800 



OPEN FLOWER-GARDEN. 



lines 4 feet apart, and the plants 2 feet asun- 

 der in the row. By this means each has space 

 to develop itself fully. 



Propagation by single eyes is done with a view 

 to increase stock rapidly, particularly in the 

 case of new or rare varieties. The best time 

 for this operation is September, at which time 

 the stems become somewhat hard. Single eyes 

 are taken from the wood stems, not from the 

 flowering ones, with about an inch above and 

 the same below the eye ; these are set in light 

 sandy soil, in 3-inch pots, and treated as above 

 for ordinary cuttings. In planting the buds, 

 the whole of the portion of wood stem should 

 be buried in the earth, leaving the portion of 

 the foot-stalk only above it. Some, however, 

 instead of placing the eye or bud in a horizontal 

 position, set it vertically. 



Soil. — The hollyhock is less fastidious about 

 this than almost any other florist's flower. Its 

 large roots abstract a great amount of nutri- 

 ment from the soil, and its large bulk of foliage 

 and flowers require it. It is better that the 

 food be placed within reach of the roots, thau 

 that they should have to extend far to collect it. 

 It follows, therefore, that the soil should be deep, 

 of a rich light loamy nature, rather than a shal- 

 low poor gravel, or, still worse, a cold damp 

 clay. Kichness is essential for the perfect de- 

 velopment of the plants. 



In cold damp soils the roots are liable to 

 perish, and hence many take them up in autumn, 

 and place them in a protected place during 

 winter. This, however, is exceedingly injurious 

 to them. An airy situation, well exposed to the 

 sun, is the best ; a shady damp place the worst 

 of all. 



Planting. — The season preferred by the Eng- 

 lish growers for final planting is the latter end 

 of September or beginning of October ; and for 

 spring, the month of March, or early in April. 

 In Scotland, autumn-planting should be attended 

 to as early in the season as the plants are fit 

 for removal, that they may become established 

 before winter. Again, in spring, little is gained 

 by planting' too early — that is, until our growing 

 season sets in, which is, for the most part, the 

 latter end of April or beginning of May ; but 

 much in all these cases depends on the size and 

 state of the plants, and the convenience there 

 may be for keeping them under cover. In plant- 

 ing, the crown of the plant should rather stand 

 above the level of the ground-surface than below 

 it ; and in autumn, if the surface is covered with 

 coal-ashes, or rotten tan around the roots, the 

 better will they be protected during winter. 

 With the finer and more delicate sorts some 

 such protection is necessary, for it should be 

 kept in mind that the higher bred or higher the 

 cultivation of a plant is, the more predisposed 

 are such plants to disease, and the more liable 

 are they to sustain injury from atmospheric 

 changes. Mr Paul, in his interesting'little work, 

 " An Hour with the Hollyhock," thus speaks of 

 planting : " It is worthy of remark, that the sea- 

 son of flowering may he greatly prolonged by 

 striking and transplanting at ditferent seasons. 

 There is a difference of at least six weeks in the 

 period of flowering between plants removed early 



in autumn and late in spring ; and of this we 

 may avail ourselves to lengthen the succession, 

 or to obtain a full bloom early or late, as parti- 

 cular circumstances may require. Early-rooted 

 cuttings and old plants may be induced to 

 bloom in July, and late-rooted cuttings, and 

 spring-sown seedlings, in November. Hence 

 there will be no difficulty in obtaining a supply 

 of flowers for four successive months." 



Situation in the garden. — The hollyhock is not 

 a plant for a small garden, unless it can be 

 trained against a wall or fence. Like all other 

 plants intended to produce striking effects, they 

 should be planted in masses or groups, but these 

 should be upon open lawns or large spaces of 

 grass, and at a considerable distance apart. , When 

 planted singly, or scattered through the grounds, 

 their effect is lost; yet, nevertheless, if in groups 

 of ten or a dozen plants, they break the mono- 

 tonous outline of its planted shrubberies bytheir 

 spire-like spikes overtopping the other plants. 

 In single line they are not effective, particularly 

 where there is not -a. sufficient mass of back- 

 ground. In groups by themselves, whether each 

 group be composed of various shades of colour, 

 or confined to one colour only, if such groups be 

 not too large, their effects are the most pleasing. 



General remarks. — Three flowering spikes 

 only should be allowed in the strongest plants, 

 two on moderate ones, and one only on such as 

 are weak. The rest may be rubbed off as soon 

 as the selection is made, or they may be taken 

 off for cuttings. As soon as the shoots have at- 

 tained the height of a foot and a half, they should 

 be staked, to prevent their breaking. In stak- 

 ing, Mr Paul advises two stakes to be placed to 

 each plant, should it only have one stem, be- 

 cause the stem cannot be drawn close to a single 

 stake without injuring the flowers. " The 

 stakes," he says, " should be placed opposite, and 

 the stem brought between them, so that the 

 three objects form a straight line ; pass the bast 

 round the stem of the plant, drawing it to the 

 one stake, and perform the same operation a few 

 inches higher up, tying in the opposite direction, 

 and so on, tying on each stake alternately as the 

 stem rises. When two or three stems rise from 

 one plant, three stakes will be necessary, and 

 they should be placed triangularly, tying as 

 before." Othere ran wires or cords along the 

 line of the plants, which are supported every 

 8 or 10 feet by poles, and to these cords or 

 wires they attach the plants, without the least 

 injury to the blooms. In the flower-garden, 

 however, the supports should be so placed as to 

 be covered with the foliage, and set on the side 

 of the plant opposite to that from which it is to 

 be seen from the walk or lawn. Where the blooms 

 are set too closely on the stem, they should be 

 thinned out, so that each flower may have room 

 to expand. Where large flowers are desired for 

 exhibition, a portion of the tops of the flower- 

 spikes is often cut off; but in flower-garden 

 culture this should never be attempted, as it 

 destroys the character of the plant. Shading 

 is also necessary to retard the blooming of indi- 

 vidual spikes of flowers to suit the day of exhibi- 

 tion ; it is also employed to preserve colour, as 

 in all other classes of florists' flowers. In flower- 



