1870. 



NEW ENGLAND FARJklER. 



347 



blossoms of the "bedding out plants." We 

 number thirty-five Geraniums and Pelargoni- 

 ums of all sorts and colors. A large border 

 is given up to them, and they are one mass of 

 scarlet, cherry, pink, salmon, white, striped 

 and spotted. A glorious combination ! The 

 variegated leaved varieties, ilfrs. PoZZoc^*, Gol- 

 den Fheaisant, Oolden Vase, Cloth of Gold, 

 and Mountain of Snow, gleam like jewels un- 

 der the bright rays of the sun. Their flowers 

 are scarlet, but very inferior in size to the 

 Zonules, so we gather all the buds, thereby 

 throwing the strength of the plant into its 

 leaves, which form a perfect edging to dishes 

 of flowers. A lovely vase or dish can be 

 made of several sizes of plates. Take the 

 largest size the pantry holds ; edge it with 

 the leaves of Mrs. Pollock, mingled with white 

 flowers, feverfew, white candytuft, or any pure 

 white blos-oms ; turn water into the plate, and 

 cover a smaller plate, bottom side down, upon 

 it ; around the edge of this arrange leaves of 

 Mountain of Snow, or any of the silver-edged 

 varieties ; place among them scarlet Verbenas 

 or Geraniums, or any scarlet flower you may 

 have ; turn in the water, cover with a smaller 

 plate ; upon this mingle leaves of Acliyran- 

 tlieus or Coitus, — if the former, intersperse 

 them with yellow flowers — Golden Alyssum, 

 Chlora — or any you can select. Proceed as 

 before, and place a shallow glass dish over the 

 stems ; till this with bright leaves, sweet- 

 scented Geranium leaves and blue Delphinium 

 or Forget-me-not or blue Sage, with a large 

 proportion of white and pink, light delicate 

 flowers. Over the whole of it put the feathery 

 Cleaver or Mist, or Gypsophila muralis. The 

 eflfect is truly artistic ! Purple flowers can be 

 substituted for the blue, if more easily ob- 

 tained. A lady can make her own selection 

 of colors — the brilliant Tropasolums mingle 

 prettily with the dark leaves ; the fairy bells 

 of the Fuchsias are very lovely among the sil- 

 ver-edged leaves. A dish of flowers thus 

 arranged, will be a "thing of joy" for two or 

 three days, and makes a beautiful ornament 

 for a dinner or supper table. Flowers are 

 always a delight when arranged in the dining- 

 room. Even a tiny vase, with the moss rose, 

 a fuchsia, and a few leaves, is a great appe- 

 tizer. The great man of Queen Elizabeth's 

 court — the immortal Bacon — never sat at his 

 table without flowers. In them he recognized 

 the hand Divine. There is a fascination at- 

 tending the cultivation of both flowers and 

 fruit — one gratifies the eye, the other the pal- 

 ate — but we must attend closely to their culti- 

 vation to bring them to perfection. Every 

 morning they claim some attention. With a 

 band rake and hoe the soil should be stirred 

 frequently. Much finer vegetation is attained 

 by this simple thing. High cultivation is most 

 needful in a flower garden, also daily water- 

 ings. The English gardeners in their "misty 

 moisty climate" are not forced to use the wa- 

 tering pot so often ; but our dry, hot summers 



require frequent applications of warmish water, 

 soap suds, and liquid manure. Last season 

 we used quantities of Bradley's Superphos- 

 phate around all our plants, and they flour- 

 ished finely. This season we are using a new 

 fertilizer, purely mineral, being the pulverized 

 ore of the Dolomitic part of the gold mines 

 of New Hampshire. It contains thirty-two 

 per cent, of carbonic acid, which is said to be 

 the cause of the high state of vegetation in 

 California. Japan lilies, Gladiolus, Roses, 

 Geraniums, with all the beauteous sisterhood 

 of flowers, are making most vigorous growth. 

 It is a gray ish white powder, perfectly inodo- 

 rous, and for all greenhouse plants, as well as 

 for those of hardier habits, is unequalled. It 

 is now ready for market, and it will find many 

 consumers when its desirabilities are known. 



Carnations and Picotee Pinks are now in 

 their glory. Of all the beauteous flowers 

 which adorn the garden, whether by their 

 beauty or their fragrance, the Carnation may- 

 take front rank. Second only to the Rose is 

 this perfect flower ! It is easily propagated 

 by layers, which should be made when the 

 plant is in its fullest bloom. Select a strong, 

 vigorous stem, and remove all the lower leaves, 

 so that they need not decay in the soil 

 when the shoot is fastened down. Cut a slant- 

 ing slit a quarter of an inch above a joint, 

 forming a tongue, and smooth off its tip ; then 

 bend down the shoot, taking great care not to 

 break it, fasten it down with a strong hair 

 pin, (these same pins are invaluable for peg- 

 ging down verbenas, and all runners) ; and 

 cover the tongue with not more than three- 

 quarters of an inch of rich soil, with a good 

 mixture of sand. Shade it from the sun for 

 three or four days, water every night thor- 

 oughly, and in three or four weeks it will have 

 become well rooted. Cut the shoot from 

 the main stem, leaving half an inch of the 

 stem, which connects it on to the layer, and pot 

 it in rich soil composed of three parts turfy 

 loam, two parts of well rotted manure and 

 one part river sand; a teaspoonful of lime 

 is a useful ingredient, it being so destructive 

 to worms ; but it should be well mixed up with 

 the compost. 



Picotee Pinks are a hardier species than 

 the Carnation, as they will often endure a 

 New England winter, yet to bloom in full 

 perfection they should be potted. They 

 are propagated by seed and cuttings — the 

 former, if sowed as late as this month will 

 make fine plants for spring blooming, in the 

 house or garden. The latter are taken off 

 from young shoots while the plant is in its 

 most vigorous condition. Cut them just be- 

 low the third or fourth joint, smooth off the 

 end, pull off the lower leaves, plant them half 

 an inch deep in sand, but place good soil un- 

 derneath, so that the tender rootlets can find 

 rich food. Shade from the sun for a week, 

 watur thoroughly — if possible cover with glass. 

 I When they appear to have struck root, give 



