The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1893-02-22
Cultivation Of Flowers.

PRIMRosEs.--If you want your prim-
roses, etc, to keep on blooming, pick
off the flowers, stems and all, as soon as
they show any signs of willing. The
new buds will come on as fast as the
old flowers are picked off.
EASTER MISUNDERSTANDING bulbs
should be polted now for Easter bloom
ing; also hyacinths and tulips. The
latter are not often raised as window
plant, but they do well in either earth
or in water. Treat the same as hya.
cinlhs. The catalogue directions for
growing bulbs are so complete that it is
not necessary to add to them.
PANsIEs. --The latter part of this
month we may plant seeds in the house
for early pansies. These flowers do
their very best during the spring and
early summer. The damp, cool weather
suits them better than the hot, dry at.
mosphere of July and August, and Feb
ruary is not too early to start the little
seed ings. The largest, richest. colored
pansy blossoms come in May and June.
After July the best of plants run out
and produce only small, inferior flowers.
There is nothing better than fiat boxes
for starting the seeds. They should be
about two inches deep, and the soil
(Which need not be very rich) should
dill the box 10 within about one-half
inch of the top. The soil should be
fine and free from Jumps, and pressed
down firmly and level, with a small
piece of board. The seed ehOuld be
spiinkled thinly on the surface, and
then pressed down gently with the
board. Cover the boxes with pane Of
glass raised little at one edge, to allow
ventilation, and put the boxes after
watering in a sunny window. The
only really particular part of starting
small tender seeds is in the watering, as
they are so apt TO damp off" or die
from too much moisture. A rubber
bulb with a fine spray nozzle is the
thing best suited for watering the ear h,
and with one of the Sc, and the instruc
tions given above, any seeds, no ma ter
how delicate, can be started in the
house, thus giving one, at an expense
Of only few cents for seeds, cole C.
ton of plants which would cost several
dollars if bought ready grown. When
the little plants come up they may be
thinned out, and only the best of them
grown until they are four or five weeks
o d, and 80 high that the glass must be
dispensed with. In fact, it is more apt
to result in stout, stocky plants, if the
glass is removed as soon as they are
we'll out OF the ground. When four or
five weeks old and the leaves as large
as your finger nail, the plants should be
transplanted to another box, and set
about an inch apart. Do not pull them
up, but use nal row bladed knife, and
take up little earth with them. Water
we'll just before transplanting, 30 that
the soil will not loosen and crumble
away from the roots. A third trans-
planting will be necessary when they
are about two months old, this time into
small pots, in which the plants can
grow until it is time 10 set them out in
the open ground. In growing pansies
thus from seed, it pays to buy the very
choicest seed, as the great rich bloss oms
are almost sure 10 come true, aud there
are few plants more satisfactory than a
choice display Of pansies, coming as
they do at time when very few flow
ers are blooming in the garden Go
deus.