Dbcimbib 28, 1916. 



The Florists' Review 



15 



VIOLETS FAIL TO BLOOM. 



Can you tell me what to do to make 

 outdoor violets bloom here, in north- 

 western Oregon? I have had some of 

 the plants for two years, but they have 

 borne no flowers. I tried cutting some 

 of them back in various ways, while I 

 allowed others to grow naturally, but 

 none of them would bloom. 



F. W.— Ore. 



Violets would not do well if put in 

 soil that is poorly drained and deficient 

 in fertilizer. Having been pruned and 

 cut back without results, the plants 

 should be discarded. If the location is 

 much shaded, change to a sunny spot 

 with warm, rich soil and good drainage. 

 Use young plants and good results ought 

 to be obtained. S. W. W. 



SPOT ON VIOLETS. 



Our violets are drooping and the foliage 

 is becoming more spotted every day. They 

 have been in the house for nearly three 

 weeks. I cultivated them and sprinkled 

 them a week ago. Un^il recently they 

 were nice plants. Any advice will be 

 appreciated. D. & F. — Mich. 



Your foliage is badly attacked with 

 what is commonly called violet spot. This 

 is a serious disease, especially on double 

 violets; on these it often ruins the entire 

 crop. On singles, which possess greater 

 vigor, there is less danger. I would ad- 

 vise that you pick off the affected foliage 

 as far as possible and give the plants 

 a thorough spraying with either Fungine 

 or Bordeaux mixture. Repeat this for 

 three weeks at intervals of a week. Keep 

 the house well ventilated night and day. 

 Never close it tightly until really cold 

 weather compels you to do so, A dry, 

 buoyant atmosphere, with a temperature 

 on cold night's of 40 to 42 degrees and a 

 rise of 10 to 15 degrees in the daytime, 

 suits violets. In watering, avoid wet- 

 ting the foliage any more than is neces- 

 sary. Keep the floors clean, both in the 

 aisles and below the benches, if you use 

 benches, as dirt or decayed foliage tends 

 to encourage fungoid diseases. C. W. 



A FAST-SETTINO CONCRETE. 



Greenhouse owners who have trouble 

 with concrete will be interested in trials 

 undertaken by the United States Bu- 

 reau of Standards showing that calcium 

 chloride is a good accelerator for hard- 

 ening concrete. By its use the increase 

 in strength at forty-eight hours varies 

 from 14 to 275 per cent for the 1-2-4 

 mix and from 11 to 110 per cent for the 

 l-l%-3 mix. In all but one case the 

 concretes mixed with four per cent of 

 calcium chloride show greater strength 

 for both mixes than for plain concrete, 

 these results being consistent for all the 



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I WHO'S WHO ,ZSl AND WHY | 



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PERLE B. FULMER. ^ 



NEW YEAR 'S day Miss Fulmer will become president of the Ladies ' S. A. F., so 

 the publication of her portrait here is in the nature of a greeting to those who 

 elected her at Houston last August, and to those who were not there. Miss Fulmer 

 is well known as the daughter of J. D. Fulmer, city gardener at Des Moines. The 

 family seldom miss a convention and Miss Fulmer has been an active worker 

 in the ladies' society ever since she joined it, at Philadelphia in 1907. Music 

 and pedagogy are her life work, but the Ladies ' S. A. F. is her hobby. 



ages tested, up to thirty days. This ac- 

 celeration in strength is believed to be 

 due to the more complete hydration of 

 the silicates and aluminates in the set- 

 ting of the cement. The use of calcium 



cliloride increases the cost of concrete 

 by 50 cents to 75 cents per cubic yard. 

 For best results it is important that the 

 concrete be mixed to a quaking, but not 

 fluid, consistency. 



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SEASONABLE SUGGESTIONS 

 FOR SOUTHERN FLORISTS 



HYDRANGEAS IN THE SOUTH. 



Easter is two weeks earlier this year 

 than last, so it is none too soon to place 

 the hydrangeas intended for blooming 

 at that time into a little heat. First 

 shift the plants into larger-sized pots, 

 using a good, rich compost to which has 

 been added a good sprinkling of bone 

 meal. I have never found anything like 

 bone meal for bringing out the colcjr of 

 the flowers. A night temperature of 

 56 to 60 degrees will be right for the 



first two weeks, after which the plants 

 probably will need as much as 65 to 70 

 degrees to get them ready for Easter. 



The French varieties will flower two 

 weeks earlier than the old Otaksa, 

 which generally needs hard pushing to- 

 have it on time. Try to have the plants 

 well ahead of time, so that they can 

 have the benefit of a cool temperature 

 for two weeks before they are needed 

 for sale. They require considerable 

 water when growing freely, and weekly 



