17.—IVIES.
English Ivies are a great ornament to our rooms, and are hardy, and require very little care. After the first two years they grow quite rapidly, therefore it is well to procure two-year old plants; train them on your curtains, over your windows and pictures. Many make a mistake by changing the pots very often, thinking they require a very large pot, which is not so, for they do not require as much earth as many plants, only keep them moist, and have rich loam for the soil; it is well to water them every month with guano water, prepared according to the same rule given for flowers. The Poet’s Ivy is very pretty, the leaf being quite small. The most beautiful ivy we ever saw was one that never was removed from its place, summer or winter; it filled a large bay window, encircled the whole room, and wound around many pictures; now and then a gardener came and changed the soil, and the leaves were occasionally washed.