.Picto 
Hit 
niB 
Duchess of Edinburgh,' 
[On receipt of the Cabinet Premium, 
by mail.] 
Darling little rose-bud 
Peeping out between 
Little shining leaflets 
Of the brightest green — 
Lovely little rose-bud, 
I shall watch with care 
Till you are a blossom, 
Fresh and sweet and fair. 
Naught shall mar my rose-bud, 
For I’ve just learned “ How 
To Destroy Insects,” 
And, I tell you now. 
Not a single rose-slug. 
Nor an aphis sly, 
Shall molest my rose-bud ; 
If they do, they’ll die. 
GROWING- PANSIES. 
A correspondent writes : “ Can you tell me 
how to grow Pansies, and be sure of success ? I have 
a perfect passion for them, and always fail with them. 
Have tried to make them grow and bloom half a 
dozen times, and am ready to give up. Isn’t there 
some ‘knack’ about it which belongs only to certain 
persons 1 I have followed directions carefully, and 
always with the same result. The seeds grow, but 
the plants are weak, and generally die before they 
blossom.” 
It does seem as if some persons had a peculiar 
“knack” for making certain flowers grow. But 
generally, when you come to enquire into the matter 
you find that they have found out the conditions 
necessary to a healthy growth of the plant they suc¬ 
ceed with, while others fail, and that is really the 
secret of their success. I used to experience the 
same trouble with Pansies that my correspondent 
does. I tried growing them in shade, as recom¬ 
mended. I tried this location and that one, and a 
few poor flowers was generally all the satisfaction I 
got for time and labor expended. I began to think 
I lacked the “ knack” of growing pansies, and gave 
up trying. One day a friend went a mile or two 
into the country and came back with some of the 
loveliest Pansies I ever saw. They were very large, 
and no two seemed to be alike. They were in all 
shades of purple and yellow, and were marked with 
black and maroon and pure white. “ You ought to 
see them in the bed that these came from,” said my 
friend. “ I never saw anything like them.” On en¬ 
quiry I found that an old German woman grew 
them. Knowing that the Germans are very fond of 
them, and are successful in growing them, I deter¬ 
mined to visit this old lady and see if I could find 
out what her “ knack ” was. The next day I drove 
to her place, and interviewed her. She told me that 
she always started her Pansy-seed in the house, in 
rich earth, early in March. She took pains to have 
the young plants get plenty of sunshine and air, so 
that they would not become weak and spindling. 
By the time the ground was warm they were large, 
fine plants, and in a short time would begin to blos¬ 
som. She made the soil mellow, but not over-rich, 
and chose a spot where the hot sunshine of midday 
would not strike them. But she did not believe in 
having them shaded entirely. In that case they 
were apt to make a straggling growth, but would 
have few flowers. They wanted plenty of air, and 
unless they could have it they would mildew and 
become unhealthy. She never had any trouble in 
making them grow, and always had fine flowers. 
Every year she raised new plants, as she thought 
they blossomed better than old ones. This year’s 
plants would have the largest flowers, but next year 
they would blossom more profusely, and at the end 
of the season she threw them away. 
I have tried her plan, and have no trouble with 
Pansies now.— Exchange. 
CACTI. 
My love and admiration of nature’s beauties have 
for years past led to the cultivation of many rare 
and lovely plants. Of my success with some I 
should like to give a brief account, hoping the slight 
information may be of benefit to some floral friend. 
I have long entertained a strange fancy lor the 
Cacti family, and having loved and cared for them 
so many years I feel that I must bring them first 
into notice—a notice which they well deserve. 
..There is a large Cereus family. The Graudiflora 
(or Night-blooming Cereus) is the general favorite ; 
but not so with me. True it is a fine Cactus, grow¬ 
ing yards in one season, and can be trained on a 
trellis and lapped about like a serpent. I do not 
find they require to be almost starved for water to 
cause them to bloom, as some persons assert. On 
the other hand, they make much larger and stronger 
plants by watering well through the summer. In 
this climate (Northern Louisiana) we have long- 
droughts in the heat of summer, when the very at¬ 
mosphere becomes so dry that, in order to have our 
plants flourish, they must be watered and sprinkled 
often. 
