170 
THE RANUNCULUS. 
the highest kept in the middle or inner rows, 
the superior appearance will amply repay for 
the trouble. The soil should he thrown out of 
the beds, if not done before, to the depth of a 
foot, |and laid on each side in ridges, to be turned 
and mixed for planting when returned to the 
bed. The autumn-planted onesmusthavelitter 
over them, and the earth stirred, and crumbled 
fine next the tubers. Sow seed this month 
or next, in the manner already directed. 
February. — Continue to turn and mix the 
soil as directed in the general culture, and at 
the end of the first week return it to the bed 
in the manner directed. About the middle of 
the month plant the tubers : if for a show-bed 
attend to the arrangement mentioned last 
month ; if for stock or to cut from, plant the 
sorts together, and have labels where the one 
sort leaves off and the other begins. There 
are some who prefer having a row of each 
sort, and when they have completed them, be- 
ginning them over again ; however, there is 
less trouble and more certainty in keeping the 
entire stock of a sort together, and much less 
chance of a mistake. The directions for 
planting are already very complete. See that 
the autumn planted ones are protected. 
March. — If the swelling of the tubers 
cracks and disturbs the soil, let it be crumbled 
by the hand and pressed down a little, that it 
may lay solid to the tubers ; and if the wea- 
ther be very dry towards the end of the month, 
let the bed be watered, but not if on turning 
it up it seems moist an inch or an inch and a 
half below the surface. The autumn planted 
ones will be well up and growing ; let the 
earth be stirred all over the surface, and well 
crumbled and pressed next the tubers, for the 
growing will always disturb it, after the soil 
has been closed by rain and dry weather 
ensues. Nothing is more injurious to the 
tubers than to have the earth hollow about 
them ; on this account that point must be 
always strictly attended to. The weeds must 
be well kept under at all times, and by no 
means allowed to grow. 
April. — The continuance of the treatment 
already recommended is all that need be at- 
tended to. The weeds will grow rapidly, and 
must be pulled out as soon as they are large 
enough to lay hold of. The earth must be 
occasionally stirred, for the watering closes 
the surface. Look now to the seedlings which 
are up and growing, and take especial care 
that weeds are removed before they can at all 
establish themselves among the roots, which 
being small would be pulled up in removing 
the weeds ; let them be refreshed with water 
in dry weather, and shaded from the heat of 
the sun ; warm gentle rains will do them good, 
much more so than artificial watering. They 
will all, both seedlings and named flowers, 
require protection from frost, and watering in 
dry parching weather. The autumn planted 
ones will require to be shaded from the heat 
of the sun, as soon as their colours show ; but 
that will not be until next month in ordinary 
seasons, though in some seasons they will show 
their colours this month. 
May. — The beds will now require to be 
cleared of their litter and of weeds, the sur- 
face stirred, the lumps bruised, and the top 
raked even and smooth. They may have all 
the rain until their flowers begin to open, 
after which they must have neither sun nor 
rain, for either would spoil them, and both 
together would hasten their destruction. The 
seedlings must be constantly cleared of weeds 
in the youngest state, and have regular water- 
ings in dry weather; the established roots, too, 
while throwing up their bloom stems, must be 
kept well moistened by watering the whole 
bed after sunset ; and as weeds grow rapidly 
they must be industriously kept under. 
Where the blooms are intended for exhibition, 
not more than two ought to be left to perfect 
themselves on each plant, and if they are not 
for showing, the tubers will be all the better 
for restricting the number. 
June. — In this month the spring-planted 
beds will rise early for bloom, if they had not 
already advanced in the last month, and they 
should be thinned of their flower-stems, if not 
already done. The weeds should be removed 
as soon as they are large enough. The earth 
should be pressed to the tubers, the surface 
occasionally stirred, the watering continued 
regularly every evening, but not so as to touch 
the flowers. It is of far more consequence to 
water well between the rows than on the 
foliage, but it should be done so copiously as 
to saturate the whole bed and wash all the 
tubers. The wet and sun must, as in the 
earlier beds, be kept off by proper covering ; 
and until the prime of the bloom has gone 
neither should be allowed to reach the flowers. 
The seedlings should be watched, weeded, and 
watered, and may have all the weather except 
the scorching mid-day sun, which would be 
too powerful, and dry them up before the 
tubers had grown large enough to be safe for 
storing. It is possible that the autumn planted 
beds may be dying off by the end of the month ; 
they must have all the weather from the time 
their flowers are past their perfection. If they 
have by the end of the month begun to turn 
yellow, and decay down, take advantage of 
dry weather, and take them up ; let them be 
dried in the shade with their mould and foliage 
upon "them, and when thoroughly hardened 
clean them and put them by, cutting the stem 
off half an inch from the tuber. 
July. — The seedlings will be this month 
fit to take up, as directed in the general culture. 
