ON BEDDING PLANTS. 



great care, or "damping" will ensue. The shrubby kinds are 

 generally grown for bedding purposes ; these include such 

 well-known forms as Gaine's Yellow, a good old-fashioned 

 bedder, of robust constitution ; Sultan, a fine dark variety ; and 

 Golden Gem, one of the best, with bright yellow flowers ; these 

 grow from i2in. to i8in. in height. Calceolaria aniplexicaiilis 

 belongs to the herbaceous section. The leaves are stem-clasping, 

 and the lemon-coloured flowers are produced freely from June 

 until late in the autumn. The plant grows high, and is 



very good for associating with other taller-growing subjects. 



Celosias. — Although typically greenhouse and stove plants, 

 some of these are now used for bedding purposes, and very 

 graceful decorative plants they prove to be, with their showy, 

 feathery plumes of flowers. 

 Seeds should be sown in 

 March or April in pans of 

 light soil, pricking off the 

 seedlings when large enough 

 into thumb-pots, and grow- 

 ing them on quickly in gentle 

 heat. They will soon be 

 ready for shifting into 5in. 

 pots. They should be kept 

 rather on the dry side, and as 

 near the glass as possible, to 

 induce flowering, gradually 

 hardening them off, and plant- 

 ing out in June, after the 

 crowns of flowers are formed. 

 Celosia pyramidalis grows to 

 a height of i8in., and has 

 numerous varieties, usually 

 some shade of yellow or 

 crimson. In catalogues they 

 are generally described under 

 the name of C. pluniosa. 

 Sutton's Dwarf is one of 

 the best, being of compact 

 habit and possessing free- 

 flowering properties. Celosia 

 cristata (Fig. 84) is the Cockscomb. Seed should be sown in 

 March, and the seedlings pricked out into pans of light soil and 

 grown on quickly for a time ; then by keeping them cooler for 

 a few days their combs will soon appear, and although small, 

 it is easy to distinguish which are worth keeping. These 

 should be potted up, and grown on in heat. When the combs 

 are fairly well developed, the plants may be hardened off, and 

 transferred to beds in warm situations. There are several varieties 



Fig. 84. — Celosia cristata 



