4 



THE FLOWER GROWER'S GUIDE. 



3 inches long, any time from February to September inclusive. Insert them singly in 

 small pots of sandy soil, and cover with glass, in a temperature of 70° to 80°. When 

 more root room is required by the plants, shift them into larger pots, employing two 

 parts fibrous loam to one each of peat and leaf soil, with a little charcoal and silver sand. 



Fig. 2. Lasiandra (Pleboma) maceantha floribotda. 



The drainage should be perfect, and the soil made moderately firm. Care must be taken 

 not to sour the soil by over-watering, this especially in the case of the more delicate 

 species. All are evergreen, and should never be quite dry at the roots. Prune the 

 non-trained plants into a good form in February, and re-pot a fortnight or three weeks 

 later. 



MARANTA (CALATHEA). 



Less value is attached to Marantas, or Calatheas as some of the species are termed 

 by the more scientific classifiers, than formerly. Where, however, noble plants with 

 imposing, handsomely blotched, marbled or striped leaves are appreciated, room ought 



