have short stalks and stems, I remove one-half of 

 the side shoots from the main stalks doing it as the 

 plant is growing. They appear in pairs on each 

 side of the stalks. I break one off just as soon as 

 it is far enough out for me to get hold of it, and 

 so on up the plant as they appear, working around 

 the plant in a circle, which keeps the plant from 

 being one sided. I do not allow more than two 

 stalks to a plant to grow. Keep the old and faded 

 bloom cut off. 



The fewer buds to a plant the larger the blooms 

 and vice versa. 



Large blooms are the poorest keepers as a rule 

 after being cut. The smaller the blooms, the better 

 they keep. 



The best time to cut the blooms is in the cool of 

 the morning or evening. It is best to remove all 

 the foliage, then put the tip ends of the stems (not 

 over an inch) in boiling water for about a minute. 

 A shallow dish is best as the steam from the water 

 is not so liable to come up through the blooms and 

 spoil them, then into a deep vase filled with cold 

 water, the nearer the water comes up to the bloom 

 the better. Shallow vases will not do. If the weather 

 is hot and sultry, they will last about two days. If 

 cool they will last for several, days. If blooms are 

 gathered within a day after the plants have been 

 watered, they will last but a few hours, if at all. 



15 



