^:iv 



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The Weekly Florists* Review* 



SUPTUMBKB 22, 1904. 



well grown, the first named being already 

 in bloom. Genistas, azaleas, Acacia 

 armata and Bougainvillea Sanderiana 

 are grown in quantity and numbers of 

 Crimson Bambler roses are being pre- 

 pared for Easter trade. 



Lilium Harrisii for Christmas flowers 

 was at the right stage. Primulas in 

 frames were nice, stocky plants. Mar- 

 gueritas, Mahonia odorata. Campanula 

 medium, gloxinias and achimenes are all 

 handled. In ferns we noted quantities 

 of Nephrolepis Bostoniensis, Pieraoni and 

 Scottii in benches and pots. Pteris 

 tremula and P. Microlepia hirta cristata 

 are also favorites. Dracaena terminalis 

 and D. Sanderiana are found useful for 

 making up center-pieces. 



Lorraine begonias are, however, Mr. 

 Roland's great specialty. These fill two 

 large houses. One is almost entirely 

 filled with big specimens being grown for 

 Christmas trade, the other being largelj- 

 young stock for shipping, which were to 

 be seen in thousands, all being in the 



most vigorous health. In addition to the 

 ordinary light and dark forms, the varie- 

 ties Glory of Wellesley and Turnford 

 Hall were. noted in quantity. Orchids are 

 not omitted. A bench of 500 Cypripe- 

 dium insigne were pushing a forest of 

 spikes. Oncidium varicosum Bogersii is 

 also grown, some fine sprays being in 

 full bloom. 



Two new houses each 140 feet long are 

 planted with the popular market chrysan- 

 themums. These looked first-class. About 

 10,000 carnations are grown, favorite 

 sorts being Lawson, Adonis, Enchantress, 

 Mrs. Patten, Queen and Boston Market. 



A large storage shed was just being 

 completed, which will prove very useful. 

 In addition to his regular greenhouse 

 trade Mr. Boland cares for many of the 

 estates of the Nahant cottagers, employ- 

 ing a large staff of men on this work 

 from spring to fall. Everything on this 

 establishment is as neat as on any pri- 

 vate estate, the furnace room being no 

 exception. W. N. Ceaig. 



SEASONABLE WORK. 



Just now there is lots of work in the 

 chrysanthemum houses and it is work of 

 a character that it does not pay to leave 

 undone or keep putting off from day to 

 day. All the plants that for any reason 

 did not set a crown bud are now rushing 

 in together and disbudding should be at- 

 tended to every day. It is wonderful, 

 when the cool nights of September set in, 

 how rapid is the growth of the plants. 

 After the bud is set and swelling it 

 seems as though side shoots spring from 

 everywhere and suckers appear in a 

 night. All these must be removed for 

 the present to keep the energies of the 

 plant concentrated on the developing 

 bud. Later' on, when the flower is finish- 

 ing, the suckers may be left, as they 

 serve a good purpose in using up the 

 surplus moisture from the soil, and they 

 are needed as the nucleus for stock for 

 next year. 



Feeding has been gone into recently in 

 these notes and there is no need to re- 

 hash it, but throughout this month is 

 the period when feeding is most needed 

 and when the plant is in the best condi- 

 tion to take it up. In using liquid ma- 

 nure water always arrange things so 

 that the liquid is free from sediment. 

 Then it spreads through the soil evenly 

 and does not leave a hard scum on top of 

 the soil. This is noticed more when 

 soot water or cow manure water has been 

 used, soot water particularly clogging up 

 the pores of the soil and interfering with 

 its perfect aeration. 



Bone meal should not be used as a top 

 dressing any more now, as the plants 

 v/ill be unable to get much good out of 

 it before the flowers are cut. As the 

 different varieties get up to a point 

 where they are showing color it is well 

 to discontinue feeding altogether. If too 

 long continued the flowers, though they 

 may be a little larger, will most certain- 



ly be nnicli softer and more liable to 

 damp in the petals, and will also bruise 

 very easily during shipment. 



