The Greenville times. [volume] (Greenville, Miss.) 1868-1917, 1900-04-07
THE WATER GARDEN.

A Correspondent Tells How to Grow
Flowers in Water.
Il bought Some dozens OF flint tufn-
bier glasses. / bought them from whole
| pints to halves and quarters. These
glasses are wide at the top, and are
made tapering to the bottom, which
renders them very convenient for this
use. likewise bought some glass
basins as large as could get, and took
care to choose them also tapering from
top to bottom; then I fitted pieces Of
cork, about half an inch thick, to the
inside Of the tops Of the glasses which
could not sink far in, by reason Of the
glasses being less all the way from the
top to the bottom, as aforesaid.
I'm these corks cut holes proper
tional to the roots which designed to
place upon them. Some glasses would
hold two roots, some but one, ana some
three or four. The corlss on the basins
had many holes cut in them, in order to
place on them a number OF smaller
roots, which might blow together with
the more splendor Being thus pre-
pared, which was all my charge and
trouble that way, my next business was
to get the flower roots. A little before
Christmas ] accordingly made a small
collection of polyanthus and narcissus
roots, several sorts of hyacinths, tulips,
crocuses, daffs, jonquiIs, ETC., all large
blowing roots, or the labor of rearing
them would have been lost. These
placed upon the corks in glasses proper
to their size, the crocuses on the corlks
in the basins, that they might. being Of
varioug colors, blow together, to make
the more pleasing object. Before
placed these dry roots on the corlxs
filled the glasses and basins only just
to the bottom of the corlks, so that the
bottoms of the bulbs would but Just
touch the water. My dry roots being
thus placed in my windows. some OF
them even with the panes, others with
their tops only even with the bottom
of the sash, which, by the way, I kept
always shut, because my glasses hin-
dered the opening Of the easement:
but doubtless, a little air in very fine
weather. when the wind was only in the
south or west, and when there was no
frost. would have been very advanta-
geous to the plants. l took particular
care that no water should be filled up
to wet any more than just the bottoms
Of the dubious roots; for that would
certainly have rotted them, and have
destroyed all my hopes.
In few days after / had placed
my spring flower-ro0ts on the corixs
over the water they threw out their
white fbrous roots strongly into the
water which was most dIverting
pleasure TO Deh0ld. The whole process
of that termination (if may so call
q was visible through the glass. When
he glasses were pretty well filled with
.hese fibrous roots--that is, when there
we're enough to draw sufficient strength
Tor the nourishment of the leaves,
stalks and flowers--the green buds first
appeared, which soon shot into leaves,
and the stalks with the flower-buds
soon followed, all as strong, or, may
say, rather stronger than the garden
loes afford. They grew so fast, and yet
with a fun strength, that had polynn-
.huses and n.rcissuses blowing ont In
before Christmas day, with
Ill their perfection OF color and per-
ume. Several hyacinths followed them
n the same manner The crocusee
would have been equally early. bat
iould not get any roots 70 my mind
III some time after Christmas. which
accustomed their being later than the
est OF their companions. ] at last met
With the large roots of the great blue
rocus. which blows late. and very
ften not at all The yellow cfocIs
nd the whlte-striDed. or very pale
lues are the forwarded and the best
} be chosen Tor our N1t.