November 28. 1914 



HORTICULTUBE 



755' 



blacken the benches a little, and if the same benches 

 have had a dose of lime recently, then do not apply any 

 at all until after the danger of the lime freeing the am- 

 monia in the soot is past; in other words, postpone 

 the application until the lime loses so much of its 

 strength that it will be practically lifeless. The same 

 may be said of bouonieal, for the latter contains quite a 

 little lime in one form or another, although this of course 

 is nowhere near so strong as the lime itself. Four or five 

 days after bonemeal is used it is safe to use soot, and ten 

 or t^velve days after lime is used, if the latter has been 

 watered in well. 



Storing Manure 



The eold weather will soon be here, and if the 

 manure is left outside exposed to the wind, frost and 

 rain, it will not only lose a good deal of its fertility, but 

 will freeze solid, and it will be a very hard job for some 

 one to dig it when it is wanted. If there are no build- 

 ings where manure can be stored, then heap it up nicely 

 and cover it over with a good thick coat of leaves or 

 straw. It will keep the frost out, and a good deal of the 

 water, tlthough not all of it. Avoid mixing soil with 

 the manure, as this is not wanted in tlie mulch until 

 after spring starts. It is well, however, to put a nice 

 lot of sod under the manure heap, as this will absorb all 

 the leachings, and then when spring comes and the 

 plants are real hungrj', a mulch of this will do wonders 

 if applied at the right time. Avoid using coarse manure. 

 It is a nuisance, to say the least, and greatly increases 

 the cost of applying it to the benches. If it can be done, 

 see the farmers who sell it to you, and have them feed 

 the cattle with cut roughage and have them cut the bed- 

 ding up as well. It will be just as useful, and the cost 

 of cutting will be more than offset by the saving in 

 handling later. 



Potting Soil 



This ihould be stored very similar to the manure, 

 but try to get this under cover so that it will not be so 

 wet when it is wanted. Some soils take an awful long 

 time to dry out in the winter, and it will save much 

 labor to hare the soil drj' in the first place. The old 

 heaps that were not used for filling in will be the best 

 kind of material to be used, and, if the soil is cut dow^ 

 well, it will run pretty evenly. This is important, for 

 it is Tery annoying to have one mess of soil full of 

 manure and another lot without any. The only way to 

 get it even is to take the heaps up carefully, so tliat 

 there is not too much manure here and none at all there. 

 If the soil is deficient in manure, it is a good time to 

 add a little more, taking care to put it in nice strata, so 

 that when it is taken to the potting bench it will be 

 even. 



The Coal Supply 



Now before the nasty weather sets in, the wise flor- 

 ists will fill their coal bins up to the limit. If you have 

 not enough room in the cellar, store the coal outside, and 

 see if you cannot build an additional shed for coal stor- 

 age. It should be near at hand for it is not very pleas- 

 ant or healthy for the night fireman to wheel his coal 

 from a distant place, when ho is all wet with perspira- 

 tion after cleaning his fires. Bad roads will come with 

 bad weather, and it is good to have an ample supply of 

 the black diamonds on hand. Then too the ears are 

 sometimes scarce, and a coal famine will result. The 



people will worry and kick themselves for not having 

 their bins full of coal. Better fill them up. 



Electric Lights 



These cost so little that it is really surprising to 

 see how many places are not lighted with electricity, in 

 the important buildings at least. Cellars should have 

 lights; same with paclcing rooms. There are a great 

 many things that can be done well at night, if there is 

 light, and we arc sure it will pay any place to have lights 

 installed. 



For December 5th. — Lining Boxes; Heavy Wrapping Paper; 

 Twine for Tying; Wood for Propagation; Tying Teas; Dead 

 Leaves on Benclies. 



Saccolabium giganteum 



A lovely East Indian orchid which always adds grace 

 to any exhibition group and its handsome deliciously 

 fragrant racemes of amethyst-tipped and spotted blooms 

 never fail to arouse interest and admiration. It is an 

 easy bloomer thriving in abundant light, and deserves a 

 place in every collection. 



South African Harrisii Lilies 



Lily growers w\l\ be greatly interested in the picture 

 which serves as our cover illustration this week, for the 

 use of which we are indebted to E. M. Ward of "Horse- 

 Shoe Brand" fame. The flowers illustrated were grown 

 by F. A. Danker, Albany, N. Y., from bulbs produced 

 in South Africa. As is well-known the seasons in South 

 Africa are reversed, so that these bulbs are ripened and' 

 dug in Februaiy and arrive here in April. The flowers 

 shown were cut in September from fresh bulbs so re- 

 ceived and they thus take the place of cold storage lilies 

 for fall and Christmas blooming. 



