114 
THE FLORIST AND POMOLOGIST. 
[ Mat, 
require much more labour, and are in every way more expensive than tan, 
into which latter plants can be freely plunged when necessary, though they 
thrive remarkably well when set upon slates placed but 2 inches below 
the surface. This insures a sufficient warmth, aided by that of the atmo¬ 
sphere, whilst it allows of more plentiful evaporation from the balls of the 
plants—an important desideratum, retaining, moreover, a certain amount 
of moisture around the base of the pots, which is of some consequence 
during activity of growth, and when the air is driest, about midsummer. 
Digswell. ' William Earley. 
THE GOLD AND BRONZE ZONAL PELARGONIUMS. 
’HE following will be found the best way to treat the Gold and Bronze 
Zonals for conservatory decoration in summer or winter. 
For summer decoration, the best time to propagate is from the 
beginning of February up to the beginning of May. Any good 
loam with a little leaf soil and sand will suit them—-just the kind of 
soil that anyone would grow an ordinary Pelargonium in. The best plan 
is to put the cuttings in singly, in small 60-pots, well drained. They 
should be placed on a shelf or curb in a temperature of 70°, where they 
will very soon strike root; a Pine stove is a capital place for the purpose. 
They will require very little water from the time the cutting is put in till 
it is rooted. I have often noticed in the case of a wound such as that 
caused by spot, that after if has become dry and healed over, roots are 
emitted much sooner from these parts than from the base of the cutting, 
and the consequence is that the plant soon grows away with great vigour. 
I have often been able to take the top off from such a cutting, a fortnight 
sooner than from those struck in the ordinary way. This being the case, 
I often make a wound purposely, cutting out a small piece of the stem 
just above the level of the soil, and when dry covering it with soil. This I 
do with varieties that I wish to increase with rapidity. When the roots have 
reached the sides of the pots the young plants may be repotted into 5 or 6-inch 
pots, and placed as near the glass as possible; and when the roots have 
taken hold of the soil the tops may be pinched out. The plants should be 
kept rather dry before they are stopped, also for three or four days after, 
as it often happens when this is not attended .to, that they throw out only 
one or two shoots instead of four or five. When the side shoots have grown 
an inch or two long the plants may be again shifted into a larger pot, and 
every encouragement given to grow freely; and this may be repeated, if a 
large specimen is desired. A cutting struck in January may thus be grown 
into a fine plant, nearly 2 feet through, by the end of May, and almost 
every leaf produced from the middle of February may be preserved entire 
and beautifully coloured, if care has been taken in handling the plant. 
