August 23, 1913 



HORTICULTURE 



263 



ROSE GROWING UNDER GLASS 



CONDLCTED BY 



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

 ny Mr. Kuzicka. Such communications should invariably be addressed to the office of HORTICULTURE. 



Shipping the Cut Blooms 



This may seem an unnecessary subject to bring up, 

 yet a good many hard earned dollars are lost almost 

 daily, by the careless handling of cut roses, before and 

 during transit. Many also go out unprepared to staTid 

 the rough handling which they are subject to on their 

 way to the commission houses or the retail customer. 

 Remember that all roses cut should remain in the icobo.x 

 for at least two hours before they are packed for ship- 

 ment. This is very important, for if the cut ro>cs are 

 not properly hardened they will not last as long or keep 

 so well. 



Keep the stems of all the cut blooms immersed in 

 clean fresh water — water that you would not hesitate to 

 drink. This is another important thing. Stagnant 

 water is injurious to the quality of the flowers, and if 

 they are immersed in it for any length of time, all the 

 foliage coming into contact with such water will perish 

 and turn brown. This hardly adds beauty to the nut 

 blooms, neither does it help to sell them. 



Remember that the flowers will be handled at least 

 three times before they finally find themselves in some- 

 one's home, and if they are in a poor condition when 

 they leave the grower, how can they ever give satisfaction 

 to the customer buying from the retail florist? That is 

 a question that ought to be kept in mind when cuttiiig, 

 storing, packing, in fact even growing roses and other 

 cut flowers, for either commercial or private use. 



Getting a Name 



During "gluts" in markets, when even the very best 

 of stock sells for a low price, you will notice that grow- 

 ers with a reputation always receive much better prices 

 for their stock than growers who just ship in a belter 

 skelter way, paying little or no attention to the way or 

 condition in which their product arrives in the market. 

 Even when the market is good, stock known to be select 

 always brings more. 



It will take at least three years to establish a name, 

 so do not be discouraged if you do not notice any differ- 

 ence in the price the very first time you send your boxes 

 down to market, filled with well graded and perfect 

 roses. 



Wax and Tissue Papers 



Do not be too economical in using wax and tissue 

 papers, as they are very essential to proper packing of 

 roses. Ordinary tissue papers are all right in their 

 place, hut as soon as the least water touches them they 



are done for, and this fact should be borne in mind when 

 lining boxes. A good way is to use a little wax paper 

 in connection with the other papers, even though you 

 use only enough to go around the wet stems of the cut 

 roses. This will protect the other papers a little from 

 wet, and will also keep the cut roses from sliding around 

 in the box, as they would should the wax paper be used 

 alone. 



Tying the Roses in Boxes 



Where long stemmed roses are packed in paper boxes, 

 whether they are Beauties or others, it is well to run a 

 piece of heavy string around the bottom of the box, and 

 have it enter into the box two or three inches from the 

 bottom, and then tying the two ends inside of the box, 

 thus holding the roses firmly, yet gently in place, pre- 

 venting them from being broken when the box is roughly 

 handled during transit. Needless to say the rope should 

 not be tied anywhere near the buds, for the foli.age near 

 the bud is as valuable as the bud itself. Many long 

 stemmed Beauties are sold cheap because their foliage 

 is almost ruined by careless handling. 



Have the rope or string come about a foot away from 

 the ends of the stems, where bruised foliage will not 

 count so much, for this much of the stem is usually put 

 into vases when the flowers are put up at the house. 



The string which is used for this purpose should not 

 be too thin, as it would then cut through the box, should 

 this happen to be a paper one, as is the case on most of 

 the places shipping anything to the market. 



Among the Young Plants 



Beauties that have been benched for some time will 

 now call for the wires for the second tier, and some for 

 the third and last. Keep them well strung, for if there 

 is anything that looks unsightly, it is poorly stretched 

 wires, which make the plants look so strange. In tying 

 be very careful not to bunch the shoots too much, for 

 this would look very bad and would not be of any benefit 

 to the plants themselves. A good grower will have the 

 growth of the plants well distributed over all the wires 

 so that there is not a place where they will be crowded. 

 Another thing worth while paying attention to is the 

 cutting of the string after tying a knot. How often do 

 we see a lot of long strings sticking out into the walk 

 and how bad it does look ! How different to see a bench 

 of Beauties tied so that you cannot see the strings at 

 all. Do your work neatly, it does not cost any more, 

 and the difference is well worth it. 



