FEBRUARY 17. 1898. 



The Weekly Florists^ Review. 



497 



growing in favor all over the country, 

 and as there have no unfavorable re- 

 ports come to my knowledge, I flatter 

 myself with the hope that it will be 

 grown as universally as Wm. Scott. 

 FRED DORNER. 



A CARNATION INTERVIEW. 



Our interviewer recently called on 

 Mr. C. W. Ward. Queens, N. Y.. 

 armed with a complete supply of in- 

 terrogation points. The following is a 

 record of the points and the answers 

 kindly given in response: 



"Do fancy carnations pay?" "Yes, 

 like everything else, if done properly, 

 and you have a large city trade that 

 has been educated to paying fair prices 

 for the newer and fancy varieties. 

 They have paid better this season for 

 the reason that the retailers have 

 caught on to the fact that a 3-inch tar- 

 nation that will keep four or five days, 

 and which costs rather more to pro- 

 duce that a good rose, is worth as 

 much as the rose, and prices which the 

 grower receives have correspondingly 

 improved. But in smaller towns, and 

 for people of moderate means, ihe 

 standard varieties that bloom profusely 

 must be the standbys. These condi- 

 tions will, however, gradually change 

 as large flowered varieties that bloom 

 more freely are disseminated and as 

 the leading florists in the smaller 

 towns educate their customers to pre- 

 fer the larger and better blooms. ' 



"If a fair question, what is the aver- 

 age price you receive for your carna- 

 tions?" "A little better than $4 per 

 100." 



"Do carnations pay at $1 per 100?" 

 "Not from my standpoint. I should ex- 



"Yes and no. By that I mean that £.11 

 grading should be done on the plant. 

 When you disbud, cut out all weak 

 growths, and all your flowers will then 

 be good enough to put into one grade, 

 and if you grow the right varieties 

 properly that grade may well be called 

 fancy." 



"What is the highest price you re- 

 ceive for blooms during the season?" 

 "$8 to $10 per 100." "And the lowest?" 

 "Generally $2, in early fall, when stems 

 are short on first crop." 



"Does soil in different sections have 

 any effect on varieties?" "Decidedly." 



"What do you consider the best 

 soil?" "A good, stiff, sandy loam, for 

 average varieties. There are two va- 

 rieties of poor soils, a ver.v stiff clay 

 and a very light, sandy one." 



"How can you improve these poor 

 soils?" "In the stiff clay soil you can 

 add sand or rotted sod or light, 

 strawy manure, and the sandy soils 

 can be improved by adding clay and 

 heavier soils. For outside it requires 

 a coat of five inches thick of clay over 

 a light soil, and ploughed in." 



"Do you believe in fertilizers?" 

 "Yes, decidedly, if used with care and 

 judiciously." 



"What do you recommend?" "Horse, 

 cow or sheep manure, rotted sod. bone 

 dust, ammonia, charcoal, common salt 

 as a top dressing, and Canada ashes 

 (the two last named should not be used 



White Cloud. 



pect at least an average of $2 per 100 

 for growing such sorts as Scott, Alas- 

 ka and McGowan, if disbudded." 



"Does it pay to disbud carnations, 

 say the ordinary varieties?" "It does 

 not pay to do anything else." 



"Does it pay to grade your flowers?" 



in the greenhouses), potash, nitrate of 

 soda, night soil, guano — all these lat- 

 ter to be diluted with water." 



"Kindly give me some of the formu- 

 las for using the above different fer- 

 tilizing agents." "We have no formu- 

 las. We watch the plants, and when 



