494 



HORTICULTURE 



April 11, 1908 



EAvSTER SHIPMENTS 



Now is the proper time to place your order for Lilies Roses, Carnations, 

 Sweet Peas and other stock required for the Easter demand. We are 

 ready to quote prices and your order given now will be filled properly 

 and on time. 



LONCIFLORUM LILIES 



in pots or cut, carefully packed at greenhouses, $12.50 per hundred 

 flowers. THESE ARE FIRST QUALITY LILIES. 



OUR SUPPLY OF 



BEAUTY, RICHMOND, KILLARNEY, BRIDE and 'MAID and CARNATIONS in Leading Sorts 



has never been excelled and prices are very reasonable. 



Folding Boxes, Baskets, Wire Designs, All Green Material and 

 Other Supplies at Lowest Wholesale Rates. 



WELCH BROTHERS 



226 DEVONSHIRE ST.. BOSTON, MASS, 



Tel. Main 626? 



,^0T ROSES FOR EASTER. 



WrlttfQ for the American Rose Society 

 by Robt. Craig. 



It was thought by the officers of the 

 Rose Society that some notes on this 

 subject would prove useful to beginners 

 in the business, and in accordance with 

 that idea, I give the results of ray ob- 

 servation and experience. The princi- 

 pal obstacle in the way of having fine 

 specimen roses at Easter, lies in the 

 difficulty of obtaining sufficiently 

 strong plants; in roses of the Crimson 

 Rambler and Wichuraiana types, 

 strong canes can be had by planting 

 out in the open ground in heavy soil, 

 well raanured and leaving the plants 

 out at least one winter; when they are 

 left out for two winters they make 

 extra strong plants, with long, strong 

 canes suitable for training into large 

 specimens. Magna Charta, which is 

 undoubtedly the best of all the Hybrid 

 roses as an Easter pot plant, may be 

 treated in like manner; this also applies 

 to Clothilde £oupert, which is deserving 

 of special mention on account of its 

 freedom of bloom, distinct color and 

 above all, its good keeping qualities; 

 it may be kept, in a cool house, for 

 two weeks in full bloom, which cannot 

 be said of many of the varieties. 

 Among other good Easter Hybrids for 

 pots (1 know of but few) may be men- 

 tioned Mrs. John Laing; Ulrich Brun- 

 ner (of fine color but a poor keeper), 

 Rodocanachi, Mile. Gabriel Luizet, Gen. 

 Jacqueminot and Killarney; if suffi- 

 ciently strong canes of the latter can be 

 had it is one of the most attractive — 

 but these varieties do not make strong 

 plants on their own roots in the open 



ground, especially in the northern 

 states. 



Handling Imported Stock. 

 For such varieties as cannot be ob- 

 tained from nurserymen in this coun- 

 try, recourse must be had to importing 

 the strongest plants possible from Eu- 

 rope in the fall, preferably from Eng- 

 land or Ireland, budded low on man- 

 etti. Those fiom Holland are generally 

 budded too high on the stock to make 

 attractive pot plants. Plants which 

 are packed for shipment should have 

 their roots surrounded by damp moss, 

 and should be exposed to the air as 

 little as possible from time of lifting 

 until they are potted; many failures 

 result from lack of this precaution. 

 The plants should not be lifted until 

 I hey Iiave had some frost to thoroughly 

 ripen the wood; in the latitude of 

 Philadelphia this is usually from the 

 middle to the latter part of No- 

 vember. I have never been able 

 to get however, plants uniformly 

 strong enough to force them the 

 first season after importing; the 

 plants are not graded into sizes 

 and many sent are too small to make 

 suitable plants the first season after 

 importing. It is our custom to take 

 only the stronger plants and the oth- 

 ers are wintered ovf-r, as cheaply as 

 posisible in cold frames or houses, to 

 be grown in pots the following sum- 

 mer, which treatment greatly benefits 

 them. The Crimson Rambler, if care- 

 fully handled, will make fine plants 

 the first season from open ground, but 

 the other varieties will bloom more 

 freely if grown in pots one season. 

 The cost of wintering imported plants 



in frames is about ?50 per thousand, 

 and the cost of growing them through 

 the summer about $,'>0 per thousand ad- 

 ditional, but the improvement in the 

 character of the plants fully justifies 

 the expense for Easter purposes. Air 

 should be given during the winter 

 whenever the weather is mild enough, 

 and every precaution taken to prevent 

 the tops from growing as long as pos- 

 sible; after the young roots have start- 

 ed they should not be allowed to 

 freeze, as they are thus easily killed; 

 the pots should stand on a dry bottom 

 and be packed in leaves, sawdust, ash- 

 es or otlier suitable material. 



The Ramblers. 

 The Crimson Rambler has been for 

 many years a very popular Easter 

 plant, but its popularity is waning; it 

 will still be grown, but in smaller 

 quantities than formerly, but fortu- 

 nately there are a number of climbers 

 that may be grown profitably, and 

 which have the charm of novelty. 

 Among the very best are Lady Gay, 

 Dorothy Perkins, Tausendschon and 

 Hiawatha; the last named is especially 

 charming; although the bloom looks 

 frail, it is a fine keeper, and I look for 

 it to increase in popularity. The new 

 variety, Newport Fairy, will undoubt- 

 edly 1)3 largely grown when its merits 

 become known. Another very fine one 

 is Mr. Walsh's Juniata, and no doubt 

 there are other hybrids in the Wichu- 

 raiana section which I have not had 

 the opiwrtunity of seeing. 



Culture of Pot Roses. 



The culture of pot roses for Easter 

 Is very simple, but there are certain 



