July 24, 1909 



HORTICUUTUKE 



101 



The Significance of Cookson 

 Formula 



The increasing interest shown in this fertilizer b^ 

 orchid growers and others means much to the student of 

 the sohible fertilizer question. This and similar solu- 

 ble compounds have been used by them for some years 

 with success and in the only way possible to secure suc- 

 cess — little and often or dilute-and-all-the-time — which 

 corresponds exactly with Nature's best conditions al- 

 though rarely met with. 



The accurate control of fertilizer is no less important 

 than tliat of light, heat or water. These factors of en- 

 vironment, except perhaps light, we may vary at will 

 and we are making daily gains towards exactness in pro- 

 ducing results by variation of these factors. 



Orchid culture is a half-way house between ordinary 

 soil and the historic "Water Culture"'' where first, primal 

 questions of fertilizers were put to the test. Orchid 

 roots being surrounded with but little material make a 

 culture possible almost free from the complicated and 

 uncertain factors introduced along with soil. Thus it 

 comes about that when a soluljle chemical is applied to 

 orchids — with extreme dilution, remember — it is not 

 changed before it gets to tlie root to any such extent as 

 might well happen had it come in contact with or in 

 fact been filtered through the soil as commonly occurs. 

 The soil itself has chemical powers to change the char- 

 acter of fertilizers before they can get to the plant's 

 roots. 



It i* refreshing to see the culture of plants beginning 

 to approach the accuracy necessary in any other manu- 

 facturing enterprise. Cookson applied to plant culture 

 the same care in use of chemicals he would have, had it 

 been any other question of chemical technology. He 

 chose a combination of chemicals which have no compar- 

 atively useless elements as soda, chlorine or sulphur, but 

 which do contain in reasonable proportions the three 

 elements we hear so much of, nitrogen, phosphoric acid 

 and potash. 



To be sure plants need a wee bit of several things 

 which, however, they are extremely likely to get in the 

 ordinary course of events through the water or somehow. 



Cookson's Formula has nitrogen in both forms 

 (neither organic) nitric and ammonia as exemplified 

 respectively by the nitric part of nitrate of soda and the 

 ammonia in sulphate of ammonia. It has phosphoric 

 acid in combination with ammonia while the potash is 

 linked with the nitric nitrogen. 



The proportion of two parts ammonium phosphate to 

 three of nitrate of potash would show over 13 per cent, 

 nitrogen and double that of both phosphoric acid and 

 potash. 



Now what interests the student of chemistry as ap- 

 plied to horticulture is thi.s — ^liow soon are the so-called 

 ■"practical men" going to swallow this proven theory of 

 ■"dilute-solutions-only," and act accordingly? Many 

 have done so, the late Dr. Cookson being a distinguished 

 pioneer in tliis field. 



Note the dilution. His formula as used by him gives 

 the proportion in water of one to 80 thousand in the 

 case of nitrogen while with phosphoric acid and potash 

 the ratio is one part to 40 thousand. Many well and 

 pond waters are as strong as tliis but never with as val- 

 tiable fertilizers as this. In fact this does not occur in 

 Nature and none but a soluble chemical of chosen con- 

 stituents could be applied with the ease, accuracy and 



extreme but certain dilution obtained with Cookson 



Formula. 



Bosion, Mass. 



Some Points in Peony Growing 



EFFECT OF SOIL AND CLIMATE 



Soil and climate have much to do with these flowers. 

 Location, even in the same neighborhood, plays an im- 

 portant part. Those. in a protected position will often 

 1)1 oom profusely, while those exposed will not have a 

 flower. 



Just south of our house is a large clump of Festiva 

 maxima. At blooming time I counted sixty-five blooms 

 and large flower buds. Not many rods away where the 

 plants of the same variety were exposed to the full sweep 

 of the northwest wind it took three clumps to produce 

 one flower. 



There are some sorts which will bloom under all con- 

 ditions. I note that Grandiflora Eosea, Faust and 

 C4olden Harvest always bloom — especially the latter, no 

 matter where it is planted. It is a favorite in Mani- 

 toba. 



I have just returned from our branch nursery at 

 Paynesville, Minnesota, under the care of Frank Brown. 

 "\Mien I visit that place where the peonies always bloom 

 two weeks later than in this locality, I am ashamed of 

 Nebraska. Up there, winter hangs on till spring and 

 the plants escape the late freezes which nip the flowers 

 in the bud. The cooler and moister air gives greater 

 beauty to the bloom. For instance Humei, that late 

 cinnamon scented pink, is being discarded in Illinois 

 and Nebraska and other portions of the West as well as 

 in some parts of the East, but up there it is one of the 

 grandest flowers, and almost always carries oS the prizes 

 for pinks. 



A CURE FOR GOCTT RO'GT, THAT TERRIBLE FRENCH 



DISEASE 



Once in awhile we \\ill get caught in our importa- 

 tions. I once got a lot of Humei Alba from a Chicago 

 firm. The roots of these disease plants are the most 

 uncanny and repulsive things in the vegetable kingdom 

 — all laiotted and gnarled. No fibrous roots and the poor 

 things can only live, and have no vitality for blooming. 

 I once tried lye and made it so strong I killed one hun- 

 dred roots, but I didn't mind that. Others I planted 

 in slacked lime, that killed some and nearly cured 

 others. By cutting off the diseased parts and plantiug 

 in fresh soil, which never had been manured, they near- 

 ly recovered. I conceived the idea of sending a lot to 

 I\Ir. Brown of Paynesville. I told Mr. Brown to plant 

 them on the barest knoll without any covering, and see 

 what 40 degrees below zero would do for them. He 

 selected a gravel and clay soil which had never been 

 manured, and last week I dug up some of them to see 

 how they were getting along. The old roots were there 

 as repulsive as ever, but outside of them new ones had 

 been found clean and healthy and full of vigorous little 

 rootlets, making a strong contrast to the old diseased 

 *ones, so that disease which has baffled every effort can 

 be remedied, by the cold air cure, just as consumption is 

 often cured bv a mountain climate. 



Yorl-, Nehrasl-a. 



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