November 30, 1912 



HOKTICULTUEE 



741 



NOTES ON CULTURE OF FLORISTS^ STOCK 



CONDUCTED BY 



Z^/ 



P^.^OA^lO/ 



Questions by our readers in line with any of the topics presented on this page will be cordially received and promtply answered 

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



Camellias 



Tliese plants are becoming more in favor each year 

 and it is surprising iiow well they sell at the holidays. 

 It must be borne in mind that camellias will not stand 

 anything like hard forcing. Tliey will be something 

 really fine when afforded a temperature not in excess 

 of ht degrees at night. Be very particular with ventila- 

 tion so as to give them plenty of air without cold 

 drauglits. Give them light in the greatest possible 

 abundance; they lilce plenty of sunshine at this time of 

 the year. Syringe frequently until the buds begin to 

 expand. An even amount of moisture at the roots is 

 very essential. Where the plants are very heavily budded 

 it would be well to remove some of the weaker ones which 

 will throw more strength into the remaining buds. Keep 

 fliem turned around often and see (hat they have plenty 

 of room between the plants to allow air ami light. 



Care of Fuchsias 



Plants which have had a good rest can now be placed 

 in a house with a temperature of from 55 to 60 at night, 

 with a rise of 10 to 15 degrees on sunny days. Shorten 

 the tops back to firm ripe wood and place them where 

 they will be near the glass; this will induce them to 

 make strong cuttings for propagation. When they have 

 made a growth of two or three inches you can take a 

 batch off and insert them in a propagating bed that has 

 a bottom heat of about 65 degrees with about 10 degrees 

 less toi> heat. Keep them moist and shaded and they 

 will root in two or three weeks. Wlien potting use 

 either 2i/2 or 3-inch pots, giving turfy loam three parts, 

 well-rotten manure one part, and leaf mold one part. 

 Keep them shaded for a little while until they begin to 

 take hold of the soil when they should be given all the 

 sun and light possible, well up to the glass. Syringe on 

 all fine days and keep the atmosphere moderately moist. 

 These plants can be propagated right up to Feb. 1. 



Daffodils for Early Forcing 



Where you have a batch of these in flats that are well 

 rooted it is not a bit too early to bring them in, so as to 

 flower during January. You can bring them into a 

 house where they can have about 55 degrees at night and 

 in three or four weeks they should have a temperature of 

 65 degrees. To induce a reasonable length of stem they 

 should be kept in com^jlete darkness for two or three 

 weeks, but after that they should have the shading re- 

 moved gradually a little at a time, until they are exposed 

 to full light. Place the flats where the heat from pipes 

 will not reach them as they do not like bottom heat. 

 When they start up with a vigorous growth of both top 

 and root, they will want water in great abundance to 

 - produce good flowers and stems, for where they are al- 

 [i lowed to suffer for moisture at the roots a certain per- 

 centage of the flowers will be no good. Where you have 

 y, some room below benches in a cool house you should 

 bring in a good number of flats and place them here. 

 j_i It will save a lot of disagreeable work later on when 

 3 weather is very cold. The grower who has a cellar that 



Mr. Farrell's next notes will be on the following: Christmas Foli: 

 Hybrid Tea Roses and Teas; Manetti 



is just clear of frost can utilize it to good advantage for 

 all such bulbs. 



Forcing of Ixias 



The forcing of these bulbs for either decorations or 

 for cut flowers can be made a paying venture. You can 

 use either 5 or 6-inch pots or pans in which place six 

 or eight bulbs. Be sure to provide eiBcient drainage in 

 each pot and use compost consisting of fibrous loam 

 ihree parts, old manure one part, and leaf mold and 

 sand one part. Press the compost firmly about the bulbs 

 and when the potting is completed they can be plunged 

 in coal ashes in a frame, where they can have protection 

 from hard freezing. It is always a good plan to have 

 llie compost in a moderately moist state when planting 

 the bulbs; then no water will be required until they 

 commence to make some visible growth. When they 

 liave made a good growth they should be removed to a 

 cool house and placed near the glass with an uninter- 

 rupted supply of light. Care in watering will be neces- 

 sur}' at .all stages of their growth, for isias suffer ma- 

 terially wiien the supply of water is in excess of their 

 lequirements. When they show good signs of advance- 

 ment they should have a temperature of from 50 to 55 

 fit night with an increase of ten degrees more with sun 

 heat. Don't ever think of hurrying these bulbs along 

 with a high temperature as they will then prove a failure. 

 Hybrid Perpetual Roses for Easter 



Well-grown hybrid perpetuals in pots will attract 

 ill any buyers for this spring holiday so now is the time 

 to begin on this line. Where you have not grown your 

 own stock in pots all summer — which is the best — go to 

 some near-b}- nurserymen and get a supply without de- 

 lay. When potting them use from a 7 up to a 10-inch 

 pot according to tlie size of the plants. For a compost 

 use any good rose soil. Give each pot good drainage, for 

 later on tliey will require plenty of water at the roots. 

 Pot quite firmly so that every root will be compactly sur- 

 rounded with soil. When you have them all potted give 

 enough of water so it will penetrate every particle of the 

 compost. They can then be put in some deep frame 

 and enough strawy manure put over them to keep the 

 frost from breaking the pots until it is time to bring 

 them in for forcing. Good varieties are Magna Charta, 

 Mrs. John Laing, Barroness de Eothschild, Anna de 

 Diesbach, Captain Hayward, Gloire de Burgh la Peine, 

 Frau Karl Druschki, Margaret Dickson, Captain Christy. 

 Sowing Candytuft 



Now is a good time to sow some of this seed for pots 

 and bench culture which will come in fine later on. Sow 

 m pans or flats that have been well drained and filled 

 with finely sifted loam, to which a little sand has been 

 added. Press the surface smooth and water. On this 

 sow the seed, covering enough so as to put the seed about 

 three times their diameter deep. Stand in a house that 

 is warm until the seeds begin to come up when they 

 should be placed in a temperature of about 48 degrees 

 at night and grown on. When large enough they can 

 he pricked out in other flats or potted off. 



lee Plants; Care of Fancy Pelargoniums; Decorative Ferns; 

 Stock ; Rhododendrons for Forcing. 



