FLORISTS' FLOWERS. 



19 



and te pressed into the soil, adding a very thin 

 sprinkling of silver sand or charcoal dust. A piece 

 of glass should then be placed over each pot or pan, 

 and these stood in a cool frame or green-house, where 

 the seeds can be shaded from the sun when necessary. 

 Auricula-seed germinates slowly, and at irregular 

 times ; and seeds sown in the autumn will sometimes 

 lie in part until the spring before there are signs of 

 germination. Some do not sow until the spring ; 

 but when it is convenient, it is decidedly advan- 

 tageous to do so as soon as the seeds are ripe. We 

 may here remark that seeds taken from the finest 

 edged flowers will produce Alpine varieties ; and 

 those who are doing their best to improve our 

 varieties of show Auriculas generally do not care 

 to grow Alpine Auriculas. Some of the Lancashire 

 and Yorkshire florists raise their seed in a remark- 

 able manner. They take large pots, half fill them 

 with crocks, on which they place a layer of cinders, 

 and fill up with the very fine ashes taken from 

 a blacksmith's forge. The pots are stood in pans of 

 water, and a piece of glass placed over each. The 

 seed germinates much more rapidly than under the 

 older system of sowing ; but it is necessary to prick 

 off the young plants as soon as they can be handled, 

 or they are in danger of dying off. The strongest 

 seedling Auriculas will flower in fourteen months 

 from the time of sowing; the remainder not until 

 the following spring. As soon as the tiny plants 

 are large enough to handle, they need to be pricked 

 out into pots of fine soil, a dozen or so in a pot. 

 When they have grown sufficiently large, the plants 

 can be put three in a pot, or potted singly into small 

 pots to flower. Any one caring to have a choice 

 collection should reject all flowers of poor quality 

 among the seedlings, and retain only those that 

 are improvements, or at least equal to existing 

 varieties. 



A common error w^ith growers of the Auricula is 

 to over-pot. This is a mistake, as the plants do better 

 when the roots are in a reasonably confined space. 

 The best pots for good-sized plants are those known 

 as forty-eights; these are about four and a half 

 inches in diameter measured inside. Smaller plants 

 need smaller pots ; and the sooner the roots have 

 penetrated to all parts of the soil, the more satis- 

 factory will be the condition of the plants. 



Potting is generally done in June and July, when 

 the plants have done flowering and before they make 

 their summer growth. The soil should be prepared 

 some time previously, and should be composed of 

 the following: — good fibrous, clayey loam, from an 

 old pasture that has lain by and become thoroughly 

 rotten; this should be broken up quite small be- 

 fore using. With this mix a fourth part of decayed 

 cow -manure, or, if that cannot be had, the same 



quantity of decomposed manure from an old hot-bed, 

 adding some charcoal and enough silver sand to keep 

 it open. This should be used when it is thoroughly 

 mixed together, and suflBciently moist to cling to- 

 gether a little, but not be wet. The plants must be ' 

 turned out of their pots, all the old soil shaken out, 

 and any decayed portion of the tap or main root cut 

 clean away ; any offsets or side growths from the 

 roots or main stem should be removed and put round 

 the sides of small pots. Potting should be done 

 somewhat firmly, and when finished the plants should 

 be kept in a close frame for a few days, and no 

 water should be applied for two days. Then it 

 should be carefully and gradually applied. 



The best position for Auriculas during the summer 

 is a cold frarae in a shady place ; on the north side 

 of a wall or thick fence is one of the best positions. 

 At the end of September the frame can be placed in 

 the open, facing the south. It is a good plan to raise 

 the pots above the ground -level ; it is not so neces- 

 sary in the case of a shallow frame, but advisable to 

 have the plants as near the glass as possible. In the 

 case of severe frost it is also necessary to cover up 

 the frame with mats ; and it is as well to keep the soil 

 in the pots pretty dry during the winter, as the plants 

 are at rest. In February it is the custom to top- 

 dress the plants, using some rich soil for the purpose. 

 The reason for this is, that the plants put forth roots 

 near the surface in spring, and some fresh soil is 

 applied for the young roots to work in. A portion 

 of the old surface soil is carefully removed, and the 

 fresh soil put in its place. But the top-dressing of 

 Auriculas is not so much followed as it was, and 

 some of the leading growers for exhibitions dispense 

 with it altogether. And they are found dispensing 

 with rich composts, and use turfy loam in which 

 Cowslips will grow : some friable leaf -mould from 

 the woods, and a little rough stream or silver sand. 

 Those who grow choice collections of Auriculas now 

 build small houses, so that they can go into them 

 and enjoy their flowers at all times ; and they some- 

 times heat them with a flue or hot- water apparatus, 

 which, while it keeps frost from harming the beau- 

 tiful flowers, also helps a fine development. But it is 

 by no means necessary that artificial heat should be 

 applied to the Auricula at any time during the year. 



The choice named Alpine Auriculas need to be 

 treated in the same way as recommended for the 

 show varieties. But being generally of a hard}- 

 character they do well in the open ground, such 

 as the shady .side of a bank, or shallow rockwork. 

 Inferior varieties — that are, however, too good to be 

 thrown away — can be planted out in this way. 

 The new laced Alpine varieties are singularly 

 pretty, and so attractive that they are well deserving 

 of cultivation. 



