August 16, 1913 



HOETICULTUEE 



207 



ROSE GROWING UNDER GLASS 



^ ^ CONDCCTED B¥ 



Questions by our readers In line with any of the topics presented on this page will be cordially received and promptly answere** 

 by Mr. Ruztcka. Such commnnlcatlODS should Invariably be addressed to the office o£ HOETICULTUKE. 



Side Ventilation 



Unless these can be handled by men who know what 

 they are about, it is best to stop using them altogether, 

 for the nights are getting real cool in this part of the 

 country and the danger from mildew is too great to take 

 any chances. Not that the side ventilators are respon- 

 sible altogether, but they are very apt to be partly 

 responsible if they are used after the cool weather sets 

 in. We prefer by far the houses with no side vents 

 which saves us a lot of time and worrj', for the help 

 that we often have to work with is not always Al. For 

 private places where quality is always the first consider- 

 ation, and where the time allowed to properly look after 

 the houses is much greater tlian the time allowed on the 

 average commercial range, tlie side ventilators can be 

 used to good advantage, but keep them out of our com- 

 mercial houses for ventilating purposes. Of course they 

 are nice to you when planting or painting inside as they 

 help reduce the temperature and make life more pleas- 

 ant for all who have to work inside. 



Ventilation in General 



Now that cooler weather has set in, it may be neces- 

 sary to lower the ventilators nights to keep the houses 

 from dropping down too low. Even a little steam may 

 have to be applied to hold up the temperature, which 

 should not go below 64 degrees F. at this time of the 

 year when the thermometer will register 80 or 90 during 

 the day. Do not close the houses up, as the condensa- 

 tion on the glass and plants themselves would be so great 

 as to have an ill effect with just a slight incline toward 

 spot and mildew. Always leave the ventilators open at 

 least half an inch. 



Thunderstorms 

 Be very careful and not allow the plants to get wet at 

 night (or in the day time either) by rain beating in 

 through too-far opened ventilators. This is very disa- 

 greeable to the plants, even though it may not be so to 

 the night watchman who is peacefully snoozing else- 

 where. It is bad business, and any man who will neglect 

 his work thus will never get ahead very far. Another 

 "smart" way is to close the houses up tight and take a 

 nap. Surely they will be dry in the morning — but the 

 grower will no doubt wonder if the "fresh air" be gives 

 them all the time really agrees with his plants. 



Treating Wet Plants 



When plants do get wet during showers, by accident 

 or otherwise, about the first thing to be done is to see 

 that they are shook off as much as possible, so as to give 

 them every possible chance to dry very rapidly. As soon 

 as the foliage is dry enough to keep it from sticking 

 blow quite a little of air-slacked, lime right under the 

 plants, which will greatly help to absorb much of the 

 moisture that would condense there, and thus help to 

 prevent blackspot and mildew as well. 



G>st Accounting 



No doubt this receives but very little attention at 

 most places — in fact, nearly all places. The only book 

 kept is the check book, which determines whether there 

 is gain or loss. At the same time, however, our business 

 is coming to a stage where it will be absolutely necessary 

 for the grower to know just "what's what," and to be 

 able to tell to a cent what every rose produced has cost 

 him. It all seems very dilHcult and complicated in the 

 beginning, but when once started it is surprising how 

 very simple it is to keep account of all little expenses 

 and receipts. As places vary so very greatly it would be 

 difficult to lay down one set rule for keeping all accounts, 

 but the grower can generally himself determine just how 

 this should be done. And it cannot all be done in a 

 day. It will take weeks of careful study to devise and 

 apply a system of cost accounting which will "fit," not 

 only the place and conditions on it, but also the men, for 

 at a good many places we find plenty of foreign labor- 

 men who cannot sign their names, let alone keep books. 

 Yet they may be good workers and growers. To give an 

 outline of this system we would advise numbering all 

 the houses the very first thing, if this has not been done 

 previously. Then attach a sheet of paper on one end of 

 the greenhouse, and i)ut a pane of glass over it to ex- 

 clude water. Now let each man, no matter what he 

 does in the house, take careful note of the time required 

 to do it and carefully record it on the sheet, which has 

 been ruled for the purpose. We make it a point to add 

 25c. for each $2.00 worth of labor, to cover wear and 

 tear of tools. This is the only way we know of dis- 

 tributing this expense evenly. The whole amount is 

 then charged to the greenhouse and as the record of the 

 cut is carefully shown it is very easy to determine which 

 houses are unprofitable or which of the growers are not 

 doing their share. By applying this system at one 

 place, the owners were real surprised to learn that cer- 

 tain varieties of roses and also certain members of the 

 force were very undesirable, and it was not long before 

 this was remedied. The coal bill is figured so much 

 to heat one square foot of glass, and it is very easy to 

 determine what it costs to keep the houses warm. Where 

 the place is not heated from one point, the cost is con- 

 sidered separately for each heating section. This is the 

 only fair way, for were the houses charged the average 

 when the plant is heated by two or three different bat- 

 teries of boilers from different points, it would not be 

 square, as some boilers use more coal than others, also 

 require more care, and may depreciate more rapidly. 

 The Convention 



Never mind the expense if time will allow you to 

 attend. The money required to take you there, and 

 keep you until you return is well invested, and will 

 bring great dividends in more ways than one. Who is 

 the most successful man, he who travels or he who has 

 not been out of his town in years? The former, of 

 course, because travel will broaden one's views of life, 

 business and all. You will be surprised how simple 

 your great problems will look when you return after a 

 chat with your neighbors miles and miles awav. 



