114 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER AND COUNTRY GENTLEMAN, November 24, 1857. 
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though the temperature may he so high as to show no 
appearance of frost on exposed, but dry soil in the neigh¬ 
bourhood. TV lien plants are thus left too long exposed, 
and as a consequence of the roots being injured, the 
flower-buds afterwards drop and fall; then there are 
myriads of inquiries appearing in all the gardening 
periodicals as to the cause of the disappointment. Rest 
assured that late housing and the consequent soakings 
and chilling’s are some of these causes. 
4 lorists’ Pelargoniums. —“ These were pruned, broke 
freely, and then placed in smaller pots according to 
rule; have been well and regularly watered, and yet 
many ol the leaves turn yellow day after day.”—Want of 
plenty of air and too much water are the causes of all 
this. Give air back and front wherever practicable. Stir 
the surface soil; do next thing to lock up the water-can 
for some time, and give no more than will just keep the 
leaves from flagging, and as much as they can freely 
perspire. You have clogged them up with juices which 
they could not get rid of. A toper might as well expect 
to be vigorous and healthy plunged up to his chin in a 1 
wine barrel, and nothing else to depend on. During the 
whole of the winter months if you err at all let it be on 
the side of dryness. In dull weather the soil, and even 
the stems of the plants, will absorb as much as they 
evaporate and perspire. Houses are better than pits. 
Cinerarias for early blooming should not have too 
large pots; from five to seven inches will generally be 
large enough. Rich light soil suits them best. Those 
intended for specimens in spring and summer should not 
bo allowed to be pot bound, hut kept growing slowly in 
a low temperature secure from frost, and in a moist 
atmosphere. 
Calceolarias. —Seedlings and young plants of the large 
herbaceous kinds may be treated somewhat similarly. 
It is as well to give them little pot room until the sun 
gains power, after which they grow very rapidly. Plenty 
of air, a cool temperature above the freezing point, and 
a moist atmosphere, with a fair amount of moisture at 
the roots, are the great essentials for keeping them 
healthy. When placed in houses light and airy fjieir 
health will bo promoted by standing on damp moss. 
Shrubby Calceolarias are still easier mauaged, and 
«u e still hardier as to temperature. Anything like dry 
heat injures them. If just kept from much frost I have 
never known the foggiest and dampest weather in winter 
injure them. . At all times they prefer moisture. They 
bloom freely in the dog days in summer out of doors, 
and are then in their element, but they will continue to 
do so only if the roots obtain plenty of nourishment, 
either by repeated waterings or a good surface mulching, 
which prevents evaporation, and enables the roots to 
draw moisture from great depths beneath them. Some 
halt a dozen inquiries have been made as to preserving 
shrubby Calceolaria plants from the flower beds in 
winter, and a few inquire if they could not be kept in 
boxes, the same way as scarlet Geraniums taken up. I 
must say no so far as this, that one element of success 
with the Geraniums is comparative dryness, and with 
the Calceolarias a good deal of moisture at the roots and 
m the atmosphere, thriving in such circumstances, where 
scarlet Geraniums would rot. If taken up with some 
earth at least adhering to the roots, pretty well pruned 
in, and planted ip cold pits with brick or turf or earth 
smes, and covered with glass, or any material that will 
throw off heavy rams, and that will admit plenty of air 
and light in fine weather, they will make fine bushes 
lor next year; but in all cases where winter room is 
scarce I would recommend striking in October, as the 
young plants will be quite big enough before May, and 
the beds will be more uniform, i have described the 
mode adopted in striking them on a north border. The 
shoots have hardly had a shade since they were inserted, 
have never yet been watered a second time, and I do 
not suppose that on an average one in two hundred has 
missed. 
Scarlet Geraniums. — Brilliant. — The mode of 
managing old plants of the scarlet has been detailed by 
almost every contributor. Several inquiries have been 
made as to how Brilliant would do managed in the same 
way, and I have not a word to say against it. I have 
used it rather largely for some time, and can speak of it 
in the highest terms. We should be glad if Mr. Robson 
gave it a fair trial next year, and then enumerated it in 
his useful notes. It does well all round this neigh¬ 
bourhood, making a splendid symmetrical bed, and, so 
far as my experience goes, nothing equals it for a row in 
a ribbon border. The most striking peculiarity with 
me, however, is, that young plants struck in autumn 
completely throw into the shade the following summer 
older plants taken up and preserved, both for vigorous 
growth and continuous, abundant blooming. I believe 
it is nothing else than a variegated Tom Thumb; but, 
whatever its origin, it is one of the good things for which 
the flower garden is indebted to the Messrs. Osborne, of 
Fulham. It does best in a loamy soil, and that mo¬ 
derately rich. If old plants are taken up they will do 
better in a house in a dryish position than in a cold pit. 
In the case of all old scarlets taken up to be kept we | 
invariably remove all the leaves, except, perhaps, a | 
few of the size of a sixpence, and all the soft points, j 
leaving only the hardest old part of the skeleton. We 
smear the cut or broken ends with quicklime, to prevent 
decay. 
Golden Chain Geranium. —A correspondent says, ! 
“ Is this worth lifting and repotting? It has done little 
good with me; leaves unhealthy, and at the best of , 
times not larger than a half-crown piece.”—It is well J 
worth lilting, even should you not esteem it yourself, | 
for you are sure to meet with admirers of it among your | 
neighbours, and plenty who would be glad to exchange 
or pay the postage for it. You are rather late, however, | 
with it. We took up what we had here in the second j 
week of October. There is a good deal of the fox and 
the grapes about this Geranium. Hence some who | 
could not find a good word for the beauty are trying j 
every move to got up a good stock of it. It has done 
well in several places round here ; in fact, better than at 
ShruHands, where it was first afforded a prominent 
place in the parterre. We have seen it with leaves this 
summer little inferior in size to those of Tom Thumb, 
and on plants from twelve to eighteen inches in diameter. 
The flowers, however, were mostly picked off. Other 
things being equal, young plants produce the finest 
leaves. A correspondent complains that he was advised, 
on the authority of The Cottage Gardener, to mix it 
and the Brilliant m a circular bed, but that the Brilliant 
outgrew it completely. Wo know of no such authority. 
As well think to make a fair field with good-sized cobs 
and Shetland ponies regularly intermixed. Whatever 
he fared on in the islands the Shetlander is generally a 
rare chap for corn when he can get it. The Golden 
Chain may be kept pure in breed by poverty and starva¬ 
tion, but fine leaves can only come by pretty rich feed- j 
ing. Let our grumbling friend place Brilliant in the ' 
centre and Golden Chain in a broad band round it, giving j 
the Chain something better than either clay, sand, or I 
even hungry heath soil, and I shall be disappointed if ! 
lie will be dissatisfied with the result. Some time ago I 
lound a number of fine things in a circular bed—the 
Chain among them. The want of arrangement spoiled 
all, and that, too, I was told, was according to The 
Cottage Gardener’s direction ! but I have never hit 
upon it yet, and have sought for it, too, often and long. 
R. Fish. 
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