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Gardening for Amateurs 



which have become too large for the green- 

 house may be cut hard, back, when new 

 growths are forming, in the autumn, after 

 flowering, and repotted in the spring in 

 the same size pot. 



Oleanders require the protection of a cool 

 greenhouse in winter. Towards the end 

 of May stand the plants outside in sunny 

 positions until the flower buds are nearly 

 ready to expand, some time from about the 

 end of June until September, then return 

 them to the greenhouse. Oleanders delight 

 in ample supplies of water, including liquid 

 manure in summer. Almost at the same time 

 as the inflorescence commences to develop 

 at the end of a shoot several young growths 

 push out from the base of the flower stem. 

 These must be removed as soon as noticed, 

 or they will develop at the expense of the 

 flowers. 



Any pruning or shortening of the growths 

 deemed necessary should be done after 



flowering in autumn. Keep the plants 

 growing steadily in winter, with ample light, 

 and sufficient heat to keep out frosts, but 

 not sufficient to excite the plants to make 

 long, sappy shoots. Specimen Oleanders in 

 large pots and tubs are very useful for plac- 

 ing on walks and elsewhere in summer in 

 company with Hydrangeas, Agapanthuses, 

 etc. 



There are varieties of Oleander with 

 single, semi-double, and double flowers. 

 These comprise a fairly wide range of colours, 

 including white, shades of rose, pink, salmon, 

 yellow, crimson and purple. On the conti- 

 nent named varieties are more numerous 

 than in this country. A useful selection of 

 ten sorts consists of album grandiflorum, 

 Madame Dubois, atropurpureum, Docteur 

 Golfin, Aurantiacum, Amabile, Edouard 

 Andre, Professor Duchartre, splendens 

 giganteum and flavescens. Variegatum, with 

 pretty striped leaves, is a useful foliage plant. 



Abutilons. These plants are usually 

 propagated by means of cuttings once a 

 stock has been secured, but to make a com- 

 mencement seed should be sown in warmth 

 in early spring. From seed sown in February 

 the plants will develop into flowering speci- 

 mens the same year. The seed germinates 

 irregularly, therefore sow thinly to allow 

 the earliest seedlings to be pricked out as 

 soon as they become large enough. 



Planting Bulbs in Grass. Various 

 methods are recommended for planting bulbs 

 in grass. Some people make holes with a 

 crowbar and insert one or more bulbs with 

 a little soil in each hole ; others make holes 

 with a trowel, and some dig up spadefuls of 

 turf and place the bulbs beneath ; but a 

 better method than all is to remove all the 

 turf over a given area, dig or fork the sur- 

 face, then scatter the bulbs broadcast in as 

 natural a manner as possible, afterwards in- 

 serting them with a trowel where they lie. 

 After treading the ground and levelling the 

 surface, the turf can be replaced, watered, 

 and rolled, and the result will be a healthy 

 and informal group of bulbs. A few small 

 patches should be planted on the outskirts 

 of the main group. 



The Use of Goal Ashes. After they 

 have been passed through a fine sieve ashes 

 may be used in various ways. Where gar- 

 den paths have to be made the clinkers and 

 cinders make a good foundation, and if 3 or 

 4 inches of the finer material are placed on the 

 top, and kept well rolled, they soon form a 

 good walk. If a few inches of ashes are 

 spread on land where the Chrysanthemums, 

 etc., are to pass the summer in pots, they 

 will effectually prevent the ingress of worms. 

 If the greenhouse stage is first covered with 

 corrugated iron and 2 inches' depth of sifted 

 ashes are spread over it, such plants as 

 ferns, Fuchsias, Geraniums, etc., will not 

 only grow better, but need less watering. 

 Ashes are also suitable for forming a bed in 

 which pots containing Azaleas, Cytisus, 

 Camellias, etc., may be plunged to the rims 

 when these are put in the open air in June, 

 while as a covering for newly potted bulbs 

 ashes are almost equal to coco-nut fibre or 

 tan. During severe frosts a few shovelfuls 

 of ashes placed near the stems of hardy 

 Fuchsias, Pentstemons, or Dahlias will often 

 ensure their safety. They are useful also 

 for placing on the soil above clumps of 

 Lily bulbs. 



