182 



IRISH GARDENING 



The Tree, or Perpetual 

 Flowering, Carnation. 



By W. Barrett, Ballyheiguc Castle Ciardens, 

 Oo. Kerry. 



Of all plants grown in ])ots, the Tree Carnation, 

 I feel sure, is a general favourite. Unlike most 

 other flowering i)lants its flowering period extends 

 over the whole year round ; hence the name 

 "perpetual flowering " ; always at its best in the 

 dull months of winter, and cannot be beaten for 

 decorative xmrposes (except alone by everybody's 

 favourite, the Sweet Pea). It is a great delight 

 to any lover of plant culture to see a house of 

 well-grown Tree Carnations. They are very 

 easily ])ropagated from cuttings found on the 

 flowering stems, those about 4 inches long taken 

 off with a heel for preference. The best time to 

 propagate is from January till April : cuttings 

 root very readily in a house in a temi)erature from 

 65° to 70° : pots or boxes are first-rate to root in. 

 I prefer boxes about 6 inches deep, 2 feet long, 

 and 1 foot wide ; in these place a nice layer of 

 clean crocks, with a layer of any rough material 

 on toj) of the crocks. Fill to within 3 or 4 inches 

 of the top of boxes with a compost of two parts 

 loam, one leaf-soil, and one sand, run through a 

 i-inch sieve, i)ress the soil very firmly, and insert 

 the cuttings 2 inches apart each way, make firm, 

 and when finished, give a good watering through 

 a fine rose with tepid water, and place in a tem- 

 perature as above-named. Cover the box with 

 a sheet of glass, always turning same each 

 morning and evening, to prevent excessive 

 moisture round the cuttings : with this treatment 

 they are generally growing freely in from four to 

 five weeks. At this stage the glass must be dis- 

 pensed with altogether. Cover with a sheet of 

 light paper, so as to ward off the sun's rays when 

 necessary. 



About six weeks from the time the cuttings 

 were inserted will be quite time enough to begin 

 potting. A point to remember at this season of 

 year (January to April) will be to always have 

 pots and soil of about much the same warmth 

 as the temperature of the house. This is best 

 done by leaving pots and soil in the i)ropagating 

 house for a cou])le of days previous to potting, 

 and also, if ])o.ssible, potting ought never to be 

 done in a cold .shed or house, but always in a 

 warm house. Pots 3 inches (more or less), 

 according to size of plants, are quite large enough 

 to use at this stage ; have pots ])erfectly clean 

 at all potting stages. This is very neces.sary, as 

 also is good crocking, if one is to haVe nice healthy 

 plants that are a pleasure to look at. Use 

 the compost advised for cuttings, lift the 

 plants very carefully from the boxes, and i»ot 

 each plant moderately firm ; when finished i)lace 

 the plants in the same temperature for about 

 ten days in a close frame, leaving a chink of air 

 on each day for about ten minutes, to let away 

 excessive moisture. In about ten days or less 

 the plants can be placed on the stage ofthe house 

 near the glass and the frame taken away 

 altogether. I always like to i)inch the centre out 

 of each plant when growing freely at the fourth 

 or fifth joint from the bottom of the i»lant, as this 

 makes a .splendid foundation for a nice bushy 

 stocky plant. It is time now to remove the plants 



to a lower temi)erature of about 55°, and in 

 aljout a fortnight from time of stop])ing the 

 l)lants, i)ots 5 inches in diameter are none too 

 large to transfer the plants into, i>rovided they 

 are rooting well in the 3-in<h pots. The same 

 compost as Ix'fore advised, only through a .\-inch 

 sieve, with less leaf-soil and some dry cow 

 manure (ahso rubbed through a sieve) and a little 

 bone-meal. Pot the plants firmly at this stage, 

 and when finished stand the plants near the gla.ss 

 in a temperature of 50°. A ])oint worth mention 

 at all times is never to pot a iilant that is dry, 

 always water such a plant well beforehand. 

 Carnations delight in ])lenty of fresh air, so on 

 all favourable occasions ventilate the hoiise 

 freely. If one can devote a hoiise entirely to the 

 cultivation of the Carnation so much the better. 

 In about a month from date of last potting each 

 plant ought to be in i)ossession of from four to 

 five nice healthy side shoots. At this stage a 

 neat stake is necessary ; tie each growth 

 separately, giving aniple room for develojiment. 

 About the end of May or first of June the i)lants 

 uiay safely be moved to a cold frame, where they 

 can remain till the first of September. They will 

 need to be shaded from bright sunshine at all 

 times, and a piece of No. 2 scrim or tiffany is 

 first-rate for the pvirpose, stretched on two ])oles. 

 Ju.st the size of the frame, this can be rolled on 

 or off when necessary. Never shade the i)lant.s 

 more than is necessary, never water the i)lants 

 unless they really need it, and then water 

 thoroughly ; keep a shar]» look out for greenfly, 

 redspider, and thrip ; these three are the great 

 enemy of the Carnation, not to speak of rust and 

 stem-rot. The latter are mo.stly due to over- 

 watering and an over moist atmosi)here when 

 growing. But des])ite the grower's most careful 

 attenticjn, fly, spider and thri]) will attack his 

 plants. 



Spraying with the syringe on hot days in the 

 afternoon is a good preventive measure against 

 the latter, though occasional fiunigation must be 

 adhered to. XL All is very good, and this can 

 be easily used in a frame ; always see that the 

 foliage is dry before u.sing any fumigant. Attend 

 to stopping the plants, and discontinue same 

 always by the end of .July. By the end of June 

 or first week in July the plants ought to be in 

 their flowering pots, and 7-inch is a very nice 

 l)ot for the i)lants to flower in the first season. 

 A good compo.st for the final potting is as follows : 

 Four i)arts good yellow fibrous loam, one part 

 oak or beech-leaf soil, one ])art old hotbed 

 manure, and some sand, a little bone-meal, and 

 a slight si>rinkle of old soot. Pot very firm, and 

 leave room, about li inches, for to]i-dressing 

 later, when the plants are flowering freely the 

 latter is very beneficial : iiotting finished remove 

 to the frame again, with the i)lants ])roi)erly and 

 neatly staked. By the fir.st of September the 

 Itlants ought to be in the house in which they are 

 to flower. See that the house has been thoroughly 

 washed down all over. By the nuddle or end of 

 October the flower-buds ought to begin to unfold. 

 If the grower requires long stems, with good large 

 blooms, it is necessary to disbud all ex(ei)t the 

 crown buds, those are the fir.st which appear on 

 each flower .stem. I have tried taking away the 

 crown bud and leaving three side buds down the 

 stem with great success ; the latter o]>en all three 

 together, and are great value for cutting. This 

 is also a good plan if one wants to delay the 



