272 



The Weekly Florists' Review, 



December 31, 1903. 



nearly or qviite at a standstill. We do 

 not ahvays, however, in jiractiee make 

 that difference in the quantity supplied 

 which this knowledge should lead us to 

 make. On the contrary, many gardeners 

 appear to believe that the soil about the 

 roots of all plants in leaf should always 

 be wet. The injury that results from 

 this is due largely to the fact that soil 

 requires alration if plants are to be 

 healthy in it, roots requiring to be sup- 

 plied "with fresh air just as much as 

 the upper portion of the plants do; for 

 all the living parts of a plant breathe, 

 obtaining oxygen from the air as ani- 

 mals do, and when they cannot obtain it 

 they are suffocated and die. Now, if the 

 soil is always saturated with water, air 

 cannot get to the roots; moreover, acids, 

 and other injurious compounds, are 

 formed in the soil, and these act as poison 

 to the roots. It is the craving for fresh 

 air that causes the roots of a plant to 

 cling to the inside surface of a pot, 

 and to creep down amongst the drainage, 

 where the supply of air is greater, as a 

 rule, than in the soil itself. 



The injurious, and often fatal, results 

 of excessive watering are not always 

 recognized, and are too often set down 

 to some other cause. 



More harm is done to plants by over- 

 watering than by the other extreme; this 

 is especially the case in winter, when 

 the conditions are unfavorable to growth. 

 The sickness and death so prevalent 

 among plants in that season are largely, 

 if not entirely due to" excessive watering. 

 A comparison of the usual condition or 

 the soil in which plants make healthy 

 crrowth in the open air with that ot pot- 

 Srown plants under glass will show that, 

 although the supply of water in the for- 

 mer case is not excessive, yet growth is 

 healthier and better in every way than 

 that made under glass. A rhododendron 

 or a bedding pelargonium growing m the 

 open border is rarely, if ever, saturated 

 at the roots, the water passing away too 

 freely for this to happen, even In wet 

 weather; and yet they grow and flower 

 better than when grown in pots and regu- 

 larly watered. The careful cultivator 

 weighs all the conditions that affect 

 o-rowth : when the light is defective and 

 the temperature low, growth is sluggish 

 or quiescent, and the water required by 

 the plant is then little or none. 



The nature of the plant itself must not 

 be overlooked. Some plants, particularly 

 tuose that have fleshy roots and large 

 leaves, will do with a liberal allowance 

 nf water at all times. Succulent plants, 

 the leaf structure of which is such as 

 to prevent loss of water from transpira- 

 tion, may be kept dry at the root for long 

 periods without suffering, although when 

 they are growing vigorously under the in- 

 fluence of bright sunshine they enjoy 

 copious supplies of water. Generally, 

 plants with small leaves and fine hair-like 

 roots, require careful watering at all 

 times. 



"All perennial plants have a period of 

 rest. It is either the cold which stops 

 all vital processes, or. as in tropical re- 

 gions, the excessive drought of the hot 

 season. During this latent period plants 

 require very little nourishment, and even 

 those greenhouse plants which retain their 

 green leaves require an infinitesimal 

 amount of water and of nutritive salts. ' ' 

 Good cultivators of orchids recognize the 

 need of this period of rest for all orchids, 

 after new growth has been made, the dur- 

 ation and nature of the rest being varied 

 according to the nature of the plant. 



Thus, a dendrobium which, while growing, 

 revels in water, requires a long, tb-y rest 

 after growth has been made; whereas 

 an odontoglossum is suflSciently rested if 

 the supply of water is withheld from 

 the roots for a month or six weeks. Many 

 plants appear to grow and fiower with- 

 out this rest; but only for similar rea- 

 sons to those which account for some men 

 li\ing under conditions which are op- 

 posed to the laws of health. 



The transpiration or perspiration of 

 plants may now bo considered. The 

 breathing pores or ' ' stomata, ' ' which are 

 generally situated on the under surface 

 of the leaves, under favorable conditions 

 give off water in the form of vapor, in 

 quantities varying with the moisture of 

 the surrounding atniospuere ; in other 

 words, plants perspire freely in a warm, 

 dry atmosphere, and less freely in one 

 that is moist, in much the same way as 

 animals do. Anything that interferes 

 with this function is as bad for plants 

 as it is for animals. There are in the 

 leaves of plants numerous ingenious con- 

 trivances for regulating transpiration, the 

 pores opening wide when the conditions 

 favor the free escape of moisture, and 

 closing when they are unfavorable. The 

 flagging of leaves causea by drought has 

 the effect of closing the stomata, so as 

 to stop the further loss of water. The 

 rush or "perpetual stream" of water 

 from the roots to the leaves, other condi- 

 tions being favorable, is the accompani- 

 ment of active, rapid growth. We should 

 therefore endeavor to maintain ,iust that 

 condition of soil and atmosphere whicu 

 wid keep this stream moving. 



