GARDENING FOR LITTLE GIRLS 
the house. Perhaps they think it isn’t worth 
while.’’ If they can afford to buy all they want to, 
that may be the reason, but the real flower lover 
will delight in coaxing some favorite to go on bloom- 
ing indoors. Heliotropes cut back, petunias and sal- 
vias, by being carefully lifted with a ball of earth 
80 as not to disturb the roots, and then kept in the 
shade for a couple of days, ought to continue to 
bloom for some time. Begonias I have moved this 
way without affecting them for a single day. A 
small canna, thus potted, will last a long time and 
help out among the more expensive foliage plants. 
Geraniums, however, are the old stand-by of win- 
dow gardeners. If ‘‘slipped’’ during the summer, 
by cutting off a tender shoot just below a joint, and 
putting it in a pot of light, rather sandy soil, 
and kept moist, it should bloom during the win- 
ter. It does best in sunshine. 
The kind of soil best adapted to houseplants gen- 
erally, is given by one authority as two parts loam, 
one part leaf mould, one part sharp sand. The 
variation of different growers simply proves what 
IT have seen contended, that it is the proper tem- 
perature and moisture that really count. 
The city girl, with little space to spare, will 
find the begonias, in their many varieties, most 
satisfactory. They respond quickly to house treat- 
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