502 



HOETICULTUEE 



October 14, 1916 



ROSE GROWING UNDER GLASS 



CONDCCTKD BY 



by Mr. Ruilcka. Such commnnlcatlon 



Washing Pots 



With the summer rush shieked up a little it will be 

 well to stop a while and get all the pots cleaned up and 

 put away so that they will be all ready when potting 

 time comes around again which will be soon enough, 

 although it seems but yesterday that we planted the last 

 bench. It is very important to see that the pots arc 

 thoroughly clean on the inside. The most important 

 place is the ring near the top about where the level of 

 the soil will come. There is generally an extra thick 

 scum on this, and if not carefully washed some of this 

 will remain and spread over the new soil when the pot 

 is used again. The old method of washing liy hand can 

 only be practied where help is cheap and plentiful, and 

 even then it will pay to wash the pots with time and 

 labor-saving machinery, such as can be ]3U]-ehased or 

 made at home. To make a jjot-washer does not require a 

 skilled engineer, and anyone handy with tools will soon 

 make one out of material generally found lying aroimd 

 idle. A shaft and a pulley are the main things, the pul- 

 ley being attached to one end of the shaft and the 

 brushes to the other end. To save the floors of the .sheds, 

 the work can be done outside as there is bound to be 

 some water thrown around and this would never agree 

 with the floors if they are of wood. The best way is to 

 arrange to put a gang of men at the work and clean it 

 up in no time. Where an electric motor is used for 

 power, care should be taken to see that proper protec- 

 tion against water is provided, as no water must come 

 near the motor and positively none into it, as water is 

 as good a conductor of electricity as there is and a little 

 of it in the working parts of a motor would prove fatal 

 to it. not to mention the men around the machine who 

 would likely get hurt by the short circuit that would 

 result. A piece of roofing put over the motor is as good 

 protection as any. Covering with a canvas is good but 

 the motor must Jiave air to keep cool, as otherwise it is 

 likely to heat and wear out fast. Roofing is waterproof 

 and stiff so that it will not hug the motor as much as a 

 canvas would, andl in this way the motor will keep 7uuch 

 cooler. While the pots are lieing washed it is well to see 

 that they are all the same size, and if mixed at all they 

 should be properly graded. Also all cracked and broken 

 pots. should be thrown out. Before washing the pots 

 should be soaked for several days in baiTcls full of water 

 to soften all the dirt and thus save a great deal of time 

 and brushes when the washing is done. Last but not 

 least it is best to take inventory of all pots on hand and 

 their respective sizes. Then with a list of plants to be 

 grown and a list of pots it is simple enough to figure 

 out the sizes that have to be ordered and thisordering 

 should not be put off until the plants are in pots and 

 pot-bound but, should be done now, thus giving them 

 plenty of time to come, for if reports are correct the pot 

 manufacturers are very busy and freights move slowly, 

 so order them now and have them when thev are needed. 



Grading for New Houses 



Eight now is time to grade for all new houses that are 

 to be built during the winter or early spring. If the 

 work is done now the soil will have a chance to settle 

 before the houses are built and there will be no settling 

 of walls or benches after the houses are up. If thj 

 ground is very stony it will be well to watch where the 

 stones are put so that they will not be in line where the 

 columns or posts are to come, and be in the way when 

 tlie holes are dug. It will be best to lay the ground out 

 properly, and then grade right from one end to the other 

 iDcing careful to fill and cut to within a quarter of an 

 inch. By having the ground ready many dollars and 

 much annoyance will be saved as the building can then 

 go right ahead, and if all is graded as stated above it 

 will be a simple matter indeed to set up the benches, 

 which is quite a proposition on uneven ground. Con- 

 sider well the lay of the land so that no trouble will lie 

 exi)eiienced with water later on and the whole plant can 

 lie drained, not only the houses but the cellars as well, as 

 there is nothing more annoying around a place than a 

 wet cellar. Care should be taken to consider well all 

 plans for the future, as many a dollar can be saved by 

 careful planning now and avoiding expensive alterations 

 later when more houses are added. If everything is care- 

 fully planned an addition should be built to the place 

 without spending one dollar for changing anything on 

 the old plant. 



The Sod Heaps 



In sections of the country where the soil is very heavy 

 it is necessary to have all the sod heaped up in the fall 

 so that the sod will be in shape to go into the benches 

 in the spring. This work shoiild not be put off too long 

 now, as later the rains will so soak the ground that it 

 will cost at least half as much more to put up the heaps 

 as it would now while the soil is still a little dry. In 

 taking the soil off the fields see that the field is not 

 robbed too much so that there will be a chance for it to 

 recover in as short a time as is possible. Tliis can be done 

 by plowing shallow, and taking the sod up with a fork 

 and not a shovel. All that will drop through the fork 

 should stay right on the field. It will be better for the 

 field and for the roses too, as they want only the fibrous 

 part of the sod. Wlien it comes to manure see that there 

 is plenty of it put into the soil and that the layer of 

 sod is not too thick. Six inches of sod and then manure 

 is right except that the very bottom layer of sod hf^d 

 better be thicker so that it will absorb all the leachings 

 from the soil and manure above. If the layers of sod 

 should be made too thick the manure will not have a 

 chance to work through tlie soil as it should, and it will 

 not be in as fme condition as it would if the sod layers 

 were made thinner. 



