300 



HORTICULTUEE 



March 10, 1917 



horticulture: 



VOL. XXV MARCH 10, 1917 Na 10 



PUBLISHED WEEKLY BY 



HORTICULTURE PUBLISHING CO. 



1^7 Summer Street, Boston, Mass. 



Telephone, Beach 292. 

 WM. J. STEWAJST, Editor and Manager 



Entered as second-class matter December 8, 1901, at the Post Ofllce 

 at Boston, Mass., under the Act ot Congress of March 3, 1879. 



CONTENTS Page 



COVER ILLUSTRATION— Lajlio-Cattleva Gen. Pershing 



NOTES ON CULTURE OF FLORISTS' STOCK— Cannas 

 — Coelogyne cristata — Dahlias — Early Sweet Peas for 

 Outside — Hydrangeas tor Memorial Day — Reminders 

 — John J. M. Farrell 299 



CARNATION SOII^-C. E. Strout 300 



ROSE GROWING UNDER GLASS— Ventilation— Tem- 

 perature in Ice Bo.x — Get Busy in the Garden — Plant 

 Now for Summer Bloom — Arthur C. Ruzicka 301 



ILLINOIS STATE FLORIST ASSOCIATION— Annual 

 Convention — President's Address — Secretary's Report 

 — Methods for Increasing Production of Roses and 

 Carnations — F. W. Mit7icie 302-303 



CLUBS AND SOCIETIES— American Sweet Pea Society 

 — Tarrytown Horticultural Society — Meetings Next 

 Week — Society of American Florists — Florists' Club 

 of Philadelphia — Club and Society Notes 304 



SEED TRADE- American Seed Trade Association- 

 One Week's Imports — Wisconsin Truck Growers to 

 Treat Cabbage Seed — Notes 308 



OF INTEREST TO RETAIL FLORISTS: 

 An Important Meeting — New Flower Stores — Flowers 

 by Telegraph 310-311 



NEWS ITEMS PROM EVERYWHERE: 



Boston, New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, 

 Washington, Detroit, Cincinnati 312-313 



FLOWER MARKET REPORTS: 



Boston, Buffalo, Chicago, Cincinnati, Detroit, New 



York. Philadelphia, Pittsburgh 315 



St. Louis, T/ashington 317 



DURING RECESS— Detroit vs. Cleveland 322 



OBITUARY— Gust Knoch 399 



MISCELLANEOUS: 



A California Potato — Illustrated 303 



Cover Illustration 303 



Ill-judged Press Publicity 306 



Catalogues Received 307 



Massachusetts Agricultural College Notes .. . 307 



News Notes 310-322 



Azalea Growing in 'California — Illustrated 31.3 



Visitors' Register 3x7 



Patents Granted— New Corporations .'..'. 322 



Greenhouses Building or Contemplated 322 



"Where, oh. where did all the hiilb.s eome 

 A from to produce the vast quantities of 



conundrum tulips, daffodils and other spring hulb 

 flowers with which all the flower iiiarket> 

 are overwhelmed at this time? Our complacent Holland 

 friends repeatedly assured us last fall that, notwith- 

 standing the closing of some of the best Euro|>ean mar- 

 kets against their products, conditions were such that 

 there could not possibly be any surplus of bulbs to be 

 unloaded upon the American market, but that the in- 

 dications were really for a scarcity. Somehow, however, 

 the luilhs evidently did get here, otherwise whence 

 comes this avalanche of flowers at the present time? 

 The Dutchman's lot since this wicked war started has 

 been an unenviable one but he appears to have handled 

 the situation Ai'ith accustomed sagacity and his reputa- 

 tion as a trader seems to he still 100 proof. 



Should all the home vegetable gardens now 



The proposed be actually planted, the seedmen's 



silver bins will get a record cleaning out. On some 



lining things they are far from being full even now 



and the quantity called for is likelv to run 



An 



anxious 



time 



far ahead of anything the seed stores have ever been 

 called upon to furnish. There is plenty of disappoint- 

 ment in prospect, no doubt, for thousands of amateur 

 soil tillers, but whatever the total outcome of the present 

 back-to-the-soil cam]jaign may be, in the way of product, 

 the movement is a healthy one, commendable from every 

 view point and should have the hearty co-operation and 

 encouragement of all. The hard experiences of the past 

 few months will not have been profitless to us if it shall 

 have served to introduce and establish here the thrifty 

 home gardening methods of the wage earners of France, 

 Germany and other European countries, for it means 

 more fond, better food and cheaper food 



The usual breakdown in the flower market 

 arrived in all important centers on schedule 

 time, ap]iarently. As always at such times 

 the stagnation in the wholesale marts is 

 declai'ed to be the worst on record. Perhaps 

 it is not, but even if it is not there are certain unfortu- 

 nate conditions connected with it this year that are un- 

 precedented in their efl'ect on the florist industry and 

 the worst of these is the cost of fuel and the difliculty in 

 procuring it at any price. It may be true that green- 

 house products generally have enjoyed a somewhat 

 steadier demand and higher j^rices during the past win- 

 ter than at any period in recent years liut be that as it 

 may we do not believe there a.re many instances where 

 the increased income has been sufficient to balance the 

 advance in this one item of expense.' At the present 

 tune it is not possible to purchase soft coal at the mine.« 

 for less than $3.S5 to $3.50 per ton. The situation at 

 present gives no hope for improvement and, indeed, 

 higher ]iriees are looked for. The trouble is attributed 

 prinnirily to the scarcity of labor and the inefficiency of 

 the men still at the mines, the best men having gone to 

 the steel and ammunition industries for higher wages. 

 Then comes the over-crowding and congestion on the 

 railroads, which shows no sign of abatement and which 

 may be worse. It has been noticed in recent years thai 

 the depressing influence of Lent upon the flower busi- 

 ness does not last much beyond the first week or ten 

 flag's and we certainly hojje that may be the case this 

 year as the greenhouse man will need all the encourage 

 ment possible under existing conditions. 



Carnation Soil 



Let's grow more and better carnations on the same 

 bench s])ace next season. It can lie done and we all 

 know where we can improve our growing. One big 

 factor, the .soil for the benches, is just as good as we 

 care to make it. M. A. Patten told us at one of the 

 carnation nights in Boston that if the initial soil was 

 right, subsequent feeding or top dressing mattered lit- 

 tle. Mr. Patten spoke from experience and close ob- 

 servation and spoke truly. The preparation of soil for 

 the benches is a matter of utmost importance. This 

 work requires time and care in the selection of materi- 

 als, the time, with the action of frost, moisture and 

 decomposition, saving labor and mechanical operations. 

 The essential tiring is to get the food elements required 

 by the carnation in a soil that will take water and air 

 satisfactorily and keep open and sweet throughout the 

 season, avoiding meal and nnid. su]T]ilying food and 

 fibre. 



There are several sood ways to do this and the books 



