General Greenhouse Culture 

 Disbudding 



Where fancy llowers are aimed at, disbudding is imperative, and it is 

 necessary to do the worl-: early, otherwise the size of the bloom and the strength 

 of the stem will be reduced and the object of disbudding defeated. The 

 lateral buds should be removed as soon as this can be done without injuring 

 the stem or the terminal bud. In varieties that are inclined to throw their 

 blooms late, the period of flowering may be hastened by removing the side 

 growths, or pips, from the blooming stems. 



Insects and Fumigation 



Insects should never be seen in the greenhouse. Preventive measures 

 should be put into force promptly and practiced constantly. For aphis, com- 

 monly called green fly, nothing is better than fumigating with tobacco early 

 in the season. This should be done at least once a week, selecting cool 

 nights for the operation. Later on, when the plants are in bloom, fumigating 

 Vv^ith tobacco is objectionable, as it impairs the odor of the flowers. During 

 the winter time, when the plants are in full bloom, we have used the various 

 preparations of tobacco extract to advantage. These preparations are mixed 

 to the consistency of thin paint by the addition of water, and with them the 

 heating pipes are painted once a week, and sometimes twice. Where the 

 green fly has been eradicated by thorough fumigation, painting of the heating 

 pipes with tobacco extract is generally sufficient to keep the pest in check. 

 Thrips succumb to repeated and persistent fumigation with tobacco stems. 

 These insects are far more persistent than green fly, much more difficult to 

 eradicate, and their depredations are much more serious, as they usually 

 attack the buds and destroy the flowers before they open. 



Diseases 



The various fungi infesting carnations will not prevail to any extent 

 if the plants are kept in a clean, healthy, growing condition. Plants 

 improperly cared for are always sources of disease. Any neglect, such as 

 inattention to watering and ventilation, too violent changes of temperature, 

 or keeping the foliage of the plants wet at night, especially if such over 

 w^atering or wetting of the foliage is followed by sudden falls of temper- 

 ature, will have a tendency to develop fungus. It may be safely stated that 

 such improper treatment, and a close, dank atmosphere, are the principal 

 causes of fungous diseases in carnations. 



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