July 15, 1916 



HOETICULTURE 



71 



NOTES ON CULTURE OF FLORISTS' STOCK 



CONDUCTED BY 



^9A*>'%9^.r-aA^ic£/ 



Questions by our readers In line with any of the topics presented on this page will be cordially received and promptly antweredj 



by Mr. Farrell. Such communications should Invariably be addressed to the office of HORTICULTURE. 



"If vain oar toll, we ougrht to blame the CDltnre, not the solL" — Popt. 



Achimenes 



When the soil becomes tilled with roots they will 

 stand a good supply of water and would be greatly ben- 

 efited by a weekly application of liquid manure. Keep 

 these plants nicely staked so as to have in good form 

 before the buds start to open. When the flower buds 

 are fully formed and just before they begin to open 

 they can be moved to a cooler and airy house that is 

 well shaded. Be careful not to submit them to too 

 great a change at first, but gradually inure them. They 

 will do better here at this stage than if kept in warmer 

 quarters where they are bound to make a drawn and 

 spindly growth. When they are through blooming 

 place them by themselves in a moderately warm hou.se 

 where they will have plenty of light and air and grad- 

 ually withhold water at the roots. 



Asparagus Sprengeri 



These plants always do better planted in solid beds. 

 Give them a very rich compost, a foot deep. Equal 

 parts of turfy loam and cow manure will not be a bit 

 too rich, as they are very greedy feeders. It can also be 

 grown in suspended baskets or in a narrow bench run- 

 ning along the front or the rear of a well-lighted house. 

 A soil that will grow roses will be all right for it but 

 you can make it richer. It will do finely in a tempera- 

 ture of about 55 degrees at night, or a little higher with 

 plenty of moisture at its roots. They can be set from 15 

 to 18 inches apart between the plants. 



Housing Carnations 



The first thing to do is to shade the house with some 

 material that will come ofi: easily in about ten days. 

 Give the houses a thorough cleaning and make provi- 

 sion for whitewashing the inside of all benches as lime 

 is a germ destroyer and also helps to preserve the wood. 

 All good growers consider from now and up until the 

 middle of August the best time to house carnations. 

 Any time later means a loss in the crop of flowers. 

 Wlien lifting the plants from the field, remove them 

 as quickly as possible to some place protected from sun 

 and wind. If you have plenty of plants select only the 

 best and most shapely for benching. Make a hole just 

 large enough to hold the roots nicely and bear in mind 

 it is always better to set the plants a little higher than 

 they were in the field, or the stems are liable to rot. 



Lorraine Begonias 



Shade just enough to keep the foliage from burning. 

 A heavy shade only tends to keep them too soft. Give 

 them a look over two or three times a day so none will 

 be left in a dry state, and avoid careless watering-at all 

 times. If at all potbound don't wait a time to shift, 

 but do not shift unless you are positive that the plants 

 are in need of it. The main thing is to give a porous 

 soil. We are using loam and leaf mold mixed with 

 about one-fifth of well rotted cow manure for the pres- 

 ent shifting and this with plenty of drainage in the 

 pots seems to suit the plants nicely. Don't overlook 

 keeping the flowers and buds removed. Growth is what 

 you want now and not flowers. If the plants are free 

 from green fly, as good a way as any to keep them so is 

 to apply weekly a light spraying of a nicotine solution. 



Mignonette for Winter 



Where it is possible, give mignonette a solid bench,_ 

 but where this is not possible they should have at least 

 from 10 to 13 inches of soil to grow on. They should 

 stand about 13 inches apart each way. The best way is 

 to draw lines lengthwise and crosswise and the seed can 

 be sown where the lines meet, using four to sis seed at 

 each junction. Make the compost rich as they require 

 lots of plant food. The best soil is that taken from an 

 old pasture last fall and piled up over the winter. To 

 two loads of this use one load of cow manure and a good 

 sprinkling of bone meal and turn this over two or three 

 times so they will be well mixed. When the benches 

 are filled make the surface nice and fine for the seed. 

 Cover the seed lightly and water with a fine rose until 

 the soil around the seed is well moistened. 



Reminders 



Keep the soil well stirred between all growing crops. 



Keep all the surplus shoots regularly removed from 

 chrysanthemums. 



Let the youug smilax climb now where they have 

 thickened out at the bottom. 



Keep the atmosphere in all houses moist by several 

 damnings daily during this month and next. 



Buy some pansy seed and sow now, also some of the 

 ■'tufted pansies," Viola cornuta. They are extremely 

 floriferous. 



Next Week:— Antirrhinums; Beds of Adiantum ; Chrysanthemums; Orchids; Rambler Roses; Reminders. 



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