VENTILATING 105 



say that a number of different varieties of plants cannot be suc- 

 cessfully grown in one house, but only that in order to grow them 

 to the highest state of perfection to grow "fancy stock" as the 

 florist would call it you want each by itself so you can study its 

 requirements and provide as nearly ideal growing conditions for it as 

 possible. 



Because a beginner happens to have so-called "good luck" 

 and, by the way, there is really no such thing doesn't prove any- 

 thing. You will always travel more safely with the experienced 

 man, and it is the latter who will at once know what to do in case of 

 trouble. 



THE IMPORTANCE OF MOISTURE 



Perhaps no other plant better illustrates the part that the 

 right kind of atmosphere plays in its development than the Cycla- 

 men. We all know the type of grower from whom the Cyclamens 

 receive no particular attention, but "jes' grow." He may have 

 them in old houses where you must wear rubbers walking between 

 the benches if you don't want to get your shoes covered with mud. 

 That same grower is fully as successful with his Cinerarias and 

 obconica Primulas. Again, you may notice the fellow with a brand 

 new house where everything is uptodate and convenient with 

 concrete walks and perfect ventilation and not a leak in the roof, 

 whose Gylamens stand still, don't move at all. What is the trouble ? 

 What is the cause of the dose of red spider and the sickly growth ? 

 Simply this, the house is too dry; he hasn't the moisture in the 

 atmosphere that the plants require in order to produce a healthy 

 crop of fat leaves. It is not, necessarily, that he can't provide 

 these conditions, but thus far he hasn't. His Cyclamens are in 

 good soil and liberal sized pots and the soil is always kept moist; 

 but the pots are sitting on a dry bench and it is dry below and 

 on top. Such conditions may not do much harm during November 

 when the plants are through growing and are ready to flower, but 

 you can't grow them on that way. 



You can grow good stock in an old house and better stock in 

 a new one ; but in either case you need a certain amount of moisture 

 if you want to grow anything really well. 



Here is another illustration. Frequently we find cases where 

 everything in an establishment does finely all through the Summer, 

 but as soon as firing starts and the ventilators are shut down, there 

 is trouble. Some of the causes for this are the following: A man 

 may shut down his ventilators early in the afternoon in October 

 in order to save coal and still maintain a certain degree of tempera- 

 ture over night. When he enters the next morning there prevails 

 in the house a cold, damp atmosphere the worst thing in the world 

 for Poinsettias, Roses, Chrysanthemums just opening up, Car- 



