HOUSE PLANTS. 
97 
sary, with plenty of light and air. Good, rich soil is 
essential, with a moist atmosphere. It is very easily raised 
from slips, which may be planted at any time of year, and 
the plant can either be trained on a small trellis or made 
of a broader'shape by pinching off the terminal shoot until 
side branches are put out. 
“The fuchsia is very liable to loss in leaves. This 
nakedness is caused either by too poor soil or the presence 
of the red spider. These minute insects are kept down by 
an occasional syringing of the plant, which is then dusted 
Avith sulphur. When it arises from poverty of the soil, a 
top dressing of manure or repotting is the remedy. When¬ 
ever there is any appearance of yellowness in the lower 
leaves, it is time to attend to these matters.” 
This plant needs plenty of root room and plenty of 
water. A little soot sprinkled occasionally on top of the 
soil, or a tablespoonful of lime and soda in a pint of warm 
Avater, will be found beneficial to its good looks and its 
groAvth. 
There are many different kinds of fuchsias. Speciosa 
is a fine winter-blooming variety, with A r ery large flowers, 
having a crimson corolla and outer petals of a delicate 
peach-blossom hue. It blooms profusely Avhen well taken 
care of, and is seen in most collections of Avinter plants. 
The heliotrope is also a great favorite, not only for 
summer blooming in the garden, but for the house as well. 
Its delicate flowers, of various shades of blue-purple, and 
its delicious vanilla odor, make it very desirable for bou- 
cpiets. It groAvs from cuttings as readily as the fuchsia, 
but the old plants bloom more profusely than the young 
ones. As its name implies, it likes plenty of sun and a 
good, loamy soil. This plant needs a great deal of water, 
and is particularly susceptible to frost. 
The begonia is a beautifully foliaged plant, its green 
leaves alone making it sufficiently ornamental; but it has, in 
