36 



The Florists^ Review 



Apui. 2». 1922 



which I am now at the head. And while 

 it has becH a struggle to get the organ- 

 ization there that I should like to have, 

 it is growing steadily and reaching out 

 into a wider field every day." 



Soses a Specialty. 



Today, still on the sunny side of 40 

 by several years, Rolf Zetlitz owns out- 

 right or has controlling stock in eight 

 different florists' establishments. Al- 

 together these ranges contain more 

 than a million square feet of glass. 

 Last year they held over 200,000 rose 

 plants, ami the quota for this sea- 

 son is 300,000. They will also produce 

 300,000 cyclamens this season, as well 

 as an assortment of other blooming 

 plants and cut flowers. 



"What iH the secret of business suc- 

 cess?" In Mr. Zetlitz 's words: "The 

 secret of success in any business is, first, 

 being in love with your business, and 

 second, refusing to sit down and grieve 



when the sun quits shining and calam- 

 ity hits you." 



THE ALVIN CAPE JASMINES. 



The unusually warm and wet autumn 

 and open winter at Alvin, Tex., per- 

 mitted an unusually fine growth on the 

 cape jasmines for which that region is 

 famous, but the late spring that prevails 

 there, as well as over most of the coun- 

 try, is delaying the development of the 

 buds, so that they will mature several 

 weeks later than last season. Shipments 

 will start moving about May 18. Unfor- 

 tunately, there will be none ready for 

 Mothers' day. Growers at Alvin have 

 found that all of their outdoor flowers, 

 such as jonquils, freesias, narcissi, sweet 

 peas, Easter lilies, etc., have been from 

 ton to fourteen days late this spring. 

 One grower picked his first peas April 

 12, while under normal conditions he 

 would have been picking by April 1. 



MASIKO A LAWN. 



Springtime Job for Florists. 



Those fldrists who do planting about 

 the homes of their customers are fre- 

 quently called upon to assist in the 

 making of a lawn. There are plenty 

 of lawns that need an expert's care, and 

 in a neighborhood of new homes, par- 

 ticularly, there is often much of this 

 sort of work to be done by someone 

 who is expert at it. If one can engage 

 a man of some experience, in case the 

 florist has not the time to oversee the 

 work himself, and a small crew of hus- 

 kies to work under his direction, there 

 is profit in making lawns and planting 

 trees and shrubs about residences in the 

 spring ami autumn. In case the florist 

 is attempting service of this kind, these 

 remarks on the care of the lawn will 

 be of value: 



In the spring, as soon as the coarser 

 portions of the winter mulch, if any, 

 have been raked off, the lawn should be 

 rolled to press the soil closely about 

 the grass roots and to iron out small 

 lumps and inequalities of the surface. 

 If a roller is not available, recounse 

 may be had to a tamper, made from a 

 short length of 2-inph plank and a 

 broom handle, or the soil may be com- 

 pacted by beating it with the back of a 

 spade. 



To renovate bald spots, the soil of 

 those areas that are bare or sparsely 

 covered with grass should be scratched 

 with an iron-toothed rake and grass 

 seed sown r.Ttlifr thickly. Cover the 

 seed thinly with finely sifted soil and 

 firm with tamper or roller. 



If the lawn has been jtroperly prepiirc<i 

 with a good depth of soil, it is seldom 

 necessary to wnter the lawn except in 

 dry seasons. When watering is neces- 

 sary it should be done before the grass 

 turns brown, and should be thorough. 

 Surface sprinklings are of no avail — 

 enough water should be applied to 

 penetrate to the moist soil below. Per- 

 TTap.s the best method of applying water 

 is by means of a lawn-sprinkler, but 

 care must be taken to allow it to play 



long iMiough to achieve the effect de- 

 si red. 



Adding Fertilizers. 



Fertility may be maintained by the 

 use of an annual mulch of well decayed 

 stable manure or by the use of more 

 concentrated fertilizers. One of the 

 tiest lawn fertilizers is ground bone ap- 

 plied in the fall at the rate of ten 

 pounds to 400 square feet. This will 

 supply phosphorus and some nitrogen. 

 To provide all the elements it is 

 usually necessary to suY)ply, this may 

 bo supplemented by a dressing of un- 

 leached hardwood ashes in the spring 

 at the rate of fifteen to twenty pounds 

 to 400 square feet. When growth be- 

 gins, nitrate of soda at the rate of 

 one to two pounds to 400 square feet 

 may be applied to advantage, l^ater in 

 the season, about the beginning of 

 June, another dressing of nitrate of 

 soda may be given. This helps to pro- 

 mote a rich, dark green color in the 

 grass. 



