THE LADIES' FLOBAL CABINET. 
251 
By the 15th of June the plants watered with the solu¬ 
tions of ammonia and the carbonate of copper had per¬ 
ished. Those which had been treated with the sulphate 
of iron exhibited a moderate degree of vigor and red 
sepals. The solution of ammoniacal alum, on the con¬ 
trary, had produced a luxuriant growth and large flow¬ 
ers of a violet-blue color. 
“ From other experiments ofM. Eug. Fournier, which 
we have not space to report here, the conclusion is that, 
if iron colors the flowers of Hydrangeas blue under cer¬ 
tain conditions, it is because it excites a more active 
growth in the same way as does ammoniacal alum. Be¬ 
yond all doubt the blue color in the flowers of Hydran¬ 
geas is the result of an excess of vegetation artificially 
produced. 
“To these experiments we shall only add one observa¬ 
tion, which is, that although we. have seen that the 
most vigorous Hydrangeas bore blue flowers, while the 
rest produced rose-colored ones, we have also of ten found 
an exuberant growth of this plant coincident with the 
production of flowers purely rose-colored. We need only 
mention, as an example, the Hydrangea Otaksa, which 
has been not many years introduced, and which is 
merely a Japanese variety of the common kind. At 
Versailles we have measured corymbs of it, which were 
more than sixteen inches across.” 
GLOXINIAS. 
Last March I got a dollar packet of Gloxinia seeds— 
the finest strain in the market, and containing no more 
seeds than an ordinary fifty-cent packet. I sowed them 
in a shallow seed-pan that was well drained and filled 
with light, sandy, fine soil, and kept in a warm green¬ 
house on a shelf near the glass. In two weeks’ time a 
good many of the seedlings were up, and in about three 
weeks the full crop appeared; but it was about five 
weeks from sowing-time before I ventured to prick them 
off. Then I pricked them off singly into other shallow 
seed-pans prepared as before, and afterwards, as soon 
as their leaves began to crowd each other, transplanted 
them into boxes, there to remain till the end of May. 
By this time I had lots of frame room, and I made up 
a hot-bed, waited till the heat was on the decline, then 
prepared it by filling in four or five inches deep with 
light, mellow soil, as if I were going to raise a lot of 
Stocks or Asters, and planted out my Gloxinias in it, 
about nine inches apart each way. I have kept them 
covered with sashes shaded with white-wash. They 
are kept close at night, and in the daytime, according to 
the warmness and brightness of the day, the sashes are 
tilted up from two to six inches, but at no time do I 
allow sunshine to get on the plants. Any dampening 
leaf or decaying matter is removed as soon as observed, 
and I never water or syringe the plants overhead; in¬ 
deed, any watering required is done most carefully by 
introducing the water-pot spout between the plants and 
under the leaves. 
During their whole life the plants have been kept close 
to the glass, shaded from sunshine and dry overhead. 
These plants are to-day—the middle of July—exceed¬ 
ingly strong and luxuriant, their leaves crowding and 
overlapping each other, and they are blooming beauti¬ 
fully, and I expect to have them in flower till Sep¬ 
tember. Then I shall let them dry up gradually till 
they shall lose their leaves, when I shall lift the roots, 
store them in earth in a shallow box and keep them dry 
over winter. Next spring they will be available for pot 
culture for early flowers or for again planting in frames. 
I prefer one and two-year old plants to those that are 
older, hence would raise a fresh lot from seed every 
year. Wm, Falconer. 
Glen Cove, L. I. 
TALKS ABOUT FLOWERS. 
The Begonia family well deserves culture, and should 
be represented in every collection, however small, for it 
is beautiful in both foliage and flower and especially 
adapted to pot culture. 
It is divided into three sections; Flowering, Foliage 
and Tuberous. The Flowering section I give a promi¬ 
nent place upon the list of winter-blooming plants, for 
they can be depended upon to bloom all winter and 
through spring time, when flowers are so acceptable. 
What a charming picture they make at mid-winter, 
when the snow is piled high in the garden, their beauti¬ 
ful coral-like waxen buds, and flowers, with hues incon¬ 
ceivable, drooping in profusion from the shining green 
foliage! They must be seen when in full bloom to be 
properly appreciated. 
This section of the tribe thrives best in a warm room; 
if it is well lighted, the plants will grow and bloom 
with but little sun. A rich, sandy, friable soil suits them 
well, but they should not be planted in too large pots, 
nor the soil kept constantly wet, but given what can 
readily be absorbed and no more. Water should never 
stand in the saucer of a Begonia pot, for this is their 
most vulnerable poiut. If given more than they need 
they will quickly resent it and in a manner not condu¬ 
cive to their good looks, nor pleasing to the cultivator; 
an observant person will soon understand their “signals 
of distress.” This section is easily propagated by slips; 
if taken off at a joint, stuck in a saucer or shallow pot 
of wet sand, and set in a warm place like a sunny win¬ 
dow, they will root very quickly. Among its favorite 
varieties are Argyrostigma Grandis, flowerspink leaves 
spotted white; Alba Perfecta Grandiflora, flowers 
white flushed with pink; Metallica, foliage tinted with 
bronzy green, flowers pale peach color. It grows rap- 
