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HOETICULTUKE 



October 17, 1914 



BOSTON CONVENTION GARDEN 

 NOTES. 



The Conard & Jones Company, 

 "West Grove, Pa., contributed the ma- 

 jor display of cannas and all of them 

 were splendid varieties. A brief de- 

 scription of same as they appeared to 

 the writer follows: 



Colossal, well named, as it has at- 

 tained a height of 9 to 10 feet; flowers 

 large deep orange, on massive spikes; 

 notwithstanding its large proportions 

 and striking appearance it is less prac- 

 tical than lesser varieties in my opin- 

 on for general landscape effects, be- 

 ing more useful for special purposes, 

 as a back row for smaller kinds, the 

 hiding of objectionable objects, such 

 as fences and buildings, etc. Panama; 

 this is exceedingly fine and attractive, 

 of sturdy massive foliage and growth; 

 grows three and one half to four feet 

 high; flowers deep orange red mottled 

 around the petal edges with yellow; 

 individual petals 3 inches across; Al 

 in every respect. Kate P. Deemer; a 

 charming kind for color effects, espec- 

 ially for contrasting with scarlet and 

 crimson kinds; grows to the same 

 height as others (4 feet), but appears 

 taller because it throws its flower- 

 spikes much higher above its foliage. 

 The flower spikes are much branched, 

 not crowded, profusely flowered; this 

 ■open habit adds great elegance to it; 

 <;olor light lemon to deep canary-yel- 

 low, with shading of pink at base of 

 petals. 



Wm. Sander is a coppery red foliage 

 variety of most excellent habit; low, 

 •sturdy in growth, three to three and 

 one half feet high; flower-spikes as 

 well as individual flowers of ample 

 size; color vivid scarlet. Meteor; this 

 is an exceedingly brilliant variety, 

 deep scarlet, very effective as a solid 

 ■color sort: grows from four and one 

 half to five feet tall; flowers and flow- 

 er-trusses of large size. 



Rosea gigantea grows four to four 

 and one half feet high; light to deep 

 rose in color: flowers and flower- 

 spikes of massive proportions; a fine 

 variety. Olympic; this is a superb 

 variety for lanscape effects, of more 

 robust growth than most of the fore- 

 going, yet finely proportioned; pro- 

 duces the largest and most striking 

 flowers and flower-spikes of any; color 

 deep vivid rose, its cheerfulness In 

 this latter respect making it more ac- 

 ceptable for pronounced effects than 

 R. gigantea; grows from five to five 

 and one half feet tall. Mrs. Alfred 

 F. Conard, a fine well balanced vari- 

 ■ety; growing from four and one half 

 to five feet tall; color somewhat fancy 

 and unique in the canna line, not 

 easily described technically, light buff, 

 shaded with deeper pink and orange 

 at base of petals, distinct and attrac- 

 tive. Wyoming is another of the 

 bronze-red foliage type having very 

 large and broad leaves; growing five 

 and six feet tall, commanding in ap- 

 pearance; individual flowers large; 

 color, light to dark orange. Loveli- 

 ness and other of the above company's 

 varieties might be mentioned as de- 

 sirable sorts, but the list given in- 

 cludes the best. 



Vaughan, Chicago, showed a small 

 number of Canna Fire Bird. For daz- 

 zling brilliancy of color this eclipses 

 all of the scarlet sorts that have yet 

 come under my observation. The in- 

 <3ividual flowers are very large. For 



some reason or another this variety 

 developed in the garden an undesirable 

 trait of leaf scorch, the margins of the 

 leaves scorching badly during the whole 

 season which unquestionably militated 

 against fine massive spikes of flowers 

 being produced. This does not mean 

 representative flower spikes were 

 wanting, only that under more favor- 

 able conditions better might be ex- 

 pected. I trust that the trouble devel- 

 oped here is not an inherent one. 



To prolong and enjoy the best pos- 

 sible display from cannas, an inflexible 

 rule should be adhered to, of going 

 over the beds once a week or ten days 

 for the pupose of removing forming 

 seed capsules. It would be well not 

 to let them flower at all in the early 

 season and until they are sufficiently 

 strong to stand the flowering process. 

 In this way a stronger plant is devel- 

 oped at an earlier period on which de- 

 pends the larger number of succeed- 

 ing growths, which in turn produces 

 the largest grand total of flowering- 

 spikes. Kexxeth Finlatson. 



THE WASHINGTON ROSE GARDEN. 



