46 



The Florists^ Review 



Dgcbmbeb 9. 1920 



tion of his flowers. His percentage of 

 strikes in cuttings will be jjiuch higher 

 and the resulting plants, even though 

 small, will come along much more sat- 

 isfactorily than plants grown from 

 overfed atock. 



Anchoring the Cuttings. 



As to what kind of sand to use, any 

 sand that contains a fair proportion of 

 grit is satisfactory. Some workmen, 

 in putting their cuttings in the sand, 

 are not sufficiently careful to get them 

 properly anchored. It not infrequently 

 happens that where the sand is coarse 

 the operator makes a mark with his 

 knife, puts the cuttings in, presses 

 around the top of the sand and leaves 

 the cuttings suspended at the base. 

 Though a heavy watering may some- 

 times settle the sand around the base, 

 a little care in putting the cuttings in 

 will be found well worth while. 



An inquirer mentions the failure to 

 preserve the foliage on Russell before it 

 makes roots. Eussell is one of the 

 most diflScult varieties to root and the 

 wood for this particular rose should 

 be much softer than the wood usually 

 recommended for other varieties. If 

 Russell is infected with black spot, one 

 will be only wasting his time in propa- 

 gating from it, because this disease will 

 take every leaf off the cuttings before 

 they are rooted. As a consequence, not 

 weeks, but months, will be required to 

 get the plants in any sort of condition. 



Large Callus, but No Boots. 



On some varieties, though they aiijjar- 

 cntly form a callus satisfactorily, the 

 callus gets larger and larger without 

 emitting roots. I have never been able 

 to figure out why this condition appears 

 mostly on varieties like Mrs. Ward and 

 My Maryland. Not infrequently state 

 experiment stations have been deceived 

 and have referred to this callus as crown 

 gall. On one or two occasions, when 

 the foliage kept healthy on varieties 

 like Maryland, I have potted up a 

 plant with a large callus, put it in the 

 grafting case, induced it to produce 

 roots, and eventually have succeeded in 

 restoring the proper balance between 

 the roots and the top. 



To sum up the situation, I would 

 suggest to one doubtful about propa- 

 gating that if his rose plants are in 

 good condition, producing nice crops, 

 it might be better to send his order for 

 stock to a good plant grower and con- 

 tinue with his flowers. If he is in a 

 position where he has to do his own 

 propagating, it might be better to look 

 into the grafting proposition, rather 

 than propagate from own-root plants, 

 particularly in the case of Russell and 

 plants of that character, which are diffi- 

 cult to handle from the own-root stand- 

 point. Charles H. Totty. 



MILDEW ON BOSES. 



Would you kindly suggest the best 

 and most effective remedy for mildew 

 on roses for forcing? W. S. C. — 111. 



It is not possible to state in a few 

 words the remedy for mildew. The 

 first step is to remove the cause, which 

 is the condensation of moisture on the 

 plants. Mildew usually follows a fall in 

 outside temperature when the rose house 

 atmosphere is damp and there is no heat 

 on. The leading rose growers keep up 

 steam practically all summer, to main- 

 tain constant guard against such a con- 

 dition. 



With the house in the right condition, 

 the spores of mildew are best killed by 

 the use of sulphur. The usual way is to 

 paint the steam pij)es with it. If the 

 sulphur burns, the fumes will defoliate 

 the roses. H. 0. 



A DUTY FOB ALL. 



The florists' trade will have to take 

 on new life. If it does not, artificial 

 flowers will take away its best days. 

 Already Memorial day is nearly fifty- 

 fifty, and more days are drifting that 

 way through the indifference of the flo- 

 rists everywhere. 



I find in traveling around New Eng- 

 land that a lot of blame is with the flo- 

 rist — grower, wholesaler and retailer 

 alike. You can't imagine anybody's 

 buying artificial flowers made of paper 

 in a factory if they could buy one of 

 nature's most wonderful gifts, real live 

 flowers with their beautiful color and 

 odor, which make the rich buy them 

 and the poor to wish for them. 



The way to sell an article or service 

 is to create a demand for it, and the 

 demand can only be made through pub- 

 licity, advertising not as individuals but 

 as organized bodies. Now, the cost of 

 this publicity should .not be borne by a 

 few men in the business. Everybody 

 benefits, everybody should pay part of 

 the cost of publicity. 



We read about the florists in one city 

 raising $35,000 to advertise flowers. 

