24 



The Florists' Review 



OCTOBBB 21. 1920 



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A DAY AMONG ROSES 



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BICHMOND ENTEKTAINS. 



Among Hoosier Growers. 



Upon the invitation of the florists 

 there, a party of about seventy-five 

 journeyed from Indianapolis to Eich- 

 mond, Ind., October 14, after the close 

 of the F, T. D. convention, and spent 

 the day inspecting the ranges in that 

 vicinity. Leaving early in the morning, 

 the party took a fast Pennsylvania 

 train, which made a special stop at the 

 E. G. Hill Co. to deposit the florists. 

 The first range inspected was that of 

 the famous rose grower. He first led 

 the visitors through the house where his 

 seedlings are being tried out. One 

 bench in that house contains 1,200 seed- 

 ling rose plants, no two of which are 

 alike. If one or two promising ones are 

 obtained from this lot, said Mr. Hill, 

 he will feel rewarded. He is especially 

 seeking a red and has crosses of Hoosier 

 Beauty and Premier and of Columbia 

 and Premier in that quest. 



On the other benches in that house 

 promising sports and seedlings are be- 

 ing tried out. There is a sport of Colum- 

 bia that is a little lighter and one a 

 little darker, which are being tested. A 

 yellow seedling of Ophelia looks well. 

 The list is so extensive that even par- 

 tial account can not be given. As Mr. 

 Hill says, for one rose put on the mar- 

 ket, 10,000 seedlings are discarded. 



Some Comers. 



In the same house are blocks of new 

 roses of Hill extraction and of other 

 raisers, which are being grown for ob- 

 servation. Fred H. Lemon's white 

 seedling from Columbia, blooms of 

 which attracted so much attention at 

 Indianapolis, was much praised. It is 

 called Angelus, and is a dead white, ex- 

 cept for a flush of pink in the center of 

 the bud, which later fades out. Mrs. 

 John Cook was represented, as was Mrs. 

 Dunlop Best, a Dickson rose, dark sul- 

 phur in color, which is said to be a good 

 producer. Pilgrim appears in this house 

 and Crusader in another in greater num- 

 ber. The white sport of Ophelia from 

 Bate Bros, was particularly observed 

 and favorably commented upon. 



A bench of Citronelle gave good view 

 of this yellow rose, which Mr. Hill 

 thinks will take the place of Sunburst. 

 It is not, to use the raiser's words, 

 "happy on Manetti," as are few yellow 

 roses. So it will be grafted on the stock 

 of Howard & Smith, commonly known 

 as Bagged Robin. In this connection 

 Mr. Hill showed some stock for yellow 

 roses imported from China by the De- 

 partment of Agriculture and growing 

 at Richmond for trial. 



There are about ten benches of Pre- 

 mier being grown. Three houses are 

 filled with Mme. Butterfly, which Mr. 

 Hill believes to be so much better than 

 Ophelia that none of the latter is now 

 grown in his houses. 



Ohrysanthemums. 



In one bench in a propagating house 

 were 100,000 cuttings. The other propa- 



gating houses were flUed with a catch 

 crop of pompon mums. 



The varieties of pompons were Ida, 

 yellow; Niza, white, and Mrs. William 

 Buckingham, pink. 



Of a number of seedling mums of the 

 reflex type named after states, South 

 Dakota, a good pink, remains. A white 

 sport has appeared which is expected to 

 be sent out as a companion to the pink 

 variety. 



Two houses which are to be filled with 

 300,000 Manetti in November held 

 chrysanthemums. The varieties were 

 Early White, Chrysolora, Chieftain and 

 Richmond, which is said to be better 

 than Bonnaffon. Celebration, a yellow 

 sport of Yellow Eaton, is also regarded 

 highly and fills several benches. Not 

 so many exhibition plants in pots are 

 grown as usual, only about 800 or 900. 

 Among a group of varieties being tried 

 out is the big white, a striking variety, 

 originated by Department of Agricul- 

 ture raisers at Washington and named 

 Mrs. Woodrow Wilson. 



Some deutzias from Lemoine are be- 

 ing propagated by Mr. Hill for next 

 spring. He regards them as an excel- 

 lent aid for Memorial day. 



The new coal conveyor at the E. G. 

 Hill Co. range was an object of mucli 

 interest. Coal from cars on the sidin.; 

 is mechanically emptied into a sma!; 

 concrete pit, whence it is immediate! 

 carried by a circular chain of buckets 1 1 

 the dump alongside, where are thirt; 

 five carloads back of the concrete wal. 

 The crane carrying the bucket chain ca i 

 be turned in any direction. From th • 

 dump the coal is carried on a drav. 

 about 175 feet long, which deposits i 

 in front of each of the four boilers or, 

 when they are supplied, carries it be 

 yond to the storage room. The totfii 

 outlay for this equipment was less thai! 

 $4,000. With it a car of coal is unloaded 

 at an approximate expense of 50 centa. 

 One man is required for the whole oper- 

 ation and he, it is stated, has time to sit 

 down and smoke part of the time. 



A new law in Indiana compelled re- 

 setting the boilers so that they might 

 be suspended to avoid possible explosion 

 as the result of settling. The Kroeschell 

 refrigerating system was another object 

 of observation by the visitors. 



' Across the Bead. 



As the slogan sign confronting the 

 Pennsylvania tracks bears evidence, 

 just across the road is the range of the 

 Joseph H. Hill Co. Here are seven old 

 houses, each 36x200, and the two big 

 ones, constructed recently by the Amer- 

 ican Greenhouse Mfg. Co., one 80x400 

 and the other 60x400. The range con- 

 [Continued on page 44 ] 



E. G. HiU. 



(K< 86 Raiser Wbo Made Richmond, Ind., Famous.) 



