General Greenhouse Culture 



crooked, and the selling value of the flowers be thereby impaired. The differ- 

 ent systems of staking and tying carnation plants are described in Chapter X. 



Feeding Benched Plants 



In from six to eight weeks, the carnation plants will have rilled the 

 benches entirely with roots and have commenced to exhaust, to some ex- 

 tent, the shallow soil in which they are growing. At this time, light feeding 

 in the way of applications of manure water or light mulches may be given. 

 It is important that such feedings should be afforded lightly and frequently 

 rather than in heavy doses. The food should be introduced into the soil just 

 about as fast as the plants need it for use. If given in small quantities at 

 regular periods, the carnation roots will be able to handle all of the available 

 chemical ingredients, and this will tend to keep the soil fresh and sweet; 

 whereas, if a surplus of food over and above the requirements of the plant 

 is introduced into the soil, an acid condition will likely be produced, in which 

 case all plant food must be withheld, and, probably, a good watering of lime 

 water, or a dressing of air-slacked lime, be used to correct the acidity. It 

 has been our practice during the month of October to treat the surface soil of 

 the benches with a moderate dressing of pulverized sheep manure. This is 

 frequently mixed with Scotch soot, the proportion being half and half, and 

 applied so as to color the surface of the soil. This serves the purpose of 

 fertilization as well as preventing the growth of the green scum or surface 

 mold. 



Stopping or Topping 



As soon as the flowering shoots lengthen, those of a weak, spindling 

 character should be topped, for the purpose of bringing the first crop of 

 flowers with vigorous, long stems. Stopping the flowering shoots after plant- 

 ing has a tendency to throw the crop later into the winter months, and it may 

 be practiced where it is desirable to sacrifice the early blooms in order to 

 secure heavier crops at Christmas or during the winter months, when 

 flowers bring a higher price. 



It is of great importance to study the habits of growth of different 

 varieties of carnations in order that each variety may be topped at the proper 

 time. Some carnations will not give crops of bloom until late midwinter or 

 the ensuing spring if topped after the ist of August ; others can be topped as 

 late as the middle of September and brought into full crop during the holidays. 



47 



