124 



The Weekly Horists' Review. 



agate your next season's carnation 

 stock. Every year we are obliged to 

 change our list of varieties or the quan- 

 tity we plant of each variety. Of some 

 we want more, of others less, and some 

 varieties we want to drop altogether to 

 make room for the better ones. 



Of the standard white varieties there 

 are really only two that are grown in 

 quantity all over the country — Flora 

 Hill and White Cloud. Both are grand 

 varieties and it is hard to say which 

 is the more popular, or profitable, tak- 

 ing the season through. 



For the wholesale grower of fancy 

 stock White Cloud is perhaps the more 

 profitable because it produces an enor- 

 mous crop of fine blooms on long, strong 

 stems during mid-winter when they 

 bring good prices, while as an all sea- 

 son "variety Flora Hill is the best. 

 Flora Hill begins to bloom soon after 

 you plant it and keeps on blooming 

 freely all winter. Up to about Febru- 

 ary the stems are rather weak and it 

 does not sell as a fancy; but when the 

 stems come strong again it is a favorite 

 with everybody. It is one of the very 

 best keepers the year round. 



White Cloud with most growers be- 

 gins to bloom about December and con- 

 tinues to bear fine blooms until warm 

 weather sets in, when the blooms begin to 

 get poor and it does not keep well after 

 being cut. During cool weather it is a 

 good keeper. 



If you want a steady supply of high 

 grade blooms throughout the season you 

 must grow both of these varieties as 

 each is at its best when the other is in 

 its poorest stage. But if you grow only 

 a limited quantity and want only one 

 white variety I would advise you to 

 plant Flora Hill. It blooms from the 

 time you plant it until you throw it 

 out the next fall and with the exception 

 of a few months in winter it produces 

 the highest grade of blooms. 



As an exhibition variety White Cloud 

 is the best on account of its fine stem 

 and general showiness. 



These two varieties are as different in 

 their requirements as they are in ap- 

 pearance. White Cloud wants plenty 

 of water and a cool temperature and a 

 Kood strong soil, while Flora Hill wants 

 a higher temperature, a little on the 

 dry side, and not too much feeding. 



L. McGowan, which was once the lead- 

 ing white, is no more a profitable va- 

 riety. It is not a better producer than 

 Flora Hill and the blooms always grade 

 low. 



Evelina has been a great disappoint- 

 ment to those who bought it when it 

 came out. We all expected it to be- 

 come the leading white, but it had a 

 weak constitution and bacteria soon set- 

 tled it. 



Mary Wood is considered by some to 

 be a profitable variety and where it does 

 well it may pay. It is not a pure white, 

 though, and it is inclined to burst. 



Glacier makes fine, large, pure white 

 blooms, but on short stems. Where 

 there is much design work this variety 

 ought to be profitable. John Young is 

 very free, but the blooms are small and 

 warm weather soon settles it. 



Among the standard pink varieties 

 we place Mrs. F. Joost far ahead of all 

 the others as a money maker. It has a 

 line upright habit, always makes a 

 strong, wiry stem and is a remarkably 

 free and constant bloomer. The color 

 is the ideal pink, as it never shows the 

 slightest trace of blue. The blooms are 

 hardly large enough for exhibition, but 



of ample size for a commercial carnation. 

 It is a favorite with the store men on 

 account of its color, stem and good keep- 

 ing qualities; and with the growers be- 

 cause of its great productiveness and 

 selling quality. This variety is likely 

 to take the place that Scott held several 

 years, when it becomes more generally 

 known. Last spring we discarded all 

 other pinks in favor of this variety and 

 we are satisfied that we did a wise thing. 



Triumph is a favorite with some grow- 

 ers and wherever it does well it is pro- 

 fitable. Most growers have trouble in 

 making it bloom during midwinter, but 

 those who have mastered this difficulty 

 consider it one of the best. The color 

 is good and the blooms are large and 

 borne on long, strong stems. This is a 

 variety for the experts. 



Victor has a fine color in winter, but 

 warm weather causes it to fade. Being 

 a sport from Daybreak it is very brittle 

 and straggly in growth. Mrs. Jas. Dean 

 is one of the prettiest pink varieties, but 

 comes into bloom too late unless given 

 an extra early start as a cutting and 

 on the bench. The color is fine. Also 

 a variety for the experts. Melba failed 

 to come up to general expectations. The 

 bloom and stem are fine, but the growth 

 is soft and subject to bacteria. Cerise 

 Queen is considered profitable by many 

 and it certainly is away ahead of old 

 Tidal Wave, which it somewhat re- 

 sembles in color. Leslie Paul has a fine 

 color, best described as American Beauty 

 color, but is hardly free enough to be 

 profitable. The growth is healthy and 

 the stem is long and strong. 



