'7T 



704 



The Weekly Florists^ Review* 



JaiNuarx 24, 1907 



Time of Planting. 



We plant in the field about May 1 and 

 lift again the first part of August, but 

 we hardly get as strong growth as you 

 do in the United States. Heretofore I 

 have been propagating my plants in au- 

 tumn and early winter; but this year 

 I have propagated most of my plants in 

 August, and I now have strong plants, 

 and then I keep them quite cool through 

 the winter, just about freezing. In that 

 way I take the, cuttings from the old 

 plants just before throwing them out. 

 They give good cuttings at that time, as 

 we are not troubled much with red spider 

 and the summer is not so hot that they 

 will not make a good growth all through 

 the summer, and in this way we save the 

 plants a good deal in autumn. 



In some places here they keep the 

 young plants in a coldframe all winter, 

 only protected with glass and shutters, 

 and the ground will at times be frozen 

 hard, but it is mostly the European vari- 

 eties they keep in that way. However, 

 I think it a little risky, as I saw in one 

 place where they all died in a short time 

 from drip and rot. 



Temperature. 



When I first started I kept my carna- 

 tions on a night temperature of about 50 

 degrees. The stems would then be rather 

 weak; nevertheless they sold well all 

 through the winter at 60 cents per dozen. 

 But in the last few years the importa- 

 tions from the south have increased to 

 such an extent that they sell carnations 

 here in midwinter from 25 cents to 30 

 cents per dozen. And these are nice, 

 large flowers, with good, stiff stems, from 

 fifteen to twenty inches long; in fact, 

 they are better flowers than we csm pro- 

 duce here with our short days. 



I now keep them on about 38 to 40 

 degrees through December, January and 

 February. In that way we get few 

 flowers in midwinter, but the plants will 

 be better and stronger in the spring and 

 will give a good crop in April, May smd 

 June, the time when there is the biggest 

 demand for them. On the whole, we have 



to look for such varieties as will give a 

 good crop in October and November and 

 again in the spring, and we will get a 

 better price then than in midwinter. In 

 fact, it is impossible for us to compete 

 with the imported stock when it is at its 

 best. They are at present working on a 

 revision of the tariff, and if we should 

 get a duty on cut flowers it would be a 

 great help to the florists and there would 

 be grown a great many more carnations. 



A warm house is essential in this lati- 

 tude. My own houses consist of about 

 20,000 feet of glass, one-half in carna- 

 tions. The houses are 18x100 and 24x 

 100, heated by hot water. The glass, 

 14x19, is of double thickness. 



AMERICAN SORTS IN ENGLAND. 



[A paper by A. F. Dutton, Iver, Bucks, Eng- 

 land, read before the American Carnation So- 

 ciety at the TorontOtConvention.] 



I am pleased to give you my candid 

 opinion as to the views of my fellow 

 growers and the general opinion of the 

 English public now, in regard to the car- 

 nations that have been imported from the 

 States. 



Effect of First Showing. 



It is now some five years ago that they 

 were first grown and shown to perfection 

 and called Americafi tree carnations, and 

 I have the pleasure of being the first to 

 show them in the way they are now gen- 

 erally shown here. My fir^^ exhibit of 

 note was at the Temple, 1903, when they 

 caused quite a sensation, and I may say 

 the great start to their present popular- 

 ity. They at first met witii ft great deal 

 of criticism from the border carnation 

 fancier, and I was told by one > who is 

 considered the finest raiser of this kind 

 in our country (I may use his words) : 

 "Well, Mr. Dutton, I congratulate you 

 on your exhibit; nothing could b6:-,more 

 beautiful." With this remark" t /^ais 

 quite content, and knew their day would 

 have to come. 



Now they are being grown on quite a 

 large scale as a market flower, where be-- 

 fore only the inferior and short-stemmed 



variQJiies were seen, such as Duchess of 

 rife, Urial Pike and Miss Joliffe. But 

 I may add, there is a great difference in 

 the quality of carnations produced by 

 different growers, and It is only the few 

 who can grow to real perfection. 



New Society and New Varieties* 



This month a newly formed society 

 namely, the Winter Flowering Carna- 

 tion Society, held a very successful 

 show at the Botanic Gardens, London, iu 

 which the American varieties predomi 

 nated, there being classes for thirty-si 

 and eighteen blooms of a color, also fc; 

 groups of cut blooms. The show wa.> 

 in every way a success, and a fine loi 

 of blooms was staged. 



I may. give a few lines on the new v;' 

 rieties that are being raised from yonv 

 imported varieties. I consider that b' 

 fore many seasons we shall have som • 

 very fine varieties, quite a credit to thei? 

 parentage. ' Britannia, ' which is bein,^ 

 disseminated this year, is the finest scar 

 let I know. It puts Eobert Craig and 

 Victory in the shade, and I firmly be- 

 lieve that we shall have other varieties- 

 in time, of eqvial merit. But it is not 

 for me to dwell oil the possibilities of the 

 future, but the facts of the past and 

 present. 



Shipping. 



In regard to shipping, this will always 

 be a great drawback to business being 

 transacted on a .large scale, as it is far 

 too uncertain tfli please the majority of 

 growers here wlwy receive them. I my- 

 self have received successful shipments, 

 but these have been fi^w and far be- 

 tween; for instance, fine consignment 

 turn^d'o'ut good; another, from the same 

 grower, turned out the reverse, and the 

 loss was eighty per cent. It would have 

 been policy to have burned the entire lot 

 on arrival, as the survivors were weak, 

 unhealthy .and infected with rust, also 

 the spo^v/'i ofttin feel I should like to 

 think I had never to ship any more, as 

 it is always a nightmare when shipping 

 time comes in the spring. 



House of Carnation White Perfection at the Establishment of the Chicago Carnation Co., Joliet, 111. 



