2+4 



THE FLOWER GROWER'S GUIDE. 



Strong plants present a very gay appearance when in flower, but unfortunately with this, 

 as with so many other deciduous flowering shrubs, the duration of display is but short. 

 After flowering, harden, cut back and plant out in good ordinary soil. 



CLIMBERS. 



A conservatory devoid of climbing, wall, and pillar plants can only be regarded as 

 about half furnished. When plants of the nature indicated are judiciously planted and 

 properly treated they do so much towards beautifying and rendering a house attractive 

 that there is less need to employ so many plants in pots as would otherwise be required 

 to make a good display. The less there is seen of the woodwork, pillars, and girders of a 

 conservatory the better. The climbers, in addition to being objects of interest, also serve 

 to relieve the stiffness and formality of conservatories. Many of these, as already hinted, 

 are constructed more with an eye to external appearance than internal effect. Too 

 often no provision, worthy of the term, is made for the roots of wall plants and climbers. 

 Many of the plants employed will not long remain in a free-growing, floriferous state 

 in large pots or tubs. 



Narrow borders, or those one foot or less in width, and of varying depths, are better 

 than no borders at all, but the majority of climbers, usually so cramped at the roots, 

 would succeed far better in borders 2 feet to 3 feet wide. The whole of the central beds 

 should be prepared by drainage and the substitution of good compost for the ordinary 

 and probably inferior soil. The additional width to the borders gives much more scope 

 for the exercise of taste by those who arc responsible for furnishing the structure. It 

 is true, certain plants are more fastidious as to the kind of soil they prefer than others, 

 but this difficulty is met by simply planting them in what they require. Appropriate 

 composts, with a few cultural details, will be given for the plants to be enumerated, 

 the majority of which succeed well in an ordinary conservatory or warm greenhouse 

 temperature. 



Abutilon.— Both the flowering and ornamental foliaged species and varieties of 

 abutilon, briefly described in the chapter devoted to greenhouse plants (page 143, 

 Vol II.), thrive admirably when planted in the beds of large conservatories. They 

 may be made to effectually clothe pillars by training a leading growth or growths 

 straight up the support, the side branches producing flowers freely. Prune these back 

 to the main stem every spring. Plant in a mixture of loam, peat, leaf soil, and a little sand. 



