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Gardening for Amateurs 



Hints that may Help You 



SEED Sowing. For obvious reasons 

 it is necessary to sow seeds thinly, 

 for not only is it wasteful to sow 

 thickly, but when they germinate the 

 young plants soon become " drawn," and 

 spoil each other. Thin and even sowing 

 of small seeds is difficult, both in the 

 open border and under glass in pots or 

 pans. One of the best means of regulating 

 their even distribution is to mix the seeds 

 previous to sowing with twenty times their 

 bulk of fine sand. The depth to sow seeds 

 varies according to their size ; the larger the 

 seeds the deeper should they be covered with 

 soil. Seeds sown outside require to be 

 covered more deeply than when sown under 

 glass. A useful average guide is to bury the 

 seeds sown in pots and pans with twice their 

 depth of soil. Very fine seeds, of tuberous 

 Begonias for instance, hardly need any cover- 

 ing, a light dusting of fine silver sand is all 

 that is necessary. It materially assists 

 germination to cover pots and pans with 

 sheets of glass and paper, the soil is then 

 kept moist without watering. If watering is 

 necessary, stand the pots up to the rim in a 

 pan of water. 



A Temporary Propagating Frame. 

 Some amateurs hesitate to propagate plants 

 from cuttings because they do not possess a 

 proper up-to-date propagating frame. They 

 need have no fears in this respect, and 

 certainly would have none were they to 

 see the splendid results secured in market 

 nurseries with " rough and ready " methods 

 of rooting cuttings. The most important 

 point is to keep a sufficiently " close " and 

 moist atmosphere in the frame to prevent 

 the cuttings nagging or drooping. Hundreds 

 of cuttings during the season can be success- 

 fully rooted in a box 9 inches to 1 foot deep, 

 with a pane of glass on the top for a lid. 

 Many hardy plants require no heat, but in 

 spring the box may be stood on the hot- 

 water pipes. Place several inches of ashes 

 or fibre in the bottom of the box, and 

 moisten them to assist in maintaining a 

 " genial " atmosphere in the box. Here 

 may be rooted cuttings of the following 



plants among others : Fuchsia, Heliotrope, 

 Lobelia for bedding, Ageratum, Verbena, 

 and Dahlia. 



Winter-flowering Geraniums. If it is 

 possible to keep the temperature of the 

 greenhouse from falling below 50, a few 

 Zonal Pelargoniums, commonly known as 

 Geraniums, should be grown, as they are 

 wonderfully bright in the dull days. The 

 popularity of Perpetual Carnations has to a 

 certain extent overshadowed the value of 

 these flowers, but they can often be grown 

 successfully under conditions that would 

 hardly suit Carnations. When selecting 

 varieties it is advisable to keep to the singles, 

 as double flowers are quickly affected by 

 dampness in the winter. Insert the cuttings 

 during the first three months of the year 

 the earlier the better. Re-pot as required, 

 finally moving the plants into 6-inch pots, 

 which are quite large enough. To ensure 

 short-jointed growth do not use very rich 

 soil, and pot quite firmly. In June stand 

 the plants outdoors, where they can be fully 

 exposed to the sun. Pinch out the points 

 of the shoots occasionally to promote bushy 

 growth, but cease doing this in late August. 

 In September move the plants into the green- 

 house ; give them as much room as possible, 

 and ventilate very freely. Flower buds must 

 be removed regularly until the plants are 

 wanted in bloom, and when the pots are full 

 of roots weak liquid manure should be given 

 once a week. Damp is the greatest enemy 

 that has to be contended with in the cultiva- 

 tion of these plants at this season. 



Gathering and Storing Fruit. The 

 gathering and storing of fruit, more par- 

 ticularly Apples and Pears, is a subject 

 which demands everyone's attention. Care 

 should be taken to select a dry day for gather- 

 ing, and the fruit ought not to be picked 

 until the stalk parts readily from the branch. 

 By lifting an Apple or Pear it can be easily 

 ascertained whether it is likely to part from 

 the tree without trouble. The fruits must 

 not be bruised, or the damaged portions will 

 decay ; they should be laid out carefully on 

 shelves in a cool, darkened, airy room. 



