'I','l'.i»'.'l'. f". »). »'. "I'l'/I . 1','lll'r. 



mm 



^'k\v.'r.'t'.MV»»M'.w.'».MVfi.>i'.M' 

 >>iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiin;iiiii!iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii:ii"iii 



^'^^;^. 



THE COMING SEASON'S 

 CYCLAMEN CROP 



Interest in the cyclamen has been greatly stimulated of late by certain 

 trade conditions. Cyclamen growers were at first perturbed, perhaps dis- 

 couraged, by the lack of imported seeds. Later, however, the scarcity of 

 azaleas, with the consequent increase in the demand for cyclamens, spurred 

 cyclamen growers to renewed activity. 



T EEQUIRES no prophetic 

 inspiration, and not even 

 a great degree of shrewd- 

 ness or foresight, to per- 

 ceive that there will be a 

 satisfactory market for cy- 

 clamen plants during the 

 coming season. The cycla- 

 men long ago won a high 

 place in public favor, won 

 it by sheer and unquestioned merit, and 

 ^ still advancing in popularity. Of 

 ^the increased demand for it in 

 reax or two has been partly due 

 'fact that one of its principal 

 rivals, the azalea, has been almost re- 

 moved from the scene. The azalea's 

 exclusion from the country, though at 

 first caused by the great war, may be 

 continued indefinitely by the govern- 

 ment's plant quarantine, which is in- 

 tended to go into effect 

 June 1, 19T9. What quan- 

 tity of Belgian azaleas will 

 be imported before that 

 date, and what proportion 

 of the quantity received 

 will be of /service in the 

 coming season — that real- 

 ly is a question that only 

 a prophet or sage would be 

 able to answer definitely. 



Ileal Money. 



The status of the cycla- 

 men as a holiday plant 

 was cleai:ly indicated last 

 Christmas, when it ran a 

 close race with the poin- 

 settia as a claimant for 

 public esteem, in spite of 

 the fact that the poinset- 

 tia has long been consid- 

 ered the most typical of 

 Christmas plants and has 

 become a recognized em- 

 blem of the festival, al- 

 most sacred to the sacred 

 occasion. When the prices 

 of all greenhouse stock 

 rose last autumn, the cy- 

 clamens more than held 

 their own in the contest 

 with other items and met 

 with a demand which 

 greatly exceeded the sup- 

 ply. WoUrath & Sons, of 

 Waltham, Mass., a part of 

 whose last season's cycla- 

 men crop is seen in the il- 

 lustration on this page, 

 sold many of their best 

 plants — which undoubted- 

 ly were also among the 

 best in Massachusetts — at 

 $7 to $10 each, wholesale. 

 Yes, that may be startling 

 to some, but do not let us 



begrudge the growers their hard-earned 

 reward. WoUrath & Sons also spe- 

 cialize in begonias and poinsettias for 

 the Christmas trade, with the same suc- 

 cess as in the case of cyclamens. 



Neither Expected Nor Wished. 



Since the extreme scarcity of plants 

 and flowers last Christmas was the re- 

 sult of utterly abnormal conditions, it 

 is not expected or wished that the same 

 dearth of stock will exist next winter 

 or for many succeeding winters. Still, 

 anyone who fears there will not be a 

 good market for the next crop of cycla- 

 mens is certainly a confirmed conserva- 

 tive. In view of the record established 

 by cyclamens in recent years, and espe- 

 cially last Christmas, one of the best- 

 informed members of the trade declares 

 that "cyclamens have proved them- 



•*^*^ 



■s^^^-^SS": 



Cyclamens Grown for Christmas by WoUrath & Sons, Waltham, Mass. 



selves to be the most popular and at the 

 same time the most satisfactory of holi- 

 day plants. ' ' 



As it requires about fifteen months to 

 grow marketable cyclamens from seed, 

 plants intended for sale next Thanks- 

 giving and Christmas — not to speak now 

 of Easter stock — should already have a 

 good start. Writing to The Eeview in 

 the last week, of February, Albert J. 

 WoUrath, of the firm already mentioned, 

 stated that the young cyclamens in the 

 WoUrath houses were then in various 

 stages of development, from flats to 

 4-inch pots. 



The seed may be sown as early as the 

 end or July or the first part of August, 

 and in successive batches till January. 

 By this means the blooming period can 

 be prolonged from Thanksgiving until 

 the following Easter, with the heaviest 

 crop|at Christmas or when- 

 ever it is most desired. 



On account of the fact 

 that the seed produces a 

 bulblet or eorm before 

 leaf -growth is visible, the 

 process of germination in 

 its entirety occupies a con- 

 siderable length of time. 

 In moderate moisture, ger- 

 mination may be com- 

 pleted in three or four 

 weeks, but may require as 

 long as two months. 



Sowing the Seed. 



Let us start at the sow- 

 ing of the seed and hur- 

 iedly trace the progress of 

 the crop until it is ready 

 for market. 



Cyclamens come true to 

 color from seeds. Named 

 varieties from first-class 

 seedsmen may be de- 

 pended on generally to 

 reproduce themselves with 

 only slight variation. Red, 

 pink and salmon shades 

 are specially in demand at 

 the holidays. For the 

 seeds, use a light compost 

 of leaf-mold and sand, 

 placed in shallow, well- 

 drained flats. Drop the 

 seeds evenly in rows. 

 Scatter a little sand over 

 the seeds and press them 

 in gently with a piece of 

 board. Place the seed 

 flats in a warm, moist 

 house and keep them pro- 

 tected from sunshine. 

 After the small leaves ap- 

 pear, put the flats on 

 shelves near the glass, in 

 a temperature of 55 to 60 



^•v. '%. "H,. 





