ome &amjmiuaii. 
They are beautiful. All who see them testify to 
that. Their home for the winter is a large bay-win¬ 
dow facing the south, with side lights east and west. 
Early in the fall all the plants needing it are repot¬ 
ted in soil suited to each one’s need. They are then 
placed in a cool chamber to gradually accustom them 
to indoor life. By the middle of October they are all 
snugly ensconced in their winter quarters, and from 
that time are a constant source 
of pleasure. 
My Geraniums are all young- 
plants. I started slips last May 
of such as I wanted for winter 
blooming. All buds were re¬ 
morselessly nipped out through 
the summer, and by the time 
they were wanted for the house 
they were fine, shapely plants. 
A Master Christine, Madame 
Rendatler, Jean Sisley, and 
Marie Lemoine thus treated 
have given an abundance of 
flowers this winter. For foliage 
Geraniums I keep a plain and a 
variegated Rose, a Mountain of 
Snow, and a Black Douglas. 
The last I think fully as pretty 
as Madame Pollock, and it does 
better in the house. 
The Primroses are also young 
plants, all raised from seed sown 
in May except the double white 
one. They were first picked out 
in two-inch pots, transferred to 
larger as they needed it, and 
now are all in six-inch pots; 
and never before have I had 
such large blooms as now. For 
soil I used mostly leaf-mould 
and a little silver sand. The 
Cyclamen, now five years old, 
has a bulb as large around as a 
silver half-dollar. It is in a 
seven-inch pot and has not been 
shifted for two years. At one 
time this winter it had over fifty flowers, besides the 
buds. 
My Stevia is now one mass of feathery white flow¬ 
ers. Last spring a friend received one from the 
greenhouse, and, accidentally breaking off the top, 
sent it to me; not thinking it would grow, I stuck 
it down by the edge of a pot and thought no more of 
it. When next I looked at it I was surprised to 
find it growing; and since then it has taken constant 
pinching to keep it from growing out of reach. It is 
now a most beautiful plant. 
My Heliotrope, a large plant now nearly three 
years old, has several large trusses of its fragrant 
flowers on it now. Last summer I cut it closely 
back, and by September it was covered with a fresh 
young growth. A little after Christmas it commenc¬ 
ed to bloom, and has not been without flowers since. 
It is in a ten-inch pot filled with the best of mould, 
and is given the highest, sunniest situation in the 
window. An old German lady of whom I got my 
slip told me, “ He like rich food, you must feed him 
well.” And I find it is so. Occasionally I give it a 
little soot tea. 
Of all so-called winter blooming Fuchsias, the 
Speciosa is the only one that blooms abundantly for 
me. I have now a large plant of this in a ten-inch 
pot, and it has had hundreds of flowers on it this 
winter. The Carl Halt has bloomed only occasion¬ 
ally, but is so pretty when it does, one cannot find 
Plant of New Calceolarias. 
any fault with it. All other Fuchsias spend the win¬ 
ter in the cellar. I bring them up about the last of 
March, and in a few weeks they are covering them¬ 
selves with fresh green leaves, making ready for 
their summer work. This winter among my new 
plants I have had Mahernia Odorata and a Hogarth 
Bouvardia; they have bloomed profusely since the 
1st of February. I am delighted with Mahernia, its 
delicately-perfumed blossom and graceful foliage 
making it a valuable acquisition to my window. 
Late last fall I took from my garden a root of Di¬ 
centra Spectabilis (Bleeding-heart) and planted it in 
an eight-inch pot filled with rich earth. It soon be¬ 
gan to grow, and by Christmas was filled with its 
delicate pink flowers. 
In a large pot, holding about half a bushel, I have 
five Callas; one being in the centre, the others equi¬ 
distant about the edge. From these I have had 
twenty flowers since early in the fall. One lily 
yet one year old, has given three flowers. Their 
saucer is filled with boiling water every morning, and 
they are given water warm to the hand as they 
need it. In the summer they are stood out on the 
cistern-box, east of the house, and given only enough 
water to keep from dying out entirely. 
But the crowning glory of my flowers this winter 
were two large vases filled, one with Verbenas, the 
other with Petunias. They stood in south windows 
on either side of the bay-window. The Verbenas, 
of all colors, were covered with 
flowers since January. The 
Petunias, plain, striped, and 
blotched, seemed trying to outdo 
them. At one time I counted 
over eighty blooms on the Petu¬ 
nias, and I think they averaged 
about that for three or four 
weeks. The plants of both kinds 
were started from slips in Au¬ 
gust in saucers of damp sand, and 
from these transplanted to the 
vases in which the}' were to 
grow; and how they grew! 
Careful watching, sprinkling, 
and smoking kept down the 
green lice that will trouble Ver¬ 
benas, and their abundant bloom 
amply repaid all trouble. 1 shall 
never more winter old plants of 
either Verbenas or Petunias; 
they are, truly, more trouble 
than they are worth. 
Of three hanging baskets I will 
only describe one; and here let 
me say this is one of the most de¬ 
lightful ways of growing plants. 
Just in front of the window hangs 
a large wire basket, having in 
the centre a pink Oxalis; climb¬ 
ing up the wires by which it is 
hung is the graceful Maurandia 
vine, hanging by the leafy stems 
to everything it can take hold of; 
drooping over the sides of the 
basket are Lobelia and Kenil¬ 
worth Ivy, now lull of little blue 
■the last like miniature Snapdragon 
and lilac flowers- 
blossoms. 
All of these 
plants, with many others, 
are 
thoroughly sprinkled every Tuesday morning. If 
any signs of insects are discovered, they are remov¬ 
ed to a little room off the kitchen and given up to 
tobacco-smoke for a while; then sprinkled good and 
returned to their places. I rarely have this to do, 
however. Plants from a greenhouse are always kept 
from the others till I am sure that they are not in¬ 
fected. All my plants are watered as early in the 
morning as possible, if they need it. Never water a 
plant unless it does need it, and then water 
thoroughly, using water warm to the hand. 
Mrs. W. B. Van de Wall. 
Lancaster, Wxs. 
dl 
