March.] THE GREEN-HOUSE. 307 
ral, especially if a cold season, and while they are confined in the 
green-house. 
Keep every plant in the house free from decayed leaves; that is, 
where such appear let them be immediately picked off; for these, 
if generally permitted to remain would injure the plants; besides, 
they appear disagreeable. 
Any decayed or mouldy shoots should be cut clean off to the firm 
live wood, and where dust, or any sort of filth, appears on the leaves 
of the plants, let them be cleared therefrom : if those of the oranges, 
lemons, and other large-leaved kinds, are foul, have a sponge dipped 
in water and clean them therewith, one by one, and let the small 
leaved sorts be cleaned by watering, out of a watering-pot, all over 
their heads. 
Oranges, Lemons, and Myrtles. 
Where any of the oranges, lemons, and myrtles, &c. have naked 
or irregular heads, you may now towards the latter end of the 
month, if mild fine weather, begin to reduce them to some regu- 
larity. The branches or head may either be cut close, or shortened 
less or more to the place where you desire shoots to rise, to form 
the head regular, for they will break out in the old wood. 
When any trees are thus headed down, it would also be an ad- 
vantage to shift them, especially such as are of a weekly growth, 
in order to add a little fresh earth about their roots; and the method 
is this: let the tree be taken out of its tub or pot, but preserve the 
ball of earth entire; then trim off with your knife any very matted 
roots, or dry fibres round the outside, and also some of the loose 
old earth from the bottom and sides of the ball; and, having fresh 
compost ready, put some into the bottom of the pot or tub; place 
the tree therein, till up around the ball with fresh earth, and give it 
a little water. 
But in heading down any of the green-house plants, if time will 
not permit, or that you think it not necessary to shift them as above, 
do not, however, fail to loosen the earth in the top of the tub or pots, 
and a little way down around the sides, and draw this loose earth 
out; then fill up the tub again with new compost, and give some 
water. 
But where any orange or lemon trees are in a very weak or 
sickly unprosperous growth, it would be adviseable about the latter 
end of this month, or beginning of next, to prune the heads and 
shift them into entire new earth, taking the plant clean out of the 
pot, all the old earth shaken entirely from its roots, and all mouldy 
and decayed roots cut off; then let the whole root be washed in 
water, and plant it again immediately in a tub or pot of new earth, 
taking care not to place it too deep, and give water moderately. 
After this shifting it would be a great advantage to the same 
plants if you had tiic convenience of a glass case, &c. in which 
previously to make a hot-bed of tan or dung, but tan is mucli pre- 
ferable; and if in this bed the trees are plunged, they will shoot 
sooner and more freely, both in root and top, to recover good 
