44 OENAMBNTAL FOLIAGE PLANTS. 



were suitable, they had probably never before been out 

 of the strong moist heat of a stove during the whole- 

 course of their existence, and as a natural consequence, 

 their constitutions could not withstand the sudden change 

 of position made, not only without due preparation, but 

 without any preparation whatever. 



There is another class of cultivators who decry sub- 

 tropical gardening, solely on account of its expense, 

 but these we imagine have not kept pace with the times, 

 and made use of high-class " bedding plants," or else they 

 must have formed the idea that only excessively expensive 

 plants can produce a semi-tropical appearance in the flower 

 garden. These, however, are not the facts, for many of 

 the ornamental-leaved plants, which are adapted for this 

 purpose in an eminent degree, are not so expensive as 

 the new and high-priced " soft-wooded flowering bedding 

 plants," so that taking into consideration the fact, that the 

 use of the former will curtail to some extent that of the 

 latter, the annual expenditure under the new system will 

 be found about the same as under the old regime. We 

 may, however, even yield a point, and admit that to an 

 amateur who does not possess any other than the so-called 

 " bedding plants,'' the first commencement of sub-tropical 

 gardening will necessitate a somewhat extra expenditure, 

 but then this will be compensated in one year, for during 

 summer the garden will be increased in beauty and 

 interest a hundredfold, and in winter, if a proper selection, 

 has been made, many of these plants may be removed 

 to the dwelling-house, where all winter they may be- 

 used for the decoration of halls and corridors, windows 

 and drawing rooms, or dinner tables — a use to which 

 Verbenas, Calceolarias, and such-like plants can never 

 be applied. Therefore we hold that the Ornamental- 



