Max 21. I'jo;:. 



The Weekly Florists' Review. 



1083 



The Haines Flower Store at Atlantic City, N. J., at EasUr. Photo by " Sporting Times," New York. 



level of the lowest part of tlie heating 

 coils, regardless of where the return main 

 connections are made to the boiler. If 

 he has a cross connecting main, connect- 

 ing the several return pipes of the coils 

 into one common main, keep water line 

 of boiler six inches below this connecting 

 main. Henry W. Gibbons. 



Miami, Fla. 



ROSES. 



Seasonable Hints. 



With our planting plans already per- 

 fected, young stock, soil, etc., in projier 

 condition, the first object should be *n 

 find a market for the old stock. If 

 these can be disposed of at a figure that 

 will leave a fair margin of profit after 

 paying for the Ialx)r of careful lifting, 

 packing and shipping, it is like money 

 found, as they have got to go anyhow. 



So soon as the old plants and soil are 

 removed, the benches, if the bottoms 

 are of -ivood. should be put into a good 

 State of repair, so that there will be no 

 danger cf a break-down durin!; the sf^- 

 60n. All old soil and rubbish which has 

 gathered under the benclies sliould be re- 

 moved and the boards of the bencli given 

 a good washing by playing the hose on 

 every crack and crevice, so that all the 

 old soil is removed. 



As cleanliness is very essential in a 

 rose bouse, the glass." sash bars and 

 ■walls shoiild get a thorough wasli down 

 to remove all dirt and scum wliich has 

 accumulated during the winter. The 

 ■woodwork of Ijenches and walls should 

 now get a good coating of hot lime wash. 

 This helps to preserve the wood and de- 

 stroys insects and their eggs. 



To prevent the soil from running 

 through tlie cracks, which should bo of 

 the width of three-fourtlis of an inch, 

 wheat or rve straw, clean, cheap and 



easily applied, is very suitable. This 

 should he put on thick enough to keep 

 the soil in place until it gets settled. 



Those who can afford the time and 

 can secure the material will find it to 

 their profit to use either tile or hollow 

 brick for bench bottoms. This cosis more 

 time and money to erect properly, but 

 if tlie work is done efih-iently the cost 

 of repairing for the next ten vears will 

 be scarcely worth counting. In this 

 style of bottoming the drainage is as 

 nearly perfect as it can be and to a 

 great extent does away with the danger 

 attending overwatering by careless or 

 incompetent help. 



The benches being ready, they should 

 be filled as quickly as possible, so that 

 the soil may not dry out too much previ- 

 ous to planting. The soil should l>e 

 spread as evenly as possible and great 

 care should be used in this particular, 

 as on the even settling of soil depends 

 a good deal of the success of the young 

 stock. 



The benches should be filled flush, 

 and if bone meal is to be used as a 

 fertilizer it should be put on previous 

 to planting, and can be either stirred 

 lightly into the surface of the soil or 

 left on the surface. The act of plant- 

 ing will place as much of the meal near 

 the roots as is good for them at present: 

 the subsequent watering and stirring of 

 the soil will gradually convey the re«t 

 to within reach of the roots. If the soil 

 in the benches is five inches deep the 

 quantity required is about ten to twelve 

 jiounds'to every 100 square feet of sur- 

 face. 



Bride. :Maid. Ivory and Golden Onto 

 are usmilly allowed about 144 square 

 inches of space to grow in, but in my 

 experience I find that with vigorous 

 stock and good s.iil this is far too little. 

 the l)esl cut coniiii'.' from benches where 



the plants were allowed 22.5 square in- 

 ches, or fifteen inches each way between 

 plants. Bea\ities should be allowed some- 

 thing like ;100 square inches, if high 

 grade blooms are desired. Diagonal 

 planting is preferable to planting at 

 right angles, as it is so much easier to 

 give the plants the full Ijenefit of the 

 syringe. 



Previous to planting the stock should 

 be carefully examined to see that none 

 of the balls are dry. Any plants put 

 into the bench in this condition take 

 a nuich longer time to start than do the 

 others. The balls should he dist\irbed na 

 little, as ])ossil)le. simply rubbing off the 

 sharp edges amund tlie surface and not 

 even removing the drainage. 



The plant should be placed just deep 

 cnouah to cover the ball and the soil 

 pressed firmly around it. leaving a slight 

 depression around the neck of the plant, 

 niis slKmld \>e slowly filled with water 

 as soon as possible after planting, and it 

 should be repeated at least twice a day 

 ever.\- bright dav for a couple of weeks. 

 At this stace young sto<'k revels in co- 

 pious supplies of water. Syringini? 

 should be luacticeil at least oni'e a day 

 during bright weather to keep red spii.- 

 er in check. The house can lie cooled off 

 oni-e or twice a dav by sprinkling the 

 walks. ■ R'BKS. 



USE FOR OLD PLANTS. 



In reselling our rose benches every 

 spring for some years past we have been 

 selling the bushes that were to be re- 

 placed with young |>lanls lo .iistomers 

 to plant out in their ganlens. We cover 

 the cost of fl'*" young plants by such 

 sales and our cusloniers. as n rule, ai« 

 well satisfied, as they usually get good 

 blooms throucli the season. I don't 

 know if anyone else does this. I have 



