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 12 



The Florists^ Review 



June 22, 1916. 



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SEASONABLE mt 

 Mr SUGGESTIONS 



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Asters. 



Keep the cultivator constantly at 

 work among the early asters. Particu- 

 larly is this necessary when the weather 

 is warm and dry. The amount of 

 drought these annuals will stand when 

 the soil about them is kept constantly 

 tickled is surprising. The disturbance 

 of the soil and the creation of a fine, 

 dry soil mulch also acts as a deterrent 

 to soil pests. Birds are always to be 

 found actively at work on newly stirred 

 land, and the numbers of earthworms, 

 cutworms, wireworms and other pests 

 destroyed by our feathered friends are 

 enormous. The present month should 

 see the planting out of the main batch 

 of asters, such as American Branching. 

 They are robust in habit and need more 

 space than Comet, Queen of the Market 

 or Victoria. There is still time to make 

 a final sowing of aster seed, but it must 

 go in without delay. 



Sweet Peas. 



Outdoor sweet peas are liable to be 

 attacked by green aphis in early sum- 

 mer and, unless prompt measures are 

 taken to check it, great harm will be 

 done to the plants. Spraying with a 

 nicotine or soap spray will be found 

 effective. In addition, the plants will 

 be benefited and pests discouraged by 

 occasional sprayings with the hose, 

 especially if a spray nozzle is used. As 

 the plants approach the flowering stage 

 they will be much benefited if they are 

 given a mulch of lawn mowings, old 

 manure, meadow hay or straw. If the 

 mulch contains some manurial property, 

 all the better, but it should not be too 

 strong, as this would put too much 

 nitrogen in the soil and, while the 



Slants would grow robustly, they would 

 rop many of their buds. This is espe- 

 cially true where plants are grown 

 thinly, for flowers of exhibition quality. 



Primula Malacoides. 



Primula malacoides is the most useful 

 of the whole family as a pot plant. It 

 is light, graceful and decorative. It is 

 a rapid grower and for that reason the 

 seed must be sown much later than in 

 the case of P. obconica, Sinensis, Kew- 

 ensis and other winter-blooming sorts. 

 About the end of June is sufficiently 

 early to sow this charming primrose. 

 It is now obtainable in several distinct 

 colors, of which the bright, clear pink 

 form is decidedly the best. One shown 

 at a number of exhibitions by F. H. 

 Lemon & Co., Bichmond, Ind., is partic- 

 ularly good. 



Nephrolepis. 



After Memorial day has passed, bench 

 space is more abundant. Probably a 

 space which had been occupied by 

 stocks, feverfew, spiraeas or even carna- 

 tions may be at disposal. In such a 

 case it pays to bench a good number of 

 nephrolepis from small pots, allowing 

 a foot each way between the plants. 

 These ferns do not need any special 

 compost; old carnation compost, with 

 the addition of some well-decayed ma- 



nure, or even leaf -mold, will make an 

 excellent beneh medium. . Give the 

 glass some shade, but do not let it be 

 heavy. The ferns will be much stockier 

 when not heavily shaded. 



Winter 



fe^lrrhinums. 



inter .^^1 



Seedlings *sBould be ready to prick 

 off now where you are planning to grow 

 winter snapdragons. There are tall, 

 intermediate and dwarf varieties. The 

 first named carry much the finest spikes, 

 but the intermediate forms are usually 

 grown commercially, as they can be 

 grown on side benches. The earlier in 

 August the benchiAjg can be done, the 

 better. Therefore, if you have forgot- 

 ten to sow seed, do so now. As between 

 seedlings and cuttings, I have. a decided 

 preference for the former, as they pos- 

 sess far greater vigor than cuttings and 

 are more disease-resistant. Fungoid 

 affections were particularly bad last 

 year, thanks to a cool, wet summer. 

 They are always worse on outdoor than 

 on indoor plants. For that reason, keep 

 all plants under glass protection. It is 

 sometimes asked how long these early 



snapi^ragons will bloom. They 'Wi^ start 

 to bloom in October and, if given proper 

 treatment, will continue to bloom until 

 July, after which time it does not pay 

 to keep them under glass. Much finer 

 spikes at this season will be produced 

 under glass. 