 Awful, is it not? But when you stop 

 and consider that they will make sev- 

 eral times that amount in increased de- 



mand for flowers it looks quite dif- 

 ferent. 



Everybody has heard about the 

 orange growers and raisin growers, and 

 now the lemon growers are going to 

 spend $1,000,000 for advertising, and 

 everybody will eat more lemons because 

 their advertisements will create the de- 

 mand. Before the eighteenth amend- 

 ment went into effect we could say lots 

 of nice things about lemons, but they 

 will through publicity make a better 

 market and get more for their labor. 



In a business deal where wit meets 

 wit and sharp dealings are carried on 

 by competition for the other man's 

 trade, we judge it good business, but 

 when a man or combination of men 

 benefit by money spent for advertising 

 and they do not bear their proportional 

 part they are taking something that 

 does not belong to them. 



A great number of men are satisfied 

 with a small business. All right, but 

 you must improve that business. You 

 can't stand still as individuals or in a 

 business. You either go ahead or back. 

 You cannot afford to go back, so let's 

 go ahead — grow more, buy more, sell 

 more and make more, make flowers 

 wanted everywhere at all times, bring 

 it before everybody through advertis- 

 ing that they can be had. 



This is what one branch of the flower 

 business is going to do. Let all other 

 branches follow suit. 



George G. Moyse, 



Secretary, New England District, 

 National Flower Growers' Assn. 



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MOTT-LY MUSINGS 



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"Business before pleasure," observed 

 Edward Tracy, of the Roscry Flower 

 Shop, Albany, Ni'^Y. "In other words, 

 business took u|i so much time at the 

 annual meeting of the Albany Florists' 

 Club that the feast of venison .did not 

 take place, but v^jjll do so January 6, 

 when the latch str.i^ will hang out as 

 "usual." The officers, elected .for 1921 

 were: President, Samuel R. Hansen, 

 North Troy, N. Y.; vice-president,. 

 Henry Eberhardt, Schenectady, N. Y. ; 

 secretary-treasurer, Louis Schaefer, Al- 

 bany, N. Y., and master of ceremonies, 

 Tom Tracey. Following the election a 

 general discussion took place in which 

 both growers and retailers handled the 

 present situation from their respective 

 viewpoints, with the unanimous verdict 

 that only by continuing to pull all to- 

 gether would the desired success con- 

 tinue. 



• • • • 



Thanksgiving trade was, taken all 

 in all, quite satisfactory at Albany, 

 N. Y., and, judging from the present 

 outlook, Christmas sales will be in pro- 

 portion. 



• • • • 



Henry W. Bcnsel, of the Schafer Es- 

 tate, Ballston Spa, X. Y., has a promis- 

 ing crop of carnations in sight following 



the good demand at Thanksgiving. 



• • • • 



Henry Schrade, Saratoga Springs, N. 

 Y., commenting upon the all-the-ycar- 

 around business now experienced at this 

 popular resort, is well pleased with the 

 outlook. The executive force of self. 



good wife and two sons is actively em- 

 ployed. 



• • • • 



Christian Dehn, Saratoga Springs, N. 

 Y., reports good business. Mrs. Dehn, 

 although suffering from acute rheuma- 

 tism, keeps constantly at her post, such 

 is her love for the profession. 



• • * • 



The John Ralph Estate, ; Saratoga 

 Springs, N. Y., long recognized as lead- 

 ing this section in Easter lilies, expects 

 to have its usual big supply in due sea- 

 son. Nothing goes to waste in this well 



managed establishment. 



• • • • 



A. J. Binley, Glens Falls, N. Y., has 

 plans for a considerable enlargement of 

 the present range of glass; the matter 

 of labor and material is the only retard- 

 ing factor. The condition of business 

 fully warrants an extension. 



• • • • 



Henry Crandell, Glens Falls, N. Y., 

 views the future of the business through 

 optimistic glasses. Looking at it from 

 all angles with the experience of a vet- 

 eran, he sees no cause for pessimism. 



• • • • 



Frederick Goldring, Slingerlands, N. 

 Y., observed, in reading an account of 

 a loss by fire through spontaneous com- 

 bustion in the coal pile, "This is the 

 first season in my memory when such a 

 thing was possible; in other words, in 

 other years the fireman was busy stir- 

 ring it over. A continuation of this 

 mild weather will tend to minimize 

 costs." J, M. 



