than more delicate ones, although verbenas, and many small and
delicate petalled flowers have come from their sand-beds looking so
natural that only by very close inspection could they be told from
natural flowers. The petals and leaves are quite tough, will bear
handling almost as well as when fresh, and when placed in the bon-
net, can with difficulty be distinguished from the finest artificial
flowers, and when in the hair might readily be taken for a blossom
fresh from the garden. Ferns and leaves are best laid flat in the box,
especially the former, as their slender form will give them all the
droop that is desirable. A bouquet or wreath, which it is usually im-
possible to keep as a souvenir, can, wnth patience, be admirably pre-
served in this manner. When once buried in the sand, no care is
required, save that the boxes be kept in a moderately dry place, and
await resurrection of their buried contents; flowers remain in sand
from three to eight weeks, for the thinnest to the thickest leaved,
and it is wise to give them a few days' grace. By the sea and in
lake countries the sand is inclined to absorb moisture. They are not
brittle, but to the touch are like tissue paper; when creased sharply,
they break.
To ascertain the best time for re-potting plants, knock the ball of
earth out of the pot, and if the root is all grown together in a mass
at the sides and bottom, the plant should be transferred to the next-
sized pot. Never remove the soil from the roots with the hands,
but rather wash it away, otherwise the fine fibrous roots on which
the plant depends for subsistence ma\- be damaged.
There is no better cure for a sickly plant than to wash the roots
clean, and then put in a new pot, using fresh soil.
A FLOWER that can be heartily recommended to those cultivating
out-door plants is Erysimum. They grow easily, and if planted in
the summer will bloom late in the fall. Like Nemophila, Er}'simum
will almost take care of itself
Of all house plants, a Catalonian Jessamine pays the best. From
the 1st of August till New Year's day it bears a profusion of deli-
cate white flowers, which exhale the most exquisite fragrance. If
272 THE hearthstone; or, life at home,
there were no flowers, the foliage, a delicate vine, would amply re-
pay wintering. They never have a bug, the leaves never turn yellow
and it requires very little care.
A Water Bouquet. — A water bouquet is a novelty which ladies
may be glad to hear about, especially when flowers are scarce*
and ingenuity is taxed its uttermost for novelty and variety. The
articles required are a circular glass dish and a low glass shade
to fit inside the dish. The bouquet is made according to the size
of the shade, as there must be a margin of an inch or so between
the glass and the flowers. If the shade is small a very few
flowers will suffice, and these should be put tightly together, with
fern or moss arranged as nmch as possible to hide the stalks, which
must be tied firmly together, and cut close. To look well for the
centre of a dinner-table, the shade should not be smaller round than
a pudding plate. A larger size would look even better; but the
difficulty in making it is the quantity of water required, as you must
place the dish in the bottom of a bath, with sufficient water to go
over the top of the shade.✪ Water Bouquet
Page 176 · 1 recipe record on this page
Presented as published in 1883. Historical recipes may not meet modern food-safety standards. Cook from the modern interpretation, not the original instructions.
AI-modernized reading of the original text
than more delicate ones, although verbenas, and many small and delicate petalled flowers have come from their sand-beds looking so natural that only by very close inspection could they be told from natural flowers. The petals and leaves are quite tough, will bear handling almost as well as when fresh, and when placed in the bonnet, can with difficulty be distinguished from the finest artificial flowers, and when in the hair might readily be taken for a blossom fresh from the garden. Ferns and leaves are best laid flat in the box, especially the former, as their slender form will give them all the droop that is desirable. A bouquet or wreath, which it is usually impossible to keep as a souvenir, can, wnth patience, be admirably preserved in this manner. When once buried in the sand, no care is required, save that the boxes be kept in a moderately dry place, and await resurrection of their buried contents; flowers remain in sand from three to eight weeks, for the thinnest to the thickest leaved, and it is wise to give them a few days' grace. By the sea and in lake countries the sand is inclined to absorb moisture. They are not brittle, but to the touch are like tissue paper; when creased sharply, they break.
To ascertain the best time for re-potting plants, knock the ball of earth out of the pot, and if the root is all grown together in a mass at the sides and bottom, the plant should be transferred to the nextsized pot. Never remove the soil from the roots with the hands, but rather wash it away, otherwise the fine fibrous roots on which the plant depends for subsistence may be damaged.
There is no better cure for a sickly plant than to wash the roots clean, and then put in a new pot, using fresh soil.
A FLOWER that can be heartily recommended to those cultivating out-door plants is Erysimum. They grow easily, and if planted in the summer will bloom late in the fall. Like Nemophila, Er}'simum will almost take care of itself
Of all house plants, a Catalonian Jessamine pays the best. From the 1st of August till New Year's day it bears a profusion of delicate white flowers, which exhale the most exquisite fragrance. If
272 THE hearthstone; or, life at home,
there were no flowers, the foliage, a delicate vine, would amply repay wintering. They never have a bug, the leaves never turn yellow and it requires very little care.
A Water Bouquet. — A water bouquet is a novelty which ladies may be glad to hear about, especially when flowers are scarce* and ingenuity is taxed its uttermost for novelty and variety. The articles required are a circular glass dish and a low glass shade to fit inside the dish. The bouquet is made according to the size of the shade, as there must be a margin of an inch or so between the glass and the flowers. If the shade is small a very few flowers will suffice, and these should be put tightly together, with fern or moss arranged as nmch as possible to hide the stalks, which must be tied firmly together, and cut close. To look well for the centre of a dinner-table, the shade should not be smaller round than a pudding plate. A larger size would look even better; but the difficulty in making it is the quantity of water required, as you must place the dish in the bottom of a bath, with sufficient water to go over the top of the shade.
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Water Bouquet