61 
CHRYSANTHEMUMS. 
a too generous supply of water, when done too persistently. 
It is well in such circumstances to stir the soil between the 
rows of plants. With a label or anything of that kind 
this may be done easily and quickly, of which, as a con- 
sequence, the soil becomes sweetened, and the plants de- 
velop as well as one can desire. 
Cuttings in a Cold Frame. — Few gardens are without a 
cold frame ; by the aid of this very useful structure, 
it should be a comparatively simple matter to raise a goodly 
stock of plants. The grower must not begin too early in 
the season, and would be well advised to defer inserting 
puttings of his chrysanthemums until the end of January. 
Severe frosts and bad weather are usually less trying as 
the sun gains more power, and for this reason one’s 
chances of success are better when the work is begun at 
the time just mentioned. A little preparation of the frame 
is first necessary. As far as possible the cold frame should 
be embedded in litter of a kind that will exclude frosts. 
Straw, hay, leaves, bracken, and any material of some- 
what similar character, packed well round the frame and 
level with the frame-light itself, should afford adequate 
protection against the severest frosts. Mats — two or three 
layers, if needs be — should always be in readiness for the 
hard weather, and each day in the late afternoon the frame- 
light should be carefully matted down. 
In some gardens it is the rule to make a kind of thatch, 
with hurdles and straw or bracken interwoven, for the 
purpose of covering the frame-lights in frosty weather. 
Soil should be filled in the frame to within eight or ten 
inches, more or less, of the frame-light at the lowest end 
of the frame. A layer of cocoanut-fibre refuse, spent hops, 
or sifted ashes, to the depth of several inches, should then 
follow, for the purpose of plunging the pots or boxes 
when the cuttings are inserted in them. In this way, cut- 
tings may be propagated with ease, and be kept in a sturdy 
condition when rooted, or until the warmer weather per- 
mits the grower to deal with them. 
