JUO 



The Weekly Florists^ Review. 



Ai'RiL 14, 1004. 



Vegetable Forcing. 



Southern vegetables aro doininatiua; 

 the New York and Philadelphia market.*, 

 but prime indoor stock still finds a ready 

 and profitable market. 



Chicago, April 13. — Radishes, 25 to 

 75 cents dozen bunches; rhubarb, $1.50 

 per 40-lb. box; lettuce, $2 to $6 per bar- 

 rel heads; leaf, 40 to 45 cents case; cu- 

 cumbers, 50 cents to $1 dozen. 



CUCUMBER CROPS. 



The White Spine is probably the most 

 productive of any strain of cucumbers 

 grown under glass. Since cucumbers are 

 quite dependent upon light, the largest 

 yields occur in the spring or summer, 

 when the sun is high, the days longer 

 and the light more intense. In one 

 house containing 460 plants set out 

 April 1, there were picked' between 

 May 1 and August 25, 30,000 cucumbers, 

 or an average of about sisty-five to a 

 plant, which sold for 3 cents each. The 

 plants were in good condition and bear- 

 ing prolifieally at the last named date. 

 Another house containing 986 vines 

 yielded from May to October 47,094 

 salable cucumbers, or an average of 

 forty-seven to a plant. A larger yield 

 would undoubtedly have been obtained 

 in this house if fewer vines had been 

 planted. A crop started June 19 and 

 running to September gave an average 

 of eighty-eight cucumbers per plant. 

 One grower maintains that his spring 

 and summer crop usually averages about 

 ninety to a plant. In a house contain- 

 ing 200 plants 31,060 cucumbers were 

 produced between June 1 and July 15, 

 or an average of 155 cucumbers per 

 plant. They brought from 2 to 7 cents 

 each. W. W. Eawson. who plants cucum- 

 bers after two or three crops of winter 

 lettuce, is said to produce 600,000 cu- 

 cumbers per year. He picks about 2,000 

 per day in ISIareh, 4,000 in April, 10,000 

 in May and 15,000 in June. The largest 

 picking he records is 50,000 in one day. 

 It will be noticed that these records are 

 all for spring and summer crops. The 

 yield for fall and winter crops is much 

 smaller. A fall and winter crop that 

 will average twenty-five to fifty cucum- 

 bers per plant is a desirable one. The 

 yield of individual plants is sometimes 

 quite remarkable. In one instance 149 

 No. 1 cucumbers were picked from one 

 plant. In another instance over 200 

 were picked from a single plant, twenty- 

 one of which were picked on three con- 

 secutive days. The largest amount of 

 fruit occurring in a single axil of which 

 we have a record is six. Outdoor encum- 

 bers for pickles are noted as great pro- 

 ducers. The largest and best crop we 

 saw last summer gave a yield of 102,700 

 pickle cucumbers fronv three acres as a 

 result of two pickings during one week. 

 — Geo. E. Stone, in bulletin of Hatch 

 Experiment Station. 



RHUBARB. 



The forcing season for this article is 

 about over, but the present is a good 

 time to look after stock for another sea- 

 son. VCo have tried planting out the old, 

 forced roots but find that they take so 

 long to regain strength that it is cheaper 

 to use fresh roots. The stronger these 



roots are the better article they will 

 produce, so that the procuring of tlin 

 jnoper class of stock is more than half 

 the battle. Large chimps are never de- 

 sirable for forcing purposes, as when 

 they get too large the product is weak- 

 er, especially in the center of the clump, 

 even outdoors when they are grown under 

 natural conditions. The reason of this 

 is easily observable, as the outside parts 

 of the clump have freedom to send out 

 its roots and seek nourishment, when the 

 central crowns are hemmed in all around, 

 hence the necessity of dividing when the 

 clumps become too large. The size of 

 the divisions may best be regulated by 

 the space at command; if plenty of 

 ground is at elisposal I would consider it 

 best to plant single crowns. These, if 

 well cared for, will make' strong plants 

 for lifting to force in three years. If 

 room is limited the plants could consist 

 of two or three crowns, but should not 

 be forced the first winter after trans- 

 planting. Two years' growth will make 

 the plants much more profitable for 

 torcing purposes. 



