5l>6 



HORTICULTURE 



October 28, 1911 



CHRYSANTHEMUMS. 



Rend lief.. re Chicago Kl.irlsts' Club, 



October 5th, by Klmer D. Smith. 



When I promised your worthy Presi- 

 dent a paper .on Chrysanthemums, I 

 did not fully realize the responsibility 

 thus assumed, or I would have been 

 more reluctant In accepting his kind 

 solicitation. Although most of those 

 present are directly or indirectly inter- 

 ested in this subject, yet I venture the 

 large majority do not consider the 

 volumes that have been written dur- 

 ing the past decade treating upon 

 every phase of this important branch 

 of Floriculture. The trade papers have 

 from time to time presented excellent 

 cultural notes, and several books have 

 been published by able writers, so that 

 our files are filled with compilations 

 of exceptional merit, and adequate to 

 the needs of this vast country. 



Confronted by these facts, it would 

 be the height of folly to attempt to 

 offer food for thought along new lines. 

 The tillage has been nearly or quite 

 complete. And furthermore, this is a 

 very complicated subject when we con- 

 sider its diversified interests. For 

 these reasons it would seem wise to 

 present only the most important fea- 

 tures and presuming the majority of 

 your members are most interested in 

 commercial cut blooms, I will endea- 

 vor to give attention to this aspect. 

 The Early Varieties for Cut Bloom. 



Before discussing cultural methods 

 let us first consider best varieties for 

 our purpose. As the early kinds are 

 first on the market, they are naturally 

 initial in these deliberations. I have 

 some misgivings in mentioning those 

 I consider best for this purpose, as it 

 may appear egotistical on my part in- 

 asmuch as the earliest White, Yellow 

 and Pink originated with us. Smith's 

 Advance and Golden Glow are the earl- 

 iest white and yellow and may be had 

 from July onward. Unaka for October 

 first is the earliest large flowering 

 pink. There has been considerable 

 discussion as to the propriety of hav- 

 ing varieties which mature before the 

 last of September; this point must be 

 determined by those engaged in this 

 industry. Personally, I would not ad- 

 vise growing in large quantities for 

 the wholesale market, unless the crop 

 Is controlled so as to bring them in 

 about September 15th and later. The 

 grower who retails his products, may 

 with impunity provide limited quanti- 

 ties earlier in the season, and use 

 them to good advantage. 



For early blooms the most important 

 feature is early planting, and just 

 when this should be done depends 

 upon the date they are to be cut. 

 Smith's Advance and Golden Glow 

 planted the first of May and buds se- 

 lected about June 25th should mature 

 the last half of August Successive 

 plantings up to early June and secur- 

 ing the first bud. will give a continued 

 crop of late October. Unaka, planted 

 May first with buds secured August 5 

 to 10, should all be ready to cut the 

 first half of October. As it is a strong 

 grower, with stems four feet, incurved 

 blooms over 6 inches in diameter, and 

 very similar to Wm. Duckham in color 

 (possibly a little brighter), it has no 

 rival as an early pink. At the present 

 time October Frost and Donatello are 

 making their appearance. Both are 

 good to follow Smith's Advance and 

 Golden Glow, but should be planted in 



May or early June to secure best re- 

 sults. 



For October 15th to November 1st 

 we would plant Oroba, a white coming 

 In a few days in advance of Ivory, pro- 

 ducing larger blooms and of a splen- 

 did sturdy, dwarf habit. 



Chrysolora for yellow is unsur- 

 passed for this period, being larger 

 than Col. D. Appleton and 15 days 

 earlier, has stronger stem and of the 

 best incurved form. Gloria would be 

 our choice for pink. 



These three, like the earlier kinds, 

 are more satisfactory when planted 

 fairly early, not later than June 15tb 

 and secure buds about August 15th, 

 which should insure the crop cut and 

 out of the way before the mid-season 

 or November varieties are ready. 



Mid-Season. 



This brings us up to the mid-season 

 varieties which are so numerous, and 

 in fact there are so many good kinds 

 to select from it does not seem neces- 

 sary to mention them. The above re- 

 marks apply to late flowering section. 



Pompons, Anemones and Singles 

 possess the desired qualities to a de- 

 gree, and are of special value to those 

 who retail their cut and cater to the 

 best trade. They lend grace and 

 beauty to floral arrangements; in fact, 

 the best effects can not be attained 

 without them. The Singles are more 

 fragile and are not so well adapted 

 for consignments that necessitate re- 

 handling. 



Soil is the first item to be consid- 

 ered under head of cultural methods. 

