1884 .] 
AMERIOAE' AGEIOULTUEIST. 
53T 
Camellias—How to Treat Them. 
Did you ever see a large Camellia plant in full 
■blossom ? If you have not, I will risk my reputa¬ 
tion by saying that all other flowers within my 
knowledge, barring the rose, dwindle into insignif¬ 
icance when compared with it. It excels the 
finest rose in doubleness and form of its flowers, 
and puts the virgin lily to shame for spotless 
beauty and whiteness ; if it only possessed fra- 
C.;.mellia8 bloom in the winter, and at no other 
season of the year. Plants should be purchased 
of the florist in the fall or early in winter, and such 
plants as have flower-buds already formed ; those 
plants, if kept in the right atmosphere, will bloom 
profusely, but they must have an atmosphere of 
fifty degrees until the buds are all expanded, after 
which there will be no danger of the flower blast¬ 
ing. As soon as the bloom has all passed off, 
the plants should be taken from their cool quar- 
growing, and watered freely throughout the sum¬ 
mer. They must be left out-of-doors as long as the 
weather will permit, but, on the approach of frost, 
take the plants into the house, and let them stand 
in a cool room, where the temperature is not over 
fifty degrees. This is the critical time, if they are 
removed into a warm temperature of seventy or 
eighty degrees, the buds will all blast and drop off. 
If the plants are large and well-budded, a suc¬ 
cession of bloom will be obtained throughout the 
Holiday Greeting 
to One and All. 
The cluster of engrav¬ 
ings on the first page of 
this issue of our paper 
presents some of the va¬ 
ried enjoyments of the 
month. At this season 
our pleasures are mark¬ 
ed by thankfulness to 
the Giver of all good, and 
our artist has chosen the 
return of the family from 
church, to suggest,rather 
than represent this fea¬ 
ture. This is especially 
the season of friendly 
visits. Over a large 
portion of this country, 
a covering of snow 
makes easy communica¬ 
tions between long sepa¬ 
rated friends, while it at 
the same time enforces 
upon the farmer some¬ 
thing like leisure for the 
enjoyment of social in¬ 
tercourse. The exhOa- 
ration of the motion, as 
they swiftly glide among 
wintry scenes, tempt 
many to join a sleighing 
party for this alone. The 
young, whatpleasures the 
season brings to them I 
■With skate and sled, they 
never find the weather 
too cold, and their 
ruddy faces glow with 
health and the warmth of 
their young hearts. Old¬ 
er people welcome the 
return of winter. The 
crowning enjoyment of 
the time is the social 
feast, at which family 
and friends, after per¬ 
haps many months of 
separation, are gathered. 
Whether assembled in 
accordance with the New 
England custom, at 
Thanksgiving, or after 
the more Southern man¬ 
ner, at Christmas, the 
American Agricvlturist 
sends its Holiday Greet¬ 
ing with a “God bless 
you, one and all.” 
High Praise from a 
High Quarter. 
The tenth census of the 
United States, Volume 
just issued, contains 
the following very flat¬ 
tering allusion to the 
American Agriculturist; 
“The American Agricul¬ 
turist dates from 1842,and 
is one of the numerous 
periodicals of the same 
class which originated in 
all parts of the country 
at or about the same 
time, some of which are 
still in healthy existence, 
while others quickly sub¬ 
sided. The AmeHcan Ag¬ 
riculturist is especially 
•worthy of mention, be¬ 
cause of the remarkable 
success that has attend¬ 
ed the unique and untir¬ 
ing efforts of its proprie¬ 
tors to increase and ex- 
tendits circulation, which 
at one time reached a 
point undoubtedly higher 
than was ever before at¬ 
tained by a journal of its 
class. Its contents are du¬ 
plicated every month for 
a German edition, which 
also circulates widely.” 
Probably no government 
publication ever before 
went out of its way, un¬ 
solicited, to bestow such 
flattering notices upon 
a journal published by 
prKate individuals. The 
time alluded to, when 
ih^AmericanAgriculturist 
had such a large circula¬ 
tion, was during the war. 
Its friends will be pleased 
to learn that it is now 
rapidly attaining to those 
figures. During the past 
three months, the circu¬ 
lation has fully trebled 
that of the correspond¬ 
ing period of last year, 
and not since inflated war 
times, have the subscrip¬ 
tions began to compare 
with those received since 
the beginning of the pre¬ 
sent autumn campaign. 
Drawn {6y i'olsom) and Engraved for the American Agriculturist. 
grance, it would be unquestionably the Queen of 
the floral world. What I shall have to say in re¬ 
gard to this plant, I hope will have the effect of in¬ 
troducing it into many homes where it has hitherto 
been little known. Few outside of professional 
florists have undertaken to cultivate the CamelUa, 
for the reason, we suppose, that it is thought to be 
quite an impossibility to raise and bloom it suc¬ 
cessfully outside of a green-house ; this is a mis¬ 
take, although many believe it otherwise. I con¬ 
tend that Camellias can be as easily and as success¬ 
fully grown in the window as the rose or geranium. 
ters, and placed with the other plants in a warm 
temperature, and watered freely, to encourage a 
vigorous growth previous to removing them out- 
of-doors in the spring. As soon as all danger of 
heavy frosts is over in the spring, the plants should 
be taken from the house and removed to some 
shady location, under a grape-arbor, in a pit or 
frame covered with shades. Here leave them stand¬ 
ing in the pots, “plunging” the pots in earth or 
sand to prevent too rapid drying out. Summer 
is the period in which the flower-buds are formed 
that bloom in winter, and the plants should be kept 
entire winter. There are a number of varieties, 
embracing colors from red, piuk, variegated, etc., 
to the purest waxy-white. The Double White Ca¬ 
mellia Japonica, the white sort, is the most valua¬ 
ble for its bloom, the flowers being sometimes four 
to five inches in diameter, exceedingly double, 
with petals imbricated, and of a waxy texture. They 
are invaluable for funeral occasions, when pure 
white flowers are required. Plants are multiplied 
by either grafting or budding them on the common 
stock; it is almost impossible to raise plants from 
cuttings, they are slower than Azaleas to root. J. S. 
