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16 



The Florists^ Review 



A^BIL 29, 1915. 



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GERANIUMS FOB MEMOBIAL DAY. 



"Will you please tell me of something 

 that will force geraniums? They seem 

 to be healthy, but are not growing as 

 fast as I think they should. I want 

 them to bloom for Memorial day. They 

 are now about six inches high. 



H. C. B.— Md. 



If your plants are healthy, I would 

 not recommend any strong food to force 

 them along. It would merely promote 

 a soft growth at the expense of flow- 

 ers. Try a dose of nitrate of soda 

 water, at the rate of five pounds of the 

 soda to fifty gallons of water. One 

 dose will suffice to brace up the plants. 

 Follow this twelve to fourteen days 

 later with a top-dressing of fine bone. 

 This can be given in liquid form if 

 preferred. Mix it in a barrel of water 

 three or four days before applying. 

 These will be found better than liquid 

 cow or sheep manure, which promotes 

 too soft a growth. C. W. 



SPIDEB ON GEBANIUM FLOWEBS. 



I am sending you some geranium 

 blooms. There seems to be a little in- 

 sect working on them, causing the flow- 

 ers to dry up. The trouble is in the 

 bloom only; the plants have a good 

 growth and fine foliage. Can you tell 

 us how to get rid of this pest? Also, 

 please tell us whether the sample carna- 

 tion forwarded is Beacon. 



T. G.— Kan. 



The flowers sent had some red spider 

 on them. Probably the affected plants 

 had been standing near heating pipes 

 and had been allowed to get somewhat 

 too dry; this would make them an easier 

 prey to this pest. I would pick off all the 

 spidery trusses, keep more moisture about 

 the affected plants and give one or two 

 sprayings with soap and water. Try 

 five pounds of Ivory soap in twenty-five 

 gallons of water. Apply it through a 

 fine, misty spray nozzle. Ventilate your 

 house well. Do not let the temperature 

 go above 50 degrees at night if outside 

 conditions permit its being kept down 

 to this figure. 



The carnation petals were black when 

 received. I could not say whether this 

 is Beacon or not without seeing the 

 fresh flower. C. W, 



A SEEDLING AND A SPOBT. 



Under separate cover I am mailing 

 you three varieties of geraniums. No. 

 1 is a sport from No. 2. No. 3 is a 

 seedling. Please let me know whether 

 there are any like Nos. 1 and 3 now 

 in commerce. I have tested both of 

 theni here for three seasons and both 

 delight in a hot, dry situation and are 

 free bloomers. S. E. C. — N. H. 



that any of them are distinct from 

 others now in commerce. Varieties of 

 geraniums are numerous and are ever 

 increasing. As your varieties are of 

 good colors and have proved to be 

 splendid bedders, I would certainly hold 

 on to them and prepare good batches 

 for another season. There never seemd 

 to be any surplus of good bedding gera- 

 niums. C. W. 



GEBANIUM FLOWEBS BLIGHTED. 



Under separate cover we are sending 

 you a sample of our geranium blooms, 

 which have been blighting badly. The 

 plants are in 4-inch pots and have been 

 shifted twice. They are 2 years old and 

 are healthy and growing well. Can you 

 tell us what is the trouble? 



W. E. P.— Okla. 



I failed to find any insects on the flow- 

 ers. If such had appeared, they would 

 undoubtedly have attacked the foliage 

 also. If your foliage is clean and 

 healthy, it may be that the plants are 

 making too luxuriant a growth to pro- 

 duce satisfactory flowers. They do best 

 if potted quite firmly, and it is not a 

 good plan to use animal manure of any 

 kind in the compost unless the manure 

 is old and thoroughly decayed. Fine 

 bone promotes a short, stocky growth, 

 which gives plenty of flowers of fin6 

 quality, but if you use animal manure 

 too freely, it will cause a rank, soft 

 growth at the expense of flowers. See- 



ing that your plants are Healthy, I think 

 there is no great cause for worry. Ap- 

 ply a sprinkling of fine bone on the sur- 

 face of the soil. The roots will soon 

 find their way into this. Give a second 

 application two weekB later. A tea- 

 spoonful of bone will suffice for a 6-inch 

 pot. Do not coddle your plants, do not 

 shade, ventilate freely, and I think they 

 will come out all right. \ . C. W. 



