Filling Windoiv Boxes. 47 



nearly all the passing seasons display. Directly your 

 Autumn flowers are out of bloom you should refill your 

 box with fresh soil, and plant your Spring flowering 

 Bulbs, such as Tulips, Hyacinths, Crocuses, Snowdrops, 

 &c. October and the first half of November is the 

 best time for planting them, and two inches below the 

 surface is the proper depth. Mice are very fond of 

 these bulbs, so you must take care that they do not get 

 at them. The best way to do this is to cover the box 

 with something. Bulbs spring best in the dark, so you 

 should keep the box in a closet or anywhere from the 

 light till they have sprung up about an inch or so. 

 After planting give them a moderately good watering. 

 You can have very pretty flower boxes by filling 

 them entirely with annuals, such as Red and White 

 Candytuft, Clarkia, Nemophila, Larkspur, Musk, 

 Mignonette, Virginian Stock, and many others. They 

 mate a gorgeous display of bloom for a few weeks. 

 Mignonette especially is a favourite with every one, for 

 its delicate little flowers and exquisite fragrance — really 

 " a little darling," true to its name. A box of annuals 

 should be sown about the end of February, in small 

 patches or lines, as you may wish them arranged. 

 Flower seeds vary much in size from the big Scarlet 

 Eunner to the very small Clarkia, and you must cover 

 them accordingly. Scarlet Runners, Nasturtiums, and 

 Sweet Peas may be covered half-an-inch ; Clarkia and 

 Mignonette hardly covered. When the seedlings are 

 up you will have to thin them out as they grow ; thin 

 them out well, leaving only four or five plants in each 

 patch. If left too thick you will have poor bloom and 



