May 19, 1921 



The Rorists'' Review 



Field Containing 17,000 Dracaenas, Planted Six Inches Apart, on the Farm of Robert Craig in Porto Rico. 



should be slightly moistened before be- 

 ing used; otherwise there is liable to be 

 flames and a hot smoke, which will soon 

 ruin the foliage of many plants. The 

 operator should watch the fumigating 

 pans and guard against any burning. 

 Some dampened stems must be scat- 

 tered on the pans to make a thick 

 smoke. If this is not attended to, there 

 is sure to be trouble. 



Tobacco-stem fumigating should be 

 obsolete. Stems may be cheap, but 

 plants cost money to produce and noth- 

 ing will more speedily ruin a nice batch 

 of plants than this form of smoking. 

 It causes flowers to fall from geraniums, 

 begonias and other plants, causes car- 

 nations, roses and other flowers to 

 smell disgustingly, renders them tempo- 

 rarily unsalable and often injures fo- 

 liage in addition. Knowing these 

 things, why not use a safer and saner 

 fumigant? There are a number ou the 

 market containing nicotine. For years 

 I have been pleased with results from 

 nicotine papers, which arc easily light- 

 ed, burn without watching, are effec- 

 tive, do not injure the foliage or flow- 

 ^^^s, are comparatively inexpensive and 

 leave no noxious odor behind them. 

 Even hydrocyanic acid gas is far more 

 eff'ectiveanxL-aafe than tobacco stems, 

 andVm^y growers now depend on it 

 entirely. It wilT injure cattleyas and 

 some tops on tomatoes, and snapdrag- 

 ons will wilt and not ' ' come back ' ' 

 after it has been applied, but, used care- 

 fully, it is far more effective and safer 

 than tobacco stems, the mere mention 



of which brings back unpleasant mem- 

 ories to many of us. 



In warm weather the danger of dam- 

 age from smoking is always the great- 

 est. This is specially true if you fumi- 

 gate on a dark day which has had sev- 

 eral dark predecessors and is followed 

 by a clear, warm day. Ventilate early 

 on such a day. Spray your plants over 

 and always remember that plants which 

 are dry at the root suffer more from 

 smoke than those which have their 

 roots moist. C. W. 



BEDDING PLANTS IN FRAMES. 



I liave coldfranu's and hotbeds 

 only, no greenhouse. I« it possible for 

 nie to buy 2%-inch becjding stock, sucli 

 as ageratums, heliotropes, fuchsias, 

 vincas, coleus, geraniums, etc., early in 

 spring and bring it into flower for Memo- 

 riiil (lay? If so, please give nie sonic 

 advice as to procedure, sliifting, frame 

 to use, etc. H. D. Y.—'S. J. 



Ill your section you should he able 

 to use frames to grow in pots good l)e(l 

 ding ])lants of any of the varieties 

 named, as well as a number of others. 

 -\s weather conditions are variable, it 

 would be advisable to use some manure 

 to make a gentle hotbed below the 

 jilants. Fresh horse manure and leaves 

 mixed and well tramped down to the 

 depth of about a foot will give a nice, 

 lasting heat. Over the manure can be 

 spread a few inches of fine soil and in 

 this the pots can be partly plunged. 

 The little heat thus aiforded will cause 



the plants to grow rapidly and, in 

 reality, finer and more stocky plants 

 can be produced in frames than in 

 greenhouses. 



If you buy your stock from or in 2%- 

 inch pots, provided it is well rooted, it 

 can go at once into 3% -inch pots or, in 

 the case of strong-growing sorts, into 

 4-inch pots. On cold nights it would be 

 advisable to use mats or some cloth 

 covering over the frames. I should use 

 standard sashes, 3x6 feet, with three 

 rows of glass ten inches wide, which is 

 better than four rows of narrow glass. 

 The sashes should face south, .southwest 

 or west and should have a 4-inch pitch 

 from back to front. 



The plants should be giren a little 

 ventilation and should be watered spar- 

 ingly on cool, sunless days and should 

 he veiitil.'ited freely on warm days. The 

 sashes should he closed early in the 

 afternoon for coleus, alternantheras 

 and vincas, in order to start them well. 

 These plants take more heat than 

 geraniums, fuchsias, petunias, ager- 

 atums, etc. Far more growers might 

 well utilize frames for the relieving of 

 greenhouses and for the successful 

 ffrowiiig of many bedding ])lants. C. 



Austin, Tex. — K. Friedrich reports an 

 exceedingly large sale for Mothers' day. 

 He had a good supply of gladioli on 

 hand, as the weather was warm and 

 they bloomed about two weeks earlier 

 than he had expected. He has started 

 building a new greenhouse, 27x80 feet, 

 and hopes to be able to grow all the 

 flowers that he will use in his store. 



