August 7, 1915 



HORTICULTURE 



163 



ROSE GROWING UNDER GLASS 



- ( ONUICTED BY 



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. Suchi communications sbould invariably be addressed to the offlce of HORTICULTURE. 



Scratching Over Benches 



This should be done ^\\\\ care, for it is fur more 

 important than most greenhouse workers realize, and if 

 done carelessly and in an offhand manner considerable 

 harm may result. In the first place, the soil should 

 never be broken up too fine. Let the surface stay lumpy 

 and rough. It will be much easier to water, and the 

 soil will stay open much better if it is left this way 

 then when the lumps are all crushed fine, and the surface 

 of the, soil left smooth. Never scratch too deeply after 

 the plants are rooted, as if this is done, a large number 

 of the fine surface roots will be destroyed, and the plants 

 checked, to say the least. Avoid using weeders, and 

 other various devices used to scratch among the plants. 

 Unless these are liandled by well experienced men, more 

 damage than good will result from their use. We find 

 that the average unskilled man will dig around the 

 plants far too deeply, taking out big chunks of sod and 

 tearing these to pieces without any consideration for the 

 welfare oC tlie plants. Keep the benches rubbed over to 

 keep the weeds all down, and the surface of the soil all 

 open, but do not scratch too deeply. 



Watering 



As soon as the plants begin growing, and the roots 

 start working in the soil, the area that is watered must 

 be increased, so that the plants do not sufl'er. The new 

 roots pushing out from the original ball will be very 

 tender, and when they come in contact with the hot dry 

 soil they will die, and this must not happen, as it is 

 very important to keep the plants going all the time. To 

 see how the roots are progressing, scratch the eartli away 

 here and there, and see how far they have penetrated info 

 the new soil. Try to keep tlie soil wet just half an inch 

 or so beyond this circle. When the plants happen to be 

 quite dry, as sometimes occurs during these hot summer 

 days, take care not to wet the foliage when watering, as 

 it is apt to burn the same as it would when the plants 

 are dry and are syringed. It is best to train all men 

 to water without wetting any leaves at all, no matter 

 what the weather is, and then the grower is always on 

 the safe side. There is no sense in splashing the water 

 all over the place for this work is as important as any 

 other in rose growing and should be done equally as 

 neatly and as well. 



Staking and Tying 



With the late [ihuiting tliis year there will still W- a 

 good many houses to be staked and tied. It is well to 

 dip the ends of all stakes into good metallic paint, 

 dipping only the portion that is to go into the soil. Dip 

 the stakes ten or twenty at a time, doing the work out- 

 side in the hot sun, rather than in the potting shed. .Vs 

 soon as the stakes are dry tiiey can be used. Do not use 



tar or any preparation containing tar or creosote, as the 

 latter are harmful and although the little tar that would 

 go on the end of a stake may not harm the plant seriously, 

 it is best not to take any chances. See that the stakes- 

 are placed all on one side of the plants, and as nearly 

 stra.ight as possible. It may not make much difference 

 in the returns whether the stakes are straight or not, 

 but it adds much to the appearance of the place, and 

 if this T^ork is not done neatly, it is bound to suggest 

 carelessness on somebody's part, for it does not take any 

 longer to do the work neatly. In tying the plants the- 

 first time, it is well to use good strong white cord, as 

 these first knots will liave to weather the syringing, etc., 

 for a whole year, and it is not nice to have the cords- 

 break toward spring and the plants lay all over. An- 

 other point to watch is to see that the plants are not 

 liunched too much. If this is done they are bound to- 

 lose leaves or else he diflicult to keep clean of spider' 

 and spot. Beauties should never be tied to stakes, as 

 they will suffer in the long run, and cannot be handled' 

 nearly so well as when they are tied to wires. Be sure 

 to use five wires to the four rows of plants, as less than 

 that is unhandy in all the operations that follow. Be 

 sure that the wood is well distributed when tying the 

 first time. This will have an effect on number of roses 

 cut, and the better the growth is distributed, the better 

 chance there is for more roses. If Beauties are tied 

 while they are still single stems, they should all be tied 

 on a slant to the north, not using the front wire at all. 

 This will help let the sun strike the foot of the plants 

 where they are bound to break, whereas if they were 

 tied up straight, or else slanted south, these bottom 

 breaks would not have as much show as they should 

 have. The above refers to plants in houses running 

 east and west, or nearly so. 



Perennials 



It is not too late yet to sow some seed of tlie favorite 

 perennials, cultural directions for which will he found 

 elsewhere in IIoirnciLTrRE, and the few dollars invested 

 in these ])laiits will be well spent, for the place that looks 

 bright and cheerful with flowers here and there around 

 the outside of the packing slied's and greenhouses, i» 

 always the one that is most prosperous, and tlie Tneii 

 employed on a jilace like that are proud of it Jis a rule 

 and have little trouble to secure positions in case they 

 have to leave. A Dorothy Perkins rose, or other varie- 

 ties of this type ])lanted here and' there to climb over 

 a fence whicli would otherwise be an eyesore, will do 

 wonders in changing the looks of the place. Most of 

 this work can be done without neglecting anything in- 

 side; in fact, we have known cases where men would 

 be glad to do the work at noon or at night, just to see 

 the place hjok better. It is well worth trying, and as 

 soon as the men become interested in the work, it will 

 be a simple matter to keep the pLiee in shape. 



