44 



The Florists^ Review 



umcuutauL 10. 1914^ 



soft paper and placed in vases of good 

 depth, they will keep perfectly plump. 



AZAIJIA.S. 



The Christmas call has increased 

 much of late years for the miniature 

 azaleas, such as Hexe, Mme. Petrick, 

 Lorraine and the new Haerens varie- 

 ties. All these are well adapted for 

 early forcing and a good number can 

 be had for Christmas. Owing to the 

 war, imports of these were not up to 

 the average in qnaKty and, owing to 

 increased freight charges, will not need 

 to be grown so much as in former 

 years, as present financial conditions 

 will hardly warrant any advance in 

 prices. Simon Mardner, double rose; 

 Verveeneana, double pink and white; 

 Vervseneana alba and Deutsche Perle, 

 pure white, are all useful Christmas 

 sorts which sell well. Azaleas will 

 stand much more cold than poinsettias 

 and their foliage holds better than that 

 of many other plants when stood in 

 comparatively dark places. Water 

 carefully, remembering that these hard- 

 wooded subjects have fine, hair-like 

 roots and that one thorough drying out 

 will not only ruin the flowers but also 

 cause a heavy loss of foliage. 



BEGONIAS. 



More plants than ever of th.e beau- 

 tiful C^cinnati begonia will be sold 

 the coming Christmas. It nets both 



C rower and retailer a higher price than 

 orraine and makes a decidedly better 

 keeping house plant. We were told a 

 year or two ago that it needed more 

 careful culture than Lorraine, as the 

 larger leaves were more subject to spot. 

 This is in a measure true, but grow- 

 ers have easily mastered these little 



sated for in knowing that it means 

 additional warmth and insures delivery 

 in first-class condition. 



For over twenty years the Lorraine 

 begonia has been in commerce and, in 

 spite of all pessimistic talk, it is still 

 the most widely grown winter-flowering 

 variety, taking the world over. Its 

 ease of culture and wonderful florifer- 

 ousness are great points in its favor. 

 As a hanging plant it is unequaled. As 

 a house plant it does not hold up so 

 well, jiowever, as tbfti newer van«liies^ 

 Cincinnati, Melior and Florence Dav- 

 enport. It blooms a little earlier than 

 Cincinnati and a good number are sold 

 before the holidays. I have noticed 

 the last few years that large numbers 

 of late rooted cuttings flowered in 2- 

 inch to 314 -inch pots are sold for use 

 in small receptacles. Cuttings propa- 

 gated in July and August have readily 

 wholesaled at $2 to $3 per dozen and 

 there is even more money in these 

 than in the larger plants. This be- 

 gonia is excellent for window boxes, 

 and if it can have a light position in 

 a room not overheated, it keeps quite 

 well. Always impress upon purchasers 

 the necessity of watering not only be- 

 gonias but all house plants freely. In 

 steam-heated rooms, which usually have 

 but little ventilation, one drying-out 

 will practically kill Lorraines. 



CYOI.AMENS. 



There are no flowering plants avail- 

 able for the Christmas trade which 

 give greater satisfaction than cycla- 

 mens. They are grown cool and are, 

 therefore, less susceptible to variations 

 in temperature. Their leaves are 

 tough, and the flowers possess good 

 substance. There is a long succession 



Where the Basket and Ribbon Double the Value of the Plant. 



troubles and few plants now offered 

 for sale have any bacterial affections 

 of the foliage. The larger leaves 

 necessitate more careful wrapping to 

 prevent injury. Flare the stakes out 

 more widely than in the case of Lor- 

 raine. If the weather is extremely 

 eold, it is good policy to use a sheet 

 of cotton-wool next to the plant. The 



will be compen- 



of flowers to follow those that are 

 open, and, given at all favorable condi- 

 tions, these plants will bloom freely for 

 a number of weeks, even in a dwelling 

 house. For window boxes, they are 

 splendid. Plants of one color should, 

 of course, be selected for this purpose. 

 The red and salmon shades sell the 

 best now; the light pink and white 

 shacks move better \aiw:^ No unaasi- 



ness need be felt if the plants are not 

 all sold at Christmas. Cyclamens will 

 sell until Easter. Keep them in a 

 cold house until wanted. 



Cyclamens withstand an arid atmos- 

 phere and even dryness at the root 

 better than almost any other flowering 

 plant. They are more easily injured 

 by having stagnant water below them. 

 It is just as necessary to warn pur- 

 chasers of the danger of overwatering 

 as of the reverse. We have all, on 

 numy eeeasions, seen jar^Unieres- and 

 other receptacles half full, or more, 

 of stagnant water, which emits a fetid 

 odor through the room, and, of course, 

 the owners wonder why the poor water- 

 logged plants present so hopeless an 

 appearance. A little water below 

 plants is permissible, especially if the 

 subjects are naturally thirsty ones, but 

 any surplus will ruin plants more 

 speedily than any other thing. 



PBiniULAS. 



As moderately-priced plants, primulas 

 are useful at the holidays. Both ob- 

 conica and Sinensis are excellent in 

 birch-bark boxes for windows, and, as 

 they can be profitably sold at a lower 

 price than almost any other Christmas 

 plant, they invariably meet with a 



?:ood sale. P. obconica is a wonder- 

 uUy persistent bloomer. I doubt 

 whether any other flowering plant really 

 surpasses -it, as it withstands couditions 

 which would soon finish begonias and 

 many other plants. An objection to it 

 is that the foliage irritates and 

 poisons many people. For this reason 

 some retailers refuse to handle it at all. 

 The scarlet and deep-pink Chinese 

 primulas are good sellers. In packing 

 them, remember that the leaves are 

 brittle. They must not be rolled up 

 as you would a spiraea, cyclamen or 

 Boston fern. Use three or four short 

 stakes and run twine around these to 

 hold the leaves erect before using any 

 paper at all. 



P. malacoides is, if anything, the 

 most decorative of all primulas, being 

 light and graceful. Some nice plants 

 of it appeared last Christmas, but it is 

 later in the season that it is to be seen 

 in really good condition. It must be 

 grown cool all the time. If given heat, 

 the graceful spikes fiop over and the 

 plant's beauty is entirely lost. Better 

 reserve your malacoides for February 

 and March sales. As growing plants, 

 these make up into one of the most 

 beautiful of centerpieces. 



OAMELLIA& 



A few camellias appeared in the 

 stores before Thanksgiving, and a good 

 number are now available. It is pleas- 

 ing to note the return of these old-time 

 favorites. They are not plants which 

 can be sold cheaply, but for just that 

 reason they appeal to a certain class 

 of buyers. Camellias do well in a low 

 temperature. The flowers are easily 

 knocked off and bruised, and speeiaJ 

 care should always be taken in packing 

 them. Cotton-wool or tissue paper 

 should protect each flower and expand- 

 ing bud. ... * 



EBIOAS. 



The erica is another plant which 

 cannot be sold cheaply, as several sea- 

 sons are necessary to secure salable- 

 sized specimens. They can be stood in 

 quite cold and drafty places without 

 harm. Remember that their pots are 

 fillad- with ft' veritA^ -aeiwerk. of fla^ 



