THE PRACTICAL FLOWER GARDEN 



the plants from seed we may increase our 

 stock indefinitely. We mark the plants whose 

 seeds we wish to save, gather the peony seed 

 when it is ripe, which should be about the end 

 of August, and sow it at once in drills in rich 

 soil. The places where the peony seeds are 

 sown should be marked by stakes because the 

 seeds will not germinate until the following 

 May. The little plants must be kept free from 

 weeds and watered, and the second year sep- 

 arated a foot or so apart in rows; the third 

 year the peonies will generally bloom. 



7m. The iris seeds should be gathered 

 when ripe and sown the following April in 

 drills like pea seed, then transplanted when 

 three or four inches high; if they have had 

 rich soil and all the water they need, they will 

 frequently blossom the second summer. Last 

 year I raised about three hundred plants in 

 this manner. 



There are so many annuals that it is diffi- 

 cult to know which to speak about; however, 



86 



