278 



The Weekly Florists' Review* 



July 16, 1903. 



the buds off until vigorous growth com- 

 mences 



What varieties to plant first is also 

 nn important question. There is not a 

 real demand for carnations until 

 the asters are gone, which means late 

 September or October, and bj that time 

 ;m to be cutting some blooms. 

 Some varieties will come into bloom by 

 that time if the3 are planted by August 

 20, but sonic ol hers need to be planted 

 much earlier. Mrs. Lawson will give 

 longer stems when planted very early. 

 White Cloud and Lorna will come in by 

 that time if planted early, while Queen 

 Louise and Fhua Hill come into bloom 

 quickly. Dorothj does no1 take near 

 as long as Ethel Crocker and Crane comes 

 into good shape quicker than America or 

 Estelle. Mrs. P. Palmer takes a little 

 longer, too, to round into form, but 

 Christmas will usually see it in perfect 

 condition. However, it you get you] 

 plants established cm Man benches in 

 good time you can regulate your crops 

 easily by pinching back or letting them 

 come, as the case may be, and so 1 would 

 advise getting in all your plants early, 

 and the late bloomers first. 



A. F. J. Baur. 



GIGANTIC BAY TREES. 



The accompanying illustrations show 

 what are probably the largest bay trees 

 in this country. They were imported by 

 Siebrecht & Son, New York. Thej sold 

 three pairs of the globular shape, two 

 pairs of the standard form and ten pairs 

 of the pyramid form. The illustrations 

 give a very inadequate idea of the size 

 of the specimens except by comparison. 

 The Messrs. Siebrecht appear in the il- 

 lustrations and serve to show the relative 

 height of the trees. 



EASTER LILIES FROM SEED. 



In his pamphlet on growing Easter 

 lilies from seed. George W. Oliver says 

 that there exi-sis i widespread belief 

 that in raising plants from seed a long 



time elapses before they come into 

 bloom, and it is urged against the seed 

 method that a certain percentage of the 

 plants in a batch arc late coming into 

 flower. It should be remembered, how- 

 ever, that this is more or less the ease 

 with all kinds of plants where the meth- 

 od of vegetative reproduction is sud- 

 denly changed to that of reproduction 

 from seed. In all cases this irregularity 

 of the blooming period lasts only for a 

 time. But, even were there no possibil- 

 ities of fixing types Hem seminal repro- 

 duction, the supposition that this method 

 of propagation is a drawback because of 

 late bloomers is erroneous. This point 

 has been raised against the method 

 chiefly because it has never been tried 

 systematically. A batch has been raised 

 giving only about 75 per cent of bulbs 

 thai can be depended upon to produce 

 plants that will open their flowers with- 

 in, say. a period of ten days; but even 

 so, with the gain of increased vigor and 

 the saving of time required in the pro- 

 duction of a marketable bulb, it will pay 



are discarded while in the mowing stac.r 



buds ar bar- -ted. 

 no necessity for so 

 The early bloomers 

 from those which 1 

 accordingly. There 

 healthy bulbs a.1 \ 

 bloom. Furthei mori 

 tion of seed parcii 



lot.' certainty of fixing types which will 

 be satisfactory in every way. 



Nearly every lily has been propagated 

 asexually up to the present time, and 

 the system is. to a certain extent, an- 

 swerable for the wretched condition of 

 I he crops, which, even with intelligent 

 care in our greenhouses, show from 40 

 to 60 per cent, of diseased plants. Most 

 growers would greatly prefer to have 



Large Bay Trees Exhibited by Siebrecht & Son. 



only 25 per cent of late bloomers in a 

 batch of healthy bulbs from seed than 

 that the present conditions affecting the 

 Bermuda and Japan bulbs should con- 

 tinue. 



Emasculating and Pollinating. 



To raise seedlings of any desired va- 

 riety of l.ilium longillorum which will 

 reproduce as nearly as possible the same 

 characters possessed by the parents, it 

 is necessary to take precautions against 

 the possibility of pollen from less desira- 

 ble forms being deposited upon the stig- 

 mas of the Mowers selected to bear seed. 

 In the flower of the Easter lily the an- 

 thers reach maturity a little in advance 

 of the period when the stigma is in a 

 receptive condition. The early ripening 

 of the pollen and the large size of the 

 anthers make it easy to remove the sta- 

 mens at quite an early stage in the life 

 of the flower. 



Emasculation can l>e performed with 

 a certain degree of safety after the peri- 

 anth segments expand, but. it is accom- 

 plished 'with greater certainty while the 

 flower is in the bud stage. When the 

 operation is performed early it seems to 

 divert to the pistil the substance which 

 otherwise would be utilized in the de- 

 velopment of the stamens. Thus, if the 

 stamens are allowed to remain and pol- 

 linate the same flower with its own pol- 

 len, or that from the flower of another 

 individual, the resulting capsule of seed 

 is smaller than that borne by an arti- 

 liciallv pollinated flower which had pre- 

 viously been emasculated. 



To remove the stamens at an early 

 stage it is necessary to cut off one or 

 two divisions of the perianth for at least 

 one-third of their length. The stamens, 

 being very large, are then easily removed 

 with the'aid of a pair of forceps. The 

 condition of the stigma most favorable 

 for the reception of the pollen is indi- 

 cated by its having acquired full size 

 and by its color changing from a green- 

 ish wiiite to creamy white. This period 

 occurs just before the surface of the 

 stigma is copiously covered with a viscid 

 secretion. Before the secretion appears 

 the pollen takes immediate effect. Fe- 

 cundation, when successful, is indicated 

 by the rapid withering of the perianth; 

 also by the ovary, which, in a few clays, 

 will assume a vertical position instead 

 of remaining horizontal. 



It is of importance that the actual 

 work of applying pollen from the an- 

 thers of one flower to the stigma of an- 

 other is performed during the early part 

 of the day. choosing a time when the 

 sun is likely to be unobscured for sev- 

 eral hours. ' The air should also be dry 

 and warm. It is not necessary to use 

 a brush in applying the pollen. With a 

 pair of forceps an anther may be re- 

 moved by severing a filament at. about 

 half an inch below the point of attach- 

 ment. The pollen grains on a single 

 anther are sufficient to cover thorough- 

 ly the surface of the stigma. While held 

 by the forceps the anther should be 

 riililicil against the stigma until the lat- 

 ter is covered with the pollen grains. 

 This condition is easily observed by the 

 bright yellow color and copious supply 

 of pollen. 



The pollinated flower should not be 

 covered with paper bags. These, as a 

 rule, serve well with other kinds of 

 (lowers where artificial pollination is re- 

 sorted to in keeping out insects and pre- 

 venting pollen being brought by other 

 agencies, but in the flowers of lilium 

 they are usually hurtful, because the 

 atmosphere surrounding the stigma is 



