Jdlz 6. 1922 



The Florists^ Review 



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SEASONABLE SUGGESTIONS 



A PAGE OF TIMELY AID 

 AND ADVICE TO GROWERS 



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SOWING LATE ANNUALS. 



You can still make sowings of a num- 

 ber of useful annuals outdoors, whicJi 

 will prove good for cutting. Among 

 these are sweet alyssum, hunnemannia, 

 or Mexican poppy; Shirley poppy, 

 <-,larkia, annual larkspur, lupines, bache- 

 lor's buttons, Gypsophila elegans, can- 

 dytuft and scabiosa. Give them an 

 open, sunny location and keep the soil 

 well stirred about them, in order to en- 

 courage a quick growth. You will find a 

 batch of these late annuals serviceable 

 tor filling retail orders. Greenhous(> 

 liowers are now reaching a low ebb and 

 will not cut much of a figure again until 

 early October. 



CINEBAJIIAS. 



.Sow a packet of the large-flowered 

 cineraria now, if you waut nice plants 

 in flower for Christmas. Cover the Heeds 

 lightly and be careful not to allow the 

 seed ])ans to dry out. The seedlings 

 will germinate within a fortnight. 

 When they have made their seed leaves, 

 prick them off into flats, using a light 

 leaf-mold compost, and later pot them 

 singly. Grow the plants as cool as pos- 

 sible all summer and do not expose 

 them to the strong sunlight. Cinerarias, 

 ••alceolarias and primulas all grow 

 .ipace, once the cool fall nights arrive. 

 Their headway is slow dnring the hot 

 suniiner period. They do best in n cool 

 and rather moist house. They need 

 spraying or fumigating, as green aphis 

 is especially fond of them. They sell 

 better in midwinter than in the spring. 



LEFT-OVER GERANIUMS. 



Instead of allowing your left-over ge- 

 ranium stock to stand here and there 

 in the greenhouses, get it together to 

 economize on watering and, unless you 

 anticipate some late sales, plant it out 

 at once. Geraniums have been in short 

 supply in many sections this season and 

 ]ironiise to be good property another 

 year. Get your left-overs out at once, in 

 order that the plants can make sufficient 

 ;;rowth to give a nice crop of fall cut- 

 tings. 



ASPARAGUS SPRENGERI. 



No one can afford to be without As- 

 liaragus Sprengeri. A box of flowers, a 

 bouquet or a floral design seems incom- 

 plete without a little of it. Anyone buy- 

 ing carnations wants a Jittle." In fact, 

 it is hard to think what we would do 

 tor greens without it. An accommodat- 

 ing jilant, this asparagus. It will grow 

 .•Hid luxuriate in positions too shady 

 lor flowering plants. It is at its best in 

 either a solid bed or fairly deep bench. 

 It also makes a most excellent basket 

 plant, and wire baskets containing three 

 or four plants each can be hung in the 

 shade of trees for the summer, or any- 

 where under glass within handy reach 

 of the hose. If vou are short of this 



usefid plant, buy some 3-inch stock now. 

 It will make rapid headway in good 

 soil. If you have a surplus of young 

 plants, line some out in the field and 

 they will make heavy stock ere fall. 



PANSIES. 



]t is a little too early to sow pansy 

 seed for the production of plants for 

 spring sales, but if you want to try 

 some in a cool greenhouse, where vio- 

 lets succeed .and a temperature of only 

 40 to 45 degrees is maintained, sow the 

 seed now. Do not buy cheap seed; it 

 will prove the dearest in the long run. 

 •Sow in a coldfranie; protect from sun 

 .•ind drenching rains, which might cause 

 damjiing off. It will not take the seeds 

 long to germinate. Tlien they can be 

 trans])laiited into light, rich soil and 

 later in the season planted indoors. 

 There is an increased cjill for fancy 

 rtowers made up in large bunches like 

 violets, demand being esiieciiilly good 

 from F(>bruarv until Mav. 



CANTERBURY BELLS. 



Campanula Medium, better known as 

 <'anterbury bells, is one of our most 

 welcome biennials. It is excellent as a 

 spring ]itit plant and is always wel- 

 comed in June as one of our most de- 

 lightful garden plants. Each year many 

 growers err by sowing seeds too late. 

