14 



The Florists^ Review 



Febbuaby 11, 1915. 



POTTING UP THE CUTTINGS. 



Progress of the Propagators. 



By this time the cuttings put into 

 the sand during early January will be 

 striking roots and the grower should 

 be prepared to take them out just as 

 soon as they are ready to pot. There 

 is practically no nourishment in the 

 sand and the longer a cutting is left 

 in the propagating bed after it is 

 rooted, the worse it is for it. 



There has been as much progress 

 made in the handling of the propagat- 

 ing bed as in any other department of 

 carnation growing, during the last few 

 years. lastead of the rooted cuttings 

 being soft, weak little things, the ex- 

 pert propagator takes out of the sand 

 young plants that are well inured to 

 the sun and ready to take hold right 

 away in the new soil. This is done 

 by gradually inuring the cuttings to 

 the sun, beginning as soon as the root- 

 lets start, with at first an hour or so 

 in the morning and evening and increas- 

 ing each day as rapidly as the cuttings 

 are able to stand it, until by the time 

 they are ready to pot the bench is 

 given the full sun through the entire 

 day. The same course is followed with 

 the watering. As soon as the roots 

 start, the water is gradually diminished, 

 so that by the time the cuttings are 

 ready to pot, the sand is just moist 

 enough to sustain growing plants in 

 good condition. When taking the cut- 

 tings out of the cutting bed the sand 

 should drop from the roots readily 

 when given a slight shake, without 

 tearing oflf the roots. There will be 

 practically no loss from cuttings that 

 are handled in this way and they will 

 need shading from the sun only a few^ 

 days after being potted. 



Pots and Soil. 



We use 2-inch pots for anything that 

 is potted up to February 20, shifting 

 into a larger size in March. After 

 February 20 we pot into 2i/^-inch pots 

 and leave in that size until planting- 

 out time. We prefer growing our 

 young stock in pots to any other 

 method we have ever seen or tried. 

 This is largely a matter of preference, 

 however, as we know of other suc- 

 cessful growers who use the box 

 method. Others, again, use the dirt 

 bands with good success. It is like 

 many other things in which, if you 

 make the most of whatever method 

 you employ, you will have good success. 



Use good soil for the young plants, 

 but do not make it too rich for the 

 first potting. After the plants are es- 

 tablished, you can use richer soil for 

 the shift, but even then a rich soil is 

 not needed. The carnation likes, a 

 sandy soil and if your soil is inclined 

 to be heavy, a dash of sand in each 

 barrow of compost will improve it. 



Those who grow a variety of stofk 

 will be able to find space for the young 

 plants without trouble, but those who 



specialize closely on the carnation will 

 sometimes be perplexed to know where 

 to put them. The natural tendency is 

 to throw out the bed that gives the 

 least promise fOr the future, which, un- 

 der certain conditions, is the wise thing 

 to do. One must not fail to consider 

 the cause of failure on this particular 

 space. If the variety is at fault, well 

 and good; the young plants will likely 

 do first-rate there. If, however, the 

 plants failed because the bed is un- 

 suited for growing first-class stock, 

 then it is nO place for the young plants. 

 Many growers fail to keep in mind 

 that the young plants of this year will 

 be their blooming stock of next year 

 and that they should have the best 

 of care from the start. Right now is 

 when you are laying the foundation 

 for your success or failure next season. 



Bench for Young Stock. 



Do not set the pots on the old soil, 

 not even if you spread a layer of sand 

 on it first. We see this done frequent- 

 ly, and usually to the guilty one's sor- 

 row. The soil in the pots will be in- 

 fested with angleworms coming out of 

 the old soil, and later on it will be im- 

 possible to dump out the young plants 

 satisfactorily. Take out all the soil, 

 whitewash the boards and spread an 

 inch of clean sand in the bench to set 

 the pots on. 



If you have a cool house in which 

 you can grow your young plants, they 

 will be the better for it. A tempera- 

 ture of 48 to 50 degrees will suit them 

 exactly. If, however, you are obliged 

 to grow your young plants in the same 



houses with the blooming stock, as 

 many of us must do, no trouble should 

 be experienced, if you will be careful 

 to keep the young stock in the cooler 

 part of the houses. ^Also, be sure that 

 the young plants aejft^go od light and 

 the full sun. JOE 



Watering should ^^Pdone carefully 

 for a time after potting. Give te good 

 watering the first time, to setftife the 

 soil around the roots, but after that 

 water only moderately until the young 

 roots show at the side of the pot. 

 After that, water may be given more 

 liberally, but the soil should never be 

 soggy. The same course should be fol- 

 lowed after shifting into larger pots. 



Still Time to Boot Cuttings. 



If you failed to get enough cuttings 

 for. your needs, in the first batch, or 

 if. your strike was not satisfactory, it 

 is not too late to put in more cuttings. 

 Cuttings put in sand now will make 

 the best of stock, if properly taken 

 care of. As the sun grows stronger, 

 the chances for success in rooting the 

 cuttings diminishes, unless you are pre- 

 pared to give close attention. No time 

 should be lost now, in getting the 

 propagating finished up as soon as pos- 

 sible. A. F. J. Baur. 



GLASS MABKET STANDS FIBM. 



Exporting Instead of Importing. 



The truth of the adage "It's an ill 

 wind that blows no one good" is shown 

 in the effects the European war is hav- 

 ing on the American window glass 

 trade. And as the time for the erection 

 of new greenhouses and the repair of 

 old ones draws nearer, the glass situa- 

 tion assumes more than a passing in- 

 terest to florists. 



During the year preceding the open- 

 ing of hostilities in Belgium, that coun- 

 try alone exported 7,000,000 to 8,000,000 

 boxes of window glass. Of this, a 

 large per cent was consumed by the 

 American market. Since August 1, how- 

 ever, there has been practically no glass 



Boxes of Azaleat Banked the Stairway at this Wedding. 



