300 



The Weekly Florists' Review, 



AUGUST IS, 1890. 



Ficus elastica is grown extensively. 

 The branching rubbers untouched by 

 the knife, with even shoots and foli- 

 age to the pot, are well known. Areca 

 lutescens and Latania Borbonica are 

 grown in gi-eat numbers, too, in from 

 (i-inch to 12-inch pots, occasionally 

 larger. Kentias are here, too. Then 

 there are pandanus galore: utilis. not 

 so common now, Veitchii and some 

 fancy sorts. Dracaena Sanderiana,- 

 probably the largest stock in the coun- 

 try, is cultivated both singly in .".-inch 

 pots and massed in C-inch. 



Among the flowering plants, Ota- 

 heite oranges are here in all stages of 

 gi-owth. Hydrangea Otaksa, Spiraea 

 compacta, genistas, azaleas, are forced 

 in great numbers. Then there are 

 ramblers, rhododendrons and bougain- 

 villeas: lilies, Harrisii for early and 

 Japan iongiflorums for late, valley and 

 Von Sion extensively, and tulips, just 

 a few. Three houses of chrysanthe- 

 mums. Mr. Harris finds the demand in- 

 sufficient to make early sorts pay, and 

 uses late varieties, chiefly his own 

 seedlings. Two new ones are "Miss 

 Florence Harris" and "Our Dear 

 Friend," the latter, in name at least, 

 a necessity on every successful place. 

 The ventilators are regulated by ther- 

 mostats with water power, self-act- 

 ing. 



No manure water is used, the aim 

 being to supply all the ingredients re- 

 quired in the soil when first prepared. 

 Insecticides are not used, tobacco 

 water applied twice a week being pre- 

 ferred. Jardinieres, glazed and col- 

 ored, and compost in bags for the 

 seedsmen and storekeepers, are side 

 issues. The stock is sold in Philadel- 

 phia and shipped to many other cities. 



Joseoh Heacock. 

 Joseph Heacock has an exceedingly 

 well adapted piece of ground for 

 greenhouse purposes located at Wyn- 

 cote, near Jenkintown. The houses 

 are built on the side of a hill facing 

 the south, rising one above the other 

 in such a way that the sun seems to 

 have great power on all. There are 

 65,000 feet of glass devoted to roses 

 and palms. Ten houses are planted 

 with American Beauties, two and one- 

 half each with Brides and Maids and 

 one with Meteor, which was very suc- 

 cessful last season. The stock is on 

 own roots, excepting a few teas, young 

 and grown on benches. The north 

 sides of the rose houses are utilized 

 for short pitch palm houses about 8 

 feet wide, single walk and two benches. 

 These were filled chiefly with Cocos 

 Weddeliana in from 3-inch up to G- 

 inch pots. Besides the small houses 

 there are two lofty houses of arecas, 

 kentias and some latanias and phoe- 

 nix. Rose leaf extract of tobacco and 

 sulpho-tobacco soap are used for in- 

 secticides. Mr. Heacock does not like 

 tobacco water; when using it he no- 

 ticed some imperfect leaves were 

 formed by the arecas, which were 

 strong and vigorous. These leaves 



were attributed to supposed presence 

 of saltpeter in the tobacco water and 

 its use was abandoned. Small palms 

 are plunged in ashes that the full force 

 of the hose may help keep them clean. 

 The palms are potted in rose soil with 

 a small portion of Jersey peat added. 

 This rose soil is no longer composted. 

 The ground to be used is heavily 

 dressed with cow manure early in the 

 spring, it is then ploughed and fre- 

 quently worked, bone dust :s added, 

 and when the material comes into the 

 houses there is no sign of fertilizer 



apparent, the wbtfle feeing thoroughly 

 amalgamated. Wood ashes are used 

 between the rows of roses during the 

 blooming season. Mr. Heacock prefers 

 the Canadian wood ashes. A manure 

 tank under cover, such as described 

 by Mr. Dorner in The Review, sup- 

 plies liquid through the water pipes. 

 The place is heated by four large 

 steam boilers so arranged that any or 

 all can be used as desired. The water 

 is warmed in winter by an ingenious 

 arrangement. A bell rings in the own- 

 er's and fireman's houses should the 

 temperature in the houses fall or rise 

 during the night beyond given points. 

 The stock is sold chiefly in Philadel 

 phia but there are some regular cus- 

 tomers outside. 



SUMMER ROSES. 



Perhaps in New York, Chicago, 

 Philadelphia, Boston and other large 

 cities roses in the month of July, Au- 

 gust and September are of little conse- 

 quence, not enough in demand to war- 

 rant houses with time and attention 

 being given them. Certain it is well 

 known that when we country fellows 

 send to any of the large growing cen- 

 ters for roses in midsummer a very 

 poor article or none at all is the re- 

 sponse. With us, and doubtless it is 

 so the whole country over, there is de- 

 mand enough in summer to use up all 

 the roses that are cut. DoubtlR&s there 

 are ten roses wanted in .January tor 

 every one that is asked for in July, 

 but the proportion that is ciu in Janu- 

 ary is about 200 for every July bud. 



Some events are occurring daily 

 around us that demand the use of 

 flowers for no substitute can be found, 

 births, marriages and deaths. Mar- 

 riages can usually be fixed for a date 

 agreeable to all parties concerned, but 

 the other very important epochs of 

 our lives regulate their daces regard- 

 less of our wishes. On these occasions 

 roses are asked for, especially white 

 and pink, and since what some people 

 would call the "better classes," but we 

 call them the "wealthier classes," have 

 frowned on elaborate and set pieces of 

 the florist art, the call for h box of 

 roses, or a bunch of roses, or roses in 

 any and every shape, has greatly in- 

 creased. And do you blame them, the 

 public, for their love of the rose? It is 



not a fad or a fashion that can ever 

 pass away. 



We may improve the carnation till 

 it reaches John Thorpe's ideal. The 

 lilies are beautiful, so is the modest 

 lily of the valley. Orchids are gorge- 

 ous, grotesque and fantastic, but the 

 rose is Queen above them all, and her 

 throne is so exalted that all other 

 flowers are mere satellites. Neither 

 is it difficult to discern why she is 

 queen. In form and finish of leaf and 

 petal, in grace and beatuty and fra- 

 grance she is matchless in the floral 

 world. The rose is never in season for 

 it is never out of season; she is wanted 

 365 days in the year. 



Now what have we to fill this uni- 

 versal and daily demand for Flora's 

 gem? From October to middle of June 

 we have roses of finest quality of ev- 

 ery desirable shade, with stems of al- 

 most any desired length, hut in the 3 

 or 4 hot months of summer it is diffi- 

 cult to obtain good roses with clean 

 foliage. The hybrid perpetuals are 

 out of the question. Hybrids, they 

 may be; but as Peter Henderson said, 

 "the word perpetual is a misnomer, 

 particularly in our climate." The best 

 known and most satisfactory of our 

 winter flowering roses, notably Brides- 

 maid and Bride, give us but poor little 

 buds after real hot weather has set in, 

 and the houses and conditions under 

 which they are grown for winter are 

 the least favorable for producing good 

 flowers in our semi-tropical summer. 

 Admitting that there is a demand for 

 roses at midsummer and at profitable 

 prices, what are the best varieties to 

 grow? At the outset we will say that 

 the modern rose house adapted for 

 winter growing is not at all essential, 

 in fact it is the least suitable. 



