inches 

 of the roots, dig these up carefully, do not divide them, but 

 put them away in a dry place, secure from frost, till the next 

 spring. They keep well in dry sand or sawdust. When 

 spring opens, you will find that the new shoots are starting 

 from the crown of the old bulbs. Divide them carefully, leav- 

 ing a bulb to each eye, and plant them again as before. 



You will also keep your bulbs of Gladiolus, where they will 

 not freeze, and when the spring loosens the frozen soil, plant 

 them again. A very few seasons will greatly increase your 

 stock, so that you will have some to sell or to give away. 



You will find, also, the family of the Lily, to be very beau- 

 tiful and entirely hardy. Of the Phloxes^ of which we have 

 already spoken, there is a very great and beautiful variety, any 

 dozen of which, selected for you by some floral friend, or by a 

 reliable seedsman, cannot fail to delight you. 



For your annual flowers, the seeds of which you will gather 

 as they ripen, and sow every spring, you may plant Asters, 

 Balsams, Ipomseas,* Zinnias, Snapdragons, Portulaca, Pansies, 

 Nasturtiums,* Morning Glory, Mignonette, Marigolds, Hibiscus, 

 Amaranthus, Escoltia, Gillia, &c. &c. 



But above all, be sure that you have the Rose, known in 

 all time, and admired wherever known ; sung in loudest and 

 sincerest praise, by poets of all ages, sacred and secular ; dedi- 

 cated to Venus, goddess of beauty, — to Cupid, god of love, — 

 to Aurora, goddess of earliest dawn, — sacred emblem of silence 



* Climbers, and need supports to run upon. 



