16 



The Florists' Review 



Mabch 23, 1016. 



MORE ON NUTT GERANIUM. 



The S. A. Nutt geranium was intro- 

 duced by Simmons & Sons, of Geneva, 

 O., and was named after one of Gene- 

 va's best citizens by Mr. Simmons. 

 This concern also sent out Silver Spray, 

 Portia, J. J. Harrison and Daybreak 

 carnations. Anson Simmons still re- 

 sides in Geneva, O. 



I am staying at Kramer, Ind., for 

 a few weeks, trying to 'get my health 

 back, and I am ' ' coming right down the 

 pike." Harry Balsley. 



STEM-ROT ON GERANIUMS. 



Can you tell us why the stem of the 

 enclosed geranium has been rotting 

 and dying away? The disease seems 

 to start at the roots and work up, as 

 you will see the top still shows signs 

 of life. Is there a remedy for this? 

 A. E. P. & 8,— HI. 



This is a common trouble, not only 

 with geraniums but many other plants. 

 Among the probable causes are. leav- 

 ing the cuttings too long in the propa- 

 gating bench, too deep potting, or 

 burying the stem too much, and the 

 use of soil containing too much plant 

 food of a nitrogenous nature. There 

 is nothing you can do once the disease 

 has started, but be careful not to leave 

 the cuttings too long in the sand. It 

 is a common practice to do this and, 

 as the cuttings become leggy, to bury 

 a good part of the stem. Use soil con- 

 taining no fresh manure. A little fine 

 bone and old manure, well broken up, 

 will be found satisfactory. C. W. 



GERANIUM FOLIAGE RED. 



We enclose several geranium leaves 

 that have turned red. The stems of 

 the plants are taking on the same color. 

 They are in 3-inch pots, almost ready 

 to shift to 4-inch pots, and have been 

 doing nicely until a few weeks ago. 

 Possibly we have sprayed them too 

 heavily with Nicoticide, as we have used 

 this for white fly. Kindly tell us what 

 to do and especially how to make them 

 sprout out, for it now seems as if we 

 will have no leaves near the bottom of 

 the plant at all. Shall we cut off the 

 red leaves, or just break them, to in- 

 duce some growth at the bottom of the 

 plant? H. M.— 111. 



It is barely possible that sprajring or 

 strong fumigation may have helped to 

 develop the red foliage. It is more 

 likely to be an excess of some fertiliz- 

 ing element in the potting soil; too 

 much bone or potash is the most prob- 

 able cause. Break off the leaves, but 

 not until they are hopelessly affected. 

 I would shake out the plants and re- 

 pot them in a compost of loam, with 

 some old, well decayed manure added 

 in the proportion of one to four; also, 

 a 4-inch pot of fine bone to each wheel- 

 barrow load of compost. Be careful 



not to overwater yoXir plants at any 

 time and refrain from spraying them 

 overhead. A temperature of 48 to 50 

 degrees at night, plenty of sun, fresh 

 air and a dry atmosphere are condi- 

 tions geraniums like. Do not stand 

 your plants on a coat of coal ashes un- 

 less it is an extremely thin one. 



C. W. 



GERANIUM FOUAGE DISEASED. 



I am enclosing samples of diseased 

 S. A. Nutt geranium leaves. The cut- 

 tings were made last fall, rooted in 

 clean, sharp, coarse sand, and have done 

 well until the present time. Some show 

 red leaves which later dry up; others 

 are spotted or the edges are slowly wilt- 

 ing. A few days ago I used for the 

 first time Fungine, about one-half pint 

 to five quarts of rain water. Is this 

 mixture all right or should there be 

 more water added? Will the plants 

 overcome the disease and become strong 

 plants for spring bedding outdoors! 

 How often should the spraying of 

 Fungine be repeated, and at what time 

 of the day? 