Palms. 



With the rush of the bedding season 

 over, it would be well to devote at least 

 a few hours on a rainy day to such 

 palms as may be in stock. Many retail 

 florists grow a few kentias, arecas, 

 phoenix or latanias to rent for decora- 

 tive purposes, and in the course of a 

 winter they will get pretty well used 

 up. During the next three or four 

 months palms make their maximum 

 growth, and if they are at all starved 

 they should be repotted or at least top- 

 dressed. Any which may not require 

 repotting will be benefited by an occa- 

 sional application , of liquid manure. 

 Keep the plants freely syringed and 

 be sure the glass is well shaded. If 

 you have no suitable house which you 

 can give up to your 'palms, try the plan 

 of standing them outdoors below large 

 trees, on which the branches do hot 

 come down too near the ground. Partly 

 plunge the pots and be sure that the 

 location is convenient to a hose. Small 

 lots of other miscellaneous foliage 

 plants, such as aspidistras, ficus, arau- 

 carias, etc., will do well with the palms, 

 and they will put on a fine, dark green 

 color during the summer, far ahead of 

 the appearance they would present if in 

 a poorly shaded greenhouse. 



cms LCTTEft^y^" READBD6 



ATTENTION, AD VEETISERS ! 



As a suggestion to advertisers, we 

 call their attention to the fact that 

 some advertisements are placed in The 

 Review too late to be of value on the 

 Pacific coast. Advertisers wait for 

 holiday numbers to make announce- 

 ments, and these numbers rea(ih us too 

 late for us to order. Especially is this 

 true of baske|;s, novelties, etc., which, 

 if advertised a month or six weeks be- 

 fore a holiday, would, we tUMk, pull 

 many orders from the west. Ifce coast 

 as well as the middle west is dependent 

 upon The Review in this line. 



Bellingham Floral Exchange. 



Bellingham, Wash. 



MOTHEBS' DAY PRICES. 



We agree with Charles Helm in his 

 article in The Review for May 11, in 

 which he says that $7 per hundred for 

 carnations on Mothers' day, or any 

 other day, is an unreasonable price, and 

 we take exception to William Schaef- 

 er's article in the issue of May 18, in 

 which he says the public will be de- 

 lighted to pay the advanced price. If 

 this is his experience, the reverse is 

 ours. 



Mr. Schaefer speaks about the better 

 class of buyers being protected. We do 

 not know what he means by a "better 

 class of buyers," as all our buyers look 

 alike to us, with the exception that 

 some kick harder and longer than others 



at the advanced prices on these special 

 occasions. If they did not make an 

 audible protest, one could tell by the 

 look of disappointment on their faces 

 that the advanced prices did not make 

 a hit with them. 



It is the retailer more than anyone 

 else who has created the demand for 

 flowers for Mothers' day, find it is the 

 retailer who is blamed for the advance 

 in prices and who hears all the com- 

 plaints. If the growers insist on kill- 

 ing the hen that lays the golden egg, 

 they have taken the proper course. I 

 have talked with several small growers 

 and retailers, and they are ready to dis- 

 continue making any special effort to 

 assist in the hold-up. 



We agree with Mr. Schaefer that we 

 cannot be regulated by the Sherman 

 law, as people do not have to buy our 

 wares any more than they have to buy 

 airships or automobiles. Carnations at 

 $1.50 per dozen and roses at $2 and 

 $2.50 per dozen are as far out of some 

 people's reach as are airships and auto- 

 mobiles. Mr. Schaefer would have us 

 believe that his customers, if given the 

 opportunity to buy shoes on Friday for 

 $5 and on Saturday for $7.50, would 

 wait until Saturday, because they could 

 pay more. The more they have to pay, 

 the better they like it. Our customers 

 are made of different material. We 

 would like to hear from the trade in 



feneral what we can expect in the 

 uture. H. F. Powell. 



