THE CHARM Of THE WINDOW BOX

Evening Star, Issue 21138, 25 June 1932, Page 20

THE CHARM Of THE WINDOW BOX

It is only of late years that flowering window boxes have become a frequent addition to some of our more wealthy homes, though many less pretentious old-fashioned dwellings have always made use of this charming decoration. In England and other countries overseas it has long been the practice to fill the windows of town houses during the season with colourful blossoms, whilst the village cottage is rarely without its growing geraniums or other old-fashioned flowers. In and around our cities are many houses without gardens where flowers might be grown with advantage in boxes on the win-dow-sills or on the verandahs. In the drab streets of the more thickly populated suburbs who may say what _ farreaching influence the sight of bright, glowing flowers might bring? Unfortunately, window-boxes are frequently given little chance to make a good display'. One notices a building with boxes on every sill, but what a poor show of flowers 1 Perhaps a few straggling geraniums or nasturtiums! It does not need a professional gardener to produce a picturesque win-dow-box, but certainly requires a little easily-acquired knowledge, infinite care, and some measure of love for flowers. If these be given there need be no fear of the result. There are two correct methods of growing flowers in boxes. One is to raise the flowers in pots and simply lift these into the boxes when in full blossom. In this way a continuous succession of flowers may 7 be maintained. The other way is to use a properly-made box (which is generally' placed on a zinc tray). In the bottom of this box are placed bits of china, pebbles, etc., to ensure good drainage, and the balance is filled up with soil. It is necessary to give some thought to the composition of this soil. Each set of plants requires, something different. Some must have leaf mould, others sandy or rather stiff' soil. A little superphosphate on the surface is often required, especially with plants of the leguminous type, and when plants are in bud a little sulphate of ammonia (one-quarter tablespoonful to a gallon of water) is instrumental in lengthening the stalks and making the flowers a deeper colour. _ Care must always be taken that this fertiliser is added when the soil is wet, and it also must not be allowed to touch the foliage. The flowers to bo grown in the boxes vary a great deal on account of climatic conditions. In the winter and early spring daffodils, hyacinths, ranunculi, and stocks may all be grown. Lobelia and a dwarf blue convolvulus are exquisite. In Tasmania the writer has seen an old fashioned stone house with its windows upstairs and downstairs a-glory with nasturtiums and lobelia. Maeterlinck, in his praise of old-fashioned flowers, speaks of the begonia “as a little artificial ; nevertheless it makes a very good display in the window-box with its red or pink blooms. There is a brilliant redflowering ivy' geranium that is always worth trying. It requires frequent 11 pinching ” out as it grows, and then tlie plant becomes covered ivith flowers. Iceland poppies should also be used more often. With a little care it is an easy' matter to keep up the display of blooms throughout the year. One set of flowers should be quickly' replaced by' well-grown seedlings of another kind. A well-made wooden box, painted, or a kind of porcelain or composition cement, may' be used, but the writer has seen first-class results from home-made boxes.