My Graudiflora blooms beautifully every season, 
to the admiration of my neighbors. The flower is 
closed by morning, never more to open. 
The Quadrangularis and Triangulis are both fine 
Cereus. The former grows wonderfully tall. Mine 
being of such an immense height, it was placed in 
the yard and fastened in places to the house. The 
passers-by gazed in amazement at the tall green 
plant with such wonderful spines. Its flowers open 
at night also. The bloom of the Triangulis sur¬ 
passes that of the Grandiflora; unfortunately, it 
closes by morning light, as if too delicate for the 
rude glare of day. Any one desiring to cultivate a 
Cereus for the beauty of the plant should imme¬ 
diately order the Serpentinus. It produces a beauti¬ 
ful fruit, which of course adds much to its otherwise 
attractive appearance. 
There are many low-growing Cacti as fine, and 
more easily cultivated, than the tall varieties, since 
they require no support. The Epiphyllums have the 
loveliest flowers ; but to bloom well they should be 
grafted on a Cereus, which can be done by splitting 
the Cereus half in two for about two inches; then 
place your Epiphyllum between the halves, and close 
them by wrapping cord around tight enough to hold 
them in place. The Echenocactus, Marmalaria, 
Orange, and Melon are exceedingly interesting; some 
having fruit, others bright red berries, much re¬ 
sembling the Turkey berry. There is much I could 
say about the Cacti of Texas — growing wild over 
portions of that vast State. Some varieties may well 
compare with the green-house pets. The Cereus 
Cmspitosus ranks first. It does not grow more than 
a foot high, and in shape greatly resembles a, corn¬ 
cob. It is literally covered with small white spines. 
Echinocactus Horizontalonius spreads out like a 
large pincushion, and is ornamented with thick 
crooked spines. Their flowers are very attractive, 
since they open by daylight and remain in bloom 
some time. The Echeverias are much admired here. 
Why is there so little mention made of them in the 
Cabinet 1 ? They are so easily grown, and flourish 
like a house-leek in our dry, warm climate. In the 
latter part of summer the Metallica Echevcria puts 
up four or five tall stalks, which in the fall are 
loaded with small, wax-like flowers. To know how 
exquisitely lovely these flowers are one’s own eyes 
must behold them. A feeble pen can convey but a 
faint idea of their singular beauty. The Sanguinea 
has fine foliage. The Secunda is very pretty for 
filling spaces in large jars or boxes, with tall plants 
in the centre. I wonder if any lady reader of the 
Cabinet has ever tried to cultivate a Bonapartea 
Juncea. They are very rare and ornamental, be¬ 
longing to the family of Century plants, yet greatly 
unlike them; so much more graceful and delicate 
in growth, the long, slender foliage drooping from 
every side like a fountain. They can be grown in 
pots and kept in the green-house, pit, or window, 
wherever your fine plants are wintered. 
Pressed Leaves.—A good way to arrange au¬ 
tumn leaves and ferns is to stitch or pin or iron them 
on with thin mucilage to a strip of lace of suitable 
width, and with it border lace or muslin window cur¬ 
tains and lambrequins. This confines them so they 
will not easily be broken, and the light falling through 
brings out the colors finely, and the whole produces a 
charming effect. An invalid of our acquaintance 
decorates her room by twisting the stems of autumn 
leaves on fine wire as milliners do artificial flowers, 
twining the sprays about walls, windows, and pictures, 
like vines. 
Select Tender Roses.—The prize for the finest 
collection of tender roses of twelve varieties at the ex¬ 
hibition of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society a 
year ago was for the following sorts : Belle Lyonnaise, 
Bon Silene, Catherine Mermet, Climbing DeVoniensis, 
Climbing Hermosa, Gloire de Dijon, Marechal Niel, 
Isabella Sprunt, Niphetos, Pauline Laboute, Souvenir 
de la Malmaison, and Triomphe de llennes. 
Iron for Flowers.—Work iron-filings and iron- 
chips in the soil of your flower-beds, and you will 
add greatly to the bright rich coloring of flowers. 
