loped to nearly twice its former size, and the
number of beautiful shades obtainable has also increased many times.

To be grown at its best the carnation should have a rather cool
temperature and plenty of ventilation, and these two requirements help
to place it within reach of the small greenhouse operator. If only a few
plants are to be grown, they may be purchased from a local florist, or
obtained by mail from a seed house. If as few as two or three dozen
plants are to be kept--and a surprising number of blooms may be had from
a single dozen--they may be kept in pots. Use five-or six-inch pots and
rich earth, with frequent applications of liquid manure, as described
later. If, however, part of a bench can be given to them, the results
will be more satisfactory. The bench should be well drained and contain
four or five inches of rich soil, such as already described. If it is
too late to compose a soil of this kind, use any rich garden loam and
well rotted manure, in the proportions of five or six to one. For plants
to begin blooming in the early winter, they should be put in during
August, but for one's own use a later planting will do. For this year,
if you are too late, get a few plants and keep them in pots. Next year
buy before March a hundred or so rooted cuttings, or in April small
plants, and set them out before the middle of May. Cultivate well during
the summer, being sure to keep all flower buds pinched off, and have a
nice supply of your own plants ready for next fall.

In putting the plants into the bench (or pots) select a cloudy day, and
then keep them shaded for a few days, with frequent syringing of the
foliage, until they become established. Keep the night temperature very
little above fifty degrees, and not above seventy-five in the daytime,
while sixty will do in cloudy weather. As to the watering, they should
be well soaked when put in, and thereafter only as the ground becomes
dry, when it should again be wet, care being taken to wet the foliage as
little as possible. In the mornings, and on bright days, syringing the
foliage will be beneficial, but never in dull weather, as the leaves
should never be wet over night.

As the flower stems begin to shoot up they will need support. If you can
get one of the many forms of wire supports used by commercial florists,
so much the better; but if these are not obtainable the old method of
stakes and strings (or preferably raffia) will do very well. To obt