SEPTKMBEK 7. 1916. Xljg Florists^ Review 



21 



iris, named from one of the French 

 rivers. C. S. Harrisoil. 



OPEN LCTrER3-/^" PeADEGd 



ASTER BLIGHT. 



I have noted with interest the in- 

 quiry of F. "W. H. on page 40 of 

 The Review for August 31, in regard 

 to aster blight. Having had more or 

 less experience with asters, I have 

 often noticed the same trouble with my 

 plants, but have come to the conclusion 

 it is due to a check in the growth of 

 the plants, often when they were first 

 put out, which does not show imme- 

 diately, but will sooner or later cause 

 the plant to "yellow off" in the man- 

 ner described. 



Soil that has grown asters the year 

 previously will not produce good plants, 

 but the. effect of this is seen from the 

 first in thin, spindly plants which ap- 

 parently have no vitality. 



H. G. McCallum. 



REMEDY FOR ASTER BEETLE. 



I have noticed a number of inquiries 

 in The Review relative to a remedy 

 for the destructive aster beetle. For 

 asters, gladioli, dahlias or any other 

 outdoor flowers which are subject to 

 the beetle, Hammond's Slug Shot will 

 do the work. Apply the exterminator 

 with a fine sieve, usually in the morn- 

 ing, when the foliage is moist. In a 

 few hours the beetle will have disap- 

 peared. The remedy is not injurious 

 to either the foliage or flower. I have 

 never found it necessary to make more 

 than two applications in a season and 

 sometimes one is suflBeient. I do not 

 consider Paris green a safe remedy. 

 It is apt to burn the foliage and should 

 not be used where flowers are intended 

 for market. G. R. Cause. 



A NATIONAL FLOWER. 



A national flower should be really 

 national, and not sectional. The moun- 

 tain laurel has been pushed to the front 

 in this connection and is receiving fa- 

 vorable consideration. But this cannot 

 be grown in one-fourth of our domain. 

 At our experiment station here in Yotk, 

 Neb., we planted and cultivated it with), 

 the greatest care and put it under ' a 

 screen, but it would not live. 



The peony is regarded with favor for 

 the purpose and it is a noble flower, 

 but it will not grow in the gulf states 

 or in southern California, and it is not 

 a success in the semi-arid regions, on 

 account of the continuous drought and 

 excessive heat. 



The phlox succeeds only in a limited 

 area. 



There is a Columbine Society, which 

 for years has been pushing its favorite 

 flower, but it is not an impressive or 

 conspicuous flower and it must be con- 

 fined to a limited area. 



The goldenrod has been mentioned, 

 but it is a miserable weed and remains 

 bright but a short time. 



The iris should be. our national flower, 

 for the following reasons: 



We have enough native sorts to give 

 it a claim to our attention. 



There are 170 native species of iris 



and over 1,000 hybrids. By a judicious 

 selection you can have flowers every 

 day for two months and in southern 

 California you can see them in bloom 

 every day in the year. 



It can be made to grow in every 

 state in the Union. 



It is the best of all drought-resistant 

 flowers. It has the faculty of gathering 

 the moisture in the roots and holding it 

 there during the worst drought and 

 heat. 



It multiplies rapidly and is not ex- 

 pensive. There is no flower which can 

 be grown from seed with surer or more 

 satisfactory results. We are on the 

 verge of cheering possibilities in the 

 origination of new sorts, and the 

 process is so simple that a little girl 

 can produce marvels of loveliness. 



There is no family of flowers which 



can surpass the iris in beauty; some 



of the newer sorts defy description. 



Daughters of the rainbow, they come 



"In garments of woven delight, 



Of sunset, aurora and light." 



There is not a family in our vast 

 domain that cannot grow the iris and 

 enjoy it. So it should be our national 

 flower. The iris is sometimes said to 

 be the national flower of France, but it 

 is not. The French emblem is a water 



HYDRANGEAS FOR EASTER. 



