MAY 31. 1900. 



The Weekly Florists' Review. 



contend with much of the interest 

 would be lost. 



Seeds. 



The saving of seeds becomes quite 

 necessary, as plants such as the vic- 

 toria and a few others must be treat- 

 ed as annuals and propagated by seeds. 

 After fertilization has taken place and 

 the flower is again under water, tie a 

 piece of wire netting securely around 

 the flower. This will prevent the 

 scattering of seeds after maturity. 

 Never use cloth, as it prevents the 

 free circulation of the water, and fre- 

 quently rots before the seeds are ripe. 

 Seeds after maturity are to be kept in 

 water at a low temperature, or moist 

 sand, during the winter. The saving 

 of seeds is only necessary with the 

 Victoria Regia and its varieties. Eu- 

 ryale ferox and Nymphaea Zanzibari- 

 ensis. Though all of these plants are 

 perennials in their native countries, 

 they must be treated as annuals and 

 seed sown every year. 



If the tuber of the Nymphaea Zan- 

 zibariensis could be ripened or ma- 

 tured, it would not be necessary to go 

 to all the trouble, but being a truly 

 tropical plant and in full vigor when 

 the first frost comes, it is unable to 

 mature. If the seeds of the nymphaea 

 are allowed to fall upon the soil they 

 will begin to germinate and produce 

 plants the same year. These may be 

 taken, potted, and immersed in the 



water until fall, when they should be 

 taken up and cared for in a suitable 

 place during the winter. 



The seeds of the Euryale ferox if 

 left upon the ground will germinate 

 the following spring and the young 

 plants may be put wherever wanted. 



Sow seeds of the victoria in Febru- 

 ary or early March in water kept at 

 a temperature of 85 to 95. As the 

 plants become large, pot them on, un- 

 til the time is at hand for planting 

 out. 



Propagation. 



Nymphaeas may be reproduced In 

 two ways, by seed, if they are pro- 

 duced, and by the division of the rhi- 

 zome. Varieties are not ti'ue to seed 

 and many unique hybrids are pro- 

 duced by the planting of them. Seeds 

 of most all germinate rapidly and 

 flower the same season. The division 

 of the rhizome is the most practical 

 way and the only one through which 

 varieties may be kept true. 



It is quite impossible to give here 

 a list of hardy and tender aquatics and 

 border plants, as some that prove 

 perfectly at home here require pro- 

 tection further north and these that 

 are treated as tender varieties in the 

 north become troublesome weeds in 

 the south. For those not acquainted 

 with the plants it is best to refer to 

 some reliable nurseryman or florist in 

 their vicinity. 



Violets. 



A crop that will need early atten- 

 tion to prepare for next season is your 

 double and single violets. There are 

 many ways of growing them, and if 

 you are successful with any system 

 don't abandon it tor somebody else's 

 advice. Some still plant them out and 

 lift them in September. For this they 

 should have a good deep and moist 

 location, but not necessarily shady. 

 Some keep them growing in 3 or 4- 

 inch pots in frames till August or 

 September and then .plant them on 

 the benches. And many large grow- 

 ers plant the young plants in solid 

 beds about the middle of .lune and 

 slightly shade the glass or remove a 

 portion or all of the glass during July. 

 August and September. The last could 

 not be followed out unless the glass 

 was butted; then it is no trouble. 



With a house facing south we have 

 for several seasons planted in late 



June, and after a few days removed 

 the entire glass, replacing it the last 

 week of September; too early, I think, 

 and next fall we will leave it off till 

 the middle of October. Another hou^e, 

 20 feet wide, running north and south, 

 we "planted the same time and re- 

 moved only every fourth row of glass 

 on each side. With the glass shaded 

 this was a very cool house during 

 summer. The first house always gave 

 us the best violets up to New Year's, 

 and then the north and south house 

 was the best for the balance of the 

 season. This has happened several 

 years and always the same result. Use 

 a rather heavy loam for violets and I 

 am sure the solid bed is better than 

 one bench. 



They do not want manure, unless it 

 is thoroughly decayed, but violets like 

 a liberal allowance of bone flour. You 

 often see violet beds that are good and 

 bad in spots. That is because poorly 



rooted plants were used. When plant- 

 ing, throw away the poorly rooted 

 plants; let them be only thrifty grow- 

 ing plants, with a good bunch of roots, 

 and you wont have unproductive 

 spots. 



The single violet Princess of Wales 

 is now a great favorite with all, and 

 in some cities it actually brought a 

 better price than the Marie Louise. 

 They are very stylish and you want to 

 grow it; 8 or 9 inches is room enough 

 belween the plants for the double, but 

 the single should have a foot. 

 Geraniums. 



This is the time to put by a few 

 dozen or hundred, according to your 

 wants, of 4-inch zonal geraniums for 

 fall and winter flowering. They are 

 not wasted even it you do not have 

 demand for their flowers, but they 

 come very useful in dull November 

 and when well flowered the plants are 

 always in demand. Choose compact, 

 healthy plants and pinch off all flowers 

 and buds and if they need it pinch 

 also the ends of the leading growths. 

 You could by shifting and feeding 

 produce some very large plants by 

 next October, but those you do not 

 want. A well flowered plant in a 6 or 

 7-inch pot is large enough. A shift in 

 a week or two will do and in August 

 shift again into a 6 or 7-inch. Always 

 keep the buds pinched off till end of 

 September. 



Pot firmly always for a geranium 

 and use a good stiff loam. They can 

 be grown outside plunged in a frame 

 and covered with glass in case of pro- 

 longed rains, or plunged on a bench in 

 a good airy house is just as well, with 

 little or no shade. The plunging is of 

 the greatest importance, for the con- 

 tinual watering that is otherwise need- 

 ed soon impoverishes the soil, and the 

 continual drying out which must occur 

 when not plunged is productive of 

 yellow leaves and is bad all round. 

 This remark about plunging applies 

 not only to these pot geraniums but to 

 any plant you carry over summer. 

 Bay Trees. 



Speaking of plunging, when Mr. 

 Halfred Dimmock called on us a few 

 days ago he said we ought to plunge 

 our Sweet Bays and get our customers 

 to do the same. He undoubtedly is 

 right, I think, for appearance as well 

 as the welfare of the plant. The sun 

 pouring down on the tubs, which are 

 a mass of roots in a very small space, 

 must be a trying ordeal to them dur- 

 ing summer. You will notice that 

 those you have a few seasons have not 

 that bright green color of the newly 

 imported. Some of our customers ob- 

 ject to this and in some situations it 

 is not practical, but wherever vou can, 

 get them down in the sod to the top 

 of the tub. It has another advantage, 

 they are then never blowing over as 

 they do in exposed places, for in small 

 tubs they resemble gentlemen who 

 used to attend the early conventions 

 of the S. A. F. and became top heavy. 

 Poinsett ias. 



I hope you will not forget to put 



