496 



The Weekly Florists' Review* 



APRIL 13, 1S99. 



which are stood in a building having 

 a temperature of about 50 degrees, so 

 as to force them to expand. The fact 

 of this being done without, as it were, 



aging the flower, enables it to remain 

 in good condition for a longer period 

 of time than would be the case if it 

 expanded fully in a natural manner." 



Azalea Mollis— Heaths. 



In my last week's notes I forgot two 

 Easter plants that sold fairly well. One 

 was the inexpensive hardy Azalea mol- 

 lis. You don't want many of them, yet 

 a few go well. I remember a few years 

 ago having a hundred or two and flow- 

 ering them in May. In the bright 

 warm days under glass they dropped 

 their flowers quickly, but in the cool 

 weather of our past Easter the petals 

 hung on almost as good as those of an 

 Indian azalea. There are no competi- 

 tors against them in their beautiful 

 tints of yellow, orange and pink. Re- 

 member also that you don't have to 

 grow them for six months under 

 glass; a cold frame or any sheltered 

 place will keep them dormant till 

 forcing time, and four or five weeks 

 under glass will bring them into flow- 

 er. When ordering just remember 

 that the variety called Anthony Kos- 

 ter is a magnificent lemon colored 

 flower; we measured one truss of this 

 sort that was over six inches across. 



Ericas, which the Scotchified people 

 call heather, sold very well, but unless 

 you are going to grow them largely it 

 is just as well to leave their cultiva- 

 tion to the specialist of Long Island, 

 who with the help of the salt sea 

 breezes and suitable soil can supply 

 you with a better heath than you can 

 grow for the money. 



Azaleas. 

 You are nearly sure to have plants 

 of several kinds unsold after Easter. 

 Some of them can be grown over for 

 another season to great advantage. I 

 once said that for those who grew only 

 a limited number of azaleas it was 

 cheaper to throw away those that were 

 left over and import new stock every 

 fall. I am not sure but what I was 

 right and it I was not right I am right 

 now in saying what I believe to be 

 right in the light of further observa- 

 tion and experience. If your azaleas 

 flowered but little and have made a 

 strong young growth let them grow, 

 only pinching out the growths that 

 are pushing out beyond the rest; be 

 sure to pinch off any seed pods left 

 on. Those azaleas that have flowered 

 profusely should be cut back beyond 



where the flower appeared; that will 

 be the wood of last year's growth. 

 They should be in a good, warm house 

 and often syringed. They will quickly 

 break and make fine compact plants. 

 Let all danger of frost be gone be- 

 fore you plunge them outside. Some 

 growers say they should be in a shady 

 position but not under the drip of 

 trees. They will do perfectly well 

 plunged to the rims of the pots in the 

 broad sun, but what would be perfec- 

 tion is a covering of cheese cloth a few 

 feet above that could be rolled over 

 them during the hottest hours of our 

 hottest months. They grow a great 

 deal during summer and in plunging 

 them allow for expansion. Watering 

 once a day is not enough in the hot 

 weather, and when they want water 

 they want it, and as you are all gar- 

 deners, enough said. These azaleas 

 summered over will not have as large 

 flowers as the newly imported ones, 

 but any quantity of flowers, and they 

 are much more readily forced into 

 flower. 



The Bottle Brush. 



The metrosideros (Bottle Brush) is 

 a better plant the second year than 

 those imported the previous fall. Cut 

 the last year's growth pretty hard 

 back and keep cool till planting out 

 time, when shake off soil not occupied 

 with roots and plant in good, light 

 rich soil. They will lift easily in the 

 fall and be a better plant with many 

 nore flowers than the imported plants. 



Acacia Armata. 



Acacia armata (lUimosa paradoxa) 

 should be cut back, leaving only two 

 or three inches of last summer's 

 growth. Give them a shift if the pots 

 are filled with roots and with the in- 

 creasing heat they will make a good 

 growth and be plunged out of doors 

 during the summer months. They will 

 be much more satisfactory than the 

 first year imported plants. 



Hydrangeas. 



Unsold hydrangeas that have lost 

 their beauty should be cut hard back 

 or to where there are some good buds, 

 shaken out and repotted and started 

 growing again and treated the same 



as the young spring struck stock dur- 

 ing summer. These will make large 

 plants and you want but a few. The 

 young plants propagated in February 

 make the most salable sized plants. 



We never mind owning up an error, 

 and neglect will creep into the best 

 regulated families. I>ast year we had 

 a fine lot of young hydrangeas plunged 

 in a frame during summer and they 

 grew and made leaves like pie plant, 

 in June, but for a month or two before 

 frost came they were so crowded that 

 the strong buds forming on the stem 

 had no chance to get sun to ripen or 

 mature them and the flowers that did 

 .spring from these bottom growths 

 were weak. Not only hydrangeas but 

 any and all plants should have room 

 to get air and light on all sides. 



Seedlings. 



As soon as the asters, phlox, zinnias, 

 stocks, and other of the common an- 

 nuals have fully developed their seed 

 leaves it is time to transplant them 

 into other flats with room to grow. 

 This should be done before they get 

 long and lanky and weak; and wl>en 

 transplanted the seed leaf should be 

 little above the surface of the soil. I 

 have had occasion to speak of this 

 simple operation before to-day. It is 

 surprising what a poor fist many men 

 make of this job. The young rootlets 

 like to incline down, not up, but that 

 is not the worst mistake. I have seen 

 more than one gardener (?) puncture 

 the surface of the soil making a good 

 sized hole, then drop the young plant 

 into it and press the soil tight round 

 the tender stem, leaving the roots very 

 loosely suspended. The surface will 

 take care of itself with the good wa- 

 tering you give the flat when filled. 

 The stick or dibber you use should get 

 well down by the side of the roots, 

 and press the soil solid round them so 

 that they will take hold and root im- 

 mediately. A cold frame with means 

 of covering in case of a hard frost is 

 a better place for these so-called hardy 

 annuals than the greenhouse. 



Cyclamens. 

 The science of growing a good cy- 

 clamen (and it is one of our very best 

 winter flowering plants) is continual 

 vigilance. The best place for them 

 now and the next two months is a 

 mild hot bed and of all structures that 

 need watchfulness it is this primitive 

 greenhouse. Before putting them into 

 the hot bed they should be shifted if 

 at all necessary. If sufficient drain- 

 age is given there is not much dan- 

 ger of over potting. They should be 

 plunged in some easily handled mate- 

 rial, near the glass, syringed lightly 

 every fine morning and some means 

 found to fumigate them; an inch or so 

 of fresh tob:i-co stems on the surface 

 of the plunging material between the 

 plants will help greatly to keep down 

 the aphis. 



Hot Beds. 

 With the greatly increased room 

 which all your spring plants will need 



