THE CHRYSANTHEMUM. 63 



August, and again about the first of October, will be 

 advisable. Liquid manures can also be used to advan- 

 ce whenever the plants show the need of food, and it 



ill always be well to use them freely once or twice a 

 reek, from the time the first flower buds show until 



ley open enough to show the color of the flowers, when 



it'ir use should be discontinued. 



On the other hand, there is danger from securing 

 too soft and watery a growth, from the use of too much 

 nitrogen in the manure, combined with an excessive 

 amount of water. This should be checked at once by 

 slightly withholding the water, and by decreasing the 

 amount of nitrogen supplied in the manure water. 

 Aside from the thick and watery growth of the stems, 

 the plants also show that they are growing too rapidly, 

 by the appearance of their leaves, which are, in addition 

 to being very large, thick and succulent, likely to become 

 wrinkled and twisted. Until the growth has been 

 checked and become hardened, the plant will not develop 

 first-class flowers. Not only should the general appear- 

 ance of the flowers be noted, but the needs of each plant 

 should be considered, and it should be given more or less, 

 or, perhaps, none at all, of the manure water. 



"taking" the buds and disbudding. 



As soon as the flower buds show, the plants should 

 be looked over every day or two, in order that the flower 

 buds may be "taken" at the proper time. This word is 

 given to the choosing or the selection of the bud or buds 

 upon a plant that is to flower, after which the others 

 are removed. The buds may be either of two kinds, which 

 have received the names of "crown" and "terminal." 

 The name "crown" is applied to a single bud at the end 

 of a shoot, upon which all of the other buds are leaf 

 buds, as seen in Fig. 1G. Just below the flower bud are 

 several leaf buds that will be likely to grow up and, as 



