St. Charles City Republican intelligencer. [volume] (St. Charles City [Charles City], Iowa) 1857-1861, 1861-06-06
THE FLOWER GARDEN.

ana variety, HOWclS VI annual grow
Many of these we are accustomed to
grow with little culture-somc, we
may say, with none, except SO far rs
to clear them from weeds. These lat
ter have become SO common as to be
most dcspised, and the room they oc-
cupy grudgingly allowed or the plants
quite discarded-thcir places being
filled with new importations, with
high sounding names, too often OF less
beauty than the old tavorites of our
grandmothers. We purchase balsams,
a~sters, l%arkspurs, etc, of celebrated
secdsmen, and for one season our
plants arc the admiration of ourselves
and our friends but alas /! the next
season we have in return for orr care
single blooms, with colors that bear
no comparison to the colors of the pa
rent plant. This discouragcs US, and
we are ready to give up ANNALS en-
tirely. Often do we hear it said, "This
was beautiful last year, but now it
has only single blooms" This is pro-
verbally true of the flowers named
above as well as many others.
Perhaps if our lady readers under
stood how the seeds were perfected
from which grow such fine double
blossoms, they may be prepared the
comingfall to secure seeds that will not
disappoint their future expectations.
We will commence with balsams, the
most difficult Of all commonly culti-
waited ANNALS to maintain true to
their first or, rather, forced character.
Florists select seed at least three
years old !; these are planted in a gen
tie hot-bcd and transplantcd to small
pots as soon as fairly up. The pots,
which are always well drained and
tillcl with rich, light mould, are
plunged for a week into a hot-bed and
well supplied with water they are
then transpIanted to the next sized
pots, and this shifting is continued I'M
til the flower buds commence to form,
when the reporting is discontinued
and the plants are removed to the
greenhouse. TO secure the best bal
sans, it is important to give plenty Of
air, light and water /; the sauccrs
should be filled each day with fresh
water, and sometimes the plants arc
stimulated with water impreguated
with anure From these extra
grown plants seeds from the finest
blossoms arc selected for future grow
ing-well dried and preserved free
from moisture several years before
sowing. 1t is not to he supposed that
amateur c%ultivators will be able to
take the same pains with this flower
as regular florists, but they will per-
ceive that unless grown in the best
soil, briskly terminated, we'll watcrcd,
seed carefully selected and preserved
and planted only when three years old,
there is but little hope Of fine flowers.
The last effort of nature being to
reproduce itself, more flower buds will
form on plants grown from old thar
or those grown from new seeds, ant
and these will be likely to prove
double. All know that nature forms
her flowers single with all the organs
perfect for p~erfecting their seed with
out the aid of man, and that it j.
when the character Of blooms ART
changed by high culture, that tn
seeds fail to form I; when, the stamen
being converted into leaves, there
no pollen with which to fcrtilizc til
stigma, and of course no seed can b
produced. Seldom, however, ever,
stamcn is SO changed, and usual,
sufficient pollen is secrcted to PARTIAL,
impregnatc the flowers I; but as Their
is so little, adverse weather may caus'
it to remain so long confined as to-b
wholly useless to the stigma when
is let loose, it being then past impreg
nation. To prevent this, it is neces
sary to secure a dry atmosphere, {
moderate heat while the seed impree
mates. This can be effected by cult
waiting a few plants in pots, plungin
them in the border, kept moist and r.
moved to the house in cold, dan
weather. 1t is important, in order
secure good seed, that all inferi
plants of the same species, be reno
cd as soon as their character is know
If q double flower has no stamcns, Il
stigma may be impregnatcd by sing
flowers OF the same species, when tt
seed will contain embryos of each p
rent, producing both single and doub
blooming plants.
AsrERs.-The reason why choice a
tiers fail to perfect seed is this til,
are SO very double that they reta
moisture, and this produces mould al
decay. BY growing n plant und
glass or IN a warm, sunny room, SCI
can be fully ripcncd. To c u Fl
future sowing fine seed, true to the
parent, remove all asters, except Il
choicest plants, from the garden
soon as their character is known. ,
do well, they should be planted
April in a hot-bed, and from it
transplanted to a bed prepared wi
leaf mould and and rotted manure
May.
LARKspURs.-Thcse will hardly be
transplanting, neither do they Iii
heat. The best method is to prcpa
bed with leaf-mould, powdered Chi
coal and rotted manure in Septcmbe
and SOW the seeds where they arc
remain. If any plants show sing
flowers remove them without della
and gather seeds from the finest.
is best to SOW them the second We
after ripening.
GERMAN SrocKs often disappoint t
cultivation, showing poor single bloom
The seed should be sown i'm boxes
seed pans, plunged into a hot-bc
ard transplanted into a well prepare
border of sand, rottcd manure al
leaf-mould. The double flowers 8,
dom bear seed, but it is a poor plan
have many single plants ; u few W,
impregnated seeds are better tn,
many that arc worthless. The fine
double seed a be produced by
moving all the blooms from the sing
blooming stocks, as soon as thr
or four seed vessels are formed up
the spike. This will compel all [