Your Plants Part 5

MOSS ROSES.

Of this cla.s.s we need not speak in detail to any who have ever seen its delicate moss-covered buds, and inhaled their delightful odor. They are perfectly hardy, and can be wintered without any protection. They are called perpetual, but this is a misnomer, for we know but one variety of Moss Rose that approaches it, that is the _Salet_ Moss. The rest are no more so than are the so-called Hybrid Perpetuals.

Moss Roses should be severely pruned in spring, removing all the old wood.

_Salet_, deep pink; _White Perpetual_, pure white; and _Crested_, rose-color, are the most desirable sorts.

PROPAGATING THE ROSE.

The Rose is somewhat difficult to propagate from cuttings, and it takes from three to four weeks for them to root under the best conditions.

Moss Roses are generally multiplied by layering (see "Layering"), and by budding on the common Manetti or Multiflora stocks. The following will be found to be a very practicable and simple method of propagating roses on a small scale, and is attended with very little trouble or expense: In the fall place sand in a box, or cold frame, to the depth of eight inches. Take from the bushes the number of cuttings it is desired to propagate, making them with two or three points or eyes; insert them in the sand (which should be previously packed as solid as can be), then water thoroughly. As the cuttings are to remain in this frame all winter, it should be provided with a gla.s.s sash, and the whole covered with leaves and manure. It need not be banked up until freezing weather.

If rightly done, we may expect at the least fifty per cent of the cuttings to come from their winter bed finely rooted. They should then be potted, and after growing awhile, planted out, and some of them will bloom the first season.

CHAPTER XX.

j.a.pAN AND OTHER LILIES.--CALLA LILIES.

If we call the rose the "Queen of Flowers," what royal t.i.tle shall we bestow upon the beautiful j.a.pan Lilies? We sometimes think it would be proper to name the Rose the King, for its commanding aspect, and the grandly beautiful Lily, the Queen of the floral kingdom. But, be this as it may, we have only to gaze upon a collection of j.a.pan Lilies when in full bloom, and inhale their delicious odor, that perfumes the whole atmosphere, to be convinced of their superiority over all other flowers.

Surely Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.

There are many different species and varieties of Lilies, but none approach those known as j.a.pan Lilies in the beauty and variety of their flowers, and their exquisite fragrance. They are perfectly hardy, and the fall is the proper time to plant them. If good strong bulbs are set out in the ground in October or November, planted about eight inches deep, they will throw up strong shoots the following summer, and bloom freely. The flowers increase in size and beauty with the age of the bulb, and this should be left to grow undisturbed in the same spot for five or six years; afterwards, if desired, the bulbs can be dug up, the offshoots removed, and the old bulbs reset, and they will do better than ever. Any of the young bulbs that have been removed can be planted out in the ground, and in a few years will form good blooming bulbs. The time to perform this work is in the fall. Although entirely hardy without protection, it will benefit these lilies very much, if during the winter, they are covered with a coa.r.s.e litter, leaves or any other good covering. This should be raked off early in the spring, as manure of any kind seems to injure them when they come in contact with it. The soil in which they do best is a light, sandy loam, well drained. The lily flourishes best in sunny locations. The following is a description of the leading varieties:

LILIUM AURATUM.--This is the well-known Gold-banded Lily, and most decidedly the finest of all the j.a.pan Lilies.

L. CANDIDUM.--The old White Lily (not j.a.pan) of the gardens; a splendid sort; elegant, large, pure white flowers, in cl.u.s.ters; blooms earlier than the others, but not the first year; it is one of the most beautiful Lilies.

L. CITRINUM.--Very rare and beautiful; large, elegantly formed flowers; color, pale yellow, exquisitely tinged with blush.

L. LONGIFLORUM.--Exceedingly beautiful; very long trumpet-shaped flowers, pure snow white.

L. SPECIOSUM RUBRUM.--One of the finest of j.a.pan Lilies; bright crimson and white spotted; splendid large flower, borne in cl.u.s.ters, stem two to three feet.

L. TIGRINUM--SINGLE TIGER LILY.--This splendid Lily is one of the best in the list; the stem is tall; the flowers large and elegantly formed; blooms in large cl.u.s.ters; color, brilliant orange scarlet with intense black spots; remains in bloom a long time.

L. UMBELATUM.--Very showy, brilliant red, variegated flowers in cl.u.s.ters.

THE CALLA LILY.

