15G 
THE ELOEIST AND POMOLOGIST. 
[J ULY, 
and liberal treatment, so as to insure a robust liabit, and should be well stopped 
back^ and gradually hardened off, the lights being altogether removed on every 
favourable occasion as the season advances. I would particularly impress upon the 
amateur cultivator the necessity of a careful preparatory hardening-off prior to 
planting out, for upon this will in a great measure depend the ultimate success of 
the plants, wdiile failure will often result from inattention to this alone. It is 
necessary, moreover, not to be premature in planting out, for any sudden check 
at that stage will have a tendency to mar the effect for the season. As a general 
rule, I find it advisable to defer planting out until about the 10th of June, after 
which, the weather being favourable, they may with safety be committed to the 
beds. They should have a position fully exposed to the sun, and after planting 
require a good watering, and to have the surface of the beds mulched. Give 
them copious waterings at the roots when necessary, and avoid the frequent 
sprinklings so commonly practised, which do little real good, but have a tendency 
to bleach and mar the beauty of the foliage. 
The varieties I have found to stand best, and at the same time, to be most 
effective, are— Coleus Verschaffeltii and its varieties, aureus marginatus and 
7narmoratus; C. Saundersii^ C. Batemanii, and C. Ruclceri. The new golden-leaved 
varieties are a great advance, and will become grand acquisitions for in-door pur¬ 
poses ; but, bedded-out here, as elsewhere, they have proved disappointing. In 
districts subject to an excess of rain, the Iresine may advantageously be used in 
the place of the Coleus, with the best results.— George Westland, Witley Court. 
ON RE-POTTING THE AURICULA. 
[CCOEDING to the promise contained in my paper on Auricula composts, I 
proceed to give a few instructions on re-potting, the present being, in my 
opinion, the most seasonable time for this operation. Those, therefore, 
^ who have the compost in readiness by the second week in July, cannot 
do better than commence without delay. First of all, if the compost has been 
stowed away in a heap for any length of time, it should be spread out thinly for 
a day or so in some open place, where it can have the sun and air : it is necessary, 
however, to keep off rain or damp of any kind, for the drier the condition in which 
it is used the better. Should new pots have to be employed, they should be soaked 
in water for at least twenty-four hours before using; or if old ones, in which the 
plants have been growing, have to be again worked up, they should be soaked also, 
and with a brush cleansed thoroughly of all dirt and mouldy matter they may have 
about them. This thorough cleansing is a very important matter. In potting, all 
those plants which have been in their pots and in the same mould for the whole 
year will be best taken out, and should have the old earth shaken entirely from the 
roots, and then with a sharp knife the fibrous roots should be shortened, so that 
they can be spread out in the pots without being cramped or bent when filling 
in the new compost. The main tap-root too, if long, should be cut clean off 
