58 



HOUSE PLANTS 



grown from seed, may be grown from 

 cuttings of the stem. 



THE SAND BED 



The best medium in which to root cut- 

 tings is damp sand. An ordinary soap 

 box, cut down so as to be about six 

 inches deep, will furnish sufficient space to 

 root all the cuttings necessary to supply 

 any ordinary window garden. In the bottom 

 bore five or six one-inch holes, and put 

 a layer about an inch deep of broken 

 pots, gravel, or broken up coal clinkers for 

 drainage. Over this put a little sphagnum 

 moss to keep the sand from sifting down 

 through the drainage; then put in a three 

 or four inch layer of sand; moisten and 

 pack it down with a brick. Have it per- 

 fectly level. The bed is now ready for 

 the cuttings. 



One drawback to the home propagation 

 of plants is the great fluctuation of tem- 

 perature. If enough bottom heat can be 

 given so that the temperature of the sand 

 can be kept about 80 degrees day and 

 night and the box deep enough so that a 

 piece of glass or newspaper can be placed 



