March 8, 1919 



HORTICULTURE 



Where soil and weather conditions will allow , thi> is 

 the logical month to sow Sweel Peas in the open. The 

 florist who makes a specialty of this crop for cutting 

 will now have the plants well under way in three or four 

 inch pots in cool greenhouse or coklframe. I find thai 1 

 get lic-t results by sowing the seed in a cool greenhouse 

 early in January, and taking advantage of mild weather 

 in late February remove the pots into sheltered cold- 

 frames where if carefully covered for a night or two 

 until they become accustomed to the change in temper- 

 ature they are practically safe. The pots are then tran.- 

 ferred to a well prepared ground in late March or not 

 later than the first week in April if at all possible. 



By using the new Early Spencer and the regular sum- 

 mer-flowering Types, these plants begin to hloom in late 

 April, or at least in early May according to the season. 

 and last year we had first-class flowers right up to the 

 end of July. This may seem a comparatively short sen 

 sion to our northern growers, but we consider we are 

 doing well in this section when we can cut Sweet Peas 

 in the open up to the end of July. By using the two 

 types the flowering season is augmented as the Early- 

 flowering Spencers even when sown direct in the open 

 ground during the spring will flower two to three weeks 

 ahead of tin regular, or standard summer-flowering 

 Spencers. 



Among the best varieties for cutting of the summer- 

 flowering type it is questionable if there is anything to 

 beat Elfrida Pearson, light pink Hercules, deep pink: 

 King Edward Spencer, crimson: Vermilion Brilliant, 

 crimson-scarlet; Wedgood, blue; Margaret Madison, sil- 

 very-blue: Orchid, lavender; Margaret Atlee. rose-pink. 

 on cream: The President, orange; Thomas Stevenson, 

 orange-pink, and King White. 



Among the new early-flowering Spencers the follow- 

 ing have done specially well with me in the open. Early 

 Primrose Beauty, cream flushed rose; Early Improved 

 Snowstorm, pure white; Early Pink Beauty, Early New 

 Fordhbok Rose, Early Sunburst, Early Daybreak, Early 

 Blue Bird, and Earlv King. 



A Si'ray of Winter Flowering Sweet Peas. 



NEW WINTER FLOWERING SWEET 

 PEAS 



An interesting exhibit of new and 

 improved winter flowering sweet peas, 

 mostly of the orchid and granriillora 

 types like Yarrawa, was made by Bur- 

 pee's expert. George W. Kerr, at the 

 meeting of the Philadelphia Florists' 

 Club, March 4th. The collection ex- 

 cited great interest and the opinion 

 was freely expressed that the show- 

 ing was an evidence of a good stride 

 forward in this now important winter 

 out flower. Among those exhibited 

 the following were especially notice- 

 able: Fire King, Dazzler. ^Illumina- 

 tion, Mauve Beauty, Early Lustre, 

 Early Enchantress, *Blue Bird, Early 



Daybreak, Gypsy Maid, Early Dainti- 

 ness, Cherry Ripe, Early Exquisite, 

 Early Loveliness. **True Blue, *Snow- 

 storm, *Zephyr, Gorgeous, Glorious. 

 Those marked with a star were 

 judged by many to be especially fine; 

 those with a double star were thought 

 even more noteworthy. G. C. W. 



FERTILIZERS STILL HIGH 

 Commercial fertilizers are not goin ; 

 down in price this season, warns A. R. 

 Whitson of the soils department oi tn 

 Wisconsin Experiment station, be- 

 cause the manufacturers have already 

 put in their stock at high prices, but 

 the intelligent use of commercial stuff 

 to supplement the staple, manure, is 

 still a paying proposition. 



In the 1918 field tests carried on by 

 W. W. Weir, 300 pounds of acid phos- 

 phate to the acre increased the yield 

 of oats IS bushels on. excellent prairie 

 loam in Iowa county, says Mr. Whit- 

 son. The soil was so good that, unfer- 

 tilized, it yielded 69 bushels of oats to 

 the acr< . but fertilizer paid its way by 

 bringing the yield up to S7 bushels. On 

 the same kind of soil silage <orn 

 yielded l ." s tons ius ead of ^7 tons, 

 when (25 conn Is of add phosphate 

 was drilled in with the < 



At Hancock; a field without fertilizer 

 yielded in bushels of corn to i d re 

 On clover sol fertilized the previous 

 year and again fertilized for corn, the 

 yield was 55 bushels. Potatoes on 

 clover sod. without fertilizer, yi 

 89 bushels; with fertilizer, 120 bush- 

 els. 



