Capsicum.--Sow early in March in well-drained pots of rich, light,
free mould; cover the seed with 1/2 in. of soil, and keep it
constantly moist at a temperature of 65 degrees. When strong enough
to handle put two or three plants in a 5-in. pot, and replace them in
warmth. Keep them rather close till established, then shift them into
7-in. pots. When established remove them to a cold frame and harden
off. Plant out at the end of May in a warm situation. Keep them well
supplied with water in dry weather and syringe the leaves. By stopping
the shoots they become nice, bushy shrubs. Flower in July. Height,
1-1/2 ft.
Cardamine Pratensis (_Cuckoo Flower, or Milkmaid_).--This hardy
perennial thrives in a moist, shady situation. It produces its purple
flowers from May to August, and is easily propagated by seeds or
division. Height, 1-1/2 ft.
Cardamine Trifolia.--A hardy herbaceous plant; will grow in any soil,
flowers in May, and is easily raised from seed. Height, 1-1/2 ft.
Cardoons.--Sow two or three seeds together in clumps 1 ft. apart, in
trenches prepared as for Celery, in April or May. When 6 in. high pull
up the superfluous plants, leaving the strongest one in each case.
When they have attained the height of 1-1/2 ft, tie the leaves lightly
to a stake and earth-up the stem. Keep them well supplied with water,
adding a little guano. They will be ready for use in September.
Another sowing may be made in June for a spring crop.
Carduus (_Milk Thistle_).--Coarse hardy annuals; somewhat ornamental,
but are hardly more than weeds. They grow freely from seed, and flower
from June to August. Height, 2 ft. to 4 ft.
Carex Japonica.--This is a graceful and very beautiful variegated
grass, striped green, silver, and gold, and makes a fine decoration
for the table. It will grow in any moderately moist soil, and bears
dividing. Sow in spring.
Carlina.--Ornamental, thistle-like, hardy perennials, which will grow
in any ordinary soil. Flowers are borne from June to September. Seed
may be sown as soon as it is ripe. Height, 9 in. to 2 ft.
Carnations.--These are divided into three classes, but they are all
said originally to come from the clove: (1) Flakes, which are striped
with one colour and white; (2) Bizarres, those streaked with two
colours and white; (3) Picotees, which have each petal margined with
colour on a white or yellow ground, or dotted with small spots. For
pot culture, about the end of March put two roots in an 11-in. pot,
filled with light, turfy loam, well drained (too much moisture being
injurious), pressing the earth firmly round the roots. Stand them on
a bed of ashes in a sheltered position, and when the flower-stems
appear, stake and tie up carefully. As the buds swell thin out the
weakly ones. To prevent them bursting unevenly put an india-rubber
ring round the bud, or tie it with raffia. They will flourish in
the open borders even in towns if planted in light loam, and may be
propagated by _layers_ at the end of July or beginning of August.
Choose for this purpose fine outside shoots, not those which have
borne flowers. Cut off all the lower leaves, leaving half a dozen near
the top untouched. Make incisions on the under sides of the layers,
just below the third joint. Peg down, and cover the stems with equal
quantities of leaf-mould and light loam. Do not water them till the
following day. The young plants may be separated and potted off as
soon as they have taken root--say, the end of August. They may also be
increased by _pipings_. Fill the pots nearly to the top with light,
rich mould and fill up with silver sand. Break off the pipings at the
third joint, then in each piping cut a little upward slit, plant them
pretty thickly in the sand, and place the pot on a gentle hotbed, or
on a bed of sifted coal ashes. Put on the sashes, and keep the plants
shaded from the sun till they have taken root, then harden off
gradually, and place each of the young plants separately in a small
pot. Carnations may also be grown from seed sown in spring. When the
seedlings have made six or eight leaves, prick them out into pots
or beds. They will flower the following year. The beds must be well
drained, as stagnant wet is very injurious to them.
Carnation Margaritae.--May be sown in heat during February or March,
pricked out when strong enough, and planted in the open in May or
June.
Carpenteria Californica.--The white flowers of this evergreen shrub,
which make their appearance in July, are delicately fragrant. The
plant is most suitable for a cool greenhouse, but does well in the
open, in warm, well-drained situations. When grown in pots the mould
should consist of two parts turfy loam, one part peat, and a little
sharp sand. It may be increased by seeds or by cuttings planted in
sandy soil, with a medium bottom heat.
Carrots.--To grow them to perfection carrots require a deep, rich,
sandy soil, which has been thoroughly trenched and manured the
previous autumn. For the main crop the seed should be sown in March,
either broadcast or in rows 18 in. apart. A calm day must be chosen
for sowing, as the seed is very light and liable to be blown about. It
has also a tendency to hang together, to obviate which it is generally
rubbed into some light soil or sand previously to being scattered.
Thin out to a distance of from 4 to 7 in., according to the kind
grown. For early use the French Horn may be sown on a hotbed in
January and February. Keep the surface of the ground well open with
the hoe.
Cassia Corymbosa.--This stove shrub is an evergreen. It should be
grown in a mixture of loam and peat, and may be increased by cuttings
planted in sand under glass in a little heat. It flowers in July.
Height, 3 ft.