282 W&e ffiartren's Storg. 



es are produced on two- and three-year-old 

 plants. Renewal in some soils becomes neces- 

 sary every few years. Where it thrives, how- 

 ever, the magnificent head of bloom carried by 

 an old plant is far more showy than the few 

 larger trusses of a younger one. Pinching or 

 cutting back the shoots in early June will render 

 it autumnal flowering, and by thus treating a 

 portion of the plants the flowering season may 

 be largely prolonged. 



There is another advantage from pinching 

 some of the plants : if the weather be unusually 

 hot and dry during August, so as to cause poor 

 flowering, the retarded plants will almost always 

 have the advantage of cooler weather to flower. 

 Pinching, however, is done at the expense of the 

 size of the truss ; where large trusses are an 

 especial object, at least half of the stalks should 

 be cut out. The phlox needs abundant moist- 

 ure during its florescence, and likes rich soil. 

 Some phloxes, particularly the whites, are sub- 

 ject to mildew in certain soils and during certain 

 seasons. But the great enemy of the phlox is 

 the larval grub of the big May beetle, with 

 whom the roots of this plant are an especial 

 favorite. His presence may be detected by the 

 sickly appearance of the plant a knowledge 

 that usually comes too late. Young plants 



