18 



The Florists^ Review 



Decembeb 23, 1920 



and low water level such as we found in 

 Michigan! In spring there is enough 

 rain to keep the ground suitable for 

 planting, giving the dry bulbs enough 

 moisture to commence rooting. The 

 beautiful summers provide ample time 

 for weeding and cultivating, making the 

 rows of dark green gladioli grow by the 

 day, while in fall one does not have to 



dig the bulbs out of a muddy soil, as we 

 had to do so often in Holland. 



"Summing up all the experience we 

 gathered the last two years in growing 

 gladioli in America and comparing it 

 with the past, we are led to believe that 

 we can grow our gladioli better and more 

 economically in America than in Hol- 

 land, with more ease and less expense." 



more sheep manure and horn shavings 

 in it than usual. Could this be tl;^ 

 cause? If so, would an application ot' 

 lime water counteract the fertilizer .' 

 If this was the work of thrips, woui I 

 not the foliage also be affected? 



W. V. L.— Wis. 



^<iiy{|ti^*i*AM^>L;ji&mjati^ A;m>^^^ 



AT YEAR'S END 



The cause of the trouble with tli> 

 cyclamens is thrips. These pests worl: 

 down into the crown of the plants, criji 

 pling the flowers before they have timi 

 to expand. The best means of fightin- 

 the pest is by regular sprayings of di 

 luted nicotine extract two or thrc 

 times every ten days. M. P. 



MIT.T.T.R MAKES ADIEU. 



Pleasant Year's Recollections. 



With my term as president of the so- 

 ciety now at an end, I can look back 

 to an oflSce which has afforded me both 

 pleasure and pride. A close association 

 with my brother officers throughout the 

 year has revealed some earnest and 

 thorough team-work, resulting in the 

 great benefit of our society, and my 

 hearty thanks are tendered to them for 

 their cooperation and cheerful assist- 

 ance throughout my administration. 

 Particularly am I indebted to our secre- 

 tary, whose cordial assistance has been 

 at all times available and whose advice 

 has tended to make my duties pleasant 

 and my pathway smooth. 



To our executive board is due much 

 credit for their zealous attention to 

 the many details in the management of 

 the society's affairs, the extent of which 

 is only realized when one is called upon 

 to preside over an annual meeting of 

 their body, which calls for two days or 

 more of incessant deliberation, I have 

 been especially fortunate in having the 

 advantage of a board whose personnel 

 included some of the best brains in our 

 membership. 



Thanks Rendered. 



I have greatly appreciated the as- 

 sistance rendered by our state vice- 

 presidents, who, it would seem to me, 

 liave this year taken more than an ordi- 

 nary interest in the society's work. It 

 is my hope that a continuance of this in- 

 terest will be manifest in the work of 

 the appointees of my esteemed succes- 

 sor in office. 



To the members of our standing com- 

 mittees I extend my most sincere thanks 

 for their services during the year, 

 rendered so unselfishly and often at 

 great sacrifice of time and frequently 

 at much personal expense. The im- 

 portance of the work of these commit- 

 tees cannot, in my opinion, be overesti- 

 mated. 



Lastly, my thanks are duo to those 

 members who attended the Cleveland 

 convention last August and helped to 

 make the gathering the largest in the 

 history of the society, of which record 

 I am, naturally, more than proud. 



It is my earnest hope that the so- 

 ciety's aims and objects have been ad- 

 vanced under my presidency in line 

 with the advancements made under the 

 administration of my predecessors in 

 office, and I bespeak for my successor 

 the same courtesy of service and co- 

 operation which has been so liberally 

 accorded to me during my occupancy of 

 an office which will ever be considered 



by me the greatest honor bestowed by 

 our industry upon anyone engaged in it. 

 A. L. Miller, Retiring President. 



THRIPS RUIN CYCLAMENS. 



We had a fine crop of cyclamens in 4, 

 5 and 6-inch pots. The earliest of them 

 are showing an abundance of buds, but 

 as soon as the buds appear above the 

 foliage they become wrinkled and show 

 brown and black decayed spots. When 

 the buds open, the petals soon fade and 

 look as if they were scorched. I have 

 them on a side bench near the glass, 

 with a little bottom heat at night. I 

 spray them when the sunshine is warm. 

 The foliage is in as perfect condition 

 as I have ever seen. In preparing soil 

 for their final shifting I put a little 



C ANNAS' RESTING PERIOD. 



Do canna roots require a long perioci 

 of rest, or could a clump of a new va- 

 riety be transferred to a greenhouse 

 and grown on and dried down only a 

 short time before planting time in the 

 spring, without materially weakening 

 the vitality? H. S. M.— Okla. 



Cannas really do not need a resting 

 period at all, but for the sake of con- 

 venience we rest them in our latitude, 

 as we lack a continuance of warm out- 

 door climate. You can keep clumps 

 growing all winter if you desire. Can- 

 nas in pots flower weU. You need not 

 be alarmed about the vitality of your 

 plants being lessened if they are not 

 dried off. We dry them off because they 

 are handled more easily when dry. 



C. W. 



WILTING CHRYSANTHEMUMS. 



What is the cause of our Golden 

 Wedding and Grace Burke mums wilt- 

 ing when cut? The soil has only a 

 little rotted cow manure in it. The 

 blooms are fine, some of the Golden 

 Wedding measuring eight inches, but 

 when they are cut and put in water 

 the}' wither. We run the house about 

 .'jO to 52 degrees or cooler. We have 

 never fod them since we planted them; 

 in fact, we never do. F. & F. — Wis. 



were they just run out? Despite 

 heavier feeding, the foliage was not so 

 brittle as that of other varieties, which 

 bloomed splendidly. W. V. L. — Wis. 



I am inclined to believe that the 

 trouble you refer to was due to the 

 buds being taken too late. To get fine, 

 large blooms of Marigold, the buds 

 should be taken by the last week of 

 August. M. P. 



I cannot .account for the chrysanthe- 

 mums wilting .after being cut, because 

 according to your letter they have re- 

 ceived good treatment. It may be that 

 after cutting, the blooms are placed 

 where a draft blows on them. This 

 will cause the trouble. M. P. 



BUDS TAKEN TOO LATE. 



Our chrysanthemums were benched as 

 late as July 1 to 5; consequently I 

 thought that in order to grow big 

 blooms I ought to feed them more than 

 formerly. The variety Marigold, being 

 .a strong grower, seemed to require more 

 food than the other varieties, so I 

 applied an extra dressing of sheep 

 manure to them. When the blooms 

 matured I was disappointed to find 

 that Marigold was a failure, the blooms 

 being only the size of large asters. 

 Was this caused by overfeeding or 



SPRAY INFESTED PLANTS. 



I wish to know what is wrong with 

 the mum and pompon plants that I 

 have sent you. Would it be safe to 

 take cuttings from them as they are? 

 We have given them the same atten- 

 tion as we did in former years. How- 

 ever, we purchased some new stock 

 plants this year, and these may have 

 been infested. The pompons became in 

 this condition before they were ready 

 to cut. Before they were half open 

 they began to get black under the 

 blooms. B. & S.— Pa. 



The specimens of chrysanthemums 

 arrived badly infested with thrips and 

 red spider and I would advise that be- 

 fore taking any cuttings you thor- 

 oughly clean them by spraying with 

 nicotine extract and give close atten- 

 tion to the general routine of their 

 care. M. P. 



