64 PRESENT-DAY GARDENING 



make good strong plants which may be stopped either in 

 April or early in May, according to the requirements of 

 the individual varieties. 



There are, of course, many varieties that come into 

 bloom each season at about the right time, and conse- 

 quently require no manipulation at all, and though I have 

 outlined my method of what may be termed timing the 

 flower, I would never recommend stopping the plants 

 unless it is found by trial that the flowers will not come 

 at the right time without such stopping. It is worse than 

 useless to give specific dates for certain varieties, for con- 

 ditions vary so much even in a few miles that what 

 might suit one place, or one man's treatment, would be 

 altogether wrong at another ; but sufficient has been said 

 to show that by careful study and by jotting down the 

 dates of the natural break, the appearance of the crown 

 bud, and the length of time it takes to develop properly, 

 a great deal can be done towards getting good flowers at 

 a given date, and this is especially necessary where only a 

 limited number of plants are grown for the purposes of 

 exhibition. 



The " terminal " buds are flower buds that terminate 

 the growth of particular shoots, and are seldom made use 

 of in exhibition culture owing to the smaller size of the 

 flowers. At the same time, flowers produced by terminal 

 buds are usually characterised by high development of 

 colour and general refinement. 



The term " taking" the bud in common use amongst 

 Chrysanthemum growers really means " selecting" the 

 bud for cultivation, and removing all other flower buds 

 in order that the one which is retained may develop to 

 the highest degree possible. The uninitiated, therefore, 



