io Commercial Gardening 



gas-light or electric light is of little use, because a good deal of the 

 florist's art is seen under these conditions. 



White Flowers. Taking the colours all in all, white is undoubtedly the 

 most popular, and enormous quantities of white-flowered plants must be 

 grown to meet the ever-increasing demand. Amongst the most important 

 plants used for a supply of white flowers to the florists the following may 

 be mentioned: Lily of the Valley; Lilium longiflorum (Harrisi); Lilium 

 speciosum or lancifolium album,; JSucharis grandiflora ; Camellias; 

 Tuberoses (Polianthes); Freesia refracta alba; Tulip, La Reine; Roman 

 Hyacinths; Florists' Hyacinth, La Grandesse; Gladiolus Colvillei, The 

 Bride; Stephanotis; Lapageria alba; Bouvardia; Rose, Niphetos; Gar- 

 denias; Carnations; Phlox; Chrysanthemums; Dahlias; China Asters; 

 Stocks; Azaleas; Pink, Mrs. Simkins and Her Majesty; Zonal Pelargonium 

 Hermione (double); Gloxinias; Snowdrops; Paper-white Narcissus; Star 

 of Bethlehem (Ornithogalum); Odontoglossum crispum; Christmas Roses 

 (Helleborus niger); Arum Lilies (Richardia); Hoteia (Spircea) japonica; 

 Gypsophila paniculata and G. elegans; Achillea, The Pearl; Sweet Peas; 

 Spanish Iris; Florentine Iris; Paeonies; Plialcenopsis grandiflora, amabilis, 

 RieTnstedtiana, &c. 



Apart from white, flowers of all other colours are utilized in great 

 abundance, and the principal kinds used may be noted as follows: Roses 

 of all kinds; Violets, double and single; Carnations Perpetual and Border 

 varieties; Daffodils and Narcissi; Tulips; Hyacinths; Gladiolus; Dahlias; 

 Chrysanthemums ; Phlox ; Forget-me-nots ; Zonal Pelargonium Raspail, 

 double scarlet; Orchids such as Cattleyas, Dendrobiums, Oncidiurns, Odonto- 

 glossums, Laelias, and Phalsenopsis. 



Trailers. For " shower " bouquets, festoons, and table decorations it is 

 useful to have certain plants with slender trailing stems and foliage that 

 will not soon wither. Amongst the best plants for this purpose are 

 Asparagus Sprengeri, A. plumosus, and A. plumosus nanus (all known 

 as Asparagus "Ferns"), A. medeoloides (or Myrsiphyllum asparagoides) 

 far better known to florists as " Smilax ". A great trade is done in the 

 trails of these plants, and some growers make a speciality of their culture. 



Foliage. For backing up many flowers used in wreaths, crosses, bou- 

 quets, &c., it is sometimes essential to have foliage that will throw the 

 blossoms into greater relief, and a large number of plants are grown for 

 this purpose. Until the various kinds of Asparagus were introduced, the 

 fronds of the Maidenhair Fern were used in enormous quantities for almost 

 everything. Of late years, however, the foliage of other plants has been 

 utilized, and florists now stock in the proper season the leaves of such 

 plants as: Crotons, Maples, Holly-leaved Barberry (Berberis Aquifolium), 

 Copper Beech, Ivy, Copper Hazel, Purple Plum, Scarlet Oak, Galax 

 aphylla, large-leaved Myrtle, &c., to which must be added for winter work 

 sprays of Mistletoe and of Holly in leaf and berry. There is still a great 

 trade done in what is known as "French Fern" (Asplenium adiantum- 

 niqrum\ the fronds of which are sold in bunches. The old conventional 



