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Cool-loving Bulbs Comparatively: The cool moist atmosphere of London makes cultivation of chrysanthemums, cinerarias, primroses, and the cool-loving bulbs comparatively easy in the home or a small greenhouse. The more severe winters of Chicago call for steam heating of apartments, and the choice of plants would turn to those, such as the members of the Arum family, that thrive under warm conditions. Plants of both regions have a common enemy, the dirt from factories, the annual fall of which is measured in tons. In both regions outdoor and indoor plants alike need frequent washing. Chicago gives the added difficulty of frequent gales of high velocity.
In a warm, moist atmosphere, and with full sunlight will grow the cardinal climber, dwarf castor bean, coleus, croton, dwarf dahlias, gynura (velvet plant), hibiscus, poinsettias, shrimp plant, and sweet potato.
The cool-loving plants that need considerable moisture in the air, also a bright sunny situation, are the most difficult to grow in the home. The optimum temperature is 50°F., much too low for a living room. An unoccupied storeroom or Attic will permit the growth of cinerarias, calceolarias, primroses, indoor pansies, and seedlings of wallflowers and stocks for the garden. The cool room is best for growing bulbs of daffodils, crocuses, tulips, hyacinths, and Easter lilies. If bulbs are cultivated at temperatures higher than 50 °F. the flowers will not form. They should be grown cold until the flower buds are large and firm and then the plants should be taken to a warmer room for further development.
One of the most popular ways of growing bulbs—snowdrops, daffodils and crocuses, in particular—is to naturalize them in drifts so they spread at will. This is usually done in grass, but those bulbs preferring shady woodland conditions can be naturalized in soil under trees and shrubs. It is also possible to establish bulbs beneath a planting of ground cover like scrambling ivies. |
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