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The Florists^ Review 



17 



Hellebore, poisoned bait, carbon bisul- 

 phide and other methods have proved 

 unsuccessful, as the spray would have 

 to be strong to affect the caterpillar 

 and would scald the ferns. The best 

 remedy offered is the laborious hand- 

 picking. Shaking the ferns and mash- 

 ing the caterpillars seems to be the best 

 remedy. Fumigation with hydrocyanic 

 acid gas is advised, but no experiment- 

 ing has been done with this, and I 

 would advise you to 'look a little out' 

 if you decide to try this. This gas is 

 destructive to tender foliage unless 

 used correctly." 



A HOUSE OF BIRD'S-NEST FERNS. 



The Bird's-nest fern came into popu- 

 larity as a commercial plant in this 

 country some years ago. Large stocks 

 of it were raised and it was eagerly 

 welcomed as a house fern by those with 

 discriminating taste. Its color, form 

 and habit of growth were unusual. 

 Plantsmen felt that the Bird 's-nest fern 

 was destined to enjoy extensive popu- 

 larity. Then came the disease that, 

 starting at the midrib of the leaves, 

 gradually spread over the entire fern 

 until it succumbed. So widespread was 

 the disease that great stocks of the 

 fern were ruined. iLittle by little the 

 Bird's-nest fern lost favor, so serious 

 (was this disease. Nobody wanted to 

 lool with a sick fern; it seemed better 

 TO try something else. 



Today, however, it seems certain that 

 the disease has been conquered. Skill- 

 ful, common-sense methods of growing, 

 systematically followed, have borne 

 fruit. The illustration shows the Bird's- 

 nest fern house of William K. Harris, 

 of Philadelphia, where there is no dis- 

 -ease, there has never been any disease 

 and, the growers confidently predict, 

 there never will be any disease! This 

 statement sounds pretty sweeping, but 

 when a man has spent his life in the 

 ■careful and intelligent cultivation of 

 plants, when he has been successful and 

 when he knows pretty nearly what con- 

 -ditions cause this disease and avoids 

 them, his word has weight. William K. 

 Harris earnestly affirms, "We have no 

 disease." Mark P. Mills goes further. 



House of Asplenium Nidt»-avi8 at the Wm. K. Harris Establishment. 



with an emphatic gesture of his power- 

 ful right arm, "We have never had any 

 disease." John W. Prince corroborates 

 with earnestness what both speakers 

 have said. 



It is a pretty house to see, that house 

 of Asplenium Nidus-avis, or, as some 

 of the experts assert, Asplenium Aus- 

 tralasicum. But whether the fern be 

 a native of India or of Australia, it is 

 a credit to its mother country, with its 

 erect habit, wavy leaves perfect to the 

 base and lovely olive green color. No 

 trace of blemish here. Take those 

 plants in 6-inch pots, for instance, seed- 

 lings of little more than a year ago; 

 they are now perfect specimens, whose 

 symmetry and finish would grace the 

 most perfectly appointed home. 



Phil. 



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I SEASONABLE SUGGESTIONS I 

 I FOR SOUTHERN FLORISTS | 



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PLANTS FOR SPRING TRADE. 



It will soon be time, in the south, to 

 house stock plants of geraniums, coleus, 

 verbenas, scarlet sage, etc. Cuttings of 

 geraniums taken now, potted in 2^- 

 inch pots and placed in a coldframe in 

 the full sun, will root nicely before 

 frost. If the cuttings are a little hard, 

 so much the better. Water thoroughly 

 at first and thereafter keep a little dry 

 until rooted. The geranium cuttings 

 will need sash protection in case of 

 rain; otherwise many will damp off. 

 Cuttings of coleus, verbenas and helio- 

 tropes will root now in sand. Enough 

 of these can be made and planted out 

 on a bench to give cuttings for spring 

 trade. The scarlet sage can be lifted 

 from the field, cut back and planted in 

 a bench, where it will give many cut- 

 lings in a short time. Cuttings of 



scarlet sage seem to give better satis- 

 faction than seedlings. Cannas, dah- 

 lias and gladioli, in many sections of 

 the south, are left in the ground all 

 winter, but in the northern sections it 

 is best to lift and store them. While 

 the frost would hardly injure them, the 

 rains cause a big loss by rotting many 

 of them. L. 



SOUTHERN CARNATION FIELDS. 



Now that carnations in the south are 

 all housed, growers should begin to 

 prepare the field to receive the young 

 plants next spring. If there are any 

 poor spots in the field, give them a 

 coating of stable manure; then plow up 

 the whole field and sow it down with a^ 

 cover crop of some kind, such as rye,' 

 wheat or clover, which can be plowed 

 under in the spring. These crops pre- 



vent leaching during the winter's rains 

 and add considerable to the soil fer- 

 tility. L. 



DUTCH BULBS IN THE SOUTH. 



As Easter is late next year, it will 

 be a hard problem to keep any of the 

 Dutch bulbs for that occasion in any 

 section of the south. In those sections 

 where there is a chance to hold them 

 for Easter, I would advise keeping the 

 hyacinths, tulips and Narcissus Em- 

 peror anfj Empress until well into De- 

 cember L fore boxing or potting, thus 

 retarding them as much as possible. 

 The bulbs intended for winter blooming 

 may be boxed off, as usual, in October, 

 and covered in coldframes, which are 

 preferable to cellars. The bulbs must 

 be extra well rooted before being 

 brought into a forcing temperature. In 

 the south the middle of January is 

 soon enough to bring in the first tulips 

 and hyacinths, while Golden Spur and 

 Campernelle narcissi may be brought in 

 two or three weeks earlier. 



There are many sections of the south 

 where narcissi are grown in quantity 

 in private gardens, and in those sec- 

 tions it behooves the grower to have 

 his narcissi in flower and disposed of 

 before the outdoor ones bloom. Along 

 the gulf coast, hyacinths and tulips are 

 much of a gamble. In favorable, cool 

 seasons they will do well, particularly 

 hyacinths, but should the season hap- 

 pen to be a little warm, they are a 

 total loss. It is not often that this 

 occurs, yet the menace is serious enough 

 to prevent speculation. L. 



St. Paul, Minn. — The following are 

 the new officers of the Minnesota State 

 Florists' Association: President, W. D. 

 Desmond, Minneapolis; vice-president. 

 Max Kaiser, St. Paul; treasurer, A. 

 Lauritsen, St. Paul; secretary, T. C. 

 Rogers, Minneapolis; executive com- 

 mittee, O. J. Olson and S. S. Dysinger, 

 St. Paul, and S. S. Cargill and Oscar E. 

 Amundsen, Minneapolis. Monthly meet- 

 ings are held the third Tuesday. 



