COMMOlSr GABDEN FLOWERS. 



369 



Thirty years ago Mr. John Riley of Huddersfield, 

 took in hand and greatly improved the Antirrhinum 

 hy means of careful selection and high cultivation ; 

 and it appears to he a statement scarcely credible, 

 yet nevertheless true, that Mr. Riley grew plants six 

 and seven feet in 

 height, and four 

 feet in diameter ; 

 and these wonderful 

 plants were not 

 BeedHngs, but raised 

 from cuttings made 

 the previous au- 

 tumn. 



The Antirrhinum 

 is a plant quite easy 

 of cultivation; but 

 our advice is, if any 

 one attempts to 

 grow it, let it be 

 something worthy 

 of their best care. 

 The best way to 

 begin would be to 

 send about the 

 mouth of May to 

 Messrs. R. B. Laird 

 and Sons, of Edin- 

 burgh, who are now 

 generally admitted 

 to be the most suc- 

 cessful cultivators 

 of these flowers, and 

 obtain a half-dozen 

 or dozen plants of 

 good named varie- 

 ties, of distinct 

 character. These 

 can come by post 

 with the soil shaken 

 from the roots, and 

 as soon as received 

 they should be 

 potted singly in 

 small spots in light 

 rich soil, and put 

 into a cold frame, or 

 under a hand-light 



for a few days, taking care that they are not eaten by 

 slugs or snails. When they have established themselves 

 ' and begin to grow, they should be planted out in a 

 bed or border, again in good soil, and encouraged to 

 .oTow as freely as possible. They will flower in 

 August or September, but quite early enough to 

 enable the grower to get a few pods of seed for 

 his own sowing. During the summer the plants 

 24 



AUTIRRHINTIMS. 



Striped (Swauley Beauty). Crimson fPaust), 



should be looked after, tying them neatly to stakes 

 to keep the wind from Mowing them about ; watering 

 when necessary, and. keeping the soil about the 

 plants free from weeds. 



But after the seed is gathered, there is no reason 

 why the plants 

 \sp^ should be wasted. 



■> There is always a 



risk in keeping old 

 plants safely 

 through the winter ; 

 not but what they 

 are perfectly hardy, 

 but the plants reaUy 

 suffer more from 

 damp than frost ; 

 and the latter fol- 

 lowing close on 

 heavy rain is cer- 

 tain to be fatal to 

 them. The grower 

 should ' therefore 

 take cuttings of the 

 best varieties, doing 

 this at the end of 

 August, putting a 

 few into pots of 

 light sandy soil, 

 well drained, of 

 course, and placing 

 them in a cold 

 frame. As soon as 

 they are rooted — 

 and they root 

 quickly — they 

 should be potted 

 singly in small pots, 

 using the same kind 

 of soil, and winter- 

 ing in a cold frame. 

 These can be 

 planted out in the 

 open ground by the 

 end of March, and 

 they will flower in 

 June andJuly. In 

 this way a few very 

 fine varieties can be 

 continued each year ; but seed taken from fine sorts, 

 will be certain to produce beautiful flowers. 



But when is the best time to sow seeds ? Supposing, 

 as before mentioned, some seeds be gathered in 

 September, it can either be sown at once, or in early 

 spring. If a little bottom heat can be used, we 

 should say defer sowing until February. But the 

 seed can be sown in autumn in pans or sha,llow 



