July 20. 1912 



H R T I C U L T U E E 



75 



ROSE GROWING UNDER GLASS 



CONDUCTED BY 



c/l/Cyfc^iX-yUy^--^^ 



Questions by our readers in line with any of tbe topics presented on tills page will be cordially received and promptly answered 

 by Mr. Ruzlcka. Such communications should Invariably be addressed to the office of HORTICUETUKE. 



The Planting 



At last ! These words uttered with a sigh of relief 

 from the lips of mauy growers, when the last rose is 

 planted in the benches, and the last wheel-barrow load 

 of old dirt and soil scraped out from under the benches. 

 Looking after the newly planted houses will be quite a 

 relief from the hard work of filling the benches. 



Many growers who have a large number of small old- 

 fashioned houses to contend with will find refilling and 

 replanting a none too pleasant job. 



Try to connect up the houses so as to have easy access 

 to all the doors on one end at least. Smilax or asparagus 

 can be grown in the connecting houses, wliich, by the way, 

 should be started now. Set nice strong plants out of 

 21/2-iiich pots (if larger just so much better). Do not 

 give these too much soil. Four inches is plenty, more 

 can always be added, and you will find it pays to have 

 room for a little extra soil. This applies especially to 

 the spring of the year when beds dry out so rapidly, and 

 the old soil seems "worn out" as we say. A little mulch 

 of soil, bone, manure and soot, will put new life into 

 things then. But now for the present work. 



Beauties 



The early-planted houses will now be making a nice 

 growth and will soon call for their second tier of wires. 

 Plants set as we advised some time ago, — say 20 to 34 

 inches apart may look rather thin as yet, but from the 

 looks of some of ours they will fully make up for it later. 

 Some of the best growers of Beauties in the East are 

 learning that the Beauty is not to be crowded. WTiat is 

 a houseful of wood, so much of it that it can hardly be 

 kept clean, when no stuff is cut ? We prefer houses that 

 have less wood and 3'et cut all the time. 



Many growers claim they can make Beauties flower 

 whenever they wish to. No doubt this can be done but 

 we find it pays best to let them grow their own way and 

 producing some all the time. We do not aim to have a 

 great crop for Christmas or for any of the other holidays. 

 It is the average for the season that counts with us. 

 We have known Beauties to bring as good and better 

 prices during January and February than they did at 

 Christmas. 



Beauties are unlike other roses. We find they are in 

 a class by themselves. We never try to figure just when 

 to bring in a crop, as we would with Killarneys or other 

 roses. We find that by trying to ""set" a house we check 

 so much of the other growths, that whatever we gain by 

 having a crop at a certain time we lose it by checking the 

 shorter growths. There is no otlier rose that will turn 

 up its nose to improper treatment sooner than our 



American Beauty. Most roses if abused will produce 

 some iDlooms at least, but a Beauty will stop and refuse to 

 move nine times out of ten. 



Keep a watch on the leaves that touch the surface of 

 the soil in the bench. Pick off all leaves that have a 

 tending to be flat on the soil. These will be vei7 difficult 

 to syringe and may only breed spider, beside inviting 

 blackspot. 



Blackspot 



There are so many causes which this disease may be 

 attributed to, that it is impossilfle to ascertain just what 

 made it appear in a house. AVe have had no trouble 

 with it whatever except toward spring in some of our 

 solid benches. But in the raised benches and semi-solid 

 Ijenches no blackspot appeared. By propagating from 

 clean healthy plants our young stock is absolutely free 

 from it so we hope we sliall have no trouble this com- 

 ing season. 



When tying, scratching, watering, — no matter what 

 you are doing, — and you happen to spy a large black- 

 spot on a yellow leaf among the bottom moist leaves, 

 stop long enough to pick it ofE. This may seem so small 

 a tiling that it may be considered of little importance 

 and yet that very spot may be responsible for a "black- 

 spotted i>atch" in the bench later on. These big spots 

 may safely be called the seed, and if allowed to remain, 

 will show you what they can do the first time that con- 

 ditions are favorable. Spraying Avith ammoniacal cop- 

 per carbonate, will help keep spot from spreading, but 

 is by no means a caue, and should never be considered as 

 such. 



The Early Planted Houses 



If you have any houses planted early, say the flrst of 

 April or earlier, get some manure ready and as soon as 

 these may require it give them a nice mulch of weU- 

 decayed manure. Do not use any soil with it, for it is 

 too early in the season for that. If the manure is well 

 decayed and the plants watered before it is applied and 

 again after applying, no damage should be done. 



Be careful not to have the plants too dry when ap- 

 plying this mulch or you may have occasion to regret 

 it. We would not advise using any bone meal with this 

 mulching; a little soot would do very nicely, but if the 

 plants are given too much fertilizer early in tlie season 

 they are likely to become too soft and subject to mildew 

 next fall, when the cloudy moist weather comes. 

 Beauties, too, are apt to become weak and spindling if 

 overfed during the summer. The main object is to pro- 

 tect the young tender feeding roots near the surface 

 of the soil and to keep the benches from drying out too 

 rapidly. 



