498 



HORTICULTURE 



April 3, 1909 



FOR THE FINEST GRADES OF CUT FLOWERS ALL THE 

 TIME, INCLUDING EASTER 



SEND TO 



Moore, Hentz & Nash 



Wholesale Commission Florists 



55 and 57 West 26th Street 



TELEPHONE No. 7S6 HADISON SQ. 



New York 



FRANK L. MOORE, Chatham, N. J. HENRY HENTZ, JR., Madison, N. J. JON'N NASH, New York. 



has some very interesting notes on the 

 effects of fertilizer on stiffness of stem, 

 effect of varjing amounts of nitrogen, 

 tlie earliness, different time of setting 

 carnations, continuous cropping witli- 

 out changing soil, and bursting of car- 

 nations due to location on bench. At 

 the present time investigations are be- 

 ing carried on to determine effect of 

 cutting selection on vigor of plant and 

 development of color types from seed. 

 A house 20x50 is being devoted to this 

 work. 



In Indiana the results of the most 

 important work were given in Bulletin 

 59 on "Bacteriosis of CarnationiS." This 

 disease was considered to be due to 

 bacteria but is now known to be caused 

 by punctures of insects and is called 

 Stigmonose. A number of articles also 

 appeared in trade journals at various 

 times. No work is now being done 

 due to lack of greenhouses. 



At Illinois the past year was devoted 

 to the repression of thrips on carna- 

 tions, and during the season from Oc- 

 tober, 3907, to June 15, 1908, over 68,000 

 buds were examined; most of the work 

 was done with tobacco compounds. 

 The results of the work have not been 

 published yet. 



During the present year two houses, 

 105x28 feet, are being devoted to an ex- 

 periment with carnations, testing the 

 value of chemical fertilizers as supple- 

 menting stable manures. This experi- 

 ment comprises thirty combinations of 

 fertilizers, which are repeated with 

 four different varieties in order to 

 check results: 3200 plants are used in 

 the experiment. The fertilizers used are 

 dried blood, sodium nitrate, ammo- 

 nium sulphate for nitrogen, acid phos- 

 phate, ground rock and bone meal for 

 l.hosphorvs, potassium sulphate, wood 

 ashes and kainit for potassium and 

 lime. Several years will be required to 

 complete the work. 



The only work done by Nebraska is 

 on the Imd-rot of carnation and its ac- 

 companying mite. The results of this 

 work were published as Bulletin 

 No. 103. 



Ten stations have not been heard 

 from, and as most of them are in re- 

 gions unfavorable to carnation grow- 

 ing, have probably done no work along 

 this line. 



A study of the report will show that 

 the real work in floriculture at the sta- 

 tions is in its infancy, and that the 

 work along the line of carnations is 

 .iust beginning. The time is not far 

 distant when each station will be de- 

 voting a certain amount of time to it. 



CARNATIONS UP TO DATE. 



A p.Tper read liefaro the Morris County 

 (Jardeners' and I<^lorists' Societv, Marcti 

 10, 1909, by Louis J. Renter, Wes- 

 terly, R. I. 



Carnation culture has already been 

 discussed times without number, and 

 my observations have led me to con- 

 clude that each grower has to work out 

 for himself the proper treatment which 

 is required to correspond with the lo- 

 cal conditions as they exist. Therefore 

 it is not my intention to go into any 

 lengthy talk on the culture of carna- 

 tions. 



It is possible to lay down certain 

 fundamental principles for the begin- 

 ner, hut these may serve only as a 

 starter and a guide. The resultant suc- 

 cess must depend on his own powers 

 to observe, and his ability to distin- 

 guish good effects from bad. 



Carnations may be seen growing un- 

 der certain widely differing conditions, 

 such as Enchantress, for instance, 

 growing with a night temperature of 

 52 deg. and a day temperature of 62 to 

 65 deg. Then, on the other hand, I 

 have seen very excellent Enchantress 

 growing with a night temperature of 

 48 deg. and a day temperature of 70 

 deg. The latter seems to me to be a 

 case of unusual treatment, but where 

 is the room for criticism when the re- 

 sults are satisfactory? 



Again we come to the fact that one 

 grower holds his carnations on what 

 we would call decidedly the dry side, 

 and possibly the next day visit another 

 where the soil in the beds is exactly 

 the reverse, and still both have equally 

 good crops. We are constantly finding 

 things to puzzle us in the way of cul- 

 ture and, for that reason, it would seem 

 that explicit cultural directions are 

 worth nothing more than a hint and a 

 guide. 



The subject of concrete benches is at 

 this time receiving considerable atten- 

 tion. From an economical point of 

 view these benches have an advantage 

 over those constructed of wood, but 

 the question which arises in my mind 

 is whether raised benches are superior 

 to solid beds with good drainage? 

 Here we come again to the same con- 

 clusion: Be guided by your own ex- 

 perience. If no better stock can be 

 grown on the raised benches, then it is 

 much cheaper to use solid beds. My 

 experience has led me to favor the 

 solid beds. 



At the present time considerable ex- 

 perimenting is being done in the way 

 of building these concrete benches. 



Some are moulded entire, with bot- 

 toms, sides, stringers and supports 

 practically in one piece. Others use 

 movable slabs for the bottom, and 

 these can be made at odd times during 

 the winter, ready for the summer rush 

 of repairing and rebuilding. One point 

 which strikes me as important is that 

 the slabs be made as thin as possible 

 and still be strong enough to carry the 

 load. It is also important that the 

 concrete be as porous as possible. The 

 slab about 8 inches wide seems to be 

 better than one 12 inches or more. By 

 using narrow pieces, the drainage is 

 made better, and they should be laid 

 at least an inch apart. What I have 

 stated about these benches is not taken 

 from personal experience, but from 

 what I have seen at other establish- 

 ments which I have visited. Where 

 raised benches are used, I believe that 

 the concrete constructions will prove 

 to be a good thing, and any ingenious 

 man should be able to work out a 

 cheap and satisfactory way for con- 

 structing the same. 



There is one subject which has caused 

 many of us some trouble this year, and 

 I would say a few words about that 

 now. My talks with numerous florists 

 since fall, not only growers but store 

 keepers and commission men, have 

 brought out the complaint that the 

 flowers of several of our best varieties 

 are not keeping well. It is true that 

 this season has given us bad weather 

 to contend with, but still we have va- 

 rieties which practically never give us 

 cause for complaint. Growing condi- 

 tions, no doubt, may cause this 

 trouble to a certain extent, but we are 

 nevertheless sure that the trouble can- 

 not be entirely avoided, even if great 

 care is taken in ventilating, watering 

 and feeding. What we must do, how- 

 ever, is t6 watch the new varieties 

 carefully and steer clear of the poor 

 keepers. Such varieties get the whole- 

 sale grower into trouble with the re- 

 tailers, and the retailer with his cus- 

 tomers, and the ultimate result is to 

 hurt the sale of the carnation. 



The numerous reports in the trade 

 papers have covered very thoroughly 

 the many new varieties which have 

 been shown this season, but a few 

 words further may not be out of place 

 at this time. It is not my intention 

 to speak of every new variety which 

 has been shown. There are too many 

 for me to attempt that, but I will sim- 

 ply say a few words about several 

 which have made an impression on me 

 while at the Indianapolis meeting of 