 Ijose no time in sowing seeds if you 

 want good flowering plants for next 

 year. Prick them off into frames or flats 

 .ind later line them out a foot apart in ;i 

 trnme, or outdoors if the climate is not 

 too severe and the jiroper protection 

 c:in be afforded. There are double, liose- 

 in-hose and single Canterbury bells; the 

 singles are much the best. There are 

 jiure white, mauve, dark \>\nv ;in(l j)ink 

 colors; of these, pink and dark liliie are 

 the most popular. 



POINSETTIAS. 



Always popular for Christmas, ]iolu- 

 settias should not be grown by every 

 florist. If no more than a carn.-ttion 

 teni]ier;iture is at commiind, let them 

 .alone; they will not ]>ay to bother with. 

 If, however, you have a compartment 

 you can kee]> at 60 degrees on cold 

 nights, there is no reason why you cnn- 

 not grow some. If your stock lias not 

 yet been stinted up, lose no time in get- 

 ting it under way. 



Sluirt -jointed cuttings, rublicd otT 

 with a lieel, ;ire the best, being far b^s^ 

 li.able to daniji off in liot weather than 

 those cut below a joint. As you make 

 your cuttings, dip the ends in pow- 

 dered charcoal to stop the bleeding, 

 roinsetti.'is will root satisf.-ictorily in 

 • oarse sand in a regular propagating 

 l)encli. but small growers will meet with 

 lietter success by potting each cutting 

 sejiarately in a 2inch ])ot. Fine coal 

 ashes have been found an excellent 

 rooting medium, a mixture of fine char- 



coal and coarse sand coming next in 

 order. 



Be sure to shade the cuttings from 

 all sunshine until they are rooted. As 

 a rule, a little water will be needed 

 each day. When cuttings are placed in 

 a bench, it is necessary to cut back 

 most of the leaves. When they are 

 idaced singly in small pots, if most of 

 the foliage is left on, few will fail to 

 root. Cuttings may be put in with suc- 

 cess until early in August; the later 

 ones are nice for dwarf pajis for the 

 holidays. 



BUDDLEIA ASIATICA. 



Coming into flower as early as Christ- 

 mas and lasting until the end of March 

 in a cold greenhouse, the so-called 

 "winter-flowering lilac" is a most use- 

 ful florists' flower, particularly for 

 home trade. It may not have the same 

 \alue as many other flo\v<'rs for ship- 

 ping purposes, but the free-blooming 

 (|uality, case of culture, rapid growtli 

 and delicious fragranct; of Huddleia 

 asiatica .are strong ])oiuts in its favor. 

 Gne or two country florists known to 

 the writer have specimens planted out 

 or in tubs where there is ample head 

 room, and these ])lants produce a won- 

 (b'rfiil wealth of flowers in the darkest 

 and coldest days of winter. Nothing 

 can be finer in making up sprays or 

 wreaths; in f.act, those who have once 

 grown it would be lost without it. 



!S[iriiig cuttings c;in be grown into 

 heavy M-inch pot stock ere fall. A gen- 

 erous soil, much water, full snn and 

 jiincliiiig until the end of August, are 

 its ni'cds. 



CHRYSANTHEMUMS. 



Most stock of chrysanthemums will 

 already be pl.'inted in the houses, but 

 this is a reminder that it is by no means 

 too late to plant chrys.anthemums. If 

 stock is not on hand, there are ma^y 

 specialists offering good commerci.al va- 

 rieties. Where the cut flowers are to be 

 used at home, those (if medium size are 

 best, and instead of growing single 

 blooms on each stem, jiiuch out the tops 

 and allow the jilants to have two or 

 tliree on each stem. As a general rule, 

 early varieties ])ay well, decidedly bet- 

 ter than main-crop ones, and pompons 

 will jirob.ably net more per scpiare foot 

 than the disbudded Jajianese varieties. 

 They have come tremendously to tlie 

 front the last few years and are wonder- 

 ful keepers on the plants. While all 

 <-olors sell, there is a marked jiartiality 

 for bronzes. Such varieties as Mrs. 

 Wilcox, Mrs. Frank Beu and Source 

 d'Or are always eagerly bought. Grow 

 a few of the charming singles and anem- 

 ones. The spray chrysanthemums, .also, 

 are much in favor these days. 



Look out for the chrysanthemum 

 midge; it is a dangerous ]iest. Throw 

 away any plants found full of warts, 

 and spray frequently with nicotine sul- 

 phate if you find your stock is infested. 



