386 MANUAL OF GARDENING 
former method, the offsets should be cut. off and set in sand, at a tem- 
perature of 65° or 70°. The cuttings root slowly and the plants for a 
time make very slow growth. The general cultural treatment is that 
of palms. Give abundance of water in summer. 
Pansy (Fig. 244) is without doubt the most popular hardy spring 
flower in cultivation. The strains of seed are many, each contain- 
ing great possibilities. 
The culture is simple and the results are sure. Seed sown in August 
or September, in boxes or a frame, will make plants large enough to 
reset in November (three or four inches apart) and bloom the follow- 
ing March; or they may be left until March in open seed-beds before 
setting out. Also, if they are sown very thinly in the frames, they 
may remain undisturbed through the winter, blooming very early the 
following spring. The frames should be protected by mats, boards, 
or other covering through the severe cold, and as the sun gains strength, 
care should be taken to keep them from heaving by alternate thawing 
and freezing. Seed sown in boxes in January or February will make 
fine blooming plants by April, taking the place of those blooming earlier. 
The pansy is generally mentioned with plants suitable for partial 
shade, but it also thrives in other localities, especially where the sun 
is not very hot nor the weather very dry. The requisites for satisfac- 
tory pansy culture are fertile, moist, cool soil, protection from the 
noonday sun, and attention to keeping plants from going to seed. As 
the ground becomes warm, a mulch of leafmold or other light material 
should be spread over the bed to retain moisture and exclude heat. 
Spring and fall give the best bloom. In hot summer weather the 
flowers become small. 
Pelargonium. — To this genus belong the plants known as gera- 
niums — the most satisfactory of house-plants, and extensively used 
as bedding plants. No plants will give better returns in leaf and 
flower; and these features, added to the ease of propagation, make them 
general favorites. The common geranium is one of the few plants that 
can be bloomed at any time of the year. 
There are several main groups of pelargoniums, as the common 
“fish geraniums” (from the odor of the foliage), the “show” or Lady 
