Tin: FLORAL WORLD 



5 



PEONIES 



The situation should be open, the 

 soil deep, at least two feet, well 

 drained, and the richer the better. 



Peonies delight in a light, rich soil, 

 and object to heavy clay. The bed 

 should be made in September or Octo- 

 ber, and the roots planted from two 

 and one-half to three feet apart. Set 

 fairly deep so they will not suffer badly 

 if thrown up by the frost. A good 

 cover of leaves before the ground 

 freezes is important. Remove this in 

 early spring and replace with a thick 

 layer of good manure, which leave on 

 all summer. At no time let them suf- 

 fer for water. Peonies love water, 

 and upon a free use of it depends the 

 quality of the blooms. Some form of 

 support must be used, or a heavy 

 shower at the time of blooming will 

 result in the ruin of the blooms. If 

 you make your bed well in the begin- 

 ning it will not need to be disturbed 

 for several years. You will want both 

 double and single varieties. 



Mrs. Annie E. CRAFt. 



Missouri. 



PANSIES IN MIDWINTER 



In October I potted some young 

 pansy plants in a large tin dishpan, 

 about four inches in depth. The soil 

 was composed of very rich leaf mold, 

 sand and common garden soil, with 

 a little well rotted cow manure chop- 

 ped very fine. When the plants were 

 well settled they were given an east- 

 ern window, but after it became very 

 cold they were changed to a southern 

 window In a frost-proof room, but 

 where no fire was ever used. They 

 were sprayed with a very fine spray 

 daily, the soil was stirred and kept 

 very loose and always moist. A liquid 

 fertilizer of a few drops of ammonia 

 in water was given them twice a week, 

 but this was never allowed to touch 

 the foliage. I had quantities of the 

 large, dark, velvety pansies measuring 



three inches across. No seed pods 

 were allowed to form, so I had quan- 

 tities of bloom for the greater part of 

 the winter. 



Spraying with a very fine spray kept 

 down the insects, and on very cold 

 nights the pan was wrapped in several 

 thicknesses of newspaper and placed 

 in a room where there was no fire. 



Kentucky. Miss Latjra Jones. 



ROMAN HYACINTHS 



I would like to tell others the suc- 

 cess I have with Roman hyacinths. I 

 always have them in bloom for Christ- 

 mas, and from that until spring. I 

 plant in small grape baskets; for me 

 they grow and bloom better in these 

 than in pots. I always keep good soil 

 for my pot plants, a mixture of leaf 

 mold, sand, garden soil and well rot- 

 ted manure. First I break up old 

 pieces of pots and cover the bottom 

 of basket for drainage, then fill with 

 soil and plant ten bulbs in each bas- 

 ket, four on each side and one at the 

 ends, cover lightly and pack down, 

 put in a dark place, where there will 

 be no danger of mice, and let them re- 

 main for six weeks. During this time 

 the roots will grow, and when brought 

 to the light will come along rapidly, 

 form buds and soon be in bloom. I 

 plant my first bulbs the last week in 

 September, then every three weeks 

 until the last of November, keeping 

 them moist, but not too wet. When 

 in bud I take green crinkle paper and 

 arrange nicely around the basket, and 

 when in bloom they are indeed a thing 

 of beauty. Do not keep them too warm 

 and they will bloom longer and more 

 luxuriantly. Then your friends will 

 exclaim at their loveliness, and want 

 to know when and how to plant — and 

 forget all about it until they see them 

 again, when it is too late. I have suc- 

 cess with other bulbs, but none give 

 me such pleasure as my hyacinths. 



Mrs. B. G. Ward. 



North Carolina. 



