December 16, 1891.] 



Garden and Forest. 



595 



Cyclamen Persicum. 



TO grow Cyclamens in perfection it is absolutely necessary 

 to avoid all extremes in temperature. An equable moist 

 atmosphere is the only condition under which the best qualities 

 of these plants can be brought out. The Cyclamens being by 

 nature woodland plants — that is, growing in groves, thickets or 

 other moderately shady spots, where changes of temperature are 

 not sudden — it is easy to understand why the plants thrive best 

 in the surroundings above indicated. It is not always easy to 

 guard against excessive heat during the summer months in 

 this country, but by means of shading canvas, open-air culti- 

 vation and sprinkling of the ground about the plants, this can 

 be accomplished well enough for ordinary practice. 



Another important fact to be remembered is, that old seed 

 is unreliable, and a greater difference in size will be observed 



is necessary under all conditions. Early in spring the corms 

 of the plants ought to be as large as a walnut and well studded 

 with short robust leaves. Now, as soon as the weather will 

 permit, put them out in the open air, in a shady position, and 

 plunge them in a layer of sawdust or well-decayed horse-ma- 

 nure ; if the latter, it must not be allowed to heat. All sum- 

 mer long the young plants must never suffer from want of 

 food, water or air. A light syringing overhead every bright 

 morning is advisable, and on hot days the ground around and 

 the woodwork of the frame should be thoroughly soaked sev- 

 eral times a day, to keep the air cool and fresh. A canvas 

 shading stretched high above the plants, so as to prevent 

 direct sun rays, but permit plenty of light and a free circu- 

 lation of air, should not be omitted. 



By autumn the corms should be about two inches in diam- 

 eter, the sturdy leaves will cover the pots, and signs of flower- 



Fig. 94. — Viburnum tomentosum in Flower. — See page 593. 



in plants obtained from such seed than in a lot from fresh 

 seed. Fresh seed should be sown, and sown as soon as pos- 

 sible after it can be obtained. August is a good time, and the 

 seed should be sown in well-drained shallow pans in a com- 

 post of peat, sand and loam, with some finely chopped sphag- 

 num added, and then lightly covered and kept moist by careful 

 sprinkling. The pans should be placed in a frame in a tem- 

 perature of no less than fifty-five degrees. If the seeds are 

 fresh the young plants will appear in four or five weeks, and 

 should be pricked off in shallow pans, with a somewhat 

 richer mixture of soil, omitting the sphagnum. As soon as the 

 plants have a few leaves, and are deemed sufficiently strong, 

 they should be potted singly in two-inch pots, and all check to 

 their growth should be avoided by keeping them in a temper- 

 ature of fifty-five or sixty degrees, near the glass, moist and 

 shady. Of course, they must be repotted as the roots fill the 

 pots, every time in a slightly richer soil. Plenty of fresh air 



buds can be seen! They should now be potted for the last 

 time, in seven or eight inch pots, removed to their winter 

 quarters in a light, airy greenhouse. They will commence 

 flowering in December, and, if kept cool, when in full bloom 

 will, as everybody knows, keep a long time in perfection. 

 Few plants can compare with a well-grown Cyclamen for last- 

 ing beauty, and even when most of the flowers are gone the 

 handsome leaves are in themselves an ornament. I have 

 seen Cyclamens kept in living-rooms and parlors a consider- 

 able part of the winter without losing their freshness and 

 beauty ; but care must be taken not to overwater them when 

 in bloom. This is the time when the greatest caution in 

 watering should be exercised, as Cyclamens, like most similar 

 plants, flower during the drier season. It may be necessary 

 to remind novices that the corm should not be buried, but that 

 its upper half should be left above the soil. 



New York. N. J. ROS*. 



