The daily gazette., 1877-11-01
poTTING PLANTS IN WINTER.


"Daisy Eyebright" writes to the
1coHasSy Gentleman giving some plain
and practical hints on pottlng plants
for winter blooming. She says:
At this season Of the year the anna
teur gardener should look carefully to
the potting of the house plant, design
ed for winter Towering, because if the
roots have become pot-bound twill re-
strict the growth of the plant. To
know whether this is the case, dip the
pot into a pail of warmish water, and
let the earth become slightly moistened
from top to bottom, then run sharp
bladed knife close to the edges ofthe
pot, rap sharply upon the bottom oft,
and the ball of earth will slip easily into
the left hand. If the roots have be-
come matted closely around the sides
and bottom, the plant needs larger
pot; for geraniums, one size larger is
best, as they will bloom better in the
house if their roots are restricted.
Heliotropes, fuchsias, roses and carna-
tions will need pots two sizes larger.
Put little thoroughly decayed man
ure into the bottom of the pot, set the
ball of earth into it, and fill up the
sides with fresh soil, pressing it down
gently around the roots. The surface
Of the soil should be nearly half an
inch below the level of the edge of the
pot, so as to give room for water, and
as the earth sinks down, a fresh sup
ply can be added occasionally. A
good compost for plants can be made
out of one-third sharp sand, and one
third garden soil. Mix this well to-
gether, and if few spoonfuls of air
Stacked lime can be stirred in with it,
it will kill all lie larvae of insects.
| have just re-potted my plants for
the winter, and | have six windows
completely filled with them. Fuch-
sias, begonias, geraniums, browallias,
coctuses, roses, oxalls, carnatio ms,
callas, etc., make a brilliant show.
Hanging baskets and baskets filled
with ivy will help to cheer and COM
fort me when the wintry winds howl
around the easements and the snow
covers every green thing outside. 1
potted my calls in we'll rotted man
ure from the bottom of the hot-bed,
mixed with a little sand to make it
light, and some very old spent tan
bark from tannery, and already
they have begun to grow luxuriantly,
and l hope by Christmas to have a
perfect flower. Fuchsias will grow
in similar compost very rapidly 1
have six in full flower now-and one,
the Tower of London Ia horrid name,
by the way, for most perfect flow
er) stands on the table beside me, the
admiration of all beholders, so per-
feet is its form and SO exquisite its
numerous flowers.
Although late in the season, ger
aniums will strike root freely now,
and in taking up the largo plants to
keep in the cellar over the winter, it
is well to plant a quantity of the
branches that are broken off into
small pots or boxes, for early spring
Towering. The succulent shoots,
which will only wither in the cellar,
are just in good condition to through
out roots, and they can be left in the
pots, if desired, until needed to orna-
ment the boarders in the spring.
The cuttings should be set close to
the edges of the pot, and the soil
should be of good rich loan at the
bottom, with an inch of sand on the
top into which the base of the cutting
should be firmly pressed. Heliotropes
and fuchsias, ivies and roses will also
make good plants from cuttings, if
lplanted now. Cut off the slips at
the junction of the leaves, as the
roots always start from a joint.