14 



The Florists'" Review 



October 2, 1913. 



produced a second crop of good lilies 

 from cold storage bulbs that had al- 

 ready produced a crop of blossoms. I 

 set the pots under a bench after the 

 flowers have been cut. I give the 

 plants almost no vpater for a month, 

 then water more and more as new 

 growth starts. I usually get from two 

 to three good blooms from each plant. 

 Under the above treatment I have not 

 been able to get enough blooms from 

 regular bulbs to pay for the trouble. 

 Give your cold storage bulbs a second 

 trial. It will not cost you much." 



lOBBAINE BEGONIAS DISEASED. 



On visiting another florist recently, 

 I noticed his Lorraine begonias were 

 affected with some leaf trouble, and I 

 desire to inquire what the cause of the 

 trouble may be. Large blotches appear 

 on the leaves and they lose all signs 



of life, but do not dry up for a long 

 time. The color of these blotches is 

 that of manila tissue paper. Strong 

 sunshine does not strike them. Also, 

 what causes green leaves to have rust- 

 like spots, and others, especially new 

 growths, to have a yellowish or pink- 

 ish tinge? '_ D. W. b. 



The culture of the plants has prob- 

 ably been responsible for the condition 

 of the leaves you refer to. These 

 begonias, given proper treatment, are 

 rarely diseased, but if heavily shaded 

 in summer, the foliage becomes soft 

 and often becomes diseased. The 

 plants never need heavy shade, and 

 after October 1 full sun should be 

 given. Too much water at the roots, 

 excessive humidity in the atmosphere, 

 a stuffy, ill ventilated house and too 

 much overhead syringing are also prob- 

 able causes of leaf disease. C. W. 



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^ SEASONABLE ^ 1 

 [ ^ SUGGESTIONS I 



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Lorraine and Cincinnati Begonias. 



Now is the season of rapid growth 

 with Lorraine and Cincinnati begonias, 

 the popular winter-flowering plants, and 

 any final pottings should have been 

 completed before this. No more pinch- 

 ing back need now be done, and flow- 

 ers can be allowed to develop, as it is 

 a decided advantage to have some nice 

 blooming plants even in October, when 

 there is a comparative dearth of such 

 stock. With the plants in active growth, 

 staking must be attended to at once, 

 or injury will result to many of them. 

 Use light, inconspicuous stakes. Those 

 of Japanese bamboo painted green are 

 suitable and are inexpensive. Let the 

 ties be of green raflSa, for it is a great 

 advantage to have both supports and 

 ties seen as little as possible. Elevate 

 specimen plants somewhat, and spread 

 out all as they grow, to insure their 

 best development. 



The Cincinnati begonia is rapidly 

 overbalancing the older Lorraine in 

 popular favor, but some growers seem 

 unable to propagate it. While Lorraine 

 comes best from cuttings, Cincinnati is 

 most easilj"- raised from leaves, and it 

 is really surprising how soon these will 

 root in a warm propagating bench. A 

 batch put in here September 1 was well 

 rooted September 15. From, leaves 

 rooted now, fine specimen plants may 

 be had a year hence. Do not let the 

 Cincinnati begonias stand where they 

 are likely to get any drip, as this will 

 soon disfigure the foliage; later in the 

 season it is well to remove any flowers 

 which have fallen on the leaves, as 

 these will cause the same trouble. 



Full sunshine may now be given 

 these begonias, and a temperature aver- 

 aging 60 degrees at night is suitable. 

 When well in flower, they are better 

 kept 10 degrees cooler. Look carefully 

 after the last propagation of these be- 

 gonias, for while there is generally a 

 surplus of larger sizes, small ones are 

 rarely in sufficient supply. 



Poinsettias. 



It is time now to make up the pans 



of poinsettias. When doing so, be care- 

 ful not to break the small balls, as this 

 will mean a loss of foliage. Drain the 

 pans well and use a good, friable loam 

 to which some well-rotted cow manure 

 has been added. Some small Cyperus 

 alternifolius, ferns, Asparagus Sprengeri 

 and A. plumosus should be used among 

 the poinsettias. It improves the ap- 

 pearance and increases the value of the 

 pans, and such plants help to cover up 

 stems which have lost their foliage. A 

 really warm house is not yet necessary 

 for the poinsettias; 55 degrees at night 

 is ample and in such a temperature the 

 plants will be stocky. When the bracts 

 show, 5 degrees higher at night can 

 be given. Water with increasing care. 

