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December 18, 1919. 



The Florists^ Review 



19 



^H 



FIGHTINa FERN CATEIIFILI.AB. 



I noticed with considerable interest 

 an article in The Eeview, December 4, 

 regarding a worm which works on ferns 

 and the trouble which numerous florists 

 are having with this pest. 



Our firm had considerable trouble 

 with this worm some time ago for about 

 two years before we exterminated it 

 after a loss of several thousand dollars. 

 It is no trouble at all to get rid of this 

 pest if you have the right remedy, but 

 it took us two years to find it. We 

 sent samples of this worm to the state 

 entomologist, Purdue University and 

 the University of Illinois, with no re- 

 sults. We found a number of remedies 

 which would kill the worm, but which 

 if used strong enough would kill or ruin 

 the ferns also, and consequently we did 

 not have a salable fern for more than 

 two years. 



Through the courtesy of J. D. Eisele, 

 of Henry A. Dreer, Inc., we were ad- 

 vised to use pyrethrum, a form of insect 

 powder, blowing it on about once a 

 week. After several applications we 

 exterminated this pest entirely. 



Homer L. Wiegand. 



FERNS HAVE WEAK FRONDS. 



Kindly tell us the cause of fronds 

 on Boston ferns getting weak near the 

 root. The fronds seem healthy, but for 

 some reason they grow brown and get so 

 weak that they cannot hold their own 

 weight. We cannot determine whether 

 it is caused by the condition of the soil 

 or whether it is a disease. Kindly give 

 us any information you can. 



W. S.— Utah. 



Without seeing the ferns in question, 

 it is not easy to say just what the 

 trouble is, but it is quite possible that 

 an alkaline soil has something to do 

 with it. I would suggest giving a light 

 top-dressing of lime, or mixing some 

 ground limestone in the soil. This would 

 do the ferns no harm and would cor- 

 rect the aciditv of the soil if such exists. 



W. H. T. 



ADIANTUMS TURN BROWN. 



In September I transplanted some 

 adiantums from one bench to another. 

 They had been doing finely up to that 

 time, but now the new growths turn 

 brown as fast as they are formed. The 

 adiantums are planted in black sod loam, 

 mixed with sand, well rotted manure 

 and leaf-mold, all thoroughly incorpor- 

 ated. Among forty plants, there arc 

 only two that are doing well. 



H. L. W.— Kan. 



So far as may be judged from the 

 description of the condition of the 

 ferns, this would seem to be a case of 

 giving too much food. It is probable 

 that too much manure has been mixed 



with the soil, and the plants may also 

 have been overwatered. This combina- 

 tion would check the root action of the 

 plants; consequently the young fronds 

 would fail to mature. Try keeping the 

 soil somewhat drier until the plants get 

 established. " W. H, T. 



V_ GLEN COVE, L. I. V^ 



Club Meeting. ~ " ' 



The annual meeting of the Nassau 

 County Horticultural Society was held 

 in Pembroke hall, December 10, at 7 p. 

 m. President Joseph Adler occupied the 

 chair. James Barlow, James Allison, 

 Simon Garden, Oscar Olson and John 

 Henderson were elected members and 

 five petitions for membership were re- 

 ceived. 



President Adler appointed Henry 

 Gaut, James MacDonald and William 

 Preston to judge the monthly exhibits, 

 and their awards were: Pot Paper 

 White narcissus, James McCarthy, first; 



three heads of celery, James McCarthy, 

 first; twenty-five Brussels sprouts, 

 Thomas Henderson, first. 



Since the last meeting, D. S. Smithers, 

 an honorary member, had died and the 

 secretary was directed to write a letter 

 of sympathy to Mrs. Smithers. The 

 treasurer read his annual report, which 

 shows this society to be in a strong 

 financial position. 



President Adler appointed John D. 

