September 30, 1916 



HORTICULTURE 



441 



ROSE GROWING UNDER GLASS 



NUUCTKD 



CONUUCTKD BY 



Queitlons by our readers In line with any of the toplei presented on this page will be cordially rff-elred and promptly asiwered 

 by Mr. Ruilcka. Such commnnlcatlons shoold InTarlably be addreued to the office o£ HORTICULTUKB. 



The Night Temperature 



From now on careful attention must be paid to the 

 uiglit temperature in the houses if the roses are to do 

 at all well. The way the nights have been here in 

 southern New England the last week or two it is 

 necessary to have heat every night right up to about 

 eight o'clock in the morning. From 62 to 6-i at night 

 will be right, and the houses should not be run any 

 cooler unless there are special reasons for so doing, as 

 the days are still warm- — hot in most cases — and if the 

 houses were run a little cooler there would be too great 

 a difference between the day and the night temperature, 

 for roses should have a steady temperature as far as 

 possible, with about 18 degrees difference between the 

 day and night. This refers to clear days. On cloudy 

 days it will be necessary to run the houses only about 4 

 degrees warmer than the night temperature. By a 

 cloudy day we mean a day with no sun at all, and per- 

 haps a little fog or rain. It will be best to carry air 

 right along especially after syringing or watering. We 

 always try to carry air until the temperature drops to 

 26 outside when the houses would first be closed up. Of 

 course there may be rainy, or windy nights when it 

 would be best to have the vents closed, as the air outside 

 is worse than the air inside. 



Repairs 



Jack Frost is already nosing around nights and the 

 bars on the houses will soon be wet all the time so that 

 it will be very difficult to apply paint and putty. It 

 will therefore be well to go over the place and see that 

 all broken glass is repaired before the weather gets too 

 cold. Repairing broken glass is not a very pleasant Job 

 at best but cold weather makes it much worse. There 

 may also be other repairs that will have to be made. 

 Look for loose bars in the old wooden houses and for 

 decayed posts where no iron was used. The backs of 

 the old greenhouses can also be made a great deal wanner 

 by applying tar paper, which should be a good grade. We 

 do not always like to do this, but in a pinch it has to 

 do and then when we walk past the greenhouse we look 

 the other way. Tar paper will mend an old leaky wall 

 a good deal so that it will go two or three years before 

 new boards have to be put on or the wall built up of 

 concrete. The coal saved will pay for the paper tlie 

 first year. While looking for broken glass see that all 

 panes that may have slid down are replaced and nail 

 properly. If time will permit it would pay to take them 

 out and put new putty under them and after this treat- 

 ment they will stay put for a while. 

 Watering 



Watering will have to be done very carefully from now 

 on. See that the leaves on the plants are not touched by 

 the water, especially if it should be necessary to water 

 on a cloudy day. By holding the nozzle close to the 

 bench the water will strike the soil only and the foliage 

 will remain drj'. The plants should also be allowed lo 

 dry out fairly well between waterings so as to en- 

 courage the roots. If these get all they want right 



around the plant they will spiead very slowly. But if 

 they have to get out and hustle they will soon spread 

 through the soil in search of water, food, etc. When 

 watering be careful to see that the poor plants that may 

 be in the bench here and there are not overwatered. 

 This can be avoided by going through the houses with a 

 little lime and marking the cut-off plants or poor plants 

 by scattering a little lime around them. With this 

 system there will be no excuse for anyone to lose any 

 plants that were all cut off and died because of too much 

 water. By careful cutting some growth can always be left 

 and if tliis is done there will be little danger from too 

 much water. In the houses that were planted quite late 

 it will not be safe to water the whole bench, but the cir- 

 cles around the plants should be increased as the roots 

 spread out. 



Keep the Soil Rough 



As soon as the soil in the benelies breaks up so that 

 it will be all fine and not take water as it should, it 

 should be given a light mulch of cow manure and good 

 sod. There should not be too much soil in it as this 

 as ^ rule becomes only a nuisance. Apply enough of 

 the mulch to keep the water where you place it so that 

 it will not run all over the benches and fairly drown 

 the plants in places, and leaving others suffering for 

 want of water. Deep scratching should be avoided as 

 the roots are pretty well into the soil and if this is 

 stirred too deeply some of the roots are sure to get 

 torn and otherwise damaged. Every little cheek will 

 tell in the long run. as it is the little things that grad- 

 ually lead to the bigger ones. If manure is plentiful 

 then this can be used by itself, but care should be 

 taken to see that it is not applied too heavily. A light 

 application is much better for the plants than a heavy 

 one, it being much easier to control the moisture. But 

 the surface of the soil should be kept rough and lumpy 

 at all times to insure proper distribution of water and 

 to protect the roots working in the compact soil ju.st 

 underneatli. 



Asparagus and Smilax 



There are a few places growing only roses and not 

 having any smilax or asparagus around, most places 

 growing it in the cross houses and the ends of houses. 

 With a little care these two can be made to make all the 

 ■cross houses pay for their keep with a dollar or two to 

 the good now and then. They are crops that can be held 

 when the market is low so it is seldom that this will be 

 a loss of any kind, besides there is always market for 

 good asparagus and good smilax. A little mulching with 

 horse manure now will do the greens worlds of good, as 

 will an occasional dose of liquid manure to which a little 

 nitrate is added. If there arc not enough greens to make 

 it worth while mixing the nitrate extra, it can be applied 

 directly to the benches, being careful to see that the 

 plants are wet enough at the roots but that the foliage 

 is perfectly dry. If this is not so do not apply the nitrate 

 as it will stick to the foliage here and there and will 

 surelv burn it or mark it so as to reduce its market value. 



