116 WINDOW GARDENING. 
But its most successful use is in the hanging basket. Here at home il climbs, 
and swings, and droops at will, thriving and twining until the arms of the basket 
are hidden in the dense vei-dure. Probably no cheaper style of hanging baskets 
can be obtained than this, and surely none will last as long. 
Another charming use to wliich the Ivy can be put is to twine it around an 
Easel in the parlor. Take a small rustic jardinet, such as are figured in one of 
the chapters of Part I, fill with earth, plant in it a good strong root of the Ivy, 
and then twine its long tendrils around the edges of the Easel, and let it droop 
from the top over the picture placed on the rest beneath. It forms one of the 
finest of draperies and borders for any art engraving, portrait or painting. Little 
brackets of it may be filled like Fig. 13, in cliapter 10, and fastened in the 
centre of the side of any room, and while the Ivy itself may droop, tliere may be 
placed ferns or pressed autumn leaves above to help the effect with their gay 
colors. 
Those cuttings which have rooted in water during the winter will need more 
plant food than this will supply. So in the spring, either plant them in the 
open border, or place them in pots, with soil, aD.d they will soon become large 
plants. 
Eight to ten large pots of Ivy trained over stakes and trellises, are at times 
used by some to ornament a single room. 
Hanging baskets are sometimes constructed entirely without soil — holding only 
moss. A quantity of vials are filled with water and placed therein so as to be 
well concealed ; slips of Ivy are inserted in some of these vials; Ferns are inter 
spersed in other bottles, and cut flowers added to others ; brilliant autumn leaves 
pressed and varnished are added here and there. All combined make a very 
choice parlor ornament. The only care needed is to keep the water replenished 
as long as it will last. 
In the previous chapter on hanging baskets may be seen a design of a very 
handsome combination of Ferns and climbing Ivy, in Fig. 4, and in Fig. 11, is a 
sketch of the Ivy as we see it in its most familiar habits of growth. The bowl 
is an earthen one, such as now are imported and found on s»le at most floral 
stores. A single cutting has been placed in here, and now it is branching out 
ward vigorously. 
The directions for propagating Ivy from slips or cuttings, are very simple. 
Take a young, tender branchlet, cut about three inches in length, and insert half 
an inch of its stem in wet sand, or soil, under a bell glass or tumbler. Keep 
the soil well moistened, and yet warm, by placing it in the sunshine for fully a 
week. Then loosen the sand, withdraw the stem, and if rootlets have started, 
put immediately in a pot of good garden earth, mixed with one-third its q\ian- 
tity of sand Press the soil firmly about this young plant, to the same height 
as the sand reached before, cover with the bell glass again, and set in the shade 
for a week, then set the glass aside and bring to the sunshine. It should bo 
watered frequently, but only just enough to keep it from wilting Earlj- in 
June, if it has grown too long, trim off the large branches, set it out doors in 
