52 THE IMITATION, IN CLOSED CASES, OF 
any of my windows, I placed the case on the 
roof of the house, and in the following spring, 
all the plants flowered well except the Andro- 
medas. Forgetting that an Alpine summer is 
not so long as ours, I allowed the plants to 
remain fully exposed to the sun for the whole 
year, owing to which they became so exhausted 
that some died, and but few flowered in the 
ensuing spring. Warned by this, in my succeed- 
ing experiments on this lovely tribe of plants, 
I removed the case, after their flowering, into 
the coldest and most shady place I could find 
until the following season, when they were again 
placed in the sun. In this way they flourished 
better; but it is impossible to do them full 
justice, as we cannot give them the perfect rest 
which they require. 
The Drawing-room case contains the Date 
Palm and the Rhapis flabelliformis, with two or 
three Lycopodiums and Ferns. Several bulbous 
roots are planted in this case annually, as it 
stands in a window with a southern aspect. 
Within, along the roof, runs a perforated bronze 
bar, from which are suspended small pots, 
containing various species of Aloe and Cactus. 
In this way it is easy to grow bog plants and 
succulents in the same case, as these last never 
receive any water but in the state of vapour. 
