IN CALIFORNIA 147 



turn must be pinched or cut until a perfect bush, well 

 balanced, is built up. Never do any topping after 

 July, for this is the last month for restriction of 

 growth. Of course if plants are to be trained to sin- 

 gle stems for one to five flowers, they should not be 

 made to branch into bushes. 



During July all chrysanthemums should be cut 

 back. If your plants are not so treated you will 

 probably get flowers before the hot weather is over 

 and they will be small. If cut back in time and given 

 plenty of food and drink, they will produce flowers in 

 October or November. After the last topping water 

 copiously. It is well to wash with the sprinkler 

 the dust from the leaves about once a week; do this 

 at the close of the day. Adobe soil will not need so 

 much watering as the loamy soil. Judgment must 

 here be used, though water should not be withheld 

 at any time too much can scarcely be given if 

 drainage is good. 



STAKING AND TYING 



As the plants grow up they should be staked and 

 tied, one stalk or stem to a stake. Some sorts, with 

 some growers, often run up to eight feet, but this is 

 not general and is most inexcusable. Plants should 

 be tied with raffia, procurable at any seed store, or 

 with strips of cloth torn into quarter-inch widths, 

 or with some very large soft twine-like candle wick- 

 ing. 



Split shakes make very good stakes; for the 

 dwarf er sorts one length is enough, and for the taller 

 ones they may be spliced. It is all a question, 

 though, of how they are grown. In some cases a 

 few longer and stronger stakes would be necessary, 

 and some use very large ones and group the stems. 

 The better method is to stake every stalk, and then 



