How to Utilize the Small Greenhouse 



I 



THERE are a number of crops that 

 are easily within the reach of the 

 amateur who has at his disposal a 

 glass structure, such as was described 

 in the pages of the August number of 

 The Canadian Horticulturist. Many are 

 apt to feel that something more elabor- 

 ate than the simple structures described 

 therein is required to produce the hand- 

 some flowers and beautiful ferns that one 

 sees in the florists' windows. True, many 

 things are beyond achievement, as in such 

 a place one cannot have long-stemmed 

 American beauties nor tha most delicate 

 orchids to present one's friends with at 

 Christmas, but he can very easily have 

 carnations, more beautiful because they 

 will be fresh, if not quite so large as 

 those you get from the florists. You may 

 also have cyclamen, as beautiful and 

 much more serviceable than the best or- 

 chid that ever graced a table. 



To acomplish such results requires not 

 so much elaborate equipment as unre- 

 mitting care and attention, not eternal 

 "fussing," but consistent thinking. 



There is, perhaps, no more well-be- 

 loved flower than the carnation, which 

 entirely deserves the place it has won 

 in the flower-lover's heart. It is equal, 

 if not ahead, of the rose. As a plant it 

 will stand a good deal of abuse, and yet 

 under the care that an amateur can give 

 it will produce an abundance of fine 

 blooms. 



To be grown at its best, the carna- 

 tion should have rather cool treatment, 

 and plenty of ventilation, two factors 

 which place it within the reach of even > 

 the smallest greenhouse operator. A 

 night temperature of fifty degrees Fah- 

 renheit should be maintained, with a 

 rise of from fifteen to twenty degrees on 

 bright, sunny days. Avoid cold draughts 

 when ventilating, and on dull days keep 

 the temperature round fifty-eight to sixty 

 degrees . 



If you have room for only a few dozen 

 plants, grow them in pots. Probably 

 the local florist has a few left over that 

 he potted up when he had finished 

 planting his benches. Get a few of 

 these, put them into six inch pots, using 

 a good rich soil, say four parts of soil 

 to one of well-decayed barnyard man- 

 ure. Wi.en the pots get full of roots, 

 give them frequent applications of liquid 

 manure. Don't let them starve, but 

 don't o\erfeed them, and you will be 

 rewarded with a surprising numl>cr of 

 blooms from even a single dozen. 



If, however, a part of a bench can 

 be allotted them, the results will be _; 

 more satisfactory, besides entailing a 

 good deal less work by way of attention. 



The bench should be well drained and 

 contain about five inches of soil pych as 



By Henry Gibson, Staatsburg 



that recommended for pot culture. 



For early blooming the plants should 

 be put in early in August, the earlier 

 the better; but for one's own use later 

 planting will do. Select a cloudy day 

 for planting, and be very careful not 

 to plant too deep, as stem rot^is almost 

 sure to develop as a result of this very 

 common error. Water thoroughly, and 

 keep them shaded for a few days, with 

 frequent syringings every day until they 

 become established, when they should 

 have full sun and an exposure. Water- 

 ing should only be done, and done thor- 

 oughly, when the soil begins to dry out. 

 Practise syringing regularly on bright 

 days, but never on dull ones, and always 

 have the foliage dry overnight. 



TRAINING THE CABNATION 



As the flower stems grow up, some 

 support will be needed. If you can get 

 one of the many forms of wire supports 

 used by commercial florists, so much the 

 better ; but should you not have these on 

 hand, the old method of stake and raflfia 

 will do very well. 



To get the best and largest flowers, 

 the flower stems must be "disbudded" — 

 that is, all but the end or terminal bud 

 must be pinched off, thus throwing all 

 the strength into the one large flower. 

 If on the other hand the terminal bud 

 is taken off and several of the side buds 

 allowed to develop, the result will be 

 a beautiful cluster of blooms, more 

 pleasing to many than the single large 



flowers. There are any number of won- 

 derfully good varieties of carnations to 

 choose from, but the white, pink, and 

 light pink Enchantress, with a good 

 standard red, should meet the require- 

 ments of the average amateur. 



VIOLETS 



Requiring less heat than the carnation 

 is the old-time favorite, the violet. The 

 essential thing is to get good plants. 

 As with the carnation, if only a few are 

 required, they can be grown: in pots, 

 using the six-inch size. The soil, whe- 

 ther for pots or benches, shruld be 

 slightly heavier than that used for car- 

 nations, about one-fifth well-rotted man- 

 ure to the soil used. If you can use a 

 bench for them, select one as near the 

 glass as f)ossible, and set the plants 

 about fifteen Inches apart if they are 

 field-grown stock and of good size. 

 Water well and keep the house moist 

 and shaded for a few days as you did 

 with the carnations. 



GIVE PLENTY OF LIGHT 



Violets outdoors grow luxuriantly in 

 deep shade, but to be successful in a 

 greenhouse during the winter months, it 

 is necessary to allow them all the light 

 possible. Keep all the dead leaves pick- 

 ed off, also any useless runners. Syringe 

 on all bright mornings to keep down 

 red spider. The night temperature will 

 be better at forty-five degrees than any- 

 thing above, with a rise of very little 

 above fifteen degrees during the day- 

 time. 



Iniide View New Horticultural 



269 



Pavilion, AUea GAr4«n«, Toronto 



