ON NOTABLE RACES OF PLANTS 6i 



plant each seedling separately into a 2-inch pot, using a 

 soil of best loam and leaf mould, not so finely divided as 

 before, and pot lightly with the fingers, giving the pot 

 a few sharp raps on the potting bench, which will 

 sufficiently consolidate the soil. When these pots are well 

 filled with roots, transfer to 4 inch, keeping them on 

 shelves up to early July, when they may be placed in 

 frames, preferably with a north aspect. The lights 

 should be closed in wet weather or when cold winds 

 blow. 



Towards the end of September remove the plants 

 from the summer frames on to greenhouse benches or 

 shelves, as near the glass as possible, which of course 

 should be unobscured. 



The flowering state of these primroses should not, if 

 raised as above, be reached ere January, but if the plant 

 show flower before the required time, the buds should 

 be picked out, although this is unfortunate, as the 

 first central truss on vigorous plants is often very 

 fine. 



Premature flowering is often occasioned by checks, 

 such as draught, starvation, insufficient or delayed re- 

 potting. A good Chinese primrose will show a hand- 

 some rosette of foliage, spreading much beyond the pot 

 rim, and a succession of sturdy spikes requiring no 

 stakes. Shaky, or toppling plants, are the result of im- 

 proper potting — the soil should always come up to the 

 collar or neck. 



Weekly doses of clear liquid manure should be given 

 when the plants are established in their flowering pots. 



The Stellata group is a newer creation, or rather selec- 

 tion, of the Chinese primrose, in which the flowers are 

 borne in looser and longer spikes. They produce a 

 pleasing variation, and by some are preferred to the 

 stifFer and more compact types. 



The above are perennials, but a fresh annual raising 