I am keeping the geraniums in a 

 night temperature of 55 degrees. The 

 house is new, has plenty of air and 

 light. I keep the plants on the dry 

 side, not allowing the foliage to be- 

 come wet. A brother florist thought 



the disease was caused by keeping the 

 pots on coal ashes, because the ashes 

 contained too much sulphur, so I re- 

 moved as much soil as possible and 

 transplanted the plants into new pots. 

 The soil now consists of light, old com- 

 post, with a little ground rock lime. 

 There was no manure in the compost. 



A. P. W.— Wis. 



You have used the Fungine much too 

 strong. One part of Fungine to forty 

 parts of water is sufficiently strong, 

 or half the strength you have been 

 using. As the plants are strong, I feel 

 sure they will come out all right by bed- 

 ding time. Spray the plants when the 

 foliage is perfectly dry and preferably 

 in the morning, when the sun is on 

 them. It is not wise to spray in the 

 evening, as the plants should be dry 

 over night. 



The old compost is often much lack- 

 ing in plant food and ground rock lime 

 would be of no value unless your soil 

 was of an acid nature. If you would 

 shake out your plants and repot them 

 in a mixture of four parts of loam, one 

 part old cow or horse manure, well 

 screened, and a 4-inch pot of fine bone 

 to each barrow load of compost, your 

 plants would make better headway and 

 the red appearance of the leaves, a sign 

 of improper soil or starvation, would 

 disappear. While too many coal ashes be- 

 low geraniums may prevent the roots 

 coming out at the bottom, a thin coat- 

 ing of well screened ashes I have never 

 found harmful. All kinds of plants are 

 plunged year after year outdoors in 

 coal ashes and I have never seen any 

 harm come to such plants. Such harm 

 as might come to the geraniums would 

 be more in the fact that roots could 

 not ' so easily strike any loam below 

 them, than in probable injury from sul- 

 phur in the ashes themselves. C. W. 



i 



D 



1. 



SEASONABLE 9S 

 3g SUGGESTIONS 





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Winter-flowering Begonias. 



Early propagated plants of Cincin- 

 nati and (Lorraine begonias should now 

 be well rooted in 2i«^-inch pots and 

 ready for a shift into 3%-inch or 4- 

 inch pots. Continue to use a compost 

 largely composed of not too much de- 

 cayed leaf-mold and sand, with a little 

 old manure added. Stand them on a 

 bench where they will continue to get 

 some bottom heat, and have a night 

 temperature of 60 degrees. 



Pot off leaf cuttings as soon as they 

 are nicely rooted. Do not wait for any 

 growths appearing above the sand. 

 They will come more quickly and 

 vigorously in pots than in the cutting 

 bench. A last batch of leaves can 

 now be put in, but after this date we 

 cannot get so steady bottom heat as 

 during the winter, and propagation 

 becomes more difficult. Propagation 

 from shoots, however, can be success- 

 fully carried out until June. 



Propagating AntirrMnums. 

 During April is a good time to take 

 cuttings from any specially fine snap- 



dragons to be benched in August for 

 a fall and winter crop. Cuttings will 

 not produce plants of the same vigor 

 as seedlings, but are necessary to per- 

 petuate specially good forms, which can 

 later be grown without other varieties 

 near them, so that seed can be saved, 

 and will give plants true to type. What 

 is particularly needed is a good winter- 

 blooming pink variety, one which will 

 flower through the cold months as 

 freely as does Phelps' White. We are 

 much in need of such a snapdragon, as 

 pink is a' far more salable color than 

 either white or yellow. 



When propagating snapdragons use 

 only the best cuttings. This will 

 greatly improve your stock. Be care- 

 ful not to leave them in the cutting 

 bench any longer than you can help 

 after they are rooted. 



Dutch Bulbs For Easter. 



As Easter comes late, it will be neces- 

 sary to do some retarding in the case 

 of Dutch bulbous stock in pans, pots or 

 flats for that occasion. If a good cold 

 pit is at disposal, the bulk of the bulbs 



