The Weekly Florists^ Revie\^« 



JUNE 2, 1S98. 



It can be handled out of doors all 

 right during July, August, September 

 and October, but under cover after 

 that period. Have it under prepara- 

 tion for about two weeks, turning it 

 completely and shaking it out well ev- 

 ery second day, leaving it each time in 

 a body about .'5 feet thick. After each 

 turning tread moderately flmi, then 

 cover the whole over with good sod 

 loam well reduced, that has been 

 ploughed and put together about the 

 middle of April. In the aggregate the 

 loam used should be one-sixth part of 

 the bulk of manure, but divided up 

 so that after each turning the quota 

 of loam may be spread over the man- 

 ure. During the turning operations, if 

 manure is at all dry, don't hesitate to 

 water it liberally, for it should be 

 moist at all times until it is put away 

 in the formation of the beds, which is 

 done in about two weeks. 



Beds wherever made should have a 

 dry bottom. Enclose the space with 

 a foot board, place the material 12 

 inches thick, tapping it moderately 

 with fork as the work proceeds. When 

 this is finished let the heat recover, 

 which will be in a day or two, then 

 beat the beds as firmly as possible, 

 which will reduce the bed to about 

 nine inches in thickness, place two or 

 three thermometers in different parts 

 of beds, the ball of same three inches 

 below surface. Observe about noon 

 each day the temperature; it will rise 

 possibly to 110 or 115 degrees. When 

 on the decline and the thermometer 

 indicates 95 degrees, cut up the bricks 

 of spawn with a hatchet into eight 

 pieces each and insert in bed eight 

 inches apart each way, and deep 

 enough to just cover the spawn. Press 

 the material firmly around each piece 

 of spawn. 



After putting spawn in again firmly, 

 beat the bed, which can now be cov- 

 ered with loam similar to that incor- 

 porated with the manure; see that the 

 loam is moist; if not so, water and 

 mix it. Before placing it on the bed 

 let it be two inches thick, spread even- 

 ly over the bed, then beat it firmly 

 with the back of a spade, which will 

 reduce the thickness to one and one- 

 half inches. Cover the beds loosely 

 with any grassy litter or hay, about 

 an inch in thickness. If the casing of 

 beds becomes dry, which will prob- 

 ably be the case in three weeks, 

 syringe the litter well from time to 

 time, which is far preferable to water- 

 ing the soil directly. 



In about six weeks after spawning 

 in the autumn months the mushrooms 

 will appear, tlien clean off the litter, 

 water the bed, using a fine sprinkler 

 or rose on watering pot, with water 

 about 1(X) degrees, sufficient to moisten 

 the soil through and no more. From 

 this time onwards, syringe with luke- 

 warm water whenever and wherever 

 dryness exists, temperature to be 

 maintained at 52 to 62 degrees; the 

 former in cold weather, when fire heat 

 has to be used liberally, the latter 

 temperature when the weather is mild 

 and not much fire heat is required. 



The above refers to growing mush- 

 rooms from a commercial point of 

 view. For the benefit of those who 

 grow mushrooms on a limited scale 

 for private consumption, I would say, 

 owing to the limited quantity re- 

 quired at any one time, and the man- 

 ure used being collected generally 

 from their own stables, let the collec- 

 tion of droppings be made daily, with 

 a little of the short litter. Place 

 thinly under a shed so that fennenta- 

 tion does not take place. When suf- 

 ficient has accumulated to form the 

 bed desired, water well and throw into 

 a conical pile. When a fermentation 

 has taken place, throw the pile open 

 and introduce one-sixth part of the 

 whole with fresh loam. Mix well to- 

 gether and if moisture is needed give 

 it at this stage. Throw it once more 

 into a pile till the heat again rises, 

 which -will be in two or three days, 

 and at once make up the mushroom 

 bed in exactly the same manner as 

 above mentioned. 



Mushrooms can be grown success- 

 fully in cellars, sheds or under green- 



house benches, but the former are the 

 most preferable places. But wherever 

 grown, there should be some means of 

 ventilation provided, not merely to 

 keep the temperature within limit but 

 also to change the air, allowing any 

 excessive dampness to escape. Avoid 

 draughts at all times after the beds 

 have come into bearing. The darker 

 the place where mushrooms are 

 grown the better the quality, they be- 

 ing whiter and more tender, whereas 

 those grown under greenhouse 

 benches are browner and tougher and 

 do not command the price of the oth- 

 ers. 



If mushroom beds are allowed to.be- 

 come very dry at any time, it is bet- 

 ter to give them several light water- 

 ings than a heavy one. While beds 

 are in bearing, if the stems become 

 long and weak, it is a sure sign that 

 the temperature is too high, so re- 

 strict the artificial heat or ventilate 

 more freel}'. If grown under green- 

 house benches, avoid watering said 

 benches to the extent of drip falling 

 to the mushroom beds below. II. 



CHRYSANTHEMUM NOTES. 



Specimen plants should be moved 

 from 6 to 8- inch pots as soon as they 

 are fit. Don't forget to ram the soil 

 well and mix some lumps of charcoal 

 through it. Everything possible 

 should now be done to encourage 

 growth as much as possible, never let- 

 ting the plants get potbound or suffer 

 in any way. They should be gone over 

 every other day and any shoots 

 pinched that need it. When stopping 

 is closely attended to the plants 

 "break" more quickly than they will 

 if allowed to gi-ow quite a little and 

 are then pinched back to the harder 

 wood, and also a better balance is 

 maintained between the roots and foli- 

 age. 



It is not so very long ago that a pe- 

 riod outside was thought absolutely 

 necessary for specimens, but the finest 

 plants grown today are kept inside 

 from start to finish. The best possible 

 place for them is a cool, airy house, 

 where they can have lots of room and 

 where they can be banked up well 

 with coal ashes. Here they are not ex- 

 posed to the storms that invariably 

 break many shoots outside, no matter 

 how carefully they are looked after, 

 and the water supply is also available. 



It is a common practice wirh many 

 fiorists to put out the plants in the 

 garden, taking them up before there 

 is any danger of frost. The carnation 

 benches, too, are often called into 



sprvii-e for the same purpose, and this 

 plan acts very well for general stuff, 

 though the very finest plants can only 

 be had by growing continuously in 

 pots. 



Single stems in 6-inch pots are al- 

 ways much in evidence at exhibitions 

 in the fall, and just now is the best 

 time to root them. If rooted too soon 

 they often lie around in small pots till 

 they get hard and stunted. If you 

 grow them at all give them an oppor- 

 tunity to do something. The strong- 

 est varieties only, and preferably 

 dwarf ones, should be used for this 

 work, Minerva being a fine example. 

 The new Solar Queen, too, by the 

 growth it is making with us, is a 

 splendid variety for single ~tem work. 



Keep all the air possible on newly 

 planted benches. The weather in this 

 section is very wet and cloudv, and if 

 a close atmosphere is maintained mil- 

 dew is very likely to appear. The rec- 

 ord of sunshiny days during May must 

 surely be pretty small this year. Con- 

 ditions seem peculiarly favorable for 

 the black fiy, who is fulfilliug the bib- 

 lical injunction to increase and multi- 

 ply. It is doing so. without taking any 

 regard of the eight hour law. nights 

 or Sundays. A good fumigating is 

 needed once a week to keep them in 

 check. 



Plants that were rooted early in the 

 season for large flowers are throwing 

 buds to a greater or less extent, ac- 

 cording to the variety. If ycu have 