 Old sods, cut thin, from a moderately 

 firm soil and piled with one-fifth to 

 one-sixth their bulk of cow manure, 

 six months in advance, furnishes the 

 best material for filling the bench. 

 Some advocate larger quantity of ma- 

 nure, but we find the plants do not 

 need it in their earlier stages of 

 growth, also the wood is firmer and 

 ripens better than where nitrogenous 

 matter is abundant. We prefer giv- 

 ing food later when the plant is strong 

 and the roots active. 



Those who wish to utilize old soil, 

 will meet with very good success by 

 using half new and half old. We pre- 

 fer placing the new at the bottom of 

 the bench, and if prepared compost iB 

 not at hand, fresh cut sods chopped 

 and put through a soil mixer will 

 make an excellent substitute. 



Planting Time. 



As previously stated, the early sorts 

 should be planted if possible early in 

 May. We have calls for early varie- 

 ties late in July, but the fallacy of 

 such a course is apparent when we 

 consider that instead of planting they 

 should be selecting buds. 



The mid-season and late fall flowers 

 will do well if planted in June; it is 

 true fairly good results are the out- 

 come when this operation is deferred 

 to the succeeding month, but the flow- 

 ers are seldom as large and fine in 

 finish as those which have had ample 

 time to develop a strong plant before 

 selecting the buds. 



Early planting in only moderately 

 rich soil gives the best stem and foli- 

 age for the commercial grower, name- 

 ly, smaller leaves on short jointed and 

 firm wooded stems. With the founda- 

 tion constructed thorough and com- 

 plete, the building of the bloom will 

 practically take care of itself. 



From this time on until the buds 

 appear weeding and watering are the 

 most urgent matters requiring atten- 

 tion. Less water will be required dur- 

 ing the first stages of growth, with 

 increased quantity as they gain 

 strength and more foliage. 



Time for Taking Buds. 



The date for the buds to appear is 

 governed to a large degree by the cli- 

 matic conditions. During my visit in 

 California (the State of many cli- 

 mates), I was much impressed by the 

 fact that those portions of the state 

 enjoying a cool air produce the earl- 

 iest blooms and the late ones are from 

 localities more torrid. 



At. Dos Angeles I was told the first 

 in the market come from the growers 

 near the coast, with the late ones 

 from the foot-hills of the mountains 

 only 20 miles distant. No fixed dates 

 can be given, as they vary according 

 to the conditions of the weather dur- 

 ing July and August. The cooler the 

 earlier and the warmer the later this 

 change in construction takes place. 



On one occasion we had W. H. Chad- 

 wick immediately follow Ivory and at 

 other times they have been 60 days 

 apart. With an average season in this 

 section, flowers for September are 

 from buds selected about July 1 to 

 15; for October, August 1 to 15; for 

 November, August 25 to September 

 15; for December, September 20 to 

 October 10th. The dates given are 

 only approximate at best as some va- 

 rieties develop more rapily than 

 others 



The bulk of Chrysanthemums are 

 planted from June 15th to July 15th, 

 and those best adapted for this pur- 

 pose are such as produce perfect 

 blooms from buds selected from Au- 

 gust 25th to late September. Many 

 of the kinds shown at the exhibitions 

 look beautiful, but are often mislead- 

 ing to the novice, for when placed un- 

 der the conditions which usually pre- 

 vail on commercial places are useless. 

 It is far better to rely upon the judg- 

 ment of some competent person, than 

 to select frofn the show boards unless 

 you are well versed in these matters. 

 Light and Nourishment 



I am pleased to state that shading 

 is not practiced as much as in former 

 years. Sunlight is a prime factor in 

 producing strong, sturdy growth. A 

 light shading is, however, highly bene- 

 ficial to all varieties showing color 

 before October and it is often neces- 

 sary to continue later, provided bright 

 sun prevails and the temperature rises 

 above normal. 



What form of nourishment to supply 

 is a topic of considerable importance. 

 Very few growers entirely agree on 

 this subject. Bone meal, cow, sheep, 

 and in fact, almost any kind of ma- 

 nure is beneficial, but their real value 

 depends upon the amount of plant 

 food they contain, when considered 

 in ratio to price paid. All or part of 

 those mentioned, may be essential in 

 the production of the very largest 

 blooms, which find their way to the 

 exhibitions, but if my object was sole- 

 ly the production of high grade com- 

 mercial stock, I would prefer a com- 

 plete concentrated chemical fertilizer, 

 say one containing about 50 per cent 

 plant food. While it costs more per 

 pound than the natural products, it 

 will supply nearly 100 times the 

 amount of the required elements, 



