

12 



The Florists' Review 



JPLT 8, 1916. 



CABNATION SUPPORTS. 



Supports a Necessity. 



Many growers would not think of us- 

 ing patent carnation supports; many 

 would not try to grow carnations with- 

 out them. The purpose of this article 

 is to discuss the essentials of an ef- 

 ficient support, thus making clear why 

 some patent supports have failed to 

 make good. 



It is an undisputed fact that carna- 

 tions will not properly develop if no 

 supporting is used. Some twenty-five 

 years ago, this fact was realized, but 

 the importance of having a carefully 

 designed and easily applied arrange- 

 ment was not then fully felt. Since it 

 now merely is a question of what sort 

 of support should be used, our topic 

 is narrowed to the consideration of 

 properties most desired in a support. 



Naturally, the first requisite of a 

 support is that it hold up the plant. 

 Holding the plant erect demands that it 

 be stiff and rigid, both in design and 

 material. Perhaps the next most im- 

 portant feature of a satisfactory sup- 

 port is its property of packing closely 

 when knocked down between seasons. 

 If it cannot be handled in this manner 

 it takes entirely too much room ' and 

 perhaps is greatly damaged when not 

 in use. 



The Height Adjustment. 



A good support should be easily ad- 

 justed in height to the growing plant. 

 As the plants grow, the rings should 

 be so arranged that they can be 

 raised or increased in number. This 

 operation of raising the height of the 

 support should in no way bend or weak- 

 en the support if it is properly de- 

 signed. A patent support should be so 

 devised that it can be erected in from 

 one-half to one-third the time that is 

 necessary where the string and wire 

 method is used. This has already been 

 accomplished with some makes and this 

 saving is quite important. 



The principal advances of the last 

 century are those made in the inven- 

 tion and adoption of time-saving con- 

 trivances. Why should the florist be 

 less interested than other aggressive 

 men in the adoption of economical ap- 

 paratus? 



Perhaps the florist in years past has 

 been aggressive and has invested in a 

 particular make of support that was not 

 intelligently designed. Perhaps his fore- 

 man refused to use them a second sea- 

 son and the dump pile got them. The 

 writer has seen several loads of such 

 junk decorating river banks in some of 

 his trampings. Naturally such an in- 

 dividual would feel skeptical about buy- 

 ing other patent supports, but the de- 

 sign of a good support no more resem- 

 bles a poor one tham a blind nag at 

 20 years resembles a 5-year-old show 

 horse. Of course they are both horses, 

 but horses are different. 



The Pilncipai Essentials. 



In some of the successful designs all 

 the supports of a bench fasten together. 

 They must be rigid and each should 

 help support the rest. This tying to- 

 gether must be carefully planned to ob- 

 tain the maximum supporting strength 

 with the minimum use of wire. This 

 is an advantage in price, as well as an 

 advantage in having no unnecessary 

 wire in the grower's way. 



The method of fastening the rings to 

 the stakes has been another stumbling 

 block for the makers of supports. Many 

 slipshod, ineflBcient methods have been 

 tried. A simple, self-tying arrangement 

 should be used that will insure a rapid 

 and firm tying of the stakes to the 

 rings, without the use of any additional 

 wires or clips. 



The size of rings is a less important 

 feature, as the various makes are rather 

 uniform in this respect. About six and 

 one-half or seven inches in diameter is 

 the size that seems best adapted to the 

 carnation and most convenient to the 

 grower in working around the supports. 



No galvanized wire is too good for 

 use in making carnation supports. They 

 are daily subjected to water and are 

 in constant contact with the wet foli- 

 age. For this reason it is unprofitable 

 to invest in supports that are made 

 with thinly galvanized wire. 



The fewer stakes in the way of the 

 grower and the more room between 

 rows across the bench, the easier it is 

 for the grower to do his work. Some 

 makes of supports have as many as 

 three stakes to every plant for sup- 

 porting the rings, but other makes, that 

 are rigid, accomplish their work with 

 only half as many stakes as plants. 



The Advertising Viewpoint. 



• The neatness of the houses is really 

 an important feature of a florist's ad- 

 vertising. If one is located near a 

 cemetery this feature is doubly worth 

 consideration, as visitors are numerous. 

 If the houses are equipped with up-to- 

 the-minute supports, all the same 

 height, in regular rows, holding the 

 plants up with light and air between 

 the rows, they will present a wonder- 

 fully neat appearaace and go a long 

 way toward impressing customers fa- 

 vorably. 



It cannot be denied that an efficient 

 support insures straighter stems as well 

 as straighter cuttings. This is worth 

 dollars to any florist. 



I maintain that an ideal support 

 should have as many rings in each set 

 as the grower has carnations in a short 

 row crosswise of his bench. This in- 

 sures that the supports stay where he 

 puts them, as each helps to hold the 

 other in place. This continuous ring 

 arrangement is not only a time-saver 

 and convenience in erecting and in tak- 

 ing down the supports, but it also is 

 the most efficient means of maintaining 

 uniform spacing of supports. 



Whenever one can procure a support 

 that has these qualities, he can rest as- 

 sured that string and wire is an ex- 

 pensive and sloppy way of handling 

 the work, even if he figures the mate- 

 rial cost as nothing. 



Joseph M. Wilkin. 



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The Hardy Perennial Garden. 



While many people are mourning 

 over the lack of sunshine and heat dur- 

 ing May and June and complaining of 

 the frequent rainfalls, the hardy her- 

 baceous garden has simply reveled un- 

 der the climatic conditions that have 

 existed and never looked more luxur- 

 iant. The abundant and deep snows of 

 last winter made a good mulch and 

 fewer plants died than ever before. 

 April gave us copious rains and the 

 lack of excessive heat has caused all 

 flowers to last remarkably; in fact, the 

 season has been the finest I have ever 

 experienced for hardy border plants. 



June is unquestionably the month par 

 excellence for herbaceous perennials, 

 and borders now are remarkably attrac- 

 tive and carry a great wealth of flow- 

 ers. It is at this season, while there 

 is so much floral beauty, that we must 

 take note of our needs for another sea- 

 son and prepare to supply them. 



While some viarieties ai'e best in- 

 creased from cuttings, as, for example, 

 phloxes, and others from root cuttings, 

 of which the Japanese anemones are a 



well known example, a large number 

 may be easily and economically grown 

 from seed, and the present is a good 

 time to make liberal sowings of the 

 more popular varieties. Coldframes are 

 best for seed sowing, as shade and 

 water can be carefully given. The 

 seedlings later can be set out in beds 

 or nursery rows, during damp, cloudy 

 weather, and if they are kept well cul- 

 tivated they will, in the majority of 

 cases, make strong plants for selling in 

 the fall or spring. 



Delphiniums. 



The delphinium now is one of the 

 most striking flowers in perennial bor- 

 ders. Spring-sown delphinium seeds 

 usually give plants that flower the same 

 year, but sowing done now will furnish 

 strong plants for fall sales. While for 

 the average grower it may suffice to 

 sow a mixed package, or one each of 

 dark and light blue shades, I would 

 strongly advise sowing one or two of 

 the fine, named varieties, such as Clear 

 Blue, clear blue; King of Delphiniums, 

 gentian blue; the beautiful Bella- 



