v; i 



HORTICULTURE 



September 27, 1919 



THE FINEST AND HARDIEST LILY GROWN 



L.IL.IUIVI REGALE 



Acknowledged to be the finest horticultural introduction in several generations. 



Trade Prices on Application 



R. & J. FARQUHAR & OO. 



BOSTON, MASS. 



occasionally .disappear like the aura- 

 turn lily, a fact which militates against 

 its popularity among amateurs. Al- 

 though not widely grown as yet, plants 

 of Artemisia lactiflora are occasionally 

 stumbled upon unexpectedly. Mr. Wil- 

 son tells me that only recently he hap- 

 pened to be in a garden in a suburban 

 town, where he found a well estab- 

 lished and vigorous clump which was 

 blooming nicely. 



I cannot help wondering how J. 

 Horace McFarland, editor of the Rose 

 Annual, is going to view the project 

 of the Society of American Florists to 

 put up billboards all over the country 

 for advertising flowers and the so- 

 ciety's slogan "Say It With Flowers." 

 As is well known, Mr. McFarland is 

 president of the American Civic Asso- 

 ciation — has been, in fact, for many 

 years — and opposition to billboards 

 and other kinds of roadside advertis- 

 ing has been made a powerful feature 

 of this organization's work. Mr. Mc- 

 Farland himself has inveighed against 

 the billboard all up and down the 

 country, if I am not mistaken. Per- 

 hays he will have something rather 

 definite to say about this matter after 

 a time. At any rate, it is certain to be 

 definite if he speaks at all, for he has 

 a command of words second to few 

 men in the country, one reason, no 

 doubt, why he is in demand as a lec- 

 turer and why he is an especially valu- 

 able man to have in charge of the 

 Rose Society's publication. 



Cromwell Gardens at Cromwell, Conn., 

 is one to receive special mention. 

 While conventional in form and by no 

 means pretentious, its illustrations in 

 color are wonderfully good and almost 

 certainly ensure that it will be kept 

 for future reference. The full page 

 frontispiece of Iris Kbarput is a gem. 

 So, for that matter, is the smaller 

 illustration of Iris Purple King. There 

 is an excellent picture in color of the 

 hardy climbing rose called Rosiere, 

 which is considered an improvement 

 of Thousand Beauties (Tausendschon 

 before the war) and a popular favorite. 



Peter Henderson & Co., of New 

 York are also putting out a catalogue 

 with colored illustrations which makes 

 a favorable impression. The coloring 

 of the red and pink flowers is much 

 less delicate, however, than in the 

 Cromwell catalogue. In fact, it is a 

 question whether it would not have 

 been wise to omit the cuts of early 

 tulips unless more satisfactory effects 

 could be obtained. The illustrations of 

 Narcissi on the other hand are charm- 

 ing and almost certain to bring orders. 



There are tremendous possibilities 

 in the use of colored plates, but en- 

 terprise will do well to wait on caution 

 when the subject is particularly diffi- 

 cult or when the printer's execution 

 is not to the mark. Good colored illus- 

 trations will draw trade; poor illustra- 

 tions will repel it. 



The remarks which I made recently 

 about certain of the spring catalogues 

 should be extended to include some of 

 those issued this fall. That of the 



Incidentally, it is interesting to note 

 the different way in which the nursery- 

 men regard color. In his Cromwell 

 Gardens catalogue Mr. Pierson puts 

 all the color inside, the cover illustra- 

 tions being in black and white. The 

 Henderson people have color both in- 

 side and out, with a fine Dutch con- 

 ception to first catch the eye. The 

 Conard & Jones Co., reverses the Pier- 

 son plan by using plenty of color on the 

 covers and none inside. They are 

 using American Pillar and Dr. Van 

 Fleet roses on the front cover, creat- 

 ing something of a problem for the 



printer, but one which he has met suc- 

 cessfully. 



And by the way, I wish that the 

 catalogue makers would use cuts of 

 the newer flowers so far as possible. 

 We all know what the old time 

 favorites look like, but we are keen to 

 have a glimpse at the newer sorts. 

 Yet we find the most commonplace 

 varieties pictured in many catalogues, 

 sometimes very conspicuously. Isn't 

 there an opportunity for improvement 

 here? 



SPHAGNUM MOSS. 



These plants, for there are many 

 species of sphagnum, grow best in a 

 climate that is moist and only mode- 

 rately warm in summer. They are 

 one of the chief forms of vegetation 

 found growing in the swampy regions 

 known as "muskegs," and occur prin- 

 cipally in Newfoundland, the Maritime 

 Provinces, North-eastern Quebec, Lab- 

 rador, and the western parts of British 

 Columbia. 



The sphagnum plant consists of a 

 stem and branches, which are clothed 

 with small, numerous overlapping 

 leaves. They differ from most other 

 mosses, in being entirely devoid of 

 rootlets. Another peculiarity of sphag- 

 num is that the leaf never has a cen- 

 tral vein or mid-rib. The outer part of 

 the stem, as well as a considerable 

 part of the leaf, is composed of a large 

 number of special "absorbent cells" 

 which are able to take up and hold 

 water like a sponge. The amount of 

 water absorbed varies according to 

 the species, but ranges from ten to 

 twenty times the weight of the dry 

 sphagnum. Owing to the ability of 

 these cells to absorb the water required 

 by the plant for its development, the 

 presence of rootlets is unnecessary. 



Sphagnum or bog moss has been 

 used for a considerable period as a 

 packing material for plants. Owing to 

 its power of retaining moisture, it 

 helps to keep them in a fresh con- 

 dition until they arrive at their destin- 

 ation. 



