THE PINE- APPLE. 21 



have moderately filled their pots with roots in a whit© 

 and healthy state of preservation. They should not 

 be shifted tiU roots have formed themselves round the 

 ball of soil sufficient to keep it together. On the 

 other hand, they should not be allowed to stand un- 

 shifted tiU they become anything like pot-bound. If 

 the former condition is not arrived at before the middle 

 or end of February, the operation of shifting should be 

 deferred, and the plants gently excited into action by 

 increasing the night temperature to 60° when cold, 

 and 65° when mild, with 10° more with sun-heat by 

 day. Keep the bottom-heat at 85°, and increase the 

 moisture both in the soil and air, till their roots are 

 in the condition I have named. Should they have 

 become pot-bound, which sometimes occurs in the case 

 of strong suckers, especially when in the smaller-sized 

 pots, the balls should be partially broken up with the 

 hand, and the roots disentangled as much as possible. 

 Plants with hard matted balls seldom start freely into 

 growth, and are liable to start prematurely into fruit. 

 The best way is to keep a watchful eye on young stock 

 and shift them the first opportunity after they are suffi- 

 ciently rooted. 



About a week before the shifting is performed, the 

 plants should be carefully examined, and all those that 

 are dry should be watered, so that at shifting time the 

 soil may be moderately moist. If shifted with their 

 balls dry it is difficult to properly moisten them after- 

 wards, particularly as it is not desirable to water them 

 immediately after being shifted. The other prelimin- 

 aries of getting the necessary amount of soil prepared 

 and placed in some place to warm it, and the pots 

 cleansed, crocked, and arranged in convenient readi- 

 ness, should be all seen to before the day on which 



