■|!!li;flP|npPII||l!U|jpiJII.I! ,1 .LUL .iH^liWpi 



-w5ff|pi(ppBlui|iljli^^^l|i?P^.^.».i!«ui.^«-,f!jjiyii|V 'J. ijr-r-T-^'im,!.. .-t-cti ijii^i^apiii^ jii ii 



-.5- 



August 10, 1905. 



The Weekly Florists' Review* 



61% 



A ■ 



j-**v 



>--'i4i'»*i*»'u.. ilUllki^i, ' ik»: ' ''i(im>^t%''-^m^i 



'ftyvniv' 



A Part of Peter Reinberg's Range of 1,200,000 Feet of Glass.- Pliotographed by Leonard Kill. 



dianiotpi- and come whole but may be 

 split aldiifj the dotted lino, thus mak- 

 ing two half tiles two inches high and 

 form one of the best materials to stand 

 compression. They cost about 2 cents 

 per square foot of space. 



The side boards, Avhich may be of 

 wood, tile or cement slabs, do their share 

 of the work also, the intermediate cross 

 tee irons being cut so that a flat sur- 

 face catches on the lower edge of the 

 side board, which is held down by hook 

 irons at the main cross ties. 



As the tiles run lengthwise of the 

 bench, the width of the bench can read- 

 ily be varied by the width of one tile, 

 four inches. 



The bench being practically all iron 

 and tile leaves no lodgment for vermin. 



The posts for supporting the bench are 

 placed six inches in from the side, thus 

 leaving ample room for hanging the 

 heating pipes and can, for stability, be 

 bedded in concrete, but the whole struc- 

 ture, when properly erected, is stable 

 enough if set on any kind of a solid 

 foundation. Ribes. 



THE WATER HYAQNTH. 



Will you not give us a short history 

 of the water hyacinth, how it was 

 brought to the south and from where, 

 also what the government is doing to- 

 ward its destruction.' I think it would 

 be very interesting reading to quite a 

 few. G. K. 



Eichhornia speciosa, the water hya- 

 cinth, the "million-dollar wood," is a 

 native of tropical Soutii America. It 

 was known in ]879 and has been culti- 

 vated for many years in northern col- 

 lections of tender aquatic plants, where 

 its odd form and freely produced light 

 blue flowers never fail of attention and 

 admiration. Since the plant became a 

 pest in southern waters the United 

 States government has expended great 

 sums of money in the study of the 

 plant and measures for its destruction, 

 but nothing accurate has been learned 

 as to how the plant was introduced to 

 the localities where it is now so much 

 at home. As nearly as can be deter- 

 mined it was first put into the St. 

 Johns river, in Florida, by the draining 



of a pond in which it had been grown 

 for ornament. In the river they grew 

 luxuriantly and multiplied rapidly. At 

 that time no one had any idea that the 

 plant would become a nuisance and it 

 was carried to many other places by 

 tiu)se who liked it. 



The water hyacinth commonly floats 

 without attachment to the soil and thus 

 moves from place to place with the 

 winds or currents, being supported well 

 above the water by the air chambers 

 caused by the peculiar swelling of the 

 basal portions of the leaf-stalks. The 

 propagation by stolons is very rapid 

 and this, coupled with the fact that the 

 plants travel, causes them to spread 

 over nearly all bodies of sluggish fresh 

 water to which it in any manner be- 

 comes introduced. The trouble with 

 the plant usually comes from accumula- 

 tions of the floating plants, which often 

 are sufficiently impregnable to stop 

 screw and sidewheel steamboats and 

 sometime even paddle-wheel boats. 



The Department of Agriculture has 

 made many tests to determine how the 

 water hyacinth can be destroyed. Sev- 

 eral purely mechanical means were 

 tried, removing the plants and clearing 

 the water, but it was found that the 

 pest speedily became as bad as ever, 

 possibly growing from seeds left in the 

 water. Gasoline, salt and various 

 poisons were found to kill the plants 

 but to the use of each there is a seri- 

 ous objection. In 1897 the Department 

 set forth its findings in a bulletin in 

 which the writer said: "On the whole 

 I am forced to the conclusion that the 

 eradication of the water hyacinth is 

 impracticable; furthermore, those who 

 have given the matter candid consid- 

 eration mostly agree in this opinion." 



This seems to have ended the matter 

 with the Department of Agriculture, or 

 at least it offers nothing of later date, 

 but the War Department, which is 

 brought into the hiatter by its control 

 over navigable waters, is continuing the 

 battle against this pest. For the pfist 

 two years the Engineer's Oflice of the 

 War Department has been operating 

 with considerable success with a chem- 

 ical prepared by the Harvesta Chemical 

 Co., of New Orleans. 



BOSTON. 



The Market. 



A fairly good market has been experi- 

 enced of late. The quantity of flowera 

 coming in has not been lieavy, but ample 

 for requirements. In roses Beauties^ 

 Kaiserins and Carnots of (food quality- 

 are seen. These bring very fair prices. 

 Carnations are quite small. The top. 

 price is $1.50, poorer stock going as low 

 as 40 cents to 50 cents. Sweet peas have- 

 improved a little in quality since we had 

 recent rains, and sell quite well. Asters 

 are abundant and the quality is extra 

 good, whites of course being in best de- 

 mand for funeral work. Some good glad- 

 ioli come in, also Lilium longiflorum, 

 auratum and speciosum. These sell from 

 $6 to $10 per hundred. 



Various Notes. 



It looks as if a delegation of fifty 

 will leave Boston for the convention. 

 Some are on the fence about going, too 

 busy housing carnations, etc. A good 

 representation from the Hub is, however, 

 certain. 



A. H. Hews & Co. have just placed on 

 tlie market a very neat and serviceable 

 perforated earthenware saucer for sup- 

 porting melons grown under glass, sim- 

 ilar to what are largely used in Eng- 

 land. 



.June bug larva; are causing great de- 

 struction to lawns this season, many be- 

 ing entirely ruined. The ]>est seems to 

 be especially bad in and around Boston. 



A meeting of "ornamental horticnl- 

 turists" who are affiliated with the 

 (Jardeners' and Florists" < iub will be 

 held at Horticultural hail on August 12 

 to talk over S. A. F. matters. An effort 

 will be made to rouse interest in the na- 

 tional body. ; 



T. ,T. Allen, of Lewiston, Me., former- 

 ly at Poland Springs, was in town this 

 week buying stock for fall. He reports 

 business as quite satisfactory. 



A syndicate of wealthy Bostonians 

 will erect eight large houses at Halifax, 

 Mass., to be devoted to flowers and vege- 

 tables. 



The Plant Estate. 



The gardeners' committee of the 

 Massachusetts Horticultural Society, 

 who visited the Plant cst;ito. (Proton, 



