July 19, 1919 



HORTICULTURE 



:,:>, 



KEEP YOUR GREENS GREEN 



Through the hot, dry weather, by sprinkling fortnightly a slight mulch of 



Pulverized Shieep Manure 



$46.00 per ton, f. o. b. Boston 



EVERYTHING FOR THE GOLF LINKS 



. St J. FARQUHAR & CO 



6 South Market St., Boston, Mass. 



can pansy seed planted on American 

 soil will produce larger and finer flow- 

 ers than the foreign grown seed of the 

 same strain planted on the same soil. 

 Pansies degenerate very quickly; 

 therefore, it is important to procure 

 fresh seed every year from a special- 

 ist." 



Mr. Frost's planting directions are 

 as follows: "A cold frame is a good 

 place in which to sow the seeds if the 

 boards are not full of fungus; or a 

 box 9 inches to a foot high might be 

 made on fresh ground that is a little 

 sandy and was well manured for a 

 previous crop; dig and make the soil 

 fine and water it well before sowing 

 the seeds. Sow in drills 3 inches 

 apart and one-sixteenth inch deep. 

 One ounce of seed will sow about 300 

 to 350 feet of drill, or 90 feet if sown 

 broadcast. Cover the seed one-six- 

 teenth inch deep with fresh sa,nd or 

 sandy soil, pat down or roll well and 

 give a light watering. The surface 

 should be dusted with sulfur or grape 

 dust to keep the damping-off fungus 

 from starting. Cover with boards leav- 

 ing space for ventilation; or, they can 

 be covered with moss, hay or straw, be- 

 ing sure to remove the covering as 

 soon as the seed is sprouted. Pansy 

 seed will not sprout well if kept above 

 75 degrees. After sprouting and until 

 they have the second leaves, it is a 

 good plan to cover them with the thin- 

 nest muslin, tacked on frames. Sashes 

 may be used if well shaded and well 

 ventilated." 



This is the time to plant the seed, 

 although the work may be left until 

 the first week in August if plants for 

 spring sales are to be grown. It is 

 better, though, to get the seed in be- 

 fore the last of the month when plants 

 are to winter over outside. It is the 

 custom of growers around Boston to 

 shift the plants to new beds about six 

 weeks after seeding. These beds are 

 usually raised a little and the soil is 

 made rich. Plants are set out from six 



to eight inches apart each way. Some- 

 times cold frames are used, but many 

 of the largest growers winter out their 

 plants outside, depending upon the 

 raised beds to shed the water. 



One transplanting is enough. It is 

 said that transplanting has a tendency 

 to make the flowers small. After the 

 ground is frozen, a mulch of hay or 

 grass should be given, but it should 

 not be heavy, and should be removed 

 early in the spring. Pansies for win- 

 ter blooming are transplanted to the 

 beds or benches in the greenhouse. 

 Quoting Mr. Frost again: "There are 

 from 25,000 to 28,000 seed in one ounce 

 of pansy seed. Growers usually allow 

 one ounce of seed for 4,000 plants. 

 With good fresh seed, and great care, 

 7,000 to 8,000 plants should be obtained 

 from one ounce of seed." 



SWEET PEAS UNDER GLASS. 



Writing about sweet peas under 

 glass in the Sweet Pea Bulletin Wil- 

 liam Sims says: 



I have not seen any bad results from 

 the temperature dropping to 45 de- 

 grees or 46 degrees in zero weather. 

 I think it is much better for the plants 

 if it goes down to 48 degrees, for by 

 keeping the temperature up to 50 de- 

 grees in zero weather means too much 

 artificial heat, and the vines become 

 thin and exhaust themselves. I believe 

 the condition produced by the shutting 

 off of steam pipes without proper at- 

 tention to the ventilation bad for the 

 healthy growth of the plants. But the 

 principal cause of bud drop is in the 

 afternoon when the house is closed up 

 to hold what is advisable of the sun's 

 heat. This heat is allowed to chill as 

 the temperature drops. Enough pipes 

 should be turned in good season so the 

 atmosphere will never get damp and 

 sticky, but slowly fall to the desired 

 temperature for the night. I have had 

 no case of bud dropping for many 

 years, but it keeps a man continually 

 on the job attending to ventilation and 



steam pipes. Many miles are trodden 

 each day in the month of March, especi- 

 ally when the sun is in and out. Along 

 in April when the days are long and 

 the sun runs high the Peas can be 

 grown much cooler without having bud 

 drop. The absence of light in Mid- 

 winter while keeping up a flowering 

 temperature, makes the hardest time 

 for the grower. 



Tying and staking. — The best method 

 of doing this is to run a wire length- 

 wise of the house directly over the 

 row, 10 feet, if possible, from the 

 ground. This should be held in place 

 by cross wires at intervals of 8 feet or 

 10 feet. While the plants are small 

 short bamboo canes, those that are 

 practically worn out, about 2 feet to 

 3 feet long, are inserted every 3 feet 

 in the center of the row. Commence 

 at one end with a ball of white cotton 

 string and run out horizontally along 

 the sides of the row, going round the 

 stakes and making a tie at every five 

 or six stakes to prevent slackening. 

 When the plants have reached the top 

 of the stakes insert a longer and 

 stronger stake every 8 feet and tie the 

 top to the overhead wire. A Cypress 

 stake, 1 inch square, is good for this 

 purpose, or two or three long bamboo 

 canes tied together make a very neat 

 arrangement. 



Watering. — In their early stages in 

 the Autumn the plants require consid- 

 erable water, and in fine weather may 

 be watered overhead, but as the days 

 shorten the amount of water should 

 also be lessened. I never use water 

 overhead after the beginning of No- 

 vember. When in full crop they re- 

 quire much water, and if the drainage 

 is good cannot be over-watered. Sheep 

 manure is very beneficial at times, and 

 may be applied three or four times in 

 the season, watering it in. This may 

 be applied at any time of their growth, 

 but it is presumed that the grower has, 

 in preparing the soil, added enough to 

 carry the crop into full bloom. 



