OR the encouragement of our women florists I would say that I have never seen a commercial florist who could grow plants better, with the same appliances, than I have seen hundreds of women grow in windows and living rooms. Passing along a street in Baltimore a number of years ago, in company with a friend who was extensively engaged in the florist trade, I made this same statement on seeing a handsome stand of flowers in the window of a modest home. "I have often said the same thing," said he, "for I feel sure that with the same conveniences I would fail to have such plants as that lady has. It is mainly the minute patient care which a woman will bestow on her pets, and which few men will. I employ a number of Dutch women in my greenhouses, and find each one of them worth any two boys I could hire for nearly the same money." Women and flowers harmonize better than men and flowers. It is not my purpose to enter minutely into the details of window gardening in this short article, but merely to call attention to many plants that can be well used for that purpose.

There is in all collections of window plants too much of a monotony of zonale geraniums and callas, while there are a multitude of other things which will give variety and make the work more interesting. What all plant lovers want is bloom in winter, and this is what most collections lack. Unless an unusual amount of sunshine can be commanded, but little bloom can be had on the ordinary geraniums so much grown. The great tribe of begonias has many members which are inveterate winter bloomers, and get along with less sunlight than some other plants. The ornamental-leaved begonias of the Rex type I do not recommend for window culture. Though some women succeed with them, their foliage usually lacks the luster imparted by the moist air of the hot-house. There are, however, many sorts handsome enough in foliage and profuse in flowering that any women can handle with ease. First among these is the variety commonly grown as rubra [Begonia corailina). This is a tall-growing species, with enormous racemes of coral red flowers, and it should have the mo6t sunny posititon of any of the tribe. It ripens seed abundantly, and seedlings from it vary in all the shades from crimson to white.

It is hard now to get the variety true, because florists find it easier to grow it from seeds than from cuttings ; but a packet of seed will always give a few plants true to the type.

The seeds of begonias are exceedingly minute, and I have found that the best way to germinate them is to prepare a pan of mellow leaf-mold, make the surface smooth, and then with a fine sieve rub a thin layer of dead sphagnum over the surface. Water this with a fine sprinkler, and then scatter the seed over the surface. Cover the box with a piece of slate and set it in a sunny window. The slate readily absorbs heat and will keep a good temperature in the soil and retain the moisture, so that watering can be avoided. As soon as any signs of germination appear, replace the slate with a pane of glass to give light and still retain the moisture, and as the seedlings advance gradually withdraw the cover, and finally transplant them by lifting on the point of a pen knife.

The purpose of this article, however, is not so much to give details of culture as to suggest species not so commonly cultivated. There are many other varieties of the winter-blooming begonias that will be found very effective, but I can here only suggest them : B. Saun-dersonii, bright carmine, very profuse in bloom ; B. ni-tida, var. alba, white, handsome in leaf and free in bloom when not allowed too much pot room ; B. semperflorens, var. alba, white, blooms continuously and buds out well in summer; perfectly hardy in sheltered places in this latitude, and easily grown from seed or cuttings ; B. argyrostigma, erect, with leaves permanently spotted like seedling begonias usually are at first; B. picta, like the above, but of smaller growth; B. fuchsioides, red, and less free in bloom than some others ; B. hyb. multiflora. small leaved, free grower and good bloomer; pink. B. Evunsiana or discolor is frequently grown as a house plant for its foliage, but it is not properly a house plant, as it blooms only annually and in autumn.

It is a bulbous sort, perfectly hardy, and should be left out in the garden in a moderately shady spot, where it will make a grand autumnal show of pink flowers.

Among the bulbs offered in autumn by florists, there are many not commonly grown by window gardeners that deserve a place. Hyacinths and crocus, of course, every woman knows, but there are many other bulbous plants equally interesting and easy to grow. Freesia re-fracta is one of these. The bulbs are small, and eight or ten may be planted in a six-inch pot. They should be placed close to the light, when they will give a profusion of bloom very useful for cutting. They also have the advantage that the bulbs increase rapidly under pot culture, and if properly dried off after blooming, the grower will soon have a stock to give to friends, and will not be obliged to purchase annually. The various sorts of narcissus are easily bloomed in window culture, especially the Chinese sacred narcissus, which in freedom of bloom exceeds all others. Allium Neapolitanum, like freesias, increase very rapidly in pot culture. They give large heads of white flowers, and the grower will soon have an embarrassment of riches in the shape of bulbs.

Cyclamen Persicum is one of the most satisfactory of window plants. The bulbs or corms should be planted in pots not more than twice the diameter of the bulb, as they dislike over-potting. Set the bulb on and not in the soil, only covering the roots with soil. Until growth begins, great care must be taken not to get too wet, and no water at any time must be poured on the top of the bulb, as water standing on the flat-topped corms will cause the flower buds to decay. Many amaryllis make very satisfactory plants for the window in early spring, especially those of the Johnsonii type. These bulbs are better if never entirely dried off. Keep them in pots, and in summer plunge the pots in the soil in open sunshine and allow them to take their chances. In autumn remove to a light cellar and keep the pots only barely moist, bringing them to the window as the blossom buds appear on the sides of the bulbs. In North Carolina these bulbs are treated just as other hardy bulbs, and are allowed to remain in the open ground, where the clumps increase in size from year to year and make a magnificent display. But in any climate where it is too cold to leave cannas, dahlias and gladiolus out, it is best to grow amaryllis in pots only.