May, 1915. 



THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST 



131 



Potting Plants 



B. C. TiUett, Hamilton, Ont. 



ONE of the most delightful branches 

 of gardening work is potting 

 plants. Perhaps one reason for 

 [ this is that this work can often be car- 

 ried out when the weather does not 

 permit of work out of doors. Those 

 wlio have a glasshouse or shed can en- 

 joy this occupation under cover and 

 derive much pleasure from it. There 

 is a right way and a wrong way to pot 

 a plant, just as there is a right way 

 and a wrong way to put one into the 

 ground, and a little skill is required 

 in the operation. Experience is the 

 best teacher, and if a few golden rules 

 are observed the necessary skill can 

 readily be acquired. 



Fig. 4. — The right Fig. 5. — The wrong 



way to pot an Amar- way. The roots are 



yllis. The roots are all bundled together, 

 spread out evenly all 

 round. 



Whatever the size of the pot, it will 

 always be wider at the top than at the 

 bottom. The object of this is that there 

 may be a greater bulk of compost 

 where the feeding roots require the 

 food and moisture, and also that the 

 ball of soil and roots may be the more 

 readily removed from the pot. Newly- 

 purchased pots sihould always be 

 soaked in water before they are used. 

 If this is not done, the moisture in- 

 tended for the plant will soak into the 

 dry pores of the new pot and the plant 

 will make little progress. Old pots 

 which it is intended to use again 

 should be well scrubbed out with hot 

 water before being used. By so doing, 

 any disease or fungus clinging to the 

 inside will be destroyed. 



For glasshouse plants, it is well to 

 have a little store of the soils common- 

 ly used, such as peat, leaf mould, some 

 well-rotted mauure and some loam, as 

 well as a small supply of sand and 

 charcoal. One of the most important 

 things to remember when potting 

 plants is the drainage. To secure pro- 

 per drainage, every pot is provided 

 with a drainage hole, and over this, so 

 as to prevent the soil from being 

 washed down and closing the hole, 

 sliould be placed a crock. Pieces of 

 an old broken pot make the best crocks. 

 One of these should always be placed 

 over the hole so as to form an arch. 



Where cuttings or seedlings of ordin- 

 ary bedding plants are being potted, 

 one crock placed over the hole is suf- 

 ficient. If t;he cuttings ot seedlings 

 are of choice plants, then one large 

 crock should be placed over the hole, 

 with several smaller pieces over it. It 

 is a good plan, after the crocks have 

 been put in the pot, to add a little dried 

 moss or some fine broken twigs or soil 

 siftings, as this will still further assist 

 the drainage. 



The best compost is made by mixing 

 together the soils already mentioned. 

 The peat and loam should be broken 

 up until quite fine. The best method 

 with the leaf mould and manure is to 

 crush it through a sieve. Mix them all 

 well together and add a little fine char- 

 coal. The charcoal helps to keep the 

 soil porous and sweet. A few pieces of 

 charcoal may be placed over the crocks. 

 Roots cling to charcoal and derive bene- 

 fit from it. 



When potting, hold the plant with 

 the left haoid, while with the right hand 

 the roots are carefully and evenly 

 spread out, taking care that the plant 

 is exactly in the centre of the pot and 

 upright. The soil should be filled in 

 witih the right hand, the left hand still 

 holding the plant until it is within half 

 an inch of the rim of the pot. A piece 

 of wood should be used to ram the soil 

 down firmly once the roots are well 

 covered. A gentle tap on the bench 

 will help to settle the soil around the 



roots. Having filled in the soil to 

 within half an inch of the top of the 

 pot, level it neatly on the surface, so 

 that it is firm, and the operation is 

 finished. 



Soft-wooded plants, such as the ger- 

 aniums, cinerarias and primulas, which 

 have a free growtli, do better when 

 planted in a somewhat larger pot than 

 is used for hard-wooded plants, such 

 as azaleas. Azaleas and all hard- 

 wooded plants, moreover, require extra 

 eiire in planting, as the top of the ball 

 of soil must be only slightly covered 

 when repotting, and' the soil must be 

 firmly rammed. 



A simple way to take a plant out of a 

 pot when repotting, provided the plant 

 is one which can be held in one hand, 

 is to place the left hand over the rim 

 of the pot so that the stem of the plant 

 is between the first and second fingers. 

 Then turn the pot over, plant down- 

 wards, and give the pot a gentle tap on 

 the rim on the edge of the bench. Be- 

 fore repotting, the roots of the plant 

 should be given a good watering. It is 

 a good plan to give a plant it is in- 

 tended to repot a good watering an 

 hour or so befoTchand. All old roots 

 should be cut away and the plant re- 

 potted in a pot just large enough to 

 contain the roots and a little soil, 

 which must be firmly rammed down. 



If a grower of gladioli discovers that 

 he has scabby corms it is good precau- 

 tion to soak them for twenty minutes 

 just before planting, in a solution of 

 formalin, one pint to thirty gallons of 

 water. — John Cavers, Oakville, Ont. 



The erounda of the Litt e Lake Cemetery Comp any, Poterboro, Coat., a portion of which are hert, 



Bhown. are beautifully laid out Too many am all towns and citi« n^lit Z ImpFoyrtW 



cemeteries, which thus become eyesores rather than beauty spots ""p™™ ^"^''^ 



