8 



THE c:anai)ian horticulturist 



Januaiy, 1908 



the more readily coneealed by the moss 

 and ferns. There should be at least 

 nine of these water-holders, as other- 

 wise it will not be possible to make the 

 flowers look sufficiently scattered. They 

 need not be large or deep, for it takes 

 very little water to keep the flowers 

 looking fresh during an evening. Each 

 saucer or small cup is filled with a wire 

 or iron stem-holder, such as may be 

 had at any of the shops, and which are 

 needed to keep the flowers upright. 

 The moss and ferns may easily be 

 twisted around the receptacle so that 

 it will be quite concealed and the flow- 

 ers will seem to be planted directly 

 in the moss. 



For such an arrangement of flowers 

 almost any kind of blossoms is suitable. 

 Carnations, roses, violets, chrysanthe- 

 mums and lily of the valley are all admir- 

 able for this purpose, and the effect is of- 

 ten enhanced by the mingling of several 

 blossoms. Simple garden flowers also 

 look well in this way. Daisies, which 

 may be had in colors as well as in 

 white, are even more attractive for 

 such an arrangement than roses. If 

 roses are used, small ones are more at- 

 tractive than the larger and hand- 

 somer blossoms. Nothing could be bet- 

 ter than Chinese lilies and similar small 

 and rather fragile blossoms. 



The flowers are arranged in irregular 

 bunches, as many as there are recep- 

 tacles of water. The stems should all 

 be of different lengths, so that the 

 flowers will branch out prettily. Some 

 stems should be very short, so that 

 they are quite at the base of the bou- 

 quet, and others — a very few — should 

 be quite tall, almost as tall as the can- 

 dles. 



The flowers should then be so ar- 

 ranged in the different sections of the 

 wire holders that they branch out pret- 

 tily and carelessly. The bunches ought 

 not to be very full, and ferns, tall grasses, 

 and graceful vines should be mingled 

 with the flowers. Not all the bunches 

 should be of the same height. There 

 should be one very low bunch for the 

 centre of the decoration, and then pairs 

 of bunches of about equal height. 



Tall candles with shades of the same 

 color as the flowers selected or of a har- 

 monizing shade are placed on the mossy 

 bed at a short distance from each end of 

 the decoration. The moss surrounds 

 the base of the candles. The flowers 

 are then arranged so that they look as if 

 they had sprung naturally from the 

 turf. The taller bunches are placed 

 at the ends, gradually decreasing in 

 size toward the centre. This decrease 

 in height should not be noticeable, but 

 should be altogether irregular. 



A very simple decoration for a home 

 dinner, but a very pretty one, is a 

 wreath of smilax quite irregular and 

 consisting merely of the smilax vine 

 laid flat on the table. Intertwined with 



the smilax are wide open pink roses of 

 the old-fashioned garden sort. The 

 yellow roses are also most attractive, 

 but are hard to find in the florists' shops 

 in any varieties that would be suitable. 

 The handsome modern roses do not 

 usually serve the purpose. Chrysan- 

 themums may also be used in this way. 

 In the centre of this wreath may be 

 placed a very low bowl, also filled with 

 short-stemmed pink roses or roses and 

 forget-me-nots. The candelabra are 

 placed at the ends of the table, or, if it 

 .^e a circular table, at the four imagin- 

 ary corners. 



Square and rectangular enamelled 

 and gilt baskets are also used for floral 

 centrepieces. Some of the gilt baskets 

 are quite long and rather narrow, and 

 are filled with soil, the roses and ferns 

 being planted in this soil exactly as in 

 the garden. 



In sending boxes of flowers from 

 florists' shops the newest fancy is to 

 have -■ picture . boxes instead of flower 

 designs, as have been fashionable. The 

 flower boxes, of course, are always 

 popular, since they are so much more 

 appropriate than any others. The new 

 boxes, however, with their bright and 

 funny pictures, are also attractive. 



only the slip. Finally, after harden- 

 ing out from the hot-bed, transplant 

 in the garden as you would other tub- 

 ers. I have had better results from 

 this method than from root grafting. 



