MAY 25, 1S99. 



The Weekly Florists' Review^ 



639 



Hibiscus militaris. 



Hyacintiiiis candicans. 



Lathyrus platypliyllus (except one). 



Lobelia cardiualis imostly Ivilled). 



Lychnis plenissima. 



Ligustrum ovalifolium. 



Monarada didyma. 



Marrubium vulgare. 



Montbretia. 



Nasturtium montan\ini. 



Oenothera rosea. 



Origanum vulgare. 



Opuntia missouriensis. 



Opuntia Rafinesqueii. 



Pachysandra terminalis. 



Paulownia imperialis (except one). 



Philadelphus coronarius (and oth- 

 ers). 



Schrophularia aquatica. 



Teucrium scorodonium. 



Tritoma uvaria. 



Viburnum opuliis sterilis (partly). 



Viola odorata. 



Pines have suffered quite severely 

 as well as the other conifers. Many 

 trees and shrubs not killed outright 

 have had their vitality so impaired 

 that they will probably die before the 

 end of the summer, and those not 

 otherwise affected show the result of 

 the severe winter in less abundant 

 bloom. J. H. 



In the hurry of filling your orders 

 for bedding plants, getting out the 

 veranda boxes and vases, you are like- 

 ly to neglect some crops that will be 

 missed when winter comes. 



Stevia. 

 You should plant out in good soil 

 all you need of Stevia serratifolia. 

 Common as it is there is nothing just 

 like it at Christmas time. Give the 

 plants two feet each way and keep 

 them well pinched till lifting time, 

 which is just before frost. They are 

 such strong growers they need no wa- 

 tering except that which comes from 

 the clouds. 



Azaleas. 



Azaleas are far .better outside as 

 soon as settled warm weather arrives. 

 Some growers plant them out, and 

 they lift easily in the autumn, but 

 the safer way is to stand them out of 

 doors on some dry bottom and sur- 

 round the pots to the rims with some 

 easily handled material; tan bark, 

 spent hops or leaves. I have said 

 stand them on a dry bottom, for that 

 is important; they need a lot of water 

 and a daily syringing, and if the pots 

 are standing in a puddle, or are over- 

 soaked, the plants will suffer, and 

 show it by sickly yellow foliage. 



It is supposed that the plants have 

 been cut back and that the young 

 growth has been made since Easter. 

 If the young growths are not fully de- 

 veloped keep them in till it is. There 

 is quite a difference of opinion as to 

 whether these azaleas should have the 

 full sun or be in the shade. Years ago 

 it was thought entirely proper to stand 

 them in the shade, but nowadays 

 many growers give them the full sun, 

 and I believe the latter plan is the 



best. The ideal position would be in 

 the broad daylight with a light cloth 

 or slat shading during the hottest 

 hours of the day. Azaleas grow and 

 widen out all summer, so give them 

 room to spread and to allow the light 

 to get all around them. Give them a 

 syringing daily, or twice a day in very 

 hot weather. 



Daisies. 



A plant that sold well with us last 

 Easter was the single daisy, or Mar- 

 guerite as It is called. Few flowers 

 are more beautiful to cut. They are 

 fine for church decorations, and I have 

 noticed that after your customer has 

 thrown out the lilies, azaleas and hy- 

 drangeas, the daisies are for months 

 "All a-growin' and a-bloomin'." I have 

 noticed it particularly this year that 

 plants sold at Easter and before in 

 full bloom are now on the verandas 

 and better than ever. That is encour- 

 aging to our patrons. Although an old 

 plant, I look for an increased demand 

 for it the coming year. 



Small plants should be put out at 

 once and placed IS inches apart each 

 way. Don't put them in rich soil; 

 they grow fast enough in a poor soil, 

 as long as it is of a texture to enable 

 you to lift them easily, and the latter 

 remark applies to all plants that have 

 to be lifted in the fall. Keep them 

 stopped during summer. 



Hydrangeas. 



Hydrangeas that are wanted for 

 Easter are better grown in pots. They 

 will be in 4-inch pots now, and are 

 better out of doors plunged in the full 

 sun. In a few weeks they will want a 

 5-inch or 6-inch pot. When plunging 

 for the summer give them plenty of 



room so they will make sturdy, bushy 



plants. 



Hydrangeas that are wanted for 

 later sales, say about this time, can 

 be planted out in deep, rich ground. 

 They will make larger plants than 

 those grown in pots, but are not so 

 adapted for forcing. I have planted 

 them in four inches of soil under 

 glass, and with lots of water they 

 make good plants and are convenient 

 to lift, but as every spare bench is 

 used in the summer for mums the hy- 

 drangeas have to go outside, and it is 

 quite as well for them. 



Metrosideros — Acacias. 

 The metrosideros and acacias that 

 you cut down after Easter can be 

 treated just the same as the azaleas. 



Hollyhocks. 



There has been a great demand for 

 hollyhocks this year, and being fasci- 

 nated by the pictures of these stately 

 plants and the glowing description of 

 "Our fine field-grown plants," I find 

 that in at least half a dozen places 

 the fine plants were only on paper. 

 Grow all you can, brother florist, in 

 any line that you can handle, and be 

 dependent as little as possible upon 

 the contents of the beautiful cata- 

 logue. Many are the things it is 

 cheaper to buy than to grow, and you 

 should find out for yourself who are 

 the firms to depend upon for certain 

 articles. No firm can do all things 

 well any more than you can. 



As city people of means ai-e having 

 the very proper desire of spending 

 their summers at their "country 

 place," which is more often measured 

 by acres than feet, there will be a 

 good demand for hardy perennials and 

 herbaceous plants. But it will not do 

 to treat the hollyhock quite as a hardy 

 perennial, particularly the first year. 

 As is the case with many of our hardy 

 plants, their hardiness depends greatly 

 upon whether they are covered with a 

 mantle of snow or are exposed to be- 

 low zero blasts on the bare ground. 



The hollyhock seed can be sown 

 now and when the seedlings are large 

 enough they can be planted six inches 

 apart in a cold-frame, where they can 

 be protected by grass or boards in the 

 coldest months. These plants will 

 give fine spikes the year they are 

 planted in the border. The writer, 

 some twenty-seven years ago, grew 

 some hollyhocks planted in a stiff 

 clay with lots of manure, and the 

 plants and flowers were as fine as any 

 we have seen in either this or any 

 other land. 



The seed was sown in August in a 

 cold-frame and the plants were win- 

 tered in 3-inch pots in a cool house on 

 a shelf, where they never were frozen, 

 and planted out the following April. 

 They grew nine feet high and five feet 

 through, and the flowers were five 

 inches across (no larger). So there 

 are more ways than one of doing it, 

 and where a limited number are 

 grown I prefer this plan that was so 

 successful. Perhaps the strain of seed 

 deserved more credit than the culti- 