The Calla Lily, or "The Lily of the Nile," is an old and popular favorite, and is found in window-garden collections everywhere. It is a native of the tropics, where it is said it grows to an enormous size; a single flower often measuring one to two feet in diameter. The Calla will attain its highest perfection if planted in a rich, mucky soil, obtained from a swamp or bog. It also requires an abundance of water during the growing season. Callas, like all other bulbous plants, must have a season of rest. If required to bloom during the winter or spring months, they must be rested in the summer season, if this is not done we must not expect to have any success in flowering them. The blooming season can be reversed if desired, by resting in winter. Without allowing them at least three months of rest, it is useless to expect to flower them successfully. By "resting," we mean to withhold water, and allow the leaves and stalks to die down completely to the bulb. Then turn the pot on its side under a tree or grape-arbor, and let the soil dry up completely; this will kill the stalk but not injure the bulb.

HOW TO PREPARE CALLAS FOR WINTER BLOOMING.

After three months of this rest; or about the first of October, we "dump" out the plant, shake off all the old soil from the bulb or bulbs, and re-pot in fine, rich soil, using pots one size larger than those used the previous year; place the plants in a cool, shady spot, and water freely. Let them remain for two or three weeks, until new roots have formed, after which all danger is pa.s.sed, and they can be removed into full light and heat. When growing, water freely. An application of strong liquid-manure once a week will add greatly to the growth of the plants, and to the number of blossoms produced. A very pretty effect can be obtained by arranging the plants about a fountain or pond where they will bloom freely throughout the summer season, presenting a tropical appearance. They will also grow well by standing the pots completely in the water.

CHAPTER XXI.

GERANIUMS--THE BEST TWELVE SORTS.

There is no flower that can surpa.s.s the Geranium for profusion of bloom, brilliancy and variety of color, and general adaptability for house culture. The following are the best twelve sorts:

DOUBLE VARIETIES.

Madam Ballet, pure white; Jewel, dark crimson; Asa Gray, salmon, very free bloomer; Madam Lemoine, light pink, large trusses; Bishop Wood, rich scarlet, approaching to carmine; Charmieux, scarlet; Casimer Perrier, a very near approach to yellow

SINGLE VARIETIES.

New Life, variegated, crimson, and white; Gen. Grant, dazzling scarlet; Pauline Lucca, pure white, with pink-eye; Chief Justice, the darkest of all Geraniums, immense trusses; Pinafore, salmon, with white eye; La Vienne, pure white, pale stamens, splendid; Master Christine, light pink, elegant for bedding.

CHAPTER XXII.

AZALEAS; HOW TO CULTIVATE THEM.

Comparatively few of these charming plants are to be seen outside of green-houses and private conservatories, we know not for what reasons, unless it be the erroneous idea that they cannot be successfully grown unless one has the facilities of the florist. I think there is no cla.s.s of plants more easy of culture, when the manner of treating them is once understood, than Azaleas. As they are decidedly winter-flowering plants, generally coming into bloom from December to March and April, they must be treated as such. They should have the same kind of treatment during the summer as recommended for Camellias, allowing them to rest in some cool, shady spot out-of-doors, during which period the flowering shoots will grow that are to give the bloom through the winter months. They can be taken into the house any time in the fall before freezing weather, and they will thrive well in an atmosphere suited to the generality of plants, although to bring the bloom out to the best, an atmosphere of 55 is needed.

There are over one hundred distinct varieties, ranging from pure white to lilac-purple, scarlet and pink, and when in full bloom the entire plant might be easily mistaken for a large bouquet, so literally covered is it with dazzling blossoms.

One or two varieties of Azaleas should grace every collection; almost every florist keeps them in stock, and the price asked is but a small consideration compared with the amount of pleasure one will derive by having them in full bloom himself.

Florists hardly ever attempt to multiply the Azaleas from cuttings, on account of the hardness of the wood, but the common mode of multiplying them is by grafting on the stock of the Wild Azalea, plants being easily and quickly obtained through this method. The Azalea will flourish best with a rich, mucky loam, a rather shady locality, and an abundance of water.

CHAPTER XXIII.

CAMELLIAS.--ORANGE AND LEMON TREES.

Dear reader, did you ever see a large Camellia plant in full blossom? If you have not, I will risk my reputation by saying that all other flowers within my knowledge, barring the rose, dwindle into insignificance when compared with it. It excels the finest rose in doubleness and form of its flowers, and puts the virgin lily to shame for spotless purity and whiteness; if it only possessed fragrance, it would be unquestionably the Queen of the floral world. What I shall have to say in regard to this plant, I hope will have the effect of introducing it into many homes where it has. .h.i.therto been little known. Few outside of professional florists have undertaken to cultivate the Camellia, for the reason, we suppose, that it is thought to be quite an impossibility to raise and bloom it successfully outside of a green-house; this is a mistake, although many believe it otherwise. I contend that Camellias can be as easily and as successfully grown in the window-garden as the Rose or Geranium.