TLOWER GARDEN. 
291 
made at first. Soft water from the rain or river 
lias always been good enough for some excel- 
lent growers, and it will be well for any one 
who desires to try experiments to do it on'* a 
small scale. We have fancied that varieties 
submitted to liquid manure have not been so 
pure in the white, but have had a pinky cast. 
The Piccotee is in all respects to be treated 
like the Carnation, but we are not so tor- 
mented with run petals ; nevertheless, if you 
find any run or self-petals, they must be re- 
moved j but, for the collection, it is not worth 
distressing a flower to remove a useful petal, 
because the flower is only the worse for it in 
examination, and so that you mark it that you 
may not cut it for show, it may remain. Some 
varieties are apt to throw down their guard 
petals, like lap-ears ; if these are permitted to 
grow so they can hardly ever be brought up 
by dressing. To obviate it, a card is put on 
the buds to hold them up even, like a dish. 
The proper way of doing this, is to mark a 
circle of half an inch diameter in the centre 
of a round card ; with a pen knife, make a 
cut from one side of the circle to the other, 
quite in the middle, then make another cut 
exactly across it, this divides the circle into 
four quarters. With two other cuts right 
across you sever these quarters, and by push- 
ing your finger through the centre, the points, 
which are pushed out, form so many van dyke 
springs to hold on the card by. Make one 
cut from this opening to the outside of the 
card, which enables you to pass the stem from 
the side to the centre, and with the points, or 
Vandykes, downwards, you draw the card 
up the bud far enough to keep the back petals 
flat, these points or Vandykes keeping the 
card in its place. Wires, with open loops to 
them, and which can be placed at any part of 
the stake, are put to the stem, just under the 
card, and add support to it in its place ; but, 
if the points are properly managed, they re- 
quire none. The wire support to the stem 
enables you to separate the two or three 
flowers you have on, so as to be out of each 
other's way. 
Dahlias. — Look well to the supports of the 
plants already growing fast, and add stakes 
where they are required. If the side branches 
are not well secured in the direction they are 
growing, there is every chance of their break- 
ing. It is a common practice to remove many 
of the branches of Dahlias, but an erroneous 
one. If the Dahlia be treated as fruit trees 
are ; that is, confine all pruning to the removal 
of the weak and useless, and such as are crowd- 
ing some others, the flowers will come even 
larger than if the plant is cut more. The foliage 
of the Dahlia is of too much service to be 
wantonly decreased. With regard to the bloom- 
ing time, there is something more to be done. 
When you have fixed your mind upon a bud 
or two on a branch, remove those buds in the 
immediate neighbourhood, for here the flower- 
ing strength is thrown into those left on ; but 
while s Dahlia plant is growing rapidly you 
do no good by reducing it. Many advocate 
the covering of the blooms, and there is no 
doubt it preserves some, and blooms some, 
better in many respects than the open air, but 
the petals are always thinner, the colour 
always less vivid, and, except in the case of 
doubtful or imperfect whites, answers but 
little good purpose, and even this is a species 
of deception. Again, a bloom that has been 
exposed to the open air, will travel infinitely 
better than one that has been covered up. 
For those who are exhibiting, every flower 
should be cut off the instant it is past its 
prime, or is known to be useless. The flowers 
distress a plant greatly, therefore the ground 
set apart for plants intended to supply exhibi- 
tions should be kept strictly to its work; not a 
flower should be allowed to remain for any- 
thing but cutting, and the instant it is disco- 
covered to be useless for that it should be 
removed. We have no objection to a shade 
which shall protect from wind and the rays of 
the sun, but neither air nor light should be 
excluded. Weak liquid manure may be ap- 
plied advantageously now and then, and when 
they are watered, the whole ground about them 
should be well soaked, and not merely the 
roots. Those who have been in the habit of 
mulching their Dahlias have found that water- 
ing through the day has been of use, but there 
is a great evil in mulching. The dung about 
the roots forms such a harbour for vermin, 
that it becomes soon difficult to keep either 
the earwigs or thrip at all under. Again, any 
sort of covering about the ground encourages 
the fibres of the roots to come to the surface, 
and it will be seen towards the height of the 
bloom ; on removing the litter, the fibres will 
have come to the top of the ground. Of course, 
if the dry weather once caused these fibres to 
dry, the plant would receive a check not easily 
got over. AH plants are the better for going 
down a little after moisture ; for this reason all 
partial waterings are bad. Dahlias should be 
well syringed over their foliage after the sun 
is down — it is of great service. Any plants 
that are not out yet may be put out, early this 
month, for the late shows. They need not be 
planted so wide apart, as they will not have 
time to grow large, like those planted in May 
and June. 
Polyanthuses may be parted and planted 
out for increase, but show flowers will hardly 
grow large enough by the autumn, unless 
parted at the beginning of the month. 
Geraniums, Verbenas, Salvias, Helio- 
tropes, PETUNL4.S, and other potted 
z 2 
