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SEEKING SUCCESS 



WITH SNAPDRAGON 



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Snapdragons have increased in popularity and usefulness in the flower pnn ^^ nnnni 

 j(»y^ shop year by year, well paying growers' efforts to produce them. The sug- ^MjN 



'^^^r gestions given here hy one of the foremost growers of the flower ivill aid 



materially to success in its culture. 



NAPDEAGONS have be- 

 come so generally known 

 that there is no question 

 about their usefulness or 

 their popularity. Demand 

 in every section exceeds 

 the supply, and growers 

 find them a profitable 

 crop. Aside from the usual 

 pests which trouble green- 

 house plants, snapdragons are of such 

 tender character as to invite many fun- 

 gous diseases, some of which are trouble- 

 some and cause loss if not carefully 

 handled. Possibly, the greatest enemy 

 to snapdragon is rust, Puccinia antir- 

 rhini, a disease not yet conquered. Pre- 

 ventive measures are the best we know. 

 We know that dampness on the foliage 

 must be avoided, whether it comes from 

 drip or from careless watering of plants. 

 Likewise, all side drafts should be 

 avoided, and in rainy weather air from 

 overhead should be reduced to the mini- 

 mum, always keeping the temperature 

 above 55 degrees. Until rust became 

 a factor a lower temperature was 

 thought necessary and growers gener- 

 ally preferred a temperature of from 

 40 to 45 degrees. New conditions 

 brought changes in 

 growing plans and 

 now we vary the tem- 

 perature to suit our 

 needs. 



Warmer. 



The last season we 

 produced the finest 

 snapdragons we have 

 grown and produced 

 them in a tempera- 

 ture of from 55 to 70 

 degrees. The third 

 crop on the same 

 plants is yet so good 

 and so abundant that 

 we cannot give them 

 up. In this particu- 

 lar bed there are 450 

 plants, from which a 

 good crop was taken 

 last fall. The plants 

 were then cut back to 

 new shoots and, at 

 different times, well 

 'iressed with ground 

 '>one and sheep ma- 

 nure. There were al- 

 ways some blooms in 

 sight. The second 

 < rop resulted in over 

 1,600 fancy spikes 

 and a number of sec- 

 onds for spray work, 

 as every shoot was 

 permitted to flower. 



By G. S. RAMSBURG. 



Later, on each spike cut, three to six 

 shoots grew and flowered, with stems 

 twelve to eighteen inches long. They 

 came most heavily at Memorial day, 

 when much needed. This crop was slow 

 and was forced for three weeks in a 

 temperature of from 65 to 100 degrees, 

 with air excluded below 75 degrees. 

 We mention this to show that snap- 

 dragons will function under forced con- 

 ditions when necessary to meet a de- 

 mand. It is not, however, advisable 

 to force young plants. Thus, by ex- 

 perimenting, we find that we can take 

 a great many liberties with snapdragons 

 and still get profitable results. 



Care Necessary. 



Great care should be exercised at 

 every point. Seedlings or cuttings must 

 not be carelessly handled. They should 

 be placed on a bench in good light, 

 with four or five rows of pots set to- 

 gether, leaving enough space between 

 the blocks to water the plants from the 

 sides, so that the foliage may be kept 

 dry. The plants can be kept growing by 

 potting on, if benches are not ready 



A Bench of Such Snapdragon Is Worth Money to Any Florist. 



when a shift is necessarj'. It is better 

 to set plants from small pots, getting 

 the stock to the flowering bench as 

 quickly as possible. 



A common error is to give too 

 little space to plants set in benches. 

 Plenty of growing room results in strong 

 plants, and a strong plant will not only 

 give more and better blooms, but will 

 have greater power to resist disease. 

 Each season, when planting, we have 

 allowed more space, and this year we 

 shall set the plants fourteen to eighteen 

 inches apart, according to variety. 

 A single plant, dug from the bench re- 

 ferred to and grown separately for ex- 

 perimental purposes, developed over 

 thirty strong flower spikes, while the 

 plants remaining in the bench averaged 

 only about sevfin spikes. This is proof 

 that more space is necessary. We have 

 also observed that isolated plants were 

 far more vigorous and healthy, and 

 have never found such a plant affected 

 by rust. Eust, like many contagious 

 human diseases, thrives best in con- 

 gested areas. Air, sunlight and watch- 

 ful care are the best that can be offered 

 today for prevention of this trouble- 

 some fungus. Another preventive meas- 

 ure is to keep the 

 foliage covered with 

 powdered sulphur, or- 

 dinary sulphur, the 

 kind mother gave us 

 in the springtime 

 with molasses. 



Sulphur. 



We elaborate this, 

 as one grower wanted 

 to know which of five 

 kinds of sulphur we 

 meant. Apply the 

 powdered sulphur 

 with bellows, or any 

 convenient method, 

 at every stage of 

 growth from seed- 

 lings to the blooming 

 period. Do not ap- 

 ply it after the 

 blooms appear. Plants 

 should be fumigated 

 regularly to control 

 green fly, the most 

 harmful insect pest. 

 If tobacco stems are 

 used for fumigating, 

 be careful not to 

 scorch the leaves. 



To be successful 

 with snapdragons, we 

 would urge close at- 

 tention to small de- 

 tails. In fact, this 

 woiild apply to any 



