Pandanus, or screw pine.—The screw pines are stiff-leaved saw-edged plants often grown in window-gardens and used for porch decoration.
The Pandanus utilis and P. Veitchii (the latter striped-leaved or white-leaved) are exceedingly ornamental, and are well adapted to house culture. The singular habit of growth, bright glossy leaves, and the ability to withstand the dust and shade of a dwelling room, make them a desirable addition to the house collection.
They are propagated by the offsets or young plants that grow around the base of the trunk; or they may be increased by seed. If by the former method, the offsets should be cut off and set in sand, at a temperature of 65° or 70°. The cuttings root slowly and the plants for a time make very slow growth. The general cultural treatment is that of palms. Give abundance of water in summer.
Pansy (Fig. 244) is without doubt the most popular hardy spring flower in cultivation. The strains of seed are many, each containing great possibilities.
The culture is simple and the results are sure. Seed sown in August or September, in boxes or a frame, will make plants large enough to reset in November (three or four inches apart) and bloom the following March; or they may be left until March in open seed-beds before setting out. Also, if they are sown very thinly in the frames, they may remain undisturbed through the winter, blooming very early the following spring. The frames should be protected by mats, boards, or other covering through the severe cold, and as the sun gains strength, care should be taken to keep them from heaving by alternate thawing and freezing. Seed sown in boxes in January or February will make fine blooming plants by April, taking the place of those blooming earlier.
The pansy is generally mentioned with plants suitable for partial shade, but it also thrives in other localities, especially where the sun is not very hot nor the weather very dry. The requisites for satisfactory pansy culture are fertile, moist, cool soil, protection from the noonday sun, and attention to keeping plants from going to seed. As the ground becomes warm, a mulch of leafmold or other light material should be spread over the bed to retain moisture and exclude heat. Spring and fall give the best bloom. In hot summer weather the flowers become small.
Pelargonium.—To this genus belong the plants known as geraniums—the most satisfactory of house-plants, and extensively used as bedding plants. No plants will give better returns in leaf and flower; and these features, added to the ease of propagation, make them general favorites. The common geranium is one of the few plants that can be bloomed at any time of the year.
There are several main groups of pelargoniums, as the common “fish geraniums” (from the odor of the foliage), the “show” or Lady Washington pelargoniums, the ivy geraniums, the thin-leaved bedders (as Madame Salleroi), and the “rose” geraniums.