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The Florists' Review 



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i SEASONABLE 



i '^ SUGGESTIONS \ 



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Primula Malacoides. 



Primula malacoides has jumped 

 rapidly into favor since its introduc- 

 tion. It is a rapid and easy grower, 

 is graceful, and makes a salable plant 

 in several months' less time than Si- 

 nensis, obconica or Kewensis. A com- 

 mon error is made in sowing this prim- 

 ula too early. If started with the 

 other sorts named, the plants become 

 large and, as the large crowns are 

 densely packed with leaves, there al- 

 ways is great danger of the centers rot- 

 ting badly during spells of damp, cold 

 and sunless weather. With plants pro- 

 duced from later sowings this trouble 

 is obviated and it will be found that 

 by sowing seeds- mtm pupitAl plants in 

 5-inch and 6-ineh pots may be had for 

 early winter bloanuBg'. This primula 

 is worth more-, aitentio^^: It is mare 

 graceful than obconica, and will dis- 

 place it in a large measure. There is a 

 white as well as the colored form now 

 offered. A double variety also has ap- 

 peared. 



Herbaceous Calceolarias. 



July is a suitable time to make a sow- 

 ing of herbaceous calceolarias. These 

 showy flowers lack the texture of the 

 average florists' flower, but appeal to 

 many. Personally I consider C. rugosa 

 Golden Gem and C. Stewarti far more 

 uaetii varieties, both easily raised from 

 cuttings, but there is a charm about the 

 many-hued flowers of the large her- 

 baceous section hard to resist. Seed 

 should be sown in well drained pans, 

 the compost being mainly leaf-mold and 

 fine sand. To prevent drying out, a 

 good plan is to plunge one pan within 

 a larger one. Cover the pans with glass 

 and this again with paper. Water care- 

 fully and keep in as cool a house or 

 frame as possible. The growth made by 

 calceolarias is quite slow in hot 

 weather; in fact, it sometimes is hard 

 to keep little seedlings alive when a 

 prolonged heat wave comes along. 



Outdoor Sweet Peas. 



Outdoor sweet peas now are blooming 

 freely and, with hot, dry Weather pre- 

 vailing in most sections, it is not easy 

 to keep them flowering satisfactorily. 

 The ground should be frequently stirred 

 between, the rows and, if they have not 

 yet been given a mulch, let them have 

 it at once. Old manureii-iay, grass, 

 straw, or anything whicl^*ill hold the 

 moisture will answer, flpny growers 

 prefer a mulch containiiP some plant 

 food. Keep the flowers picked closely 

 and the seed pods removed. Where a 

 good water pressure is at command, a 

 good hosing on the evening of a hot day 

 will be found beneficial. To keep the 

 plants blooming they must have 

 moisture at the roots and artificial 

 watering should be afforded. If green 

 «phis appears, attack at once with a 

 suitable spray. There is less chance 

 for its getting a foothold where the 

 plants can be freely syringed with 

 water at a good pressure. 



Flowering Shrubs. 



It is important to pick seeds care- 

 fully from such plants as azaleas, 

 rhododendrons, kalmias and lilacs as 

 soon after flowering as possible. If not 

 removed, the plants are much weakened. 

 Now is the time also to prune most of 

 the flowering shrubs, such as lilacs, 

 philadelphus, loniceras, spiraeas, etc. 

 Directly flowering is over is the time 

 they should be judiciously pruned. Old 

 wood, weak wood, and any which has 

 run away, leaving the plants unshapely, 

 should be well cut back. Where it is 

 not desired to plant new shrubs and the 

 existing ones have run practically wild, 

 they can be cut down, hard thinned out, 

 the ground enriched and kept stirred 

 about them; -and it is sarpriskii^: bow 

 muek growth they will make in one 

 season. Lilacs^ loniceras and phila- 

 delphus all do well if cut down to near 

 the ground. 



Propagating Hardy Deciduous Slirubs. 



