

11 



The Weekly Florists^ Review* 



OCTOBEH 31, 1007. 



THE PRESIDENTS. 



The accompanying illustration is repro- 

 duced from an excellent snapshot in 



which the kodaker caught Frank H. 

 Traendly, of New York, pre8i<lent-elect 

 of the 8. A. F., and Robert Craig, of 



Philadelphia, president of the S. A, F. in 

 1887. Mr. Traendly 's friends elected 

 him as "a hard worker and a jolly good 

 fellow. ' ' That he also is studiously in- 

 clined is shown by the illustration, in 

 which botli of his coat pockets are full of 

 the literature of the dav. 



>^'^'^'H.-ml^^'^-T^''^'-r^-^^r^>^'rK>^'^<m^n.-'m^ry'^rf>>.^^^s.'^-r^ 



SEASONABLE 



SUGGESTIONS 



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Early Frerch Bulbs. 



October is almost gone, and that 

 reminds us that Thanksgiving day will 

 be here almost before we know it. While 

 not comparable to Christmas, Easter or 

 Memorial day in flower sales, there is 

 always a brisk demand for good flowers 

 for this holiday. If you want to have 

 some of your earliest started Paper 

 White narcissi in season, bring them into 

 a house with a night temperature of 55 

 to 60 degrees and they will flower in nice 

 time. We are presuming that these are 

 well started, as they should be. if boxed 

 when recommended. While it is quite 

 possible to have Koman hyacinths in 

 bloom, do not commence forcing them 

 unless they are well started, with growths 

 say two inches in length. If you find 

 they have plenty of roots and not suf- 

 ficient top, place them in a warm, dark 

 case for a few days to draw them up. 

 Be sure to examine these and any other 

 bulbs you may have in flats or {)ans and, 

 if showing the least signs of dryness, 

 soak them well. Many bulb failures are 

 due to too little moisture Nat the root in 

 the early stages of growth\ 



Stevia. 



That common but extremely useful 

 plant, stevia, ^^hould be kept in a cold 

 house; 40\ degrees at night is ample. 

 You will have no use for it until after 

 Thanksgiving. From that time onward 

 a succession of it will prove of great 

 value. The pots or flata will now be 

 getting well matted with active roots. 

 Provide some liquid stimulant and re- 

 member that stevia can scarcely be over- 

 watered. The dwarf variety makes a 

 .specially nice pot plant and, mixed with 

 .such - brilliant flowers as poinsettias, 

 makes a very pretty effect. 



Motchotma Riparium. 



Moschosma riparium is new to Amer- 

 ican growers, having been introduced 

 this season by C. H. Totty, of xMadison, 

 N. J. It promises to be a useful addi- 

 tion to our list of winter-blooming 

 plants. Of South African origin, the 

 moschosmas prefer cool treatment, a 

 (•hrysanthemum house being better for 

 them than one a few degrees warmer. 

 Of easy propagation from soft cuttings, 

 even if rooted quite late in the summer, 

 it can be grown into fine, bushy- plants 

 if kept pinched until early in September. 

 The flowers are eupatoriuni-like and 

 white when fully expanded. The plants 

 rather resemble some of the eupatoriums 

 in habit. The foliage has quite a pro- 

 nounced odor, pleasing to the majority. 

 We cannot tell what value the flowers 

 may have for cutting, but the chief merit 



will undoubtedly be as a Christmas pot 

 plant. 



Ferns. 



With the advent of colder weather a 

 better demand for ferns in pots will 

 spring up. Probably you have been so 

 busy planting bulbs, potting azaleas and 

 doing the thousand and one other jobs 

 incidental to a florist's life that you may 

 have neglected these a little. Plants 

 lifted from the, benches some time ago 

 will be getting nicely rooted in their pots 

 and pans and will begin to require more 

 water at the root. • Do not allow them to 

 become too crowded. Elevate some of 

 your best plants on inverted pots or on 

 pedestals. Good specimens will always 

 bring more money. There is no necessity 

 for growing these very warm ; 52 to 55 

 degrees at night is ample for the 

 nephrolepis varieties. Do not spray 

 overhead, especially in the case of the 

 heavy-frond sports, such as Elegantis- 

 sima, Barrowsii and Whitmani. Cut off 

 all decaying fronds, to make the plant as 

 attractive as possible to prospective pur- 

 chasers. 



Spiraeas. 



The roots of spiraea, or astilbe, as 

 botanists prefer to call it, will arrive 



is still grown a good deal, but there are 

 quite a number of vastly superior varie- 

 ties, such as compacta, astilboides, Glad- 

 stone and the new pink. Queen Alex- 

 andra, which altogether outclass the old 

 form. We have remarked before that 

 you can grow better spireea clumps than 

 you can buy abroad. Try it and prove 

 for yours-elf how superior they are. 



Primulas. 



The various primroses, such as Sinensis, 

 obconica and the new yellow, Kewensis, 

 will all be starting to bloom now. There 

 will be no special call for them before 

 Christmas, but nicely flowered plants will 

 be in demand at that time. A tempera- 

 ture of 45 to 50 degrees at night, plenty 

 of light but not too much direct sun- 

 light, and careful watering, are now 

 needed. The Chinese section will the 

 Tnore quickly resent overwatering, so, if 

 you use the hose among them, do not 

 water each pot indiscriminately. Better 

 to have them a little on the dry side 

 than the reverse. Afford weak manure 

 water to any which may have the pots 

 full of roots. 



Look out for aphis on the lower sides 

 of the leaves on P. obconica. If you 

 fumigate once a week, as you should all 

 winter, you can keep them in control. 

 Curling leaves and a somewhat stunted 

 growth are sure indications of the pres- 

 ence of the pest. 



Cyclamens. 



If cyclamen seeds were sown rather 

 widely apart in flats, the little seedlings 

 will be all right for some time yet. If, 

 on the other hand, you sowed them thick- 

 ly and have neglected to transplant them, 

 lose no time in doing it. A good com- 

 post is made of flaky leaf -mold, loam and 

 sand. Do not use any manure. Give the 

 little seedlings two inches of space eacii 

 way. Do not cover the tiny corm, or 

 bulb, and afford the plants a position 

 near the glass in a temperature of 55 

 degrees at night. A house with plenty 

 of pure air will suit them to a nicety. 



Frank H. Traendly. Robert Craie* 



(An Ex- President takes his hat off to the President- Elect.) 



early in November. On arrival it is well 

 to soak them in a tub of water and then 

 store in a coldframe, or even outdoors 

 where they can be easily lifted when 

 needed for forcing. Let them have a 

 good freezing before potting and wait 

 until at least Christmas before you start 

 any. The pots seen in bloom at the holi- 

 days are from cold storage roots and not 

 the new crop. The old Spiraea Japonica 



We note that the flower buds are now 

 appearing thickly on some of the older 

 plants. Those wanted for Christmas, a 

 time when cyclamens always sell well, 

 should be well looked after. A light 

 house kept at not over 50 degrees at 

 night is suitable. As the plants are or 

 .should be well rooted, afford gentle 

 stimulants once a week and do not for- 

 get a weekly fumigation. 



