414 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
[October. 
met. There are nearly 100 species of Scutel¬ 
laria found in the temperate parts of the 
world, of which over 20 belong to the United 
States. While many are small and weedy in 
appearance, a few are sufficiently showy to 
rank among ornamental perennial plants. 
The Downy (or Hoary) Skullcap, Scutellaria 
canescens, grows nearly the whole length of 
the Atlantic States, and as far west as Illinois, 
but is more abundant southward. This has 
a branching stem two to four feet high, and 
leaves and flowers of the shape and size shown 
in the engraving. As the name indicates, the 
plant is usually covered with a fine, soft, whit¬ 
ish down, which gives it a hoary appearance, 
though this often almost disappears, and the 
foliage is dark-green. The flowers are of a 
peculiarly clear light-blue, to which a small 
white spot upon the lower lip of the corolla 
gives a peculiar brilliancy. Though individ¬ 
ually small, the flowers are produced in such 
abundance that the panicle is quite showy. 
As a plant to grow among spring-flowering 
shrubs or in the wild garden, we are much 
pleased with it. It blooms in August, at a 
time when flowers are scarce, and gives us a 
clear, lively blue, a color which is not com¬ 
mon at any season. Two or three low-grow¬ 
ing Skullcaps, from Japan and Europe, are 
in cultivation as pleasing rockwork plants. 
The Care of House Plants. 
With the improvements in the heating of 
houses, the culture of plants in our dwellings 
has greatly diminished. Most persons can 
recollect plants that had been cultivated from 
year to year so long that they seemed to be 
members of the family. Grand old Lemon- 
trees, line specimens of Laurestinus and Pit- 
tosporum are now rarely seen in house cul¬ 
ture, and the Ivy, capable of such varied orna¬ 
mental uses, is becoming uncommon. When 
•our dwellings were heated by open wood fires, 
the chief care needed by the plants was to 
protect them from the cold. At present this 
is the least of our troubles, but others have 
come in its place. Still, even under all 
present disadvantages, plants may be suc¬ 
cessfully cultivated in the windows of the 
dwelling, if a few simple directions are fol¬ 
lowed. One great enemy to house plants is 
Dust. —If there are plant shelves at the 
windows, or the pots are placed upon a 
table or stand, contrive some cover for them 
at sweeping time. This may be, for plants on 
shelves, a curtain of some light material— 
the lighter the better, to be suspended in such 
a manner as to cover them. If the plants 
are on a table, contrive an upright post or 
stick to be set in a hole in the middle of the 
table, to hold up the center of a spread of 
some kind that will cover the plants. In the 
absence of such protection, contrive some 
method of using old newspapers. Before 
sweeping, protect the plants by the use of a 
covering, and let this remain over them 
until the dust has completely settled. 
All smooth-leaved plants, especially Ivy, 
Camellias, Cape-Jessamine, and the like, 
should have their leaves washed with a soft 
sponge—a rag will answer—on both sides, 
with tepid water, at least once a week. If 
this is once tried, it will be found much less 
trouble than one would suppose, and the in¬ 
creased beauty of the foliage will lead to its 
repetition. Rough-leaved plants, such as 
Geraniums, and many others, cannot be 
washed to advantage. Set these in a bath¬ 
tub, or in a sink, and give their leaves a good 
drenching by using a garden syringe if one is 
at hand, or else a watering pot, one with 
fine holes, holding it up high so that the water 
will fall with force upon the leaves. After 
dust, the great trouble with house plants is, 
Insects. —If one allows these to get the 
mastery, the case is difficult; but if the plants 
as soon as brought indoors have proper atten¬ 
tion, insects need give but little trouble. The 
three great remedies for insects upon house- 
plants are—The Fingers. Tobacco, and Water. 
One who loves plants and watches them, will 
note the first appearance of Scale, Mealy-bug, 
or other insect large enough to be readily 
seen, and remove it. Scale may be readily re¬ 
moved by a blunt knife, and Mealy-bug may 
be picked off by a match whittled to a point. 
