218 
CULTURE OF KI'ACKIDE/E. 
shelf in the greenhouse, &c. to dry up the wound made by the knife. 
Let them remain on the shelf until they begin to have a shrivelled 
appearance, say a week or fortnight, then pot them in small pots in 
the same compost as recommended for old plants; set them on a 
shelf as near the glass as convenient, and he particularly cautious not 
to over-water them. 
Sow the seed in the wet state, immediately after being gathered 
from the plant and rubbed out of the husk. For this purpose, fill a 
pot with a mixture of equal parts of peat earth and sand, cover it 
lightly, and plunge the pots in a hotbed; if the seed be good, it will 
make its appearance in a month afterwards. 
The operation of grafting is very simple, merely requiring an in¬ 
cision to be made, and fitting in it a fresh cutting of another kind, 
rubbing a little clay over the wound to keep out the air. 
ARTICLE XII.—CULTURE OF EPACRIDEiE. 
All the species of Epacris are natives of the neighbourhood of New 
South Wales, and are very handsome shrubby greenhouse plants. 
Their culture is very simple and easy; the E. microphylla and ex- 
serta require to be potted in about equal parts of light sandy loam 
and peat, but all the rest thrive best in sandy peat alone. They 
nearly all come in flower about the end of March or beginning of 
April, and continue blooming until June or July, although the pre¬ 
sent subject flowers most of the winter, as well as spring and sum¬ 
mer. In June, they must be turned out of doors with the other 
greenhouse plants, but previous to which, it will be necessary to pot 
them, in most cases shifting them into larger pots; this is indispen¬ 
sable, as their roots are of so fine a texture, that if the pots be placed 
out of doors, and consequently exposed to the alternations of heat 
and cold more than when in the house, the roots against the sides of 
the pots will receive material injury, the plants will become brown, 
and in most cases die; this we have seen in very many instances. 
The best way of propagating them is by cuttings, which should be 
put in early in the spring; they will strike if put in at other times 
of the year, but not so freely. Take off the extreme ends, about one 
inch or an inch and a half long, and plant them in pots of sand, co¬ 
ver them with bell-glasses, and give them a similar treatment to 
Erica cuttings. When they have struck root, pot them into small 
pots filled with sandy peat, and place the pots in a frame where there 
is a little heat; and when they have again begun to grow, remove 
