58 WOOD AND GARDEN 



but as the season goes on they grow longer and bolder, 

 and graduate first into bowls and then into upright 

 glasses. I think Pansies are always best without 

 mixture of other flowers, and in separate colours, or 

 only in such varied tints as make harmonies of one 

 class of colour at a time. 



The big yellow and white bunch Primroses are 

 delightful room flowers, beautiful, and of sweetest scent. 

 When full-grown the flower-stalks are ten inches long 

 and more. Among the seedlings there are always a 

 certain number that are worthless. These are pounced 

 upon as soon as they show their bloom, and cut up 

 for greenery to go with the cut flowers, leaving the 

 root-stock with all its middle foliage, and cutting away 

 the roots and any rough outside leaves. 



When the first Daflrodils are out and suitable 

 greenery is not abundant in the garden (for it does 

 not do to cut their own blades), I bring home hand- 

 fuls of the wild Arum leaves, so common in roadside 

 hedges, grasping the whole plant close to the ground ; 

 then a steady pull breaks it away from the tuber, and 

 you have a fine long-stalked sheaf of leafage held 

 together by its own underground stem. This should be 

 prepared like the Lent Hellebores, by putting it deep in 

 water for a time. I always think the trumpet Daffodils 

 look better with this than with any other kind of foliage. 

 When the wild. Arum is full-grown the leaves are so 

 large and handsome that they do quite well to ac- 

 company the white Arum flowers from the greenhouse. 



