In regard to sweet peas, the essayist thought all present would agree with him that the sweet pea is the most desirable annual in cultivation. Its delicate fragrance, beautiful form and variety of coloring make it a favorite with the florist, while its easy culture and long continuance of blooming secure its cultivation in every flower garden.

Sweet peas must be planted as early in the spring as the ground can be worked. The seed should be sown in drills and covered at least 6 inches deep. This may be done in two ways. Having prepared the ground and made the drills the desired depth, drop the seed and draw into the drill earth enough to cover the seed 2 inches deep. As soon as the plants appear through this covering draw in 2 inches more of earth, and so on until the drill is filled even with the surface of the ground, or the seed may be dropped and covered in the usual manner.

The surface of the ground sometimes becomes hard just as the young plants are about to appear, especially after a shower followed by a hot sun and unless some means are taken to prevent this, many of the young plants will not break through the soil, and no more will be seen of them than if the seed had not germinated at all; and annoying gaps will appear in the rows. A slight raking just as the plants are breaking ground will prevent this, and also kill any small weeds that may have started.

The only laborious task in the cultivation of sweet peas is bushing them, and bushed they must be almost as soon as they are well up. The essayist uses birch brush, the same as for tall-growing eatable varieties. Wire hen-netting makes an excellent support and is very neat. Whatever they are trained on must be firmly secured in position, as the vines when fully grown will surely be blown down unless strongly supported. Whatever supports are used, it will be found an excellent plan to place them in position before the peas are planted; then sow a row of seed on each side of the support, which, when the vines are grown will be entirely hidden from view, and a beautiful wall of flowers will be the result.

[Read before the Massachusetts Horticultural Society].

At the February meeting of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society, Joseph H. Woodford said that for sweet peas he digs a trench two spades deep and fills in with manure and mixes it with the soil, so as to be 2 or 3 inches below the surface. On this he sows the seed, covering it an inch, and when the plants are up drawing more soil on, so that the ground is level when he sticks them. He puts in heavy sticks, as he must, to support them. The flowers must be picked every day, or you will not have any late ones. The object of all annual plants is to grow, bloom and perfect their seed, and when they are allowed to do the last, they die and you get no more flowers. The first flowers of the aster are from the centre of the shoots and are very fine, and if you pick these you will get flowers from the side shoots. Pansies are fond of moisture and cool soil, and will bear the highest manuring if the manure is somewhat decomposed. He manures them highly in a trench with the coolest manure he can get. If very dry he would water with pretty strong liquid manure - not immediately around the plants, but would make holes between them and pour the manure in.

He picks them because he wants them, but never lets them mature seed.

Sweet Peas

Eastern florists tell of the increasing love for the Sweet pea, for cut flowers. Many more were grown than usual this year - but all went off at fair prices. They do not wilt as readily as some kinds - a good merit in a cut flower.

Sowing Sweet Peas

A correspondent of Gardening World says: " I am decidedly of opinion that Sweet Peas are sown much too thickly. When visiting Mr. Eckford at Boreatton, three years ago, I found that he adopted the practice of sowing his new Sweet Peas singly, with the result that they made large bushy plants, and flowered both freely and finely. I was forcibly struck with the size the plants made, and what a great space an individual specimen filled. As a general rule, Sweet Peas are sown much too thickly, and often in poor ground that has not been stirred deeply, and the result is they flower and then seem to decay; they are too crowded and the soil does not sustain them as it should do. Let them dig deeply and well manure the ground, and then sow thinly, so that each plant may have free room in which to develop. Let them pick off the blossoms as they decay, and they will be rewarded by a vigorous and healthy growth and a continuity of bloom that will surprise them".