28 



The Florists^ Review 



Mamcu 2. 1922 



t'roely thi-oii^li selection of cuttiiifis 

 hiffhcr on the stem. In |iincliinii hiiel. 

 jiljnits to h(! used entirely for cuttings, 

 we to]i, from time to lime, those shoots 

 on which the hud is showiiij;. Hiyli ])iiu'h- 

 iii}; is iiiad\is;il)le, jis it is ;i well-known 

 filct thiit, on tlowerinj; phints, the cut 

 tiuj^s first developed :ire those nearest 

 the top. if we find we have not |iiiiched 

 low eiiouf^li when the breaks apjiear, it 

 is ii simple matter to j^o o\'er them 

 aK-aiii. 



Cuttiufis should he talien from healthy 

 plants. Sick or diseased plants will iiro- 

 duce euttinj^s, hut should he avoided, if 

 one wants his stock clean. Sin'.;le flow 

 ers will return fourfold and then some. 

 if one persists in propa'^at in^; fr'om 

 su<di stock. 



Putting ill Sa:id. 



("nttinji's arc taken, made anci pat in 

 the sand in various ways. Some do not 

 cut otV the heel or trim, others ti'im 

 ([uite hard. We h;i\(' tr'wd all methods 

 and ^ot the hest results hy takinji' our 

 euttinjjs in the forenoon, placinji in the 

 flower room aiul, when made, [il.aciiiL; in 

 uniform jiiles in a hasket, kee])in,e them 

 thoroughly watered and co\-ered until 

 [)]aced in the sand. S^ieiM and careful 

 ness is rocpiired to iirojiajiate commer 

 cially; one should he ahle after some 

 practice to ac()uire the knacd^ of putting; 

 from 1,300 to 1,500 cuttinjis in the sand 

 per hour. One should try to set all 

 cuttinjifs at a uniform depth; the results 

 are ap))arcnt when rooted. Those set 

 too deep will be rooted first. In trim 

 niing cuttings, trim some, hut not too 

 high. Do not cut the tops too low; re- 

 member cuttings .ahsorh moisture 

 through the leaves, (iive them a chance 

 to breathe. Keeiiing the o\erhead tem- 

 perature too high softens* the cuttings. 



The great advantage of small neds read- 

 ily controlled with heat is that cuttings, 

 when rooted, c'lii he hardi'ued, or dur- 

 ing a rush season can stauil for several 

 (lavs without growing in the sand. A 

 long bed where tjie sauu' heat occurs at 

 all times does not allow this. Cuttings 

 fully rootled get the same continuous 

 heat as flie new stock. 



Sometimes cuttings are noticed with a 

 good hunch of roots hanging from tlie 

 lund with a single root. This usually oc- 

 curs when the heed has not been cut 

 enough or trimmed scpiarely. Such cut- 

 tings often cause troid)le, unless care 

 is used in potting or boxing. 1 believe 

 it is geoil ]iolicy to throw these away. 

 We should all strive to put uut cuttings 

 as good ;is jiossible. 



Rooting Pink Delight. 



N'ou all know the difficulty in looting 

 I'ink Delight. Where one; prop.igator 

 acdiieved good i-esults, the great ma.jor- 

 ity f(dl (lown. One batch would root 

 nicely; there was plenty of confidence 

 in the next lot and often the result was 

 a failure. The growing of Pink De- 

 light for blooms at our establishment 

 was not jirofitable and we set about to 

 find how to get our money from tliis va- 

 riety, as cuttings were in good demand. 

 Little blocks of cuttings were given 

 se]!arate treatment. We found that 

 small cuttings did not root successfully; 

 therefore larger ones were selected. 

 Cuttings were inst-rted l'/L> inclies in the 

 sand, given the same watering other 

 varieties received and, in addition, the 

 heat was kept going constantly, disre- 

 garding temperature of the sand. Pa- 

 pers were used at all times to shade the 

 cuttings, keeping the air out and the 

 heat in. This was continued for eighteen 

 days. Papers were thou removed and for 



several days constant sprayings were 

 given the cuttings. When well rooted, . 

 which usually took thirty-five days, heat 

 was shut off and cuttings allowed to 

 remain cool for a week, before shipping. 

 This treatment proved satisfactory and 

 we continued to employ it during the 

 time Pink Delight was in steady de- 

 mand. One year we had. 9,000 plants 

 topped back for cuttings. 



Newer Varieties. 



Laddie we root ((uite satisfactorily. 

 N'o small cuttings are taken, neither are 

 papers used for shading until March. 

 We generally give Ijaddie thirty-five 

 days before shipjdng. 



Maine Sunsliiiu% of which we have 

 only a small stock, fooled me at first. 

 The small cuttings did not root. Now 

 we are taking only the larger ones. A 

 batch taken out last week was given 

 uu)re heat, resulting in better than 

 ninety per cent rooting. Doubtless with 

 a little more experience this can be im- 

 proved upon. 



I would recommend to all carnation 

 enthusiasts who have not read the late 

 Charles Willis Ward's book, "The Car- 

 nation," to do so. Written in 1903, 

 nearly twenty years ago, it is a compre- 

 hensive treatise on the sub,ject of carna- 

 tions, and it is head and shoulders over 

 anything eJse published. As a reference 

 book it is without a peer. Today there 

 is little we can add. 



PROTECTING THE CARNATION. 



W. D. Howard. 



From Diseases and Insects. 



In his address before the Gardeners' 

 and Florists' Club of Boston, February 

 23, W. D. Howard, Milford, Mass., said: 



"Red spidet- is the most dangerous 

 insect pest attacking carnations. It is 

 quite liable to attack plants in the field. 

 I do not approve of watering carna- 

 tions outdoors, except in case of ex- 

 treme need, but I do believe in a good 

 soaking right after planting. I have 

 installed a Skinner system in my field 

 and have used it occasionally. It has 

 helped to ward off spider. I have more 

 faith in constant hoeing to retain soil 

 moisture than in watering. Hoeing, long 

 continued, causes a considerable dust 

 mulch, which covers the foliage and 

 gives a chance for spider to secure a 

 foothold. It pays to open the Skinner 

 system and wash this dust off. If any 

 spider remains on plants when housed, 

 a force of water, well directed from the 

 hose and applied in several directions, is 

 the best cure. There may be a few hot 

 corners near heating mains where spider 

 might get a foothold, and occasional 

 spraying may be needed there; other- 

 wise I entirely disapprove of syring- 

 ing carnations, as was done in the old 

 days. Nowadays we hear little of rust. 

 It is caused by the frequent svringings 

 t(i which ]>lants are subjected. " 



"For green a])his and thrips T always 

 use a nicotine solution in spray form 

 from a force ]uimp, adding a little salt 

 to the spray. I start to use this right 

 after i)lanting and apply it every two 

 weeks. T do not fumigate at all, b«Tmse. 

 since building my Largest house, I IijWe 

 found that I must fill too much atnios- 

 idiere and spraying jiroves far more eco- 

 nomical. I have never been troubled by 

 cutworms, as have many other growers. 



"Stem-rot may have its origin in the 

 cutting bench or flats. If a flat is placed 

 'in .a shelf and there is overlooked and 



