573 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE, 



Apr. 15 



even that in the out-of-the-way corners, was 

 first-class and in tiptop condition. As it was 

 just before Easter, everybody was so busy 

 they asked me if I would not just look around 

 myself and go anywhere I wished. 



After I had been through the rows of long 

 greenhouses where they put up stock to fill 

 orders, some one remarked that 1 must l)e 

 sure to visit Mr. C'hilds' private greenhouses 

 before I went away. As I came near one of 

 them an elderly gentleman directed me 

 where to go. I found a six or eight sided 

 greenhouse with wings radiating out from it 

 like the petals of a flower. The first one I 

 looked into contained a bed of cinnerarias in 

 pots. The blossoms were larger and more 

 glittering in their wonderful beauty than 

 any thing I had ever seen before. And then 

 I remembered that IVIr. Childs, in his new 

 catalog, mentioned a new and superior strain 

 of large or giant cinnerarias. There was no 

 mistake about the catalog. This bed eclipsed 

 any thing I had ever seen, by all odds. I 

 went clear around and then came out and 

 started in to the next similar greenhouse. 

 I was all alone — nobody seemed near, and 

 there was nothing to hinder my talking 

 out loud or praying out loud. I lifted my 

 cap from my head in token of the reverence 

 I felt for the sight that met my eye. I said, 

 ' ' May God be praised that I have been per- 

 mitted to live long enough to see the sight 

 that now greets my eyes." 



A lot of plants of what I took to be some- 

 thing with tropical ornamental foliage were 

 scattered about in pots. From the descrip- 

 tions I had seen in floral books, I supposed 

 they were some high-priced things like 

 orchids. While I was looking and thinking 

 if it was not wicked, if I would gladly pay 

 a lot of money for some of these wonderful 

 creations, the elderly gentleman 1 have 

 mentioned stood in the door. I said, "My 

 good friend, will you please tell me the name 

 of these wonderful plants with such gorgeous 

 leaves ? ' ' 



' ' Why, those are our new creations that 

 have been recently developed from our or- 

 dinary caladiums. " 



"Caladiums!" I exclaimed. "Why, is it 

 possible that these are caladiums ? and are 

 they hardy ? ' ' 



"Hardy? Why, surely. Don't you see 

 the ventilators are wide open ? The tem- 

 perature is between 60 and 70." 



"But where did these come from ? How 

 long has Mr. Childs had them ? 



"Why, we have been developing along 

 this line for two or three years past. Some 

 of the finest have just been brought out. 

 You are right about it. Nobody ever saw 

 them until this season. Have you not seen 

 Mr. Childs' description and his colored plates 

 of them 'i ' ' 



Then he opened a catalog. You may be 

 sure we soon became acquainted. My com- 

 panion, Mr. Adolph Jaenicke, is the specialist 

 who has the credit of giving these beautiful 

 things to the world. I began asking the 

 prices, and was rejoiced to know that I 

 could have small plants of nearly all of them 



for 25 cents each. There were quite a few, 

 however, that were new and rare, and some- 

 what difficult to propagate, that he said were 

 not for sale — no, not even for $50 a plant, 

 and it might have been $500 — I do not re- 

 member. Let me digress a little. 



At the recent great poultry show in New 

 York they had a $1000 rooster; and when 

 some people laughed about the price, the 

 owner said he had already taken oixlers for 

 cockerels, at $25 each, that would more than 

 pay for the bird if he lived. Now, I am not 

 well enough posted in poultry to say whether 

 a bird could be worth $1000 or not; but I can 

 readily understand how a man who has a 

 monopoly of these wonderful foliage plants 

 might pay $50 or even $500 for the control of 

 the stock of something that will give the 

 world such a treat. 



Perhaps I had better try to describe some 

 of these caladiums. One that took my at- 

 tention first had a background of milky 

 whiteness; but the veins formed a beautiful 

 network or linework of jetty black. Then 

 there were touches of gold and silver, and 

 dazzling shades of green. I have sometimes 

 explained to the children that it was God's 

 own hand, or, if you choose, God's own 

 fingers that painted the lilies. Well, this 

 friend of mine— 1 have a right to call him a 

 friend — has been for years feeling his way 

 along, and seeing what he could do in making 

 a new creation of ornamental-leaved cala- 

 diums. He explained that some of the plants 

 in his charge blossom only in the night — 

 some of them just about midnight, and the 

 flowers stay open only a little while — a limited 

 number of minutes. In order to secure the 

 highly prized pollen he was obliged to sit up 

 and watch the flowers unfold. He must 

 handle the plant, not only just at such a 

 time, but in just such a way, in order to en- 

 courage and develop these beautiful forms. 

 I told him that he was a rival of Luther Bur- 

 bank; and he seemed greatly pleased to find 

 somebody who could appreciate and drink 

 in beauty that he had, through God's provi- 

 dence, been able to unfold to the world. I 

 suppose I am giving friend Childs a big free 

 advertisement here; but I can not help it. It is 

 only once in a while that I find something 

 that gives me such a thrill as did this display. 

 I did not see Mr. Childs at all — in fact, I 

 have never seen him. Although I have 

 written vip the things he has sent out several 

 times in yeax's past he has never made me a 

 present of five cents' worth of plants or seeds, 

 and I am glad of it. If he had, I should not 

 have felt like writing as I have in the above. 

 By the way, I ordered about a dozen small 

 caladium plapts from such varieties as were 

 for sale, and I will tell you more about them 

 when I get them in my little greenhouse. 



In Philadelphia I went over the great green- 

 houses of Robert Craig & Son. It took about 

 an hour to walk through them. They were 

 busy in putting up azaleas, Easter lilies, etc., 

 for the coming Easter Sunday. The display 

 of azaleas was beyond any thing I ever saw 

 before. As I approached a group of men 

 who were loading up the beautiful plants in 



