Canna (Indian Shot)

All Cannas—the gorgeous orchid-flowered, as well as the old-fashioned sorts—can be easily and cheaply grown from seed and will give blossoming plants almost as soon as those started from bulbs. When one must buy plants and the fine new varieties are desired, the starting of an eight-or ten-foot bed is a matter for economical consideration. Five or six dollars is as little as one can expect to pay for such a bed if plants are purchased, but by starting the seed the cost is reduced to a mere bagatelle. It is better to buy seed by the ounce, as not all will come up, and one should make sure of a sufficient quantity. The seed must be filed on the end opposite the germ, so that the white shows through plainly, and the best way to do it is to tack a piece of medium sand-paper to a piece of wood and rub the seed on that. It is better to do this before they are wanted, as it is a tedious process when one is in a hurry. Soak the seeds in hot water for an hour or two before planting and sow in hotbed or flat, keeping moist and warm. When large enough to handle, prick out in thumb-pots and place in a warm, sunny window. It would be even better to start them in tiny pots, plunged in a box of sand or in the hotbed, to avoid danger in removing, as they sometimes suffer in the process. Though one of the toughest plants when of some size, the little seedlings are exceedingly tender. Shift as needed until time to place in the open ground when all danger of frost is past. Plant, if possible, in muck well manured, as Cannas do exceptionally well in that soil and can scarcely have too much food and water. Unless one has city water or other supply it is better to make the Canna bed somewhat lower than the lawn, that all the water may be retained and not run off, as it will if the beds are raised. If tall-growing varieties are grown in the centre the effect will be as good as though the bed were raised and less water will be needed. A good mulch of lawn clippings will help to keep the soil moist, mellow, and free from weeds and will greatly lessen the care of it. Seed sown in February or March will give blooming plants in June, and by fall there will be a fine lot of roots to store away for another year.

Coleus, which are practically indispensable in all ornamental bedding, are easily raised from seed and will make fine plants by June. Start seed in rather deep flats in the house in February or March, covering lightly and giving a warm place (see directions for growing house-plants from seed). They germinate in from five to seven days. As soon as the plants have their first true leaves place in a warm, sunny window and encourage them to grow as rapidly as possible. When they have two or three leaves the colours will be sufficiently developed to admit of making selections, and if the box is at all crowded they can be potted off and grown on until time to plant out. Coleus are very sensitive to cold and should not be planted out in the open ground until the nights are warm. Never allow the Coleus to flower, as this injures the foliage greatly. Pinch out the flower heads as they appear. Water liberally and pinch back occasionally to symmetrical form. Any soil that suits the Canna, or other ornamental foliage plant, will do for the Coleus—a light, sandy loam enriched with manure is as good as anything, and leaf-mould answers admirably.

Where a quantity of Cineraria, or Dusty Miller, is needed for borders, it is much more economical to grow from seed, starting them in hotbeds and planting out when all danger of frost is past, setting six inches apart.

Probably the most effective and tropical-looking plant in cultivation to-day is the Ricinus, and fortunately it is within the reach of everyone. It is usually seen as a solitary specimen on the lawn, or as the centre of a bed of other plants, or probably in a long row; it is more effective, however, in a group, and thus grown makes a good background for low plants. Seed should be started early in house or hotbeds. It germinates in twelve to fifteen days. The best results will be obtained when started in the house by planting in three-or four-inch pots. Put two or three seeds in a pot and remove all but one if more come up. Before filling the pots with earth mixed with good compost, a piece of shard, or flat stone, should be placed over the drainage hole to confine the roots, as they make a very rapid growth. Shift into larger pots as required, and plant out when all danger of frost is past in a deep, rich soil. Marsh earth is best, but where this is not available any good garden soil will answer if heavily manured and well watered. The young plants are somewhat backward after transplanting and frequently refuse to grow at all, so that it is well to have a few plants in reserve against a possible emergency. After the plants are a foot high, little if any trouble will be experienced. The newer Zanzibar varieties are the most desirable, being very fine both in colour and development, growing under favourable conditions from eight to ten feet tall with leaves three feet in diameter.

Banana plants are very showy and attractive and in the North are more or less of a novelty. They may be planted out in the open ground or in tubs when all danger of frost is over. Though less sensitive to root disturbance than the Ricinus, they are very impatient of the immediate presence of other plants, and young plants should be grown by themselves. Robust two-year-old plants, however, may be used as centres for beds of Cannas or similar plants with fine effect. When obtainable they should be given a compost of muck and old manure and supplied with a very liberal amount of water; the water from the laundry and kitchen should be saved for them, as one can scarcely overfeed them. Give a warm, sunny situation, protected from rough winds, which whip and tear the broad leaves, rendering them most unsightly. A southeast angle of building or shrubbery furnishes an ideal location. In the fall the plants may be removed to the cellar in the tubs in which they have been grown, or they may be lifted, if grown in the open ground, and planted in suitable tubs for the adornment of the conservatory or living-room. Grown indoors they are very ornamental, the foliage being perfect, which is rarely the case out of doors. It is also much easier to carry the plants through the winter in this way; as they are very sensitive to cold and damp when dormant and cannot be carried successfully in a cellar where these conditions exist, even though it be free from frost. In the South—and the same method may be employed in the North, provided the cellar conditions are right—the plants are dug up, the soil removed, and the roots wrapped in gunny-sacks and laid on a shelf in the cellar, all the leaves being removed except the central one, which must be carefully protected from all injury.