1867. 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



195 



fatrks' Scpartmtttt. 



DOMESTIC ECONOMY; 



HOW TO MAICE HOME PLEASANT. 



BT ANNE G. HALE. 



[Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 

 1866, by R. P. Eaton & Co., in the Clerk's OflSce of the 

 District Court for the District of Massachusetts.] 



CHAPTER III. 



HOUSE PLANTS, AND THEIR CULTURE. 



The Begonia — called sometimes Beefsteak 

 plant, from the peculiar appearance of the 

 leaves of one species — is of easy culture, and 

 has become a general favorite. The family 

 takes Its name from Michael Begon, a French- 

 man, a promoter of botany, born in 1638. 

 The plant was first brought into notice in 1776. 

 Since then about fifty different species have 

 been discovered, all of which are remarkable 

 for their elegant leaves, often deeply veined 

 with crimson, sometimes spotted — as B.picta, 

 painted-leaved. The flowers, with the excep- 

 tion of two species bearing scarlet blossoms, 

 are white, or blush-tinted, with golden sta- 

 mens ; and their delicate wax-like beauty con- 

 trasts well with the foliage. The plant is easi- 

 ly propagated by cuttings in moist sand. B. 

 discolor increases itself by suckers, each hav- 

 ing a tuberous root. Begonias should be grown 

 in a soil composed of well-rotted leaves, sand, 

 and peat ; the pot filled one quarter with brok- 

 en charcoal and pebbles, for drainage. They 

 need a good deal of water till the flower-buds 

 are formed ; then decrease the quantity, and 

 when they have done blooming keep them 

 rather dry until the autumn. 



The word Cactus, meaning prickly plant, 

 comes from the Greek. This genus is usually 

 leafless. The fleshy, succulent plants throw 

 up stems which widen and flatten into a paddle- 

 shape with coarsely notched edges ; or they 

 assume a globular, a jointed form, or that of 

 an angular column ; — sometimes the grotesque 

 appearance of animals, or reptiles, all more or 

 less studded with sharp prickles, and bristling 

 with stinging hairs. The flowers are showy, 

 many of them fragrant, also, — as the night- 

 blooming cereus, one of the tribe. The cac- 

 tus is indigenous to this continent ; one spe- 



cies, C. opuntia, the prickly pear, is hardy 

 enough to venture as far north as New Eng- 

 land. But It is usually confined to the tropics, 

 growing abundantly in Mexico, and Brazil, 

 and affording the natives both food and drink 

 in the dry season. The wild cattle, also, con- 

 trive to slake their thirst with its juices without 

 wounding themselves with the thorns. The 

 great melon thistle, or Turk's head cactus, re- 

 sembles a large, fleshy, green melon with deep 

 ribs, set all over with sharp thorns. In the 

 centre rises a short pillar, from which the blos- 

 soms are produced. Specimens of this kind 

 of cactus, more than two yards In circumfer- 

 ence, and over a yard in height, have been 

 seen clinging to the rocks in the West India 

 islands. Travellers also mention one species 

 of the plant, which, if torn, pours forth a fluid 

 of the most poisonous character ; but when 

 carefully cut yields a wholesome refreshing 

 beverage. 



The cactus, — being subjected in its natural 

 state to extreme moisture followed by extreme 

 drought, when cultivated should be kept dry 

 through the summer, yet not in the sun. Late 

 in September begin to water it, giving it more 

 sunshine, and more water gradually, until the 

 flower-buds appear ; you will see them In the 

 notches of the edge, or at the end of a joint. 

 If very closely budded, cut some out ; those 

 remaining will be handsomer than if all are 

 suffered to bloom. Give it warm water, freely, 

 till It is done blooming. Wash it well with a 

 syringe every week. Apply liquid manure to 

 the soil two or three times during the winter. 

 The cactus Is propagated by cuttings. Let the 

 piece to be rooted remain in a dry cool place 

 till it gets shrivelled a little. Then set It in 

 wet sand and cover with a glass. When it 

 looks full and thriving transplant to soil. The 

 pot should be a quarter full with cinders. Upon 

 this lay a compost of peat, sandy loam, and 

 old plastering or mortar rubbish — If you can- 

 not procure this last Ingredient, burnt bones, 

 coarsely pulverized, will answer ; — there should 

 be twice as much loam as of the other materi- 

 als. This soil will need no changing for sev- 

 eral years ; and the pot may remain the same, 

 as the cactus requires but little room for Its 

 roots. Among the handsomest, and also of 

 easiest cultui-e, may be mentioned C. specio- 

 sissimus — beautiful cactus — bearing a splendid 

 orange scarlet flower, from which the stamens 

 depend like an elegant white tassel. There 