Wm. Scott is still a favorite with 

 many on account of its easy culture, but 

 it cannot compare with Mrs. Joost in 

 color or stem. Daybreak still leads in 

 that color, but there are several good 

 ones to come out soon in that color. 

 Whether they will displace it or not is 

 yet to be seen. 



Mrs. McBurney was looked upon by 



many as Daybreak's successor, but it 



failed. The color is not as pleasing and 



the growth is no better than Daybreak. 



A. F. J. Bauk. 



TYING CARNATIONS. 



In the Review for Nov. 29 I noted an 

 article on tying up carnations. The 

 method described is certainly a good one 

 if the first wires (six inches from the 

 ground) are put in shortly after plant- 

 ing, but at this time of the year it would 

 be a diflieult matter to run these lower 

 wires through a bench of plants that 

 were laying down. I use the following 

 described support with success: 



I cut wires about 40 inches long and 

 bend them over a piece of 4-inch pipe, 

 so as to make it the same as- two 18- 

 inch stakes, only connected. Then on 

 a 6-row bench I stretch three wires (one 

 on each side and one in the center of 

 the bench) about 12 inches from the sur- 

 face of the soil. To these wires the sup- 

 ports are fastened the same as in a rose 

 house. Four more supports are placed, 

 one between each plant. Then string is 

 used, making a nice square for each 

 plant. Having your string on a spool 

 enables you to do the work the quickest. 

 This, to my notion, is better than the 

 old ring, for the plant is not crowded 

 and you have plenty of room for work- 

 ing the soil. A. N. Shero. 



Lansing, Mich. 



Mr. Sherg's method no doubt serves 

 the purpose of supporting his carna- 



tions and must be satisfactory to him at 

 least. However, I do not consider it 

 superior to, or even equal to, the method 

 1 recommended some weeks ago, and used 

 by us. There is certainly more work 

 about it, and it is perhaps more expen- 

 sive as well. He has to use as much 

 wire (if not more) and it needs to he 

 heavier for the upright arches. Mr. S. 

 does not say just how he applies the 

 string, but whatever way he does it, he 

 can hardly do it quicker than we rtiii 

 tie the string to the outside wire and 

 wrap once around each wire across the 

 bench and tie to the other outside wire. 

 The strings are cut beforehand in lengths 

 to reach across the bench. It takes two 

 men to work our method to advantage, 

 but they do not need to lose any time in 

 waiting on each other if both are dex- 

 terous with their fingers. While one does 

 the first half on one string the other is 

 doing the last half of the other, and it 

 would surprise you to see how fast two 

 quick workers can get over a bench. 



Any support is easier put on shortly 

 after planting, and any support mil take 

 longer to put on after the carnations 

 are laying all over the bench, but our 

 method is not so hard to put on even 

 then, as Mr. S. seems to think. The 

 wires are stretched just the same, wheth- 

 er the carnations are standing up or 

 laying down, and as the strings are put 

 on, the plants are lifted into place with- 

 out breaking even the most brittle stems. 

 It is not necessary to run the wires be- 

 tween the stems before putting on the 

 strings, but every plant and every stem 

 is put into its square as the strings are 

 put on. It takes longer to put it on 

 than it does before the plants begin to 

 lay down on account of lifting the plants 

 into place, that is all. We aim to put 

 on the first tier as soon as the beds have 

 been weeded thoroughly, to save time in 

 weeding. There are other methods that 

 do the work as well as ours, but for 

 cheapness and the time it takes to put it 

 on, etc., we have never seen its superior. 

 A. F. J. Baur. 



ROSE NOTES. 



Taken as a whole, the weather has 

 favored the grower up to Christmas and 

 if the Christmas crop did not turn out. 



dusi 



.- I hi 



roses n]a\ h.i\ • h, , n \ , i \ ii 

 summer jihl riil\ i.ill, ;iik1 \vu iiuiy have 

 had roM - tn ilm \\ aw.iy then. But it 

 is a mi^l ll^' I" ' ni ilir plants downi too 

 much at tli.u iim.. im by taking away 

 so much oi the iuluiye we deprive them 

 of their breathing surface and thereby 

 check the action of the roots, and as a 

 result the plant lacks strength at the 

 time we expect the most from it. Or 

 we may have given too much water at 

 times, or mildew, greenfly and a host of 

 other things may have caused a set- 

 back, much of which could have been 

 avoided had we thought before it was 

 too late. « 



If you have been compelled to force 

 your roses much it is best to give them 

 a little rest, which is done by lowering 

 the temperature some and keeping the 

 plants on the dry side for a week nr ti'ii 

 days. This will enable them ti> r(L;:iiii 

 their strength, and the new growth will 

 be far healthier and stronger tliiiii if thi' 

 plants were forced continually. 



Manetti s(.>cks are arriving and there 

 should be no delay in potting them. 

 Place 'B % house having a temperature 



