270 



The Weekly Florists^ Review. 



jAXiAia (i. 1898. 



from London. So the prospects are that 

 these flowers will be extensively used in 

 the "city by the sea" anion, the swell 

 set for their personal adornment. 



Its brilliant scarlet black-bossed 

 flowers will certainh- attract the attention 

 of everyone in town, if pnt to this use. as 

 it is one of the brightest of leguminous 

 plants and probably the most striking 

 when grown to perfection. It is decided- 

 ly a matter of regret that a ])lant possess- 

 ing such distinct beauty should be so 

 rarely seen, and then in the majority of 

 cases in poor condition. I attribute this 

 to the delicate and CKtremely sensitive 

 roots. The slightest check the\' may get 

 from draughts or non-attendance to their 

 necessary requirements, is sometimes 

 alone sufficient to cause their premature 

 demise. 



The plan to follow is to sow the seed 

 where j-on anticipate the plant should 

 have permanent quarters, either in pots 

 or benches. Sow the seed in .soil com- 

 posed of two parts fibrous loam, the 

 other one comprising leaf mould, manure 

 and sand, drain thoroughly with liroken 

 brick, charcoal or any porous material at 

 hand. One of the mo.st satisfactory 

 ways of growing it, is to graft it on its less 

 fastidious congener Clianthus puniceus. 

 This is a simple operation and when 

 grown under these conditions it is en- 

 abled to resist the attacks of mildew and 

 insects to w-hich it is subject. 



For grafting .select a vigorous young 

 plant on which the bark is still fresh, 

 cut off the top to within five inches of 

 the soil and employ the regular wedge 

 method. For the scion take the top of a 

 healthy young plant, or the healthiest 

 you have at the time, and make it the 

 shape of a w'edge, then split the stock 

 and insert the graft, paying attention 

 that bark of both scion and stock unites, 

 tie it securely and place it in a close 



Dard's. 

 NEW YORK STORES AT CHRISTMAS. 



warm house for about fifteen days, then 

 it can be hardened by degrees and put in 

 the temperature of an ordinary green- 

 house, where it can be given light and 

 sun. When perfectly united they can 

 be potted or planted in a bench or which 

 ever the occasion may require, a.? the 

 roots of C. puniceus are not .so suscepti- 

 ble to being disturbed as those of its 

 more delicate relative. 



F. L. ATKINS. 

 Short Hills, N. J. 



CARNATION NOTES. 



Feeding. 



Plants can only grow and make their 

 cultivation remunerative, when they are 

 supplied with sufficient and proper nour- 

 ishment. Now what is the right kind of 

 nourishment ? Here we encounter a very 

 important matter, in which the majority 

 of carnation growers are most deficient 

 in practical knowledge, and this is agri- 

 cultural chemistry. I am no more a 

 chemist than the next one, all my 

 knowledge being ba.sed upon personal 

 experience, and what I hear and read 

 from men that are chemists; and there 

 we meet often with conflicting opinions. 

 A plant should receive nourishment just 

 "what" and "when" it requires it. An 



over abundance at one time, and starva- 

 tion at another surely cannot be condu- 

 cive to health; and again, when the food 

 given is raw and indigestible, or when 

 the compound of the required ingredients 

 is not of proportionate qualities. We 

 know altogether too little in regard to 

 how plants grow, what they need in order 

 to build up their structure, to what e.x- 

 tent these elements are present in the soil 

 we use; we work in the dark; all is ex- 

 periment. 



As a natural consequence of our ignor- 

 ance and the desire to make as few mis- 

 takes as possible, we hold on to the 

 stable manure, which is often a very un- 

 reliable article, but we have the assur- 

 ance that though it is not of the ex- 

 pected quality it will do no harm. At any 

 rate we do best to make the .stable n a- 

 nure the 'basis in the preparation of a com- 

 pound food and add whatever we think 

 the manure may be deficient in. I speak 



now of feeding as required at the present 

 stage of cultivation, and not of preparing 

 the soil, and this can only be done in two 

 ways: in applying a mulch of nutritious 

 material, which at this time when the 

 plants about cover all the space allotted 

 them is rather a tedious job, and also- 

 feeding with liquid manure. 



A mulch should consist of well rotted 

 stable manure to which some hen manure 

 may be added, and a liberal sprinkling; 

 of bone meal, horn shavings, and wood 

 ashes. Mix this with about one-fourth 

 of soil and la)' it on about one and one- 

 half inches deep. Feeding with liquid 

 manure is more easil}' applied, and can 

 be given whenever the plants are in need 

 of nourishment. In fact, we should not 

 wait for any signs in the appearance of 

 the plants, showing a want of nourish- 

 ment, but should give it in regular ra- 

 tions, say once a week. And if it could 

 be so arranged that the quantity of liq- 

 uid given weekly could be mixed with 

 the water that is given in the same period, 

 the best results would be obtained. In 

 giving weekly rations one nmst be well 

 informed as to the strength of the liquid, 

 and if the plants are in a condition to as- 

 similate that quantity. It would hardly be 

 satisfactory to giveaninsufficient quantity 

 wiien with niore the results would be 

 better. But there is a limit, and over- 

 feeding may prove disastrous. So to be 

 on the safe side it is best to give liquid 

 manure in a rather weakened, diluted 

 condition, but give it often. 



The three principal elements we should 

 aim to give, or rather of what the food 

 should consist in its principal parts are: 

 nitrogen, phosphoric acid and potash. 

 There are other ingredients that the plants 

 will take up from the soil in minor 

 quantity, but these are secondary and are 

 mostly supplied in sufficient quantity with 

 the material that furnishes the principal 



