May 23, 1907. 



The Weekly Florists^ Review* 





adapted for such use are Catherine Duer 

 a^d Fire Rain, the former a favorite in 

 Newport for several years for all pur- 

 poses, and the latter a recent introduc- 

 tion by Henry A'.-Dreer, of Philadelphia. 

 The pompon dahlias are also appro- 

 priate for bedding. Many of them are 

 not rank growers and their flowers are 

 diminutive and peculiarly attractive when 

 the plants are in masses. 



When such use is made of dahlias they, 

 of course, need some kind of support, 

 but that can be given them without it 

 being objectionably noticeable, as often 

 dahlia stakes are when seen in single 

 lows or in borders on private places. All 

 that is necessary is a limited number of 

 stakes, with the addition of a few wires. 



R. R. 



EARLY PLANTING. 



The benefits to be derived from early 

 planting are many and lasting. The 

 young stock gets the advantage of the 

 best growing season and has more time 

 in which to make a thrifty bush before 

 taking a first cut. Where a system of 

 record keeping is strictly enforced, the 

 cut taken from houses planted in May 

 will, by the end of the season, show a 

 vast superiority, both in quantity and 

 quality, all other conditions being equal, 

 over those planted in July. Young stock 

 in pots is also liable to suffer during 

 hot weather and will succeed muet bet- 

 ter in the bench. \ 



Repairing the benches consumes con- 

 siderable time which can ill be spared at 

 this season, but as it is essential that a 

 bench which is intended to bear a sea- . 

 son's crop should be sufliciently strong 

 and stable, a little care should be used 

 so that the bench may not break down 

 in midwinter. 



After being repaired, they should be 

 '. thoroughly washed with a good force of 

 water, sufl&cient to reach every crevice, 

 and if the benches are of wood they 

 should get a thorough coating of hot 

 lime wash. This, while acting as a 

 preservative of the wood, will also act 

 as a disinfectant and destroyer of fung- 

 ous growths, insects, their eggs, etc. 



The sashbars also should receive a 

 thorough cleaning of all the scum and 

 dirt which has accumulated during the 

 season, and should be painted if neces- 

 sary. The old soil from under the benches 

 should also be removed and everything 

 made clean and tidy. 



The cracks in the bottom of the bench 

 should be covered with some material, 

 such as wheat or rye straw, to keep the 

 soil from running through until it gets 

 set. 



The distances at which the different 

 varieties are set apart differs in different 

 localities, because of different qualities 

 of soil, water and local conditions. 

 Bride, Maid, Richmond, Kaiserin and 

 Golden Gate should at least have one 

 square foot in which to grow, and if 



grafted stock is used they ought to h&ve 

 at least one-third more room. Beauties 

 require one and one-half square feet of 

 space. 



To hasten the young stock and to give 

 stamina to the young growth, one pound 

 of bone meal can be added to each cubic 

 yard of compost; or, if spread on the 

 surface of the bench just previous to 

 planting, twenty pounds to a bench 4i/^x 

 100 feet is plenty at this time. There is 

 no necessity for stirring it into the soil, 

 as enough will lodge around the roots 

 while planting, and the subsequent stir- 

 ring of the soil and watering will carry 

 the remainder deep enough for the roots 

 to find it. 



Having all in readiness for planting, 

 the manual part of the work is practi- 

 cally completed, and the planting, which 

 is a simple operation, can be done with 

 care and leisure. Ribes. 



ROSE FRAU KARL DRUSCHKL 



Like the farmers in Virgil, and in our 

 own days, rosarians have generally a 

 complaint against the climate, says a 



writer in a British gardeners' magazine. 

 In 1906 in the fine weather roses had a 

 good innings, but to the grower of hybrid 

 perpetuals, either for garden decoration 

 or exhibition, the season was an unsat- 

 isfactory one. 



The great exception was Frau Karl 

 Druschki. I will not enter into a disputa- 

 tion here as to whether this grand rose 

 is correctly classified. It is enough for 

 me to know that it is as free^flowering 

 as the best of the hybrid teas, as hardy 

 as any of the hybrid perpetuals, and as 

 vi^orouB qs manj! n Ro-falled climbing^ 

 rose. Seldom, indeed, does a rose leap 

 into such universal popularity in so brief 

 a space of time. Such a feat clearly 

 demonstrates how great is the demand 

 for varieties of good growth, unques- 

 tioned hardiness, floriferous habit and 

 fine color. 



The advent of Frau Karl Druschki 

 marked an important stage in the evolu- 

 tion of the rose, and, although Peter 

 Lambert was not, I am led to under- 

 stand, its actual raiser, but only its in- 

 troducer, his name will be handed down 

 along with those of Jacotot and Guillot 

 of Gloire -de Dijon and La' France fame 

 respectively. Chief among its good 

 qualities is its amenability to almost any 

 soil or situation. 



GARDENIAS IN ROSE HOUSE. 



Can gardenias be grown on a side 

 bench in a rose house? When is the 

 best time to plant them? M. G. 



While gardenias can be grown in a 

 rose house, they will do much better in a 

 higher temperature. A minimum of not 

 less than 60 degrees is necessary, but 5 

 degrees higher is better. If you decide 

 to plant them in a rose house, choose the 

 warmest end of the house and, if steam 

 or hot water pipes are laid below the 

 bench to give a uttle bottom heat, all 

 the better. The present month or June 

 is the best time to plant. Stock from 

 2 14 -inch or 3-inch pots is suitable and 

 be careful not to overwater after plant- 

 ing or it may bring on an attack of the 

 yellows, ,K) often seen. C. W. 



TOPPING YOUNG PLANTS. 



Will some one explain when and how 

 far carnations should be cut back? The 

 young plants are in pots and are eight 

 inches high. I have cut the leaves back 

 a little. This is my first year in raising 

 carnation plants, I am ^.Iso in doubt 

 about my mums. They are twelve inches 

 high, on own roots. I am afraid they 

 will get too tall. What is the best way 

 to get rid of black fly on mums? 



W. U. 



To trim the leaves of your young. car- 

 nation plants will not cause them to 

 break. You must take out the whole 

 top of the plant and cut it down in the 

 stem between two joints. On most va- 



rieties it is best to leave from five to six 

 joints, which will be about four or five 

 inches above the pot. Do this at once 

 if the stem shows between the leaves, 

 and get them planted out as quickly as 

 possible. When they get to growing 

 well in the field they will need to be 

 topped closer. Watch these notes, as I 

 will have more to say on this subject in 

 due time. 



If your mums are drawing up, get 

 them spread apart so they can grow 

 heavier. Plant them in the bench where 

 they are to flower, or if you cannot do 

 that, then repot into larger pots; they 

 will likely need a shift. I take it that 

 they are to be grown for cut blooms on a 

 bench. You can top mums and make 

 them grow into bush form, as many 

 branches as you like, by merely taking 

 off the top of each shoot whenever you 