What happens when we keep the soil 

 as wet, the air as moist, and the tempera- 

 ture as high in winter, when light is de- 

 fective, as we do in the height of sum- 

 mer, when light is good? We find that 

 the growth made is often of a sickly yel- 

 lowish hue, and wanting in what we call 

 "bone," indicating that some essential 

 has been wanting whilst growth was form- 

 ing. Growth made in insutficient light 

 cannot be healthy. There are, of course, 

 mauv plants, such as those used for forc- 

 ing in winter, which appear to make per- 

 fect growth in these ill-balanced condi- 

 tions, but we know that they require 

 much nursing afterwards to restore them 

 to a healthy state; indeed, a plant that 

 has been severely forced is, as a rule, ouiv 

 fit for the rubbish-heap afterwards. 



There is a marked difference between 

 the growth and behavior in winter of the 

 plants in the drier houses and those in 

 the moist houses at Kew. If a plant has 

 proved refractory in a stove, we have 

 sometimes found it worth while to try it 

 in Xo. 5, wherein the succulent plants are 

 grown, and generally the results have 

 been satisfactory. The air in this house 

 is always drier than in any other, espe- 

 cially in winter, when very little water 

 is given to the plants. 



The success of our grandfathers in the 

 cultivation of "^ants which we can scarce- 

 ly keep alive, =ucu as hard-wooded Caiie 

 ericas, pha-nocoma, aphelexis, genetyllis, 

 etc., was, I believe, largely due to the 

 care they took over the watering. This 

 was considered by far the most important 

 of the gardeners' duties; and it was by 

 ro means unusual for the head gardener 

 to attend to it himself — for all his best 

 siiecimens, at any rate. I have seen fine 

 specimens of erica killed in a week bv 

 ail overdose of water at the root. 



PHILADELPHIA, 



Christmas Trade. 



(Christmas, 1903, was in many respects 

 the most remarkable in the history of the 

 cut flower business in this city. Up to 

 noon on Wednesday, December 23, the 

 feeling among the wholesalers was de- 

 cided doubt as to the outcome. Some 

 were hopeful; some felt it would be a 

 poor Christmas; all made a gallant ef- 

 fort to keep up prices, but they let no 

 order slip. From that time on an un- 

 precedented change came. Orders poured 

 in from every side and by Thursday night 

 desirable stock of nearly all kinds was 

 hard to obtain. The growers responded 

 manfully to the call for more, sending 

 in quantities of flowers on Friday morn- 

 ing, which were eagerly taken. The av- 

 erage of quality was superior to anything 

 ever seen here, the quantity greater than 

 ever. Everything nice was marketed, the 

 left-overs being the poorer grades of tea 

 roses and other stock. 



The fluctuations in prices were start- 

 ling, especially in Beauties. Fancies were 

 offered, it is said, in quantity at $7.50 

 per dozen earlv in the week for Christ- 

 mas delivery ; .$10 was, however, the usual 

 price. Later $12 was the ruling figure 

 and later still $15 a dozen was paid, in 

 many cases with far less critical inspec- 

 tion. 



Carnations averaged higher than in the 

 jiast. The quality was very fine; fewer 

 poor blooms were never seen, the bunch- 

 ing being most conscientiously done as 

 a rule. 



JIuch of the success of this great fes- 

 tival was due to the weather, which fa- 

 vored production and shopping alike. 

 Taken as a whole a larger quantity of 

 stock was consumed than ever before and 

 more money realized, but the average re- 

 turns were "lower and business as a whole 

 hardly so satisfactory, though better than 

 generally expected. 



Since Christmas. 

 Prices fell on the day after Christmas. 

 Since then they have continued fairly 

 steady and business is excellent. Quite 

 a lot of funeral work was done, using 

 u]i some of the surplus white carnations, 

 the only color that hung at Christmas. 

 The prospects for the new year are ex- 

 cellent. 



A Fair Delinquent. 



Eugene Bernheimer had a curious ex- 

 perience lately. A young woman giving 

 references, ordered quite a lot of stock, 

 stating she had just started in the busi- 

 ness. The address given proved to be a 

 private house, where she was unknown. 

 Fortunately there was no loss to Mr. 

 Bernheimer. The woman was probably 

 a crank. 



Motto of the successful Philadelphia 

 business man: 



' ' Early to bed, 

 Early to rise. 

 Wear the blue ribbon 

 And advertise! " 

 A prosperous New Year to you all. 



Phil. 



St. Thomas, Ont. — Webster & Co. say 

 business is very good with them. 



Salvia Splexdens. — Along the coasts 

 of France and Italy this shrub grows 

 and blooms in the open, attaining a 

 height of five feet, with spikes twelve to 

 eighteen inches in length. The numerous 

 varieties which have made their appear- 

 ance in this country during recent years 

 have all been reared from seeds upon the 

 continent. 



