1044 



The Weekly Florists" Review, 



Al'ltlL 7. 1904. 



the ground in tlie spring, but wouM 

 much rather have it put on in the fall 

 or early winter. The strength will then 

 be washed into the soil by the winter 

 rains, and I think there will be les-. 

 danger of stem-rot. I don't care to have 

 the field soil too rich. A. F. J. Baur. 



CYCAS REVOLUTA IN BLOOM. 



The cyeads are a singular class of 

 plants in" many respects, being considered 

 by some authorities as a sort of con- 

 necting link between the conifers and 

 the palms, an opinion that seems to be 

 borne out to some extent by the fact 

 that their stems contain both a resinous 

 sap and a farinaceous pith, being rather 

 a strange combination to bo found in 

 the same plant. 



The flowers of t'yeas r<>V(duhi arc uni- 

 -sp.xual. the two sexes being found in 

 •different plants and being entirely dis- 

 tinct from each other in the manner of 

 flowering. The specimen we illustrate is 

 one that has been photographed in a 

 Californian garden, and is a male jdant 

 of considerable age, the sex being iii- 

 iJicated by the large cone-like inflores- 

 cence that n\av be seen growing ■ from 

 the center of the crown of the plant. 



This cone is formed of scales in much 

 tlie same manner as a large pine cone, 

 and produces the anthers of the flowers 

 from the under side of these scales. 



The female cyeas, when flowering, 

 throws up a crown of short, woolly, al- 

 tered leaves, on the edges of which are 

 produced the seeds, the latter bearing 

 some resemblance to horse i-hestnuts with- 

 out their shells. The inflorescence of the 

 female cyeas is one of the most singular 

 Trith which I am acquainted, and the 

 flowering of such a plant is always an 

 event of some interest to those not fa- 

 miliar with the vagaries of nature as 

 shown in this class of plants. 



But while the flowering of either a 

 ■male or female cyeas is a matter of 

 "botanical interest, it is not viewed with 



AN ENGLISH GROWERS' NOTES. 



There arc lew English growers of the 

 chrysanthemum who arc more widely 

 known than W. Wells, lie has spent a 

 long lifetime in the business and has a 

 minute knowledge of all its departments. 

 In recent years he has liaiulled what is 

 known as the Wcllsl'oikett sets of nov- 

 cllies, which have included some of the 

 best sorts introduced to the American 

 trade. Among last year's set may be 

 mentioned William nuckham. It may 

 also be noted that in the exhibit of 

 twenty-live blooms which captvired the 

 sweepstnkcs cup at the Xew York show 

 last fall, thirteen of the twenty-five va- 

 rieties were introiluced and distributed 

 by ^[r. Wells. At this show he also 

 staged an exhibit of blooms sent all the 

 way from England, arriving in very good 

 shape'. 



Several years ago Jlr. Wells came o\i( 

 with a treatise entitled "Culture of tlu- 

 t'hiysanthemiun." This ran through two 

 editions within a very short time and he 

 is now out with the third edition, re 

 vi.sed. enlarged and lirought down to date. 

 He covers the entire subject all the way 

 from the introduction of the chrysan- 

 themum from China in 1704 to the nov- 

 elties exhibited at tlie PZnglish and Amer- 

 ican exhibitions in 190.1. He gives 

 cultural instructions and also devotes 

 chapters to the insect pests and diseases 

 with wliich the grower has to contend. 

 One chapter is devoted to a review of the 

 progress of the chrysanthemum in Amer- 

 ica, introduced with the statement that 

 ho believes that few English growers 

 realize '1110 popularity of the chrysanthe- 

 mum in the United States. He comments 

 on the fact that the names of Mr. Duck- 

 ham and ]\Ir. Herrington have been more 

 frequently mentioned in recent years than 

 those of anv other growers in this coun- 

 try. 



Many differences are jiointed out be- 

 tween the cultural methods necessary in 



A Male Plant of Cyeas Revoluta in Bloom. 



entire equanimity by the experienced cul- 

 tivator, from the fact that he knows 

 that such an event is likely to prevent 

 the production of a new crown of leaves 

 on his specimen for that season at least, 

 and sometimes results in the plant tak- 

 ing a rest for two years. 



W. H. Taplix. 



Gruxdt Center, Ia. — Theo. Souers is 

 adding to his carnation house, making it 

 16x587 He has a house 20x50 in roses. 



the United States and Great Britain, but 

 the following hints, under the heading 

 ■'.Another Little Sermon" are worth re- 

 nembering: 



I have given advice on wbat to avoid, and 

 it raa.v be appropriate to empliasize several 

 things it is essential to remember. Therefore 

 1 have Jotted down the following hints: 



Talie your cuttings from healthy, unforced 

 plants. 