There seems to have been a misin- 

 terpretation in some quarters concern- 

 ing the planting list of the Washing- 

 ton Rose Garden as included in the 

 committee report read by Mr. William 

 P. Gude at the meeting in Boston of 

 the Society of American Florists and 

 published in a recent issue of Hokti- 

 cui.TiicE. The lists were simply to 

 show where the plants were located 

 and were prepared for the information 

 of donors and the use of interested 

 parties visiting the garden. 



The arrangement of beds, as "yellow 

 tea," "pink tea," etc., was tentative, 

 but promises to work satisfactorily. 

 The assignment to the beds was made 

 entirely from catalogue description. 

 This was taken from the donors' cata- 

 logues where practicable, and where 

 not, from catalogues of other reliable 

 firms. The breaks in the beds were 

 caused by the inability of some firms 

 to supply all the plants they had ex- 

 pected to send. The varieties with 

 what might be called "mongrel descrip- 

 tions" were distributed with the color 

 to which they were most nearly akin 

 as far as descriptions would suggest 

 and space permit. 



Places were only provided for teas, 

 hybrid perpetuals and climbers, and 

 other sorts were placed just wherever 

 there happened to be room, as, for ex- 

 ample, Dwarf Polyanthus, which are 

 planted at several points. It is in- 

 tended to transplant varieties as soon 

 as practicable after it is found they 

 are not properly placed in the scheme 

 adopted. 



The list must not be taken as a 

 recommendation by the Department of 

 Agriculture, either as to adaptabilitv 

 or color, but merely as a record of 

 where the different varieties are grow- 

 ing. The Rose Garden has not yet 

 been underway six months, so, of 

 course, the studies have hardly begun. 

 It will require several seasons' ob- 

 servations before any conclusions can 

 be reached. Suggestions are at all 

 times most welcome, as it is desired 

 to arrange the garden so as to be as 

 instructive as possible. 



P. L. MULFOED, 



Landscape Gardener, 

 U. S. Dept. of Agrl. 



L. W. GOODELL'S SIGHT 

 RESTORED. 



L. W. Goodell of Pansy Park, 

 Dwight, Mass., who has made the 

 growing of pansies, asters, and ver- 

 benas specialties for over forty years 

 is receiving the congratulations of his 

 friends on the recovery of sight, after 

 nearly ten years of blindness from 

 cataract. A badly performed operation 

 caused the loss of one eye five years 

 ago. The other eye becoming affected 

 a number of the best oculists in New 

 England were consulted with the view 

 of engaging the services of one of the 

 most skillful that could be found for 

 the operation on the other eye. The 

 operation was performed Sept. 19, by 

 Dr. David Harrower, who has had an 

 experience of over twenty-five years 

 and performed over seven hundred 

 operations for cataract, ninety-eight 

 per cent of which were successful. The 

 operation was a perfect success and 

 sight was restored as good as ever. 



Mr. Goodell was a frequent exhib- 

 itor of cut flowers at the shows of the 

 Massachusetts Horticultural Society, 

 fifteen to thirty years ago and was one 

 of the first to make large exhibits 

 of water lilies and other aquatic plants. 

 He has many old friends and aquaint- 

 ances among the gardeners and flor- 

 ists in the eastern part of the state. 



HOLLYHOCKS AGAIN. 



In the issue of October 3 Mr. Lons- 

 dale asks what percentage of holly- 

 hocks come true. In our experience, 

 there were hardly enough to say per- 

 centage. We had double ones of our 

 own, from which we saved seed, and 

 then we sent to the most reliable 

 seedsmen and paid a high price for 

 seed and planted them; most of them 

 came single — hardly a double one in 

 the lot. One year we saved seed of 

 fine double red. A few came red, one 

 or two nearly purple, two large double 

 pure white. The only success we ever 

 had was in planting seed from a clump 

 about 80 rods from any other, and 

 these I think were all double, some 

 nearly purple, and one an immense 

 pink — the largest and finest 1 ever saw. 

 The bees are always very busy in the 

 flowering season, and I think if the 

 varieties are far enough apart, and 

 the bees should visit them, that the 

 flight shakes the pollen off so they 

 come nearly true. It is a great vexa- 

 tion. We want everything true to 

 name. We buy double ones, and 

 they bloom single, and in selling them 

 we sell a kick and have to replace. 

 -C. S. Harrison. 



Are you using Silkaline for string- 

 ing up and tying your plants this 

 fall? Or have you been induced by 

 cheapness of price to buy some of the 

 inferior green threads that are thrown 

 on the market as substitutes for thi.s 

 standard article? Silkaline is guaran- 

 teed full length and fast color and in 

 serviceability far overbalances the few 

 cents saved on cotton thread which 

 quickly loses color and spoils the looks 

 of everything on which it is used. Silk- 

 aline is made especially for florists' 

 use. 