Grafting Dahliaa 



Max Moineau, Toronto 



Dahhas can be grafted in two ways. 

 First, take the tubers of two different 

 plants, as nearly alike in shape and 

 size as possible, cut them obliquely 

 across, fit the cut surfaces together 

 as perfectly as possible, and after 

 tying with raffia, seal the joint with 

 soft shoemaker's wax, to keep out the 

 air, then plant in a pot of sand. In 

 the hot-bed the cut surfaces will soon 

 unite. Be careful, not to have too 

 much moisture about the tubers, or 

 they will rot at the joint. This method 

 is generally known, but is not often 

 practised. It will not change the color 

 of a flower, and it has a tendency to 

 produce sports, which eventually re- 

 vert to the stronger original plant. 

 However, by saving seeds of some of 

 these sports it sometimes helps in the 

 development of new varieties. 



The second method of grafting is, 

 I think, my own idea, and therefore 

 original. It is accomplished with a 

 slip and a tuber. Take as good a tuber 

 as possible of the kind you wish to 

 graft, being careful not to remove the 

 eye, then bore a hole into the tuber 

 tiie size of the slip you have chosen to 

 insert from another variety. After the 

 slip has been inserted, seal it in the 

 tuber with a bit of shoemaker's wax, 

 and plant in a pot of sand. Let the 

 shoot belonging to the tuber grow for 

 a time, to establish the life of the tuber 

 and the union of the slip, then in about 

 three weeks cut off the shoot, leaving 



Gro-win^ D^warf Trees 



Exactly how the tiny trees of Japan 

 are produced is known only to a score 

 or so of individuals, says the Windsor 

 Magazine. A Japanese Fellow of the 

 Royal Horticultural Society was good 

 enough to supply the following inter- 

 esting facts relating to the methods 

 employed. 



It would seem that the quality es- 

 sential to the successful dwarf tree 

 grower is patience — infinite patience, 

 backed by a fund of calm resignation 

 unknown to the western mind. Fifty 

 years is named as the shortest period 

 in which a really good and saleable 

 dwarf tree may be grown, while a life- 

 time is not long enough to produce 

 the highest examples of the art. The 

 tree artist merely makes the beginning; 

 his son, or perhaps even his son's son, 

 reaps the reward of his labors. 



Dwarf trees are produced from seeds, 

 or in cases where this is not practic- 

 able, from carefully selected cuttings. 

 When the young plant begins to grow 

 it is tended with ceaseless care, and 

 from the commencement of its career 

 its natural tendencies are subjugated 

 to the will of its master. Each twig, 

 each leaf, as it makes its appearance, 

 becomes the object of the closest scru- 

 tiny. Shall it be permitted to grow, 

 and if so, in what direction? May it 

 not be advisable to cut it away alto- 

 gether, and encourage growth else- 

 where? These and a dozen similar 

 questions occupy the mind of the Jap- 

 anese artist, and upon their correct 

 solution depends the ultimate value of 

 the tree, for to be perfect the dwarf 

 must possess a shape and balance 

 equal to the best life sized models. 



Avoid draughts of cold air on plants, 

 as they check the growth and often in- 

 duce attacks of mildew. Plants like 

 fresh air, but object to cold draughts. 



Alstroemeria — Peruvian Lily. — This is 

 a distinct and fine genus, which does not 

 seem to have found a home in our 

 gardens to the extent that might be 

 expected. One or two kinds are hardy, 

 and as charming as any flowers on a 

 warm soil. A. aurantiaca and A. Sinisii 

 are, as far as my experience goes, the 

 hardiest and best bloomers. I have 

 raised a large colonv of these charming 

 plants from seed. The seed was sown 

 in April and they came up the following 

 April, and bloomed the same season. 

 They were A. Chilensis. There were 

 several shades of color among them. — 

 Roderick Cameron, Niagara Falls, Ont. 



