The Dracmna, Grevillea and Asparagus may readily be grown from seed, plants from seed sown in early summer growing to good size by winter. The other three plants may be purchased at rea sonable prices. The common rubber plant (Ficus elastiea) should not be omitted from the foliage plants. When young and vigorous, it is attractive.
Among the flowering plants that submit to house treatment, the geranium is perhaps the most popu lar, and a well-grown plant in full bloom speaks of very careful treatment. The objections to this plant are the tendency to grow leggy or spindling, having a bare stalk with a few leaves at the top, and the habit of turning its leaves toward the light and becoming one-sided. Begonias, both the orna mental-leaved and the flowering type, may be grown to fine specimen plants if given care. Primroses grown from seed sown in May, or purchased in November, should bloom profusely through the winter. Cyclamen grown from seed sown in Jan uary make fine little plants by the following winter. A few careful grow ers with excep tional facili ties and t h e knack of mak plants thrive, succeed with a wide range of plants; but one who has only a limited experience and but little time to devote to plants should attempt to grow but few, if any, of the plants most difficult of culture.
Window-gardens are never complete without a show of spring-flowering bulbs. These take the place of plants that have bloomed through the winter and have become unsightly, thus allowing one to have his windows full and, at the same time, to have a change of blooms. Hyacinths, narcissi and freesias are perhaps the best to grow. The first two, if potted in October or November and set away in a cool, dark place to form roots, will be fit to put into the windows in six to eight weeks, or may be allowed to remain cool until wanted later. The freesias may be placed in the window as soon as potted, but will give better satisfaction if grown cool for a month before being set in the window. The freesia bulbs may be saved after blooming for the next winter. The hyacinth and narcissus bulbs do not furnish satisfactory bloom the second year, but, if planted out, will grow and bloom for several years.
Window-boxes.
A very satisfactory type of window-gardening is the window-box made to set into the window ledge or supported in front of the window. By means of such a box, which should be at least six inches deep and ten inches wide, a more even con dition of moisture and a more abundant supply of plant-food may be had and consequently a larger range of plants may be grown. Climbing as well as drooping vines, such as parlor or German ivy, Asparagus plumosus, Lygodium scandens or climb ing fern, or maurandia, all rapid growers, may be trained along the windows. The last mentioned vine, maurandia, has, added to its attractive leaves, a profusion of light blue flowers produced through the entire season. Of drooping vines, perhaps the best is the Asparagus Sprengeri, followed by wandering jew, saxifrage, and Kenilworth ivy. Geraniums, begonias, in fact all plants recom mended for house-culture may be grown to advan tage in such a box, and as spring advances the seeds of such annuals as sweet alyssum, candytuft, lobelia and mignonette may be sown along the edge, thus renewing the plants and changing the character of the box from a winter to a spring collection of plants. It often happens that one or
more plants in such a window-box fail to make a satisfactory growth, in which case their places may be filled by pots of bulbs that are ready to be brought into flower, or the whole box may be changed into a bulb bed with very little trouble. One more point in favor of these boxes is the fact that, if they contain no climbing vines, or if such vines are not attached to the walls, the boxes may easily be moved from an exposed window and protected through severe weather.
Pests and diseases.
Red-spider and green fly are the two pests that are most commonly found on house plants. The former is a very minute mite, hardly visible to the naked eye, but whose presence is easily known by the gray appearance of the under side of the leaves, and when the spider is abundant by a fine cobweb covering both sides of the leaf. This insect lives only in a dry atmosphere and if attention is given to spraying and washing the foliage, there is very little danger of its obtaining a foothold. The green fly may be destroyed by fumigation with tobacco or by dusting fine tobacco over the plants.
Insects of minor importance are, mealy bugs, whose presence is known by a cot tony appearance in the axils of the beans, and several species of scale which infest palms, ferns, and other plants. For the mealy bug, lay the plant on its side and spray forcefully with clear water ; or dip the plant in strong soapsuds and after a few moments clean it with clear water. The scale may be destroyed by spraying the leaves with soapsuds, or, in severe cases, with a solution of whale-oil soap (one pound to five gallons of water). Soon after this treatment the plant must be cleansed with clear water.
House-plants often show a sickly appearance, and from some cause or other fail to thrive. If the leaves turn yellow and fall, one of two things is the cause,— imperfect drainage and consequent sour soil, or neglect in watering and consequent drying up of the sap in the plant : very rarely can the wilted, yellowing leaves be saved. The trouble may be rectified and the plant recover.
Another disease, due to sudden changes in tem perature, is mildew. It is revealed by a whitish or grayish appearance of both sides of the leaves, causing them to fall. The treatment is to dust the plants with flowers of sulphur or spray with sulfate of potassium (one-half ounce dissolved in two gallons of water).
Literature.
Some American books are: Anders, House Plants as Sanitary Agents ; Julius J. Heinrich, The Win dow Flower Garden; Eben E. Rexford, Home Flori culture ; E. S. Rand, Jr., Window Gardener ; Daisy Eyebright (Mrs. S. 0. Johnson), Every Woman Her Own Flower Gardener ; Edwin A. Johnson, Winter Greeneries at Home; N. Jonsson Rose, Window and Parlor Gardening ; Henry T. Williams, Window Gardening ; Lizzie Page Hillhouse, House Plants and How to Succeed with Them.