A mistake is often made in planting 

 the crowns too deep. They are deep 

 rooters anyway and will soon find their 

 way down, and where the soil is shallow 

 should they reach the subsoil they are not 

 only unable to procure food for the plant 

 but are apt to rot. The crowns are bet- 

 ter left even with the surface. All 

 growth made by the plants the first sea- 

 son should be left so as to allow the 

 plant to gain strength. The pulling of 

 the stalks would have a weakening influ- 

 ence. The second year some of it might 

 be pulled, if desired, but the less the 

 better and under no circumstances 

 should the plants be severely cut down. 

 Another means of propagation is by 

 seeds. Some prefer this method rather 

 than division, claiming that a stronger, 

 more vigorous plant can be procured. 

 It takes three years from the time of 

 sowing the seeds to procure extra strong 

 plants. We have forced it the seconrl 

 year but the results were not so satisfac- 

 tory as when three-year-old plants were 

 used. The seed should be sown in spring 

 after the ground has become warm, say 

 at the end of April or beginning of 

 May. Sow thinly in rows two feet 

 apart and thin out to about nine inches 

 in the rows after the plants are well up. 

 Transplant the following season, leav- 

 ing them three feet apart each way and 

 keep well cultivated. Rhubarb requires 

 a good, rich soil aud will amply repay 

 for liberal manuring. Cold, damp situ- 

 ations should be avoided. 



Of the several varieties in cultivation 

 we prefer Victoria. It is a good, free 

 grower, well flavored, crisp and highly 

 colored, retaining good color even when 

 forced. W. S. Ckoydon. 



Seed Trade News, 



AMERICAN SEED TRADE ASSOOATION. 



Pres., S. F. WlUard. Wethersfleld. Conn.; First 

 Vlce-Pres., J. Chas. McCullough. Cincinnati, O.; 

 Sec'y and Treas.. C. E. Kendel, Cleveland, O. 

 The'23d annnal meeting will be held at St. Louis, 

 Mo., June, law. 



The continued backwardness of spring 

 i;-. gettiug serious. 



The onion set grower who knows the 

 importance of early seeding is wondering 

 where he will land. 



Snow fell at Chicago April 9. 



The week shows a little improvement 

 over last week for counter trade, but it 

 is far from what it should be. 



The market gardener is getting un- 

 easy. If he cannot plow soon he will 

 have to start building greenhouses. 



Newspaper reports are to the effect 

 that the cantaloupe fields near Greeley, 

 Colo., will approximate 2,000 acres this 

 season. 



Onion sets are cleaned up; orders dur- 

 ing the week have had to be refused from 

 lack of stock. The retail houses are .just 

 holding enough for counter trade. 



August Leibius, aged 75 years, died 

 at Toledo, April 3. For some years he 

 managed the branch of the Henry Phil- 

 lips Seed and Implement Co., at Arch- 

 bold, O. 



Seed dealers at Boston report a very 

 late counter trade season, but for the 

 past two weeks they have been rushed to 

 their limit. Frost is at last out of the 

 ground and plowing and seed sowing in 

 full swing. 



Bean contracting is slow work. The 

 garden varieties are thought to be less 

 hardy than the white navy bean and if 

 the farmer cannot get the variety he 

 wants, it is hard to get him to take the 

 variety the seedsman wants to give him. 



Progress in making arrangements with 

 farmers who grow seeds on contract is 

 nearly at a standstill. The outlook for 

 the good start which they usually de- 

 pend on for success in seed growing is 

 so poor that some of the best growers are 

 afraid to take hold. 



At points in the vicinity of Chicago 

 and those of the same latitude east and 

 west the seedsman is likely to lose the 

 sale of at least one sowing of spinach, 

 radish and similar early crops. The 

 gardener will not be able to plant any- 

 thing this year until the usual time for 

 a second sowing is at hanel. 



FRSSH 



yeas 0tems 



rresh Importation. 

 Per 10 lbs., $1.25 ; per 25 lbs., $2.50; 

 per 100 lbs., $8.00. 



Tobacco Stems, per bale, $1.50 



W. C. BEGKERT, Allegheny, Pa. 



Mention The Review when you write. 



Waoted-japan Lilies 



OF AI.I< KINDS. 



State Quantity, Sizes and Price. 



JAMES VICK'S SONS, 



BOCHESTEB, K. T. 



Mention The Review when yon write. 



SPECIAI.TIES IN 



VEGETABLE AND FLOWER SEEDS. 



Mignonette— New Yorfe Market pkt., 60c 



Caulltlowei^Pirst and Best " Me 



Tomato— Sterling Castle ' -oc 



Radish— Carmine Forcing U5c 



WEEBER & DON, Seed Merchants, 



114 Chambers St., NEW YORK CITY 



