9g THE LADIES' FLOWER-GARDEN 
80 as to render it unfit to support vegetable life. The best mode of draining a pot is to put several crocks, or 
pieces of broken pot, at the bottom, laid one over the other, so as to keep the hole open. Some persons use small 
pieces of freestone for the same purpose, and these have the advantage of absorbing the moisture and parting 
■with it slowly, so that they prevent the soil from becoming quite dry. 
Carnations should be repotted for flowering about the middle of March. The pot should be first about 
half filled with compost, having the sides higher than the centre ; and the plants, which are generally kept during 
winter in small pots having four plants in each, should have the ball of earth containing the plants carefully 
turned out of the pot, " and after rubbing off about half an inch of the surface of the old mould, round about the 
plants above their fibres, cleansing them, and cutting off the decayed points of their leaves, the ball is to be 
carefully placed in the centre of the pot, and the space between it and the sides filled up with the prepared 
compost. It is very necessary to be attentive in placing the plants, that they are neither planted deeper nor 
shallower than they were before ; the compost should therefore be high enough to replace the old earth that was 
rubbed off on potting, exactly to the same height as before, that is half an inch higher than the ball of old earth 
and fibres ; and the whole surface of the earth in the pot, when the operation is finished, should be nearly level 
or flat ; but by no means higher at the centre than at the sides, because the plants would thereby be kept too 
dry ; nor should the compost come nearer than within an inch of the top or rim of the pot, after it has been 
gently shaken, or struck against the ground on finishing, as an inconvenience will attend its being too full, when 
the operation of laying comes to be performed, which requires some additional mould on the surface, for the 
layers to strike into." When the plants are potted, they are placed in an open airy part of the garden on a bed 
set apart for that purpose, and covered with an archway formed of a great number of half hoops, that mats may 
be thrown over them to protect them from the effects of cold drying winds, heavy rain, and frosty nights ; and 
while here they are regularly watered once a day with soft water from a fine round watering-pot. 
When the Carnations are to be planted in the open ground, a bed about four feet wide, and of any required 
length, is excavated above two feet deep ; at the bottom of which is placed a layer, about six inches deep, of 
brickbats, stones, and rubbish, to ensure drainage : on this is put the compost, which is raised a little above the 
bed to allow for sinking, and the plants are then planted in the same manner as in the pots, and treated in the 
same manner afterwards. 
When the flower-stems are eight or ten inches high, they must be supported by sticks which are as high as 
the hoops will permit ; but which must be replaced by other sticks about four feet long, when the plants are 
removed to the stage where they are to blossom. These sticks are generally painted green, and are broader at 
the bottom than at the top, to make them take a firm hold when they are plunged into the earth. As the stems 
advance in height they must be tied to these stakes, so that there may be a tie about every six inches up the stem ; 
and the plants should be carefully looked at every two or three days, as they are apt to be attacked by insects, 
which should be washed off by dipping the shoot in clear water, and brushing it, if necessary, with a soft 
brush. When the calyx has swelled to nearly its full size, it is apt to burst and let out the petals on one 
side, which destroys the beauty of the flower ; and to avoid this disaster, carnation-growers either tie the calyx 
round with a strip of wet bast mat, or put a narrow slip of bladder round it, with the ends wrapping over each 
other, which they attach with gum-water. When the flowers expand, they require to be shaded either by a 
paper cover fixed on the stick, or by a cloth awning stretched over the whole bed. The same awning as served 
