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Gardening for Amateurs 



edge reddish crimson and white, upper petals 

 magenta ; Miss Xeil, dark velvety blotches, 

 edged white, crimson lacing ; Miss Pater- 

 son, purple blotches surrounded with white, 

 rose lacing ; Mrs. Campbell, purple blotches, 

 yellow ground ; Mrs. R. Fife, purple crim- 

 son blotches, white ground ; Mrs. W. Steele, 

 pale purple blotches, cream ground, light 

 purple lacing ; Xeil Mackay, dark blotches, 

 golden yellow ground, crimson lacing ; 

 Purity, white, velvety blotches ; Robert C. 

 Allan, dark centre, edged crimson, marked 

 with white; Thomas McMeeking, cream or 

 light lemon, black blotches ; W. B. Childs, 

 purple blotches, edged yellow ; White Mar- 

 mion, purple blotches on creamy-white 

 ground. 



Increasing Pansies. Pansies are propa- 

 gated or increased by cuttings, division of 

 the clumps, and by seeds. In the case of 

 the choice named sorts one or both of the 

 two first-named methods are employed. 

 From July to September is the best time to 

 insert the cuttings. Place them in a frame 

 in a semi-shady part of the garden, and 

 prepare a mixture of light, sandy soil, con- 

 sisting of 1 part loam, 1 part leaf-mould, 

 and 1 part coarse sand. Whichever size 

 pots are used 4-inch (large 60 size), 5-inch 

 (48 size), or 6-inch (32 size), they should be 

 half filled with drainage. The supply of 

 cuttings from the best-named sorts is limited 

 as a rule. The best shoots to use as cut- 

 tings are those that push up from the centre 

 of the plants in summer and early autumn. 

 With care these shoots may sometimes be 

 removed from the parent plants with a few 

 roots attached. Dibble the cuttings in the 

 pots of prepared soil whenever they are 

 available, and place them in the cold frame, 

 keeping the lights closed until rooting com- 

 mences. Shade from sunlight, and keep 

 the frame moist by syringing morning and 

 evening. 



Details of Cultivation. The young 

 plants must be kept in a frame during the 

 winter ; these choice named sorts are far 

 too valuable to leave exposed to wintry 

 weather and to the attacks of slugs, spar- 



rows, etc. Prepare in a shallow frame a bed 

 of rich, sandy soil, 4 inches deep. When 

 the cuttings are well rooted set them out 

 in lines 4 inches apart and 6 inches between 

 the lines. Press the soil firmly at the base, 

 give water, and keep the frame close and 

 shaded for four or five days until the Pansies 

 commence to root in the new soil. Venti- 

 late freely on all favourable occasions, for 

 though the protection of a frame is help- 

 ful, a close, stuffy atmosphere will prove 

 more disappointing in its results than grow- 

 ing the plants on an exposed border out- 

 side. April and May are the best months 

 to sow the seeds of prize strains of Show 

 and Fancy Pansies. Use shallow boxes 

 filled with light, sandy soil, sow thinly, and 

 place in a cool greenhouse or frame to ger- 

 minate. (Seeds of the ordinary strains of 

 bedding Pansies may be sown in boxes or 

 on a sheltered border outside.) Plant out 

 the young seedlings in a frame during 

 autumn as recommended for the cuttings. 

 This precaution is particularly necessary in 

 smoky towns and closely confined gardens. 

 To grow Pansies to the greatest perfec- 

 tion the ground must be thoroughly pre- 

 pared, digging during winter and enriching 

 with leaf -mould, wood ashes, and old decayed 

 manure. Early April is a good time to set 

 out the plants in their flowering positions, 

 putting them about 1 foot apart. Water 

 liberally in the evening during dry weather. 

 In the south a position sheltered from the 

 midday sun should be chosen for the Pansy 

 beds, but in the northern counties and Scot- 

 land this precaution is not necessary ; the 

 cooler and moister conditions of these locali- 

 ties are more favourable to their growth. 

 Stir the surface soil between the plants at 

 intervals, and keep all flowers removed 

 until the plants are sturdy and strong. Old 

 flowers should be picked off as they fade, 

 unless one or two pods of seeds are required. 

 A mulching of leaf -mould and spent hotbed 

 manure will be beneficial in July, when also 

 some of the older flowering growths should be 

 removed to encourage young shoots to push 

 up from the centre. 