Keep a supply of tobacco-water made by 
pouring boiling water upon tobacco-stems or 
any cheap kind of tobacco. When used, this 
is to be diluted, as the rule goes, ‘ ‘ to the color 
of boarding-house tea.” Diluted in this man¬ 
ner it may be showered upon plants infested 
with plant lice. Preferably, it may be placed 
in a keg or tub, and the plants infested with 
insects dipped in it for a few seconds, moving 
them gently about. The most troublesome of 
all insects in dry rooms is the Red Spider, a 
minute mite which attacks the undersides of 
the leaves. When the leaves of a plant turn 
brown, Red Spider is the probable cause. A 
frequent application of water, as mentioned 
under Dust, is the remedy. In this case, lay 
the pots on their sides so that the water will 
reach the under surface of the leaves. An¬ 
other lack of success with house plants is 
Too Much Water. —If a plant is not in 
flourishing condition, the common remedy is 
water, and it is watered again and contin¬ 
uously until the soil in the pot is merely mud, 
in which only the roots of aquatic plants can 
live. Vastly more house-plants are injured 
by too much than by too little water. There 
is but one rule for giving water to house- 
plants, that is—give water when it is needed. 
There should be no indiscriminate daily 
watering, drenching all alike. It is far better 
for a plant to occasionally get a little dry, and 
for its leaves to flag and droop, than to keep 
its roots soaked by an excess of water. The 
soil in the pots of house plants should be 
moist, like that of good garden soil just below 
the surface. If in this condition, no more 
water is needed. One by observing the soil, 
its color, and the manner in which it feels 
when pressed by the finger, can soon learn to 
judge whether water is needed or not. An¬ 
other frequent trouble with house-plants is 
Worms in the Soil. —Every one who cul¬ 
tivates house plants should learn to readily 
remove the ball of earth from the pot, so that 
it can be inspected. By exposing the ball, the 
large earth worms may often be seen upon its 
surface, and can be picked off. These, as well 
as smaller worms that sometimes infest the 
soil, may be readily killed by the use of lime- 
water. Slake a piece of lime as large as the 
fist in a pail, and when slaked, fill the pail 
with water, stir, and let it rest. Use the per¬ 
fectly clear water upon the soil in the pots. 
By observing these precautions as to dust, 
insects, and watering, the window cultivation 
of plants will be comparatively easy. Not 
only for the health of the plants, but of that 
of the inmates of the dwelling, the air, 
however heated, should be moistened by 
proper provision for the evaporation of water. 
Even in localities where winters are severe, 
there are not many days in succession in 
which the window may not be opened for a 
short time in the middle of the day. All such 
opportunities for giving the plants fresh air 
should be utilized, and what is good for the 
plants will not injure those who care for them. 
The Improved Dandelion. 
Dandelion, while common in fields and 
road-sides, is a plant rarely seen in our gar¬ 
dens. It as well deserves a place among our 
cultivated plants as some that are generally 
grown. We do not, of course, refer to the 
common wild Dandelion, but to the plant as 
it has been improved ( ameliore) by the French. 
Fig. 1. —WILD DANDELION. 
There is nearly as much difference between 
the Improved Dandelion and the common 
wild plant as there is between a fine Orange 
Carrot and the wild Carrot, so abundant as 
a weed nearly all over the country. The en¬ 
gravings show the relative size and difference 
between the two plants, the Wild and the Im¬ 
proved. The contrast is interesting, as show¬ 
ing what may be done in a few years with a 
common wild weed by successive yearly sow¬ 
ings of seeds from the best developed plants. 
Not many years ago Vilmorin, by a similar 
course with the Wild Carrot, and Carricre with 
the Wild Radish, produced valuable varieties 
from plants that are both mere weeds. With 
good culture, the Improved Dandelion will 
Fig. 2.— IMPROVED DANDELION. 
form dense tufts of large, succulent leaves, 
18 inches or more across. The French use 
Dandelion as a salad, first blanching it by 
tying up the leaves, or by other methods used 
for Endive. We have cultivated it for several 
years especially to use for “greens,” and 
would not willingly be without it. 
The seed may be sown in rows two feet 
apart, and when the plants become crowded, 
they should be thinned to 12 or 15 inches in 
the row. The thinnings may oe used if de¬ 
sired ; the remaining plants are to be culti¬ 
vated during the season. The seeds may also 
be sown in a seed-bed and the plants, when 
large enough, transplanted,- setting them at 
the distances above mentioned. The principal 
seed stores have the seeds of the Improved 
Dandelion. When the ground freezes it is 
well to put some litter between the rows, not 
for protection from cold, but to keep the leaves 
from being soiled. In spring, after the growth 
