WHEN TWO OR THREE INCHES HIGH, TRANSPLANT CARNATIONS INTO POTS
AN EASILY MADE CARNATION SUPPORT
Cyperus, or Umbrella-plant, may be easily raised from cuttings, but it is sometimes desirable to have a number of plants for aquatic gardening, and growing from seed is an economy. The seeds should be sown in flats and kept warm; they germinate in about ten days, coming up very freely. As many as three hundred plants have been secured from one packet. Prick the seedlings out into larger flats as soon as they are big enough to handle, and when two or three inches high pot them off into two-or three-inch pots of muck, plunging into wet sand and keeping constantly moist. Shift them as the pots fill with roots, and by the time the plants are in four-inch pots the water should be kept standing in the saucer all the time. When they attain proper size they should be grown in a jardinière or other vessel holding water, or else the pot in which they grow should be plunged in water. The Cyperus, being a semi-aquatic plant, cannot have too much water; the lack is quickly shown by the leaf-tips turning brown. Two plants kept fairly wet in pots, but plainly suffering, so were plunged into a lily-tank; in a few days the roots had pressed to the surface in search of water, and hung, a perfect fringe, over the edge of the pots. The effect on the tops was as pronounced—the crown quickly sending up lush green umbrellas in striking contrast to the discolouration of the original plants. There are two varieties of the Umbrella-plant—a dwarf, growing not more than eighteen inches high, and a tall variety growing three or four feet; the former is prettier for table decorations, while the latter is more effective for pedestals in halls and drawing-rooms. Remove all weak or spindly umbrellas and all discoloured ones; it is also well to remove the flowers, as seeding injures the plant.
Cyclamen may be started in flats or in a cool hotbed from January to March, pressing the seed into the soil about twice their depth. They must be kept moist, not wet, all the time. They do not require as much heat as the Calceolaria, but the temperature must be kept as even as possible. The seed germinates in from two to four weeks, according to its vitality. It is best to start them in large flats and let them grow on undisturbed. About the last of May remove them to a cold-frame on the east side of the house, disturbing the roots as little as possible, and setting the plants about eight inches apart each way. Keep the soil moist and mellow by frequent cultivation, or by mulching it with sphagnum moss or lawn clippings. When the plants have attained some size give weak liquid manure once a week, pouring it in a shallow trench between the rows, that it may not touch the bulbs or foliage. Treated in this way they should be ready to bloom by winter; if grown in pots they will not bloom until the second season. When cold weather comes lift the plants and put in four-or five-inch pots, according to size, using good garden loam and one-fourth the quantity of old, well-rotted manure. They should be grown in a cool east room and syringed daily.
In the spring after blooming withhold water gradually, giving no more than will keep the roots from drying out, and set them in a cool, shady place during the summer—the rear of the sand-box is best, where other growths will protect them from the sun. In continuous wet weather they should be turned on their sides or otherwise protected from extreme moisture. When they show an inclination to grow again, if they are in large enough pots, remove as much of the top-soil as possible without disturbing the roots, and replace it with fresh, rich earth and old manure. If the plants are crowded with roots remove them into pots one or two sizes larger. Give them a good watering and set in a somewhat lighter and warmer position. Cyclamen bulbs, like the Amaryllis, should not be allowed to dry out entirely, as this destroys the roots, and when the top growth starts in advance of the root growth, as is usual, the plant will die from insufficient nourishment. Florists frequently send out dry bulbs with flower-buds half an inch long and no sign of roots; such bulbs rarely amount to anything. When obliged to start a dry bulb, it is better to sink it half way in the soil and cover with sphagnum moss. Set it in a dry, cool place, and examine it from time to time that it may not be kept back longer than necessary. The starting of leaves is a fair indication of root growth, as the premature growth is usually of buds.
Geraniums are as easily raised as Carnations—indeed, it seems only necessary to put them in the ground and await results. In the spring sow the seed in drills in hotbeds or flats, covering with an eighth of an inch of soil. The plants should appear in from ten to fifteen days, and if they do not stand too closely may be allowed to grow on until they have two or three leaves. If mixed seeds are sown of the fancy-leaved, the scented, the zonale and the Lady Washington, the development of the several kinds will afford a fascinating study.
Care should be taken to save the more delicate-looking seedlings, as these will give the choicest varieties; the more robust plants among the zonales indicate a retrogression toward the original type, which has scarlet blooms. All choice new Geraniums are produced by seeds from hybridised flowers. Pot off the last of May in three-inch pots, using good garden loam and well-rotted manure. Pot them rather firmly and plunge into the sand-box in full sunshine. Water thoroughly and allow the soil to become dry before watering again; this tends to harden the new growth and makes the plants stocky. Nip out the top of the plants, forcing them to break or make new branches near the ground. The nearer the ground a Geranium branches the better plant it will make. Pinch off the shoots as they appear, allowing them to grow only three or four inches long. Remove all buds that appear before fall and shift to larger pots if needed, though Geraniums do not need as much pot room when blooming as many other flowers. Give liquid manure once a week after the buds appear—before that time the use of fertilisers encourages the production of foliage rather than of flowers.
Zonales should bloom by February and Pelargoniums by March or April the first year. They should be watered more freely when in bloom. Geraniums should be grown close to the glass to give best results. In prolonged cloudy weather the buds will blast and the new growth look sickly in spite of all care. Pelargoniums are very satisfactory when raised from seed, showing great diversity of colour and markings. When they have finished blooming in the spring cut them back freely, using the cuttings for new plants. The old plants should be set in the shade to rest and watered sparingly. At the end of that time they may be brought into the sunlight or plunged into open ground and encouraged to grow freely. Removing a portion of the leaves at this time—every other one, for instance—will cause new shoots to break at the axils of the leaves, and every new shoot means new blossom points. By the middle of September the plants should be lifted, cut back to the point where the wood begins to harden, and given a warm, sunny window. Cuttings started in spring, if shifted, kept growing and pinched back occasionally, should be in splendid condition for early spring blooming. In growing Geraniums never lose sight of the fact that stocky, many-branched plants give flowers in abundance; tall, spindly plants the reverse. A Geranium should always be as broad as it is high to be at its best. Ivy Geraniums need extra care to keep them low and stocky. Water sparingly and give abundant sunshine if you wish these to bloom.