1260 



PELARGONIUM 



PELARGONIUM 



critical time for these specimen Geranium plants will be 

 during the months of July, August and September; 

 during these periods exposure to intense sunshine should 

 be avoided. Too much water and a close temperature 

 are always detrimental to the 

 Geranium. Syringing the foli- 

 age frequently in order to 

 keep down the temperature 

 is also detrimental. If these 

 plants are kept under glass, 



1702. Pelargonium peltatum (X 



a light shading or stripping upon the glass is bene- 

 ficial. Probably the best position for such plants dur- 

 ing these three extreme months is on the north side 

 of a row of trees, some distance away from the trees, 

 where the plants will have the benefit of the subdued 

 shading of the foliage. If kept under glass and shaded, 

 abundant ventilation should always be provided. As 

 the winter approaches, a night temperature of 60 and 

 day temperature of 70-75, with plenty of ventilation 

 during the daytime, especially in bright weather, seems 

 to best suit the plants. Syringing ruins the flowers, 

 and too much moisture either in the pot or upon the 

 foliage causes the spotting of the foliage known as 

 "dropsy." In planting the Geranium in the field or in 

 beds always avoid an over-rich soil. The soil should be in 

 good condition and fertile, but must not be loaded with 

 either chemical or animal fertilizer. Too much water 

 at any period during the hot weather produces a rank 

 growth, reduces the quantity of bloom and in the ma- 

 jority of instances causes the spotted foliage to appear. 



Another disease, which is sometimes serious, espe- 

 cially in extremely hot seasons accompanied with a 

 superabundance of moisture, is "stem rot." This fre- 

 quently attacks imported stock. Just what produces 

 this disease the writer is unable to say, but it is most 

 serious during intensely hot seasons ; the entire plant 

 turns black and fades and withers away. The stem rot 

 occurs in varieties that have been very heavily propa- 

 gated. 



The insects that affect the Geranium are also compar- 

 atively few. The red spider is sometimes a serious 

 pest during the summer and is difficult to get rid of 

 when it is once well established. The only method that 

 the undersigned has found efficacious is to syringe the 

 plants with an extremely fine spray, and also to pick off 

 the leaves that are seriously affected and burn them. 

 The greenfly is also troublesome at times, but is eas- 

 ily managed with the ordinary fumigation of tobacco. 

 There is a small caterpillar that eats the foliage and 

 sometimes proves a serious pest. If one can induce a 

 few ground sparrows or any of the warblers, or even 

 English sparrows, to make their home in the green- 

 house, they will put a speedy end to these caterpillars. 

 Another remedy is to go over the plants carefully and 

 pick the caterpillars off and destroy them. This is tedi- 

 ous, as it must be done frequently. 



In the way of bedding Geraniums, as a rule the Bru- 

 ant section produces the best results, but there are a 

 number of English and French varieties that do espe- 

 cially well in our hot climate. The greatest difficulty 

 that we have in successful Geranium culture in America 



is the intense he'at of the summer months, chiefly July 

 and August. The writer has found that the following 

 varieties grow especially well in the field as well as in 

 beds on lawns. In the Bruant section: Mme. Landry, 

 Beaute Poitevine, Mme. Charotte, Mme. Chas. Molin, 

 and C. W. Ward, all of varying shades of salmon-pink; 

 Jean Viaud, pure clear pink; Mme. Jaulin, peach-pink; 

 John Doyle, A. Riccard and General Grant, scarlet; 

 Thos. Meehan, magenta-pink ; Count de 

 Castellane, a deep crimson-scarlet. Among 

 the French varieties: Mme. Barney, Mme. 

 Philip La Brie and Francis Perkins, pure 

 pink; Rene Bazin, bright rosy salmon; 

 Gertrude Pearson and Grandville, pure 

 pink ; Marvel, S. A. Nutt, Richelieu, Cha- 

 teaubriand and De La Vigne, brilliant crimson-scarlet; 

 Pasteur and John P. deary, bright orange - scarlet ; 

 Eulalie and Mme. Buchner, snow white ; Ctesar and Duke 

 de Montmart, brilliant aniline-purple. 



A much larger list of varieties suitable for pot culture 

 may be mentioned, for when growing in pots a larger 

 collection is desirable. Among the Bruants may be men- 

 tioned: Mme. Charotte, Jean Viaud, Mme. Landry, 

 Mme. Jaulin, Mme. Chas. Molin, Count de Castellane, 

 Beaute" Poitevine, Mme. des Bordes Valmore, and Thos. 

 Meehan. In the English round-flowered section: Hall 

 Caine, Han Maclaren, Wm. Ewing, Gertrude Pearson, 

 Mrs. Chas. Pearson, Barbara Hope, Lillian Duff, Mary 

 Beton, Dorothy Burroughs, and Rudyard Kipling. In 

 the Fancy or Aureole section: Andrew Lang, Jean Re- 

 meau, Grandville, La Fraicheur, Mark Twain, Hubert 

 Charron, J. B. Varrone, Mme. Bruant, Mme. Blanche 

 Jamet, George Sand and Daumier, crimsons and scar- 

 lets; Rasphail Improved, John P. Cleary, Richelieu, 

 Chateaubriand, Dr. Despres, Ryecroft Pride, Pasteur; 

 in salmons, Modesty, Nydia and in purple Due de Mont- 



mart - C. W. WARD. 



SHOW PELARGONIUMS. What we know as show Pelar- 

 goniums have enjoyed a long popularity. By the gen- 

 eral public, and by old people especially, they are known 

 as Lady Washington 

 Geraniums. They are 

 not so commonly grown 

 as Geraniums, chiefly 

 on account of their 

 limited season of bloom 

 and the fact that they 

 cannot endure our hot 

 midsummer suns. 

 Through the greater 

 part of the summer 

 they are liable to be 

 neglected. They also 

 require different treat- 

 ment from Geraniums, 

 and -if skill there be 

 more skill in cultiva- 

 tion. 



We will commence at 

 the end of the bloom- 

 ing season. They are 

 past, and require rest, 

 a season of ripening 

 the growth already 

 made, During this 

 time very little water 

 will be needed, and 

 they may be stood out 

 in the full sun. We 

 need only cut off the 

 old flower -stems. In 

 no sense should they 

 be cut back at this 

 time, neither should 

 water enough be given 

 to encourage new 

 growth. All the 

 leaves should stay on 

 until they naturally 

 turn yellow with age, thus securing a thoroughly ripened 

 growth. In September, one may prune them into shape; 

 sometimes rather severely, but in any case cut out all 

 weak and soft shoots. They should then be shaken out 



1703. A good Pelargonium (X 



P. cordatum of botanists or an 

 offshoot of that species. 