Tying up should be attended to now 

 while the stems are still pliable, so that 

 they may be clean and straight when 

 ready for market. Flowers with clean, 

 straight stems and perfect foliage sell 

 much more easily than a crooked look- 

 ing, neglected batch, no matter what 

 kind of flower is on top, and for exhibi- 

 tion, of course, the perfect stem ^nd foli- 



age counts considerable in the grand to- 

 tal of points. 



Shading should be attended to along 

 the early benches, where the flowers are 

 fast developing. If one has an entire 

 house of early kinds, shading is easy, 

 but if it happens that one has just one or 

 two benches of early kinds and the rest 

 are later ones, the whole house cannot be 

 shaded indiscriminately as the later ones 

 need all the sun that is going for the 

 next two or three weeks. Tack some 

 heavy cheese cloth over the flowers or 

 shade the glass outside part way up. 

 Shading is absolutely necessary for early 

 flowers, and in most cases for late ones 

 also, as the sun is so hot on occasional 

 days that it will burn the petals, no mat- 

 ter how carefully feeding has been done. 



Brian Boeu. 



FIRE HEAT FOR MUMa 



How soon will chrysanthemums require 

 fire heat? We are now liaving light 

 flOBts. T. H. 



I think a little fire heat is beneficial 

 in the mum house when the thermometer 

 shows 45° in the house. It is far better 

 to leave a crack of air on the house and 

 run a line of steam than to close the ven- 

 tilators tight to keep the house warm 

 enough without artificial aid. By keep- 

 in fr on a little air with heat the atmos- 

 phere of the house is dry and moving, 

 while if closed up tight the air is moist 

 and damping of the florets of the open- 

 ing flowers is very likely to ensue. With 

 crown buds mostly taken, I would pre- 

 fer a night temperature of about 50° ; 

 terminal buds develop in any tempera- 

 ture above actual freezing. 



Brian Boru. 



Cadillac, Mich. — A, W. Tweedie has 

 had a very good crop of asters thi« 

 season; no disease. 



Springfield, O. — The Springfield Flo- 

 ral Co. has increased its capital stock 

 from $40,000 to $50,000. 



CARNATION NOTES.-EAST. 



Stem-Rot. 



This trouble is now due to make its 

 appearance if conditions have been such 

 as to favor its development. 



The above statement may be at vari- 

 ance with the opinion of those who hold 

 that this disease is constitutional. It 

 is admitted that some varieties are more 

 susceptible to it than others, but the re- 

 sults of numerous experiments and close 

 observation have led me to believe that 

 stem-rot is wholly dependent on surround- 

 ing conditions. Nothing has been left 

 undone in the efforts to discover a medns 

 of cure, but we are still at a loss for a 

 remedy when a plant is once afflicted. 



It was thought sterilization of the soil 

 would prove beneficial and perhaps elim- 

 inate it, but admitting a bench when 



treated was free from it, as soon as filled 

 with field-grown plants, the soil adhering 

 to the roots being introduced, the soil 

 proper could no longer be called sterilized. 



The only course left open to us is 

 prevention, and this can be practiced by 

 maintaining conditions beneficial to car- 

 nation growth but unsuitable to the de- 

 velopment of stem-rot. 



Stem-rot is classed as a fungous dis- 

 ease and is transmitted by thread-like 

 spores, but we know these spores will in 

 time perish unless deposited where con- 

 ditions are favorable to their growth. 

 We also know these spores will remain 

 dormant a long time in soil and that ex- 

 cessive moisture is one of the conditions 

 needed to awaken them to activity. 



Should the plants become weakened 

 at housing time through careless digging, 

 exposure of roots to sun and wind, im- 

 proper planting, too much spraying or 

 watering, very close planting, use of soil 

 in bad mechanical condition, maintain- 

 ing a damp, stagnant atmosphere, in fact 



