Januakv 13, 1898. 



The Weekly Florists^ Review. 



303 





Bunch of well grown Stevia. 



with surpassing affability, "if yer mind 

 ain't equal to believin' it all at once, you 

 might try believin' it in sections. I hate 

 to strain a buddin' intelleck." 



There was a general chuckle, when at- 

 tention was diverted by the greenhouse 

 cat, who was discovered sneaking over 

 the flower pots, apparently stalking Mar- 

 maduke, who, with liis head bent over 

 upon one shoulder, appeared to be sleep- 

 ing the sleep of the unjust. The cat was 

 just crouching for a spring, when Mar- 

 maduke made a sudden rush at her, 

 ejaculating "Scat!" in a hoarse falsetto. 

 Pussy rushed for the boiler pit with a 

 highly electrified tail, and the last sound 

 heard as the party broke up was Marma- 

 duke attempting to whistle "The Streets 

 of Cairo" very much off the key, and 

 with a surprising number of omitted 

 notes. 



WELL GROWN STEVIA. 



We present herewith an engraving from 

 a photograph of a bunch of stevia grown 

 by Mr. E. Buettner, Park Ridge, 111. Such 

 a bunch makes a very attractive addition 

 to a box of cut flowers and is quite differ- 

 ent from the bundle of lanky stems bear- 

 ing a few flowers at the ends only, and 

 which is so often seen. It pays to grow- 

 good stevia just as it pays to grow good 

 roses or good carnations, and manv flor- 

 ists are obliged to depend at the holidays 

 upon their stevia to give the appearance 

 of quantity to a box of flowers. 



Mr. Buettner carries over about two 

 dozen plants for stock and the)' are 

 planted in a box to economize room, but 

 they are given a light, airj- place in a cool 

 house, and are never placed under a 

 bench or in a similar unsuitable position. 

 There they are kept till April or May, 



when cuttings are taken for propagation. 

 The cuttings formed m the cool house 

 will be small and rather hard and these 

 make the best plants When rooted the 

 cuttings are potted i^o 2", -inch pots and 

 then kept in the same house as the young 

 chrvsanthemums. Later they are trans- 

 ferred to 3-inch pots and about July they 

 are shifted into 4.inch pots. 



Soon after this they are placed outside 

 in an open frame, and if freshly repotted 

 it will be wise to have sash ready to place 

 over them in case of heavy rains, to pre- 

 vent over watering. The plants remain 

 in their pots till the latter part of Septem- 

 ber when they are planted out in a bench 

 of poor soil in a cool greenhouse, but 

 where they will have plenty of light. 

 Heat and shade result in rank growth and 

 few flowers. At each repotting the 

 plants are cut back, merely pinching out 

 the tip of each shoot. Don't shear off the 

 tops if you want shapel}' sprays and 

 keep the plants outside as long as safe to 

 do so. If there is much warm weather 

 after the plants have been benched there 

 is apt to be too much growth and fewer 

 flowers. 



The last pinching is given about the 

 middle of September, or shortly before 

 the plants are taken inside. Using poor 

 soil will help materially to avoid growth 

 after the plants are housed. Place the 

 plants about twelve inches apart on the 

 bench. You must allow light between 

 the plants to secure flowers on the side 

 shoots. A night temperature of 50° is 

 about right and the plants must be kept 

 on the dry side. Everything that tends to 

 rank growth is to be avoided. The dwarf 

 form (Stevia serratifolia nana) is grown, 

 and this will grow too tall and lanky 

 unless prevented by the treatment noted. 



In bunching for market the long and 

 short stems are bunched together, the 

 shorter ones on the outside, as seen in the 

 engraving, .so as to make an attractive 

 bunch. And a bunch so arranged is a 

 v;r.iceful bouquet in itself. 



STORY OF AN EMIGRANT 

 FLORIST. 



III. 



.•\t the end of the walk with its trellis 

 roof of aristolochia, we enter the old- 

 fashioned conservatory. If it still exists 

 it would look very antiquated with its 

 ridge and furrow' roof, and numerous 

 broad leaden gutters. I do believe that we 

 could now build a first-class rose or carna- 

 tiiin house, 20x100, all complete, forwhat 

 that quantity of lead cost. There were 

 many plants in this old conservatory that 

 will never be forgotten, and when I 

 see them again or inhale their perfume it 

 carries memory back forty years, as the 

 notes of the blue bird or the piping of 

 the frogs every spring when first heard. 

 will carry you back to the days when you 

 first heard them, and the scenes witli 

 which they were associated. Besides 

 camellias, not by the hundred, but by the 

 bushel, were oranges in quantity, suffi- 

 cient to make marmalade, an old white 

 heliotrope and near it a Gloire de Dijon 

 rose, trained to the south side of the 

 house, but hidden by large camellias 

 planted in the borders. The mingling of 

 the odor of orange blo.ssoms (for there 

 were always some), heliotrope, a sweet 

 little magnolia, with the ripe fruit of the 

 citron and orange, and many other 

 contributions, made up a chaste sweetness 

 that I have never realized since. 



It was here that I first knew what a 

 chr\santhemum was. They were humble 

 flowers compared with our monsters of to- 

 day, but that was a day when with the 

 majority they were not in fashion. An- 

 other plant, now .so common with us, but 

 little grown forty years ago. was the 

 spinta or .Astilbe japonica, and pots of our 

 American Trillium grandifloruni, grown 

 just as we grow spirteas and very 

 pretty and attractive it was. In the 

 center of one of the broad borders grew a 

 large citrus, round, green and bitter. 

 Perhaps it was the shaddock. Whatever it 

 was. we boys innocently and in good faith 

 told thousands of visitors was the forbid- 

 den fruit, the same which Adam was 

 tempted to taste. Now and again I can 

 remember a sly look of skepticism in re- 

 sponse to our innocent narrative, but the 

 great majority swallowed it. I can only 

 say that whoever has tasted this great, 

 round, bitter fruit, can believe that there 

 was a good deal of coaxing as well as 

 tempting. It must have been either sugar- 

 coated or a reward offered, as our dear 

 mothers used to give us a spoonful of jam 

 after swallowing a pill to please them and 

 incidentally for our health. 



Tnis old-fashioned conservatory was at- 

 tached to the mansion, the summer resi- 

 dence of the proprietor, a very modest pile 

 of brick and stone that has many years 

 pissed away. A new owner pulled it 

 down and in a more commanding part of 

 the grounds has built an imposing pile, 

 a modern castle. This estate is now owned 



