Seedling Begonias And Other Choice Flowers

It is in the very early stages of small-seeded plants like tuberous Begonias, herbaceous Calceolarias and Gloxinias that the most care is required with seedlings, as they are very liable to damp off. I have already said that careful ventilation and watering are highly important. Attention to these matters must be continued now that the little plants have got beyond the most dangerous stage, as they have a great bearing on the progress of the seedlings. The plants should never be allowed to stand in a crowded state, never be flooded with water through a spout, never be shut up in a close, warm case. They should be set out three or four inches apart directly they begin to thicken into a mass, watered through a fine rose, have a light position close to the glass, and receive as much air as can be given without subjecting them to cold draughts. When pricked-off plants begin to crowd in the boxes, each should have a 3-inch pot, from which they can be transferred to a 5-inch or 6-inch when they have filled the former with roots. Three parts of loam, and the remainder of leaf mould and sand in equal parts, will make a suitable potting compost.

Various Tubers

Those who have tubers of Begonias, Gloxinias, Caladiums, Gesneras, Streptocarpuses, or Achi-menes may start them into growth now. I like to lay the tubers in moist cocoa-nut fibre refuse in a warm house or frame, and keep them there until the shoots have pushed an inch, then to pot them. So far as the Begonias which are to go into outdoor beds are concerned, they need not be started in heat, as there is no advantage in getting the plants very forward - the contrary, because they cannot be put out for several weeks, and when made tender by heat they have to be kept in possibly overcrowded houses, when, otherwise, they would be quite safe in a frame.

Bedding Plants

I have elsewhere said that the "Bedding system," which hardy plant lovers thought had been decently interred years ago, is still very much alive. I do not favour it, but have to take facts as they are. Doubtless there are many among my readers who have, or intend to buy, Zonal Geraniums, yellow shrubby Calceolarias, blue Lobelias, and other tender plants used in summer flower beds. The bedding out man "feels the lash" in spring. His plants may not have been taking up much room during the winter, and therefore have caused no overcrowding, but with mild weather in spring they will begin to grow. Cuttings of Geraniums crowded in boxes will begin to extend; old plants that were cropped in and packed close together will begin to throw out shoots. This extension of growth leads to much pressure on space, and causes one of the chief cultural drawbacks to the home propagation of tender bedders. The plants may be potted, or put a few inches apart in shallow boxes. They ought to be placed on shelves, or otherwise found a position near the glass. Where there is a shortage of stock, cuttings of Coleuses, Lobelias, Ageratums, and Verbenas may be struck now.

Those who intend to buy the stock of bedding plants which they require need not do so now, as it will give them the trouble of preserving the plants for several weeks. May will be early enough.