November, 1914. 



THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST 



261 



ends of the barrel. The patent corru- 

 gated heads cannot be recommended. It 

 is doubtful, too, whether there is any 

 advantage in using fancy paper heads. 



The exact pressure which must be giv- 

 en will depend somewhat upon the vari- 

 ety of the apple. If they are packed for 

 storage or for a short trip, then the 

 pressure need not be so heavy. If they 

 are packed for export it will be better to 

 press them heavily, but not so as to 

 break the skin of any particular speci- 

 men. It has been the experience of the 



THE most valuable of early flower- 

 ing bulbs, the hyacinth, is so ac- 

 commodating that it can be flower- 

 ed in a variety of ways by very simple 

 modes of treatment, and may be employ- 

 ed as a hardy, rough weather plant for 

 the garden border, or as a grand exhi- 

 bition and conservatory flower. The 

 bulbs may be planted any time from Sep- 

 tember to the middle of December with 

 the certainty of their blooming well if 

 properly cared for: but the prudent cul- 

 tivator will plant them as early as pos- 

 sible in the autumn, and so manage them 

 afterwards as to secure the longest 

 period of growth previous to their flow- 

 ering. They may be forced to flower at 

 Christmas but the more slowly the flow- 

 ers are developed the finest in the end 

 will they be. 



To obtain good bulbs is a matter of 

 the utmost importance. The mere size 

 of a hyacinth bulb is no criterion of its 

 value — nor, indeed, is its neatness of 

 form or brightness of appearance. The 

 two most important qualities are sound- 

 ness and density. If the bulbs are hard 

 and heavy in proportion to their size, 

 they may be depended on to produce 

 good flowers of their size and kind. The 

 bulbs of some sorts are never large or 

 handsome, while on the other hand many 

 sorts partake of both these qualities in 

 an eminent degree. 



CUI/TURE IN POTS 



It is not necessary to employ large 

 pots of a peculiar shape for hyacinths. 

 There is nothing better than common 

 flower pots, and in those single bulbs 

 may be flowered in a most satisfactory 

 manner. The pots usually employed are 

 four and one-half inch or five inch. I 

 advise the use of smaller pots where 

 hyacinths are grown in frames for de- 

 corative purposes, because they can be 

 conveniently placed in ornamental stands 

 or packed close together in baskets of 

 moss when required for embellishment 

 in the drawing-room. A rich, light soil 

 is indispensable. It should consist chiefly 

 of turfy loam, some leaf soil, and an 

 addition of sharp sand. The mixture 



fruit inspectors, who open a great many 

 barrels during the seasor;, that slackness 

 in barrels is as often caused by over- 

 pressure as by under-pressure. Over- 

 pressing will break the skin of the apple, 

 or bruise it severely, inducing decay in 

 one or more specimens, which very 

 quickly cause slackness. Certain varie- 

 ties, too, will require and stand more 

 pressure than others. The Spy has to Ive 

 pressed very moderately as the apple 

 splits readily under pressure ; rus^-ets, on 

 the contrary, will stand much heavier 



pressure to prevent slackness from evap- 

 oration. 



In finishing the barrels, six nails in 

 each head, if properly driven, are sulfic- 

 ient. Liners should be used invariably, 

 aid should always be kept damp. Few 

 packers appreciate how much is added 

 to the strength of the barrel by the use 

 of the head liner properly placed. Thive 

 is no excuse for nailing the second end 

 hoops. It invariably spoils some of the 

 apples and adds nothing whatever to 

 the strength of the barrel. 



The Hyacinth 



H. F. East, North Toronto 



should be in a moderately moist condi- 

 tion when ready for use. 



Fill the pots full of soil, and then 

 press the bulb into it and press the soil 

 around the bulb to finish the operation. 

 If potted loosely, they will not thri\e. 

 If potted too firmly, they will rise up 

 as soon as they begin to grow, and bj 

 one-sided. In large pots the bulbs 



should be nearly covered with soil, but 

 in small pots they must be only half 

 covered in order to afford them the larg- 

 est amount of root room. 



When potted, the coolest place should 

 be found for them ; and unless they go 

 absolutely dry, they should not have a 

 drop of water until they begin to grow 

 freely and are in the enjoyment of full 

 daylight. The pots may be stored in a 

 dark, cool pit, and it is advisable to 

 cover them with a few inches of plung- 

 ing material. As to their removal there 



are two matters to consider — they must 

 be taken out as wanted for forcing' and 

 certainly before they push their flower 

 spikes through the material over them. 

 The floor of a cool greenhouse is a good 

 place for them when first taken out of 

 the bed and cleaned up for forcing. 

 Another matter of great importance is to 

 place them near the glass immediately 

 their green color is established, and to 

 grow them as slowly as the requirements 

 of the case will permit. If to be forced 

 early, allow plenty of time to train them 

 to bear a great heat. Those to bloom 

 at Christmas should be potted in Sep- 

 tember. Those to follow may be potted 

 a month later. If a long succession is 

 required, a sufficient number should be 

 potted every three or four weeks. Those 

 potted last will flower in frames or pots 

 without the aid of artificial heat. In 

 any case, the highest temperature of the 



Note the Floral Effect of This Modest Home 



The front lawn and tie garden in the rear of this home, that of Mr. Montrose, of Walkervllle. 

 are unusually fine. The window l>oxe,s are filled to ovcrflowinir with trailinit vinee. coleus. eer- 

 aniume, petunias and han^iner fuchsia, the "whole makinjr one mass of color from the irround 



half way up the windows 

 257 



