THE GREEN-HOUSE. 
55 
plants should have a tolerably large shift, 
placing them in twelve-inch pots, in a rich 
open compost of friable loam, leaf mould, and 
well-reduced manure, mixed with some lime- 
rubbish and charcoal. After potting them, 
place them near the glass, in a temperature of 
about 60 degrees, where they may remain for 
about a fortnight, after which they must be 
taken to the green-house. Among the strong - 
growing varieties, bearing large heads of 
flowers, Smith's Emperor, the Shrubland, and 
Compactura, are good kinds; and of the dwarf- 
growing smaller kinds, General Tom Thumb, 
and the old Frogmore, are excellent ; the 
former of these is much inclined to spread. 
Cape Pelargoniums. — These, which con- 
sist of tuberous-rooted species — at least, we 
refer now principally to these — are a very 
beautiful but much-neglected race. Though 
the flowers are small, and hardly shapeable 
enough for the florist, yet the colour of many 
is marked by intense brilliancy, far more so 
than any we possess among the fancy kinds ; 
and many of them produce blossoms of delight- 
ful fragrance. Shake all the old soil from 
their roots, and re-pot them in compost some- 
what lighter than is generally used for Pelar- 
goniums; and then start the plants into growth 
by an increased degree of heat. 
Tropceolums. — When the roots have been 
kept dry and inactive (as they should be) 
through the winter, they may now be potted, 
if not done at the end of last month, using 
a rich, sandy, loamy soil. The bulbs should 
be put at once into the blooming-pots, which 
may be nine-inch ones, if the bulbs are strong, 
or six-inch ones, if they are smaller. The 
bulbs should be just buried beneath the soil; 
and the pots may be set upon a shelf in the 
green-house till they begin to grow. Those 
that were started into growth in the autumn, 
must be well attended to, or the branches will 
be sure to get into confusion. They should 
at once be provided with a trellis of some kind, 
large enough for the branches of each parti- 
cular kind ; and as they grow, they must be 
constantly and carefully trained over the trellis, 
so as to cover it, when they have reached their 
full growth. If propagation is desired, the 
earlier cuttings are taken off and struck, the 
better; and they should be kept growing, if 
possible, throughout the first winter, and the 
next summer, in order to form strong bulbs : 
when they are allowed to die off the first sea- 
son, the bulbs are necessarily very small, and 
it is often diilicult to cause them to vegetate 
when required. 
Cyclamens. — Young plants, raised from 
seeds sown during last summer, should now 
be encouraged to grow freely, by being re- 
potted, in a mixture of equal parts turfy 
loam, peat, and cow-dung, reduced to mould. 
They may be planted in five-inch pots, and 
set on the front shelves of the house, near the 
glass. If the object is to induce them to make 
very rapid growth, they may, after potting, 
be placed either in a hot-frame, or forcing- 
house, or stove, if they can be so managed as 
to get a moderate share of heat only ; this can 
easily be done in a forcing-house, or stove, by 
setting them in the coolest parts of the house. ; 
but, in a hot-bed frame, unless the heat of the 
bed is very mild, they would be too much 
excited. After they have made good growth 
in this elevated temperature, they should be 
returned to the green-house to mature their 
growth. 
Camellia -House. Camellias. — Those 
plants w^iich have been induced to flower 
early, and whose bloom is now fallen, and 
being succeeded by the young growth of 
shoots, should be re-potted, if they require it. 
Young plants generally require a small annual 
shift ; but when the plants are old and large, 
it often happens that a fresh pot once in two 
or three seasons only is necessary. Gene- 
rally, Camellias are better under-potted than 
over-potted ; for, being of very slow growth, 
a great mass of soil not supplied with roots in 
an active state, is very liable to get into a 
condition which is inimical to the plant, and it, 
consequently, gets into an unhealthy state. 
Whether they require potting, or not, they 
should always be placed in a temperature not 
lower than from 60 to 65 degrees, to make 
their annual growth ; and they should be re- 
tained under these circumstances, until the 
growth is complete, and just beginning to 
harden ; during this time they require a moist 
atmosphere, and to be frequently syringed. 
A vinery is a good place for them. 
Rhododendrons. — As these go out of flower, 
they require treatment similar to the Camellia, 
except that they do not require so much heat. 
The young growth should be encouraged as 
much as possible, as the flowering next season 
depends on its being perfectly developed, and 
then well matured during summer. 
Temperature, $c. — The ordinary tempe- 
rature of the Camellia-house may range from 
45 to 55 degrees by day, and from 35 to 40 
degrees by night. A moderate circulation of 
air may be allowed ; but, as all the plants are 
nearly in a blooming state, cold currents 
should be avoided as much as possible. The 
plants must not be syringed after the buds 
begin to burst, as the wet would damage the 
flowers ; but some moisture may be allowed, 
by wetting the floors in the day-time. 
Watering. — At this stage of growth, the 
plants require very constant and somewhat 
liberal waterings; indeed, from the time they 
begin to increase in size, it is absolutely ne- 
cessary that the plants never ivant water, for 
