22 



EVERY WO:}IAX HER OWX FLOWER GARDEXER. 



the name and flower are one. and the poor monosylhible becomes rich in 

 sweetness and appropriateness." 

 And again : 



" Brov:allia is a pretty name, and was given to a Peruvian flower by 

 Linna?ns in honor of a friend of his liy the name of Browall : yet the 

 name gives no idt^a of the flower which is remarkably attractive : " and, 

 he suggests that BroicaV.'s Beauty would have immortalized both the 

 friend and the flower, and have advf rtis^d its claims to the regard of the 

 florist. 



A short digression from seed planting, fair friends, which it is to be 

 hoped you will pardon and overlook. 



Ty'hen your seeds are planted, unless the day is cloudy and showeiy, 

 they will require shading from the heat of the sun. 



I find old newspapers are the best protection : btit. if the patches are 

 small, flower pots can be inverted over them. The newspapers mtist be 

 laid over the seeds, after they have been well watered, and fastened at 

 the corners by small stones or a handfttl of the earth. At night they 

 should be removed to let the dew moisten the grotmd. and put back 

 before it is dried up in the mornmg. Continue this until the tiny leaf- 

 lets appear : then remove them entirely. If the ground is dry the seeds 

 must be thoroughly wet every night. Moisttire is very needftil to ger- 

 minate seeds; without its aid they cannot sprout. The would-be florists 

 often plant their seeds as the Catalogues direct and then give no farther ^ 

 heed to them. You will often hear it said, I can't make annuals grow. 

 I planted fifty to sixty varieties, and not half a dozen of them ever 

 sprouted. I have no faith in the seedsmen ; they send out old seeds and 

 keep all the new for their own gardens." 



"Did yon water them welL and shade them from the noontide heat 

 is asked. ''Why. no I I never thotight of that. I planted them, and 

 su^iposed that was enough." 



My fair friends, unless the clouds favor you and drop rain, or hide the 

 sun for three or four days, your seeds will become baked and shriveled, 

 and you cannot expect them to grow. 



The thin-skinned seeds will germinate most quickly, while those that 

 are shrouded in horny textures, vegetate more slowly. It is always well 

 to soak all such seeds. Verbena seeds require twenty-fotir hours soak- 

 ing in warm water, and the seeds of the lovely, graceful C^^n-ess vine 

 will not germinate unless boiling water is poured upon them. 