I want to start some hydrangeas that 

 I can bring into bloom for Easter. 

 How should I treat them and what size 

 of plants should I buy? 



W. C. H.— Pa. 



Easter comes April 8 next year. You 

 will succeed best with the French 

 hydrangeas, rather than with the old 

 H. Otaksa, for early flowering, and you 

 should buy pot-grown plants. You can 

 buy these in 4-inch, 5-inch and 6-ineh 

 and larger sizes. The 5-inch or 6-inch 

 should suit you. These can be turned 

 out of pots, of course, for shipment. 

 Give these plenty of sun and gradually 

 reduce water supplies. Give the pro- 

 tection of a coldframe as the weather 

 becomes colder. Endeavor to ripen the 

 wood well; do not keep the plants dry,, 

 but if you water heavily they will not 

 ripen up so well. 



The plants can be started in January 

 for Easter flowering. Good varietieaf 

 to buy are Radiant, bright pink; Mme. 

 E. Mouillere, white; General de 

 Vibraye, bright rose. C. W. 



Robinson, 111. — After an illness of sev- 

 eral weeks, E. T, Oldham says he is be- 

 ginning to feel like himself again. 



Mount Vernon, 111. — The 10-acre plot 

 of ground owned by G. Holabeck, of 

 St. Louis, is to be planted to vegetables, 

 flowers and small fruits next spring. 

 Mr. Holabeck expects to erect green- 

 houses later on. 



Glasgow, Scotland. — In 1915 palms for 

 export to the United States valued at 

 $10,629 were certified through the U. S. 

 consulate here. In 1914 there were no 

 exports of this character. 



Sasseuheim, Holland. — The bulb mar- 

 ket has firmed up in a way that was 

 wholly unexpected, following the Brit- 

 ish embargo. Tulips have advanced 

 sharply, compare! with quotations be- 

 fore harvest, hyacinths less abruptly 

 and narcissi to a still less extent. Thie 

 , reasons for the advance are found in 

 a much smaller supply of merchantable 

 bulbs than was expected, due to de- 

 creased acreage, bad weather and short- 

 age of labor. 



Marseilles, France. — It is officially 

 announced that "the S. S. Savonian 

 was sunk by a torpedo in the Mediter- 

 ranean, after leaving Marseilles Sunday, 

 August 13. It carried about two-thirds 

 of the French bulb crop destined for 

 England. It consisted of Roman hya- 

 cinths, freesias, and other French bulbs. 

 The crop was an extremely poor one 

 and the bulbs were small, but it is a 

 loss to horticulture which cannot be re- 

 placed this season." It is stated that 

 the shipments of bulbs lost included 

 important consignments for the largest 

 buyers in England, Sutton, Carter, How- 

 croft and others. 



Berlin, Germany. — It is announced 

 that boats of the Holland-America line 

 still leave their mails in England. 



Glasgow, Scotland. — Referring to the 

 new opening for the extensive employ- 

 ment of women, arising from the war 

 conditions, that of horticulture, in the 

 Portobello gardens of Dobbie & Co., 

 seedsmen, women and girl workers have 

 for some time been largely in the ma- 

 jority. "We would have been almost 

 helpless without them," the manager 

 told a correspondent in the course of 

 a tour of the grounds. "From the 

 point of view of the workers themselves 

 the success of their new occupation is 

 not in doubt. Their length of service 

 and the rarity, almost the complete ab- 

 sence, of cases of the employees leaving 

 their new work, are sufficient testimony 

 on this fact. There are different duties 

 for different attainments in skill. They 

 do potting, pruning, weeding and wa- 

 tering, and the various other duties for- 

 merly undertaken by the men. Some of 

 the girls working out of doors found 

 themselves hamper£d by their skirts. 

 This difficulty has been removed on the 

 part of a number of the workers by the 

 adoption of male attire. One of the 

 girls appears in knickers and puttees, 

 which give her a smart military appear- 

 ance." 



