220 



The Weekly Florists^ Review* 



July 17, 1902. 



and then go higher on all flower wreaths. 

 Where extra choice designs are wanted 

 you have cattleyas, lily of the valley, 

 stephanotis, and such flowers to suggest 

 either in cluster or in whole, and you 

 can go from $10 to $50 on them. When 

 cheaper you can make up of all green or 

 bronze or a mixture with or without 

 clusters of such as phlox or that and 

 gladiolus or achillea or any of the com- 

 mo)i white flowers. These you can do 

 for from $2 to $5. We are aware of the 

 fact that as high as $20 is sometimes 

 got for a galax wreath, but we are writ- 

 ing this for the crowd, not the few. 



There are plenty of bay trees standing 

 idly around. You might pluck them to 

 advantage once in a while. There is 

 nothing more beautifully expressive than 

 a well made wreath of bay leaves and 

 you can charge from $15 to $40 for it. 



IVERA. 



ARRANGING SWEET PEAS. 



We present herewith engravings from 

 photographs of four bowls of sweet peas, 

 arranged by one who is a lover of flowers 

 but not a florist. We believe they are 

 worthy of study by the professional. 

 After stating that only rose bowls and 



flowers; thus by using the lovely bluish 

 lavendar blossoms of the Countess of 

 Radnor variety in a low yellow jar, a 

 beautiful complementary harmony may 

 be arranged. 



' ' For small receptions or other func- 

 tions in which a temporary decoration is 

 desired, delightful effects may be ob- 

 tained by combining low vases of sweet 

 pea blossoms with small bunches of other 

 sweet peas scattered upon the table near 

 the vase, thus repeating the bit of form 

 and color. Two or three small bunches 

 dropped loosely near the vase add greatly 

 to its decorative value. 



"In the carrying out of this idea it is 

 easy to make many attractive color com- 

 binations by using one variety in the vase 

 and another upon the table. I have thus 

 used combinations of Peach Blossom and 

 Lady Beaconsfield; of .Tuanita and Ea- 

 mona, and of the Duchess of York and 

 the Duke of York." 



CARNATION NOTES. 



If you are ready with your house to 

 liring in your carnations there are a few 

 things that you should bear in mind, and 

 one of the most important of these is 



Sweet Peas in a Japanese Tea-Pot. 



other low receptacles should be used for 

 sweet peas, tall vases being too high in 

 proportion to the height of the mass of 

 blossoms, the artist writes in The House 

 Beautiful : 



"In general, people crowd their dis- 

 plays of sweet peas too much. It is true 

 that even then the flowers are beautiful, 

 chiefly on account of the delicacy of their 

 colors, but they are much more delightful 

 when displayed in a freer fashion which 

 reveals the inimitable grace of the living 

 blossoms. 



' ' The same love of simplicity that 

 leads to a less crowded display than is 

 usually seen leads also to the use of 

 fewer colors in di.splays. An arrange- 

 ment of one or two varieties is much 

 more satisfactorj' for quiet observation 

 than is a mixture of ail the colors. And 

 by choosing the colors of the varieties, 

 very delightful harmonies may be ob- 

 tained. This result is also possible 

 through the selection of vases for the 



that it pays to put forth every effort to 

 transfer the plants as quickly as possible 

 and to have them out of the soil as short 

 a time as it can be properly done in. 



Eemember that while the plant is out 

 of the ground it is practically the same 

 as a cut flower and you should be just 

 as careful to keep it fresh, and very much 

 the same treatment is required. You 

 would not think of cutting a lot of 

 blooms and laying them out in the sun 

 nor even to lay them on the counter any 

 length of time without at least wetting 

 the stems. No, indeed, you would be 

 likely to discharge an employe if you 

 caught him at it repeatedly, and yet some 

 of you will dig up carnation plants in 

 the hot sun, throw them into boxes and 

 have them standing in the sun until a 

 number of boxes have been filled, and 

 then perhaps over night in the shed with 

 only a little water sprinkled over them, 

 and when 50 per cent of them refuse to 

 take hold you wonder why. Perhaps you 

 may think this is exaggerated, but I tell 



you I have seen it with my own eyes. 



If you divide your help up properly 

 you can work the thing like clock-work 

 and your plants will appreciate it. Have 

 a man to dig and be sure to have a man 

 who is conscientious and not afraid to 

 jiush the spade down its full depth so as 

 to get ail the roots. Following him close- 

 ly have another man with a pail of water 

 and a deep tray, whose duty it will be 

 to take up each plant, shake ofl' the soil 

 gentl}', leaving a ball about the size of 

 your fist, dip the roots into the water 

 and place upright in tray. A less ex- 

 perienced man can wheel them into the 

 house, where there are two of your best 

 men planting them into the bench. These 

 last two should be experienced carnation 

 growers, men who know how to plant and 

 what the results will be if the plants are 

 set too deepi or the roots cramped into 

 a small hole just any old way to get them 

 out of sight. 



After planting a few hundred water 

 each plant well to settle the soil around 

 the roots and spray overhead several 

 times during the day for several days. 

 Wet the walks and under the benches and 

 the walls in order to keep the atmosphere 

 surcharged with moisture and in fact do 

 everything you can to keep the plant from 

 wilting. Too often the fatal mistake is 

 made of having the soil in a rather dry 

 condition when planting, and before the 

 plants get a good watering the roots are 

 so badly dried out that the plants can 

 never recover. I like to have the soil in 

 the same state that I do for potting, i. e., 

 moist enough to form a ball in the hand 

 which can be crumpled up finely without 

 leaving the hand moist. The time to look 

 out for that is the evening before you 

 wish to plant. If the soil is dry it will 

 stand a good watering and be in fine 

 shape for planting the next morning and 

 with an occasional light sprinkling dur- 

 ing the day you can keep it in nice shape 

 all day. But be sure and see that it is 

 moist all the way down before you plant. 



We use less shade each year during 

 planting time; perhaps I had better say 

 we find it necessary to use the shades a 

 shorter time after planting each year, 

 and the reason is beyond any question 

 because we are learning to lift the plants 

 at a time when they are growing slowly 

 and are well matured. We find a shade 

 made oi clay and water about the best 

 thing, as it washes off with the first rain, 

 and if it does not rain for a while you 

 can rub it off easily. It should be al- 

 lowed to remain only a few days or until 

 you can see that the plants have grabbed 

 root on the soil. Also keep the ventilat- 

 ors only partly raised to keep off 

 draughts for the first few days, but as 

 soon as growth commences tuey should 

 have all the air they can get. 



A. F. J. Baur. 



CARNATION TROUBLES, 



Our carnations, which were set out 

 early in May for summer blooming, are 

 not budding properly. They appear to 

 be full of those "mock" buds. Have 

 no buds that develop into flowers. The 

 season here is late and always slower 

 than inland towns, but we have the plants 

 in the same place and same soil as previ- 

 ous years, where they did well. 



Our asters die near the root. They 

 either rot oif or foliage turns brown. Is 

 it too wet, or what is the matter? 



E. H. M. 



The information furnished by E. H. M. 



