Half-Hardy Plants are those which require partial shelter, as in a cold pit or frame, during the winter. Here some attention is required to exclude from them dampness and frost, but especially the first. On these points Mr. W. Wakefield gives these good directions: -

"To prevent dampness there must be a free circulation of air; the plants must be placed on a dry bottom; and if they are in a situation which will admit of a fire occasionally, it will render the pits or house dry, but it should be used very sparingly, and only when absolutely necessary. But even with all care and attention, damp will attack some plants, and generally those that are most succulent in their nature, or the young and tender tops of others. We should therefore watch narrowly and remove every leaf or shoot affected, as damp not only destroys the individual immediately affected, but extends its influence to those in the neighbourhood of the one so affected. It is contagious; it engenders mould, which being a species of fungus, is rapidly disseminated, attacking and destroying wherever the damp has prepared the leaves for its reception. Neither should plants be too much crowded, as that obstructs the free circulation of air.

"Watering should of course be done sparingly, but still it will be required occasionally. Care, however, should be taken to preserve the foliage as dry as possible, as, there being but little sun in winter, and that not of sufficient strength to evaporate the superabundant moisture rapidly, it quickly rots the leaves, especially of Pelargoniums, and similar plants having leaves which form a kind of dish in which the water accumulates in considerable quantities.

"When fire is had recourse to for drying the house or pits, choose a fine day, and give all the air possible, so that the moisture dislodged by the heat may be dispersed.

"If the season is likely to be dry, first make a hole for the plant, and in the bottom of this put some rotten dung, or any sort of material that will retain water. Water this well, and then put in the plant, filling the hole to within two inches of the surface; again water well, and then fill up the hole.

"If obliged to water the plants afterwards, cause the beds to be hoed over next day as soon as they are dry enough; plants do better under this treatment than by watering them so much as is usually done when there is no appearance of damp on the leaves over late in the evening." - Gard. Chron.