20 
comparatively speaking, little growth will be 
made during the summer, but the plants 
must be kept in a shaded position until the 
hot summer weather is past. As soon as 
the days become cooler the plants will make 
a rapid growth and must be gradually inured 
to full sunlight. Get them as near the glass 
as possible. 
The best plants of this begonia are those 
started from cuttings in the early winter. 
Cut off the leaf stalk to within one-quarter 
of an inch or so of the leaf blade and place 
in sand. If possible, give a little bottom 
heat, but the leaf will root without it. Keep 
the temperature about 70 degrees and the 
atmosphere humid by putting a sash or light 
of glass over it. Pot off the rooted plants 
in small pots. One of the secrets of success 
with this begonia is to never over-pot; when 
shifting advance one size at a time. 
FOR FLOWERS AT ANY TIME 
The lady’s ear drops (Fuchsia) is one of 
the best old-fashioned houseplants, easily 
grown, not insisting on sun, a fast grower 
and remaining in bloom for months. A 
north window has sufficient light for it. 
Very shapely plants can be grown without 
much difficulty. All that is necessary is a 
little pinching and the plant must be fre- 
quently turned so that all sides will have an 
equal amount of light. 
The charm of the fuchsia is in its flowers. 
The most common one, Ff. speciosa, has a 
long white or creamy white calyx tube, one 
to one and a quarter inches long, with four 
narrow, pointed lobes. ‘The petals are red. 
There are many forms of this, both single 
and double, the chief points of difference 
being the color which varies to flowers hay- 
ing red calyx tubes, and red to purple petals. 
The flowers vary in length, in some very 
short, while in one variety, Early Beacons- 
field, they are three inches long. ~ 
THE GARDEN MAGAZINE 
If wanted for porch decoration or for plant- 
ing in shaded places about the porch in the 
summer, start the plants from cuttings in the 
fall. After flowering the plants need a rest 
for several months. If this resting period is 
during the early spring put the plants in a 
cool, dry place and withold water; if it is 
during the summer place them outdoors in 
a shaded place and give no water, for they 
will get sufficient from the summer rains 
to keep the wood from shrivelling. 
Many people do not care to carry their 
fuchsias over from year to year, drying them 
off during the summer and starting them 
into growth again in September. When 
starting old plants which have been resting 
knock the plants out of the pots, shake out 
from among the roots as much of the old 
soil as possible, and replace in the same 
pot with new, rich soil. Keep the plants 
in a rather humid atmosphere but do not 
give much water until the roots have taken 
hold of the new soil and the stems begin to 
“break.” At the time of repotting, cut back, 
leaving only an inch or two of the last 
season’s growth. 
For winter bloom, start the old plants 
into growth in December. By January or 
February, there will be plenty of new shoots 
from which to make cuttings. Do not use 
old hardwood, or even new growth which 
has become hardened. Make the cutting 
two joints long. As soon as the cuttings 
have rooted, put them in 2-inch pots, using 
a rich soil. Keep them growing along 
rapidly, shifting them to larger pots as 
needed, and pinch out the ends of the new 
growth frequently in order to produce 
stocky plants. These will make good plants 
in 5 or 6 inch pots the following fall. Plants 
may be grown from seed in a night temper- 
ature of about 55 degrees but a few degrees 
lower will do no harm. 
The flowering maples (Abutilon) chiefly 
The best long season flowering tender shrub, especially for shaded corners, indoors or out, is the fuchsia 
AuGusT, 1908 
Your callas will surely flower if the bulbs are 
dried off in summer, starting growth again in 
September 
used as bedding plants in the summer, may 
also be grown for foliage or flower during the 
winter. ‘The commonest type is A. striatum. 
The leaves are thin, dark green, about three 
inches across, five-parted, and very closely re- 
semble the leaf of a maple. The bell-shaped 
flowers, about an inch and a half across, 
are borne on long, drooping pedicles, and are 
red or orange in color marked with many 
brownish red veins. ‘The stamens are borne 
in a large bunch on the end of a column 
which is as long as the petals. A larger, 
stronger growing kind is A. Thompsont, in 
which the leaves are only three-parted and 
mottled with lighter green and yellow. The 
flowers are yellow or orange with red veins. 
In addition to these there are many 
named kinds in the trade, the most common 
of which are Savitzii and Souvenir de Bonn. 
The species of abutilon can be grown from 
seed easily but it is hardly worth the trouble 
because they are so easily increased by green- 
wood cuttings taken at any time of the 
year, but the best results will be had from 
spring struck cuttings. The abutilon is 
so easily grown that the old plants may be 
thrown away as soon as they get ungainly 
and new plants started. The old plants 
can be kept small enough for the house 
if they are occasionally cut back. 
THE BEST YELLOW FLOWER 
The best yellow-flowered plant for early 
winter bloom is the yellow flax (Reinwardtia 
trigyna, but almost always spoken of among 
gardeners as Linum trigynum). ‘The plants 
grow nine inches to a foot high and are 
