AUGUST 14. 1902 



The Weekly Florists^ Review* 



337 



Wedding Decoration by Jos. Kift & Son, Philadelpdia. 



Scott, till' cdliirs Ijciiiy liniitcl tn white 

 and [link. 



The effect was of a large arbor eox'ereil 

 with climbing roses in full flower. Each 

 color was kept separate, the phmts being 

 apparently growing from large green 

 pots which containeil lanrel branches, and 

 these being covered with roses, showed 

 a fullness and irregularity that gave the 

 whole decoration a more natural appear- 

 ance. In the photograph, which was 

 taken by flashlight, the ilifference in the 

 colors is not apparent, but while each 

 variety was kept to it.self, they were 

 trained, some straight, others diagonally, 

 and all to look as natural as possible. 

 The space covered was ten to twelve feet 

 high liy seventy-five feet long. The roses 

 were arranged in Kift's vase rods, sus- 

 pended by wire from stout tacks in the 

 top of the cornice rail. The whole ar- 

 rangement was in front of polished wood 

 work and when taken down there was not 

 a scratch to be seen. 



The pew ends and kneeling stool were 

 decorated with white roses, and palms 

 were used in front of the platform and 

 either side of front of church. The 

 baptistry, as is seen, contained Easter 

 lilies in trumpet or horn vases; the edge 

 was covered with lilies in messed boards, 

 cut to fit, and on the arch lilies were 

 placed in vases attached to the adjustable 

 holders. 



The wedding took place on Saturday 

 and the Sunday following, being chil- 

 dren's day, the decorations, with the ex- 

 ception of the pew- ends and kneeling 

 stool, were allowed to remain, and were 

 in such good condition at the end of the 

 evening service that the flowers were> dis- 

 tributed to the members of the congrega- 

 tion. K. 



CHRYSANTHEMUMS. 



Feeding. 



Feeding is beginning to occupy the 

 thoughts of those who planted their stock 

 early with the idea of getting as good re- 

 sults as possible. The old theory of not 



feeding at all until after the bud is set 

 and swelling is all very well, but it does 

 not always work out right in practice. 

 Early planted stock is now beginning to 

 show signs that a little more nourishment 

 is needed. The foliage of the plants is 

 running smaller, and the general growth 

 is not as robust as it might be, showing 

 that most of the nourishnu'nt present in 

 the soil at jilanting time has been ex- 

 hausted. 



Kow is tlie time to apply a mulcli of 

 rotten cow manure to your beds. This 

 keeps a more uniform degree of moisture 

 in the soil and protects the young roots 

 that appear on the surface. We do not 

 believe in too heavy a mulch, as it keeps 

 the soil too wet, and wo think it is con- 

 ducive to a vigorous growth of suckers, 

 which, of course, have to be removed. 

 Just enough to cover the .soil nicely is 

 all you need to apply. Bene meal is 

 sometimes scattered over the beds before 

 putting on the mulch. If you use any 

 let it be the bone flour, as the coarse 

 meal is too slow in action and is not 

 Tivailable by the plants to any great ex- 

 tent before the flowers are developing, 

 and then it is not needed. Above all 

 things avoid the nse of fresh cow manure 

 as a mulch. I have seen the foliage killed 

 half way up the stem by putting rank 

 manure on the benches. If you haven 't 

 any rotten nuinure throw on a little leaf 

 soil, or even use no mulch at all rather 

 than use crude manure. 



Feeding with liquid fertilizers may be 

 started now, giving your plants a dose 

 once a week or so and gradually increas- 

 ing in frequency. Nitrate of scda is use- 

 ful used in the proportion of one pound 

 of soda to fifty gallons of water, but if 

 the growth of the plant is free and good 

 it is not well to use soda more than once 

 or twice, as it tends to produce a quick, 

 soft growth, and the best flowers are pro- 

 duced where the growth is slower and 

 firmer. Sulphate of ammonia is also 

 largely used by the best growers. It is 

 safe to use much oftener than the soda 

 and should be applied in a slightly more 



diluted form, say 12 ounces in 50 gallons 

 of water. These chemicals should be al- 

 ternated with liquid cow or sheep nmnure, 

 which should be diluted dow-n consider- 

 ably for the first applications. 



Many flowers are lost every year by 

 injutlicious feeding, where the plants have 

 been heavily dosed with something, or 

 feeding has been too long continued. Half 

 a dozen light applications of liquid ma- 

 nure are far more beneficial to plants 

 than one heavy one. "When a heavy dose 

 of anything is given it will kill all the 

 delicate feeding roots, and the plant has 

 to ])roduce more before it can take up the 

 nourishment supplied; and in the mean- 

 time has been at a standstill. When using 

 chemicals, or in fact any liquid fertilizer, 

 be careful to see first that the soil is not 

 too dry. Give clear water first, so that 

 the young roots will not take up the feed 

 too greedily. 



The problem of feeding, when to feed, 

 how much to apply and how often, are 

 questions that are perplexing to the nov- 

 ice, and no one without seeing the plants 

 personally can advise. Experience is the 

 only teacher, and there are always so 

 many things to be considered — season, lo- 

 cality, condition of the plants, etc. It is 

 wonderful the amount of food a chrysan- 

 themum plant will use when it is applied 

 to good advantage, and the results are 

 equally wonderful, but it is always far 

 better for an inexperienced grower to 

 use too little than too much unless he is 

 prepared to lose many of his flowers by 

 rotting, which frequently follows over- 

 feeding. Too much nitrogenous manui-e 

 will develop enormous leaves and stem 

 at the expense of the flower, and it has 

 been repeatedly proved by expert growers 

 that changes from one kind of fertilizer 

 to another continually will always give 

 the best results. 



These notes on feeding apply to the 

 grower of exhibition flowers chiefly. The 

 average florist gives his plants a dose or 

 two of cow manure and gets flowers 

 plent.y good enough for his use, or he 

 may make his soil rich enough at plant- 



