M/SCELLANE O L 'S 



XO TES. 



by adding a small quantity of well-decayed cow manure 

 to a sufficient amount of good loam. Then mix in suf- 

 ficient sand to afford good drainage. Pots five inches 

 in diameter should be selected. Place several small 

 pieces of crock at the bottom for drainage and fill with 

 the above compost, pressing it rather firmly. Then 

 with the fingers make a hole in the centre of the pot of 

 sufficient size to take one bulb. This is much better 

 than pressing the bulbs into the soil, as they are less 

 liable to be displaced during the formation of roots. 

 The crowns should be just above the surface of the soil. 

 When all have been potted they may receive a watering 

 and then be covered six inches deep with ashes or some 

 similar material ; leaves are good to use if the covering 

 is about twelve inches thick. The bulbs must be buried 

 in some place where they are not liable to become 

 frozen, as the object is to remove them, a few at a time, 

 to the greenhouse to keep up a succession of flowers. 

 The bulbs are buried in the manner described to start 

 the roots in advance of leaves, without which good flow- 

 ers cannot be grown. 



A temperature of 55 degrees is sufficient for the pur- 

 pose of forcing this flower. If it is desired, three bulbs 

 may be placed in one pot, and when they come into 

 flower the surface of pot may be covered with moss and 

 the plants removed to the drawing room where they are 

 sure to be appreciated. A neat stake should be inserted 

 in each pot for the purpose of supporting the flower 

 spike as it grows ; without this support it is liable to fall 

 over and become broken. 



The hyacinth is also grown in water, and for this pur- 

 pose vases are especially constructed. Fill the vase with 

 water until it just touches , the base of the bulb, then 

 stand the vase in a dark place until the roots have grown 

 about an inch, when the bulbs may be brought out and 

 placed for a time in a shady part of the room. 



The hyacinth may also be successfully grown in pots 

 filled with sand instead of soil. September is the best 

 month in which to purchase a supply of bulbs, and the 

 middle of October is the best time to plant them. — H. 

 W. Smith, La. 



How TO Have a Pretty Winter Window with 

 Annuals. — More than a dozen years ago I began rais- 

 ing flowers. I had no experience in caring for plants 

 and supposed there was no way of getting a collection, 

 except to buy of some florist, so I went to a neighbor- 

 ing city, hunted up a greenhouse, and invested some- 

 what heavily, for my means, in plants in small pots, 

 letting the florist choose for me the sorts he thought an 

 amateur would be most likely to succeed with. I tried 

 to get some information from him about the care of 

 the plants ; and the thought he especially dwelt upon 

 was not to keep them too wet. He said nothing about 

 changing them into larger pots, and as it was early 

 summer-time every plant, of course, dried out quickly 

 on the veranda, but having had it so firmly impressed 

 upon me that they were not to be kept " too wet " I 

 let every one of them die for the want of water. 



That was a discouraging beginning, but I did not 



give up keeping plants by any means, but started 

 out on a different line. I sent to florists for catalogues 

 and selected from these the plants with which I though 

 I could succeed. I also subscribed for a horticultural 

 magazine ; but it was some years before I found that 

 a very handsome collection of flowers for the winter 

 window may be grown from the seeds of annuals and 

 perennials. The cost of the plants will not be nearly 

 so much as when bought already grown, and one has 

 the pleasure of watching them from the start. And 

 now after having an experience of some years with an- 

 nuals in my window, I will mention some of the sorts 

 with which any lady having an east or south window 

 can succeed. I shall only mention in this article such 

 as I think can be managed rather easily, though I have 

 had snccess in growing from seed such plants as ciner- 

 aria, clianthus, etc., that are more difficult to start 

 Here is a list sufficient to fill your window with beauty 

 and fragrance. Sweet alyssum, mignonette, nierem- 

 bergia, Sak'ia splciidens, Petunia — the fringed va- 

 rieties are lovely — Torenia Finirnieri, stock, browallia. 

 These are for pots, shelves, or brackets. F'or hanging 

 baskets, the best are lobelia, mimulus, thunbergia, 

 Kenilworth ivy, nasturtium. The best climbers are 

 Cobda scaiidctis, mormordica, lophospermum and 

 abobra. As I am writing more especially for the 

 benefit of those ladies whose love of flowers is deeper 

 than their purses, I will say that if two, or even 

 three club together in buying the seed there will be 

 sufficient in the packets for all. 



In this climate, Minnesota, I start the seeds for win- 

 ter bloom by the middle of July, as I like to take the 

 plants into the house during the last of September, so 

 that they become somewhat accustomed to the changed 

 conditions before fires are started. Having secured 

 your seed from some reliable dealer, the next thing in 

 order is to prepare your box for sowing them. I use a 

 wooden box about 21 inches long, 16 wide, and 9 

 deep, as that gives room for all the seeds and it is 

 easier than sowing in separate pots. After putting a 

 layer of charcoal in the bottom of the box for drainage, 

 fill it two-thirds full of soil composed of two parts good 

 garden soil, one part sharp sand, and one part leaf 

 mould. The soil should not pack nor become hard, 

 for then the seeds will not do well. I sow the seeds in 

 rows and keep the earth a little moist all the time — do 

 not let them dry out once ; cover the box with glass 

 until the seeds are up. I use a cellar window for con- 

 venience. The cobsea seeds should be planted edge- 

 wise and by themselves, for they require more moisturg 

 in order to germinate well. Otherwise the treatment 

 is the same. After the seeds are up raise the glass at 

 one side and keep it propped that way until the little 

 plants get well started ; then remove, and after the plants 

 are about two inches high transplant into the pots or 

 whatever you wish to keep them in during the winter. 

 I find tin cans holding about a quart a good substitute 

 for pots ; paint them some dull color. Try these, you 

 who love flowers, and report your success — Verb Ena. 



