' ^-J^"/.*. "It 



E-TtV" "■.-.; >T;-.i;- r'*w,.j. \ tjv u^^^f^\fi^ 



860 



The Weekly Florists^ Review* 



Februabt 7, 1907. 



nations equal to those grown in clay soil. 

 It may even do better; I cannot tell. 



In feeding the plants, I begin as soon 

 as I have fire in the house. I feed them 

 lightly now and then and keep them on 

 the move. I do not use the liquid 

 manure. I use sheep manure, bone flour, 

 air-slaked lime and v^ood ashes. 



I have not kept a night fireman, ex- 

 cept on extremely cold nights and run 

 my house between 45 degrees and 52 de- 

 grees. In one of my houses I have taken 

 out the partition on one side for growing 

 violets. The temperature of this place 

 is usually about 45 degrees when the 

 others are 50 degrees. Here I always 

 have been growing my namesake. I find 

 that in this house the best flowers are 

 produced and yet the plants are very 

 proUflc. 



Insects and Diseases. 



The troubles connected with the rais- 

 ing of this flower I have also met with 

 and have been kept busy fighting. One 

 of these troubles at one time was stem- 

 rot, as they call it. I will not undertake 

 to say what the cause of it is, or the 

 remedy. There are many different opin- 

 ions on this great question. I will give 

 you the experience I had one year in this 

 line. In the autumn I buried vegetables, 

 such as turnips, radishes, beets, etc. In 

 the spring, when the ground was pre- 

 pared for planting, there were still, in a 

 certain patch, vegetables that had either 

 rotted or frozen, also some salt hay, 

 which had been used for covering bulbs, 

 and tomato vines grown the previous 

 year. Here, I planted my young stock 

 of carnations. The plants raised on this 

 patch suffered with stem-rot. It was so 

 peculiar, only these plants were infected. 

 Those which did not get it in the field, 

 got it after planting in. This taught me 

 that I must be very careful not to have 

 any decaying matter or fermented matter 

 around the place. I have been very 

 strict in the matter of cleanliness. Clean- 

 liness is next to godliness. All refuse 

 must be taken away immediately and sur- 

 roundings must be kept sweet and clean. 

 I have used air-slaked lime occasionally 

 for this purpose. 



Another trouble is that dreadful dis- 

 ease, rust. From all my past experience 

 I find that by taking the best of care of 

 the plants, beginning at the time of 

 planting-in and using all the precautions 

 that would be used if they were infected 

 right along, it will seldom appear at all. 

 An ounce of prevention is worth a pound 

 of cure. My plants are watched closely 

 and if any plants show the least symp- 

 toms of it the infected leaves are at 

 once taken off. 



To avoid the much hated thrips and 

 greenfly, the plants are sprayed with 

 nicoticide, say, once a week; but precau- 

 tion is used in choosing a bright day for 

 the work. I also begin this treatment 

 as soon as the plants are put into the 

 house. I find this treatment of plants 

 more successful than the method of 

 smoking I used in previous years. Since 

 the present treatment has been used I am 

 molested very little with these pests. 



These are some of my experiences. It 

 is impossible for me to relate all of the 

 little details. I feel that there is still a 

 great deal for me to learn. My interest 

 is at its highest point. My aim is to do 

 better each year. I hope to meet you 

 often in the future, to hear your experi- 

 ences and views on the various questions. 

 This way of meeting to tell each others' 

 views and visiting each others' places, 

 I believe^ will lead to a grand advance- 

 ment in the culture of the carnation. 



NEW ORLEANS. 



G)nvention Plans. 



February 15 and 16 are the dates fixed 

 for the 1907 convention of the Society of 

 Southern Florists in this city, and the 

 local members and florists generally are 

 preparing to make the occasion a big 

 success. Invitations have been printed 

 and sent out notifying florists all over 

 the south and through the country gener- 

 ally that the convention will meet at the 

 time mentioned, and urgent steps will 

 be taken to guarantee a big attendance. 

 The time fixed is immediately after 

 Mardi Gras, and it is thought that plac- 

 ing the date then will assure the attend- 

 ance of many who would not otherwise 

 attend. First Vice-president C. W. Eich- 

 ling, who has charge of the arrangements, 

 announces that K. Lockerbie has ap- 

 pointed the following on his subcommit- 

 tee: Messrs. Steckler, Newsham, Pap- 

 worth, Chopin, Lapouyade, Menard, Paul 

 and Otto Abele and others. 



Preparations are being made to see 

 that all visitors will be assured of satis- 

 factory quarters during their stay here, 

 Joseph Steckler having this matter in 

 charge. A list of hotels and rooming- 

 houses will be published and announce- 

 ment will shortly he made of the full 

 program. The prospects are that the 

 trade exhibit will be quite extensive. 

 The subjects which will be discussed at 

 the meeting will be of general interest. 

 This will be the first convention the 

 Society of Southern Florists has ever 

 held and efforts are all the more being 

 made to guarantee a fitting reception be- 

 ing given by the city. 



