50 WINTER GREENERIES AT HOME. 



here the responsibility is ours, and we must meet it as 

 best we can. Let us then seek for wisdom in 



REGULATING THE RAIN. 



1. Ill a state of rest that is, when not growing 

 plants require but a comparatively small quantity of 

 water, only just enough to supply the waste by evapora- 

 tion from their leaves, and to keep a moist atmosphere 

 around their roots. Without such an atmosphere in the 

 soil, the absorbent surface of their roots will dry up and 

 wither. On the other hand, if crowded with water, 

 it will become clogged and rot away. The danger 

 of such clogging is of course greatest, when the water, or 

 dissolved food, is not drawn up into the plant ; and that 

 is always the case in a state of rest. So be sparing then 

 of your rain ; and if the plant is entirely dormant in the 

 cellar, give no more than enough to keep the soil from 

 becoming "powder-dry." . 



2. Growing plants need water, not only to supply the 

 waste by evaporation, but to carry the food that helps to 

 build them up. So they must have a larger quantity, and 

 are in much less danger from over watering. As you will 

 observe, the soil of such plants dries out much more 

 rapidly than that of resting plants a fact which shows 

 their larger demand. It is safe, therefore, to regulate 

 the watering by the condition of the plant as growing or 

 not growing, increasing the supply gradually with the 

 growth. 



3. Their natural habits also must be consulted. For 

 instance, the Calla Lily is constituted to flourish in wet 

 places, and may even be set into an aquarium ; though, 

 like other plants, on ceasing to grow it requires the 

 water to be gradually withdrawn. At the other extreme 

 are plants like the various kinds of Cactus, which have 

 come to us from a dry and sandy habitat, and are able to 

 endure a protracted drouth. 