See that your pots, if new, are soaked well 

 ill water l>efore yon pot: If old. that they are 

 well washed and dry before you begin, or you 

 win lose a mass of tibry roi>ts when the plants 



eorae to bo turned out of these pots from the 

 small riH.ts stU-klug to the sides. 



llenieinber that the more roots you have to 

 your phiiit tile better It will be. To secure 

 abuiulaiici- of riHits put up gradually from 

 small lit fiill-sl/,ed pots, by various sizes. Every 

 lime Uic r(K>t reaches tbe side of the pot It 

 lii-aiielies 1111(1 runs around. When this is ef- 

 fected It is time for a further shift. 



Keep i-uttlugs close, either covered with a 

 ghiss or shut up In a ease. This maintains 

 Ibe moisture all around the cutting and pre- 

 vents eviUKiratloii of the juices of the cutting, 

 whieh would otherwise wither and die. 



Use long, clean labels, upon which place 

 name, date, number, etc., leaving room for fur- 

 ther remarks during the summer. 



Keep all your dates for future guidance. 



Use preventives against disease at Intervals, 

 rather rliiin delay till appearance of malady. 



iieuiember that certain sorts, as Madame Car- 

 uot, require unemiched soil for lirst growth. 



When receiving new plants from the nursery- 

 men It Is best to keep them close for two or 

 three days. In ease they have been taken from 

 a warm house. 



.\lways be punctual as regards the time an- 

 nounced for the completion of the staging of 

 y^mr flowers at shows ready for the .judges. .\ 

 rule in vogue at Hull is to ring a bell fifteen 

 minutes before the judging, and an, announce- 

 ment is made that onl.v a quarter of an hour 

 will be allowed. .\t the stroke of the clock 

 the swii'pers cxunmence at one end and every 

 one Is cleared out. 



' ' The Culture of the Chrysanthemum ' ' 

 is worth reading by every grower. It 

 is sent post free on receipt of 36 cents 

 by "W. Wells & Co., Earlswood, Eedhill, 

 Surrey, England. 



THE DATE OF EASTER. 



One of our exchanges has published 

 the following authoritative if somewhat 

 technical statement as to the date of 

 Eastei' : 



There were centuries of controversy over the 

 proper time for the celebration of Easter. It 

 was lu the second century that the dispute 

 arose between the eastern aud western churches. 



The great mass of eastern Christians cele- • 

 brated Easter on the 14th day of the first 

 .lewish month or moon, considering it to be 

 equivalent to the Jewish Passover. The western 

 churches celebrated it on the Sunday after the 

 14th day, holding that it was the eommemora- 

 tlou of the resurrection of Jesus, 



The council of Nicea decided in 325 in favor 

 of the western usage, branding the eastern 

 with the name of "quartodeeiman" heresy, but 

 this decision only settled the point that IJaster 

 was to be held, not on a certain day of the 

 month or moon, but on a Sunday. 



It was not until 1582 that Easter was def- 

 initely fixed. It was debated at tbe time of 

 the introduction of the Gregorian calendar 

 whether Easter should continue to be movable 

 or a fixed Sunday after the 21st of March be 

 adopted. Ancient usage prevailed. 



It is not the actual moon of the astronomers, 

 nor even the mean moon of the astronomers, 

 that regulates the time of Easter, but an al- 

 together Imagluarj' moon, whose periods are so 

 contrived that tbe calendar new moon follows 

 the real new moon sometimes by two or three 

 days. 



The effect is that the 14th of the calendar 

 moon, which had from the time of Moses been 

 considered "full moon" for ecclesiastical pur- 

 poses, falls generally on the 15th or 16th of 

 the real moon. 



With this explanation, then, that by "full 

 moon" is meant the 14th da.v of tbe calendar 

 moon, the rule is that Easter day is always 

 the first Sunday after the paschal full m<x»n, 

 which happens upon or next after the 21st 

 of March, the beginning of the ecclesiastical 

 year. If the full moon happens upon a .Sun- 

 day Easter day is the Sunda.v after. 



One object in arranging the calendar moon 

 was that Easter might never fall on the same 

 day as the Jewish Passover. The.v did occur 

 together, however, in 1805. 1S25 and 1903. and 

 will occur together in 1923. 1927 and 1081. 



The Jewish Passover usually occurs In the 

 week before Easter and never before tbe 26th 

 day of March or after the 2oth of April. The 

 Christian festival is never before the 22nd 

 of March or after the 25th of April. 



In 1781 and 1818 Easter fell on the 22d of 

 March, but this will not happen In any year 

 of the twentieth century. The latest Easter 

 in this century will be In 1943, on the 25th 

 of April. 



ELECTRIC HEAT. 



Would it be practicable to use iron 

 wire instead of pipe for heating a green- 

 house, running electricity over the wire 

 instead of steam through the pipes? 

 This is the way street cars are heated. 

 When you force more electricity over an 

 iron wire than it should carry it begins 

 to heat at once. If the greenhouses are 



