A YEAR'S GARDENING 



from its handsome foliage of silvery white, and G. luteum has also 

 the advantage of large orange-red flowers, while another variety 

 called Asia Minor bears flowers of bright scarlet. 



GLOBE THISTLE. See Echinops. 



GLOXINIA. There is little doubt that the best way of raising 

 Gloxinias is from seed, as by this method not only can a fine strain 

 be produced but also other new and different shades of colour, while 

 a good selection can be made of plants with fine foliage, a feature 

 which has now become distinctive of the Gloxinia. The best time 

 for sowing is February and March, and a compost of fibrous loam is 

 the most suitable soil. Seed should be sown thinly and very lightly 

 covered with earth, and a daily sprinkling of water is desirable. 

 Each seedling as it becomes large enough should be gently trans- 

 planted into a pot, and the process followed from day to day. A 

 moist heat of about 60° to 65° wiU produce a rapid growth, but when 

 the flowers begin to appear both temperature and humidity must 

 be reduced. If it be desired to store the plants for the next season 

 the supply of water should be gradually restricted untU the leaves 

 fall off, when the bulbs should be lifted and stored in a warm place, 

 covered in cocoanut fibre or peat. There is an almost endless 

 variety of shades and mixture of colours in the flower of the Gloxinia, 

 ranging from the self-colours of crimson, rose, purple, violet, white, 

 etc., to the tipped, ringed, shaded and spotted kinds, while in the form 

 of the plant we have such varieties as giant, erect, drooping, etc. 

 A single packet of seed obtained from one of our first-class seedsmen 

 will produce an abundant variety. 



GODETIA. Although this might rightly be placed under the 

 heading of CEnothera (the Evening Primrose) it has now such an 

 extended variety of its own that it is usually found in catalogues 

 under the name of Godetia. It is a splendid annual, perfectly hardy, 

 profuse in flowers of many distinct colours, and produces a fine effect 

 when massed together in a mixed border. Seed should be sown ia 

 March or April for summer flowering, or in September for early 

 flowering the following year. There are many varieties in the habit 

 of the plant, from the miniature of 6 inches high with its flowers of 

 glowing crimson (a valuable kind for border edgings) to the tall, 

 white-flowered Duchess of Albany, growing to a height of 2 feet; 

 while in colour the flowers range from pure pearly white to rich dark 

 red, carmine, rose and spotted white-and-red. As the taU varieties 

 are of robust growth it should be borne in mind, when massing them 



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