Another means of su]iplying fertility 

 is to use a complete commercial ferti- 

 lizer analyzing about three per cent 

 nitrogen, eight per cent phosphoric 

 acid and five per cent potash at the 

 rate of ten to fifteen pounds to 400 

 square feet. " 



When it is desired to promote the 

 growth of Kentucky blue grass and 

 clover, lime at the same rate as the 

 above may be put on during the fall. 



Getting Rid of the Weeds. 



The best way to eliminate weeds 

 from the lawn is to provide conditions 

 favorable to growth of grass. Good 

 soil, reseeding of bare patches, frequent 

 mowing, and keeping up fortilitv bv 

 application of fertilizers, all help to 

 keep down weeds. Some perennial 

 weeds, such as dandelion and plantain, 

 are almost sure to occur. These should 

 be uprooted with the help of a stout- 

 blnded knife, or something similaT, be- 

 fore they have a chance to flower and 

 produce seeds. Weeds of this character 

 show up plainly during a dry season 

 when the grass has become brown, 



owing to their ability to withstand 

 drought and remain green. Under these 

 circumstances it is easy to find even 

 the small ones without hand and knee 

 work, and advantage should be takea 

 of the first rain that softens the soil 

 to get them out. 



Another method of eradicating these 

 weeds is to apply gasoline or common 

 salt to the center of the weed. The 

 quantity to use is to be determined by 

 experiment; it will be about a tea- 

 spoonful to a good-sized weed. If too 

 much gasoline or salt is used, it may 

 kill the grass in the vicinity; if too 

 little is used, the weeds will not be 

 killed. Gasoline can conveniently be 

 applied by means of an oil can, such 

 as is used for oiling machinery. 



Some weeds of a creeping nature, 

 such as the perennial chickweeds, can 

 be dealt with by tearing them up, by 

 raking with an iron-toothed rake and 

 then sowing grass seeds. Adding fer- 

 tility to the soil so as to encourage the 

 growth of grass is a great help in over- 

 coming these pests and also in getting 

 rid of sheep sorrel, which is sometimes 

 bothersome in lawns. 



Crab grass is sometimes a bad weed 

 in lawns made on poor soil, insuffi- 

 ciently fertilized. Affected areas 

 should be fertilized, spaded over and 

 reseeded with good grass seed. 



Extremely weedy lawns are usually 

 most satisfactorily dealt with by dig- 

 ging or plowing them up and starting 

 afresh. 



INDIANA FLORISTS MEET. 



Add New Members. 



President Hitz presided at the April 

 meeting of the Indiana State Florists' 

 Association, which was held at the 

 Chamber of Commerce, Indianapolis, 

 Tuesday, April 11, at 7:30 p. m. 



The following names were proposed 

 for membership: John Schliesman and 

 Charles Lockwood, both of Indian- 

 apolis; C. G. Anderson, Terre Haute; 

 Louis G. Pleiss, New Albany, and Wil- 

 liam H. Kuhn, of Kokomo, In'd. The 

 following were elected to membership: 

 William Horn, James Lowry and Ed- 

 ward Rieman, of Indianapolis, and 

 Henry Miller, of Kokomo. 



The secretary read a communication 

 from E. G. Hill thauking the state as- 

 sociation for its remembrance of his 

 fiftieth wedding anniversary. 



It was voted to suspend the May 

 meeting of the organization, on account 

 of the amount of work at this time. 



h. E. Hitz called attention to some 

 good posters for the fifth national flower 

 show that were made in the city schools 

 of Madison, Ind. 



A fall show, to be held at the city 

 greenhouses, was discussed. The fol- 

 lowing committee was appointed to in- 

 vestigate the advisability of this exhibit 

 there: Lennis Elder, chairman; Her- 

 man Young. E. E. Temperley, Morris 

 Marer and Charles M. Balluff. 



Other Business. 



It was recommended to the state fair 

 committee that the time was ripe to ap- 

 peal to the board for a flower hall at the 

 state fair grounds, since other branches 

 were being favored with new struc- 

 tures. The committee was also urged 

 to try to increase the premium list and 

 to try to increase the number of com- 

 petitors. 



A joint meeting with the Illinois, 