THE MELVINII PEPPEB. 



Solanum capsicastrum Melvinii, a 

 Massachusetts product, has caught on 

 better in England than it has in the 

 United States. Perhaps the reason is 

 to be found in the following paragraph, 

 by W. A. T., in the Horticultural Trade 

 Journal: 



" It is doubtful also whether Solanum 

 Capsiciastrum Melvinii would ever im- 

 press the E. H. S. sufficiently to win an 

 award of merit, yet the fact remains 

 that this variety bids fair to knock the 

 usual type badly as a market plant. 

 After a second season 's trial from home- 

 saved seed from selected plants, Ward 

 Bros, have satisfied themselves that it 

 is a variety worth hanging on to. The 

 original American stock was somewhat 

 variable, but change of cultural de- 

 tails, coupled with selected seed, has 

 produced a type that is favored by 

 many customers. The plant is less stiff 

 than the old type, and the branches 

 spread more gracefully, while the 

 pointed berries also tend to make Mel- 

 vinii attractive." 



WHAT NEXT! 



I hear that certain Boston florists 

 are likely to adopt a new idea in floral 

 gifts. Thus: 



When a young lady opens a box of 

 roses or orchids sent by an adoring 

 young man, she will see great, bril- 

 liantly-hued moths flutter out from 

 among the blossoms. Moths are to be 

 used because it has been found difficult 

 to keep butterflies.— Boston Post. 



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I NEW FLOWER STORES | 



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The flowers were somewhat faded on 

 arrival. Each of the varieties sent is 

 good, but I would hardly care to state 



Bloomington, HI. — Sylvester H. 

 Girmsley is opening a flower store in 

 the Sweeney building. 



Omaha, Neb. — F. H. Swanson has 

 opened a retail store at 532 North 

 Twenty-fourth street, south. 



Wheeling, W. Va. — G. L. Greiner has 

 moved into the Feinler building, at the 

 corner of Market street and Alley 7. 



Detroit, Mich. — ^The Norwood Eosery 

 is the name of a new store at 1509 

 Woodward avenue, of which C. H. May- 

 nard is manager. 



Clareraont, N. H. — Easter week saw 

 the opening of the Claremont Floral 

 Shop, a new establishment inaugurated 

 by a Massachusetts firm. 



Cedar Bapids, la. — Frank Diserens is 

 trying to buy a triangular piece of 

 land that was recently deeded to the 

 city by the North View Land Co., to 

 add it to property he has secured from 

 John Ely, on which to build a green- 

 house. If the land company's permis- 

 sion for the land's sale can be obtained, 

 the city will set a price on the tract. 



Plainfield, IlL — Miss Mary Cropsey 

 is starting business in a small way in 

 flowers and plants at her home on 

 Bartlette avenue. 



Arlington, Wis. — Ed. Woeruer has 

 opened a downtown store for the dis- 

 tribution of the stock from his green- 

 houses, on North Sixth street. 



Green Bay, Wis. — The Meier- 

 Schroeder Co. expects to be settled in 

 the kjoncern's new location, at 119 

 North Washington street, by May 1. 

 The new store will be handsomely 

 equipped. 



Detroit, Mich. — So successful has 

 been the Atlas Floral Co. since it 

 started in business five months ago 

 that it has taken a 7-year lease on the 

 store at 7 Campus Martius, adjoining 

 its present location. The rental is 

 about $7,200 per year. The partition 

 between the two stores will be re- 

 moved and the place remodeled at a 

 cost of $3,000. The work is expected 

 to be completed by May 1. H. A. 

 Atlas and D. Friedman compose the 

 firm. • - 



