724 



HORTlCULTURi: 



May 30, 1908- 



A SIXTY MILLION FLOWER SPIKE. 



1 Weill ii|) to see .lose]))! Hpueook the 

 other day to get some palm giowiiig 

 hints from that export. I got them and 

 also a fart or two about the palm 

 family bordoiins on the wondeitul. 

 Here we think mostly of the palm as 

 a lovely foliage plant and know little 

 as to its full development in tlower 

 and fruit in its native soil. Wh.it 

 would you say to a flower spike thiiLy 

 or forty feet high, and estimated to 

 contain sixty million blossoms? This, 

 I am told, is well authenticated in the 

 case ol the Talipot Palm (Corypha 

 uinbraculileraK Can >oh imagine sixty 

 niillions of individual blossoms? I 

 cannot. I can only hold up my hands 

 like Dominie Sampson and say: "Pro- 

 digious!" I am also assured that al- 

 though some of the seeds of palms are 

 as small. as a pea, otheis, like Lodoicea 

 sechellarum, often weigh as much as 

 forty pounds each. The average 

 "American seedsman would not have 

 much trouble in getting 98 per cent, 

 purity in a cargo of Lodoiceas! Of 

 course thfse wonders of the palm 

 world, and many others well known 

 to botanists, are never seen with 'is 

 where the palm is used only when 

 small and for decorative purposes. I.i 

 this ctnncction its popularity is in- 

 creasing yearly, and another distinc- 

 tive feature is the larger production 

 of home grown stock in the United 

 States. The American growers, con- 

 spicuous among whom may be men- 

 tioned Hcacock and Drear, have far 

 less dependence now on the European 

 experts, and grow from seeds just as 

 well, if not hotter, than the old-estab- 

 lished growers on the other side. The 

 most popular varieties at present are 

 Kentia Relraoreana and Forsteriana 

 (Howea botanieally). Areca lutescens 

 (Chrysalidocarpus), Cocos Weddeliana, 

 Livistona Chiensis, Caryota urens. 

 Phoenix rupicola and P. canariensis. 

 and Seaforthia elegans. Mr. Heacock 

 confines himself mostly to the first 

 four. 



The kentias are by far the most 

 popular and satisfactory commercial 

 varieties. The seeds are Imported from 

 Lord Howe's Island by way of Austra- 



SPRING BULB 



BEDDING AT THE AGRICULTURAL 

 WASHINGTON. D. C 



DEPARTMENT, 



lia. They are sown broadcast on their 

 arrival, on a side bench in light soil 

 covering to a depth of one inch. With 

 liberal watering and a bottom heat of 

 about SO per cent, most of the seeds 

 will come up in two months, if the vi- 

 tality is good. When the first leaf is 

 developed the seedlings are planted 

 in small pots and in about four months 

 are usually large enough for a shift 

 into 3 inch. From this stage on a 

 night temperature of 60 degrees is 

 found to be most satisfactory. The 

 soil used is a light loam one-fourth 

 peat and a sparing amount of fertilizer. 

 .\ similar process is followed with the 

 seeds of Areca lutescens but they are 

 allowed to remain in the seed bench 

 until two or three leaves are formed. 

 This variety is even more graceful and 

 beautiful than the Kentias, but does 

 not stand severe conditions as well. 

 In the south the demand for it is far 



SPRING BULB 



BEDDING AT THE AGRICULTURAL DEPARTMENT, 

 WASHINGTON. D. C. 



Ilyaciath border; King of th Blues, La Candeur, Charles Diekens 



better than in the north, the mild cli- 

 mate there being much in its favor. 



The seeds of Cocos Weddeliana come 

 from Brazil. These are about 1-2 an 

 inch in diameter, and are usually sown 

 on benches, but Mr. Heacock prefers 

 to plant one seed to a pot as it ob- 

 viates shifting, and is safer — as a criti- 

 cal time in cocos culture is the first 

 shift. As the cocos is used when very 

 small for fern dishes and other table 

 decorations, millions of them are con- 

 sumed every year. The present is the 

 best time for shifting most palms so as 

 to get the advantage of the summer 

 growth — root action being dormant 

 from ^,■o^ ember to April — and growers 

 are now Imsy re-potting. 



Mr. Heacock is building one new 

 Lord & Burnham house, 20x67, and is 

 throwing 15 detached houses into one 

 connected range. Two of the large 

 long-and-short-span houses will be al- 

 tered into even-span, taking in the 

 small side houses and making a fine 

 range 280x90. A house will be devoted 

 to the new bright pink seedling car- 

 nation (No. 100) the coming season. 

 The other chief item grown here is 

 American Beauty roses; also Rich- 

 monds and Killarneys in smaller quan- 

 tities and cypripediums and cattleyas, 

 As an example of the life of an or- 

 dinary greenhouse, Mr. Heacock 

 pointed to one rose house built twenty 

 yeais ago and good for quite a num- 

 ber of years yet. Two new sets of 

 posts in that time; first chestnut, but 

 they soon rotted, then locust and they 

 soon went also. The story was 

 told here of the old florist who 

 swore by locust and claimed that it 

 Would last for ever, acid of 

 the endorsement of the dutiful sou, 

 'Yes. sir. that's a fact; and we can 

 prove it, for the posts have been re- 

 newed twice in the past ten years." 

 Now it's cedar posts, and they are as 

 good as new, and the best material so 

 far tried. 



In Mr. Heacock's practice a chief 

 secret of success is abundance of water 

 above and below. Insecticides are al- 

 most unknown here. 



GEORGE C. WATSON. 



