nsatisfactory. As regards the
=time for sowing=, of course, spring is the most usual, but in the case of
annuals it will often be found a good plan to sow a few in autumn, as, by
pursuing this method, nice stocky little plants are ready for the garden
quite early in the season, and give flowers long before spring-sown seed
could possibly do so.

=Propagation by layering= is very useful, as cuttings of some plants will
not strike readily. Strong shoots are denuded of their leaves for a few
inches, and their stems slit up and pressed into the ground by means of a
peg; when firmly rooted, they can be detached from the parent plant by
means of a penknife. Carnations are generally reproduced in this way, as
it is the surest method of all.

CHAPTER XVII

The Management of Room Plants

_Best kinds for "roughing" it--Importance of cleanliness--The proper
way of watering them._

The majority of English women like to see their rooms, and specially their
drawing-rooms, adorned with =growing plants=.

Nevertheless, a great many do not cultivate them successfully, so a few
hints will not be amiss. =Constant attention= is needed to keep plants in
perfect health, and this is exactly what is so often denied them. A lady
buys two or three ferns that take her fancy, and feels for a while quite
interested in their welfare; but, after a week or so, she leaves them to
take care of themselves, which means to dwindle, and ultimately die. Many
shillings, therefore, are constantly being spent in renewing plants which,
with proper care, should last for years.

All room plants =must be looked after daily=, a few minutes every morning
being far better than an hour once a week, which is all they receive in
some homes.

I will treat first of =palms=, which, though such slow-growing subjects,
seem the favourite of all for home decoration, owing to their grace of
form and good lasting properties. If you observe the roots of most palms,
you will see that, attached in an odd way to the rising stem is =a sort of
bulb=, not unlike a pigmy potato. This excrescence, which should only be
covered by a thin layer of soil, stores up nutriment for the plant's use,
in much the same way as a hyacinth or daffodil does. This accounts in a
great measure for its power in enduring dryness of the soil without
flagging, which property, however, should not be abused. Palms should be
watered as regularly, though not so often, as more sappy plants