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RICINUS
Castor-oil Plant. Half-hardy annual
Although this plant flowers freely, it is grown in the sub-tropical
garden principally for its noble ornamental foliage, and also in the
shrubbery border, either alone or in conjunction with other fine
subjects, such as Canna, Solanum, Nicotiana, and Wigandia. Plants of
the dwarfer varieties may also be used with very decorative effect in
conservatories and greenhouses during the summer and autumn months.
To have plants ready for making a show in early summer they must be
raised as half-hardy annuals in February or March. From the commencement
a rich soil and abundant supplies of water are necessary for the
production of stately specimens. The seed is large, and may be put
singly into pots, or three or four in each, and the latter is the usual
practice. A temperature of about 60 deg. will bring them up. If several
plants are grown in a pot, they must be separated while quite young, and
put into small pots filled with very rich soil. It is almost impossible
to have the compost too rich, so long as drainage is quite safe. When
the pot is full of roots, shift to a larger size, and commence the
process of hardening, in readiness for planting out in June. This is
worth some care, for if the plant receives a check when put out, it may
take a long time to recover, and then part of the brief growing season
will be wasted. Many gardeners never raise Ricinus in heat, but trust
entirely to a sowing in the open on the first day of May. The seeds are
put in three inches deep, in groups of three or four, and finally the
plants are thinned to one at each station.
Prepare the soil in advance by deep digging and the incorporation of an
abundant supply of manure. The most effectual way of doing it is to take
out the earth to a depth of eighteen inches or two feet, and fill in
with decayed manure and loam, chiefly the former. Upon this put out the
plant, or sow seed as may be determined. If this is too great a tax on
resources, or the near presence of shrubs renders the proceeding
impossible, drive a bar into the soil, which, if light, can be readily
worked into a fair-sized hole. Fill this with rich stuff nearly to the
top, and over it either put the plant or sow seed. A heavy top-dressing
round each stem is also desirable, and the application of copious
supplies of water will carry the nourishment down to the roots.
Sub-tropical plants are only a source of disappointment under niggardly
treatment, but they amply repay all the care and generosity which a
liberal hand may lavish upon them. The plants will need the support of
stakes to save them from injury in a high wind.
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Previous: RANUNCULUS
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