Where it is desired to increase the 

 stock of deciduous shrubs from half 

 ripened wood, the present is a good 

 time to start propagating. Some varie- 

 ties, such as deutzias, philadelphus, ker- 

 rias, loniceras and spiraeas, are easily 

 rooted; so are most of the viburnums, 

 like plicatum, tomentosum, Sieboldi, 

 Opulus and dentatum. The varieties of 

 Syringa vulgaris, better known as 

 hybrid lilacs, are not hard to root if 

 taken at the fight time. The woo<l 

 must be neither too soft nor too firm, 

 and only a propagator of some expe- 

 rience can tell just when the wood is 

 in the ideal condition. The Persian and 

 Bouen lilacs, also S. villosa and one or 

 two other forms, root with the greatest 

 of ease at this season. Use a sandy 

 loam. Put the cuttings in pans, flats 

 or directly in the frames. Cuttings 



with two eyes are sufliciently large. 

 They must be well firmed and, after 

 they are in the flats or pans, should be 

 sprayed at once. It is important when 

 taking the cuttings oft' to dampen them 

 with perfectly fresh water. Cuttings 

 of any kind in summer turn black 

 quickly if the water is not perfectly 

 pure. A close frame, shaded from direct 

 sunshine, aired only moderately until 

 the cuttings are rooted, and frequently 

 given a light spraying over, is what 

 these cuttings need. Close up early in 

 the afternoon, so as to bottle up a brisk 

 heat. In the case of shrubs with large 

 leaves, it is better to cut the foliage 

 three-fourths away. 



TJrese cuttings -can be gradually hard- 

 ened off after they are rooted, planted 

 out in nursery rows in spring, and they 

 will make fine plants the first season, 

 if kept clean and well cultivated. Of 

 course, where large quantities are to be 

 rooted they should be dibbled directly 

 into the frames. The advantage of flats 

 is that a small grower can move them 

 •any time he wishes. 



Peonies. 



As soon as the blooming period of 

 tlm peonies ins passed all seed should 

 be removed. It also is an excellent time 

 to give the plants some food in the 

 way of a top-dressing of fine bone, dried 

 blood, or any good commercial fertilizer, 

 and hoe this in about them well. This 

 will wonderfully strengthen the crowns 

 and is especially necessary where the 

 flowers have been cut freely, with long 

 stems. If the flower stalks of any 

 clumps of peonies are all cut down to the 

 ground, the probabilities are that these 

 clumps will bloom sparsely, if at all, 

 the following season. Many growers 

 wonder why their clumps fail to bloom, 

 and forget that they unmercifully 

 slaughtered them while in flower. 



Show Pelargoniums. 



As show pelargoniums pass out of 

 flower they can be stood outdoors and 

 gradually dried off. The common prac- 

 tice is to lay them on their sides at 

 once. This drying off, however, is too 

 sudden and severe. A better plan is to 

 leave them standing erect for at least 

 a week or two. There then is little 

 chance of the plants shriveling. 



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WINTER-BLOOMING OEEANIUMS. 



Kindly advise me as to the proper 

 time to take geranium cuttings so as 

 to get fresh winter bloomers in Texas. 

 Will my last year's cuttings be goo<l 

 for winter blooms, and when should I 

 cut them back and repot? What age 

 of geranium makes the best winter 

 bloomer? Can you suggest something 

 cheaper than carnations for winter 

 blooms in a small house run at 50 

 degrees? Y. F. C. 



Geraniums propagated in February 

 and March, potted along, kept under 



jflass all the time, shaded a little In 

 your climate and flowered in 5-inch or 

 6-inch pots, make satisfactory and sal- 

 able stock. It would be too late now 

 to do any propagating, but any left- 

 over fall or early spring propagated 

 stock will answer. Older plants, if 

 cut back, kept a little dry until they 

 break, then shaken out and repotted, 

 will also bloom freely and make larger 

 plants. For winter bloom keep the 

 plants pinched until early in Septbin- 

 ber and remove all flowers. Use soil 

 containing bone, but no fresh manure. 

 Some well decayed manure is all right, 

 however. 



