POPULAE GARDEN PLANTS. 



405 



of October, from which time till February the 

 plant remains in a state of rest. With regard 

 to treatment during these periods, many modes 

 have been recommended; but in our opinion no 

 directions are plainer and better than those of 

 Dr. Horner, who says: — "The pots for a full- 

 sized plant should not exceed 4 inches at the 

 top and 3 inches at the bottom, inside measure; 

 they should also be made 5J inches deep, to 

 allow of abundant drainage, and should not be 

 hard-baked, but left as porous as possible. It 

 is a great and almost universal fault to use pots 

 of too large a size. The best time for potting 

 is immediately after the plants have bloomed; 

 for, on account of the long previous confinement 

 in the frame, the frequent waterings, and the 

 excitement of blooming, the Auricula is very 

 apt to contract disease, especially rot or decay 

 in some part of the main or tap root, as it is 

 called. This, in repotting, is at once detected, 

 and consequently the life of the plant saved. 

 Moreover, by early potting ample time is given 

 for the pot to get well filled with young healthy 

 roots before the approach of winter — the great 

 secret of a vigorous bloom the following spring; 

 neglect of yearly repotting is a great evil. 



"The important operation is thus performed: 

 First, put at the bottom of the pot at least 1J 

 inch of crocks of broken garden pots; on these 

 place a thin layer of decayed leaves unbroken 

 up, which will prevent the soil from filling up 

 the interstices between the crocks, and, more- 

 over, furnish a most acceptable nidus for the 

 roots of the plants. Next, fill up the pot 

 within about 2 inches or so with the compost, 

 leaving it slightly cone-shaped; on the top of 

 the cone put a little sand, on this place the end 

 of the tap-root, and, having disposed the roots 

 regularly over it, let the pot be filled nearly to 

 the brim, so that the soil just covers the inser- 

 tion of the lowest leaf. Now strike the pot 

 smartly two or three times on the ground, and 

 then remove it to its summer quarters, when 

 water must be given just sufficient to moisten 

 the soil, and repeated at the end of a week, not 

 before. In filling the pot with compost I 

 always put in about three fingers' full of de- 

 cayed or rather decaying leaves, not leaf-mould 

 — a pinch here and there. In repotting the 

 following year an unusual mass of roots will be 

 found surrounding and piercing them through 

 and through; they at once afford most accept- 

 able nourishment and drainage. Previously to 

 the operation of potting, the plant must be 

 prepared by carefully crumbling off the old soil 

 with the fingers and then washing the roots in 



water, in order that any decay or disease may 

 be detected, in which case it should be effectu- 

 ally cut out with a sharp knife, and the main 

 root should then be shortened to within 1 inch 

 of the leaves, leaving only the young and new 

 fibres or roots. One great and fatal cause of 

 the dwindling and disease of Auriculas is the 

 leaving too long a tap-root; it will most 

 assuredly decay and kill the plant. When it is 

 desired to save seed the operation of potting 

 must be delayed till August. 



"The summer situation of the Auricula is 

 all-important. As it naturally delights to grow 

 in open and elevated regions, as on the Alps, so 

 its place and position in the garden must be 

 comparatively high and of free exposure. The 

 pots should stand on planks, which are raised 2 

 feet from the ground, and placed by the side of 

 a wall or hedge having a north-east aspect, and 

 without awning or covering. Here they may 

 be safely left till November; for if they are 

 annually repotted, properly trimmed at the 

 root, have sufficient drainage in the pots, and if 

 due attention, moreover, be given to them from 

 time to time (as by carefully twisting off de- 

 cayed leaves, stirring the surface soil occasion- 

 ally with the point of a knife), the much-talked- 

 of rot need not be dreaded; but if these 

 directions as to potting, just described, have 

 not been followed, and the plants have not been 

 elevated on planks the required distance from 

 the ground, and consequently left in the usual 

 susceptible state of disease, by all means let a 

 temporary awning be erected over them if the 

 summer prove wet. 



"In November they may be placed in the 

 frame, giving them all the air possible, as by 

 letting down the front lights and opening the 

 door behind — the top lights being kept on in 

 case of rain. Watering must be gradually 

 withdrawn, so that during December and Janu- 

 ary the soil be just kept from being absolutely 

 dry; if it be kept wet or damp, the plants Avill 

 be in great danger of contracting disease and of 

 suffering from frost. In winter, during intense 

 frost the frame must be protected with efficient 

 covering; two stout blankets, with an outer 

 coverlet of tarpauling, I have found the best, 

 and, in the end, the cheapest materials. If not 

 protected from severe frost many of the flower- 

 stems will be found deaf or with only two or 

 three pips at the blooming time. In winter, 

 during milder days the plants should have 

 sufficient air. 



"About the end of February, and during 

 March, they must have all the air possible, and 



