8 THE FLORIST AND 



decayed stable manure. Such a soil will allow the plant to receive an abun- 

 dance of moisture without injury. As the plant grows pinch back the shoots 

 an eye, and tie them out to the desired form and shape ; continue this 

 pinching and tieing for twelve months, before it is suffered to flower, whteh 

 let it go a head, and it will then produce a mass of scarlet flowers that for 

 graceful elegance cannot be surpassed. 



Am I asked for a good winter flowering plant of the easiest possible cul- 

 ture, again I have to recommend Bouvardia leiantha. Take cuttings early 

 in the spring, strike them in the manner aforementioned and as soon as the 

 plants are well rooted, pot them into four inch pots, in any coarse, rich, 

 loam. Encourage them to grow as much as possible ; and, during the sum- 

 mer keep them out of doors exposed to the sun, but the pots in which they 

 are growing preserved from its influence. At the approach of fall, shift 

 them into pots a size larger, water them well and remove to the greenhouse, 

 they will continue to bloom from that time forward throughout the winter ; 

 and the more their handsome blossoms are cut for bouquets, the more freely 

 will it strive to produce others. If a little heat can be commanded, it will 

 give greater satisfaction. 



And now were I asked for a good scarlet border flower, of a good habit, 

 free blooming, and adapted to full exposure, I should still say Bouvardia 

 leiantha. Cuttings struck in the fall, grown in three inch pots, and kept 

 through the winter in a light place secure from frost, may be planted out 

 early in spring when danger of frost is over. They will prefer a warm sit- 

 uation provided the soil is not too dry or too wet ; and for a short time after 

 they commence growing, will require to have their shoots peg'd down over 

 the beds, and an occasional pinching off. Thomas Meehan. 



A FEW WORDS ON THE VITALITY OF SEEDS. 



Translated from the Revue Horticole. 



We lately entertained our readers with facts tending to establish that 

 seeds, when they are placed in certain conditions, are capable of preserving 

 their vitality longer than we would be inclined to believe, if we judged only 

 by the duration of those which are kept in our granaries and laboratories 

 for daily use. Two of our subscribers, whose attention to this subject was ex- 

 cited by our articles, have communicated to us new facts drawn from their 

 own experience, and which tend still to confirm what we have said of the in- 

 fluence of the medium in which they placed on the preservation of seeds 

 which are subjected to it. 



