May 7, 1910 



HORTICULTURE 



691 



SEASONABLE NOTES ON CULTURE 

 OF FLORISTS' STOCK. 



Annuals. 

 All annuals that are in the house or 

 frames should be thoroughly hardened 

 off before they are transferred to the 

 open ground. This is as important as 

 anything now to be done. Those that 

 are in the houses should be trans- 

 ferred to frames and gradually inured 

 and those that are in frames will be 

 benefited if the sashes are left off en- 

 tirely for a while previous to setting 

 them out. When the seeds are sown 

 in the open ground,- the soil should 

 he thoroughly and finely worked and 

 enriched by some fine well-rotted ma- 

 nure. These preparatipns of the soil 

 should be particularly well carried out 

 where fine seeds are to be sown. The 

 grower who wants annuals on a large 

 scale should sow them in drills 1.5 or 

 18 inches apart so they can be worked 

 with the hand cultivator. As soon as 

 the seedlings have developed their sec- 

 ond leaves they should be thinned. 



Bay Trees. 



Bay trees want an abundance of 

 water from now until the autumn. In 

 order to keep them in splendid form 

 they should be cut into shape in the 

 spring just before the new growth 

 starts and then the young growths 

 pinched back as they develop. About 

 every three or four years they will 

 need more root room and some good 

 new soil, but they should be kept In 

 as small tubs as possible. During the 

 summer they should be set out in 

 some convenient place where the hose 

 can he used on them freely. They 

 will also be greatly helped by the ap- 

 plication of some liquid manure dur- 

 ing the summer months, for the health 

 and vigor of bay trees depends great- 

 ly on the good care they have dur- 

 ing the hot weather. The tubs, where 

 convenient, should be plunged in or- 

 der to protect the roots from drying 

 out. The bay can endure a few de- 

 grees of frost so the trees may be 

 placed outdoors any time now. 



Epacrls. 

 Epacrises that have been cut hack 

 will soon make new growth. When 

 these are about a half inch is a good 

 time to do any potting that may be 

 required. Tlie same soil as recom- 

 mended for ericas will do for these 

 plants. The soil around the ball 

 should be well firmed. For a week 

 or ten days after potting, a somewhat 

 closer atmosphere should be kept to 

 assist the plants in making a new 

 start. Frequent syringing is essential, 

 but over-watering, especially if prac- 

 ticed right after potting, is sure to 

 work mischief, and great care must be 

 taken not to overdo it at any time. 

 As the plants progress more air 

 should be admitted, till they go to 

 their outdoor quarters. About the 

 middle of June is a good time to 

 plunge outside. When removed too 

 early to the open ground there Is 

 danger of their being struck by a 

 spell of belated cold and clammy 

 weather, which is bound to do them 

 harm, in spite of the very best of 

 treatment during the balance of the 

 year. In their flowering season they 

 will stand full sun and do well in 

 about 45 to .50 degrees in the winter 

 time. 



Cymbidiums. 



There are some very handsome spe- 

 cies in this eenus. When once well 



HAARLEM JUBILEE SHOW. 



Oi-oup of Hyacinths and Lilac Blooms. 



The accompanying picture together 

 with the cover illustration give a 

 partial idea of the features of the 

 great Jubilee Show now in progress 

 at Haarlem. 



Mr. R. Vincent, Jr.. who is visiting 

 the exhibition, in a letter just re- 

 ceived tells us that the display is very 

 fine, inside and out. He says: 



"As you enter the main gate, there 

 is a spiendid exhibit of holly. Plants 

 from 414 to 6 feet high, full of berries 

 of the variety Ilex laevigatapoly- 

 carpa, one of the best for exportation. 