 Johnstone chairman in charge of elec- 

 tion, and Henry Gaut and John West- 

 lake as tellers. Thomas Twigg was 

 elected president and Mr. Millstead 

 vice-president. Edward Harris was re- 

 elected secretary and C. J. Brown treas- 

 urer. Joseph Adler was elected trustee 

 for three years and Arthur S. Cook 

 corresponding secretary. Messrs. West- 

 lake, Henderson, Watson, Frampton, 

 Smith, Young and Carter were elected 

 on the executive committee. 



Mr. Popp made a few remarks on the 

 assistant gardener and offered a prize 

 for the best decorated basket of flowers, 

 to be competed for at the June meeting 

 by assistant gardeners. 



Maurice Fuld made a few interesting 

 remarks on the work the Garden Club 

 of America has planned to do in the 

 coming year. 



There was a record attendance at this 

 meeting and a motion was made and 

 carried that the secretary put in the 

 minutes the attendance of each meeting. 



Exhibits for the January meeting will 

 consist of twelve carnations, twenty-five 

 freesias and three poinsettias. 



Arthur S. Cook, Cor. Sec'y. 



CARNATION SOCIETY MEETING. 



In Chicago January 21 and 22. 



Carnation growers expect a good 

 showing both of exhibits and members of 

 the American Carnation Society at Chi- 

 cago January 21 and 22. All entries 

 must be in the hands of the secretary, 

 A. F. J. Baur, Indianapolis, not later 

 than January 12. In the schedule of 

 premiums, which has just been issued, 

 plans are outlined as follows: 



The twpnty-ninth annual convention and exlii- 

 bition will bo held in ChicaRO, January 21 and 

 22, 1920. The exhibition, the business sessions 

 and the banquet will all be held within the La 

 .Salle hotel. Please note that the date is one 

 week earlier than our customary convention 

 date. 



Conditions having been restored to practically 

 normal, we are returninc to our regular premium 

 schedule. Railroad and express service have 

 improved to such a degree that there should be 

 little difficulty In getting shipments through In 

 good order. Plan now to exhibit your new va- 

 rieties or the standard sorts, for which classes 

 are provided. The exhibition committees will 

 stage your blooms If you are unable to attend 

 in person. Notify the secretary in advance and 

 prepay the express charges. If you have a 

 noteworthy plant or specimen flower, space will 

 be provided for exhibition. 



Only the Judges will be permitted in the ex- 

 hibition room while the awards are being placed. 

 After the completion of this work and until 8 

 p. m., the exhibition will be held for inspection 

 by the members. After 8 p. m. the public will 

 be admitted. In the morning of the second day 

 the Chicago Retail Florists' Association will take 

 charge of the exhibition, rearranging the blooms 

 in vases, baskets and other displays suitable for 

 public exhibition. The medal classes, the certifi- 



cate of merit classes and the Kerr special claw 

 will be held Intact. 



The first business session will be held at 8 p. 

 m. Wednesday. A second session will be held 

 Thursday morning. Rejwrts of committees, 

 nominations for officers and invitations for next 

 meeting place on Wednesday evening. Election 

 of officers and selection of next meeting place on 

 Thursday morning. Banquet on Thursday even- 

 ing. Register and secure your banquet tickets 

 immediately upon arrival. Wear your A. C. 8. 

 button. 



EXPERIMENT WITH SOIL. 



I have two benches in my carnation 

 house where I expected to bench snap- 

 dragons, but I couldn't get any when 

 I was ready. What can 1 put in there 

 that will give the biggest returns? 

 What about gladioli? 



The soil proposition is the worst 

 thing I have to contend with here. I 

 have to haul black mountain soil about 

 twenty miles. The soil here is adobe 

 and full of alkali; so I tried an experi- 

 ment, using two-fifths mountain soil, 

 two-fifths pure gypsum and one-fifth rot- 

 ten cow manure in one bench. The 

 rest is all mountain soil. (This moun- 

 tain soil is not leaf-mold.) The carna- 

 tions in the experimental bench have 

 gone ahead of the rest of the benches 

 by leaps and bounds. There is an un- 

 limited supply of gypsum within easy 

 hauling distance. Would you advise 

 the use of this mixture for all pur- 

 poses! I had been told there was no 

 plant life in gypsum. 



Will the carnation plants I throw 



