WATERING WINDOW PLANTS.

Bruce Herald, Volume XXXI, Issue 3174, 19 June 1900, Page 2

WATERING WINDOW PLANTS.

The question : • When and how shall 1 water my window plants?' is one whioh is being aßked every day by the amateur gardener. The answer is that experience ia the best pruide for this operation, simple as it may appear at first sight, and a few practical experiments with common plants will, teach the anxious amateur more than any number of written rules or directions can possibly doBut experience is a school in which the fees are very high, and those who do not care to pass through it may not be unwilling to receive a few general suggestions for their guidance. In the first plaoe, then, adopt a definite system in watering your plants. Do not give them a few drops now and then from a tumbler or water-jug when you happen to remember to do so, but look over your plants every alternate morning in -winter and «very evening in summer ; remember they are depending upon you for THEIE FOOD AND HOISTUKS. If you love flowers, this operation will be a pleasure to yon ; ,if you feel it irksome, giva up all thoughts of plant-growing at once, for you will never succeed. Proper watering is one of the main features in successful plaut culture. If the plant is too dry, the roots, as a matter of course, cannot abstract sufficient to counter-balanco the evaporation which takes place throngh the leaves, consequently the plant droops, or : flags,' as gardeners term it. Again, if the plant is watered too freely, the soil roand its roots becomes sodden and impervious to air, the leaves turn yellow, and the whole plant gets debilitated and out of health. A plant will generally be the healthiest which wants water the oftanest ; this will show that there are plenty of air spaces in the soil and that the roots are making good use of them. If it does not often want water it ia in a bad way, aud more water will make it worse: How often to water, then, will be accordI ing to how easily the water passes away. If, when you pour water on the earth, it disappears almost immediately, it would be safe to water such plants every day. Always use rain-water for plants if possible, or, if in towns, where spring-water only is available, it is \* ell to expose the can tn the air an hour or two before using. ; Never water a plant that is already wef", but when a plaut is dry give sufficient to moisten it thoroughly. If very dry and hard, plange the pot in a pail of water and allow it to remain there until the airbubbles cease to rise to the surface. If a plant is growing and the pot is well drained, it is nearly impossiblo to water it too freely. During winter and dull damp days, plants require water less frequently than during summer when the sun is powerful and the heat intense. Never on any account allow a plant to stand in water, but after the plant, is drained, empty out the saucer or bowl in which it stands. There is oiily one exception to this rule, and that is the plant known as Spirea Japonica, which thrives best when allowed to stand in several inches of water — provided, of course, that it be not stagnant water.