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Dbckmber 15, 1904. 



The Weekly Florists' Review^ 



m 



Decorated Immortelle Christmas Wreaths, Arranged by Geo. Stumpp, New York. 



tard their growth during the first weeks 

 of April. Nitrate of soda, being quick 

 in its action, should only be used in 

 small quantities and only when plants are 

 making their best growth. One pound to 

 fifty gallons of water is sufficiently 

 strong for even such so ft- wooded plants 

 as If. longiflorum. R. 



ONDERS-IDLE BENCH. 



Is it advisable to use soft coal cinders 

 in place of sand under pot plants on a 

 bench! What would be best to plant in 

 a carnation bench where the plants have 

 died out? Would asters fill the bill, and 

 what kind? E. S. F. 



After long experience and careful ob- 

 servation I have found no material su- 

 perior to coal ashes as a bed for small 

 pots. Sand after a short time is liable 

 to become muddy and is at all times lia- 

 ble to shift when watering is beinicr done. 

 So long as ashes are kept fresh there is 

 little danger from earth worms, which 

 are so destructive to drainage. 



Where carnation crops have failed and 

 the house is not suited for a stock house 

 or where it cannot be utilized for bed- 

 ding stock, a crop of cut and come 

 again stocks of the Princess Alice vari- 

 ety can be made to pay. There are other 



crops, such as Gladiolus Mav and Blush- 

 ing Beauty, mignonette and, even late 

 as it is, Lilium longifloram, which will 

 pay better than asters. Any of the 

 standard varieties of asters which are 

 suitable for forcing may be used with 

 success. R. 



ADIANTUMS. 



Can adiantums be grown with suc- 

 cess under benches that are about half 

 lighted? What is the treatment they 

 need if grown on the benches? Do they 

 need a temperature above or below 50 

 degrees? We have had no success with 

 them at all. H. O. C. 



Adiantums cannot be grown profitably 

 or satisfactorily under the benches in a 

 half lighted location, there being usu- 

 ally too much drip from the bench above, 

 too many snails and other vermin on the 

 ground beneath, and in addition to these 

 disadvantages the fronds grown in so 

 poor a light are too soft to be useful 

 in cut flower work. 



The culture of adiantums for eutting 

 is very briefly stated as follows: Fill 

 a benqji to a depth of four or five inches 

 with good rose soil, then plant strong 

 young adiantums from 3-inch pots twelve 

 to fifteen inches apart, this being prefer- 



ably done in July in readiness for the 

 following winter. Water in the newly 

 planted stock, but do not get the soil 

 sodden, thus giving the plants a chance 

 to root better. Keep the glass shaded 

 until about the middle of October, after 

 which the full sunshine will be bene- 

 ficial. 



Ventilate quite freely as long as the 

 weather will permit and, as the plants 

 become established, water more freely, 

 but avoid souring the soil, and as the 

 days grow shorter be sure to water early 

 in the day, so that the plants will dry 

 off before night. The beat temperature 

 at which to grow these ferns is 60 to 

 62 degrees at night. 



The worst pest one has to contend with 

 in growing adiantums for fronds is the 

 common snail and various remedies are 

 suggested. Among the best is pulverized 

 camphor sprinkled sparingly among the 

 plants. An occasional dusting of slaked 

 lime over the surface of the soil also 

 discourages snails to some extent and is 

 also beneficial to some soils. 



W. H. Taplin. 



Butte, Mont. — The new greenhouses 

 at the Columbia Gardens were completed 

 December 1. 



