1868 .] 
PROPAGATION OF CENTAUREA CANDIDISSIMA. 
103 
I may perhaps he accused of sounding my own trumpet, hut in support 
of what I have said I must mention that we have at this place, perhaps 
one of the best Peach walls in the kingdom, from which we never fail to 
get a full crop of excellent fruit. Our border I endeavour to get dug a full 
spade’s depth twice in the year, and on it I grow Cabbage, Cauliflower, Peas, 
Beans—in fact anything that circumstances may require. I must not fail 
to observe that we give the trees every possible attention in pruning, dis¬ 
budding, thinning of fruit, and syringing. We are also careful about 
netting in spring to protect the blossom from frost, the details of which 
I shall be pleased hereafter to communicate. 
Gopsall Hall , Atherstone. Emanuel Sage. 
PROPAGATION OF CENTAUREA CANDIDISSIMA. 
f T seems almost superfluous to attempt to advance anything new con¬ 
cerning this useful plant, so much has been written of late respect- 
f ing it; but there are one or two important points which have not, I 
think, been noticed by other writers, and which some of the numerous 
readers of the Florist may be glad to be made acquainted with. In 
briefly describing our method of propagation, I will simply state that about 
the beginning of January we place the old iflants in a temperature of from 
55° to 60° and as soon as they show signs of growing, the tops of the shoots 
are pinched-off, and a few of the leaves removed. This will induce them 
to throw out a succession of side shoots, and as soon as these shoots have 
made four or five leaves, they are stripped—not cut off, and inserted singly 
in 2-inch pots, and placed in the propagating house. Now, the placing the 
cuttings singly in small pots is the point to which I wish to direct special 
attention. Some cultivators advocate placing several cuttings in a pot or 
pan; but when taken out to be potted-off, most of the roots are certain to 
be broken in the operation, so weakly are they attached to the stem; 
whereas if placed one in a pot, as described, they can be transferred to 
larger pots without receiving the least check, consequently a great deal of 
time and trouble is saved. 
As soon as the cuttings have tolerably well filled the 2-inch pots with 
roots they are shifted into 4|-inch ones, using a compost of loam, leaf 
mould, sand, and a little peat. They are again placed in a temperature of 
60° till they get firmly established, when they are removed to cold frames, 
and kept moderately close for a week or so. Here they remain until the 
middle of May, when they are plunged in their summer quarters in the 
flower garden. We never turn them out of pots. This is done to prevent 
the roots being broken off when taken up in the autumn, which is as likely 
to occur as when they are taken out of the cutting pot or pan ; moreover, 
the plants winter better. 