Variotsi Notes. 



Balls and weddings are keeping some 

 florists busy. Complaints are made that 

 flowers coming from the north arrive in 

 a bad condition. The markets for plants 

 will soon open. This winter has been 

 unusually warm. Many florists are 

 ready with any quantity of blooming 

 stuff. 



J. Menard is building large frames 

 covered with sashes to protect his As- 

 paragus plumosus. At J. Newsham 's 

 and W. C. Withers', who are growing 

 ferns in quantity, we have noticed the 

 same accommodation for their stock. 

 They are cheaper than greenhouses, only 

 a flow and a return hot water pipe be- 

 ing used inside. 



F, Gruza is raising Marechal Niel 

 roses in quantity. They are grafted on 

 wild stocks. He says he cannot grow 

 enough to supply the demand. 



J. St. Mard • is lifting from the open 

 ground a few large plants of Washing- 

 tonia filifera. 



J. A. Bauer, of Paducah, Ky., was in 

 town and sold a few carloads of his 

 pots. M. M. L. 



TARRYTOWN, N. Y. 



The regular monthly meeting of the 

 Tarry town Horticultural Society was 

 held Tuesday evening, January 29, Presi- 

 dent Howard Nichols presiding. A fine 

 lot of cyclamen plants were on exhibi- 

 tion. Joseph Bradley, gardener to Sid- 

 enburgh Hastings, won the prize with 

 three excellent yearling plants. Howard 

 Nichols offers a prize for the best twelve 

 roses other than American Beauties for 

 the February meeting. H. C. Griffin, of 

 Tarrytown, was elected an honorary 

 member. Two of the essays on "Vege- 

 tables ' ' that were in, competition for the 

 Peter Henderson prize at the autumn 



show were read, and a lively discussion 

 followed. The authors of the essays were 

 George Standen and C. Newton. 



Resolutions of sympathy were read 

 and adopted on the death of John Egan 

 one of the charter members of the soci- 

 ety. Mr. Egan was one of the pioneers 

 and one of the most able gardeners in 

 this section. For many years he was in 

 charge of the Gurney estate at Irving. 

 ton, but latterly conducted a business m 

 Tarrytown. He was one of the best 

 grape growers in his day, and his name 

 was associated with the production of 

 many things in floriculture. 



Eesolutions of condolence to Clauio 

 Wilson, Dobb's Ferry, on the death n^' 

 his son, were also read. D. McF. 



NEW YORJL 



The Market. 



On Monday a western blizzard ar 

 rived. The ground bog's view of hi^ 

 shadow on Saturday was verified anU 

 the long, cold winter seems to have be 

 gun. The convention weather has cer- 

 tainly followed us from Canada. The 

 worst storm of the year is raging, cars 

 are blocked, the temperature is falling 

 rapidly, and the outlook is blue and 

 white as this letter starts for Chicago. 



Business has been unsatisfactory for 

 a week. Prices have been high, stock 

 scarce and retail demand below the 

 normal. The prospect for the present 

 week is not encouraging. The finest 

 Beauties still command from $9 to $12 

 a dozen, but they are few and far be- 

 tween. The best Maids and Brides sold 

 readily at from $15 to $20 per hundred, 

 but there were few of them. Prices a 

 year ago were about half of those now 

 prevailing. A good deal of pessimistic 

 comment comes from the growers. Even 

 with such excellent prices, the lack of 

 supply is the serious consideration. 



There are plenty of carnations and 

 values have fallen fifty per cent from 

 the high figures of two weeks ago. Or- 

 chids are abundant, but the call for 

 them continues, not only locally but 

 from all parts of the country. It looks 

 a? if the prospective brides had com- 

 bined everywhere to carry orchid bou- 

 quets or postpone the wedding ceremo- 

 nies. Gardenias maintain their popular- 

 ity. Valley is coming in freely. Some 

 fine stock from the Dale Estate at 

 Brampton, Can., is in evidence on Twen- 

 ty-eighth street. There is an oversupply 

 of bulbous stock and plenty of smilax 

 and adiantum. Lilac is fine and pop- 

 ular. Lilies are scarce and high, and 

 violets have settled down to a steady 

 gait, at 50 cents to $1 per hundred, 

 where they are likely to hold until 

 Easter. 



Lent begins next week Wednesday, 

 but it will not even jar the market. The 

 day of its potency is past. Eight weeks 

 from Sunday is Easter. It seems hard 

 to realize it tonight, with the blizzard 

 raging and the extremities tingling 

 from the icy grasp of old Jack Frost. 

 But there is no time to be lost in pre- 

 paring for the great spring festival and 

 everyone is alert and enterprising in the 

 advance bookings and engagements for 

 the grand stock grown on every hand 

 by the expert plantsmen of this vicin- 

 ity. As to Lent, the period of sack- 

 cloth and ashes is crowded with balls, 

 dances, dinners and weddings, the so- 

 cial and society columns of the local 

 papers being filled with coming func- 

 tions reaching far into the springtime. 



