February 13, 1915 



HORTICULTURE 



5;ii7 



ROSE GROWING UNDER 

 GLASS 



CONDUCTED BY 



cSiXyu:^-^ 



Questions by our readers in line with any of the topics 

 presented on this page will be cordially received and promptly 

 answered by Mr. Ruzicka. Such "ommunlcaflon should Inva- i 

 riably be addressed to the office of HORTICULTURE. I 



Repotting 



As soon ;is the plants in the small pots become rooted, 

 they should be shifted to the next size, or three-inch, 

 at this time. The reason for this is that the space is 

 too scarce or too valuable to shift the plants into pots 

 that are larger, or 4-inch, as we do later on. Do not 

 let the plants get pot bound, as this would be a serious 

 matter with the young stock at this stage, although 

 it is vrell to allow them to become well rooted. Tliey 

 should not be allowed to suffer, however, and as soon as 

 tlie roots work around in the soil soi that they show any 

 sign of crowding, they should be shifted into larger 

 pots as stated above. The pots should be clean and 

 crocked, as the plants will remain in these longer than 

 in the smaller pots. See that the bench that they are 

 set on is well covered \s\x\\ fine ashes, and that the 

 pots are all set straight in nice rows. This does not 

 cost any more, and it certainly makes the finished work 

 look much nicer. It will also be a help in keeping track 

 of all plants, making it easy to count tliem. The soil 

 for this potting can be heavier, and, if the plants are 

 well rooted, as heavy as it comes. It should be porous, 

 containing a sufficient amount of humus, and should be 

 enriched with a little bonemeal, say a pot full (4") 

 for each wlieelbarrow of soil. About half this amount 

 of soot for the same amount of soil will do the plants 

 a great deal of good. Do not use more than this, how- 

 ever, as the mixture of the two would prove harmful 

 to the roots. 



Blackspot 



Watch for this disease on all the young stock, and 

 try to keep the old plants clear of it. Should you 

 think there is the slightest danger, then spray with the 

 aramoniacal copper carbonate mixture. This is by no 

 means a cure, but will be a gi-eat help in keeping the 

 spot from spreading. Avoid watering the plants in the 

 afternoon, especially when tliey will not dry off well 

 before night. The same witli syringing. As soon as 

 the houses are warm enough in the morning, syringe 

 all the plants that are to be done, thus giving tliem a 

 chance to dry off well befnrc night. In blowing lime, 

 do not blow it among tlie young plants, as this would 

 discolor the foliage a go(i(l deal, and would do little 

 good. Blow the lime into tlie air above the walks. This 

 will nil the air of the whole house with the. fine dust, 

 which will circulate all tliroiigh, and when it settles it 

 will bring a lot of the moisture with it. Once in a 

 while a big lilack spot "ill be found here and there. 

 These slionld Ix- picked off as soon as they are found, 

 for the disease is liable to spread from these when the 

 plants are syringed. 



Scraping the Top of the Soil in Pots 



As soon as there are any traces of green scum, the 

 plants should be given a cleaning, using an old laiifc 



or piece of old iron for this work. In scraping the 

 scum off the surface of the soil, care should be taken 

 not to go down into the soil too much, to disturb the 

 little roots that may l)e working around the top of the 

 pot. Leave the surface roughened, so that the soil will 

 not be so apt to turn green again in a very short time. 

 This scraping will do the plants a good deal of good, 

 and will make them drj' out better as well. With the 

 dark weather that we have had, this item alone should 

 be worth the cost of doing the work. 



Liquid Manure 



The days are already noticeably longer, and witli more 

 sun that we hope to get from now on. it will be safe 

 to allow the plants a little more liquid manure. Tliis 

 should be made of good cow manure if it is possible to 

 secure thi.c, and if not, then a good substitute will have 

 to be used. Places that are furnished with two lines 

 of pipe, one for clear water and one for liquid manure, 

 will be easier to handle then the places where only one 

 line is in use. It seems like a good big expense at first 

 to put pipes in, but once they are installed there are 

 few men wdio would go back to the old way. The time 

 to put them in is when the houses are being built as 

 they can be put in much cheaper at this time than after 

 the whole house is in use, and you have to crawl through 

 all kinds of holes to get the pipes into the trenches. 

 In using the liquid manure be careful not to have the 

 plants too dry, oi it will damage the roots. If the 

 plants are inclined to be dry at all. better go over them 

 with clear wa1er at first. 



Anthemis 



In general ap|)earance plain and simple, in regard to 

 culture and soil unpretending and, last but not least, in 

 l)loom from June until nearly frost; these are the cltief 

 attributes of the hardy anthemis. It is the simplicity 

 of the marguerite which appeals to us; graceful flowers 

 of golden and canary yellow, or of creamy white, borne 

 on long wiry stems attract our attention by their abun- 

 dance. The aromatic scent of the finely-eut foliage rep- 

 resents another characteristic feature of the bushy 

 erect-growing types of this hardy perennial. Particu- 

 larly the long flowering period of the species Anthemis 

 tinctoria as well as its fine leaved fonn A. Kelwayi 

 proves of advantage. For this reason we have been 

 employing them ratlier freely in our mixed borders. 

 l"]qually satisfa(:i.ory effects can be obtained by using the 

 light sulphur-yellow variety A. tinctoria pallida, shown 

 by this week's cover illustration. The flowers of all the 

 above mentioned hardy marguerites are acceptable for 

 filling va,=cs. 



-As strikingly handsome subjects for the rock garden 

 we cannot overlook the low-growing mountain-species. 

 Best laiown in this class is undoubtedly Anthemis Aizoon, 

 syn. Achillea ageratifolia, a creeping fomi with sil- 

 very-white foliage and white flowers. A. Bibersteiniana 

 and A. argyrophylla, similar in growth to the former, 

 bloom yellow. Anthemis cinerea. tlie largest flowering 

 low species and A. montana, .syn. Santolina alpina, ])nv 

 duce white daisy-like blo.ssnms. 



All the hardy marguerites prefer a higli sunny loca- 

 tion Ihiiving best in a rather sandy but well eiii-iched 

 soil. They require the customary covei'ing during win- 

 ter. Plants may be raised from seed, or propagated by 

 ciittinss. or division. 



<llviisi(h\ Pa. 



-SBoeAxiA d -^ct/ca 



