March 14. 1914 



HORTICULTUBB 



363 



ROSE GROWING UNDER GLASS 



CONDUCTKD BY 



i/l/(l^(^U^y^.<^J<i-^<^ 



Qaestlons by our renders in line witb any of the toplca presented on tbis piiee will be cordially received and promptly uuwwad 

 by Mr. Rnzlcka. Such commonicatioDS aboald Inrariably be addressed to the office of HORTICULTURE. 



1 he Cellar Drains 



Some growers no doubt had some trouble with the 

 water that started to pour into the cellars when the 

 recent thaw came all of a sudden, with heavy rains to go 

 with it. Where good drainage was provided there was 

 little trouble, although the drains could not carry away 

 all the water in certain cases. Where this was the case 

 there is nothing better to take the water out of a cellar 

 than a little pump called the Kinney Pump which is 

 operated by city water, or the water on the place, as 

 long as there is enough pressure to force the water about. 

 A hose is connected to one end of it and another hose to 

 the other end, and this is then stretched out of the cel- 

 lars to a place where the water will run away. The 

 The other end is then fastened to a faucet and the water 

 turned on, and the pump will do the rest. These pumps 

 are very inexpensive compared to the work that they per- 

 form in times of emergency, and they may lay on the 

 place several years and never be used, yet when the time 

 comes they save many times their cost for they are 

 cheaper than frozen greenhouses with the boiler rooms 

 flooded and the fires put out. Keep a few of them on 

 hand, and they will pay good returns one of these days. 



Soot 



As the dark weather passes away, the plants will no 

 doubt be a little off color, and the same may be said of 

 the flowers. To remedy this a little soot can be scattered 

 along the benches, not too much of it. Just enough to 

 blacken the surface of the soil. This can be watered 

 in when the plants are watered, and will be very little 

 additional labor. Where you are feeding the plants 

 some of this soot in liquid manure, so much tlie better, 

 as the roots will have all the more chance to get at it. 

 Do not mix too much of it into the water as it is quite 

 strong and may do some damage. If the benches have 

 been limed recently, do not apply the soot, and the same 

 if you intend to lime the benclies in the near future. The 

 lime and the soot will not mix to be agreeable to plant 

 growth, and in many cases burned foliage, and the least 

 visible harm — burned roots — are the results. Once the 

 plants are damaged in this way there is some work ahead 

 for the grower to rectify the damage although this is 

 not possible at once. 



Nitrate of Soda 



This is a ivery strong fertilizer, and must never be 

 used except with the greatest caution. Even the well 

 experienced growers will hesitate to use it in most cases. 

 If the weather promises to remain clear, and your plants 

 are strong and vigorous, growing well, and you wish to 

 help them along, then a little nitrate mixed into the 

 liquid manure will do the work very nicely. 



Scraping Around the Potted Plants 



Do not allow any green scum to form on the surface 

 of the soil in the pots. As soon as there is any at all 

 to be seen, go over the plants with a little iron scraper 

 that can easily be made out of a piece of iron laying 

 around the place. Take the plant off the bench, and 

 then run this scraper around to remove all the undesir- 

 able scum, and throw the so-loosened old soil into a flat 



or something that has been provided for it. Then stir 

 up a little more soil so as to leave the surface of the pot 

 a little rough, so that it will take the water better, and 

 also to keep it clean for a while to come. When re- 

 placing the plants on the benches set them as we advised 

 last week and you will find that they will grow much 

 more rapidly to say nothing of their more stocky growth. 

 Other Stock in the Rose House 

 With the rush of the spring bedding plants we may 

 be tempted at times to put a good many other plants into 

 the rose houses. It is well to do that where there are 

 enough men to take care of both roses and the bedding 

 plants. It is hard for one man to look after too many 

 things, as there will, be something that will go to the bad 

 somewheres. We would rather tear out a house of roses 

 if we were to grow the plants in numbers, and then we 

 could grow real good plants, as there would be no crowd- 



Odontoglossum Rossii majus 



This pretty Mexican odontoglossum should prove a 

 favorite with both private and commercial growers and 

 wherever there are any orchids grown at all, this little 

 gem should be given a place of honor. The plants are 

 dwarf, hardly ever more than six inches high, and there- 

 fore take up but little room. The flowers last a long 

 time in perfection both in a cut state and on the plant 

 and the color is all that can be desired in a flower. The 

 plant reproduced in the cover illustration is of the 

 variety called rubescens; the petals and lip a delicate 

 shade of rose, with reddish brown markings on the 

 sepals and toward the base of the petals. The pale yel- 

 low crest adds to its beauty. In the type species the 

 flowers are white with purplish brown markings on the 

 segments. 



This orchid will grow best in a cool airy house sus- 

 pended in small baskets or pans from the roof. A night 

 temperature of 50 to 55 degrees will be about right in 

 winter and would also be good during the summer, if 

 there was a way of keeping the temperature down to 

 that point. As it is, one must make the best of it by 

 the judicious use of the ventilators. However, these 

 Mexican odontoglots do not suffer so much from 

 the heat of our New England summers as do their 

 Columbian cousins, the Odontoglossum crispum and its 

 allies. 



From now on a little shade will be required, but during 

 the winter, when the days are short and as soon as the 

 sun has lost its burning power in the fall, no shade will 

 be needed. Osmunda fibre with a little live sphagnum 

 makes a good compost, but it should be used sparingly to 

 allow of its drying out quickly in order to prevent it 

 from getting sour. During the time the plants are 

 making up their new growth, plenty of water can be 

 given and even in winter when the new pseudobulbs are 

 made up, the plants should not be allowed to remain dry 

 for more than three or four days at a time. 



Naugatuclc, Conn. 



