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IWiies' Moral Bdfjiitiet h*i 3 Pictorial Same fiampimaii. 
147 
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Blue Glass, etc.—I have painted every other 
pane of my sash blue ; my seeds couie up in about one- 
fourth of the usual time, and my plants seemed im¬ 
mediately infused with new life. Do Lantanas and 
Chinese Primroses bloom the first season from seed, 
and does it take two or three years to produce flower¬ 
ing bulbs from Gladiolus seed! How late do Gannas 
and Ceutaurea Candidissiina (Dusty Miller) grow the 
first season from seed! What sort of a flower does 
the Cinnamon Vine have ? Is it of rapid growth, and 
does it require to be taken up in the winter ! I hope 
Mr. Drew will not forget that he has promised to tell 
us more about the treatment of Lilies. 
Violet Vories. 
Answer, —Your seeds may have come up more 
quickly under blue glass, as darkness promotes germi¬ 
nation, but it is probably more of our imagination 
when we say our plants grow better. Plants need 
light to grow, and the whole blue glass theory of 
Geu. Pleasanton is an absurdity unsustained by 
facts or experiment. Lantana and Chinese Prim¬ 
roses will bloom within a year from sowing the seed if 
well grown. Flowering bulbs of Gladiolus may by 
growing the plants continuously be obtained in about 
a year, but the leaf must never be allowed to die down. 
The size of your seedling Gannas and Centaureas will 
depend wholly upon how you grow them; in rich soil 
they grow large in one season. The Cinnamon Vine 
is of very rapid growth. The root need not be taken 
up in winter. The flower is white and small, little 
larger than a pea. 
Hyacinths.—I write to ask how I can improve 
Hyacinths. I have a great many, but they are all 
single. How can I make them double ? 
Campbella, S. C. Mrs. C. M. Landrum. 
Answer. —Single varieties cannot he changed to 
double. Your only way is to buy some double varie¬ 
ties ; they are quite as cheap as the single. Any seed- 
man can furnish them from October to January. 
Golden Banded Lily.—Should Lilium auratum 
and excelsum be treated as Gladiolus, or are they per¬ 
fectly hardy if left in the ground during our northern 
winters ! F. A. W. 
Bowdoinham, Me. 
Answer. —They are both hardy, the latter very 
hardy; but we should advise covering the bed of L. 
auratum with stable litter during the winter to keep 
the ground from freezing very deep. 
Cactus Seed.—Please tell me when to plant Cac¬ 
tus seed, in what kind of soil, and how soon it will 
come up. Hannah Owen. 
Mickleton, N. J. 
Answer. —Sow at any season in a pot in flue sand ; 
it comes up very easily. When the young plants are 
large enough to handle pot them off in sandy loam. 
Difference between Clematis and Madeira 
Vine.—Please tell me the difference between Clema¬ 
tis and Madeira vine. M. A. Wilkes. 
San Saba, Texas. 
Ansicer.— They are as different as a live oak and a 
palmetto. The Clematis is a woody vine, usually 
native of temperate regions, belonging to natural or- 
ceous South American plant, botanically, Boussin- 
gaultia vaselloides. 
Crown Imperial not Blooming.—How shall I 
treat my Crown Imperial ! It grows fast until a foot 
high, then turns yellow and dies away. The soil is 
sandy. Mrs. H. Surton. 
North Bend, Neb. 
Answer. —You cannot make the soil too rich for 
Crown Imperials, and they must be kept moist. Ma¬ 
nure heavily, plant deeper, and water, if dry. 
Hyacinths.—Would Hyacinths do well in an out¬ 
door window garden, with a southern exposure, planted 
in the fall for early spring blooming ! What varieties 
would he best! Hyacinths bloom here in February 
and March. Mrs. Annie C. Gallagcer. 
Meridian, Lauderdale Co., Miss. 
Ansicer. —They would do perfectly well. The selec¬ 
tion of varieties is a matter of taste. We prefer sin¬ 
gle to double varieties. Get in October any seeds¬ 
man’s catalogue, which will describe varieties. Charles 
Dickens, Norma, Grand Lilas, Harriett Beecher Stowe, 
Argus, Miss Kitty, Grand Vidette, La Tour d’Au¬ 
vergne, Bouquet Tendre, Grootvorst, Blohsberg, Goe¬ 
the, Homerus, L’Ami du Color, Tubiflora, Elfrida, 
Vesta Emicus, Orondates^ Heroine, and LaPlecis d’Or, 
are very good free-blooming varieties. 
Acacia.—Please tell me about the Acacia. Is it 
hardy? Will it bloom, and what is the flower! I 
have one from seed last spring ; it is about three feet 
high, straight stem with leaves like a Sensitive Plant. 
Amie. 