 Near the entrance is a large plateau 

 laid out in pleasing arrangements of 

 beds of various colors mostly hya- 

 cinths with here and there clumps of 

 crown imperials. On the side beds, 

 somewhat raised are clumps of 

 rhododendron the whole surrounded 

 by forest trees of splendid growth in 

 their young spring verdure adding 

 lustre to the bright hue of the many 

 thousand flowers of tulips, hyacinths, 

 etc. These beds are decorated here 



and there with box, trimmed in vari- 

 ous shapes, adding still further beauty 

 and novelty to the scene. The variety 

 of hyacinths used are Mdrae. Van der 

 Hoop, white; Rio des Beiges, red; 

 Yellow Hammer, Gertrude, red, and 

 Queen of the Blues. 



"The exhibition halls are beauti- 

 fully arranged with a full variety of 

 spring flowers, comprising a large 

 exhibit of hydrangeas, azaleas, lilacs, 

 amaryllis, cyclamen, and cineraria, the 

 finest in white and blue that I have 

 ever seen. There is also one large 

 collection of narcisii of over 200 

 varieties, a great many of them new 

 seedlings, especially of the trumpet 

 varieties, very large and fine, when 

 compared with the older varieties, 

 showing great advancement in this 

 easy grown and popular flower. 



"We visited in a body yesterday the 

 grounds where 100 years ago the best 

 of the then-known tulips originated 

 and where the great boom was 

 started in their growing. The minia- 

 ture rose exhibit is very fine." 



established, cymbidiums are not dif- 

 ficult to grow. They succeed best 

 when cultivated in pots, in a mixture 

 of chopped peat, sod and sphagnum. 

 In potting an important point for con- 

 sideration is drainage. This must be 

 thorough. If the drainage is defect- 

 ive the roots are sure to decay and 

 the leaves shrivel. Those requiring 

 new material, repotting, etc., should 

 obtain it as soon as the fiowering sea- 

 son is past. They must never be thor- 

 oughly dried out, especially the thin- 

 leaved kinds, as then they are liable 

 to lose many of their leaves. It is 

 very annoying to find some plants con- 

 tinually getting into bad condition, 

 but it will often prove that the trou- 

 ble lies in the quantity of water sup- 

 plied at the root, or that the atmos-- 

 phere is either too dry or too wet. 

 Cymbidiums like a moist, intermediate 

 temperature. Although they are fond 

 of plenty of water at the roots when 

 growing, syringing overhead often in- 

 jures them. When not growing they 

 should he kept somewhat cooler, with 

 plenty of air given on all suitable oc- 

 casions, but avoiding all cold draughts. 

 A temperature of from 55 to 65 de- 

 grees will please them. The eburn- 

 eum section is very good. 



Hardy Ferns. 



If you have any spot of ground 

 that is idle on account of being too 



shady and moist, it would be well to 

 plant it with hardy ferns. Any strip 

 of loose and friable land that is lying 

 in the shadow of some building or 

 trees will grow any of these ferns. 

 To assist in holding the moisture in 

 the soil, some well decayed leaves 

 should be worked in. With the land so 

 preiiared, a position so stated can be 

 made a place of verdant beauty every 

 year. All good varieties of hardy 

 ferns can be obtained from any of 

 the large plant growers. The follow- 

 ing sorts will succeed well, Adian- 

 tum pedatum, Asplenium ebeneum, 

 Aspidium Noveboracensis, Pteris aqui- 

 lina. Dicksonia pilosiuscula, and Os- 

 munda gracilis. 



Tuberoses. 



Much better spikes of bloom are 

 obtained by growing these right along 

 in pots on any sunny bench, than by 

 cultivating in the field. To that end 

 the bulbs are started in 4-inch pots, 

 using a good rich soil, and later on 

 shifted into 6-inch pots, but where 

 they are to be planted out they gain 

 by being started in 4-inch pots and 

 planted out after some growth has 

 been made. About the middle of 

 June is time enough to plant them 

 out. JOHN J. M. FARRELL. 



Mr. Farrell's next notes will he on 

 Baby Ramblers, Chrysanthemums for 

 large specimens, FIcus elastica. Marguer- 

 ites. Sweet scented Geraniums, The Lily 

 Bed. 



