The Culture of the Camellia. 217 



through almost the moment it is poured upon it. When the 

 water is observed to hang long on the surface of the pot, the 

 plant should immediately be turned out and examined, and 

 if it does not require shifting, the crocks, or other drainage 

 materials must be readjusted. 



The common earth-worm is a great infester of the camel- 

 lia, and the damage they cause in the drainage is enormous. 



I never set my camellias on the ordinary ground, — always 

 on a body of coal ashes ; this will keep out the worms. 



A little clear lime water may be used, if worms are sus- 

 pected, and the worms must be gathered up as they turn out 

 of the soil. 



The compost best suited to this plant, in my opinion, is 

 about three parts of a fibrous mellow loam, rather inclined 

 to adhesiveness, and two parts fibrous heath soil, which has 

 become a sound turf through age. 



These should have been procured tv/elve months or more, 

 and should be well chopped with a sharp spade, but not rid- 

 dled. My practice is, to add a good sprinkling of finely 

 crushed charcoal, and of coarse sand ; the latter, however, 

 depends on the amount of tenacity in the loam, and the 

 character of the heath soil. After carefully placing the 

 crocks over the bottom, so as to leave three or four bold aper- 

 tures, or outlets, I place a pounded mixture (from which all 

 mere dust has been ejected) of broken crocks and charcoal ; 

 on this a thin layer of new sphagnum, and on this a little 

 fibrous loam, from which nearly all the mere soil is beaten 

 out. The ball being placed, lumps of fibrous loam and 

 peaty material are wedged in all round, at about equal dis- 

 tances ; then a sprinkling of the finer compost, well shaken 

 in ; then more lumps wedged round ; and, finally, two or 

 three inches of the general compost, the latter well pressed 

 down, — being used in a dryish state. I form the surface into 

 a concave form, in order to coax the water, for a while, 

 through the body of the ball of earth. 



It may here be observed, that they should always be in a 

 moist state when shifted ; if any pot-bound plants, with hard 

 balls, appear dry, the only course is to plunge them over 



VOL. XVI. NO. V. 28 



