Ai'BiL S, 1015. 



The Florists^ Review 



13 



gralulations of the heads of the big 

 <lepkrtment store. 



LILIES FOR CHRISTMAS. 



AVhat is the best soil for lilies and 

 when should they be planted to have 

 them in bloom for Christmas? What 

 is the best variety for Christmas and 



midwinter? 



M. W. C— Mich. 



The best lilies for winter flowering 

 are eold storage Lilium longiflorum 

 giganteum. These should be potted 

 early in September and given an aver- 

 age night temperature of not less than 

 60 degrees at night. Formosa lilies are 

 also becoming increasingly popular. 

 Pot these as soon as they arrive, which 

 is usually early in August. These have 

 much longer stems than the giganteums, 

 and, if you want cut flowers only, are 

 the best variety for you to plant. L. 

 Harrisii, planted in July, will also 

 flower for Christmas, as will L. speci- 

 osum from retarded bulbs. C. W. 



Hydrangeas for Easter at Greenhouses of L. S. Donaldson Co., Minneapolis. 



cloudy days give a rise of only 5 de- 

 grees. Water moderately, but do not 

 allow the plants to suffer, or the split- 

 ting will be aggravated again. As 

 spring approaches, the trouble will 

 cease. 



The use of manure water is growing 

 less general among carnation growers. 

 We find that little feeding is needed 

 until after the holidays, and then we 

 use sheep manure, dried blood and 

 either wood ashes or lime, giving the 

 food in moderate doses and frequently 

 enough to keep the plants going stead- 

 ily. Large doses would cause the petals 

 to soften, which means poor substance 

 and sleepy carnations. Especially is 

 this true during cloudy weather. 



Cattle manure is considered the most 

 complete plant food, but we have used 

 stable manure exclusivelv for a num- 

 ber of years, for mixing" with the soil 

 as well as for mulching. We supple- 

 ment it, however, with sheep manure, 

 dried blood and lime, as already stated. 

 If we used cattle manure, we might 

 possibly dispense with the sheep ma- 

 nure and the blood, at least partly. I 

 would not recommend pigeon manure 

 for feeding your carnations. The cat- 

 tle and horse manures are safer and 

 perhaps more efficient. A. F. J. B. 



the center, operated by a waterfall. 

 This piece of ornamentation was much 

 admired by the visitors. The managers 

 of the various departments of the L. S. 

 Donaldson Co. store were detailed by 

 Mr. Desmond to look after the comfort 

 of the sightseers. 



Ample provision was made for large 

 Easter sales at the store. Extra space 

 was given' over to the flower depart- 

 ment. The large window facing 

 Nicollet avenue was turned over to Mr. 

 Desmond in which to show his bloom- 

 ing plants for the holiday. 



Mr. Desmond has had a successful 

 season and has everything in the best 

 of shape. For this he has won the con- 



LILY FOLIAGE WITHERING. 



A grower in this city has requested 

 me to send you a lily plant, which 1 

 am forwarding under separate cover. 

 He would like to know what has caused 

 the plant to be in its present bad con- 

 dition. W. J. B.— Mo. 



The plant had half its foliage with- 

 ered. I should say that the miserable 

 condition of the plant may have been 

 caused by bad soil, incorrect treatment 

 or too low a temperature in the early 

 stages of growth. Bulbs immaturely 

 dug would also develop trouble of this 

 kind. Giganteum lilies must have heat 

 from the start; a temperature of 60 de- 

 grees at night is none too high, and 

 careful watering in the early stages of 

 growth is really of more importance 

 than the compost. C. W. 



Trenton, N. J.— The Gazette for 

 March 31 carried, under the title "Men 

 Worth While, ' ' a portrait and bio- 

 graphical sketch of Martin C. Ribsam. 



DONALDSON HOUSES AT EASTER. 



Preparations for a heavv Easter 

 business were made by the L. S. Donald- 

 ^^ui- ■ ^Minneapolis. To show the 

 public the extent of the preparations, 

 the usual Palm Sundav opening was 

 nekl at ;he greenhouses, drawing a large 

 attendance of Minneapolis and St. Paul 

 nower lovers. The two accompanying 

 Illustrations are an indication of what 

 they saw there. 



William Desmond made elaborate pro- 



s n^r , ?.'■ ^^'^ ^^'«"t- On display were 

 8,U00 l.lies in full bloom and 3,500 

 azaleas, genistas in various shapes, and 

 hydrangeas of .the French varieties, 

 pink, white and blue in color. In the 

 center of the palm house was a foun- 

 tain, with an old-fashionod windmill in 



Easter at the Greenhouses of L. S. Donaldson G>., Minneapolis, Minn. 



