DIGGING AND STORAGE . . . In autumn, when the 
foliage turns yellow, withdraw the water gradually and when 
all growth dies down entirely, take out, wash off all soil, 
taking care not to bruise the tubers, dry in sunlight for a day 
or two until thoroughly dry, then store in open flats in cool, 
dry place. See that all particles of the old stem are removed 
until healthy tissue shows; otherwise, if left on, they will 
decay and destroy the tuber. 
TUBERS ... If early flowering is desired, place tubers dur¬ 
ing January and February in a warm place in open flats, 
moisten slightly once in a while and gradually, as they begin 
sprouting buds, plant in flats filled with peat, only about three 
inches apart, according to the size of the tuber, so that they 
are only slightly covered. Keep uniformly moist but not too 
wet, in a warm place, well lighted, until three or four inches 
of growth develops; then plant in pots or permanent position 
as desired. The front is always where the tips of the leaves are 
pointing. Often, if dormant tubers are planted in the open 
ground, especially if it is cold and too wet, numbers of them 
rot and the planting will be uneven, some coming earlier, 
some later, and facing haphazard way. Started first in peat, 
they will develop splendid root systems, which are necessary 
for developing good specimens. 
POT CULTURE . . For pot culture, any rich, light soil is 
suitable. Mixture of two parts of coarse leafmold, one part of 
loam will bring good results. It is important for mixture to be 
of light, coarse character, so that it will drain well. Finely- 
sifted soil will pack down without permitting the circulation 
of air, hence only a moderately good result can be expected. 
Perfect drainage is most important, and to provide it, place 
at least one inch deep of gravel on the bottom of the pot. 
When potting up, use smaller pots in beginning and move 
later into larger pots before they are pot-bound. If tubers are 
well started in peat, with considerable root system, they may 
be planted immediately in large pots approximately from six 
to eight inches for one-year-old tubers. Older, larger tubers 
will, of course, require larger pots. Very great care with water¬ 
ing is necessary when they are planted immediately in large 
pots. Keep the surface only moist in the young stage, until 
the growth is well developed, and then heavier watering is 
justified. If you over-water the soil in the beginning, it will 
become sour, the plants will make only a sickly growth, buds 
will fall oflf before blooming and the plants may die out en¬ 
tirely. This is true especially of hanging basket types. If very 
strong growth is desired, it will be necessary when the plants 
are established in the final pots and have at least four of the 
leaves developed, to water once a week with liquid manure. 
FEEDING ... A number of quick-acting, commercial fer¬ 
tilizers can also be used. One of the safest is cottonseed meal, 
which we are using now almost exclusively, as it gives very 
good results. Half a teaspoonful, one or twice during the sea¬ 
son, sprinkled around the edge of the pot (not too close to 
the stem) will be sufficient. Heavier doses will do more harm 
than good, often causing distortion in the flowers or burning 
up the roots, destroying the plant entirely. Lath houses with 
strong muslin roofs are a very suitable place for development 
of show specimens in warm regions where greenhouses would 
be too warm. If grown in a greenhouse, thorough ventilation 
day and night must be available. Openings in the walls, under 
the benches, will give good circulation of air. On hot days, 
heavy shading and sprinkling the walks with water will keep 
the temperature down. 65 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit is the 
most ideal temperature, for as the cooler and slower they 
develop, the finer and larger the flowers will be. Higher tem¬ 
peratures produce quick, weak growth, and the flowers do not 
develop as good size and as lasting quality. 
PRUNING ... Do not prune begonias. Any open wound 
will be immediately attacked by fungus, especially when 
crowded, without good air circulation. If you cut the flowers, 
cut only half of the stem. The other half will mature and fall 
off itself without leaving a wound. 
BASKETS ... If well-balanced hanging baskets are desired, 
pick off all buds until the growth is enough advanced and the 
branching develops. Some hanging types are quite strong 
growers and if only one to three stems are on the tuber, they 
should be pinched off when first bud appears, to induce the 
side shoots to develop. 
PESTS . . . Occasionally Begonias are attacked by aphis and 
thrip in the greenhouse, if kept in dry, close temperatures. 
Fumigating with nicotine on two or three alternate evenings 
will control these pests easily. Very rarely they are also subject 
to mite attacks. These are very small and cannot be seen with¬ 
out a lens. The first signs of their presence are brown, rusty 
streaks on the young shoots and foliage, deforming and de¬ 
stroying the season’s growth entirely if not checked. Infected 
plants should be isolated immediately. Thorough spraying 
with Volck will check this pest. 
FAILURES ..The most common failure in Begonias is the 
falling off of buds before they develop, which is caused either 
by the plants being grown in too small pots without a suffi¬ 
cient amount of food, severe drying out or severe over-water¬ 
ing. In hot weather the flowers develop too rapidly and the 
plants, by drawing much more water from the soil, tend to 
throw off the buds. Abundant growth, with little or no flow¬ 
ers, is the result of too heavy shade. Curled and shiny foliage 
is a sign of too strong an exposure to the sun. The most dam¬ 
age is done by over-feeding; the first signs of it are a soft, 
glassy texture of the foliage, curling under gradually, wilting 
and dying off. 
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