December, 1905 



THE GARDEN MAGAZINE 



211 



The home of the fringed gentian. It grows in a moist, 

 well-drained place, and demands rich soil to flower well 



very fine rose on the watering pot, the flat 

 covered with a sheet of newspaper to keep 

 the soil from drying out, and as a further 

 precaution the flat was put into a shaded 

 frame, where the sun never shone on it. 



surface. Never pour water over the flat nor 

 flood the surface, as the seeds are very small 

 and are apt to be displaced and washed into 

 heaps. 



In about six weeks from the time of sowing, 

 when the plants are about the size of a pin's 

 head, transplant into 25-inch pots or 2^ 

 inches apart in flats. Although the plants 

 are small they are quite easily handled, the 

 root being about 1^ inches long. It consists 

 of a straight or tap root, with sometimes a 

 single rootlet, at this stage of growth. 



In two months, or about the middle of 

 July, transplant into t,\- or 4-inch pots, with- 

 out disturbing the ball of soil around the 

 roots — which needs special care, for, although 

 the roots are long, they are not fibrous and 

 do not hold the soil. 



The first season's growth is finished by the 

 latter part of September, when the plants 

 will have four pairs of leaves, which lie prac- 

 tically upon the surface of the soil, there 

 being no stem formed the first season. 



Six months old 

 from seed. The 

 first season's 

 growth mature. 

 Notice the ex- 

 traordinary root 

 development 



Toward the end of 

 November the 

 leaves fall, leaving 

 only the thickened 

 root stock, or tap root, 

 with a tiny bud on top. 



THE SECOND YEAR'S 

 GROWTH 



When spring comes again 

 the main stem grows very 

 quickly from this bud. 

 There is only one main 

 stem, just as there is one 

 main root; all the branches 

 that may form on the 

 matured plant arise from 

 this one stem, aboveground, 

 from the axils of the leaves. 

 The plant does not make 

 a "crown." When severe 

 weather sets in the plants 

 should have a covering of 



SUCCESS AT LAST 



The seeds came up in three and one-half 

 weeks. I saw thin green lines across the 

 flat, but unfortunately the soil was now get- 

 ting dry, and I thought it necessary to water. 

 The day after watering the green lines were 

 not so plain, and two days later all that was 

 left was a little tuft in a corner of the flat. 

 Ten days later I pricked off sixty-five seed- 

 lings, all that was left from thousands; fifty- 

 eight of these flowered. 



This season I determined to try another 

 seed bed, and selected sphagnum moss as 

 more likely to be free from soil than moss 

 found on rocks. Seeds were very scarce last 

 season, so I had only a few to work with this 

 spring, but every one that germinated has 

 grown and at this writing is in a pot. 



After the first handling I have had no 

 trouble with the plants through "damping 

 off." It is no more difficult than handling 

 poppy seedlings, and indeed their root sys- 

 tems are very much alike. Each has a tap 

 root which must be preserved. Of the two 

 plants I would prefer to handle the gentian, as 

 when once it gets a good start it is pretty sure 

 to grow, whereas poppies are liable to suc- 

 cumb at any time. 



There should be no difficulty in growing the 

 fringed gentian in a greenhouse, where the 

 atmospheric conditions are under control, 

 and by baking the soil, to kill all fungus (as 

 is done when germinating ferns from spores), 

 the damping off of seedlings would be reduced 

 to a minimum. 



HOW TO GROW GENTIANS 



Sow the seed the first week in April, using 

 a shallow flat filled with sphagnum moss 

 broken fine and pressed firmly with a board, 

 to make a smooth, even surface. Soak the 

 moss thoroughly and sow the seed thinly. 

 Do not cover the seed. 



Shade with a newspaper, to prevent the 

 moss from drying out too quickly. Should 

 the moss become dry before the seeds ger- 

 minate, dip the seed flat into a tub of water 

 and let the water rise slowly through the 

 drainage in the bottom until it reaches the 



The fringed gentian (Gentiana crinita) has the most intense violet flowers in September — all the books call 

 them blue, but it is not sky blue. Abundant flowers are only found on plants growing in moist, rich soil 

 such as that shown here. Hitherto no one has succeeded in growing the plant. It takes two years to flower 

 from seed. Often early frosts kill the young seeds, and where the plant was abundant it appears in suc- 

 ceeding years in greatly reduced numbers, while the alternate crop is flowering in profusion elsewhere 



