leads to many cases of failure, from the fact that when a slip is cut
from the joint the shoot often has become too hard at that point,
while half an inch higher up, or above the point, the proper condi-
tion will be found.
The best condition to root cuttings of the great majority of green-
house plants is sixty-five degrees of bottom heat and an atmospheric
temperature of fifteen degrees less. Sand is the best medium in which
to place cuttings ; color or texture is of no especial importance.
From the time the cuttings are inserted until they are rooted they
should never be allowed to get dry; it is best to keep the sand
soaked with water. Kept thus saturated there is less chance of the
cutting getting wilted, for if a cutting is once wilted, its juices are ex-
pended. Permitting a moderate circulation of air in the propagating
house prevents the germination of that spider-like web substance
which is known as " fungus of the cutting bench." It is best to pot
off the cuttings at once when rooted. They should be placed in
small pots from two to two and a half inches wide. In larger pots
the soil dries out too slowly and the tender root rots.
Begonias are indispensable plants for the window gardener, as
tlieir leaves are often more beautiful than their flowers, and so very
numerous are their varieties and so continuous their flowering, that
one could furnish a window with no other plants, and be sure of
having them in flower the year round, while they will endure any
amount of heat and a good supply of water if the soil is sandy and it
is not kept in a sodden condition. Yet they will fully repay careful
treatment by a more luxuriant growth of leaves and flowers. There
is no variety of begonia that does not make a desirable window
plant, but B. alba 7iitida and B. rosea nitida are the most constant
bloomers that are now cultivated. B. incaniata and B. fuchsioides
are also lovely plants, with drooping panicles of blush and crimson
flowers. Good drainage is essential, and a few bits of charcoal at the
bottom of the pot will keep the soil in good condition. A compost
of half garden soil and half leaf mold, or peaty soil with a table-
spoonful of sand well stirred in, will grow very fine plants. There are
FLORICULTURE AND HORTICULTURE. 283
three germs or species of begonias : those above mentioned, rex
begonias, or elephant-leaf begonia and the tuberous rooted varieties,
which make very beautiful plants, either for the window garden, vase,
or basket culture, and the open border. The tubers can be taken up
in the autumn and kept like dahlias when they are used for bedders
in summer.
Page 184
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
leads to many cases of failure, from the fact that when a slip is cut from the joint the shoot often has become too hard at that point, while half an inch higher up, or above the point, the proper condition will be found.
The best condition to root cuttings of the great majority of greenhouse plants is sixty-five degrees of bottom heat and an atmospheric temperature of fifteen degrees less. Sand is the best medium in which to place cuttings ; color or texture is of no especial importance. From the time the cuttings are inserted until they are rooted they should never be allowed to get dry; it is best to keep the sand soaked with water. Kept thus saturated there is less chance of the cutting getting wilted, for if a cutting is once wilted, its juices are expended. Permitting a moderate circulation of air in the propagating house prevents the germination of that spider-like web substance which is known as " fungus of the cutting bench." It is best to pot off the cuttings at once when rooted. They should be placed in small pots from two to two and a half inches wide. In larger pots the soil dries out too slowly and the tender root rots.
Begonias are indispensable plants for the window gardener, as their leaves are often more beautiful than their flowers, and so very numerous are their varieties and so continuous their flowering, that one could furnish a window with no other plants, and be sure of having them in flower the year round, while they will endure any amount of heat and a good supply of water if the soil is sandy and it is not kept in a sodden condition. Yet they will fully repay careful treatment by a more luxuriant growth of leaves and flowers. There is no variety of begonia that does not make a desirable window plant, but B. alba nitida and B. rosea nitida are the most constant bloomers that are now cultivated. B. incaniata and B. fuchsioides are also lovely plants, with drooping panicles of blush and crimson flowers. Good drainage is essential, and a few bits of charcoal at the bottom of the pot will keep the soil in good condition. A compost of half garden soil and half leaf mold, or peaty soil with a tablespoonful of sand well stirred in, will grow very fine plants. There are
three germs or species of begonias : those above mentioned, rex begonias, or elephant-leaf begonia and the tuberous rooted varieties, which make very beautiful plants, either for the window garden, vase, or basket culture, and the open border. The tubers can be taken up in the autumn and kept like dahlias when they are used for bedders in summer.