LECTURE ON SPRING FLOWERING PLANTS. 359 



In illustration of these remarks, take the plants before 

 you. Here is a plant which was drawn from the ground 

 and potted last autumn. We are about to prune it. This, 

 be it remembered, is a plant in course of preparation for 

 forcing. Our first aim is to establish it in its new home; 

 we therefore prune closely, not thinking so much of flowers 

 in the present as looking for branches from which to obtain 

 flowers next year. Let us go forward three months, and 

 imagine that we see the same plant here in a more 

 advanced stage. It is true we have flowers here, but 

 that is due to a peculiarity in the variety. Most Roses 

 pruned as this was would have produced wood-shoots 

 rather than flower-shoots, as in this other example. 



I must, in order to work out my illustration, ask of you 

 a little further exercise of the imagination. Imagine the 

 plants on the table to be twelve months older, and they 

 will be in this state. Now, as to pruning : If a Moss Rose 

 we should prune slightly, if a Tea-Scented Rose a little 

 more, if a Hybrid Perpetual closer still. 



(Illustrations were here given of short, medium, and 

 long pruning by shortening the shoots of a pot Rose 

 according to each method.) 



Our plants are in the forcing-house. The pruning 

 finished, we raise the temperature of the house to 50 by 

 day and 40 by night, and keep it about this mark for the 

 first fortnight. The plants should be syringed daily, in 

 the morning, and watered at various intervals as the soil 

 becomes dry. No fixed periods can be named for watering, 

 because the drying of the earth in the pots will depend 

 much on the amount of heat and sunlight. Usually once 

 a week, and seldom more than twice a week, will water be 

 required at this early period of growth. As the leaves 

 expand, the amount of heat may be increased to 60 or 65 

 by day and 50 to 55 by night. We should now also 

 water our Roses more freely, and syringe twice instead of 

 once daily morning and afternoon. It is January, and 

 although winter out of doors it is spring with them, and 



