ANNUAL FLOWERING PLANTS 91 
PHLOX 
The annual phloxes are easy to grow from seed and 
bloom quickly. They have a great variety of desirable 
colors and furnish cut flowers during the greater part 
of the summer. They are valuable as clumps in borders 
and as an undergrowth for tall, bare-stemmed plants ; 
they may also be used for pot and box culture. 
Soil. The soil should be rich. Well-decayed stable 
manure or leaf mold thoroughly mixed with the earth 
will cause the plant to make a luxuriant growth and 
will bring out the delicate color of the flowers. The 
soil should be kept moist and in good tilth during the 
entire summer. 
Sowing. Phloxes may be transplanted easily. Sow 
the seeds in boxes in March or April, or in the open 
ground in seed beds early in May. When the ground 
is in good condition, transplant to a permanent place, 
setting the plants a foot apart each way. The seeds 
may also be sown in permanent beds and thinned as 
the plants become crowded. 
There are advantages in transplanting: the soil that 
has been packed by the spring rains can be put into 
better condition; weeds may be destroyed; and the 
plants may be set a little deeper than those in the seed 
bed, thus insuring a stronger growth of roots. Weeds 
must be removed when they are quite small; if they are 
permitted to grow for any length of time, the roots of 
the phloxes will be loosened when they are pulled. 