 On a proper supply half the future 

 value of your plants rests. Too much 

 or too little means a loss of foliage. 

 A happy medium is what is needed, 

 and the grower who can grow good 

 poinsettias with leaves to the soil is 

 worthy of kind, considerate treatment, 

 for such men are getting all too scarce. 



Hydrangeas. 



Hydrangea plants in the field are 

 better lifted and potted now, before 

 frosts can injure the young leaves. Pot 

 firmly and use a generous compost. 

 Stand them, after potting, in an open 

 sunny spot, but where some protection 

 can be given on cold nights. If lifted 

 with a ball, they will show little signs 

 of wilting. Plants grown in pots 

 through the summer can now be gradu- 

 ally kept dry at the root. This will 

 assist in maturing the wood, and such 

 plants will be useful for early forcing. 

 Do not on any consideration overlook 

 the new French hj'drangeas, such as 

 General de Vibraye and Mme. Mouil- 

 lere. These are magnificent plants, 

 wonderfully free flowering and in 

 many ways far ahead of the well- 

 known Otaksa. Every grower who has 

 not yet tried these should do so this 



season. 



Bambler Boses. 



Pot-grown ramblers are, of course, 

 the plants par excellence for early forc- 



ing. Lifted plants will not compare 

 with them. It is now time to keep these 

 pot-grown roses a little drier at the 

 root. This is especially necessary with 

 the pink ramblers, which, if kept con- 

 stantly damp at the root, will some- 

 times keep on growing until well into 

 November. Drier root conditions help 

 to check the growth. As Easter comes 

 a little later in 1914, there need be no 

 feverish rush to pot up ramblers. Still, 

 if the plants are home-grown, they are 

 better potted early in October. If, on 

 the other hand, they have to be shipped 

 from a distance, potting can be de- 

 layed until the latter part of the 

 month, but the earlier potted stock is 

 always the best, as it gets a chance to 

 make a nice lot of fresh roots before 

 forcing is done. 



Tuberous Begonias and Gloxinias. 



As tuberous begonias and gloxinias 

 become shabby, keep them on a shelf in 

 a dry, moderately cool house, and give 

 little water at the root. As soon as 

 the foliage has all disappeared, they 

 can be stored away and laid on their 

 sides in any warm shed where a tem- 

 perature of 45 degrees at night is main- 

 tained. A little later, when time per- 

 mits, shake them out and store the 

 tubers in sand or cocoanut fiber refuse. 

 This means an economy in storage, and 

 the pots nan be cleaned up on stormy 

 days and stacked away ready for fu- 

 ture use. 



Amaryllis. 



Amaryllis will still be quite green 

 and in active growth. It is wise now to 

 gradually decrease the water supply, 

 so that by the end of November most 

 of the foliage will have died away. 

 After that time the pots can be laid 

 on their sides, not under a dripping 

 greenhouse bench, but in a dry shed 

 or storehouse, where the temperature 

 averages 45 degrees in cold weather. 

 They can remain there until flower 

 spikes begin to peep early in the new 

 year, when a fresh surfacing or re- 

 potting may be necessary. Young 

 plants which have not yet flowered 

 must not be given any rest, or it will 

 throw back the date of flowering for 

 probably another year. Keep them 

 growing through the winter in a tem- 

 perature of 55 degrees at night. 



Stevia. 



Stevia, the cheap but extremely use- 

 ful little plant, will have been lifted 

 and potted before now, as it is one of 

 the first plants injured by frost. As 

 there is no special need of housing the 

 plants yet a while, they can be stooil 

 in a coldframe exposed to the elements 

 except when frost threatens. There is 

 no special need of this flower while 

 mums are galore, but during Decem- 

 ber and January the country florist 

 without it is often hard put to it when 

 making up a design or bouquet of 



flowers. ,„. 



Lilies. 



Bulbs of Harrisii lilies which are now 

 well rooted and several inches high can 

 go into a warm house — 65 degrees at 

 night is not too much — and a large 

 part of these can be easily flowered for 

 Christmas, with the probability of some 

 being ready for Thanksgiving. Cold 

 storage speciosums, both albums and 

 rubrums, will now have spikes with 

 buds appearing, if they were potted in 

 July. These lilies do not need so much 

 heat as Harrisii or longiflorum. Give 

 them 55 degrees at night, and with this 



