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HORTICULTURE 



August 17, 1907 



Acanthus longifolius 



Although the AfHUtlius family has about sixteen 

 hundred species of plants yet we can count only a few 

 that are hardy in this climate. The reason for this 

 scarcity is that most of them come from warm moist 

 climates. We arc more fortunate for gi-eenhouse plants 

 in this family. Strobilanthes, Justicia, Erauthemum, 

 Mayenia, Jacobinia, Mackaya, Thunbergia, Aphelandra, 

 and several others, are fine showy shrubs and climbers 

 which give us a wealth of their beautiful flowers. Most 

 of these plants will grow out of doors during our hot 

 summer months, but in the fall we have to get them into 

 our greenhouses for the rest of the year. 



The genus Acanthus has about twenty species which 

 are natives of Asia, Africa and Europe. There are 

 about six species in cultivation in Europe and about 

 half that number in this country. 



Acanthus longifolius grows luxuriantly in our gar- 

 den. At one time we thought this plant was not hardy 

 and used to lift it each fall from the border and put it in 

 a cold frame. About twelve years ago we had a num- 

 ber of plants and thought we would experiment with 

 them. We left half of them all winter in the border. 

 Just as the ground began to freeze we gave thetn a coat- 

 ing of dried leaves, to keep them from freezing and 

 thawing alternately during the winter. To our great 

 surprise every plant grew the following spring and they 

 have been out of door? ever since that time with just 

 the protection of a few leaves in winter. 



This species flowers very freely here as may be seen 

 from the photograph. The flowers are of a purplish 

 color and althougli they are not as showy as some other 

 perennials yet they possess a quaint charm when in 

 flower which compensates for their peculiar color. 



They are fine foliage plants and it is supposed that 

 the leaves of Acanthus spinosus furnished the patterns 

 for the decorations of tJie capitals of Corinthian col- 

 umns. Wlien the plants are in flower they attain a 

 height of from three to four feet. 



Acanthus mollis and its variety latifolius are hardy 

 with slight protection of leaves or litter in winter, but 

 thev do not flower as freelv as A. longifolius. 



Other species that might be tried further south 

 where the climatic conditions are more congenial are 

 candelabrus, hirsutus, Schottii, spinosus and its variety 

 spinosissimus. 



They love to grow in a warm sunny position with 

 plenty of light, and when given a deep, rich, light soil 

 they grow vigorously and give an abtindance of flowere. 

 They do best when planted in the spring as they get well 

 established before the winter. They are increased by 

 division in the spring or from seed. 



Roses Under Glass 



SEASONABLE CUT/nrBE 



It is said that there is no greenhouse specialty which 

 requires so much skill as the growing of roses and it is 

 just at this particttlar season that we are inclined to 

 believe this assertion. The excessive heat and the lavish 

 use of water, call for unerring judgment on the part of 

 1he grower in order to keep the plants in a healthy 

 growing condition and to avoid that rank, yellow, soft 

 growth, at once so undesirable and unpleasant to the 

 eye. Any neglect in cultivating, tying, disbudding, syr- 

 inging or ventilating at this season will be certain to 

 cause trouble, and however well we may treat the plants 

 afterwards, the ground thui lost will be difficult to 

 lecover. 



Constant cultivation is a wonderful incentive to vig- 

 orous growth, and should be practiced until the feeding 

 roots begin to approach the surface of the soil, when 

 further cultivation would Ise injurious. In soils which 

 arc deficient in calcareous matter — many rose soils are 

 -an application of air-slaked lime, sprinkled on the 

 soil previous to stirring, will help to strengthen the 

 stem and give tone to the foliage. Ventilation will re- 

 quire to be carefully attended to, and especially at night, 

 when, with sudden fluctuations in the temperature, any 

 laxity in the proper administration of air may nullify 

 all our work and efforts during the day. 



As the season advances and the nights begin to cool, 

 our heating apparatus should be thoroughly inspected 

 and if need bo. repaired, so that we can with safety 

 apply heat on short notice and, as we may soon expect 

 the outside temperature to fall below 60 degrees, when 

 firing becomes a necessity, it is advisable to be fully 

 prepared to meet just such emergencies. 



TRAINING AND DISBUDDING 



StiflP.cient attention should be given to training, so 

 that the plants may be in good shape before the first 

 crop matures. By allowing the young shoots to trail 

 all over the bench, we are inviting the eyes to break 

 weak, which is sure to encourage a luxuriant crop of 

 blind wood, and blind wood unfortunately does not add 

 to the revenue. Tying the shoots neatly to the sup- 

 ports produces symmetry, facilitates sjrringing, and it 

 also allows free access of the sun's rays to the soil and 

 insures a perfect circulation of air among the foliage. 



The work of disbudding should be attended to reg- 

 ularly and carefully, and here is where the skill or 

 knowledge of the grower is tested. There is really no 

 set rule by which one may be guided in this operation. 

 -Most ETTOwers have their own liarticular ideas on the 



