Page:The Amateur's Greenhouse and Conservatory.djvu/136

128 flower profusely throughout September, October, and November, and are, therefore, very valuable, for they assist in bridging over the period between the time of the summer flowers going out of bloom until the chrysanthemums are at their best. There are now a considerable number of varieties in cultivation, all more or less good.

When a stock is once obtained, there will be no difficulty in keeping it up, as cuttings of the half-ripened wood will strike freely, if placed in a shady part of the greenhouse, or in the propagating pit. The wood is generally in condition for propagating purposes in May, and cuttings struck at that period will make nice little plants, and produce a few spikes of bloom in the autumn; but, with good management, they will become large specimens, not less than two feet through by the autumn following. Instead of keeping them in pots all the year round, which entails an immense amount of labour during the summer season in keeping them properly supplied with water, plant them out in the second and subsequent seasons in the open border, and they will almost take care of themselves. The way to proceed is to cut them back early in March, and to let them make new growth near the glass, to insure its being firm and strong-jointed, and then by the end of May turn them out of the pots, loosen a few of the roots round the outside, and put them out in the border. The soil should be light and rich, to insure a vigorous growth, and, at the same time, promote the formation of an abundance of fibrous roots. The distance at which they are put apart must be determined by their size. Small plants, with but one or two leading branches, may be stopped twice, but large specimens should not be stopped more than once, and in either case none of the shoots must be pinched back after the first week in July. Early in September take them up carefully, with as much soil as possible adhering to the roots, and put them into the smallest sized pots practicable. Bushy specimens, from eighteen to thirty inches in diameter, will be the most suitable size for the conservatory, but if they are required larger, they can be easily produced by planting them out annually.

.&mdash;The directions given for the cultivation of the petunia might be referred to for the saving of space under this head, but we could not hope to satisfy the reader by disposing of the Verbena in so curt a manner. Verbenas are