Ai'BiL 23, 1007. 



The Weekly Florists^ Review* 



1745 



lit to pot off in four weeks if kept 

 vhjicled from the sun and well soaked 

 ^vitli water. Plenty of water is neces- 

 sary. Water three times a day if bright 

 jinci leave them damp at night. There is 

 ,1,1 fear of their rotting off, as many 

 >; ijt-wooded plants would do. 



tJse a rather light, leaf-moldy soil for 

 *;,.; first potting, a heavier one for suc- 

 cessive shifts. Don't use finely screened 

 ^,,il* the coarser the better. A mixture 

 i>:: fibrous loam, dried cow manure, a lit- 

 ,!,' broken charcoal and some sharp sand 

 H suitable. If you decide to grow in 

 pols, you can still procure good stuff in 

 i: inch pots by propagating now. 



Gardenias on Benches. 



If bench culture is preferred, put 

 plenty of coarse drainage in the bottom. 

 Sliake out the finer particles of soil, 

 •,liich will only make the soil soggy. A 

 < I impost is needed which will carry water 

 through it speedily and which dries out 

 readily. Plant out stock frorii 4-inch 

 |/()ts, two feet between the rows and 

 eighteen inches between the plants. Leave 

 the soil around each plant elevated some- 

 what, to form a sort of mound. The 

 jii.ints need frequent syringing to keep 

 down mealy bug and this allows the 

 l)cnch to dry out better than if you had 

 a level surface. We find two or three 

 syringings a week with a good spray noz- 

 zle attached to the hose will keep the 

 ])lants absolutely clean. A light spraying 

 overhead once or twice a day is helpful, 

 l)ut by using the nozzle under the plants 

 and directing the water upward as well 

 as downward, clean plants will be the 

 result. 



We hear much of yellow foliage on 

 gardenias and, of course, flowers with 

 jjolden leaves are of no use. Too soggy 

 :i compost causes this. Occasional doses 

 of soot water. Clay's fertilizer or Bo- 

 iior.^ will keep the foliage a dark green 

 <M)lor, A slight drying out at the root 

 in November will assist in the formation 

 of flower buds. This must not, however, 

 be carried to excess or the buds will fall. 

 Overwatering also is a cause for loss of 

 flower buds. 



Any intelligent florist can grow gar- 

 <ler.ias at a profit if near a large market 

 and he will find the flowers useful for 

 bouquet and funeral work at home. Gar- 

 denia florida is the most suitable variety 

 to grow. 



Lily of the Valley. 



Weather reports from all parts of the 

 <ountry show a continuance of the un- 

 seasonably cold weather for April and 

 \egetation is more backward than usual. 

 As a rule lily of the valley is on the wane 

 'It Memorial day, when grown outdoors. 

 A good way to secure a supply at that 

 lime is to plant it in frames instead of 

 the cases in your propagating house. By 

 .^hading, you can hold it back much bet- 

 I'-T than outdoor-grown stock and also se- 



nre finer spikes of better substance than 

 . ou have had in the greenhouse. There 

 -'s usually a good call for valley during 

 May and June and a batch should be 

 " lanted at least every ten days, allowing 



rom three to four weeks for full de- 

 •olopment of the flowers. Keep them 

 ■larkened to draw up the spikes, and 

 ^vater freely. Use water with care after 

 -he bells begin to open. 



Dahlias from Green Cuttings. 



We have noticed considerable contro- 

 ■ersy on this subject of late. Many of 

 'he large commercial dahlia growers con- 

 'lemn the practice, which is the one uni- 



M. Crawford. 



versally adopted in Europe. Personally 

 we must say that experience has taught 

 us that these soft cuttings make the best 

 {)lants and produce far better flowers 

 than the root divisions generally used. 

 Of course, there is a possibility of cut- 

 worms destroying them. But in Europe 

 they have more to fear from snails than 

 we from cutworms, yet they prefer the 

 green cuttings. We believe that in the 

 future more plants will be grown from 

 cuttings and less dry roots be shipped 

 out as plants. 



As to their not forming tubers, any 

 cutting rubbed off with a heel, or cut 

 below a pair of leaves, will make splen- 

 did tubers, which are much to be pre- 

 ferred to the unwieldy ones produced by 

 the plan now generally adopted. The 

 very best sort of tubers are those from 

 cuttings planted outdoors, or grown in 

 small pots all summer. These carry over 

 winter better than any others. 



We think it a pity that pot rodts are 

 not more grown for shipping purposes. 

 They are far preferable to divided field- 

 grown roots, being lighter and more sure 

 to grow. 



Early planting of dahlias grown from 

 green cuttings is not to be recommended. 

 If set out at the end of June they will 

 produce splendid flowers in September 

 and October when they are most valued. 



Cosmos. 



This pretty annual proves useful on 

 most retail places. It is a mistake to 

 sow it too early. Seed put in now will 

 produce quite large plants in a month, as 

 early as it safely can be planted out. It 

 is at best an uncertain plant in our 

 northern states. If we get an early 

 frost we get no returns from it. If, on 

 the other hand, frost holds off until late, 

 flowers of all kinds are so plentiful there 

 is little call for it. It is a plant easily 



broken by high winds and unless planted 

 in a sheltered spot and securely staked 

 the fall gales and rains make short work 

 of it. The best plan is to grow a batch 

 in boxes, stake up securely and place in 

 a cool house when frost threatens. By 

 judicious feeding a splendid lot of flow- 

 ers can be had from a comparatively 

 small batch of plants. 



Trees and Shrubs. 



At this season almost every florist is 

 called upon to do a certain amount of 

 planting of trees and shrubs for his cus- 

 tomers. We presume the average man 

 needs no instruction as to how to plant. 

 Do not, however, dig a hole just large 

 enough to squeeze tlie roots in and ex- 

 pect good results. It is necessary in the 

 planting of trees and shrubs to prepare 

 tiie ground well if successful results are 

 desired. Make holes of ample size, re- 

 move all stones, gravel and sand and re- 

 ])lace with good loam. Do not mix any 

 animal manure or fertilizer with the com- 

 post unless you want to destroy your 

 shrubs. Probably your customer will 

 want you to do so. Explain to him that 

 it is the worst thing' he could do. A 

 mulching on the surface, of old manure, 

 after planting is good, but keep it away 

 from the roots. Be sure all roots are 

 spread out carefully and that the soil is 

 thoroughly tramped. Loosely planted 

 stock will never thrive. Do not plant 

 stock with dry roots. Dip them in a 

 puddle of muddy water. Clay, if pos- 

 sible, should be used, as it sticks well. 

 Cut back long shoots on deciduous 

 shrubs. They will make much bettor 

 plants by judicious pruning. 



Brief Reminders. 



You can still put in a late batch of 

 heliotrope cuttings and get nice little 

 I)lants before the end of May. Keep 