Answer. —There are many species of Acacia, mostly 
natives of New Holland, and none are hardy in the 
Northern States. The one you have is doubtless A. 
lophantha; the flower is greenish-yellow, not hand¬ 
some or sweet-smelling. For its graceful foliage the 
plant is worth growing, but not otherwise. 
Spotted Leaved Calla.—Flease tell me how to 
take care of my Spotted Leaved Calla (Richardia albo 
maculata) after removing from the border in the fall. 
Marlboro, Mass. Mrs. Geo. A. Brigham. 
Answer. —This species is deciduous. The leaves 
die away after the plant has bloomed. Keep it dry 
as you would a Dahlia or Gladiolus ; that is, free from 
frost, but do not allow it to shrivel. If it starts into 
growth before spring, p>ot it. 
Roses not Doing Well.—Pruning.—What 
shall I do with a Rose which has not been doing well 
for some years ? Some one says pour soot tea around 
the roots. There is a hug that destroys the bloom 
every year. How can I destroy him ? When is the 
best time to prune Rose hushes ? 
Cave City, Ky. Lutitia Waters. 
Ansicer. —Dig around your Rose some well rotted 
stable manure, and keep the surface soil loose during 
the summer. “ Soot tea” would probably kill the 
plant. Soot is a very powerful manure and should be 
used with caution and well diluted. The bug can 
only he destroyed by hand picking. Roses should 
be pruned in early spring. 
Night-Blooming Cerens not Blooming.— 
What shall I do with a Night-blooming Cereus, four 
years old, to make it bloom! Please tell me the soil 
and treatment required. M. A. H 
Ercildoun, Pa. 
Answer. —The Night-blooming Cereus does not 
bloom until large and old. Your plant is probably too 
young. Give it a sandy loam in summer; give plenty 
of sun and heat, watering moderately to induce growth; 
in winter keep the plant almost dry. The blooming 
season is from May to October 
Ever-blooming Geranium.— Do you know of 
an ever-blooming Geranium ? Mary J. Horton. 
Silver Creek, Ky. 
Answer .—We know of none which will flower all 
the year. Some of the Rollinson’s unique class bloom 
more continuously than any others. The Scarlet 
Geraniums are very free blooming, and if grown in 
pots flower most of the time. 
Sings Eating Jessamine.—Fuchsias.—I have 
a beautiful Jessamiue which is being entirely destroyed 
by slugs. Can you tell me how to get rid of them ? 
Do Fuchsias need sun or shade? E. T. Coe. 
Brooklyn, N. Y. 
Answer .—Lay cabbage leaves around the plant; 
the slugs will go under them and can be easily caught 
and destroyed. Raw potatoes hollowed out serve the 
same purpose. Fuchsias need moderate shade in sum¬ 
mer, they rest in winter; unless winter-blooming 
varieties, which need full sunlight all winter. 
To Make and Plant a Ribbon Red.—What 
class of flowers are best for a ribbon bed f Please 
give me diameter of bed, colors and arrangement. 
" Niles, Mich. W. M. G. 
Ansicer .—You can make a ribbon bed any size to 
suit the ground and the number of plants you have. 
A good showy bed of fifteen feet diameter would he, 
centre, Castor Oil Bean, surrounded by Salvia splen- 
dens, then Abutilon Thoinpsoni, edged with Coleus 
Verschafleltii. One of ten feet diameter, Carina 
Marechal Vaillant, or discolor, then Coleus Verschaf- 
feltii, edged with Cineraria maritima. 
Plants for North Window.—What plants will 
live and grow in a north window in winter ! I have 
but one window and that is north. 
Wellington, Me. Mrs. A. S. Margne. 
Ansicer .—No flowering plants will bloom in winter 
without sun. You might make a pretty effect by hav¬ 
ing some small evergreens in pots. The variegated 
Retinosporas would be pretty. Some of the small suc¬ 
culents, such as Sedums, small Cactus, Echeverias, 
Haworthias, etc., are very interesting and would do 
well. 
Begonia Glaueophylla.—Will Begonia Glau- 
eophylla scandens hear manure-water or guano as a 
stimulant ? I have a beautiful one in a wire basket, 
but it keeps dropping its leaves as soon as one-fourth 
grown. I cannot give fresh soil without injuring the 
plant. Esther W. PIudelson Fairmount. 
Cincinna ;i, Ohio. 
Answer .—Your plant probably suffers from not be¬ 
ing kept warm enough or from too dry heat. The 
plant needs a moist bed. All liquid fertilizers should 
be used on pot plants with great caution, guano espe¬ 
cially. If used make them very weak. 
Sealing Wax Paint.—How can I prepare sealing 
wax paint? What are the proportions of sealing wax 
and alcohol used in making brackets ? 
North Branch. M. Augusta Field. 
Answer .—Dissolve enough to make the required 
consistency. Will any of our leaders be kind enough 
to answer this? We suppose a thick coating is used 
on the required article ; if so, dissolve as above.. . 
