22 



The Florists' Review 



September 1, 1921 



ing can be done at any season if suit- 

 able moisture conditions for germina- 

 tion are maintained. If seed is planted 

 outdoors, it should be sown in late au- 

 tumn for spring germination. 



For germination in flats, the usual 

 compost of loam, sand and leaf-mold, 

 with a very little well-rotted manure, 

 is preferred. Good success has been 

 obtained with a variety of potting soils, 

 oven with quite heavy clays ameliorated 

 with a little sand and rubbish. 



The best practice in sowing the seed 

 is to fill the flat to the proper depth and 

 strike the surface to a level. The seed 

 is then scattered over this surface and 

 pressed down rather firmly with a piece 

 of board. The whole is then covered 

 with one-eighth to one-fourth of an 

 inch of fine soil sprinkled over the top. 

 In outdoor plantings it is better to put 

 the seed three-fourths to one inch deep. 



Handling the Seed Flats. 



To the experienced plantsman the 

 best direction that can be given on the 

 subject of handling is, "Keep the flats 

 in proper condition for germination. ' ' 

 This condition does not differ for most 

 seeds. Moisture should be kept at the 

 surface constantly, but good provision 

 for drainage should be made, so that 

 the soil will never become water-logged. 



If it is not possible to keep the sur- 

 face properly moist without it, a pane 

 of glass can be laid over each flat, but 

 if the moisture conditions of the green- 

 house are as they should be this is not 

 necessary. It will be all the better not 

 to have had the glass on when the 

 plants begin to come through, for at 

 this time, especially if the plantings are 

 thick, moisture and aeration must be 

 carofully watched lest damping-off oc- 

 cur. 



The flats after germination are prefer- 

 ably kept rather dry. Watering should 

 be copious, with provision for rapid 

 drainage, but at comparatively infre- 

 quent intervals, so that the seedlings 

 and the surface of the soil will not be 



too wet. Clay seed pans can be used, in 

 which case it will not be necessary to 

 wet the young foliage at all for a time. 

 The time it takes for the seed to 

 come up will vary greatly with condi- 

 tions. The first lot of seed produced in 

 these experiments ripened in June. It 

 required six or seven weeks to germi- 

 nate when sown immediately after be- 

 ing gathered. The same seed planted 

 the following January came up in three 

 weeks. 



Potting the Seedlings. 



The exact stage of growth at which 

 Easter lily seedlings should be potted 

 may vary considerably. Usually it has 

 been the practice to transfer them to 

 2-inch pots when the second leaf was 

 fairly well developed, although this has 

 been done frequently when the first leaf 

 was well straightened out. It does not 

 make much difference which practice is 

 followed. At whatever stage they are 

 transferred, the plants seem to stand 

 still for about three weeks after potting, 

 and until the roots get out to the sides 

 of the pot the top growth is always 

 next to nothing; but after this the de- 

 velopment is rapid. 



There is an opportunity for the devel- 

 opment of a business in the production 

 of 2-leaved or 3-leaved seedlings, to be 

 furnished to florists or others to grow 

 either in pots or in the open ground. 

 Such seedlings might be sold either di- 

 rectly from the seed flats or, after being 

 established, from a first shift. The 

 plants are as easily transported in the 

 ] -leaved to 3-leaved stage as at any 

 other time. They have been shipped 

 from Washington, D. C, to California 

 in mail packages several times, and have 

 arrived in perfect condition. 



Transfer to the Field. 



If the seed of the Easter lily is sown 

 January 1 and the seedlings arc potted 

 in early March, they will be ready to go 

 into the open ground in late April or 

 early May, or when they will be safe 



Easter Lilies Grown from Seed in this Country. 



from any inclement weather. They are 

 then knocked out of the pots and plant- 

 ed without disturbing the ball of earth. 

 There seems to be no checking of 

 growth, the plants taking hold of the 

 ground with no loss of time. 



When handled as stated, the 2-inch 

 pots are well filled with roots by the 

 time the plants go into the field. It is 

 therefore possible to knock the plants 

 out and carry them to the field in flats, 

 from which they are set with a trowel. 



Conditions in the Field. 



The experience of the Bureau of 

 Plant Industry with these lilies has 

 been restricted to a heavy, retentive 

 clay soil, ameliorated by the use of 

 some sand and plenty of rough stable 

 manure. None of these stocks have as 

 yet been grown on sandy soil. 



The seedlings have usually been set 

 out in 3-foot beds five to eight inches 

 apart each way, which seems to afford 

 ample space. Between the beds a 15- 

 inch path has been left, which is also 

 ample; a 12-inch path might be suffi- 

 cient. 



After planting, it is desirable to work 

 a little mulch of some suitable material 

 between the plants to assist in prevent- 

 ing the ground from baking, preserving 

 moisture and keeping the soil cool. For 

 this purpose sand and spent manure 

 from sweet-potato beds, old manure, and 

 even fresh strawy manure have been 

 used. The care of these plantings dur- 

 ing the summer has consisted in keeping 

 down the weeds by hand and watering 

 during dry weather. In well prepared 

 soil, mulched with some debris, hand 

 weeding is not a serious matter. 



Development During the Summer. 



Lily plants set in the field from 2-inch 

 pots in late April or early May will be- 

 gin to throw up scattering stems in 

 July, and some blooms will appear 

 late in the month. These early-flower- 

 ing forms will be short, few-flowered, 

 and in general disappointing. As the 

 season advances the stems become 

 longer and bear a large number of 

 flowers, but never are the plants in the 

 field as tall as those in the greenhouse, 

 although they often reach a height of 

 twenty-four inches or more. When the 

 time for frosts arrives there will be 

 plenty of plants showing either flowers 

 or buds to the number of three to seven, 

 and in rare instances as many as a 

 dozen. Possibly twenty-five per cent 

 will have flowered, and the earliest will 

 be maturing their seed, but most of the 

 plants, nearly seventy-five per cent of 

 them, will be in the form of large 

 rosettes of basal leaves and plants 

 which have started to form stems. 



Repotting from the Field. 



Before there is danger of severe 

 frosts in autumn the lily seedlings 

 should be repotted for winter flowering. 

 The minimum temperature to which 

 they should be subjected outdoors is 

 about 28 degrees. 



The plants can be dug conveniently 

 with a spading fork, ordinary care be- 

 ing used not to bruise them. Most of 

 the soil is taken off the roots and they 

 are laid loosely in boxes, to be trans- 

 ferred to the packing shed. Here within 

 three or four days they are put into the 

 smallest-sized pots into which they will 

 go. Most of them, though, will have to 

 go into 6-inch piots, for the reason that 

 on account of the large root system they 

 [Continued on pace 70.] 



