OPERATIONS FOR SEPTEMBER. 
191 
Leia'nthus longifo'lius. This is a plant of a rather loose but elegant habit, and seems to 
f 7 er freely. The blossoms hang down from the lateral shoots like those of the axillary flowered 
1 jhsias, and are yellow, with a slight tinge of green. It is very like the L. nigrescens in habit, 
a, makes a good contrast with it in the colour of the flowers. 
IPhlo'x Drummondii, varieties. The varieties of this beautiful half-hardy annual are 
aj Dngst the gayest ornaments of the pleasure-ground in the summer season. From their rapid 
spading growth they are well suited for adorning the raised mounds upon which Coniferae and 
oijr trees are planted in the arboretum, or for the small circles round standard shrubs on a 
Ij Q. Mr. Cole, of Blackheath Park, exhibited some handsome varieties at the meeting in 
I ;ent Street ; amongst them was a streaked or mottled one, which if constantly so, well deserves 
Ejice, and a variety with flowers almost white, with a rose-coloured eye in the centre, in which 
rpect it is superior to the white one noticed last month at Mr. Grooms’. Mr. Grooms’ flower, 
h 'ever, is a more decided white, produces itself from seed with certainty, and has broader 
fi ige. At Messrs. Knight and Perry’s Nursery there is a profuse variety of these flowers 
r ed from American seeds. 
OPERATIONS FOR SEPTEMBER. 
I Although the garden has yet scarcely reached the zenith of its autumnal beauty, the season 
Kiist approaching, especially in the northern and colder districts, when its chief ornaments will 
bjlestroyed by frost. Even this month, in some localities, is not exempt from the liability ; 
h|ce, not only must every exertion be put forth to keep the utmost neatness whilst the flowers 
y, but active preparations must be made for securing an abundant supply of plants for a 
s^ieeding season. All those numerous species of tender plants with which our borders are now 
p ieipally adorned must be propagated without delay, for the earlier cuttings are procured and 
r ied, the more likely they will be to stand the winter well. In places where the number 
r aired is very extensive, a decaying hotbed with about two or three inches of sand or fine 
Si iy earth laid on the top, and covered with a frame and glass lights, will perhaps be better 
t] 1 pots, and will certainly prove a great saving both of time and room. Some of the metro- 
p tan cultivators manage to keep their whole stock of Calceolarias, Verbenas, Petunias, &c., 
U'his way through the winter without potting ; but there is less risk of losing them when they 
a planted by threes, in pots of a suitable size, to allow the roots to fill them before November, 
t )rder to produce a sufficiency of roots it is of course necessary to keep the young stock in 
a, rowing state for some time after they are potted out ; and it is important that this growth 
elf lid cease or nearly so, and the shoots be somewhat hardened whilst the sun has power to 
d it, so that they may require less protection from cold, and less attendance in the winter 
n iths. The formation of many roots is more to be desired and promoted now, so far as art 
c, do so, than the production of an increased stem and foliage. To this end, therefore, the 
y Qg plants should be potted in a poor soil, such as peat and sand, which will cause them to 
p irude a great number of fibrils, without causing much development of stem. A rich soil, 
0 he contrary, produces great luxuriance in the leaves and shoots, without the emanation 
0 1 corresponding multiplicity of rootlets — a state the very opposite of that we ought to 
St ire for. 
Scarlet Pelargoniums and other things of a like succulent nature that are employed im large 
q ntity for the flower-garden, on account of their liability to rot, should never be left in frames 
o; (its through the winter, unless there is some heating apparatus which, in conjunction with a 
jijcious ventilation, is capable of preserving a dry atmosphere. Consequently, it will be 
a isable to plant cuttings of these plants at once in pots or in large flat pans, so that they may 
r lire no re-potting, and be easily removed when rooted to some dry shelf in a greenhouse. 
1 here is no other convenience for their conservation than common frames, the pots should be 
8 t, on raised stages, instead of being plunged in ashes ; the frames, moreover, should be stationed 
ii ome dry, airy spot. 
In taking cuttings, too much care cannot be bestowed on keeping the difierent coloured 
