Februabx 25. 1915. 



The Florists' Revkw 



li^ 



STIOMONOSE HEBAIiDS SPRING. 



I send you under separate cover a 

 few tops of carnations that seem to be 

 acting strangely. Only a few of the 

 plants are affected. Can you inform me 

 as to the trouble and the remedy? 



B. W. 



Your plants are affected with the com- 

 mon disease called stigmonose or bac- 

 teria. When these light spots spread 

 across the width of the leaf, everything 

 above that point dies off; hence the dry 

 tips. I have discussed this trouble with 

 many prominent carnation growers, but 

 as yet have found no one who could 

 offer a remedy for it. "We see it appear 

 on especially the Enchantress varieties 

 toward spring, each year, and just why 

 it should get worse at a time when the 

 plants naturally are making a strong 

 growth, we have been unable to de- 

 termine. One would think that that 

 would be the time when they would 

 throw off any such disease that might 

 have been giving trouble earlier. I am 

 inclined to the opinion that a rapid, 

 watery growth, with a lack of nitrogen, 

 may be partly to blame for it. We have 

 never seen it on young plants that have 

 been kept growing on steadily, but 

 have seen it where the young plants 

 were allowed to get potbound, which at 

 least strengthens our belief in the above 

 theory. A. F. J. B. 



CAUSE OF WEAK STEMS. 



The stems of our carnations are a 

 little weak. We have given them a 

 dressing of dried blood and hard, wood 

 ashes. Might running the house a little 

 too warm at night be the cause? 



When should hyacinths be brought in 

 to be forced for Easter in a carnation 

 house? They were potted in Novem- 

 ber and December. Should tulips be 

 brought in at the same time? 



N. A. K. & S. 



Running your houses too warm would 

 affect the strength of the stems first of 

 all. The application of wood ashes 

 would likely correct the trouble if the 

 weak stems were the result of a lack 

 of potash in the soil. You* will find 

 that after three-fourths of a heavy crop 

 has been cut, fhe rest will likely con- 

 tain a rather large percentage of stems 

 that are not so strong as the average 

 during the earlier part of the crop. 

 That is caused by the weaker shoots 

 coming into bloom more slowly than 

 the strong ones, and both the stems 

 and the blooms will average poorer. 

 This may or may not be the cause of 



your complaint. It cannot be helped. 

 As Easter is April 4, two weeks 

 should be ample time for bringing in 

 hyacinths and tulips that are well 

 rooted. A. F. J. B. 



TO REVIVE WILTED BLOOMS. 



Can you suggest any way of reviving 

 carnations that have just begun to 

 shrink, or "go to sleep"? I often re- 

 ceive carnations that have been twenty 

 to twenty-two hours in transit and are 

 just beginning to shrink. I place them 

 in deep water and put them in the re- 

 frigerator as soon as they are unpacked. 

 In one day's time they are totally 



irnVERY now and then a weU- 

 1^3 pleased reader speaks the word 

 which is the means of bringing a 

 new advertiser to 



Such friendly assistance is thoroughly 

 appreciated. 



Give us the name of anyone from 

 whom you are buying, not an adver- 

 tiser. We especially wish to interest 

 those selling articles of florist's use 

 not at present advertised. ^^ 



FLORISTS' PUBLISHING CO. 

 530-60 Cazton Bldg. Chicago 



wilted. Is there any way — by adding 

 salt or something similar — to revive 

 them? L. B. W. 



While twenty hours is quite a long 

 shipment, considering the average, yet 

 there seems no reason why carnations 

 should not travel that long in perfect 

 condition. If that is the distance to 

 your regular source of supply, I would 

 suggest that you buy such varieties as 

 Pink Delight, Matchless, Rosette and 

 Benor.a. These are noted for their ex- 

 ceptional shipping qualities and should 

 reach you in first-class condition regu- 

 larly. You have done perhaps all that 

 could be done to revive these blooms, 

 put I would suggest that you do not 

 place them ».n icy water, but have it at 



about 45 degrees. Don't put them into 

 the refrigerator, but set them in a mod- 

 erately small room where there is no 

 draft. Sprinkle the blooms lightly and 

 cover with damp tissue paper. Cut the 

 ends of the stems and set in water as 

 deeply as possible. A. F. J. B. 



TOADSTOOLS IN BEDS. 



I have had an entirely new experi- 

 ence. Toadstools have come up in my 

 carnation beds by the bushel and con- 

 tinue coming. Is this due to the manure 

 used or to some other element of the 

 soil? Is there anything I can do to 

 stop it? A. S, C. 



Your experience is not an altogether 

 unusual one, except that the toadstools 

 may be more abundant than is common. 

 The spawn was no doubt introduced 

 into the soil with the manure that was 

 mixed in last year. A heavy applica- 

 tion of air-slaked or hydrated lime 

 should eradicate them. A. F. J. B. 



FLYSPECKS NOT DANGEROUS! 



Under separate cover we are sending 

 you a sample of our carnation plants 

 now in bloom, and asl: that you give us 

 your opinion as to what is the matter 

 with the plants. R. F. C. 



The specks you notice on your carna- 

 tion loaves are flyspecks. They should 

 cause you not the slightest degree of 

 worry. A. F. J. B. 



FLIES OR LARV.ffi? 



There is a small black fly eating holes 

 in our carnation buds. What is it, and 

 what is the remedy for it? I have 

 grown carnations in a small way for 

 twenty years and never saw it before. 

 It also eats the lily and geranium 

 leaves. I see the same fly in the lettuce 

 house, but it does no damage there. 

 Fumigation does no good. A nicotine 

 spray seems to kill the ones it hits, 

 but they are just as thi<;k the morning 

 after. I think the flies are the cause of 

 the trouble, as I find them in the buds. 



M. G. & F. G. 



I am inclined to the opinion that your 

 trouble is not caused by those flies, as 

 you suspect, but rather by one of the 

 larvas that are frequently found in 

 greenhouses during the winter and 

 spring. There is on€^ in particular, that 

 hides in the soil at the base of the 

 plants during the day, coming up to the 

 flower buds during the night and feed- 



